Paul Baas, MD, PhD, of the Netherlands Cancer Institute, discusses results of the CheckMate 743 trial, which suggests nivolumab plus ipilimumab should be considered the new standard of care in first-line treatment of unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma, regardless of the histology subtype...
This week on The ASCO Post Podcast, we'll first hear about a study that found a steep decline in non–small cell lung cancer mortality from 2013 to 2016. Then, we'll close out with a review of a report on the addition of locoregional radiotherapy to chemotherapy in patients with...
On August 20, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved daratumumab (Darzalex) in combination with carfilzomib (Kyprolis) and dexamethasone (DKd) for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who have received one to three previous lines of therapy....
ASCO has released an update to its Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer Guideline that includes recommendations for second-line treatment, including early biomarker testing for actionable genomic alterations.1 Last updated in 2018, this new version was triggered by novel evidence related to targeted...
Recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Priority Reviews for a novel dosing regimen for durvalumab as well as for trilaciclib in small cell lung cancer; granted Fast Track designations to treatments for glioblastoma and B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia; and issued reports...
In a Chinese phase III trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Xuan et al found that sorafenib maintenance after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation significantly reduced the risk of relapse vs no maintenance therapy in patients with FLT3–internal tandem duplication (ITD)–positive...
In a retrospective cohort study reported in JAMA Surgery, Xiao et al found that low skeletal muscle index and low skeletal muscle radiodensity were associated with an increased risk of complications and poor outcomes following surgery for colon cancer. Study Details The study involved data on...
Researchers have found that greater gut microbial diversity in patients with metastatic kidney cancer is associated with better treatment outcomes in those receiving immunotherapy. These findings were published by Salgia et al in European Urology. “We also reported the changes over time in the gut...
The results of an online questionnaire of 609 breast cancer survivors in the United States suggest that nearly half of patients experienced delays in care during the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was published by Papautsky et al in the journal Breast Cancer Research and ...
“The distressing intersection of COVID-19 and cancer requires the use of large registries to acknowledge diversity,” stated Solange Peters, MD, PhD, President of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), in her keynote speech at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Virtual...
In a systematic review and meta-analysis reported in JAMA Network Open, Yang et al found overall survival benefits with immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment vs non–immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment of advanced cancers irrespective of sex, age < 65 years vs ≥ 65 years, or Eastern Cooperative ...
In a Korean study reported in the American Journal of Surgical Pathology, Lee et al identified clinicopathologic and immunohistochemical characteristics of neuroendocrine carcinomas of the gallbladder. Study Details The study involved data from 34 patients with gallbladder neuroendocrine carcinomas ...
In a Chinese phase III trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Wang et al found that hypofractionated radiotherapy (HFRT) and conventionally fractionated radiotherapy (CFRT) following breast-conserving surgery were associated with similar low 5-year local recurrence rates in women with...
The development of complex biomarkers such as tumor mutational burden (TMB) has enabled clinicians to identify patients more likely to respond to treatment of a variety of cancers, leading to more accurate diagnoses and improved outcomes. Differences in testing assays, however, have produced...
Scientists have newly discovered three genetic changes that increase the risk of breast cancer in men. These findings were published by Maguire et al in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. The researchers identified three common variations in DNA that predispose men to developing breast...
Public health screening guidelines for lung cancer followed by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) undercount eligible Black individuals, according to a study by Mary Pasquinelli, DNP, FNP-BC, and colleagues in press at the...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Salama et al, the NCI-MATCH trial subprotocol H (EAY131-H) has shown durable responses with dabrafenib plus trametinib in previously treated patients with BRAF V600E–mutant tumors. Study Details The study enrolled 35 patients with mixed-histology...
In a retrospective study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Farjah et al found that patients who underwent resection for lung cancer at hospitals and with surgeons meeting Volume Pledge criteria did not have better short-term outcomes compared with patients who received care from...
In the phase III VIALE-A trial reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Courtney D. DiNardo, MD, and colleagues found that venetoclax plus azacitidine significantly improved overall survival vs azacitidine alone in previously untreated patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who were...
“In line with the emergence of targeted therapies, molecular biomarker testing in metastatic colorectal cancer has evolved over the past decade,” noted Jeanne Tie, MD, MBChB, FRACP, who acknowledged there is confusion about the best ways to use molecular testing in the clinic. Dr. Tie, who is...
Nineteen of the 20 nations with the highest cervical cancer death rates are in sub-Saharan Africa. Now an international team has published the first comprehensive genomic study of cervical cancers in sub-Saharan Africa, with a focus on tumors from 212 Ugandan patients with cervical cancer. Their...
In a phase II trial reported by Vivek Subbiah, MD, and colleagues in The Lancet Oncology, the combination of dabrafenib, a BRAF inhibitor, and trametinib, a MEK inhibitor, achieved a 51% overall response rate in patients with BRAF V600E–mutated cholangiocarcinoma. This trial represents the first...
Project N95, a not-for-profit organization, is offering access to ASCO’s qualifying U.S. members who are having difficulty obtaining personal protective equipment (PPE) for their patients and staff. Qualifying ASCO members will be able to make a one-time bulk purchase of the following PPE...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by D. Ross Camidge, MD, PhD, and colleagues, a second prespecified interim analysis of the pivotal phase III ALTA-1L trial has shown maintained progression-free survival benefit with brigatinib vs crizotinib in ALK inhibitor–naive patients with...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Knörr et al, a trial of risk-stratified treatment for relapsed pediatric anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) showed that allogeneic stem cell transplantation (SCT) was effective in patients with high-risk relapse, whereas autologous SCT was not...
