This year’s Sjöberg Prize of $1 million U.S. dollars was awarded to a British cancer researcher who has provided fundamental knowledge about evolution in tumors. Professor Charles Swanton, FRCP, BSc, PhD, at the Francis Crick Institute in London, described how tumors’ mutations arise and develop....
Trastuzumab deruxtecan (T-DXd) has claimed a large share of the HER2-positive breast cancer landscape, even finding room among tumors previously thought to be HER2-negative. The DESTINY series of trials are international studies investigating T-DXd as a potential treatment option for eligible...
New data from the American Medical Association (AMA) show physician burnout continuing to decline nationwide, but significant differences across medical specialties underscore the need for more targeted solutions within health systems. In 2025, 41.9% of physicians reported experiencing at least one ...
A biology-guided artificial intelligence model applied to routine pathology slides accurately predicted outcomes and response to immunotherapy in patients with metastatic non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), according to a study presented at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual ...
A single infusion of the chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy ciltacabtagene autoleucel led to a 100% measurable residual disease (MRD)-negativity rate in patients with high-risk smoldering multiple myeloma, according to results from CAR-PRISM, a phase II clinical trial, presented at the...
Patients with advanced platinum-resistant ovarian cancer who had experienced disease progression on standard therapy exhibited clinical benefit when treated with the investigational antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) QLS5132, according to results from a phase I clinical trial (ClinicalTrials.gov...
I am writing this from the hospital waiting room. My father is undergoing an 11-hour surgery to remove his parotid gland and a squamous cell carcinoma that has metastasized from his cheek and invaded his facial nerve. Several weeks ago, when the PA’s fingers moved over the mass visibly protruding...
As the data continue to show, the incidence of breast, testis, and other cancers are on the rise in adolescent and young adults (AYAs) between the ages of 15 and 39, with increases of 30% over the last 4 decades.1 And while potential explanations for this rapid increase have included obesity,...
Last October, the Cancer AI Alliance (CAIA) announced the launch of its collaborative artificial intelligence (AI) platform powered by federated learning to train AI models with millions of de-identified patient datasets from participating cancer centers, while maintaining patient security,...
The promise of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to provide highly personalized oncology care for patients and improve outcomes has been decades in the making. In a 1987 editorial in The New England Journal of Medicine, pioneering nephrologist and health economist William B. Schwartz, MD,...
Women who are treated with mastectomy for breast cancer often choose to have breast reconstructive surgery using an implant. But hard, painful scar tissue can form around the implant, especially when women also receive radiotherapy as part of their treatment. Findings from the OPBC-09 PRExRT study, ...
Research has uncovered that an increase in organ size from hyperplasia due to increased weight may increase the risk for several obesity-related cancers, according to findings published in Cancer Research. “People have long been told that obesity increases cancer risk, but they are rarely told...
For myelofibrosis, the treatment landscape is poised for change as new targets have emerged, and treatments are evolving beyond the standard Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors. Novel therapies are being paired with the commonly used JAK inhibitor ruxolitinib, as reflected by a wealth of studies...
For myelofibrosis, the treatment landscape is poised for change as new targets have emerged, and treatments are evolving beyond the standard Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors. Novel therapies are being paired with the commonly used JAK inhibitor ruxolitinib, as reflected by a wealth of studies...
Two papers published in Nature reveal long-disregarded functions of the thymus in adulthood, showing that the overall health of the organ impacts aging and risks for cardiovascular disease and cancer, as well as affecting response to immunotherapy in patients with cancer. “The thymus has been...
A new analysis suggests that prostate cancer screening may compare favorably with screening for breast cancer in terms of identifying significant cancers, reducing mortality, and avoiding unnecessary harms, according to findings presented at the 2026 Annual Congress of the European Association of...
On March 10, 2000, it was a cold Friday morning in Washington, DC. As usual, we the oncology fellows and faculty crowded into a conference room at the NIH Clinical Center in Building 10 for our weekly conference. Before the session formally began, a senior faculty member walked in holding the New...
Women are more likely to survive cancer than men, but face a higher risk of serious and adverse side effects from treatment, according to a landmark international study. Published by Chhetri et al in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, the research identified consistent differences...
Recurrence-free survival was similar between adjuvant therapy with the PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab and placebo in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma who achieved a complete radiologic response after surgical resection or local ablation, based on the phase III KEYNOTE-937 trial.1 Presented at...
Integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into screening workflows increased the detection of breast cancer by 10.4% in the United Kingdom, according to the results of the GEMINI study published in Nature Cancer. Additionally, use of AI in different workflows led to reductions in workload by up...
Prostate specific antigen (PSA) screening remains one of the most controversial of “standard” medical practices. As recently as the 2026 Super Bowl, one of the more unusual TV advertisements, sponsored by a pharmaceutical company with an interest in prostate cancer treatments, extolled the virtues ...
A year ago, I was confronting a series of symptoms—including rapid weight loss, abdominal distress, fatigue, and heart issues—that I couldn’t explain. I was just 60 years old and had been in good health, but now I sensed that something was seriously wrong. I made appointments with my primary care...
