Lung cancer is the second most common cancer in the United States, but high recurrence rates persist for patients with early-stage disease. A recent study published by Black et al in Nature Medicine has found that even very low traces of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) may be linked to increased...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Orphan Drug designation to the investigational agent ELC-100 for the treatment of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, according to a press release from Elicera Therapeutics, the drug developer. ELC-100 is an oncolytic virus–based therapy designed to...
The RAD51 biomarker may help to tailor treatment strategies in patients with early breast cancer, according to a recent study published by Villacampa et al in Clinical Cancer Research. Background “A key objective of research focused on early-stage breast cancer is to identify biomarkers that can...
Pediatric patients with cancer who have obesity at the time of diagnosis may face an elevated risk of mortality, according to a recent study published by Sassine et al in Cancer. Study Methods and Results In the retrospective study, investigators examined data from the Cancer in Young People in...
Artificial intelligence (AI) could improve screening for cervical cancer, enhancing accuracy and efficiency, according to a recent review article published by Wu et al in Cancer Biology & Medicine. The report, authored by a team of researchers from the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and...
Although lung cancer and related cancer deaths decreased in the world’s 10 most populous countries from 1990 to 2019, these positive statistics may not address trends in mortality linked to tobacco use, air pollution, and asbestos exposure, according to a recent study published by Jani et al in...
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) announced that the organization participated in a 2-day meeting at the Middle East North Africa (MENA)–NCCN Regional Coordinating Center. Background The MENA-NCCN Regional Coordinating Center is supported by the Ministry of National Guard Health...
A new study examining the use of high-cost drugs among patients with colorectal cancer and non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) found those insured through Medicare Advantage received less expensive cancer drugs compared to others on traditional Medicare. The findings were published by Bradley et al...
Kenneth H. Cowan, MD, PhD, served for 24 years as Director of NCI-designated cancer center at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), now called the Nebraska Medicine Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center in Omaha. Dr. Cowan died on December 15, 2024, at the age of 77 years. A native...
Researchers have demonstrated that a novel artificial intelligence (AI)-based platform could aid physicians and patients in assessing the benefit from a particular therapy being tested in a clinical trial, according to a recent study published by Orcutt et al in Nature Medicine. The AI platform may ...
The ORACLE test may be capable of predicting lung cancer survival at the point of diagnosis more effectively than currently used clinical risk factors, according to a recent study published by Biswas et al in Nature Cancer. The findings could help physicians make more informed treatment decisions...
A recent study published in Health Data Science, conducted by Fengyu Wen, PhD, MPH, of the Institute of Medical Technology at Peking University Health Science Center; Luxia Zhang, MD, MPH, of the National Institute of Health Data Science at Peking University; and colleagues, revealed significant...
Researchers may have advanced the understanding of genetic alterations in the BRCA2 gene, according to a recent study published by Huang et al in Nature. The findings could improve the accuracy of genetic testing and allow health-care professionals to offer more precise risk assessments and...
Researchers have discovered of a new type of stem cell in the brain that could lead to the development of more effective treatments in adult patients with glioblastoma, according to a recent study published by Wang et al in Nature. The finding could help explain how adult brain cells take advantage ...
A team of scientists from the United Kingdom and the United States has discovered that the activity of macrophages may prove to be useful in predicting whether or not a patient with melanoma will respond to immunotherapy. Their findings, published in JCO Oncology Advances, may help clinicians to...
For women with high-risk, BRCA-positive breast cancer, 1 year of adjuvant treatment with the PARP inhibitor olaparib following primary treatment continued to improve overall survival compared with placebo, according to the third interim analysis of the phase III OlympiA trial presented at the 2024...
Belinda Avalos, MD, Professor of Medicine and a senior advisor to the President of Atrium Health Levine Cancer, will serve as president of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) for a year-long term through December 2025. Overview Dr. Avalos is a physician-scientist with a special clinical...
Regular physical activity prior to a cancer diagnosis may be linked to a lower risk of disease progression and mortality, according to a recent study published by Mabena et al in British Journal of Sports Medicine. The findings revealed that even relatively low levels of physical activity may be...
A new University of Cincinnati (UC) Cancer Center study has identified a particular strand of microRNA as a promising new target for overcoming breast cancer treatment resistance and improving outcomes. The research was recently published in the journal Cancers. Study Background Study author...
On January 3, 2025, the U.S. Surgeon General’s office released a new advisory on the link between alcohol consumption and increased risk for cancer. The advisory reports alcohol use as the third leading preventable cause of cancer in the United States—after tobacco and obesity—responsible for...
A genetic mutation long believed to drive the development of esophageal cancer may play a protective role early in the disease, according to a recent study published by Ganguli et al in Nature Cancer. The findings could help physicians identify which patients are at greater risk of developing...
The drug glucarpidase could serve as an antidote to kidney toxicity in patients receiving the chemotherapy agent methotrexate, according to a recent study published by Gupta et al in Blood. Background As a result of its ability to penetrate the blood-brain barrier, methotrexate is one of the most...
Presented by Sherko Kuemmel, MD, on December 12, 2024, at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium The WSG ADAPT trial in patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer established that the combination of clinical risk, genomic risk, and endocrine response (Ki67 downregulation) allows...
At the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, Komal Jhaveri, MD, FACP, presented results of the phase III EMBER-3 trial of imlunestrant, an oral selective estrogen receptor degrader as monotherapy and combined with abemaciclib for patients with ER+/HER2-negative advanced breast cancer. Filmed...
