University College London

Cancer patient reading a book, for article on pre-surgery immunotherapy

Bowel cancer patients see zero relapses three years after new immunotherapy

By / / Good News For Humankind

Bowel cancer patients in a small U.K. trial saw zero relapses nearly three years after receiving immunotherapy before surgery — a striking result for all 32 participants, even those who still had traces of cancer after treatment. By comparison, the standard path of surgery followed by chemotherapy sees roughly one in four patients relapse within three years. The trial focused on people with a specific genetic profile that makes tumors more visible to the immune system, sparing them months of post-surgery chemo. One participant described the cancer “melting away” before his operation. If larger trials confirm the approach, it could reshape how a meaningful slice of bowel cancer cases are treated worldwide.

A researcher working with cells in a laboratory for an article about base-edited T-cells leukemia treatment

Base-edited T-cells clear incurable leukemia in landmark U.K. trial

By / / Good News For Humankind

Base-edited T-cells have pushed an otherwise incurable blood cancer into remission for the first time in medical history, marking a landmark moment in cancer treatment. Scientists at Great Ormond Street Hospital and University College London developed BE-CAR7, a therapy using donor T-cells precisely engineered through base editing to target T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia without attacking healthy tissue. The treatment achieved remission in the majority of trial participants who had already exhausted every conventional option. Unlike standard CAR-T therapies, BE-CAR7 can be batch-manufactured and deployed within days, making cutting-edge immunotherapy faster, potentially cheaper, and more widely accessible.

A neuroscientist reviewing brain scan imagery for an article about Huntington's disease gene therapy

U.K. scientists slow Huntington’s disease progression for the first time

By / / Good News For Humankind

Huntington’s disease gene therapy has achieved what researchers once considered impossible, with a single surgical injection slowing overall disease progression by 75% and functional decline by 60% in a University College London clinical trial. The experimental treatment, AMT-130, permanently reprograms neurons to stop producing the toxic protein responsible for destroying brain cells in this fatal inherited disorder. For the roughly 41,000 Americans living with Huntington’s and 200,000 more at genetic risk, the word “stable” now carries real clinical meaning. Beyond one disease, the gene-silencing techniques validated here are accelerating research into Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other neurological conditions affecting tens of millions worldwide.

A surgeon performing minimally invasive robotic surgery for an article about NeuroSafe prostate surgery, for article on NeuroSafe prostate cancer surgery

NeuroSafe prostate surgery nearly doubles odds of keeping erectile function after cancer treatment

By / / Good News For Humankind

NeuroSafe prostate surgery nearly doubles the chances of men retaining erectile function after prostate cancer treatment, according to the first large-scale clinical trial of the technique. Published in Lancet Oncology and presented at the 2025 European Association of Urology congress, the trial found 39% of NeuroSafe patients reported no or mild erectile dysfunction one year after surgery, compared to just 23% receiving standard care. The procedure works by freezing and examining prostate tissue mid-operation, letting surgeons spare surrounding nerves when it is safe to do so. For the 50,000 men diagnosed with prostate cancer in England each year, this advance offers a meaningful path forward without forcing a choice between cure and quality of life.

Ovarian and Cervical Cancer Awareness. a Teal Ribbon, for article on cervical cancer treatment

New cervical cancer treatment regime ‘cuts risk of dying from disease by 40%’

By / / Good News For Humankind

Cervical cancer treatment just took its biggest leap in 25 years, and the breakthrough comes from a surprisingly simple idea: changing the timing. In a trial spanning the U.K., Mexico, India, Italy, and Brazil, women who received a short course of chemotherapy before standard chemoradiation were 40% less likely to die from the disease. Even better, the drugs involved are already approved, affordable, and widely available — meaning hospitals could adopt this approach without waiting on a new wonder drug. For the hundreds of thousands of women diagnosed each year, especially in lower-income countries where cervical cancer hits hardest, it’s a rare kind of medical good news: a major gain that’s actually within reach.