Researchers from Michigan State University and their partners have found new biological clues that could help doctors detect prostate cancer and heart disease earlier. This is the first time scientists have used a mix of tiny medical tools, or nanomedicine, artificial intelligence and a method called causal analysis to connect these clues directly to disease.This new diagnostic method has the potential to help millions of Americans.

Devanand Sarkar and a team of scientists at VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center found that TAF2 is overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinoma patients compared to individuals with healthy livers. Through preclinical research, they discovered that TAF2 regulates the survival of hepatocytes—the functional cells of the liver—and tumor formation. Their study—recently published in the journal Hepatology—also demonstrates that TAF2 cooperates with the MYC gene, another known major driver of cancer, to accelerate tumor growth.