ASCO has issued a new update to its living guideline on treatment of stage IV non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with driver alterations based on two recent studies.1 The update, which amends the most recent version published in February 2025, includes a discussion of osimertinib therapy options in ...
The results of a cohort study published in JAMA Network Open revealed an epidemiologic association between postmastectomy implant-based breast reconstruction for any breast tumor and both B- and T-cell non-Hodgkin lymphomas of the breast. According to Kinslow et al, this includes diffuse large...
Adding tafasitamab-cxix, an anti-CD19 monoclonal antibody, to lenalidomide and rituximab significantly prolonged progression-free survival in patients with relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma, according to data presented at the 2025 European Hematology Association (EHA) Congress.1 Results...
The main symptom that eventually led to my diagnosis of stage IV adenocarcinoma non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) started in the fall of 2009. I was just 17 and in my freshman year at college when I began experiencing a persistent cough. The coughing became so unrelenting over the next month, I...
The American Society of Hematology (ASH) will recognize 11 hematologists who have made significant contributions to the field with several honorific awards and prestigious lectures at the 2025 ASH Annual Meeting & Exposition in Orlando, Florida, on December 6–9. Rainer Storb, MD, of Fred...
In an early-phase study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Liu et al evaluated the safety and preliminary efficacy of DEP-SN38, a polylysine-based dendrimer-nanoparticle delivery platform for the topoisomerase 1 inhibitor SN38, in patients with advanced solid tumors. SN38 is the active...
In a study reported as a research letter in JAMA Oncology, Hahn et al found that the proportion of U.S. patients with breast cancer undergoing annual surveillance imaging was lower in the post– vs pre–COVID-19 period, with no significant difference in recurrence or progression being observed. Study ...
For the 20th year in a row, major advances in cancer research and practice-changing clinical trials from the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting (ASCO25) were presented at the ASCO-licensed Best of ASCO meeting, held on July 18–19, 2025, in Beirut, Lebanon. It was indeed a great celebration and commitment to...
In a French-Belgian phase III trial (ASTER 70s) reported in The Lancet, Brain et al examined the survival benefit of adding adjuvant chemotherapy to hormone therapy in women aged ≥ 70 years with estrogen receptor–positive, HER2-negative breast cancer with high-risk disease on the basis of genomic...
John C. Byrd, MD, FASCO, an internationally lauded researcher and clinical specialist in hematologic malignancies, has been appointed Director of UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, effective November 2025. In his role as Director, Dr. Byrd will be responsible for all aspects of the University of...
In patients with newly diagnosed, PD-L1–positive, advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who tested negative for driver mutations, implementation of plasma-guided treatment intensification—from monotherapy with the PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab to platinum doublet chemotherapy plus...
Based on the results of a cohort study reported in JAMA Network Open, smoking worsened both cancer symptom burden and severity. However, Rieth et al noted that oncologic surgery may present a unique teachable moment for smoking cessation, as patients appeared to be highly motivated to quit. The...
For patients with gastrointestinal (GI) cancers, chemotherapy can sometimes cause severe, even life-threatening side effects in those who carry certain genetic variants that may impact how their bodies process the drugs used to treat their disease. Testing for variants in two genes before starting...
Researchers have identified age-, sex-, and race-related disparities around treatment with hypomethylating agents for patients with myelodysplastic syndromes in the United States. The receipt of hypomethylating agents was found to favor younger, male, White patients, according to findings published ...
In patients with small cell lung cancer, second-line treatment with the bispecific T-cell engager tarlatamab-dlle (which targets the delta-like ligand 3 [DLL3]) vs standard-of-care chemotherapy appeared to significantly improve overall survival, progression-free survival, and patient-reported...
Genetic testing may be the only way to differentiate between common and more rare subtypes of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) to prevent misdiagnoses, according to the results of a study published in Human Pathology. Mucinous tubular and spindle cell carcinoma (MTSCC) was found to share many...
It has been widely reported that colorectal cancer incidence has been increasing among younger adults under age 50 since the mid-1990s, with a consistent annual increase of 2% among adults aged 20 to 39. This increase prompted the American Cancer Society (ACS), in 2018, and the United States...
A recent study published by Menta et al in the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology found that many people misunderstand how common skin, hair, and nail side effects are during cancer treatment—and those fears may lead some to avoid or delay care. Conducted by researchers at the George Washington...
In a UK phase II trial (NEPTUNES) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Leone et al evaluated the efficacy of nivolumab plus ipilimumab in previously treated patients with immunogenic signature–positive metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). Study Details The multicenter...
Earlier this year, the first interim analysis of the phase III KEYNOTE-689 trial showed that the use of the PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab as part of a perioperative treatment regimen with standard-of-care surgery plus adjuvant radiotherapy (with or without cisplatin alone) improved event-free...
In an Australian phase II trial (De-Squamate) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Ladwa et al found that the use of pembrolizumab produced a high rate of clinical or pathologic complete response in patients with resectable cutaneous squamous cell cancer (cSCC), suggesting the potential to ...
The ASCO Post is pleased to present Hematology Expert Review, an ongoing feature that quizzes readers on issues in hematology. In this installment, Syed Ali Abutalib, MD, and L. Jeffrey Medeiros, MD, explore the impact of the prognostic marker RUNX1::RUX1T1 fusion on the diagnosis and treatment of...
A U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)–cleared artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm was able to detect and correctly localize almost one-third of interval breast cancers in a retrospective evaluation of screening digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT), findings published in Radiology showed. The...
As reported in The Lancet by Agarwal et al, the final overall survival analysis of the phase III TALAPRO-2 trial showed that the addition of talazoparib to enzalutamide resulted in a significant benefit in a cohort of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) unselected...
