Early palliative care can be integrated into the course of treatment for patients with advanced lung cancer via delivery by telehealth with outcomes similar to when palliative care is delivered via in-person visits, according to results of the REACH PC trial presented by Joseph Greer, PhD, of...
Over the past 20 years, Medicare reimbursements for 10 breast cancer surgical procedures rose by 22%, but inflation rose three times as much—by 69%. Compared with the financial picture had rates kept pace with inflation, the result is an estimated aggregate loss of more than $100 million for breast ...
OCE Insights is an occasional department developed for The ASCO Post by members of the Oncology Center of Excellence (OCE) at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In this installment, the OCE’s Steven Cunningham, MD, MLA, FACS, Clinical Reviewer on the Gastrointestinal Cancers Team,...
Several years ago, a visit to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC, so fascinated and inspired Mace L. Rothenberg, MD, FASCO, about the history of flight, he wondered why there was not a similar museum showcasing the past and present achievements in science and medicine. The result...
On April 22, 2024, the interleukin-15 receptor agonist nogapendekin alfa inbakicept-pmln was approved for use with bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) for adults with BCG-unresponsive non–muscle-invasive bladder cancer with carcinoma in situ with or without papillary tumors.1 Supporting Efficacy Data...
Joseph A. Greer, PhD, of Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, discusses study findings showing the merits of delivering early palliative care via telehealth vs in person to patients with advanced lung cancer. Using telemedicine in this way may potentially improve access to and ...
New research reinforces the telehealth delivery of palliative care as an effective alternative to in-person visits for patients with advanced lung cancer, providing comparable quality-of-life benefits. This research was presented by Joseph Greer, PhD, and colleagues at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting...
In patients with metastatic hormone receptor (HR)-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer unselected by PD-L1 status, adding the immune checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab to the antibody-drug conjugate sacituzumab govitecan-hziy resulted in a 1.9-month improvement in median progression-free survival...
A novel treatment strategy using cyclophosphamide-based graft-vs-host disease prophylaxis may enable more patients with high-risk hematologic malignancies to receive stem cell transplantation from mismatched unrelated donors. These findings were presented by Al Malki et al at the 2024 ASCO Annual...
Tattoos may be a risk factor in the development of lymphoma, according to a recent study published by Nielsen et al in eClinicalMedicine. Background A majority of individuals receive their first tattoos at a young age, exposing them to tattoo ink for a larger portion of their lives. The long-term...
A novel artificial intelligence (AI)-based virtual patient navigator, MyEleanor, improved colonoscopy uptake among U.S. patients who were previously nonadherent to prior colonoscopy appointments. These findings will be presented by Moadel et al at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting (Abstract 100)....
In a study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Naci et al identified the degree to which initial U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approvals of cancer drugs based on immature overall survival data were subsequently followed by reporting of overall survival results. Study Details The study...
Results from the Prognostic Immunophenotyping in Myeloma Response (PRIMeR) study, reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Marcelo C. Pasquini, MD, MS, and colleagues, found that undetectable measurable residual disease (MRD) status at 1 year after autologous hematopoietic cell...
Investigators have examined the historical evolution of Community Outreach and Engagement initiatives at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and NCI-designated cancer centers and provided recommendations to guide future efforts, according to a recent study published by Pohl et al in CA: A Cancer...
Recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved pegulicianine (Lumisight) for adult patients with breast cancer to assist in the intraoperative detection of cancerous tissue within the resection cavity following removal of the primary specimen during lumpectomy. Pegulicianine is a...
In a phase II study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Barker et al found that induction treatment with vismodegib followed by concurrent treatment with vismodegib and curative-intent radiation therapy showed efficacy in patients with locally advanced unresectable basal cell carcinoma. ...
On April 22, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved nogapendekin alfa inbakicept-pmln (Anktiva) with bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) for adults with BCG-unresponsive non–muscle invasive bladder cancer with carcinoma in situ with or without papillary tumors. QUILT-3.032 Trial Efficacy...
Of 58 million people worldwide living with hepatitis C virus (HCV), one-sixth of them are found in sub-Saharan Africa.1 Yet, in that region, direct access to diagnostic testing and treatment is limited to less than 5%. HCV carries significant downstream implications including cirrhosis (30%–46%), ...
Artificial intelligence (AI)—computational analytics with routine imaging via radiology or pathology—can advance precision medicine in breast cancer, specifically by predicting response to therapy and calculating prognosis, according to a pioneer in the field, Anant Madabhushi, PhD, of Emory...
Prolonged use of selected progestogen agents may be associated with an increased risk of developing intracranial meningioma, according to a recent study published by Roland et al in the BMJ. Background Progestogens are similar to the natural hormone progesterone, which are widely used in menopausal ...
In a phase III trial reported in The Lancet, Jennifer Steel, PhD, and colleagues found that an integrated screening and stepped collaborative care intervention (CARES) improved health-related quality of life vs standard of care in patients with cancer. Study Details In the study, 459 patients from ...
Guest Editor’s Note: Psychological distress is highly prevalent in cancer populations throughout the disease trajectory. Integrative modalities are being increasingly used for managing the associated symptoms. In this article, Joke Bradt, PhD, MT-BC, summarizes the latest joint guideline published ...
Although more than 85% of childhood cancer survivors will achieve a 5-year survival,1 that does not tell the whole tale for these individuals who move into adulthood. They are at excess risk of late mortality, even 40 years out from a cancer diagnosis, from non–cancer-related causes,1 and related...
In Kathy Giusti’s empowering and deeply personal book Fatal to Fearless: 12 Steps to Beating Cancer in a Broken Medical System (HarperCollins, 2024), she details the shock of being diagnosed with multiple myeloma, in 1996, at the age of 37. Told she had 3 years to live, the book recounts how Ms....
