Publications by authors named "M W Melkus"

Introduction: Despite recent advances, triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients remain at high risk for recurrence and metastasis, which creates the need for innovative therapeutic approaches to improve patient outcomes. Cryoablation is a promising, less invasive alternative to surgical resection, capable of inducing tumor necrosis via freeze/thaw cycles. Necrotic cell death results in increased inflammatory signals and release of preserved tumor antigens, which have the potential to boost the local and systemic anti-tumor immune response.

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Breast cancer is the second most common cancer among women in the United States in which the standard of care treatment is surgery with adjunctive therapy. Cryoablation, which destroys the tumor using extremely cold temperatures while preserving the potential tumor antigens, is a promising alternative to surgical resection. It is less invasive, cosmetically appeasing, cost-effective, and capable of contributing to the abscopal effect - the immune response targeting potential distant metastasis.

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Background: Widespread use of screening mammography has allowed breast cancer to be detected at earlier stages. This allows for increased customization of treatment and less aggressive management. De-escalation of therapy plays an important role in decreasing treatment burden and improving patient quality of life.

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Article Synopsis
  • DVL2 is a protein that affects how tumors grow and how our immune system fights against them, especially in a type of breast cancer called HER2-positive.
  • Researchers tested how DVL2 works using breast cancer cells and looked at patient samples to see how it might influence tumor immunity.
  • The study found that when DVL2 is not working well, it can help lower tumor growth and improve immune responses, which is important for fighting cancer.
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