Researchers Identify New Lymphoma Subtype, Offering Hope for Targeted Treatments
Researchers at the University of Southampton have identified a new subtype of lymphoma which could pave the way to improved adn more targeted treatments for some blood cancer patients.
The cancer scientists and biologists have also found that lymphoma cells of this new subtype carry a unique sugar that promotes the survival and growth of the cancer.
Lymphoma is a type of blood cancer that affects white blood cells called lymphocytes. There are many different types of lymphoma, but this latest breakthrough is in a type called diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), which affects our B cells. When operating normally, B cells help to fight infection in the body.
Within DLBCL, the researchers have now discovered a new subtype named ‘mann-type DLBCL’.
The team, who worked with researchers in Canada and the United States, have described their findings in a recently published paper in the journal Blood.
Led researcher Professor Francesco Forconi of the University of Southampton’s Cancer B-cell Group says: “patients with this new subtype,Mann-type DLBCL,have a high-risk cancer that cannot respond well to conventional therapies,so identifying this as a distinct group is very crucial to their treatment program.
“Understanding the type of cancers we fight is a crucial part of battling the disease and opens the door to developing new and improved therapies.”
The scientists analysed data from 595 DLBCL patients, accessed through two separate cohort datasets of DLBCL from the
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