Recent MSK Discoveries & Advances

Memorial Sloan Kettering researchers are relentlessly exploring every aspect of cancer — from basic investigations of cells and molecules to clinical trials of new treatments and population-wide studies of the disease. While our core mission is to translate this knowledge into new strategies to control cancer, many of our investigators are also making scientific progress against other diseases and conditions.

Below are some examples of discoveries and advances that recently were made in our laboratories and clinics, and featured in our news stories.

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379 News Items found
An illustration of sugar being sprinkled on a cancer cell.
In the Lab
Just Add Sugar: How a Protein’s Small Change Leads to Big Trouble for Cells

A study from investigators in the Sloan Kettering Institute uncovers the details of how a key protein called GRP94 becomes disrupted, leading to cancer and other diseases.
Confocal microscopy image of a female fruit fly brain.
In the Lab
How Fruit Flies Know When They've Mated

Research from investigators at the Sloan Kettering Institute shows how a brain circuit controls mating behavior in fruit flies.
CT scan showing lymphoma in the abdomen between the liver and the gallbladder.
In the Lab
A Metabolic Enzyme Drives Lymphoma and Is a Potential Drug Target

New research from Sloan Kettering Institute investigators pinpoints altered cell metabolism as a cause of B cell lymphoma.
Fluorescent image of CAR T cells in mouse liver fibrosis
In the Lab
A New Target for CAR T Cells: Senescence-Related Diseases

From atherosclerosis and diabetes to liver fibrosis and osteoarthritis, senescent cells are at the root of many debilitating diseases. Scientists increasingly have them in the crosshairs.
X and Y chromosomes in mice
In the Lab
Breaking Up Is Hard to Do (Especially for Sex Chromosomes)

One’s big, one’s small. Somehow, they make it work.
Two gloved hands opening a drawer in a laboratory.
Feature
Double Trouble: Researchers Find Many Cancers Carry Two Mutations in the Same Gene

Discovery reveals that the genetic causes of cancer may be more complicated than previously thought.
A fluorescent image of cells undergoing differentiation in a mouse model.
In Brief
Cancer Stem Cells’ Reliance on a Key Amino Acid Could Be an Exploitable Weakness

The discovery links metabolism to the way cancer stem cells form tumors.
Chromosomes from a human male
In the Lab
How Small Chromosomes Compete with Big Ones for a Cell’s Attention

During meiosis, small chromosomes risk being lost in the shuffle. Here’s how they hold their own.
Fluorescent image of mouse prostate gland
In the Lab
New Discovery Explains How the Prostate Gland Regenerates Itself

Androgen-deprivation therapy, a mainstay of prostate cancer treatment, may give prostate cells new growth abilities, scientists at Memorial Sloan Kettering have found.
Four dogs wearing blue bandanas are held on leashes in a hallway at Memorial Hospital. Three handlers are seen only from the waist down.
Feature
Top Dogs: Meet MSK’s Four-Legged Volunteers

The Caring Canines program at Memorial Sloan Kettering has been going strong for more than 12 years.