As reported in The Lancet Oncology by Susan M. Domchek, MD, and colleagues, the combination of olaparib and durvalumab showed activity in a cohort of patients with germline BRCA-mutated, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer enrolled in a phase I/II basket study (MEDIOLA). Study Details In the...
Novel targeted therapies have increased the likelihood of cure and prolonged survival in many patients with advanced breast cancer (Table 1), but these new agents also carry toxicity profiles that vary greatly from those of traditional chemotherapy. During the ASCO20 Virtual Education Program,...
Results from a recent clinical trial indicated that for older adults with advanced cancer, initiating aspirin treatment may increase their risk of disease progression and mortality. These findings were published by McNeil et al in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Study Background and...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Pieternella Johanna Lugtenburg, MD, PhD, and colleagues, the phase III Haemato-Oncology Foundation for Adults in the Netherlands (HOVEN)/ Nordic Lymphoma Group HOVON-84 trial showed that early rituximab intensification in R-CHOP-14 (rituximab plus...
In a prospective lymphedema screening trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Naoum et al found that although regional lymph node radiation increased the incidence of breast cancer–related lymphedema, the primary driver of risk was the type of axillary surgery used. Study Details The...
A study by Wilson et al investigating the impact of radiation therapy on adult survivors of pediatric abdominal and pelvic tumors has found that these survivors were significantly more likely to have insulin resistance, high levels of triglycerides, and low levels of high-density lipoproteins...
This week, we’ll start with a follow-up analysis of pathologic complete response in patients participating in the I-SPY 2 trial. Then, we’ll move on to a study that sought to answer whether a longer time from diagnosis to surgical treatment lowered overall survival in women with early-stage breast...
Gabriella Pravettoni, PhD, of the University of Milan, discusses the need for tailored psychological interventions to take care of oncologists, health-care workers, and patients with cancer affected by the coronavirus crisis. The interventions can help minimize burnout and post-traumatic stress...
Amit Mahipal, MBBS, MPH, Consultant, Associate Professor of Oncology, Mayo College of Medicine, Rochester, put the findings for tremelimumab/durvalumab into context regarding other studies evaluating checkpoint inhibitors in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. In the current study by Kelly et al, he ...
A single priming dose of tremelimumab and durvalumab, followed by monthly durvalumab, showed clinical activity in a predominantly second-line advanced hepatocellular carcinoma population, in a study reported at the ESMO World Congress on Gastrointestinal Cancer Virtual 2020.1 In a study of 332...
Recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first liquid biopsy companion diagnostic that also uses next-generation sequencing technology to identify patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and specific types of EGFR mutations. The FDA also granted Fast Track...
In a study reported in the Journal of Urology, Wang et al found that tests for small noncoding RNAs isolated from urinary exosomes accurately distinguished patients with vs without prostate cancer and patients with low- vs intermediate- or high-risk disease. Study Details The investigators...
A new study published by Kanter et al in Health Affairs sheds light on another reason why the coronavirus pandemic is disproportionately affecting individuals of lower socioeconomic status: residents in low-income neighborhoods lack access to intensive care unit (ICU) beds. While the shortage of...
In a Chinese single-institution trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Tang et al found that the addition of first-line bevacizumab to mFOLFOX6 (modified fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin) resulted in a higher rate of conversion to R0 resection in patients with RAS-mutant,...
In a single-institution Korean study reported in the American Journal of Surgical Pathology, Kim et al found that chromogranin A expression in rectal neuroendocrine tumors is associated with more aggressive clinical characteristics and poorer prognosis. As stated by the investigators, “Although...
The explosion of 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate near the port of Beirut, Lebanon, on August 4 leveled whole sections of the city. The blast killed at least 200 people, injured more than 6,000, and left hundreds of thousands homeless. The blast also severely damaged Beirut’s already fragile...
Taimur Sher, MBBS, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology Consultant, and Director of the Multi-Specialty Amyloidosis Group at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, told The ASCO Post that shutting down the source of amyloidogenic light-chain production—the...
A study by researchers at the National Cancer Institute investigating mortality trends in lung cancer by subtype has found that population-level mortality from individuals with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) fell sharply from 2013 to 2016, and that survival after diagnosis improved...
Patients with light-chain amyloidosis may soon have a new standard of care, according to data presented during the 25th European Hematology Association (EHA25) Virtual Annual Congress.1 Results of the phase III ANDROMEDA study have shown that adding subcutaneous daratumumab to the triplet...
Updated clinical practice guidelines for managing mucositis—a common and often debilitating complication of cancer therapy—were recently published by Elad et al in the journal Cancer. The new guidelines summary, which will provide health-care professionals with better tools to deliver care for...
In a single-institution retrospective cohort study reported in JAMA Oncology, Maniakas et al found that overall survival in anaplastic thyroid carcinoma has improved in recent years and identified treatment factors associated with this improvement. As stated by the investigators, “Anaplastic...
In an analysis from the SOLO-1 trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, DiSilvestro et al found that olaparib vs placebo maintenance therapy after first-line platinum-based therapy in patients with advanced BRCA-mutated ovarian cancer significantly improved progression-free survival in...
Androgen-deprivation therapy has been, and remains, the standard of care for patients with metastatic prostate cancer. Patients are often surprised to learn that was all we would do to control their disease and sometimes asked why they would not receive chemotherapy, as for other cancers. I would...
As reported in The Lancet by Matthew D. Galsky, MD, of Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Tisch Cancer Institute, New York, and colleagues, the phase III IMvigor130 trial has shown prolonged progression-free survival with first-line atezolizumab plus platinum-based chemotherapy vs...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Jacqueline Vuky, MD, of Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, and colleagues, long-term follow-up in the phase II KEYNOTE-052 study has shown durable responses with first-line pembrolizumab in cisplatin-ineligible locally advanced or...