On February 13, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved liposomal irinotecan (Onivyde) for use with oxaliplatin, fluorouracil, and leucovorin in the first-line treatment of metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma.1 Supporting Efficacy Data Approval was based on the open-label NAPOLI 3...
A new matching adjusted indirect comparison of the efficacy of zanubrutinib vs acalabrutinib in relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) based on data from the phase III ALPINE and ASCEND trials was presented by Shadman et al at the 28th Annual International Congress on Hematologic ...
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) is announcing several new updates to the cancer treatment practices listed in the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines®). The evidence-based expert consensus recommendations are the most frequently updated guidelines for...
Researchers have demonstrated that an online genetic education program may encourage patients with a family history of cancer to undertake genetic testing, according to a recent study published by Rodriguez et al in Gastroenterology. Background Although research has shown that an inherited...
A new report from the President’s Cancer Panel offers recommendations in five priority areas to accelerate progress toward implementing the National Cancer Plan and achieving the Biden-Harris Administration’s Cancer Moonshot goal of ending cancer as we know it. The report, delivered to President...
Invasive disease–free survival continued to be significantly improved for patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative, early-stage breast cancer who received the CDK4/6 inhibitor ribociclib plus a nonsteroidal aromatase inhibitor compared with a nonsteroidal aromatase inhibitor alone....
Guest Editor’s Note: The use of mistletoe extract to support systemic therapy and improve quality of life for patients with cancer, though common, remains controversial. Promising results have been reported, but largely in trials that were not placebo-controlled nor properly randomized. In this...
Patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma derived significant benefit from the addition of the monoclonal antibody durvalumab and the angiogenesis inhibitor bevacizumab to transarterial chemoembolization (TACE), which alone has been a standard of care for 20 years. Investigators of the...
About 4 years ago, I [Jo Cavallo] wrote about the death of my brother Dom from multiple myeloma in 2011 and my subsequent enrollment in the PROMISE trial (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT03689595). My goal for enrolling in the study was twofold: to honor Dom and others with the cancer and to make ...
In a pilot study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Eunice S. Wang, MD, and colleagues found that the combination of crenolanib and intensive chemotherapy produced high response rates in adults with newly diagnosed FLT3-mutated acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Crenolanib is a...
In an observational cohort study reported in JAMA, Al Awamlh et al identified adverse functional outcomes after localized prostate cancer treatment among patients with favorable- and unfavorable-prognosis disease. Study Details The study included 2,445 patients from five SEER (Surveillance,...
Subsequent systemic therapy with the immune checkpoint inhibitor nivolumab may offer overall survival benefit in patients with muscle-invasive urothelial carcinoma who underwent surgery to remove their tumors, according to recent findings presented by Geynisman et al at the 2024 ASCO Genitourinary...
At the 2023 Global Cardio-Oncology Symposium (GCOS), international experts explored the ongoing collaborative efforts to improve the cardiovascular health of patients being treated for cancer as well as the bidirectional challenges of translating basic research to clinical care. Focus on Basic and...
Invasive disease–free survival continued to be significantly improved for patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative, early-stage breast cancer who received the CDK4/6 inhibitor ribociclib plus a nonsteroidal aromatase inhibitor compared with a nonsteroidal aromatase inhibitor alone....
The road to my breast cancer diagnosis in 2018 was long and tortuous. For 3 years leading up to the diagnosis, I had imaging scans and tissue biopsies every 3 months because of suspicious masses in my breasts. The uncertainty was so destabilizing that I was in a constant state of emotional unrest....
Investigators have found that Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act may be associated with a reduced risk of early mortality following surgical resection in patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), according to a recent study published by Nogueira et al in JAMA Network Open. The ...
Although pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) have seen a dramatic improvement in long-term survival rates over the past 40 years, from approximately 10% to over 95%, adults aged 29 and older have not experienced the same treatment benefits, with survival rates still below...
Investigators analyzed cells within triple-negative breast cancers before and after radiation therapy combined with pembrolizumab and identified three patient groups with different responses to the treatment. Their study, published by Shiao et al in Cancer Cell, found that for some patients with...
On October 16 and 17, 2023, the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) welcomed more than 350 attendees from over 75 countries to its World Cancer Leaders’ Summit in Long Beach, California, to discuss some of the most challenging issues facing patients with cancer worldwide. The theme of...
Translational research is a key ingredient in guiding both genetic and pharmacologic cardioprotective approaches in patients being treated for cancer, according to international experts from the International Cardio-Oncology Society and the Global Cardio-Oncology Symposium (GCOS) committee. Fadi N. ...
A decade-long journey toward improving end-of-life care for patients with advanced cancer has demonstrated positive effects on survival, health-care use, and cost of care, according to data presented at the 2023 ASCO Quality Care Symposium.1 Post hoc analysis of an advance care planning...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Tan et al, the phase III CANOPY-1 trial has shown no survival benefits with the addition of canakinumab to first-line pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy in patients with advanced/metastatic non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) without EGFR or ALK...
Newly diagnosed patients with multiple myeloma who received daratumumab along with the standard care regimen of bortezomib, lenalidomide, and dexamethasone (VRd) had significantly higher rates of survival without disease progression compared with those who received VRd alone. Results from the phase ...
Researchers may have uncovered the underlying mechanisms of gene mutations commonly seen in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes and other myeloid neoplasms, according to new findings presented by Chaudhry et al at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition (Abstract...
Early results from a new study have demonstrated that the novel chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy AT101 resulted in favorable complete response rates at higher dose levels in patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma, according to new findings simultaneously...
Although significant progress has been made to reduce the gap in health outcomes of minority or underserved patients, meaningful steps forward still need to be made to improve health disparities. Countless studies have shown, in general, that affluent White individuals have better health outcomes...