EurekAlert! National Institutes of Health

Latest news releases from NIH-funded organizations

Funded Research News

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 9-Sep-2025 14:11 ET (9-Sep-2025 18:11 GMT/UTC)

8-Sep-2025

Cancer cells can use backup routes to fuel their growth

Van Andel Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study by Van Andel Institute scientists suggest that the routes cancer cells use to process different nutrients deeply influence cell behavior. They discovered an alternate, or non-canonical, path by which cancer cells convert a ketone called β-hydroxybutyrate (β-OHB) into acetyl-CoA, an essential metabolic building block for fatty acids and cholesterol that supports cell proliferation. The findings, published today in the journal Nature Metabolism, could reshape how the relationship between diet and cancer is viewed.

Journal: Nature Metabolism
Funder: NIH/National Cancer Institute, NIH/National Cancer Institute, NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Van Andel Institute Metabolism & Nutrition (MeNu) Program, Canadian Institutes of Health Research

8-Sep-2025

Nicotine pouches may offer path to reduced tobacco harm, Rutgers study finds

Rutgers University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

As lawmakers and public health experts debate the safety of nicotine pouches, researchers from Rutgers Health found that for now, most adults that use these products also have a history of tobacco use and may be choosing these products as a possible step toward reducing or quitting more dangerous forms of nicotine delivery.

Journal: JAMA Network Open
Funder: NIH/National Cancer Institute, Food and Drug Administration

8-Sep-2025

Moffitt develops first genetically engineered cancer model in naked mole rats

H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center have created the first genetically engineered model of lung cancer in naked mole rats, a species long thought to be resistant to cancer. The findings, published in Cancer Discovery, shed light on how cancer begins in this unusual rodent and may reveal new parallels to tumor development in humans.

Journal: Cancer Discovery
Funder: NIH/National Institutes of Health

8-Sep-2025

First-ever clinical trial demonstrates safety, molecular readout and promise of pre- and post-surgery immunotherapy combination for patients with operable mesothelioma

Johns Hopkins Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A novel treatment approach using combination immunotherapy before and after surgery shows promise for patients with operable mesothelioma, according to a new study led by investigators at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center and its Bloomberg~Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy.

Journal: Nature Medicine
Funder: Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program, Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center NCI, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, NIH/National Institutes of Health, Bloomberg~Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, ECOG-ACRIN Thoracic Malignancies Integrated Translational Science Center, Robyn Adler Fellowship Award, Commonwealth Foundation, Mark Foundation For Cancer Research, Florence Lomax Eley Fund

8-Sep-2025

‘Rogue’ DNA rings reveal earliest clues to deadly brain cancer’s growth

Queen Mary University of London
Peer-Reviewed Publication

An international team of scientists has revealed how rogue rings of DNA that float outside of our chromosomes – known as extrachromosomal DNA, or ecDNA – can drive the growth of a large proportion of glioblastomas, the most common and aggressive adult brain cancer. The discovery could open the door to much-needed new approaches to diagnose glioblastoma early, track its progress and treat it more effectively.

Journal: Cancer Discovery
Funder: Francis Crick Institute, Cancer Research UK, NIH/National Cancer Institute