Patients who adhere to a Mediterranean lifestyle may have a lower risk of all-cause and cancer mortality, according to a recent study published by Maroto-Rodriguez et al in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. The new findings also indicated that patients who followed the lifestyle’s emphasis on rest,...
Short-term use of immunosuppressants in patients with ocular inflammatory disease may not be associated with an increased risk of developing cancer, according to a recent study published by Buchanich et al in BMJ Oncology. Background The Systemic Immunosuppressive Therapy for Eye Diseases (SITE)...
Partaking in cardiorespiratory fitness in youth may be associated with up to a 40% lower risk of developing nine cancer types later in life, according to a recent study published by Onerup et al in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. Background Cardiorespiratory fitness—including sustained...
Fifty-two years ago, President Richard Nixon signed the National Cancer Act of 1971 into law, which established the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in its current form. At the time, the budget was $1.6 billion. Today, it is $7.8 billion, $4.5 billion less than the amount needed to keep up with...
Researchers have found that the novel targeted therapy zolbetuximab in combination with a standard chemotherapy may extend survival in patients with advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma and overexpression of the claudin-18 isoform 2 protein (CLDN18.2), according to a novel...
The antibody-drug conjugate sacituzumab govitecan-hziy continued to demonstrate superior benefit for patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer when compared with standard chemotherapy, according to the final analysis of the phase III TROPiCS-02 study published...
On August 23, 2023, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN) announced Crystal S. Denlinger, MD, FACP, as incoming Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Dr. Denlinger, who is currently Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer of NCCN, will lead the global guidelines organization...
Investigators have demonstrated that bariatric surgery may be associated with a lower incidence of all-cancer and obesity-related cancer among female patients, according to a recent study published by Adams et al in Obesity. The new findings also suggested cancer mortality was significantly reduced ...
Researchers have developed a personalized calculator that may be capable of predicting the reduced risk of early recurrence in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, according to a recent study published by Chen et al in eGastroenterology. Background Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most common...
We read with interest the recent commentary by S. Monica Soni, MD, and Andrew A. Hertler, MD, FACP, on prior authorization (June 10, 2023, issue of The ASCO Post). The nuances of prior authorization in our health-care landscape are both complex and consequential. Conceived as a safeguard against...
Several recent studies have shown an increasingly disturbing trend: the incidence of early-onset cancers—those diagnosed in individuals younger than age 50—is on the rise, and not just in the United States but globally as well. Worldwide, in 2019, there were a reported 1.19 million new cases of...
Researchers may have discovered how to prevent the cellular-cleaning protein ABCG2 from removing chemotherapeutics from tumor cells, according to a recent study published by Gose et al in Nature Communications. These research findings may improve future cancer therapeutics. Background Most new...
Researchers may have identified how the TET2 gene may fuel rapid cancer growth in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), according to a recent study published by Li et al in Cell Stem Cell. Background AML is distinguished by the rapid division and metastasis of immature leukemia stem cells....
Patients with pancreatic cancer who were treated with the benzodiazepine lorazepam had shorter progression-free survival periods than patients who were not, according to study results published by Cornwell et al in Clinical Cancer Research. In contrast, patients who were treated with the...
Researchers have identified genes that may be associated with breast cancer and could eventually be included in tests to identify high-risk patients, according to a recent study published by Wilcox et al in Nature Genetics. Background Currently, genetic tests for breast cancer consider a few genes...
Rami S. Komrokji, MD, of Moffitt Cancer Center, discusses an assessment of new classifications for myeloid neoplasms and the ongoing efforts to harmonize these classifications, so researchers can better understand risk, outcomes, and survival among patients with genetically distinct types of the...
Platinum resistance occurs in almost all patients whose ovarian cancer recurs. Single-agent chemotherapies are commonly used in this setting, but outcomes are generally poor, leaving a large unmet need for effective treatment. At the Society of Gynecologic Oncology (SGO) 2023 Annual Meeting on...
