The antibody-drug conjugate fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki (T-DXd) proved to be superior to the antibody-drug conjugate ado-trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1), significantly improving progression-free survival and overall survival, in women with unresectable or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer as ...
The COVID-19 pandemic transformed the world, and nowhere more so than in the health-care arena. Significant changes happened almost overnight in the delivery of medical care to focus on the safety and convenience of patients, staff, and providers. Although pilot efforts to integrate telemedicine...
Just days before the publication of the 2022 Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer on October 27, 2022,1 which showed a continued downward trend in cancer deaths, Karen Knudsen, MBA, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of the American Cancer Society (ACS), joined the First Lady Dr. Jill...
According to findings from the phase II RIGHT Choice trial, many premenopausal patients with metastatic hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative breast cancer experiencing visceral crisis are best treated with first-line ribociclib plus endocrine therapy rather than with chemotherapy.1 Ribociclib,...
On December 21, Foundation Medicine, Inc, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved its FoundationOne Liquid CDx as a companion diagnostic to identify patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors have EGFR exon 19 deletions or exon 21 L858R substitutions...
On September 20, 2022, sodium thiosulfate was approved to reduce the risk of ototoxicity associated with cisplatin in pediatric patients (aged ≥ 1 month) with localized, nonmetastatic solid tumors.1 Supporting Efficacy Data Approval was based on findings in the multicenter open-label SIOPEL 6...
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and the World Health Organization (WHO) recently announced a formal agreement to establish a new international collaboration concentrated on reducing the global burden of women’s cancers. The agreement builds on years of collaboration between the...
Fox Chase Cancer Center was recently awarded a grant for $6 million over the course of 5 years to develop a new Cancer Prevention-Interception Targeted Agent Discovery Program (CAP-IT). The new National Cancer Institute (NCI) program was created to establish a pipeline for the discovery of new...
In 2017, I noticed a roadside billboard touting the benefits of low-dose computed tomography (CT) imaging for lung cancer screening. The message probably saved my life. The public service campaign, called Saved by the Scan from the American Lung Association, included an Internet address where I...
Jefferson Health’s Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center (SKCC) recently launched the Geriatric Oncology Center of Excellence to address the needs of a growing patient population through innovative research and care delivery methods via a multidisciplinary approach. The center identifies and removes barriers ...
ASCO has elected Robin Zon, MD, FACP, FASCO, a long-time member and volunteer, to lead as its President beginning in June 2024. Dr. Zon will take office as President-Elect immediately following the ASCO Annual Business Meeting in Chicago on June 5, 2023. Five additional members were also elected to ...
Gladys Magaly Rodriguez, MD, was born in Piedras Negras, Mexico, a city situated along the banks of the Rio Grande. At age 6, her family immigrated to Eagle Pass, Texas, a border town of some 30,000 people that is predominantly Latinx and Spanish speaking. “Even though I lived and attended school...
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, signed into law on August 16, 2022, contains several important provisions regarding health care and drug pricing.1 In this article, I provide an overview of the legislation’s implications for oncology care, focusing on its provisions concerning drug price...
The final results of the phase III CheckMate 651 trial showed no significant overall survival benefit with first-line nivolumab/ipilimumab vs the EXTREME regimen (cetuximab plus cisplatin or carboplatin plus fluorouracil for up to six cycles, followed by cetuximab maintenance) in recurrent or...
The novel drug modakafusp alfa has shown early promise in combating relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma, according to new findings presented by Vogl et al at the 2022 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition (Abstract 565). Background Modakafusp alfa is a fusion protein...
The use of a simplified treatment regimen by oncologists—along with management recommendations and 24/7 support provided by a limited and dedicated group of academic disease experts—resulted in a decrease in early deaths from acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). In the multicenter prospective trial...
In a recent trial of the European MCL Network, people with mantle cell lymphoma who received the Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitor ibrutinib had rates of progression-free survival and overall survival that were on par with the current standard of care (high-dose immunochemotherapy followed by...
Patients with invasive breast cancer who had low scores on an investigational gene molecular signature had similar rates of local recurrence independent of whether they received adjuvant radiation therapy after breast-conserving surgery, according to findings presented by Karlsson et al at the 2022 ...
Patients with multiple tumors in a single breast who underwent a lumpectomy followed by radiation therapy had local recurrence rates comparable to those historically observed in patients with a single tumor, according to new findings presented by Judy C. Boughey, MD, and colleagues at the 2022 San...
A new drug that inhibits an enzyme playing a crucial role in cell division and growth has shown signs of anticancer activity with manageable side effects in patients with liver cancer who have been treated unsuccessfully previously with up to three lines of treatment. These findings were presented...
“I knew my husband was dying in June. He’d been living with a terminal diagnosis for 6 years, but suddenly his cancer turned aggressive…. The last time we saw the oncologist, he sent us home with a DNR order and told me to put it on the refrigerator, because that’s where the EMTs look,” writes...
Guest Editor’s Note: In October, the Society for Integrative Oncology (SIO) held its 2022 Annual International Conference in a hybrid format (virtual and in Scottsdale, Arizona). It was centered on the basic science, education and training, and implementation of integrative oncology in diverse...
The ASCO Post is pleased to continue this occasional special focus on the worldwide cancer burden. In this issue, we feature a close look at the cancer incidence and mortality rates in Bolivia. The aim of this special feature is to highlight the global cancer burden for various countries of the...
The National Academy of Medicine recently announced the election of 90 regular members and 10 international members during its annual meeting. Election to the Academy is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated...
In addition to, or instead of, receiving therapies that are the standard of care, patients with cancer sometimes request to receive complementary (therapies used in conjunction with standard cancer treatment) and alternative (nonstandard treatments used in place of standard cancer treatment)...
