Publications by authors named "A Weeraratna"
Article Synopsis
- Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a challenging cancer to treat with immunotherapies, but certain intratumoral structures called tertiary lymphoid structures (TLS) have been linked to better patient survival outcomes.
- A comprehensive study analyzed 26 PDAC tumors using advanced techniques like machine learning and spatial transcriptomics to better understand the role of TLS within tumors.
- The findings revealed specific gene expression patterns in TLS that correlate with improved survival, highlighting the importance of TLS maturation and its interactions with immune cells and the tumor environment.
Article Synopsis
- Advancing age makes it harder for people to fight skin melanoma, a type of skin cancer.
- Scientists found that tiny particles called extracellular vesicles (EVs) from older cells change in content, even though they look the same as those from younger cells.
- A special protein called CD9 decreases as we age, which affects how these EVs can help tumors grow, making older cells better at supporting cancer.
Article Synopsis
- Cutaneous melanoma shows a notable sex disparity in how often it occurs and affects different genders, particularly worsening with age, but the reasons behind this are not fully understood.* -
- The study reveals that skin fibroblasts from older males experience changes that lead to increased melanoma cell invasiveness and resistance to treatment, impacting the behavior of tumors in older male mice.* -
- A specific protein, BMP2, is linked to the more aggressive characteristics of melanoma cells in aged males, and blocking its action can make these cancer cells more responsive to certain treatments.*
Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer in the United States, with its incidence rates rising in older populations. As the immune system undergoes age-related changes, these alterations can significantly influence tumor progression and the effectiveness of cancer treatments. Recent advancements in understanding immune checkpoint molecules have paved the way for the development of innovative immunotherapies targeting solid tumors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMetastatic melanoma is among the most enigmatic advanced cancers to clinically manage despite immense progress in the way of available therapeutic options and historic decreases in the melanoma mortality rate. Most patients with metastatic melanoma treated with modern targeted therapies (for example, BRAFV600E/K inhibitors) and/or immune checkpoint blockade (for example, anti-programmed death 1 therapy) will progress, owing to profound tumor cell plasticity fueled by genetic and nongenetic mechanisms and dichotomous host microenvironmental influences. Here we discuss the determinants of tumor heterogeneity, mechanisms of therapy resistance and effective therapy regimens that hold curative promise.
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