Metastasis-directed therapy significantly improved progression-free survival, radiologic progression–free survival, and castration resistance–free survival in patients with oligometastatic prostate cancer, according to a new study published by Tang et al in The Lancet Oncology. The study is a...
Editor’s note: On November 22, 2025—the 62nd anniversary of her grandfather President John F. Kennedy’s assassination—Tatiana Celia Kennedy Schlossberg published an essay in The New Yorker detailing her diagnosis of acute myeloid leukemia with chromosome 3 inversion, a rare and aggressive subtype...
Although it’s been widely reported for years that colorectal cancer incidence has been increasing among younger adults under age 50 by between 1% and 2% annually since the mid-1990s,1 two new studies by Kimmie Ng, MD, MPH, Associate Chief of the Division of Gastrointestinal Oncology and Founding...
An artificial saliva in the form of a mouthwash, produced with a protein extracted from sugarcane and modified in a laboratory, may aid in treating hyposalivation among patients with head and neck cancer, a new study has found. Radiotherapy delivered very close to the mouth can destroy salivary...
A higher absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) after receipt of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy may be associated with improved progression-free and/or overall survival in patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, according to findings from the 2025 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual...
New findings from the phase II ENHANCE clinical trial indicate that both real and sham acupuncture improve breast cancer survivors’ perceived cognitive impairment more effectively than usual care alone, while real acupuncture improves objective measures of cognitive performance better than sham...
Rates of local regional recurrence were very low for patients with early-stage triple-negative or HER2-positive breast cancer regardless of whether or not they received a breast MRI for staging and surgical planning, according to findings from the phase III Alliance A011104/ACRIN 6694 trial...
ASCO’s mission to conquer cancer through research, education, and promotion of the highest quality patient care requires curiosity, open-mindedness, and an evidence-based approach to emerging technologies. ASCO is committed to helping the oncology community understand, develop, apply, and monitor...
On October 30, 2025, Google Cloud held its second annual Cancer AI Symposium to explore how artificial intelligence (AI) is advancing cancer research, diagnosis, and treatment, in unparalleled ways. Held at Google’s St. John’s Terminal office in New York City, the event brought together leaders in...
Clinicians have traditionally prioritized high-level human leukocyte antigen (HLA) matching to minimize graft-vs-host disease (GVHD) after hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). New data from the ACCESS study, sponsored by the National Marrow Donor Program, indicate that the use of...
Measurable residual disease (MRD), regardless of the method of assessment, is a robust individual-level predictor for overall survival among patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who have already received induction therapy, according to findings from a pooled analysis presented at the 2025...
Rates of radiotherapy-associated adverse events were considerably higher with the concurrent addition of low doses of the PARP inhibitor olaparib compared with radiotherapy alone in patients with inflammatory breast cancer in the adjuvant setting, according to the results of a toxicity analysis...
The pace of therapeutic innovation in hematologic oncology continues to accelerate, moving clinical practice away from broad-spectrum chemotherapy and toward an era of highly personalized, biologically driven treatment. This transformation was the central theme of the 2025 National Comprehensive...
Growing up in Draksharamam, a small village in India, Neelima Denduluri, MD, FASCO, was attracted to the field of medicine after witnessing her grandfather, a general practitioner in the village, care for patients so poor he often provided medical services at no cost. Although Dr. Denduluri’s...
In a randomized phase II trial, Christiane Querfeld, MD, PhD, and colleagues investigated the effects of a PD-L1–blocking strategy for targeting both the innate and adaptive immune systems in cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL). At the 2025 Society of Hematologic Oncology (SOHO) Annual Meeting,1 Dr....
Resection of the primary thoracic tumor after EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibition demonstrated the ability to prolong disease control in patients with EGFR-mutant metastatic non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), according to findings from a randomized phase II trial presented at the International...
Patients with cancer who have a diet high in tryptophan, or protein-rich foods, have an increased risk for developing cancer-associated venous thromboembolism, according to preclinical findings published in Blood Advances. This increased risk could potentially be mitigated by treatment with an...
Patients with advanced cancer reported in survey responses that their treatment often focused on optimizing longevity over maintaining comfort and quality of life, despite their goals that prioritized the opposite, according to study results published in Cancer. Additionally, the findings...
Various artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms submitted as part of a challenge demonstrated the ability to identify different breast cancers during screening mammography, according to the results of a study published in Radiology. Ensemble models of the top submitted algorithms indicated that the ...
Immunoglobulin replacement therapy did not lead to a reduction in the risk for serious infections leading to hospitalizations for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), according to the results of a real-world Australian cohort study published in Blood Advances. This finding is at odds...
The risk of death does not appear to increase with the use of menopausal hormone therapy in women with early-onset, BRCA-mutated breast cancer who began hormone supplementation after diagnosis, based on preliminary data presented during the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting.1 “Management of early surgical...
A combination of menin inhibition and KAT6A/7 inhibition significantly improved survival for NUP98-rearranged pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in AML model systems, even in menin inhibitor–resistant cells, according to findings published in Cancer Discovery. The MYST gene family histone...
In 2022, I had a computed tomography (CT) coronary calcium scan to see whether there were any signs of narrowing or blockage in my heart arteries. Heart disease runs in my family. My father died of a heart attack the year before, and I worried that I was at risk for the same fate. It was a complete ...
The ASCO Post would like to pay tribute to Samuel M. Silver, MD,PhD, FRCP, FASCO, MACP, who died on August 14, 2024, at the age of 74. Dr. Silver was renowned in the hematology and oncology community and a respected member of the editorial advisory board of The ASCO Post. Additionally, he served...
Besides relapse of the malignant disease, graft-vs-host disease is still one of the greatest concerns, in terms of adverse effects, following a hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in a patient with a hematologic malignancy. To mitigate these concerns, investigators are continually analyzing ...
