Scientists at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have discovered 116 new potential target genes to fight the development of multiple myeloma. The results of the work were published in the journal Nature Cancer.

For the past 20 years, the search for new targets for cancer treatment began with the search for mutated genes associated with this type of tumor. This allowed the development of many targeted effective therapeutic directions. However, in the new study, the authors did not focus on changes in the genes, but on the functional vulnerabilities of multiple myeloma - a blood cancer that is not amenable to therapy, affecting plasma cells that produce antibodies.

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To do this, the team used the CRISPR genetic editor system, which made it possible to sequentially disable genes in each cell line. In total, 116 genes have been identified that produce molecules that control the activation of certain genes or the secretion of proteins in plasma cells. All identified genes are specific for the survival of this particular type of cancer, and therefore can be used as targets in the development of new therapeutic directions.

In May 2023, researchers at Uppsala University in Sweden presented a new treatment for brain cancer based on the patient's immune cells. It is assumed that T-killers get from the blood vessels into the neoplasm, and then destroy the cancer cells.