In February, ASCO and Conexiant launched ASCO AI in Oncology (ascoai.org), a digital platform dedicated to understanding how artificial intelligence (AI) is impacting cancer care. “Our goal with this hub is to empower oncology professionals with knowledge and the tools to adapt to a rapidly...
For myelofibrosis, the treatment landscape is poised for change as new targets have emerged, and treatments are evolving beyond the standard Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors. Novel therapies are being paired with the commonly used JAK inhibitor ruxolitinib, as reflected by a wealth of studies...
Colorectal metastases isolated to the liver no longer portend a universally fatal outcome. In 2024, the TransMet study1demonstrated that liver transplantation in select patients could be life-saving—thus changing the treatment paradigm—but so can surgical resection when appropriately applied....
When patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) progress, as is common with such an aggressive malignancy, brain metastasis is a known possibility. As such, guidelines have recommended prophylactic cranial irradiation for patients with SCLC who respond well to first-line therapy to decrease the...
The first prospective, randomized phase III trial of a noncovalent Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor exclusively in treatment-naive patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)/small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL)—BRUIN CLL-313—demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically...
Genetic ancestry plays a key role in determining the behavior of head and neck tumors and may help explain why African American patients survive for half as long as their counterparts of European ancestry, according to a new review study published by Ndahayo et al in Cancer and Metastasis Reviews....
The Cancer Research Institute (CRI) in collaboration with 10x Genomics, Stanford University School of Medicine, the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, has launched an open foundational database for cancer immunotherapy research. The...
A new study by American Cancer Society (ACS) researchers shows that overall cancer mortality in people younger than age 50 in the United States has decreased by 44%, from 25.5 per 100,000 people in 1990 to 14.2 in 2023. The progress is due to declines in mortality for four of the five leading...
In 2018, the federal government expanded the coverage duration of short-term limited-duration (STLD) health plans from 3 months to less than 12 months, with the option to renew for a total duration of up to 36 months. Some states imposed more stringent regulations than those federally imposed or...
For many patients with cancer, hair loss can be one of the most distressing side effects of their therapy. Increasingly, patients have been taking oral supplements of biotin, which are marketed to consumers for their potential to improve hair regrowth and brittle nails. However, there is little...
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...
It is estimated that hereditary factors play a role in about 5% to 10% of colorectal cancer cases, with a higher prevalence of hereditary factors seen in younger patients. Many colorectal polyps are considered potential precursors to cancer: at least 10 polyps in individuals younger than 60 years...
Steve Brown, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of CureWise (curewise.com), an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven patient advocacy app, describes his year-long quest to understand a series of symptoms that ultimately led to a diagnosis of light chain (AL) amyloidosis—a disease closely related to ...
Researchers have uncovered that sex-specific dysregulation of exosomal non-coding RNAs may drive different patterns of disease progression of multiple myeloma in male and female individuals, according to findings published in Blood Cancer Journal. “The same therapies are provided for men and women ...
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...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved sevabertinib, an oral targeted therapy, for adult patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors harbor certain HER2 (ERBB2) mutations and who have previously received chemotherapy or immunotherapy. The approval reflects a...
There is something deeply moving about watching hope take shape, not as a slogan or a speech, but as people coming together to build the cancer care Africa deserves. The African Organization for Research and Training in Cancer (AORTIC) 2025 Congress in Tunisia held in November was a vivid reminder...
Although treatment advances in pediatric cancers have resulted in increases in overall 5-year survival for children and adolescents diagnosed with cancer, many pediatric survivors face chronic health conditions as they age, as well as financial, social, and psychological challenges, according to...
In 2016, Filippo Milano, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Translational Science and Therapeutics Division, and Director of the Cord Blood Transplant Program at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle, published the results of his landmark study investigating whether an alternative stem cell donor...
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...
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has transformed treatment for patients with hematologic malignancies, achieving unprecedented responses in some patients, especially those diagnosed with relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and multiple...
A large international study published by Kunkler et al in The New England Journal of Medicine examined whether chest wall radiation therapy after mastectomy improves survival for patients with early-stage breast cancer. The study, known as the SUPREMO trial, found no overall survival difference...
New research has ruled out hormone signaling as the reason why men with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) tend to have poorer outcomes than women, even when treated with the same intensive chemotherapy—a finding that helps refine future research and could influence clinical trial design. The...
In 2021, The ASCO Post had a wide-ranging discussion with Robert A. Hiatt, MD, PhD, Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and Associate Director of Population Sciences at UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer...
Although 2023 made headlines as the hottest year in human history,1 drawing the world closer to breaching the goals outlined in the Paris Agreement to substantially reduce global greenhouse gas emissions to limit global warming to well below 2°C above preindustrial levels (and preferably to...
In the spring of 2024, I was preparing to compete in a Half Ironman triathlon and was not surprised when I began experiencing tightness in my groin. I just figured it was the byproduct of specific endurance training I was doing in each discipline, including running, biking, and swimming, to get...
The American Lung Association has released its 2025 “State of Lung Cancer” report, which reveals great strides in efforts to end lung cancer—the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. This year, nearly 227,000 people in the United States will be diagnosed with lung cancer....