Reuters-Health
Date: Thu, 29 Oct 2026 18:13:11 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Colorectal cancers rising in older patients, too
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Health Rounds
Health Rounds
By Nancy Lapid , Health Science Editor
Hello Health Rounds readers! Today we report on a troubling cancer trend among US adults of all ages. We also report on impressive survival data from a two-drug regimen that could be an alternative to more expensive immunotherapies for some patients with a type of advanced kidney cancer.
Among our breaking news stories: Research organization IAVI receives US funding for Ebola vaccine development ; US judge blocks Trump limits to Medicaid work requirement exceptions ; FDA proposes new nutrient limits, labeling rules for infant formula ; US judges lean toward reviving North Carolina abortion pill restrictions ; US estrogen supply crunch widens as women seek alternatives to scarce patches ; and FTC says New York 'shield law' is interfering with US transgender care probe.
Also: WHO member states propose seven candidates for chief, and Yemen's hospitals buckle as fighting escalates.
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Industry Updates
Gilead hikes full-year sales outlook, quarterly HIV sales rise 18%.
US FDA warns on Medline beds after 2 deaths, 16 serious injuries.
Lilly's obesity drug strength fuels Wall Street optimism.
Merck to boost revenue forecast.
Haleon CEO warns staff of 'difficult choices' ahead.
Swiss firm Molecular Partners to cut nearly half of workforce.
Asia OneHealthcare files draft prospectus for Malaysia IPO.
Sanofi agrees to settle antitrust case over diabetes drug Lantus.
Oura to study link between smart ring data and obesity treatment outcomes.
Supplements brand Rho Nutrition explores sale.
Lilly's retatrutide outshines Ozempic on weight, blood sugar control.
Biogen tops quarterly estimates on rare-disease drug strength.
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US Health Secretary Kennedy opens access to some unapproved peptides
REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has pushed forward a policy allowing licensed pharmacies and physicians to compound certain unapproved peptides while regulators consider whether “to formally permit their use in compounded medicines. Read more .
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Study Rounds
Colorectal cancers rising in older US adults too
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Medical groups have been sounding the alarm about the recent rise of colorectal cancers among younger adults in the United States, but a new analysis found the increased extends to nearly all age groups.
Colorectal cancer incidence rates among adults aged 20-49 years increased by 3% annually between 2013 and 2022, and by 2026 the disease was the leading cause of cancer deaths in that age group , according to data from the American Cancer Society.
The new analysis of National Cancer Institute data looked at all ages up to 70. Researchers found the incidence fell from 55.2 per 100,000 in 2000 to 36.7 in 2022, but then rose to 38.3 in 2023.
“This is the first time that we have seen an increase in the overall rate in more than 20 years,” study leader Caitlin Murphy of the University of Chicago said in a statement.
The sharpest increase — 12.76% annually from 2019-2023 — was seen in 45- to 49-year-olds, likely driven by more people undergoing colorectal cancer screening after US recommendations lowered the recommended age for the testing to 45 from 50, the researchers reported in NEJM Evidence .
“That means that screening is doing as we intend it to do. It's catching cancer earlier,” Murphy said.
But screening increases do not explain the rise in incidence overall or in other age groups, which suggests unknown risk factors, including environmental, may be offsetting the gains made by screening, the researchers said.
A separate team of researchers has identified new clues to help explain why colorectal cancer is often more aggressive in younger patients.
They analyzed 189 tumors from adults of all ages, looking for factors that changed gradually with age.
Among tumors of the most common colorectal cancer subtype, younger patients' tumors had significantly more connective and supporting cells than cancer cells, a finding that has been linked to chemotherapy resistance in several types of solid cancer, the researchers reported in Nature Medicine .
Younger patients also had higher activity of long non-coding RNAs, molecules that can regulate genes without making proteins. Many are “dark” RNAs, whose functions remain largely unknown.
The researchers also saw gene activity suggesting stronger signaling between cells that can help cancer cells move and invade nearby tissue in younger patients.
“While we’re still at the beginning of understanding what these differences mean, our work gives researchers a new direction to pursue in tackling this urgent problem in human disease,” study co-author Ana Anderson of Harvard Medical School said in a statement.
?
Read more about colorectal cancer on Reuters.com
BioNTech halts mRNA colorectal cancer vaccine trial after safety review
Blood test added to US colorectal cancer screening options
?
