In the phase III JAVELIN Gastric 100 trial, a strategy called “switch maintenance” with the immune checkpoint inhibitor avelumab after 12 weeks of first-line induction chemotherapy did not statistically improve overall survival for treatment-naive patients with HER2-negative advanced gastric or...
The best approach for surgeons to identify malnourished patients with cancer before they have major oncologic surgery may be specifically related to the type of cancer the patient has, according to researchers who found that common definitions of malnutrition do not apply equally to all cancers in...
In a single-institution study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Kiser et al found that implementation of a quality improvement plan significantly reduced the frequency of positron-emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) radiotracer infiltration among a team of technologists....
In an analysis from the NRG Oncology RTOG 1203 study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Yeung et al found improved patient-reported gastrointestinal toxicity with intensity-modulated radiotherapy vs standard radiotherapy among patients with cervical or endometrial cancer requiring...
As reported in The New England Journal of Medicine by Peter Schmid, MD, PhD, and colleagues, interim analyses of the phase III KEYNOTE-522 trial have shown that the addition of pembrolizumab to neoadjuvant chemotherapy and use of adjuvant pembrolizumab vs placebo resulted in improvements in...
Carryn M. Anderson, MD, of the University of Iowa Hospital, discusses the investigational agent GC4419, previously shown to be safe and effective in decreasing the duration, incidence, and severity of oral mucositis in patients receiving concurrent cisplatin and radiation for oral cavity and...
Francis P. Worden, MD, of the University of Michigan Health System Comprehensive Cancer Center, explores the use of novel biomarkers that may help predict response to induction chemotherapy and survival in patients with locally advanced laryngeal cancer.
On March 2, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved isatuximab-irfc (Sarclisa) in combination with pomalidomide and dexamethasone for the treatment of adult patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least two prior therapies, including lenalidomide and a proteasome inhibitor. ...
The ASCO Post’s Integrative Oncology series is intended to facilitate the availability of evidence-based information on integrative and complementary therapies sometimes used by patients with cancer. In this installment, Gary Deng, MD, PhD, and Jyothirmai Gubili, MS, focus on active hexose...
Advances in radiology and molecular imaging have the potential to significantly change how clinicians diagnose, stage, and monitor response to therapy in patients with prostate cancer. However, there are limited data comparing these next-generation imaging modalities to each other and to...
Patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with higher measures of tumor mutations that show up in a blood test generally have a better clinical response to certain immunotherapy treatments than patients with a lower measure of mutations. A clinical trial showed that in cases where liquid...
New study findings suggest that weight gain after breast cancer is a greater problem than previously thought. The first national survey on weight after breast cancer in Australia, published by Ee et al in BMC Cancer, found close to two-thirds (63.7%) of women reported weight gain at an average of...
A pair of studies by Smith et al published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention evaluating whether a mandated reduction in the nicotine content of cigarettes may cause smokers to compensate by engaging in compensatory smoking to obtain more nicotine has found that a reduction in...
In the French phase II CABONE trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Italiano et al found that the MET and VEGFR2 inhibitor cabozantinib was active in patients with advanced Ewing sarcoma or osteosarcoma. Study Details In the multicenter trial, 81 evaluable patients aged ≥ 12 years with progressive ...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Roy S. Herbst, MD, PhD, and colleagues, long-term follow-up of patients with previously treated advanced programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1)-positive non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the KEYNOTE-010 trial has shown a continued survival...
In posters presented at the 2020 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium, POLO investigators reported that health-related quality of life was preserved during maintenance olaparib in patients with BRCA 1/2-positive pancreatic cancer, as evidenced by a low symptom burden over time.1 Other studies...
This week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Priority Review to brigatinib for the treatment of ALK-positive lung cancer and Breakthrough Therapy designation to a potential first-in-class oral antagonist of inhibitors of apoptosis proteins for the treatment of head and neck...
Immune modulation with checkpoint inhibitors has shown benefit in advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, but responses have been limited to a small number of patients. According to data presented by Gregory T. Wolf, MD, FACS, Professor Emeritus in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and...
The mTOR inhibitor everolimus may extend progression-free survival for patients with advanced head and neck cancer who are at high risk for recurrence after standard treatment. Patients enrolled in a randomized phase II trial who received the agent were more likely to be cancer-free 1 year after...
As reported in JAMA by Christiane K. Kuhl, MD, PhD, and colleagues, the ECOG-ACRIN EA1141 trial has shown that abbreviated breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was associated with a significantly higher invasive breast cancer detection rate vs digital breast tomosynthesis among women with dense...
As reported in JAMA Oncology by Petrelli et al, noninferiority in relapse-free survival for 3 vs 6 months of adjuvant chemotherapy was not established among patients with resected high-risk stage II colorectal cancer in the Italian phase III TOSCA trial. A potential regimen effect was observed,...
This week, we’ll be reviewing data from three influential abstracts presented at the recent 2020 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in San Francisco—one on a novel, first-in-class, small molecule, hypoxia-inducible factor 2 alpha inhibitor for heavily pretreated patients with metastatic clear cell...
Results from a new clinical trial suggest that neoadjuvant immunotherapy for oral cavity cancers may elicit tumor regression, which could provide long-term benefit for patients. Findings were presented by Jonathan D. Schoenfeld, MD, MPH, of Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women's Cancer Center, and...
A new phase II trial has found that the combination of radiation therapy and pembrolizumab led to improved survival outcomes and acceptable toxicity for patients with locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The combination therapy may offer a new treatment option for...
Routine genetic counseling and multigene testing of patients with pancreatic cancer result in the detection of mutations that are actionable, not only for patients, but also for at-risk family members. At the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, the use of a systemized, automated referral system that does ...