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center recently announced the appointment of Christopher Flowers, MD, MSc, FASCO, a physician-scientist and leader in oncology, as Division Head of Cancer Medicine. This is the largest academic division at MD Anderson, including 13 clinical academic...
“Any protocol that involves cisplatin or carboplatin as part of a study is on hold because of the chemotherapy shortage,” Mark J. Ratain, MD, FASCO, Chief Hospital Pharmacologist, University of Chicago Medicine, said in an interview with The ASCO Post. “Many times, our clinical trials are building...
Grim, grimmer, and grinding are among the terms reported in the press to describe the current chemotherapy shortage.1,2 And, “it is not going away,” Mark J. Ratain, MD, FASCO, Chief Hospital Pharmacologist, University of Chicago Medicine, told The ASCO Post. “This is a progressive problem like...
Researchers have discovered that ipilimumab in combination with nivolumab may be an effective second-line therapy in patients with PD-1 blockade–refractory metastatic melanoma, according to a recent study published by VanderWalde et al in Nature Medicine. These findings demonstrated the combination ...
Long-molecule scars may help identify patients with BRCA1- and BRCA2-deficient cancer types, according to a recent study published by Setton et al in Nature. Background Once DNA is damaged by toxins, radiation, or normal cell division, human cells must continually fix DNA breaks to survive. When...
Investigators may have uncovered the impact of the 2014 and 2015 Medicaid expansion on cancer clinical trial participation, according to a recent study published by Unger et al in JAMA Oncology. The new findings suggested that Medicaid expansion under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act...
Continued breast cancer screening after age 70 may be associated with a greater incidence of asymptomatic cancer, according to a recent study published by Richman et al in the Annals of Internal Medicine. These new findings suggested that overdiagnosis may be prevalent among older female patients....
Investigators have identified a need for strong coordination between clinicians and skilled pathologists to ensure accurate, timely diagnosis of myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). The study findings were recently published by Gorak et al in Blood Advances. Background MDS—a collection of chronic...
Researchers have identified a cell metabolism process found in male patients with West African ancestry who have diabetes and metastatic prostate cancer that could potentially lead to improved testing and treatments for Black patients with both diseases. The findings by Shuck et al were presented...
Researchers have found that the new PENK methylation (mePENK) test could potentially pave the way for a breakthrough in early bladder cancer detection in patients with hematuria, according to a novel study published by Oh et al in The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics. The findings could reduce the...
Prostate-specific membrane antigen positron-emission tomography/computed tomography (PSMA PET/CT) imaging may help physicians diagnose advanced disease and select the appropriate therapeutic interventions in patients aged 80 years or older with suspected prostate cancer, according to a recent study ...
As reported in The New England Journal of Medicine by Karim Fizazi, MD, PhD, of Gustave Roussy Institute, Paris-Saclay University, and colleagues, the phase III TRITON3 trial has shown significantly improved progression-free survival with rucaparib vs physician-selected single-agent therapy in the...
The addition of the androgen receptor inhibitor darolutamide to androgen-deprivation therapy and docetaxel reduced the risk of death by 30% compared with androgen-deprivation therapy plus docetaxel in patients with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer, according to a post hoc analysis of...
The 3-year follow-up of the phase III CheckMate 9ER trial demonstrates superior outcomes with the combination of nivolumab plus cabozantinib vs the former standard-of-care sunitinib as first-line treatment of advanced or metastatic renal cell carcinoma.1 These benefits were achieved with the...
On August 14, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the HEPZATO KIT, a melphalan hepatic delivery system, as a liver-directed treatment for adult patients with metastatic uveal melanoma and unresectable hepatic metastases affecting less than 50% of the liver and no extrahepatic...
On August 14, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to elranatamab-bcmm (Elrexfio), a bispecific B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-directed CD3 T-cell engager, for adult patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who have received at least four prior...