Drug combo improves survival for some kidney cancer patients
A combination of two targeted therapy drugs can dramatically improve survival for certain patients with newly diagnosed advanced kidney cancer, data from a midstage trial suggests.
The trial testing the two drugs was launched before therapies known as immune-checkpoint inhibitors became the preferred treatment for such patients.
But checkpoint inhibitors such as Merck's Keytruda and Bristol Myers Squibb’s Opdivo cannot be used by patients with autoimmune diseases, and their cost can be prohibitive, especially in low-resource settings.
The 51 patients in the trial — all with clear cell renal carcinoma that had spread throughout the body by the time it was first detected — received Votrient from Novartis and Roche’s Avastin on an alternating basis.
Both drugs block the action of a protein called vascular endothelial growth factor, or VEGF, that promotes the growth of new blood vessels that can supply the tumor with oxygen and nutrients. Votrient's effect on VEGF weakens over time, while Avastin actually removes VEGF from circulation.
The patients survived for a median of 63.2 months, including 24.8 months during which their disease did not worsen, researchers reported in The Lancet Oncology .
By comparison, when Votrient is given alone as the first-line treatment for patients with previously untreated metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma, overall survival ranges from 28.4 to 29.3 months, and median progression-free survival is just 9.2 months.
A particularly strong benefit was seen in the 33 trial participants who were considered “favorable-risk” based on their underlying health status. In this group, median progression-free survival, the time before the cancer began to worsen, reached 28.5 months and overall survival was 76.9 months, the researchers found.
In the favorable-risk patients, “the benefit from this novel regimen of (Votrient and Avastin) was comparable to or better than that of the contemporary immunotherapy combinations,” study leader Dr. Saby George of the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo, New York, said in a statement. “This is significant due to the lower cost of this regimen compared to the immunotherapy combinations.”
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In case you missed it...
Health Rounds: Researchers find a possible trigger of some preterm births
Health Rounds: Experimental first-in-class heart drug may also help heal kidneys
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This newsletter was edited by Bill Berkrot.
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© 2026 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.
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Subject: Colorectal cancers rising in older patients, too
(Converted from HTML)
Get full access to Reuters.com for just $1/week. Subscribe now.
?
Health Rounds
Health Rounds
By Nancy Lapid , Health Science Editor
Hello Health Rounds readers! Today we report on a troubling cancer trend among US adults of all ages. We also report on impressive survival data from a two-drug regimen that could be an alternative to more expensive immunotherapies for some patients with a type of advanced kidney cancer.
Among our breaking news stories: Research organization IAVI receives US funding for Ebola vaccine development ; US judge blocks Trump limits to Medicaid work requirement exceptions ; FDA proposes new nutrient limits, labeling rules for infant formula ; US judges lean toward reviving North Carolina abortion pill restrictions ; US estrogen supply crunch widens as women seek alternatives to scarce patches ; and FTC says New York 'shield law' is interfering with US transgender care probe.
Also: WHO member states propose seven candidates for chief, and Yemen's hospitals buckle as fighting escalates.
?
Industry Updates
Gilead hikes full-year sales outlook, quarterly HIV sales rise 18%.
US FDA warns on Medline beds after 2 deaths, 16 serious injuries.
Lilly's obesity drug strength fuels Wall Street optimism.
Merck to boost revenue forecast.
Haleon CEO warns staff of 'difficult choices' ahead.
Swiss firm Molecular Partners to cut nearly half of workforce.
Asia OneHealthcare files draft prospectus for Malaysia IPO.
Sanofi agrees to settle antitrust case over diabetes drug Lantus.
Oura to study link between smart ring data and obesity treatment outcomes.
Supplements brand Rho Nutrition explores sale.
Lilly's retatrutide outshines Ozempic on weight, blood sugar control.
Biogen tops quarterly estimates on rare-disease drug strength.
?
?
US Health Secretary Kennedy opens access to some unapproved peptides
REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has pushed forward a policy allowing licensed pharmacies and physicians to compound certain unapproved peptides while regulators consider whether “to formally permit their use in compounded medicines. Read more .
?
Study Rounds
Colorectal cancers rising in older US adults too
?
Medical groups have been sounding the alarm about the recent rise of colorectal cancers among younger adults in the United States, but a new analysis found the increased extends to nearly all age groups.
Colorectal cancer incidence rates among adults aged 20-49 years increased by 3% annually between 2013 and 2022, and by 2026 the disease was the leading cause of cancer deaths in that age group , according to data from the American Cancer Society.
