ESMO Congress 2021
STAMPEDE: In Nonmetastatic Castration-Sensitive Prostate Cancer, Abiraterone Added to Androgen-Deprivation Therapy Improves Survival
The addition of 2 years of abiraterone acetate plus prednisolone (AAP) to androgen-deprivation therapy improves metastasis-free survival and overall survival compared with androgen-deprivation therapy...
Expert Point of View: Eleni Efstathiou, MD
Invited discussant of the PEACE-1 trial, Eleni Efstathiou, MD, of the Houston Methodist Cancer Center and Athens Medical Center, Greece, reminded listeners: “Androgen signaling inhibition is the preva...
PEACE-1: Abiraterone Plus Androgen-Deprivation Therapy and Docetaxel Boosts Survival in Metastatic Castration-Sensitive Prostate Cancer
The addition of abiraterone acetate plus prednisone on top of androgen-deprivation therapy plus docetaxel improved survival in patients with de novo metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer vs ...
Neoadjuvant dd-MVAC Improves Local Control and Progression-Free Survival in Patients With Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer
The VESPER phase III trial answers some key questions regarding the optimal management of muscle-invasive bladder cancer. The study found that the neoadjuvant regimen of dose-dense methotrexate, vinbl...
KEYNOTE-355 Final Analysis Reveals Survival Benefit With Pembrolizumab in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
The final overall survival results from the KEYNOTE-355 study showed a statistically significant 27% reduction in the risk of death for patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer whose tum...
Phase II Breast Cancer Trial: Large Declines in Ki67 Index Seen With Oral Selective Estrogen Receptor Degrader
In the phase II coopERA Breast Cancer trial, which evaluated two endocrine neoadjuvant therapies in estrogen receptor–positive, HER2-negative early breast cancer, the oral selective estrogen receptor ...
CheckMate 743 Supports Survival Benefit of Nivolumab Plus Ipilimumab in Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma
Updated results from the phase III CheckMate 743 trial support the durable and superior benefits of immunotherapy with nivolumab plus ipilimumab over chemotherapy as first-line treatment for patients ...
T-DXd Makes Inroads in the Treatment of HER2-Mutant NSCLC
Previously treated patients with HER2-positive non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) achieved encouraging response rates and duration of response to the antibody-drug conjugate fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan...
In Case You Missed It: Brief Highlights From ESMO Congress 2021
The ASCO Post has published a wealth of practice-changing studies and news about other advances presented during the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2021. In addition to the bigg...
For Liver Metastases, Transarterial Radioembolization With Yttrium-90 Plus Chemotherapy May Delay Disease Progression
In the international phase III EPOCH trial, patients with colorectal liver metastases who experienced disease progression on first-line therapy derived significant benefit from treatment with transart...
Expert Point of View: Monica Arnedos, MD, PhD
The invited discussant of BrighTNess,1 Monica Arnedos, MD, PhD, Head of the Breast Cancer Research Program at the Institut Bergonié in Bordeaux, France, said the findings add to growing support for us...
BrighTNess: Neoadjuvant Carboplatin Improves Event-Free Survival in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
In patients with early resectable triple-negative breast cancer, not only did the addition of carboplatin to standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy improve pathologic complete response rates, it also impro...
Many Patients With Solid Tumors Mount an Adequate Response to SARS–CoV-2 Vaccine, Dutch Study Reports
Individuals with solid tumors had an appropriate, protective immune response to vaccination against SARS–CoV-2, at least with the mRNA-1273 vaccine, and side effects were no more common than in the ge...
IMpower010: Adjuvant Atezolizumab Improves Disease-Free Survival and NSCLC Relapse in Patients Whose Tumors Express PD-L1
Adjuvant immunotherapy with atezolizumab after standard chemotherapy improved disease-free survival and time to locoregional and distant relapse compared with best supportive care in prespecified subg...
Expert Point of View: Rocio Garcia-Carbonero, MD
The invited discussant of the FIRSTMAPP study, Rocio Garcia-Carbonero, MD, of Hospital Universitario 12 de Octubre, Madrid, emphasized that pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma are rare tumors, and once...
Evidence for Efficacy of Sunitinib in Malignant Pheochromocytoma and Paraganglioma
Results from the phase II FIRSTMAPPP study support the potential use of the tyrosine kinase inhibitor sunitinib in two rare neuroendocrine malignancies—pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma. Sunitinib s...
Studies Find B7-H3 Protein May Be a Target for Prostate Cancer Treatment
The immune checkpoint protein B7-H3 may be a potential new target in treatment-resistant prostate cancers, according to two studies presented recently at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESM...