Over the past year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted approval to several novel drugs and new indications for older therapeutic agents used in hematologic oncology. Glofitamab for DLBCL On June 15, 2023, the FDA granted accelerated approval to glofitamab-gxbm (Columvi) for...
Urvi A. Shah, MD, Assistant Attending at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Assistant Professor at Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, moderated the session where the MagnetisMM trial updates1,2 were reported and was interviewed by The ASCO Post. Elranatamab vs Teclistamab Dr. Shah noted...
Ciara L. Freeman, MD, PhD, Assistant Member, Department of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Immunotherapy, Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, Florida, was impressed with the CARTITUDE-4 findings. She said “treaters and patients” will be “watching this space” to see how the results change the...
Alexey Danilov, MD, PhD, Co-Director, Toni Stephenson Lymphoma Center and Professor, Division of Lymphoma, Department of Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope, Duarte, California, commented on the phase III ALPINE trial comparing ibrutinib and zanubrutinib in patients...
The next-generation Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor zanubrutinib demonstrated superior progression-free survival compared with ibrutinib, with an improved cardiac safety profile, in the first head-to-head comparison between these two BTK inhibitors in relapsed or refractory chronic...
Catherine S. Diefenbach, MD, Associate Professor at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, Director of the Clinical Lymphoma Program, and Director of Hematology Translational Research at Perlmutter Cancer Center, in New York, called the findings from the TRANSFORM trial “very striking.” “This study...
Julio Chavez, MD, a hematologist at Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, Florida, commented on the updated results from the MAGNOLIA trial. “MAGNOLIA was a phase II trial that included patients with marginal zone lymphoma after one or more prior lines of therapy. At the ASH meeting, we heard updated...
Zanubrutinib—a next-generation Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor—achieved high response rates and durable disease control with a low incidence of cardiac effects in patients with relapsed or refractory marginal zone lymphoma, according to updated findings from the final analysis of the phase ...
Caron Jacobson, MD, shared some comments on ZUMA-7 with The ASCO Post. She called ZUMA-7 “an extremely important study to advance the care of high-risk early relapsing or primary refractory large B-cell lymphoma after front-line chemoimmunotherapy.” Dr. Jacobson is Assistant Professor of Medicine...
Researchers have identified a novel parameter of T cells that may help oncologists anticipate which patients are most likely to develop immunotherapy toxicity. The findings, published by Ostmeyer in the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer, could lead to improved treatments for a variety of ...
Penile squamous cell carcinoma is a rare type of penile cancer with limited treatment options. An international study has found that the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors may offer clinical benefits for some patients with advanced penile squamous cell carcinoma. These findings were published by...
On August 11, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the fixed-dose combination of niraparib and abiraterone acetate (Akeega), with prednisone, for adult patients with deleterious or suspected deleterious BRCA-mutated metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, as determined by...
Researchers have found a way to use artificial intelligence (AI) to diagnose sarcopenia in patients with head and neck cancer. The tool may be used to improve treatment and supportive care for patients, according to a report published by Ye et al in JAMA Network Open. “Sarcopenia is an indicator...
On August 9, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted regular approval to pralsetinib (Gavreto) for adults with metastatic RET fusion–positive non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), as detected by an FDA-approved test. ARROW Trial Pralsetinib was previously granted accelerated approval for...
On August 9, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to the bispecific antibody talquetamab-tgvs (Talvey) for adults with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who have received at least four prior lines of therapy (including a proteasome inhibitor, an...
The members of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) recently elected three new officers to ASTRO’s Board of Directors: Sameer Keole, MD, FASTRO, as President-Elect; Wendy Woodward, MD, PhD, FASTRO, as Science Council Vice Chair; and Vivek S. Kavadi, MD, MBA, FASTRO, as Health Policy...
I knew the moment my fingers found a lump in my left breast, in 2018, that it was cancer, and I wondered if I was going to die. My maternal grandmother had been diagnosed with breast cancer when she was 39, the same age I was when I discovered the mass in my breast. She died 5 years later. Divorced ...