About Us
Founded in 1944, the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science develops philanthropic support for the Weizmann Institute in Israel, and advances its mission of science for the benefit of humanity.
Oct 02, 2019...
The lungs of a mouse with untreated Ewing sarcoma (left) contain numerous tumor cells (shown by luminescent colors) that have spread from the bone; the lungs of a mouse treated with a drug reducing the synthesis of glucocorticoids are almost free from the sarcoma (right)
REHOVOT, ISRAEL—October 2, 2019—Ewing sarcoma is a bone cancer that appears mainly in teenagers. Caused by a single defective gene, once it spreads to distant organs it is hard to treat. Researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science have now discovered molecular interactions underlying Ewing sarcomas and proposed a potential treatment that has shown promise in a study in mice. These findings were published in Cell Reports.
Oct 16, 2019...
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and people across the world are helping raise awareness and support through runs, walks, events – and, at the Weizmann Institute of Science, through research.
Before breakthroughs in breast cancer research ever appear in the news or on the market, there are cadres of scientists working tirelessly to discover new ways to prevent, diagnose, and treat this all-too-common disease. Here are some of our advances over just the past year:
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/news-releases/predicting-immunotherapy-success/
Feb 18, 2020... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—February 18, 2020—One of the frustrations with anti-cancer therapy is that no one drug fits all: Most work well in some people but have little effect in other patients with the same type of cancer. This is as true of the newer immunotherapy treatments as it is of older types of chemotherapy. Weizmann Institute of Science researchers have now identified new markers that can help predict which patients have a better chance for a positive response to immunotherapy treatments. Their findings were reported in Nature Communications.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/feature-stories/predicting-who-will-get-leukemia/
Jan 28, 2020...
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a cancer of the blood and bone marrow, is usually only diagnosed at an advanced stage, at which point it requires aggressive treatment. Although AML is a relatively rare disease, accounting for just 1.8 percent of cancer deaths in the U.S., its incidence is expected to increase as the population ages. The average age of diagnosis is 68.
“What’s horrible about AML is that often there are no symptoms or very mild symptoms, and it’s discovered during a routine blood test, meaning it’s identified when it is at a very late stage,” says Dr. Liran Shlush of the Weizmann Institute of Science’s Department of Immunology.
Sep 27, 2019...
JERUSALEM, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) – New discovery of bacteria immune system brought insight into treating autoimmune disease and even cancer, the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel reported Thursday.
Israeli researchers found that humans and bacteria have the same defense mechanism in the immune system, and bacteria must continually protect themselves from viruses called phages that infect them, the report said.
May 14, 2020...
May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month. And one important fact to be aware of is that the most common skin cancers, basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, aren’t the ones that kill.
The least common variety, melanoma, causes most skin-cancer deaths because it quickly spreads (metastasizes) to other parts of the body.
That’s why many researchers around the world focus on melanoma, so-called because it starts in melanocyte cells that give skin its color.
Jun 02, 2020... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—June 2, 2020—Cancer cells are comfy havens for bacteria. That conclusion arises from a rigorous study of over 1,000 tumor samples of different human cancers. The study, headed by researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science, found bacteria living inside the cells of all the cancer types – from brain to bone to breast cancer – and even identified unique populations of bacteria residing in each type of cancer. The research suggests that understanding the relationship between a cancer cell and its “mini-microbiome” may help predict the potential effectiveness of certain treatments or may point, in the future, to ways of manipulating those bacteria to enhance the actions of anticancer treatments. The findings of this study were published in Science and featured on the cover.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/blog/from-israel-to-chernobyl-treating-victims-of-the-nuclear-disaster/
Jun 16, 2020...
The Chernobyl nuclear power plant catastrophe on April 26, 1986 has always loomed large in our imaginations, particularly for those of us living through the Cold War.
Last year, the event was front and center yet again – and new generations learned about it – when HBO’s limited series, “Chernobyl,” took us through the disaster, step by harrowing misstep. The show also reminded us of the heroes, from the scientists trying to reach the truth to the workers who sacrificed themselves.
May 28, 2020...
The first comprehensive survey of the microorganisms that live inside tumours has found that bacteria reside in those from many different cancer types, but it is unclear whether they contribute to tumour growth.
These bacteria make up part of a tumour’s microbiome – the complex community of bacteria, fungi and other microbes that live inside it.
Bacteria have previously been found in tumours in the bowel and other tissues in the body that are routinely exposed to microbes. However, less is known about their presence in tumours from other cancers, like those of the bone, brain and ovary.
Jul 16, 2020... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—July 16, 2020—Choosing the right drug for each cancer patient is key to successful treatment, but physicians currently have few reliable pointers to guide them in designing treatment protocols. Researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard have now developed a new method for selecting the best drug therapy for a given tumor, based on assigning scores to the cells’ internal messaging activities. In addition to helping physicians choose from a list of existing treatments, the method can help identify new molecular targets for the development of future drugs. In fact, the researchers have already used it to single out a gene that can be targeted for effectively treating breast cancers with a BRCA mutation. The study was recently published in Nature Communications.
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