Metastasis News and Research

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Metastasis is the spread of cancer from one part of the body to another. A tumor formed by cells that have spread is called a “metastatic tumor” or a “metastasis.” The metastatic tumor contains cells that are like those in the original (primary) tumor. The plural form of metastasis is metastases

New Genetic Discovery Explains Why Colorectal Cancer Spreads so Quickly

Loss of GATA6-a transcription factor that controls which genes are turned on or off-can reprogram colorectal cancer cells into more primitive, adaptable states that can then spread to the liver and establish new tumors, according to Weill Cornell Medicine and Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers.

23 Jun 2026

Single-Cell Analysis Uncovers How Cancer Tumors Diversify and Resist Treatment

A comprehensive multi-cancer study from researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center has revealed that cancer cells within tumors are genetically diverse, yet all carry the same core genetic changes that can be traced back to a common ancestral cell, providing a single-cell view of how tumors adapt, survive and diversify. Understanding this helps explain why some cancer cells manage to survive treatments, paving the way for more tailored diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.

22 Jun 2026

Single Cell Tracking Explains Why Certain Cancer Cells Survive Treatments

17 Jun 2026

Researchers Outline Dynamic Protein Control Systems for Better Clinical Decisions

Cancer has often been explained through mutations in deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) or changes in ribonucleic acid (RNA), but these layers do not fully explain why tumors with similar genetic profiles can behave differently.

10 Jun 2026

Cell Phase Separation Creates Droplets That Optimize and Activate Kinase Signaling

Within the past decade, biologists have discovered that one strategy cells use to keep their contents organized is a phenomenon known as phase separation.

2 Jun 2026

Wireless Electric Fields Guide Immune Cells But Disorient Cancer Cells

Traditional electrotaxis assays place electrodes directly into the cell culture medium, which inevitably drives current through the sample.

27 May 2026

Ovarian Cancer Fluid Helps Tumors Evade Cell Death

Ascites in ovarian cancer rewires tumor metabolism, protecting cells from ferroptosis and promoting metastasis, revealing potential therapeutic targets.

27 May 2026

Aggressive Breast Cancer Cells Lose Spatial Persistence When Exposed to Wireless Electric Fields

Traditional electrotaxis assays place electrodes directly into the cell culture medium, which inevitably drives current through the sample.

26 May 2026

Genetic Engineering Creates an Immune System Cloak to Extend Bacterial Drug Circulation

While previous research from Johns Hopkins University is successfully completing clinical trials, University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy Assistant Professor Kaitlin Dailey is expanding on that work to more specifically target tumors that are difficult or impossible to access, especially those associated with pancreatic cancer-one of the deadliest types.

21 May 2026

How the Microbiome Shapes Cancer Immunity and Therapy Response

This review examines how the human microbiome regulates anti-tumor immunity through DNA damage, inflammation, immune-cell activity, microbial metabolites, and tumor microenvironment remodeling. It highlights emerging microbiome-based strategies, including FMT, probiotics, prebiotics, engineered bacteria, and live biotherapeutics, while stressing the need for rigorous validation and clinical trials.

29 Apr 2026

Intermediate PRRX1 Levels Drive Breast Cancer Metastasis Risk

The study identifies PRRX1 as a critical factor in breast cancer metastasis, highlighting its potential as a biomarker for predicting aggressive disease.

29 Apr 2026

Study Reveals the "Black Box" of Protein Quality Control in the ER

Over the past few years, Kivanç Birsoy of Rockefeller University and his colleagues in the Laboratory of Metabolic Regulation and Genetics have uncovered amazing information about the antioxidant glutathione, which has numerous vital functions in the body, including eliminating free radicals and repairing cellular damage.

20 Apr 2026

Novel Immunotherapy Disrupts the Protective Tumor Microenvironment Ecosystem

Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy - CAR T for short - has been a major advance in treating blood cancers like leukemia and lymphoma. But the immunotherapy has struggled against solid tumors for two main reasons: tumor cells often don't share one consistent surface target, and many solid tumors are protected by a dense network of scar tissue and immune-suppressive cells that blocks T cells.

31 Mar 2026

New Platform Models Cancer Metastasis and Cell Cluster Survival

Metastasis, the spread of cancer from a primary tumor to other parts of the body, is difficult to study in the lab, in part because researchers lack reliable ways to recreate the conditions cancer cells encounter as they travel through the bloodstream.

28 Mar 2026

Cancers Use Lipids Produced by Lung Cells to Support Metastatic Tumor Growth

Scientists from the VIB–KU Leuven Center for Cancer Biology, in collaboration with the Francis Crick Institute, have discovered how cancer cells can exploit healthy lung cells to support metastatic tumor growth in the lungs.

18 Mar 2026

Dual Mechanism of Deep-Sea Sponge Compound Suppresses Cancer Cell Proliferation

A collaborative research team led by Professor Kaori Sakurai at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, together with Associate Professor Hiroaki Itoh and Professor Masayuki Inoue at Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the University of Tokyo, has uncovered a previously unknown mechanism of action of yaku'amide B, a structurally complex peptidic natural product derived from deep-sea sponge found in the waters near Yakushima Island, Japan.

12 Mar 2026

Macrophages Offer a Safer Alternative to CAR-T Therapies with Lower Toxicity

A new study from researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine has identified a promising strategy to treat brain metastases, one of the most challenging and deadly complications of lung cancer.

3 Mar 2026

Single-cell atlas reveals how melanoma evades the immune system

Integrative analysis of immune ecotypes in skin cancers highlights metabolic reprogramming and macrophage polarization as key factors in melanoma progression.

11 Feb 2026

New Boron Compounds Enable Easier Drug Modification Without Breakdown

A major step towards simpler drug development has been taken at the University of Gothenburg. In a new study, researchers have developed stable boron-fluorine compounds that make it possible to increase the effect or reduce side effects without breaking down the medicine.

4 Feb 2026

New Technology Links Extracellular Vesicles Directly to Producing Cells

Extracellular vesicles and particles are central to how cells communicate, especially in cancer, where they help shape metastasis and treatment resistance.

30 Jan 2026