Treatment with psilocybin may improve mental health issues among patients with cancer when accompanied by psychotherapy and could result in lasting, positive personality changes in patients with alcohol use disorder, according to two recent studies published by Petridis et al in Nature Mental...
Researchers have found that many cases of high-risk nonmetastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer may be more advanced than previously thought, according to a recent study published by Holzgreve et al in JAMA Network Open. Background Prostate-specific membrane antigen–positron-emission tomography ...
Presented by Otto Metzger, MD, on December 12, 2024, at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium Discussed here by Jame Abraham, MD, FACP The phase III PATINA trial showed that the addition of palbociclib to current standard-of-care first-line maintenance therapy, following induction...
Presented by Nicholas Turner, MD, PhD, on December 13, 2024 at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium Discussed here by Jame Abraham, MD, FACP The ZEST phase III clinical trial was designed to evaluate the potential of the PARP inhibitor niraparib to prevent breast cancer recurrence in...
Today, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued an advisory citing scientific studies linking alcoholic beverages and an increased risk of at least seven cancers, including breast and colorectal cancers, and called for alcoholic beverages to carry cancer warning labels. Health warning labels on...
Tumor cells circulating in the blood are the germ cells of breast cancer metastases. They are rare and could not be propagated in the culture dish until now. A team from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the Heidelberg Stem Cell Institute HI-STEM, and the NCT Heidelberg has now succeeded...
A recent study by Demehri et al of Mass General Brigham investigates whether calcipotriol—a vitamin D analog—plus fluorouracil may prevent squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), with benefits lasting 5 years after treatment. This combination therapy is the first to activate specific components of the...
Researchers have found a possible source of the variability in patterns of clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC), the most common kidney cancer diagnosed in adults. Katherine Alexander, PhD, Assistant Professor at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and Shelley Berger, PhD, Professor at the University...
A new international study led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden shows that AI-based models can outperform human experts at identifying ovarian cancer in ultrasound images. The study is published in Nature Medicine. “Ovarian tumors are common and are often detected by chance,” said...
On December 27, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved nivolumab and hyaluronidase-nvhy (Opdivo Qvantig) for subcutaneous injection across approved adult, solid tumor nivolumab indications as monotherapy, monotherapy maintenance following completion of nivolumab plus ipilimumab...
A primary analysis of ZUMA-2, reported at the 2024 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition, demonstrated durable responses to brexucabtagene autoleucel in patients with Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor–naive mantle cell lymphoma. The findings from cohort 3 of...
On December 20, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted accelerated approval to encorafenib (Braftovi) in combination with cetuximab and modified fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin (mFOLFOX6) for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer with a BRAF V600E mutation, as detected...
First responders who worked at Ground Zero in the aftermath of the 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City were three times more likely to have genetic changes associated with an increased risk of leukemia compared with other first responders or members of the public who were not...
Researchers have examined whether a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-first approach is safe for prostate cancer detection over the long term, according to a recent study published by Hamm et al in JAMA Oncology. Background Several strategies may be deployed for the early detection of prostate...
The addition of stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) to systemic therapy with sorafenib may improve progression-free survival and time-to-progression in patients with locally advanced hepatocellular carcinoma compared with sorafenib alone, according to a novel study published by Dawson et al in...
At the 2024 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition (Abstract 883), Alexey Danilov, MD, PhD, of the Department of Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation at City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, California, reported that single-agent epcoritamab led...
Researchers have received a $3.5 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to examine the impact of social networks on the decision-making process among older patients with cancer. Background Many individuals have social networks, which includes those who offer a connection and have similar...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved remestemcel-L-rknd (Ryoncil), an allogeneic bone marrow–derived mesenchymal stromal cell therapy for steroid-refractory acute graft-vs-host disease (GVHD) in pediatric patients 2 months of age and older. The application received Orphan...
ASCO announced the election of Elizabeth A. Mittendorf, MD, PhD, MHCM, FASCO, to lead as its President beginning in June 2026, as well as an additional six ASCO members to serve on its Board of Directors and Nominating Committee. 2026–2027 ASCO President-Elect Dr. Mittendorf, a long-time ASCO...
On December 18, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitor ensartinib (Ensacove) for adults with ALK-positive locally advanced or metastatic non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have not previously received an ALK inhibitor. For full...
Long-term follow-up of patients in ZUMA-2 cohorts 1 and 2 showed that 39% of patients with relapsed/refractory mantle cell lymphoma were alive after 5 years; patients in these cohorts received brexucabtagene autoleucel, the only chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy to have 5-year...
A primary analysis of ZUMA-2, reported at the 2024 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition, demonstrated durable responses to brexucabtagene autoleucel in patients with Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor–naive mantle cell lymphoma. The findings from cohort 3 of...
Researchers may have discovered a factor contributing to cancer cell evasion of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, according to a recent study published by Chen et al in Cell. The findings could lead to more personalized therapies that improve survival among patients with cancer....
The Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) has examined the National Cancer Control Plans and reported their findings in a new comprehensive global review published by Romero et al in The Lancet Oncology. The findings will be presented at the Cancer Planners Forum in May 2025 in Geneva,...
Cannabidiol (CBD) may not significantly change scan-related anxiety compared with placebo in patients with advanced breast cancer but may result in lower overall anxiety levels, according to a recent study published by Nayak et al in JAMA Network Open. Background Anxiety is common among adult...
During a shortage of the generic platinum chemotherapy drugs cisplatin and carboplatin that began in early 2023, investigators found no difference in mortality rates among patients with advanced cancer compared with the previous year, according to a recent study published by Reibel et al in the...