A radiation boost to the local tumor bed following treatment with breast-conserving therapy (ie, local excision followed by whole-breast radiation therapy) improves local control for patients with ductal carcinoma in situ, according to a study of pooled data from 10 academic centers,1 presented at...
Ipilimumab (Yervoy) was associated with prolonged progression-free survival—but not overall survival—compared with placebo in men with asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic chemotherapy-naive metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer without visceral metastases, according to a...
As reported by Langer et al in The Lancet Oncology, findings in a phase II cohort of the multicohort KEYNOTE-021 study showed that the addition of first-line pembrolizumab (Keytruda) to carboplatin/pemetrexed (Alimta) significantly increased the response rate in patients with advanced nonsquamous...
The addition of the CD38-targeted antibody daratumumab (Darzalex) to lenalidomide (Revlimid)/dexamethasone improved progression-free survival in patients with previously treated multiple myeloma, according to the results of the phase III POLLUX trial reported by Dimopoulos et al in The New England...
The combination of the selective CDK4/6 inhibitor ribociclib plus letrozole significantly improved progression-free survival in hormone receptor–positive advanced breast cancer. When ribociclib was added to letrozole, progression-free survival improved by 44% compared with letrozole alone,...
The addition of the programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) antibody pembrolizumab (Keytruda) to standard first-line chemotherapy for treatment-naive advanced non–small cell lung cancer significantly improves response rates and progression-free survival, Langer et al reported at the 2016...
In the phase I/II CheckMate 032 trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Sharma et al found that nivolumab (Opdivo) was active in locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma progressing after platinum-based therapy. In the study, 78 patients with urothelial carcinoma of the renal pelvis,...
In a secondary analysis from the NRG Oncology RTOG 0617 trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Chun et al found that use of intensity-modulated vs three-dimensional (3D) conformal external-beam radiation therapy was associated with a reduced risk for severe pneumonitis and reduced the...
In the phase III European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) trial 18071 reported at the recent European Society for Medical Oncology meeting and in The New England Journal of Medicine by Eggermont et al, adjuvant ipilimumab (Yervoy) was found to improve recurrence-free and...
Paolo A. Ascierto, MD, of the Istituto Nazionale Tumori–Fondazione Pascale, discusses in Italian overall survival and safety results from a phase 3 trial of ipilimumab at 3 mg/kg vs 10 mg/kg in patients with metastatic melanoma. (Abstract 1106O)
In an analysis reported in JAMA Oncology, Fumagalli et al identified genetic markers associated with pathologic complete response among women with early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer receiving neoadjuvant therapy in the phase III NeoALTTO trial. Study Details In the NeoALTTO trial, 455...
Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) significantly improved progression-free and overall survival vs platinum-based chemotherapy in patients with previously untreated advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with ≥ 50% PD-L1 (programmed cell death ligand 1) expression and no sensitizing EGFR...
The rates of administering chemotherapy to patients with solid cancers within a month of succumbing to their disease remain high, which calls for a paradigm shift to consider initiating palliative care at an earlier stage and formulating clear guidelines for end-of-life care, according to findings...
Lurbinectedin showed promising clinical benefit in pretreated patients with metastatic breast cancer and BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations, including patients previously treated with platinum, according to phase II trial results presented by Balmaña et al at the 2016 European Society for Medical...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Loehrer et al found that the 2006 Massachusetts health-care reform has resulted in increased rates of resection and reduced emergent resection for colorectal cancer. The study used the Hospital Cost and Utilization Project State Inpatient...
In a phase III trial reported at the recent European Society for Medical Oncology Congress and in The New England Journal of Medicine by Mirza et al, maintenance therapy with the PARP (poly ADP ribose polymerase) 1/2 inhibitor niraparib significantly prolonged progression-free survival vs placebo...
Cabozantinib (Cabometyx, Cometriq) significantly improves progression-free survival and response rate in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma compared to sunitinib (Sutent), according to research presented by Choueiri et al at the 2016 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO)...