A new ASCO guideline on the management of advanced colorectal cancer summarizes the latest treatments supported by quality data that could expand oncologists’ armamentarium and potentially improve survival outcomes.1 “[Colorectal cancer] remains the second-leading class of cancer deaths among men ...
The use of circulating tumor cell counts to guide the choice between chemotherapy and endocrine therapy as first-line treatment for patients with metastatic, estrogen receptor–positive, HER2-negative breast cancer provided overall survival benefits compared with physician’s choice of treatment,...
The next-generation selective estrogen receptor degrader (SERD) camizestrant improved progression-free survival compared to fulvestrant in patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative breast cancer, according to results from the phase II SERENA-2 trial presented by Mafalda Oliveira, MD,...
Chemotherapy-induced hair loss affects 65% of patients with cancer,1 and the psychosocial impact on these patients can be profound; it may include anxiety, depression, a negative body image, lowered self-esteem, and a reduced sense of well-being.2 In some instances, the fear of hair loss from...
Invited discussant Erica Michelle Stringer-Reasor, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine and Director of the Breast Cancer Program at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham, said the exploratory analysis of KEYNOTE-522 established the value of using residual...
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) recognized the recipients of its 2022 Gold Medal awards and other high-profile honors during an awards ceremony at the 2022 ASTRO Annual Meeting in San Antonio. ASTRO Gold Medal Wendell R. Lutz, PhD, and Tim R. Williams, MD, FASTRO, were awarded...
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) provided recommendations on the use of radiation therapy and systemic therapy after surgery to treat patients with endometrial cancer, according to a newly updated clinical guideline published by Harkenrider et al in Practical Radiation Oncology....
According to a recent article published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, cancer care in the United States exceeded $208 billion in 2020 and is expected to surpass $240 billion by 2030.1 These estimates are driven largely by a growing and aging population. The expenditures...
In patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer—including patients with visceral crises—those treated with ribociclib plus endocrine therapy had fewer adverse events and significantly longer progression-free survival compared to those treated with combination...
On December 5, Novartis announced the pivotal phase III PSMAfore study of lutetium (Lu-177) vipivotide tetraxetan, a prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-targeted radioligand therapy, met its primary endpoint. The therapy demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful...
In a Chinese study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Xu et al found that a test for epigenetic imprinted biomarkers was highly accurate in distinguishing malignant vs benign thyroid nodules. Study Details The multicenter study involved 550 consecutively enrolled patients with nodules...
Preclinical research has shown that mantle cell lymphoma is so critically dependent on the FOXO1 protein that by blocking its activity with an experimental drug, the cancer’s growth may be slowed, according to a new study published by Jang et al in the Journal of Clinical Investigation....
More than 1.4 million patients were diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2020 globally, but the molecular characteristics of the disease remain unexplored for the majority of patients around the world. In the final days of the Movember campaign, which every year in November aims to raise awareness of...
Lori Wilson, MD, FACS, was the first woman to hold the surgical oncology division chief position at Howard University Hospital and the first woman to be promoted to full professor in surgery at Howard University College of Medicine. Known as a fierce advocate for patients with cancer in underserved ...
There is a 2-decades-long separation between the time I was diagnosed with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma in 1996 and my laryngectomy in 2016. The surgery was necessary because of the long-term damage to my larynx from the radiation therapy I received. In 1996, I had a low-grade sore throat...
A RECENT REPORT published in Neuro-Oncology1 exposes an alarming reality for children, adolescents, and families facing pediatric brain cancer across the country. The Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation (PBTF) funded this groundbreaking report by the Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States...
In this installment of The ASCO Post’s Living a Full Life series, Guest Editor Jame Abraham, MD, FACP, spoke with C.S. Pramesh, MS, FRCS, Director of the Tata Memorial Hospital and Professor and Head of Thoracic Surgery at the Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai, India. Dr. Pramesh is the Convener of the...
The American Society of Hematology (ASH) recently announced the election of four new members to its Executive Committee for terms beginning after the 2022 ASH Annual Meeting & Exposition in December in New Orleans. Belinda R. Avalos, MD, will serve a 1-year term as Vice President, followed...
Colorectal cancer ranks third among cancer deaths in both men and women in the United States, with an estimated 150,000 new cases and 52,000 deaths anticipated in 2022.1 Colorectal cancer rates have declined by approximately 2% per year from 2014 to 2018 in people older than age 50, which is...
In response to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturning Roe v Wade, eliminating the constitutional right to an abortion and returning the power to regulate reproductive health for women to the states, ASCO, the American Cancer Society Action...
First-line maintenance therapy with olaparib extended survival beyond historical expectations in some women with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer, according to long-term follow-up of two phase III studies presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2022.1,2 Paul...
Researchers have discovered the factors that may make breast and ovarian cancers associated with BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations more likely to recur, according to new findings published by Shah et al in Nature Communications. These mutations are known to strongly predispose women to breast and...
Although socioeconomic status often influences survival outcomes, pediatric patients with relapsed or refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) who were living in poverty and were treated with CAR T-cell therapy achieved similar overall survival and were equally likely to achieve a complete...
Benjamin Movsas, MD, who was not involved in the phase II trial of prophylactic radiation for bone metastases, commented: “I thought this was a very important study. We will need to see the details in the final paper, but this approach could make a meaningfuldifference in the quality of life for...
On September 20, 2022, sodium thiosulfate was approved to reduce the risk of ototoxicity associated with cisplatin in pediatric patients (aged ≥ 1 month) with localized, nonmetastatic solid tumors.1 Supporting Efficacy Data Approval was based on findings in the multicenter open-label SIOPEL 6...