FOCUS4-C Trial: Hint of Activity Reported With Adavosertib in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer
The novel WEE1 inhibitor adavosertib, given after induction chemotherapy, yielded a 65% reduction in the risk of disease progression or death compared with active monitoring in patients with metastati...
Expert Point of View: Federica Di Nicolantonio, MD, PhD
“KRAS G12C inhibitors as monotherapy yield a relatively low overall response rate, but when you combine them with an EGFR [epidermal growth factor receptor] inhibitor, the response rate is nearly doub...
KRAS G12C Inhibitor Adagrasib Shows Activity in Colorectal Cancer
Adagrasib, a covalent inhibitor of KRAS G12C, combined with cetuximab, showed activity in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer in the phase I/II KRYSTAL-1 trial, as presented during a Presidenti...
Hope S. Rugo, MD, on Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Treatment Findings From KEYNOTE-355 on Pembrolizumab and Chemotherapy
Hope S. Rugo, MD, of the University of California, San Francisco, discusses phase III results from the KEYNOTE-355 study of pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy, which improved overall survival vs chemothe...
STAMPEDE: In Nonmetastatic Castration-Sensitive Prostate Cancer, Abiraterone Added to Androgen-Deprivation Therapy Improves Survival
The addition of 2 years of abiraterone acetate plus prednisolone (AAP) to androgen-deprivation therapy improves metastasis-free survival and overall survival compared with androgen-deprivation therapy...
CheckMate 649: Long-Term Data Support Nivolumab Plus Chemotherapy but Not Nivolumab Plus Ipilimumab in Gastric Cancer
Longer follow-up data from the phase III CheckMate 649 trial support the use of nivolumab plus chemotherapy as a new standard first-line regimen in patients with advanced gastric cancer, gastroesophag...
Expert Point of View: Omid Hamid, MD
Commenting on the SECOMBIT trial was Omid Hamid, MD, Chief of Translational Research and Immunotherapy at The Angeles Clinic & Research Institute, a Cedars-Sinai Affiliate, and Co-Director, Cutane...
SECOMBIT Trial Evaluates Optimal Treatment Sequencing in BRAF-Mutated Melanoma
Patients with untreated, metastatic BRAF-mutated melanoma may benefit from receiving immunotherapy first, moving to targeted therapy in the second line, data from the updated overall survival analysis...
Another Antibody-Drug Conjugate Enters the Metastatic Breast Cancer Landscape
In the global phase III TULIP trial in metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer, treatment with the antibody-drug conjugate vic-trastuzumab duocarmazine (SYD985) significantly improved progression-free ...
Neoadjuvant dd-MVAC Improves Local Control and Progression-Free Survival in Patients With Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer
The VESPER phase III trial answers some key questions regarding the optimal management of muscle-invasive bladder cancer. The study found that the neoadjuvant regimen of dose-dense methotrexate, vinbl...
MONALEESA-2: Overall Survival Benefit With First-Line Ribociclib Plus Letrozole
Ribociclib plus hormonal therapy in the first-line setting boosted overall survival by more than 1 year, vs hormone therapy alone, in postmenopausal women with hormone receptor–positive HER2-negative ...
Patients With Hematologic Malignancies: How Robust Is Their Immunity to SARS–CoV-2?
A large study from the United Kingdom has taken a deep dive into SARS–CoV-2 in the setting of cancer, yielding both concerning and encouraging findings about natural and vaccine-induced immunity. The ...
Susana N. Banerjee, MBBS, PhD, on Ovarian Cancer: Novel Combination Therapy Under Study
Susana N. Banerjee, MBBS, PhD, of The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, discusses phase I results that have generated interest in the combination of the RAF/MEK inhibitor VS-6766 and the FAK inhibit...
Susana N. Banerjee, MBBS, PhD, on Ovarian, Fallopian Tube, or Primary Peritoneal Adenocarcinoma: Treatment Findings From the EORTC-1508 Trial
Susana N. Banerjee, MBBS, PhD, of The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, discusses phase II results of the EORTC-1508 trial, the first study to combine an anti–PD-L1 antibody, atezolizumab, with beva...
Dieter Hörsch, MD: For Patients With Bronchopulmonary Neuroendocrine Tumors, Lanreotide Autogel May Be Beneficial
Dieter Hörsch, MD, of Germany’s Central Clinic in Bad Berka, discusses phase III results from the SPINET trial, the largest prospective study to date of the somatostatin analog lanreotide autogel. The...
Filippo Pietrantonio, MD, and Federica Morano, MD, on Colorectal Cancer and the MAYA Trial Strategy: Temozolomide, Ipilimumab, and Nivolumab
Filippo Pietrantonio, MD, and Federica Morano, MD, both of the Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, discuss results from the MAYA trial, which provided proof of concept that temozolomide-induced hypermutati...
