Researchers from Temple University's Department of Biology and the Sbarro Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine have identified a protein that may play an important role in bladder cancer progression and response to chemotherapy.

 

The study, conducted by an international team including Andrea Morrione, professor of research, and Antonio Giordano, director of the Sbarro Institute and professor, focuses on a protein called FAM120A. Researchers found that this protein participates in molecular processes that promote cancer cell growth and movement.

 

Interestingly, reducing FAM120A levels in bladder cancer cells increased their sensitivity to cisplatin, a chemotherapy drug commonly used to treat bladder cancer.

 

These findings suggest that FAM120A could eventually serve as a biomarker to help detect or monitor bladder cancer and potentially become a target for new therapies designed to improve existing treatments.

 

The research was published in the Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research.

 

Read the full study here https://doi.org/10.1186/s13046-026-03808-1