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A Stanford Medicine-led study found that residual liver cancer cells interact with neighboring macrophages to prompt the disease to reappear.

Invited lecture at the keystone Symposium.

Renumathy Dhanasekaran, MD and professor at the School of Medicine at Stanford University, viewed the vaccine as a welcomed relief for older patients and those with chronic diseases, as these are the populations who need it most. She said that she was happy with the studies demographics and vulnerable communities’ representation and that mRNA-1273 will help them considerably. She views the benefits of the vaccine as far outweighing the risks, especially in patients with comorbidities.

“Most cancer-related deaths are caused by metastasis, but there are currently no treatments available to stop it,” explains lead author Renumathy Dhanasekaran.

Chronic liver diseases, including decompensated cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma, were associated with increased mortality in patients with COVID-19, according to study results.

“I feel divided about this,” said Dr. Renumathy Dhanasekaran, an assistant professor of gastroenterology and hepatology at the Stanford University School of Medicine. “As a scientist, the accelerated approval process concerns me, but as a physician treating patients with a very challenging disease, translating some of these drugs to the clinic faster is attractive.”