In a phase III trial reported at the recent European Society for Medical Oncology Congress and in The New England Journal of Medicine by Hortobagyi et al, first-line treatment with ribociclib, a selective inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinases 4 and 6 (CDK4/6), resulted in significantly longer...
Ceritinib (Zykadia) provides longer progression-free survival than chemotherapy in crizotinib–pretreated patients with non–small cell lung cancer harboring an ALK rearrangement, according to results of the phase III ASCEND-5 study presented by Scagliotti et al at the European Society...
In the phase III IMPRINT trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Rini et al found no overall survival benefit of adding the multipeptide cancer vaccine IMA901 to sunitinib (Sutent) in the first-line treatment of locally advanced or metastatic renal cell carcinoma. IMA901 contains 10 tumor-associated ...
The first phase III study of programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) inhibitor atezolizumab (Tecentriq) in previously treated non–small cell lung cancer has seen significant improvements in survival compared to standard chemotherapy, reported Barlesi et al at the European Society for Medical...
A phase III trial of sunitinib (Sutent) has met its primary endpoint of disease-free survival for adjuvant treatment of high-risk renal cell carcinoma after nephrectomy, reported Ravaud et al at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2016 Congress in Copenhagen (Abstract LBA11_PR)....
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Etienne et al, long-term follow-up in the French Stop Imatinib (STIM1) study indicates imatinib can be safely stopped in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) with undetectable minimal residual disease sustained for at least 2 years. Study...
Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) is set to become a new option for first-line treatment of patients with advanced lung cancer and high programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression, according to the results of the phase III KEYNOTE-024 trial presented by Reck et al at the 2016 European Society for ...
The PARP inhibitor niraparib significantly improves the outcome of platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer, according to full data from the ENGOT-OV16/NOVA trial presented by Mirza et al at the 2016 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress in Copenhagen (Abstract LBA3_PR), and...
Ipilimumab (Yervoy) as adjuvant therapy significantly improves overall survival in patients with high-risk stage III melanoma, according to the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) 18071 phase III trial results presented by Eggermont et al at the European Society for...
The addition of the CDK4/6 inhibitor ribociclib to letrozole therapy significantly improved progression-free survival in postmenopausal women with hormone receptor–positive advanced breast cancer, reported Hortobagyi et al at the 2016 European Society for Medical Oncology...
Christian U. Blank, MD, PhD, of the Netherlands Cancer Institute, discusses study findings on neoadjuvant ipilimumab plus nivolumab in patients with palpable stage III melanoma. (Abstract LBA39)
Paolo A. Ascierto, MD, of the Istituto Nazionale Tumori–Fondazione Pascale, discusses overall survival and safety results from a phase III trial of ipilimumab at 3 mg/kg vs 10 mg/kg in patients with metastatic melanoma. (Abstract 1106O)
In an exploratory analysis of the REACH trial in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma reported in JAMA Oncology, Zhu et al found a borderline survival benefit of second-line ramucirumab (Cyramza) vs placebo among patients with a Child-Pugh score of 5 and a significant benefit among patients with a...
In a Chinese phase III trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Sun et al found that adding induction treatment with cisplatin, fluorouracil (5-FU), and docetaxel (TPF) to concurrent chemoradiotherapy improved failure-free survival in locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Study Details...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Luo et al found that a modified staging classification based on the European Neuroendocrine Tumor Society (ENETS) and the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging classifications may improve distinction among risk groups in pancreatic...
In a phase II trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Brian I. Rini, MD, of the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute, and colleagues found that some patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma can safely undergo active surveillance for an extended duration prior to initiation of systemic...
As reported in The Lancet Oncology by Christoph Zielinski, MD, of the Medical University of Vienna and the Central European Cooperative Oncology Group, and colleagues, the final results of the phase III TURANDOT trial showed that overall survival with first-line bevacizumab (Avastin)/capecitabine...
A collaborative modeling study evaluating outcomes for various screening intervals for women over the age of 50 based on breast density and risk for breast cancer has found that average-risk women with low breast density undergoing triennial screening and higher-risk women with high breast density...