The PD-1 inhibitor toripalimab in combination with an induction chemoradiotherapy regimen free of concurrent cisplatin demonstrated noninferior efficacy and superior safety compared with the same regimen plus concurrent cisplatin in patients with high-risk, locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal...
As reported in JAMA Network Open by Sugumar et al, a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials comparing neoadjuvant therapies in rectal cancer showed no trial-level association between pathologic complete response and survival. “Our study’s findings suggest a recommendation ...
In August 2024, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a negotiated price for the Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitor ibrutinib that is 38% lower than the manufacturer’s list price. This new price will go into effect in January 2026. Negotiations began following passage...
This is Part 2 of First-Line Systemic Treatment of Advanced Hepatobiliary Cancers, a three-part video roundtable series. Scroll down to watch the other videos from this roundtable. In this video, Drs. Laura Goff, Kristen Spencer, and Mark Yarchoan discuss the treatment of advanced hepatocellular...
ASCO has issued a new update to its living guideline regarding therapy for stage IV non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) without driver alterations, based on results of three studies published recently.1 The update (the first since a previous version in February 2025) includes discussion of...
ASCO has issued a new update to its living guideline on treatment of stage IV non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with driver alterations based on two recent studies.1 The update, which amends the most recent version published in February 2025, includes a discussion of osimertinib therapy options in ...
Nothing about us without us is a centuries-old value that is a cornerstone of meaningful patient engagement in clinical research. Such engagement has not been automatic and is still largely absent in geriatric oncology research, where older patients traditionally have been excluded from clinical...
Higher ambient exposure to a type of inhalable, fine particulate matter was found to be associated with an increased risk of cancer-related death for patients who were diagnosed with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) while living in California—a state where wildfires are becoming more prevalent,...
Continuing its efforts to reduce fraud, waste, and abuse in Medicare, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced plans to significantly enhance Risk Adjustment Data Validation (RADV) auditing in Medicare Advantage. Beginning immediately, CMS will audit all eligible...
Systemic amyloid light-chain (AL) amyloidosis is characterized by the deposition of immunoglobulin light chains, produced by clonal CD38-positive plasma cells, as insoluble amyloid fibrils in vital organs. It is a disease that can progress rapidly and is fatal without treatment. The past decade...
This is Part 2 of Targeted Treatment Options in Platinum-Resistant Ovarian Cancer, a three-part video roundtable series. Scroll down to watch the other videos from this roundtable. In this video, Drs. Oladapo Yeku, Fernanda Musa, and Ying Liu discuss the treatment of HER2-positive...
The 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting included the presentation of data from more than 7,000 abstracts and clinical trials set to advance research, uncover findings, and in some cases change the standard of practice across multiple tumor types, moving science forward and improving care for the more than 2...
In patients with resectable gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma, perioperative treatment with the checkpoint inhibitor durvalumab in combination with standard chemotherapy significantly reduced the risk of recurrence or death by 29% in the phase III MATTERHORN trial. The...
In long-term results from the CARTITUDE-1 trial, investigators had found that the autologous cellular immunotherapy ciltacabtagene autoleucel was potentially curative for one-third of patients with heavily pretreated relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.1 These patients remained progression-free ...
In a prospective study (POSITIVE) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Peccatori et al investigated breastfeeding patterns among women who had a live birth after treatment of hormone receptor–positive breast cancer. Study Details Between December 2014 and December 2019, 518 women who...
Researchers have discovered that most cancer survivors do not make significant improvements to their diet or eating habits after their cancer diagnosis, according to findings published in Public Health Nutrition. Despite their cancer diagnosis, there was no significant difference in diet-related...
In an analysis from the phase III DREAMM-7 trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Hungria et al compared survival outcomes with belantamab mafodotin, bortezomib, and dexamethasone (BVd) vs daratumumab, bortezomib, and dexamethasone (DVd) in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma...
Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have significantly impacted treatment options for a wide range of cancers given their efficacy, especially among cancer types that are considered immunologically “hot.” With this broad benefit across many tumor types, researchers continue to look for ways to...
In a UK population-based study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Watling et al examined the relationship between ever use vs never use of oral contraceptives and the risk of liver cancer. Some findings suggested the possibility of slightly increased risk with longer-term use. As noted by the...
Researchers have developed a novel AI-powered online platform for diagnosing endocrine cancers with speed and accuracy. The AI models achieved diagnostic accuracy of 99% or more in recognizing multiple endocrine tumors. Reports of the development and validation of the models were presented at ENDO...
Teclistamab-cqyv is the first bispecific T-cell engager antibody that targets both B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) proteins on myeloma cells and CD3 proteins on T cells. It was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2022 for treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory multiple...
Patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) that has metastasized to the brain were safely and successfully treated with targeted stereotactic radiation (SRT) rather than whole-brain radiation therapy (WBRT) in a phase II trial, demonstrating the practicality of a less-invasive approach for...
The TRUST trial is the first phase III randomized study to show improved progression-free survival for primary cytoreductive surgery compared with interval surgery without compromising short-term or long-term quality of life, although the study failed to meet its primary endpoint of overall...
In two Japanese studies (SURF-RCT and SURF-Cohort) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kawaguchi et al compared the outcomes of surgery vs radiofrequency ablation (RFA) in patients with small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Study Details Two multicenter studies were performed, with...
From Dr. Bruce Cheson’s electric speech on how it all started with pentostatin in hairy cell leukemia, to the introduction of bendamustine in indolent lymphoma, to the development of R-squared (an innovative chemotherapy-free approach to treating lymphoma)—the nostalgia at the International...
An update of staging guidelines from the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) for human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive throat cancer—now more common in the United States than cervical cancer, according to the American Cancer Society—aims to make treatment of early-stage disease more consistent...