Did you know that cancers in the head and neck area, including the mouth, throat, nasal cavity and voice box, account for about 4% of all new cancers diagnosed in U.S. each year? Major risk factors include smoking cigarettes as well as the use of smokeless tobacco (chewing tobacco and vaping) and alcohol. People with the human papilloma virus (HPV) are also at higher risk of developing head and neck cancer. Symptoms of the disease include a lump or sore in the mouth that doesn’t go away, difficulty swallowing and swelling of the chin or around the jawbone. Although there is no standard screening for head and neck cancers, dentists usually check the mouth for signs of cancer during routine appointments. The Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology and the Alliance Foundation Trials have several active trials specifically poised to help people with head and neck cancers.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is among the most common chronic liver diseases, and, when untreated, can progress to cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. Salk Institute scientists found that production of a protein called FGF1 in the liver varies throughout the day to affect fat release timing from the liver into the bloodstream, acting as a circadian pacemaker for liver fat metabolism. These findings illuminate a previously unknown circadian lipid trafficking mechanism in the liver, with implications for understanding how disrupted body clocks drive metabolic disease.