Expert Point of View: Clare L. Scott, MBBS, PhD
Invited discussant Clare L. Scott, MBBS, PhD, Chair of Gynaecological Cancer at the University of Melbourne and medical oncologist at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Australia, said: “We no...
PARP Rechallenge Slows Ovarian Cancer Progression in Platinum-Sensitive Disease
Rechallenge with the poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor olaparib in patients with platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer led to significant improvement in progression-free survival, in patients...
Neeraj Agarwal, MD, on Advanced Prostate Cancer: Data on Cabozantinib Plus Atezolizumab
Neeraj Agarwal, MD, of Hunstman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah, discusses efficacy and safety results from the COSMIC-021 study, in which cabozantinib plus atezolizumab demonstrated clinic...
Thomas Powles, MD, PhD, on Urothelial Carcinoma: Erdafitinib, Cetrelimab, and FGFR Alterations
Thomas Powles, MD, PhD, of Queen Mary University of London, discusses phase II results from the NORSE study, which showed that the kinase inhibitor erdafitinib plus the monoclonal antibody cetrelimab ...
Joseph M. Unger, PhD, on the Impact of NCI-Sponsored Treatment Trials
Joseph M. Unger, PhD, of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, discusses findings from his study of the National Cancer Institute’s Clinical Trials Network, which has conducted publicly funded cance...
Jonathan Lim, MBBS, MRCP: The Future of the Oncology Workforce Since the COVID-19 Pandemic
Jonathan Lim, MBBS, MRCP, of Christie NHS Foundation Trust and the Francis Crick Institute, discusses results of an ESMO survey, which showed that the risk of poor well-being, distress, and burnout ha...
Expert Point of View: Eleni Efstathiou, MD
Invited discussant of the PEACE-1 trial, Eleni Efstathiou, MD, of the Houston Methodist Cancer Center and Athens Medical Center, Greece, reminded listeners: “Androgen signaling inhibition is the preva...
PEACE-1: Abiraterone Plus Androgen-Deprivation Therapy and Docetaxel Boosts Survival in Metastatic Castration-Sensitive Prostate Cancer
The addition of abiraterone acetate plus prednisone on top of androgen-deprivation therapy plus docetaxel improved survival in patients with de novo metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer vs ...
Expert Point of View: Omid Hamid, MD
“The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is currently examining pembrolizumab for the adjuvant treatment of stage IIB and IIC melanoma; if approved, we would be introducing immunotherapy earlier in the ...
Adjuvant Pembrolizumab Shows Efficacy in High-Risk Stage II Melanoma in Adults and Children Older Than 12
Adjuvant pembrolizumab reduced the risk of recurrence in adults and children older than age 12 with high-risk stage II (AJCC 8th edition, stage IIB/IIC) melanoma vs placebo, according to a late-breaki...
Expert Point of View: Mansoor Raza Mirza, MD
“The standard of care [in advanced cervical cancer] has been the addition of bevacizumab to platinum-based chemotherapy since 2014. Even with the addition of bevacizumab, we still need to do better. T...
Study Shows Pembrolizumab Plus Chemotherapy Improves Survival in Advanced Cervical Cancer
The addition of pembrolizumab to chemotherapy prolonged survival in recurrent, persistent, or metastatic cervical cancer, according to the results of the first interim analysis of the KEYNOTE-826 tri...
Expert Point of View: Monica Arnedos, MD, PhD
Monica Arnedos, MD, PhD, Head of the Breast Cancer Research Program at the Institut Bergonié, Bordeaux, France, commented on the study findings on extended treatment with letrozole. “We cannot ignore ...
Phase III Trial Supports Adjuvant Endocrine Therapy for 7 Years in Early-Stage Breast Cancer
For patients with early-stage hormone receptor–positive breast cancer, extending the duration of letrozole after tamoxifen—for up to 8 years of total endocrine therapy—significantly improved invasive ...
Expert Point of View: Shanu Modi, MD
Shanu Modi, MD, of the Breast Medicine Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, called the DESTINY-Breast03 results,1 which showed a highly significant benefit for fam-trastuzumab ...
DESTINY Breast03 Trial Supports Second-Line Use of T-DXd in Metastatic HER2-Positive Breast Cancer
The antibody-drug conjugate fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki (T-DXd) may become a new option as a second-line treatment of patients with HER2-positive unresectable or metastatic breast cancer, based on...
Jenny F. Seligmann, MBChB, PhD, on Colorectal Cancer: Adavosertib Compared With Active Monitoring
Jenny F. Seligmann, MBChB, PhD, of the University of Leeds, discusses phase II findings that suggest adavosertib improved progression-free survival, compared with active monitoring, by inhibiting the ...
