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New DiscoveriesJuly 23, 2020

Cancer cells in brain and spinal fluid monopolize iron to survive

When cancer cells escape their primary tumor and move to the fluid and tissues surrounding the brain and spinal cord—a condition called leptomeningeal metastasis—the result is devastating. Now, Damon Runyon Clinical Investigator Adrienne A. Boire, MD, PhD, and colleagues at Memorial Sloan Kettering have discovered how these rogue cells are able to survive in the barren environment of the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) and suggest a possible strategy for treatment.

New DiscoveriesJuly 21, 2020

PSA screening for prostate cancer more beneficial than previously recognized

A new publication from Damon Runyon Physician-Scientist Jonathan E. Shoag, MD, and colleagues at Weil Cornell Medicine shows that PSA screening has benefits beyond lowering prostate cancer death risk, such as prevention of metastatic disease and the impaired quality of life associated with its treatment. The researchers suggest that the balance of benefits and harms of screening may be more favorable than previously recognized.

New DiscoveriesJuly 2, 2020

Scientists discover cellular masterminds driving skin cancer growth

Damon Runyon Physician-Scientist Andrew L. Ji, MD, and colleagues at Stanford University School of Medicine have discovered a population of specialized cells living at the edges of a tumor that potentially guide the metastasis of skin cancer and help it evade the body’s immune system.

New DiscoveriesJune 23, 2020

American Association for Cancer Research honors Damon Runyon Alum Jedd D. Wolchok, MD, PhD

The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) has presented the 2020 AACR-Joseph Burchenal Award for Outstanding Achievement in Clinical Cancer Research to Damon Runyon alum Jedd D. Wolchok, MD, PhD. This award recognizes Dr. Wolchok for his leadership in the groundbreaking clinical development of immunotherapy drugs called checkpoint inhibitors for treating cancer.

New DiscoveriesJune 16, 2020

Damon Runyon alumnae named Pew-Stewart Scholars for Cancer Research

The Pew Charitable Trusts and the Alexander and Margaret Stewart Trust have named Damon Runyon-Dale F. Frey Breakthrough Scientist Shruti Naik, PhD, and Former Damon Runyon Fellow Jihye Yun, PhD, as part of the 2020 class of the Pew-Stewart Scholars Program for Cancer Research.

New DiscoveriesMay 27, 2020

Damon Runyon alumnus wins 2020 Kavli Prize in Neuroscience

Damon Runyon Alumnus Ardem Patapoutian, PhD, of Scripps Research, was awarded the 2020 Kavli Prize in Neuroscience for his breakthrough discovery of sensory receptors that respond to pressure. This award recognizes outstanding achievement in advancing our knowledge and understanding of the brain and nervous system.

New DiscoveriesMay 20, 2020

How pancreatic cancer cells escape immunotherapy

Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovator Rushika M. Perera, PhD, at University of the California, San Francisco, and colleagues at NYU Grossman School of Medicine have discovered that pancreatic cancer cells can appropriate an internal waste removal process to dispose of tags (MHC-1) on their surfaces which trigger the immune system to destroy tumors.

New DiscoveriesMay 11, 2020

Damon Runyon scientists help in the global effort against COVID-19

Since COVID-19 cases escalated to pandemic levels worldwide, Damon Runyon scientists are contributing to the unprecedented global effort to stop the disease by investigating how this specific coronavirus enters human cells, developing more efficient testing and searching for a treatment.

New DiscoveriesApril 28, 2020

Seven Damon Runyon Alumni Elected to Prestigious National Academy of Sciences

Seven Damon Runyon alumni were elected to the National Academy of Sciences (the science “Hall of Fame”), one of the highest honors that can be given to a U.S. scientist. This brings the total number of Damon Runyon scientists who are members of the National Academy of Sciences to 86.

New DiscoveriesApril 21, 2020

New Blood Test Can Detect Wide Range of Cancers

Damon Runyon-Gordon Family Clinical Investigator Geoffrey R. Oxnard, MD; Board Member Michael V. Seiden, MD, PhD; and colleagues published results of a new blood test that can detect more than 50 types of cancer, often before symptoms develop. This may give patients and doctors a huge advantage and opportunity to treat the disease before it reaches advanced stages.