In a systematic analysis of data from 40 countries reported in the International Journal of Cancer, Fidler-Benaoudia et al identified a widespread emergence of higher lung cancer incidence rates in young women vs young men. The trend does not appear to be explained by differences in smoking...
In a study using Henry Ford Health System data reported in a research letter in JAMA Surgery, Chen et al found little difference in treatment and outcomes between African American and white women with nonmetastatic triple-negative breast cancer. Screen detection of disease was associated with...
As reported in JCO Oncology Practice by Omar Abdel-Rahman, MD, of the Cross Cancer Institute, University of Alberta, a study using U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data indicated that patients with cancer were not more likely to have depressive disorders—but were more...
As the number of solid organ transplants in the United States rises, cancer in this patient population is a growing concern. In fact, solid organ transplant recipients have an up to 50 times greater risk than the general population of developing skin cancers, and for kidney transplant recipients,...
On February 25, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved neratinib (Nerlynx), a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, in combination with capecitabine for adult patients with advanced or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer who have received two or more prior anti-HER2–based regimens in the...
New research suggests that regular exercise may improve the well-being of African American cancer survivors, but most survivors do not meet current recommendations for physical activity. The findings were published by Jennifer Beebe-Dimmer, MPH, PhD, and colleagues in the journal Cancer. Because...
In a phase Ib study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Shanu Modi, MD, and colleagues found that the antibody-drug conjugate trastuzumab deruxtecan was active in HER2–low-expressing, previously treated advanced breast cancer. The drug component is a topoisomerase I inhibitor. The agent...
As reported in The Lancet Oncology, Clark et al have developed radiation dosimetric models that can be used to predict the risk of acute ovarian failure in female survivors of childhood cancer. Study Details The cohort study involved 5,886 eligible 5-year survivors in the Childhood Cancer Survivor ...
In a European phase II trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Martin-Broto et al found that pazopanib showed activity in patients with typical solitary fibrous tumors. The investigators previously reported findings with pazopanib treatment in a cohort of patients in the trial with advanced...
The late Jane Coulbourne turned cancer into an opportunity to help others. Jane’s husband, William Coulbourne, and her friend, Susan Braun, MA, FASCO, proudly recall Jane’s work to transform patient care and their commitment to fulfilling her final wish in the latest episode of Your Stories, the...
Monthly giving is an efficient and effective way to help conquer cancer every month of the year. Monthly gifts to Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation, are processed automatically, which helps reduce costs and allows your donation to have the greatest possible impact in funding the research...
ASCO Answers patient education materials have everything you need to stock your practice for cancer awareness month in March. From comprehensive guides to single-page fact sheets, ASCO Answers is your go-to resource for trusted oncologist-approved patient education. Check out the following popular...
Sponsors of clinical trials conducted under investigational new drug applications are required by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to report serious adverse events that are unexpected and suspected to be related to the drug. However, contrary to FDA guidance, investigators often send...
ASCO submitted its Patient-Centered Oncology Payment (PCOP) model for consideration by the Physician-Focused Payment Model Technical Advisory Committee (PTAC). PTAC is an advisory group to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which sends recommendations to the Secretary of HHS on...
ASCO’s Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI®) Round 1 of reporting is open for data abstraction. Round 1 will close on June 5, 2020, and final reports will be available approximately 4 weeks later. To get started, go to the registration portal at myqopi.asco.org/registration/login.aspx and...
The Nebraska Oncology Society (NOS) is now the fourth ASCO state affiliate committed to supporting Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation, by funding a Young Investigator Award (YIA). “There’s a great need for oncologists in clinical practice, in general,” said NOS President Ralph Hauke, MD, FACP....
Beginning this year, oncology specialists will have the opportunity to pursue a more flexible and less burdensome path to maintaining recertification. The American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM)/ASCO Medical Oncology: Learning & Assessment (MOLA) is a lower-stakes Maintenance of...
The EHE Foundation announced it will receive a $450,000 award from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) to drive progress toward treatments and a cure for epithelioid hemangioendothelioma (EHE), a rare vascular cancer diagnosed in about 20 individuals per year. The award recognizes The EHE...
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute will establish the Riney Family Multiple Myeloma Initiative to help improve outcomes and accelerate understanding of the underlying biology for the most challenging types of myeloma. The initiative is being established with a $16.5 million gift from Paula and Rodger...
Eileen Smith, MD, Medical Director of City of Hope’s Alpha Stem Cell Clinic, Associate Director of the Clinical Research Program, Clinical Professor in the Department of Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, has been appointed the new Chair of the Department of Hematology &...
To complement The ASCO Post’s continued comprehensive coverage of the 2019 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition, here are several abstracts selected from the meeting proceedings focusing on allogeneic and autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation. For full...
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, Mitchell Chan, PharmD, BCPS, Regulatory Project Manager; Tamy Kim, PharmD, Associate Director of Regulatory ...
The Prevent Cancer Foundation® has announced the funding of eight new United States–based researchers and four new cancer prevention and early detection projects in low- or middle-income countries. Research grants and fellowships awarded this year will increase cancer prevention and early detection ...
Commenting on SAFIR02-IMMUNO for The ASCO Post, Kevin Kalinsky, MD, MS, Associate Professor of Medicine at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Irving Medical Center, said the findings of the analysis were in accordance with other studies in metastatic breast cancer, but they came...
Given as maintenance therapy, the checkpoint inhibitor durvalumab significantly improved overall survival in patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer and yielded a numerical but not significant benefit as well for patients expressing programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1), in...