Scheff Research Lab

that's awesome! So much effort went into trying to collate such a complex topic into a single review but great to see the resource being utilized! And even still, at the rate new research is coming to light, we are already probably a bit outdated!

Check out the details for our upcoming seminar, and follow the link in our bio to sign up!

Excited to connect with peers, mentors, and leaders who are shaping the future of cancer neuroscience.

Professional Development Award Recipient Poster featuring neuron in background and details for the 2026 International Cancer Neuroscience Symposium in Texas, Feb 18-20 & sponsored through MD Anderson Cancer Center and Wiley Advanced

Our own @andremartel.bsky.social, 4th yr grad student, is honored to be recognized and receive the Professional Development Award as an early-career scientist and attend the 2026 International Cancer Neuroscience Symposium in Houston, TX, USA! #CancerNeuro26 #TravelAwardRecipient #AdvancedPortfolio

Great and comprehensive review from Dr. Young's group!

Aberrant hypothalamic neuronal activity blunts glucocorticoid diurnal rhythms in murine breast cancer Gomez, Wu, et al. demonstrate that breast cancer promotes blunted glucocorticoid diurnal rhythms via disinhibition of PVNCRH neurons. Restoration of normal glucocorticoid rhythms via endogenous activa...

www.cell.com/neuron/fullt... new paper from our group demonstrating how breast tumors dysregulate rhythms in the HPA axis to drive their own growth. Great collaboration with the @corina-amor.bsky.social and @cheadlelab.bsky.social labs @cshlnews.bsky.social

Morphine treatment restricts response to immunotherapy in oral squamous cell carcinoma Background Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are becoming the standard of care for recurrent and metastatic cancer. Opioids, the primary treatment for cancer-related pain, are immunosuppressive rais...

Original article available from JITC:

Morphine treatment restricts response to immunotherapy in oral squamous cell carcinoma

jitc.bmj.com/content/12/1...

Mending the divide: integrating opioid analgesia and immunotherapy for optimal cancer care Opioids remain a mainstay for managing moderate-to-severe cancer pain, yet accumulating evidence suggests that opioid analgesics can impair antitumor immunity. In their recent study, McIlvried et al p...

Nothing like discovering that someone wrote a whole article in support of our publication on morphine-induced immunosuppression!

jitc.bmj.com/content/13/5...

YouTube video by Advanced Portfolio News Episode 7: A Conversation with Dr. Nicole Scheff

Check out International Cancer Neuroscience Symposium's Conversation Series!

Episode 7: A Conversation with Dr. Nicole Scheff

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Evee...

Abstract deadline approaching quickly (Nov 7, 2025) for the international #cancerneuroscience #symposium happening in Feb 2026!! Check out registration (SO CHEAP for 3 days!), abstract, and award details here:

mdanderson.cloud-cme.com/course/cours...

2026 Cancer Neuroscience Symposium
Abstract submission deadline: 11.7.2025
This is one of my favorite meetings of the year where all the science is really great and so much collaboration that starts within those couple days. Even if you're on a cusp of the field, totally worth checking out!

YouTube video by Advanced Portfolio News Episode 1: A Conversation with Dr. Erica Sloan

Great conversation with Erica Sloan about stress and cancer…https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5zJzPdzE65g

Cancer-induced Nerve Injury Unveils a Sympathetic-to-Sensory Nerve Axis in Head and Neck Cancer https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.19.677339v1

Here is the work that got us to this point: https://jitc.bmj.com/content/12/11/e009962

The NOA has landed! We have our first 🛏️to 🔬 to🛌translation! In collaboration with Glycyx Therapeutics, we received funding for a multi-institutional clinical trial to test if peripheral acting OPRM1 antagonism can improve response to immune checkpoint blockade in head and neck cancer patients!

Cancer-induced Nerve Injury Unveils a Sympathetic-to-Sensory Nerve Axis in Head and Neck Cancer Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is one of the most painful cancers, with patients frequently reporting spontaneous, neuropathic-like pain. While sympathetic and sensory nerves have been individual...

Congratulations to @andremartel.bsky.social for his first author preprint, now available on bioRxiv: Cancer-induced Nerve Injury Unveils a Sympathetic-to-Sensory Nerve Axis in Head and Neck Cancer! #cancerneuroscience #cancerpain
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

📢Happy to announce the Scheff lab's contribution to this important exploration of #neurobiology of #cancer, out now in @cp-neuron.bsky.social! Thanks to @andremartel.bsky.social!