The new analysis of National Cancer Institute data looked at all ages up to 70. Researchers found the incidence fell from 55.2 per 100,000 in 2000 to 36.7 in 2022, but then rose to 38.3 in 2023.
“This is the first time that we have seen an increase in the overall rate in more than 20 years,” study leader Caitlin Murphy of the University of Chicago said in a statement.
The sharpest increase — 12.76% annually from 2019-2023 — was seen in 45- to 49-year-olds, likely driven by more people undergoing colorectal cancer screening after US recommendations lowered the recommended age for the testing to 45 from 50, the researchers reported in NEJM Evidence .
“That means that screening is doing as we intend it to do. It's catching cancer earlier,” Murphy said.
But screening increases do not explain the rise in incidence overall or in other age groups, which suggests unknown risk factors, including environmental, may be offsetting the gains made by screening, the researchers said.
A separate team of researchers has identified new clues to help explain why colorectal cancer is often more aggressive in younger patients.
They analyzed 189 tumors from adults of all ages, looking for factors that changed gradually with age.
Among tumors of the most common colorectal cancer subtype, younger patients' tumors had significantly more connective and supporting cells than cancer cells, a finding that has been linked to chemotherapy resistance in several types of solid cancer, the researchers reported in Nature Medicine .
Younger patients also had higher activity of long non-coding RNAs, molecules that can regulate genes without making proteins. Many are “dark” RNAs, whose functions remain largely unknown.
The researchers also saw gene activity suggesting stronger signaling between cells that can help cancer cells move and invade nearby tissue in younger patients.
“While we’re still at the beginning of understanding what these differences mean, our work gives researchers a new direction to pursue in tackling this urgent problem in human disease,” study co-author Ana Anderson of Harvard Medical School said in a statement.
?
Read more about colorectal cancer on Reuters.com
BioNTech halts mRNA colorectal cancer vaccine trial after safety review
Blood test added to US colorectal cancer screening options
?
Drug combo improves survival for some kidney cancer patients
A combination of two targeted therapy drugs can dramatically improve survival for certain patients with newly diagnosed advanced kidney cancer, data from a midstage trial suggests.
The trial testing the two drugs was launched before therapies known as immune-checkpoint inhibitors became the preferred treatment for such patients.
But checkpoint inhibitors such as Merck's Keytruda and Bristol Myers Squibb’s Opdivo cannot be used by patients with autoimmune diseases, and their cost can be prohibitive, especially in low-resource settings.
The 51 patients in the trial — all with clear cell renal carcinoma that had spread throughout the body by the time it was first detected — received Votrient from Novartis and Roche’s Avastin on an alternating basis.
Both drugs block the action of a protein called vascular endothelial growth factor, or VEGF, that promotes the growth of new blood vessels that can supply the tumor with oxygen and nutrients. Votrient's effect on VEGF weakens over time, while Avastin actually removes VEGF from circulation.
The patients survived for a median of 63.2 months, including 24.8 months during which their disease did not worsen, researchers reported in The Lancet Oncology .
By comparison, when Votrient is given alone as the first-line treatment for patients with previously untreated metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma, overall survival ranges from 28.4 to 29.3 months, and median progression-free survival is just 9.2 months.
A particularly strong benefit was seen in the 33 trial participants who were considered “favorable-risk” based on their underlying health status. In this group, median progression-free survival, the time before the cancer began to worsen, reached 28.5 months and overall survival was 76.9 months, the researchers found.
In the favorable-risk patients, “the benefit from this novel regimen of (Votrient and Avastin) was comparable to or better than that of the contemporary immunotherapy combinations,” study leader Dr. Saby George of the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo, New York, said in a statement. “This is significant due to the lower cost of this regimen compared to the immunotherapy combinations.”
?
In case you missed it...
Health Rounds: Researchers find a possible trigger of some preterm births
Health Rounds: Experimental first-in-class heart drug may also help heal kidneys
?
This newsletter was edited by Bill Berkrot.
Sponsors are not involved in the creation of newsletters or other Reuters news content. Advertise in this newsletter or on the Reuters website
Reuters Health Rounds is sent twice a week. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here .
Want to stop receiving this email? Unsubscribe here . To manage which newsletters you're signed up for, click here .
This email includes limited tracking for Reuters to understand whether you’ve engaged with its contents. For more information on how we process your personal information and your rights, please see our Privacy Statement .
Terms & Conditions
© 2026 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.
3 Times Square, New York, NY 10036