On November 2, ASCO and Innovative Oncology Business Solutions, Inc, (IOBS) announced a new collaboration, ASCO COME HOME, an oncology medical home program designed to transition community oncology practices from volume-based to value-based care by structuring reimbursement around the full...
Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have developed a new personalized assessment tool that could better predict lung cancer risk in never, light, and heavy smokers using a large Taiwanese prospective cohort study. By incorporating risk factor—in addition to...
A study by University of North Carolina (UNC) Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers has found that younger, uninsured women in North Carolina had higher odds of missing a 60-day window for getting follow-up after an abnormal mammogram, even though research underscores the importance of ...
On November 1, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accepted a New Drug Application (NDA) for filing and granted Priority Review for ribociclib (LEE011) as first-line treatment of postmenopausal women with hormone receptor–positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2...
A new American Cancer Society study finds that incidence of anal cancer has been increasing in women or in both men and women in 13 of 18 countries studied, particularly in the Americas, Northern/Western Europe, and Australia. The authors say population-based preventive measures, including human...
Positive results were announced on October 26, 2016, from the phase III SOLO-2 trial, designed to determine the efficacy of olaparib (Lynparza) tablets (300 mg twice daily) as a monotherapy for the maintenance treatment of platinum-sensitive, BRCA-mutated relapsed ovarian cancer. Results from the...
The most comprehensive study of its kind to date found that older women enjoy the same benefits from breast reconstruction following mastectomy for breast cancer as younger women, without a significant increase in the risk for complications. As with patients across all age groups, the benefits of...
Thanks to advances in medical imaging, the detection rate for synchronous multiple lung adenocarcinoma has been on the rise. Cases of synchronous multiple lung adenocarcinoma in Japanese women have been on the rise, despite having a national smoking rate of less than 10% in recent years. This...
Patients with double-hit and double-expressor relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphomas have poorer outcomes after autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT), according to the findings of a retrospective analysis reported by Herrera et al in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Double-hit...
Painful sex in women after cancer treatment is relatively common, often treatable, and needs to be addressed by medical providers, a University of California (UC), Davis, oncologist and researcher suggests. Vanessa Kennedy, MD, a gynecologic oncologist at UC Davis Health System, said that with...
Medical researchers at Indiana University (IU) Bloomington have found evidence for a link between prostate cancer, which affects millions of men aged 50 and older, and Ewing's sarcoma, a rare form of cancer that affects children and young adults. The results of the study, reported by Kedage et al...
Patients with disseminated advanced cancer who undergo surgery are far more likely to endure long hospital stays and readmissions, referrals to extended care facilities, and death, University of California (UC) Davis researchers have found. Their study, published by Bateni et al in PLOS One,...
Among Japanese patients with esophageal cancer, those whose cancer tested positive for DNA from the bacterium Fusobacterium nucleatum had shorter cancer-specific survival compared with those whose cancer had no DNA from the bacterium, according to study results published by Yamamura et al in...
In a new report published by Young et al in Cancer Medicine, a two-gene circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) blood test for postsurgical monitoring of colorectal cancer (CRC) recurrence has been shown to detect twice the number of recurrence cases as carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) testing, a standard of...
On October 24, 2016, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved pembrolizumab (Keytruda) for the treatment of patients with metastatic non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors express programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) as determined by an FDA-approved test. This is the...
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have recommended that 11- to 12-year-olds receive 2 doses of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine at least 6 months apart rather than the previously recommended 3 doses to protect against cancers caused by HPV infections. Teens and young adults who ...
Merck announced October 21, 2016, that the phase III KEYNOTE-045 trial investigating the use of pembrolizumab (Keytruda), the company’s anti–PD-1 (programmed cell death protein 1) therapy in patients with previously treated advanced urothelial cancer, met the primary endpoint of overall ...
CancerLinQ LLC, a wholly-owned nonprofit of ASCO, announced on October 20, 2016, that more than 1 million patient records are now in the CancerLinQ™ platform. In addition, 70 practices have signed agreements to participate in CancerLinQ, representing more than 1,500 oncologists. “We...
Editor’s note: As The ASCO Post went to press, the Department of Health & Human Services finalized a landmark new payment system for Medicare clinicians. The system, known as MACRA, (Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015), replaces the flawed Sustainable Growth Rate and will...
Assessment of minimal residual disease was associated with improved prediction of outcome in responders, as well as complete responders, in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who respond to treatment. Kovacs et al reported these findings, which are based on an analysis of two phase...
A phase II study has found venetoclax (Venclexta) to be clinically active in patients with high-risk relapsed/refractory acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) or those unfit for intensive chemotherapy, with an overall response rate of 19% and a tolerable safety profile. The study results, which were...
Robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy and open radical retropubic prostatectomy yielded similar domain-specific quality-of-life or pathologic outcomes at 12 weeks in men with newly diagnosed, clinically localized prostate cancer, according to the results of a randomized phase III trial reported ...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Laura Q. Chow, MD, of the University of Washington, and colleagues, a fixed-dose reduced-frequency pembrolizumab (Keytruda) regimen produced durable responses in the phase IB KEYNOTE-012 expansion cohort of patients with recurrent or metastatic...
Next-generation sequencing of recurrent or metastatic head and neck tumors at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) has provided insight into the molecular characteristics of these tumors, which may aid in the implementation of precision treatment. Luc G. Morris, MD, MSc, of Memorial Sloan...