Learn more about the series, and see other beautiful poster images here:
pcpr.pitt.edu/seminar-seri...

Dorsal root ganglia neurons stained with green, blue, and pink dyes.

The Scheff Lab image was selected to be the background of the @pcpr-pittpain.bsky.social seminar series poster highlighting mammary innervating dorsal root ganglia neurons. This image was taken in a study understanding the impact of sensory neurons on breast cancer progression and (lack of) pain.

Additional link here: authors.elsevier.com/a/1lZPG5TA51...

Rethinking relief: Targeting sensory neurons to combat cancer and pain Cancer pain is a complex problem that, when left unaddressed, can impact overall survival and decrease patients’ quality of life. Collaboration among medical oncologists, immunologists, and neurobiolo...

Cancer #pain isn't just a symptom, it can influence survival. Our new commentary in @cp-cancercell.bsky.social explores the idea that choosing the right analgesic could improve tumor immunity. Thanks to my co-authors for their support with this piece! #cancerneuroscience
www.cell.com/cancer-cell/...

Botulinum Neurotoxin A1 Signaling in Pain Modulation within Human Sensory Neurons Botulinum neurotoxin type A1 (BoNT/A1) is an effective treatment for chronic migraine, but its direct mechanism of action on human sensory neurons has not been fully elucidated. While rodent studies o...

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... New data from us on Botox-A effects on human DRG neurons, including some really surprising effects on DRG transcriptome. All of this work was led by Katherin Gabriel, and was a great collaboration with our friends at AbbVie.

Neuro-immune cross-talk in cancer - Nature Reviews Cancer The nervous and immune systems have co-evolved to respond to threats, including cancer. In this Review, Amit et al. outline the reciprocal interactions among neurons, immune cells and tumour cells that regulate peripheral antitumour immune responses and discuss how these mechanisms could be leveraged to enhance immunotherapy.

#REVIEW 🚨
Amit et al. outline the reciprocal interactions among neurons, immune cells and tumour cells that regulate peripheral antitumour immune responses and discuss how these mechanisms could be leveraged to enhance immunotherapy.
📖 ⬇️

Thank to #RushtoCrush for a great weekend raising funds for #cancer #research!

Thanks to @pcpr-pittpain.bsky.social and other sponsors for this event!
painday.pitt.edu

Graduate student Andre Martel Matos stands next to his poster entitled: Sympathetic Neurotransmission Contributes to Oral Cancer-Induced Spontaneous Pain.

Hannah White presents her poster entitled: Sensory Innervation in the Tumor Microenvironment of Breast Cancer.

Certificate awarding Andre Martel Matos with Best Poster Presentation in Pre-Clinical Research (predoctoral) category.

🎉Congratulations to @andremartel.bsky.social for winning BEST POSTER at yesterday's #painday, held at the University of Pittsburgh @cnup.bsky.social! Thanks to Hannah and @nehamokhasi.bsky.social for their excellent contributions.

Graduate student Andre Martel Matos presents his poster entitled "Sympathetic Neurotransmission Contributes to Oral Cancer-Induced Spontaneous Pain" to several conference attendees

Dr Nicole Scheff presents research poster entitled "Temporal characterization of radiation-induced oral pain using a mouse model" to two conference attendees

Thanks to @usasp.bsky.social for a great conference! Dr Scheff discussed reverse translation in #cancerpain and presented a poster detailing new work on radiation-induced pain and oral mucositis. @andremartel.bsky.social presented updates on his project on sympathetics and cancer pain. #research

Researchers present latest advances in developing nonopioid pain relievers » McKnight Brain Institute » University of Florida UF Center for Advanced Pain Therapeutics and Research (CAPToR) hosts inaugural symposium.

mbi.ufl.edu/2025/04/01/r...

@andremartel.bsky.social and I had an awesome time teaching at the inaugural Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory 2025 Methods in Cancer Neuroscience course this week! #cshl #cancerneuroscience. Wish we could have stayed but had to be home for the Stand Up For Science Event! @standupforscience.bsky.social

The Gulf Coast Consortia invites you to register for their Feb. 21, #Pain2025 workshop featuring Rita Allen Scholars, Kara Marshall, Baylor College of Medicine, and Katelyn Sadler, Univ. of Texas, Dallas. The event will occur via Zoom webinar on Feb. 21, from 1-2 pm (CST).

Elegant paper from the Gereau lab examining intrinsic adaptive plasticity in mouse and human sensory neurons rupress.org/jgp/article/...