For this installment of the Living a Full Life series, guest editor Jame Abraham, MD, spoke with Griffin P. Rodgers, MD, MACP, Director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Rodgers, a physician-scientist,...
In a phase II trial reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Sherif S. Farag, MD, PhD, of Indiana University School of Medicine, and colleagues found that the addition of the dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4; CD26) inhibitor sitagliptin to tacrolimus and sirolimus prophylaxis resulted in a low ...
In a brief report in The New England Journal of Medicine, Ayumu Arakawa, MD, of the Department of Pediatric Oncology, National Cancer Center Hospital, Tokyo, and colleagues described identification of lung cancer in two boys that likely resulted from transmission of maternal cervical cancer tumor...
In the first randomized trial to evaluate prophylactic antifibrinolytic therapy in patients with hematologic malignancies, tranexamic acid failed to reduce bleeding or the need for transfusion vs placebo. The study was featured as a Plenary Session during the 2020 American Society of Hematology...
In a recent study published by Uson Junior et al in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, researchers found one in six patients with colorectal cancer had an inherited cancer-related genetic mutation, which may be linked to a predisposition to the disease. In addition, the researchers...
Aaron T. Gerds, MD, MS, Associate Professor of Medicine, Deputy Director for Clinical Research at the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute and Medical Director of the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center Clinical Research Office, found the MANIFEST-2 findings to be highly noteworthy. He cited a...
A national survey conducted by Zhu et al to identify patient preferences among colorectal cancer screening modalities to improve population adherence to colorectal cancer screening has found, when presented with a choice, most individuals with an average risk of colorectal cancer prefer stool-based ...
The novel targeted agent CPI-0610 enhanced responses to ruxolitinib in patients with myelofibrosis enrolled in the global phase II MANIFEST-2 trial, investigators reported at the 2020 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition.1,2 “Preliminary data demonstrate the...
Two new studies published in the journal Blood suggest that the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine may have reduced efficacy in individuals with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and multiple myeloma. According to researchers, these studies could help inform the ideal time for vaccination of these...
Death from infection—the leading cause of death for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)—may be linked to specific gene mutations, according to results from a study published by Else et al in the journal Leukemia. Testing for these mutations could be used to identify patients at a...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Metzger et al found that the integration of brentuximab vedotin into front-line treatment of pediatric patients with high-risk classical Hodgkin lymphoma resulted in avoidance of radiotherapy in many patients, as well as high rates of...
The novel agentSY-1425 combined with azacitidine appears to be active in retinoic acid receptor alpha (RARA) superenhancer–positive newly diagnosed and relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML), according to the results of a phase II trial presented at the 2020 American Society of...
In a phase I trial reported at the virtual American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2021 (Abstract CT018) and simultaneously published in The New England Journal of Medicine, Friedman et al found that oncolytic virotherapy with genetically engineered herpes simplex virus-1...
Separate studies presented at the 2021 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium provide supportive evidence for belzutifan (formerly MK-6482) as an active treatment for metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC). One study showed single-agent activity for this novel approach in an early-phase trial,...
Treatment with unselected autologous tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) showed early clinical efficacy among patients with advanced melanoma, according to results presented by Hawkins et al during week 1 of the virtual American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2021 (Abstract ...
To complement The ASCO Post’s comprehensive coverage of the 2020 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition, here are several abstracts selected from the meeting proceedings focusing on novel clinical trial findings in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). For full details of...
The European Society for Medical Oncology and the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer recently presented the Heine H. Hansen Award 2021 to Johan Vansteenkiste, MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine at the Catholic University of Leuven and Head of Clinic in the Respiratory Oncology Unit...
Tyrosine kinase inhibitors targeting the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) have proved to be effective drugs in the treatment of many solid tumors. However, their clinical benefit may come at the cost of cardiovascular toxicity if clinicians are not vigilant and proactive. During...
In the phase III ABC-06 trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Angela Lamarca, PhD, and colleagues found that second-line FOLFOX (leucovorin, fluorouracil [5-FU], and oxaliplatin) produced a statistically significant improvement in median overall survival vs active symptom control in patients with...
Given the improvements in diagnostic strategies, treatment, and supportive care, long-term survival is now an expected outcome for a large majority of patients with hematologic malignancies. Unfortunately, radiation therapy and anthracyclines, which form the backbone of front-line treatment, have...
In a phase III trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Guillermo Garcia-Manero, MD, and colleagues found that oral azacitidine significantly improved red blood cell (RBC) transfusion independence vs placebo in patients with lower-risk myelodysplastic syndromes. An increase in early...
Research published by Orgel et al in the journal Blood Advances showed that restricting calories, reducing fat and sugar intake, and increasing physical activity may boost the effectiveness of chemotherapy for older children and adolescents with leukemia. This intervention, which improved...
Patients with stage II pancreatic cancer who are treated with chemotherapy followed by resection live nearly twice as long as patients who receive only chemotherapy, according to a recent study published by Amanda K. Arrington, MD, MHM, FACS, and colleagues in the Journal of the American College of ...
A study published by Oben et al in Nature Communications has shown that whole-genome sequencing can help determine which patients with a multiple myeloma precursor condition known as monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) or smoldering myeloma may be at risk for progression to...
In an analysis from the Children’s Oncology Group (COG) AALL0331 trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Mattano et al found that the addition of pegaspargase intensification did not improve the high rate of continuous complete remission achieved with a standard COG low-intensity...
In a single-institution retrospective analysis reported in the journal Blood, Moik et al found a substantial risk of thromboembolic events in patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy for cancer, as well as an increased risk of mortality among those experiencing venous ...
