Stymied and disoriented. That’s one way to describe the state of the immune system in some patients with cancer. T cells revved up to attack tumors are turned into an army of loiterers. Cells keenly attuned to signals of infection or disease fail to pick up the faint notes of cancer. A clinical trial led … Read more
As a former volunteer firefighter, Paul Calnan prided himself on being ready for any emergency. He thought nothing could rattle him — until, at age 47, doctors discovered a large, malignant tumor in his liver. The diagnosis was stage IV intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, a rare form of bile duct cancer that had presented in Calnan’s liver. … Read more
Just as the COVID-19 pandemic was sending entire states into lockdown, Jill Bailey learned that her metastatic cervical cancer was beginning to break free of the grip of chemotherapy. It was March 2020. Scans showed that Bailey’s metastatic tumors, which had shrunk in response to chemotherapy and another drug, were slowly starting to grow. A … Read more
Life is like a Mad-Lib, and Jennifer White is taking control of what she can fill in the blank spaces. The Atlanta-based cyber security consultant was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) in January 2019. In July of that same year, White, a Boston native, came to Dana-Farber. She currently comes to Boston four times … Read more
Atypical moles are irregular moles that can appear anywhere on the body. They are more commonly found on people with fair skin, as well as those with many freckles and moles on the body (more than 50). What do atypical moles look like? In order to spot atypical moles or something more serious, dermatologists recommend … Read more
Nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) is a type of throat cancer that forms in the nasopharynx, which is the upper part of the throat behind the nose. It is part of the passageway for the air from the nose to travel to the lungs. Nasopharyngeal cancer is rare, though it can occur at any age. In the … Read more
Lung cancer is second only to breast cancer for the most common type of cancer seen in women, (not counting skin cancer), the American Cancer Society reports. Here are the important facts about this type of cancer that every person should know. What is lung cancer and how are women affected? Lung cancer most commonly … Read more
Jonathan Owens says he was fortunate to get a second chance at life. By spreading the word, he hopes others won’t need similar luck. Owens had the same primary care physician for nearly 20 years, and was diligent about keeping himself in shape, as he reached his 50th birthday. Like many of his similarly aged … Read more
Scientists are beginning to make inroads into treating cholangiocarcinoma, a rare, lethal cancer of the bile ducts, with precision drugs. Last year, the first targeted drug for some patients with the disease was approved. Now, Dana-Farber scientists say they have identified another genetic alteration in a small percentage of cholangiocarcinoma patients that can be attacked … Read more
Rachel Slater insists that the hardest part about going to Harvard was getting in — if you don’t count her two bouts with brain cancer. Slater, 22, was a high school senior still waiting to hear back from colleges when she was first diagnosed with oligodendroglioma, a form of brain cancer, in early 2017. She … Read more
Dawn MacKerron realizes it might sound strange to say that getting hit in the eye with a basketball was a blessing. But an accident on the court helped inform treatment for a rare form of lymphoma and participation in a clinical trial at Dana-Farber that set her on a cancer-free path. It all started when … Read more
Cancer cells have a bias toward survival, often becoming heavily reliant on certain protein pathways to sustain themselves. Scientists are finding ways to turn that survival instinct into a liability — by making the cells even more dependent on those pathways, then choking the pathways off. It’s an approach that has now yielded a promising … Read more
Khiem Tran’s response to drug therapy for advanced colorectal cancer seemed to defy the severity of his disease. After just a few doses of chemotherapy and a targeted drug, the cancer, which had spread from his rectum to his liver, was in full retreat, with a key marker of tumor burden dropping from stratospheric levels … Read more
Joy Albi has encountered plenty of surprises during her long career as a defense attorney, but she was still caught off-guard when her HER2-positive breast cancer diagnosis took an unexpected twist last year. The way things turned out, however, made her appreciative for the new evidence revealed in her case. Albi, a Cincinnati resident, had … Read more
Communities of color, particularly Black Americans, have long faced health disparities and a disproportionate burden of cancer. Colorectal cancer is no exception. Colorectal cancer occurs at a higher rate in Black Americans than any other racial or ethnic group in the U.S., according to the American Cancer Society. African Americans are more than 20% more … Read more
Rizwan Romee, MD, is a medical oncologist at Dana-Farber and treats patients with advanced blood cancers such as leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome. He is also the director of the Haploidentical Stem Cell Transplantation Program at Dana-Farber and principal investigator of the Romee Lab for NK Cell Gene Manipulation and Therapy. Why did you decide to … Read more
Cancers of the colon and rectum are often lumped together as “colorectal cancer” because they have many features in common. However, there are important differences in the structure of the colon and rectum and how cancers of each behave and are treated. What is the difference between the colon and the rectum? The colon, or … Read more
If you happened to be looking for Alex Epshteyn this past winter, you might have found him on the ski slopes. The Charlestown, Massachusetts resident took up the sport just two years ago and has since been enthusiastically sharpening his skills. “I’m overcoming my fear and making progress, which is a great feeling,” Epshteyn says. … Read more
Immune therapies declare open season on cancer, rousing immune system cells to take up an attack on tumors. But which immune cells join the hunt, which sit it out, and what happens within immune cells that causes them to go on the offensive? Such questions are especially relevant when immunotherapies show only limited effectiveness against … Read more
Paul Rawate has never been one to sit still. Whether it was getting his blackbelt in Taekwondo at just 8 years old or growing up to run a successful business, the 45-year-old has always kept his eye on the next challenge. In 2018, Rawate faced an entirely new obstacle when he was diagnosed with metastatic … Read more