A common germline variant in the proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) (rs562556, V474I) gene rather than a mutation in a breast cancer tumor may be the driving force in significantly increasing the risk of breast cancer metastasis and reducing survival in women with the disease....
Internationally renowned for her decades-long pioneering research in pancreatic cancer, in 2024, Diane M. Simeone, MD, left her positions as the Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Professor of Surgery and Pathology; Director, Pancreatic Cancer Center; and Associate Director of the Perlmutter Cancer Center...
I’ve been a physician for several decades, seeing patients and functioning as a medical teacher; clinical, translational, and bench researcher; and administrator. Adapting to medical practice in three nations and several U.S. states has been quite challenging at different times, but I really think...
At just 5 years old, Charu Aggarwal, MD, MPH, FASCO, already knew that she wanted to be a physician when she grew up, although she can’t explain where the idea came from. She just knows the desire to help others was ingrained in her from a very early age. Growing up in New Delhi, India, where...
Individuals who reported exclusive use of combustible cigarettes as well as those who reported dual use of both cigarettes and e-cigarettes showed similarly high toxicant exposure, according to the results of a study published in Nicotine & Tobacco Research. Both groups of smokers showed higher ...
A novel tool could help elucidate consumer behaviors at the county level as well as the relationship between the location where individuals shopped for their food and their risk of obesity-related cancer mortality, according to a recent study published by Lin et al in BMC Medicine. Background Over...
As a Native American and former president of the Seneca Nation of Indians, I am keenly aware of the disparities in cancer care we face in accessing screening and treatment, which results in worse survival rates compared with those of racial and ethnic populations.1 Native American and Alaska Native ...
Long-term yogurt intake may protect against the development of colorectal cancer through changes in the gut microbiome, according to a recent study published by Ugai et al in Gut Microbes. Background Yogurt—which contains live strains of bacteria—is thought to protect against many types of...
Short-course, higher-dose vaginal brachytherapy for endometrial cancer may demonstrate comparable efficacy to more frequent, lower-dose sessions, according to a recent study published by Suneja et al in JCO Oncology Advances. Background Endometrial cancer is the most common cancer type of the...
For more than a year before my diagnosis of stage IA non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), in 2020, I had been self-treating a relentless chronic cough and a slight feeling of tightness in my chest. The symptoms were similar to asthma, so I began using albuterol inhalers. When they stopped working, I ...
Intense pain on the right side of my lower rib cage, in 2020, sent me first to my chiropractor for relief and then to my primary care provider for tests. Because of the location of the pain, the chiropractor thought I might be having a gallbladder attack, but the results from a urine test showed a ...
My twin brother and I were adopted at 18 months old, so I don’t know the medical history of our biological parents and family. But for certain, cancer has played an integral—and heartbreaking—role in my life. Both of my adoptive parents were diagnosed with genitourinary cancers at relatively early ...
Researchers may have uncovered the immune basis for the development of myocarditis in patients with cancer receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors, according to a recent study published by Blum et al in Nature. The findings revealed changes in specific types of immune and stromal cells in the heart...
Using computational tools, researchers have developed a novel method to assess which patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer may benefit from immunotherapy, according to a recent study published by Arulraj et al in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)....
Guest Editor’s Note: Advances in cancer treatments have led to an increase in survival rates, but the quality of life is often diminished during survivorship. Because modifiable personal behavior contributes to health-care outcomes, interventions that support healthy behaviors may improve health...
My dad agreed to receive hospice on a technicality. It happened after weeks of trying to get him home oxygen. My brother drove him to the oncologist’s office, and I helped him get into the wheelchair. He did not complain, but just asked me to hold his coffee mug, smiling because I snuck him a...
A recent study suggests that for people older than age 65 who have cancer, physical activity may be key to reducing the chances of a dangerous fall. People with lung cancer, colorectal cancer, or prostate cancer, in particular, had a lower risk of falling when they talked with their doctor...
The results from a phase Ib/II study of a five-drug targeted therapy regimen—venetoclax, ibrutinib, prednisone, obinutuzumab, and lenalidomide (ViPOR)—in the treatment of relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) showed the treatment produced durable remissions and potential...
Researchers have found that about 50% of patients with metastatic melanoma treated with a combination of nivolumab and ipilimumab experienced cancer-free survival of 10 years or longer, according to a recent study published by Wolchok et al in The New England Journal of Medicine. Background In...
Medical oncology had a turbulent beginning. No other specialty we know of struggled as much. But by 1980, it had become a stable specialty of internal medicine and was off and running—with the major problem of how to marshal available resources to freely test the myriad opportunities presented by ...
Patients may be less likely to return for subsequent screening mammography following a false-positive recall for additional imaging or biopsy, according to a recent study published by Miglioretti et al in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The findings raised concerns regarding the potential...
I was a track and field athlete throughout college, and my goal was to try out for the Olympics, but cancer had other plans for me. In 2010, while in my senior year in college, I began having sharp, shooting pains in my shoulders, which I initially attributed to overzealous training. But the pain...
Researchers have found that diet-derived molecules known as metabolites may be the main drivers of early-onset colorectal cancer risk, especially those associated with red and processed meat, according to a recent study published by Jayakrishnan et al in npj Precision Oncology. Background Despite...
Research has consistently shown that Native American and Alaska Native individuals are among the most underserved minority populations in the United States and are disproportionately affected by cancer. The results from a 50-year report by the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium’s Alaska Native...
Targeting lactate with the epilepsy drug stiripentol may reverse chemotherapy resistance in patients with gastric cancer, according to a recent study published by Chen et al in Nature. Background Chemotherapy attacks cancer cells by damaging their DNA. The cancer cells then try to rapidly repair...