On March 30, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a revised label for the combination of daunorubicin and cytarabine (Vyxeos) to include a new indication to treat newly diagnosed therapy-related acute myeloid leukemia (AML) or AML with myelodysplasia-related changes (AML-MRC) in...
A retrospective analysis of patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) identified potentially targetable alterations in the PI3K pathway that were not mutually exclusive to mutations in other pathways, according to findings presented by Lage et al during the European Lung Cancer Virtual...
Drawing on several lines of ongoing research, David A. Tuveson, MD, PhD, has created a theoretical framework to consider while developing clinical trials in pancreatic cancer. In his keynote lecture at the 2020 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Special Conference on Pancreatic Cancer, ...
The advent of effective combination chemotherapies has changed the treatment landscape for metastatic pancreatic cancer, extending median survival and leading to durable responses in a subset of patients. However, perpetual chemotherapy is cumulatively toxic, leading to progressive bone marrow...
Ivosidenib, an inhibitor of isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1), improved overall survival by almost 3 months in previously treated patients with advanced IDH1-mutated cholangiocarcinoma, compared with placebo, researchers of the global phase III ClarIDHy trial reported at the 2021 Gastrointestinal...
Excluding skin cancer, colorectal cancer is the third most prevalent and lethal cancer among both men and women in the United States.1 Although the risk of developing colorectal cancer increases with age—more than 90% of cases occur in people aged 50 or older2—recent research shows that the...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted two breakthrough device designations covering new intended uses of the Signatera molecular residual disease (MRD) test. These new designations will support the development of Signatera through phase III clinical trials as a companion diagnostic to ...
“I was taught that the way of progress was neither swift nor easy.” —Marie Curie To complement The ASCO Post’s continued comprehensive coverage of the 2020 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition, here are two abstracts selected from the meeting proceedings focusing on...
The Prevent Cancer Foundation has announced funding for nine scientists who are researching cancer prevention and early detection. Each scientist is being awarded $100,000 for 2 years. Areas of focus include the pancreas, esophagus, liver, lungs, skin, prostate, colon-rectum, and blood/bone ...
On January 22, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the combination of nivolumab and cabozantinib as first-line treatment for patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma.1-3 Supporting Efficacy Data Approval was based on the findings of the phase III, open-label CheckMate 9ER trial...
A novel strategy of combining a drive-by flu vaccination clinic with an opportunity for participants to use a take-home fecal immunochemical test (FIT) increased access to colorectal screening among Black Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results related to access to colorectal cancer...
Most people with cancer who are infected with COVID-19 produce antibodies at a rate comparable to the rest of the population—but their ability to do so depends on the type of malignancy and the treatments they’ve received, according to a new study published by Thakkar et al in Nature Cancer. The...
The combination of lenalidomide plus the steroid dexamethasone (together called Rd) is considered standard treatment for elderly patients with multiple myeloma. However, prolonged steroid use can be harmful for some older adults. A new study published by Larocca et al in the journal Blood found...
In a study reported in JACC: CardioOncology, Emily S. Lau, MD, and colleagues found that the presence of cardiovascular disease risk factors was significantly associated with an increased risk of future cancer, although no increased risk was observed among individuals who had a history of...
An analysis of 58 peripheral blood specimens from patients with rectal and esophageal cancers demonstrated that circulating hybrid cells may be a novel, noninvasive biomarker with potential for monitoring treatment response and disease progression to help guide decisions for further therapy,...
As reported in The Lancet Oncology by Eric P. Winer, MD, FASCO, and colleagues, the phase III KEYNOTE-119 trial showed no significant improvement in overall survival with pembrolizumab vs investigator’s choice of chemotherapy in the second- or third-line treatment of metastatic triple-negative...
Starting chemotherapy several days before the first lumbar puncture for diagnosis and treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) may reduce the risk of central nervous system (CNS) relapse in children, according to a study published by Tang et al in the journal Blood. The research focused on...
In a Chinese phase III trial (SOC-1) reported in The Lancet Oncology, Shi et al found that secondary cytoreduction followed by chemotherapy significantly prolonged progression-free survival vs chemotherapy alone in patients with platinum-sensitive relapsed epithelial ovarian cancer. No significant...
A survey of more than 6,500 U.S. patients with blood cancer and survivors revealed that only half are very likely to get a COVID-19 vaccine, while one in three is either unlikely or unsure about it. The nationwide survey was a collaboration between The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), Boston...
New clues as to why night-shift workers are at an increased risk of developing certain types of cancer were uncovered in a new study published by Koritala et al in the Journal of Pineal Research. The study involved a controlled laboratory experiment that used healthy volunteers who were on...
Caroline Dive, CBE, PhD, FBPhS, FMedSci, Director of the CRUK Manchester Institute Cancer Biomarker Centre, University of Manchester, has been recognized by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) with the Mary J. Matthews Pathology/Translational Research Award. The award ...
Frank Keller, MD, a pediatric hematologist/oncologist with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta–Egleston Hospital, and E. Anders Kolb, MD, Director of the Nemours Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders, Nemours Children’s Health System in Delaware, provided comments on the studies for The ASCO Post....
Monotherapy with blinatumomab as consolidation therapy before allogeneic stem cell transplant appears to be the optimal treatment for children with high-risk first-relapse B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), according to an international phase III trial that compared this approach...
On January 14, 2021, crizotinib was approved for treatment of pediatric patients 1 year of age and older and young adults with relapsed or refractory systemic anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) that is ALK-positive.1,2 The safety and efficacy of crizotinib have not been established in older...