In a prospective cohort study reported in JAMA Oncology, Shu et al found that risk for serous/serous-like endometrial carcinoma appeared to be increased after risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO) without hysterectomy in women harboring the BRCA1 mutation. The overall risk of uterine cancer...
Long-term follow-up in the phase III QuiRedex trial indicates continued benefit of lenalidomide (Revlimid)/dexamethasone vs observation in preventing disease progression in patients with high-risk smoldering multiple myeloma, as reported by Maria-Victoria Mateos, PhD, of Instituto de Biologia...
Despite my breast cancer diagnosis 4 years ago, I feel really lucky. My cancer was detected relatively early, stage IIB, during a routine mammogram screening—a test that many of my lesbian friends skip because they don’t want to deal with a medical system steeped in a heterosexual culture that is...
Ethiopia, similar to other African countries, has a significant shortage of physicians. Currently, there are 0.3 physicians for every 100,000 people, a rate that is substantially lower than the 2 physicians per 100,000 people found in the rest of Africa. This year, the First Lady of Ethiopia,...
In the phase III EORTC (European Organisation for Research and Treatment) 22033-26033 intergroup trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Baumert et al found no progression-free survival difference between temozolomide chemotherapy and radiotherapy alone in patients with high-risk low-grade glioma....
With impeccable timing, as well as considerable forethought and planning, Dr. Paice and colleagues have produced a superb evidence-based guideline on “Management of Chronic Pain in Survivors of Adult Cancers.”1 (See this issue of The ASCO Post.) This summary of well-informed and thoroughly...
Ever since the immune checkpoint agents arrived, the pace of clinical investigation in oncology has continued to accelerate with an ever-increasing number of trials of single-agent and combination therapies with novel designs that are transforming our drug-development process. However, even in...
In a phase III trial (CA184-156) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Martin Reck, MD, PhD, of LungenClinic Grosshansdorf, Germany, and colleagues, the addition of the anti–CTLA-4 (cytotoxic T-lymphocyte–associated protein 4) checkpoint inhibitor ipilimumab (Yervoy) to...
The advent of more effective systemic therapies, which extend patients’ lives, has also resulted in an increasing incidence of brain metastases, for which clinicians must determine appropriate treatment. Whole-brain radiotherapy has been the traditional treatment modality, but stereotactic...
Pilot Study Title: Pilot Trial of an Implantable Microdevice for in Vivo Drug Sensitivity Testing in Patients With Early-Stage, HER2-Positive, or Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Receiving Neoadjuvant Therapy Study Type: Pilot/interventional/single-group assignment Study Sponsor and Collaborators:...
Three years ago, IBM’s Watson supercomputer was best known for defeating two former champions on the TV game show Jeopardy! Today, it is grabbing headlines for becoming an important assistant in cancer care. Able to read and understand millions of pages of text within seconds, Watson caught the...
OCTOBER American College of Surgeons Clinical CongressOctober 16-20 • Washington, DCFor more information:www.facs.org/clincon2016 ACCC 33rd National Oncology ConferenceOctober 19-21 • St. Louis, Missouri For more information: www.accc-cancer.org/meetings/slideshow-NOC2015/NOC2015.asp 48th Annual...
The CD38 antigen was first recognized on normal and abnormal plasma cells over 3 decades ago. Indeed, this antigen was originally classified as T10, as it was the tenth antigen described on T cells. Its distribution of expression included activated B and T cells, natural killer cells, leukocytes,...
In the phase III CASTOR trial reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Antonio Palumbo, MD, of the University of Turin, and colleagues found that adding the anti-CD38 antibody daratumumab (Darzalex) to bortezomib (Velcade) and dexamethasone markedly improved progression-free survival among ...
Caregivers of patients with cancer provide invaluable health-care services, but they are an underserved and undervalued group, with many unmet needs. Early palliative care may provide important benefits to these often tireless individuals, according to J. Nicholas Dionne-Odom, PhD, RN, ACHPN, of...