Human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing is recommended in all resource settings; visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) may be used in the basic setting as a “stepping stone” that helps build health service capacity until HPV testing becomes available. Although cotesting with HPV and Papanicolaou...
Earlier this month, ASCO issued a new global guideline on screening for cervical cancer.1 The guideline provides evidence-based recommendations for screening, follow-up of positive screening results, and treatment of women with cervical precancers in countries worldwide. ASCO’s guideline...
Moffitt Cancer Center has been selected as a Cell Therapies Processing Facility by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health. Moffitt is one of five institutions that make up the NHLBI’s Production Assistance for Cellular Therapies group. The...
African American cancer survivors are more likely than whites to experience lasting debt or forgo necessary medical care as they struggle with the financial burden of cancer, whereas white cancer survivors are somewhat more likely to use existing assets to pay for their cancer care, according to a...
Implementation of the Affordable Care Act may have led to a significant increase in the number of Hispanic breast cancer patients treated in California at a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated cancer center. Further, there was also an increase reported in the number of Hispanic women who...
By the 1930s, the dangers of radiation were well known. American Martyr’s to Science Through the Roentgen Rays, published in 1936, documented the dead heroes of American radiology, from Clarence Daly, Thomas Edison’s associate, to Elizabeth Fleischman, the only woman in the group, who was a U.S....
OCTOBER 16th Biennial Meeting of the International Gynecologic Cancer SocietyOctober 29-31 • Lisbon, PortugalFor more information:http://igcs2016.com NOVEMBER 2016 Oncofertility Conference: Expanding Access to Emerging and Existing Oncofertility ServicesNovember 1-3 • Chicago, Illinois For more...
A first-of-its-kind joint report from the American Cancer Society and the Alliance for Childhood Cancer has compiled the latest information related to pediatric cancer, including statistics and trends; a current list of drugs used to treat pediatric cancers; ongoing pediatric cancer clinical...
Two major developments in oncology—the dramatic success of some immunotherapies and targeted drugs and an equally dramatic rise in the cost of care—have created policy issues, more serious than ever, regarding access to care. It is a time “of extraordinary opportunities combined with inequities in ...
Elizabeth Lesser is an award-winning writer and co-founder of the Omega Institute, the largest adult education center in the United States focusing on health, wellness, spirituality, and creativity. She is the author of several acclaimed books including Broken Open: How Difficult Times Can Help...
Cedars-Sinai recently announced it has appointed Robert A. Figlin, MD, to integrate research and clinical strategies across the organization in an effort to standardize cancer care and ensure optimal treatment of patients. Dr. Figlin will serve as Deputy Director of the Integrated Oncology Service ...
Dexamethasone mouth rinse should be given prophylactically to prevent stomatitis associated with everolimus (Afinitor)/exemestane in metastatic breast cancer, according to Hope S. Rugo, MD, principal investigator of the SWISH trial and Director of Breast Oncology and Clinical Trials Education at...
Palliative care is slowly but surely being integrated into the treatment of patients with solid tumors, but its role in the hematopoietic stem cell transplant setting is still lagging, speakers said at the 2016 Palliative Care in Oncology Symposium. “There is a huge symptom burden among patients...
According to the American Cancer Society, it is estimated that more than 26,000 people will be diagnosed with stomach cancer in the United States this year, with nearly 1 million new cases diagnosed worldwide each year, according to the World Health Organization. Because there are no early symptoms ...
Although clinical trials are helpful in determining the effectiveness of a specific drug across a patient population, they are not as reliable at pinpointing how well a particular patient will respond to the drug or dosing regimen or how the drug may impact the patient’s quality of life from...
A longer waiting interval from the end of preoperative chemoradiotherapy to surgery increases the rate of pathologic complete response and yields a higher proportion of patients achieving tumor downstaging in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer, according to new findings from a...
The Cancer Biology Research Center at Sanford Research in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is the recipient of a 5-year, nearly $11.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to translate laboratory research into clinical trials for head and neck and pediatric cancers. The grant was...
The rise in the incidence of oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma in the United Kingdom from 2002 to 2011 was not solely attributable to a rise in the incidence of human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive disease, according to a study published in Cancer Research,1 which reported that the proportion of ...
Patients with metastatic colorectal cancer and tumors harboring the BRAF V600E mutation who received triple therapy with dabrafenib (Tafinlar), trametinib (Mekinist), and panitumumab (Vectibix) showed an improved best overall response and prolonged progression-free survival compared to...
Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rates remain low across the United States, with fewer than 40% of girls and just over 21% of boys receiving the recommended vaccine series. Research from Roswell Park Cancer Institute has identified barriers that need to be overcome to improve vaccination...
Findings from a phase II trial of vemurafenib in previously treated patients with advanced disease and BRAF-mutated tumors indicate that the drug is effective in patients with diverse BRAF V600–mutated tumors but not in patients with BRAF non-V600 mutations. After a mean treatment...
Perhaps more than any other book in recent memory, When Breath Becomes Air has struck a chord among readers, both inside the medical community and among the public, desiring an honest and philosophical consideration of death. The autobiographical account of Paul Kalanithi, MD, a physician diagnosed ...
ASCO Answers Palliative Care is an informative booklet that shows how palliative care is used to manage symptoms and side effects; help with practical concerns; address spiritual questions; and support family, friends, and caregivers at any stage of cancer. It also gives practical advice about...
By including a planned gift to the Conquer Cancer Foundation in your estate plans, you can help make a dramatic difference for cancer patients years—even decades—into the future. With just one small change to your will or trust, your planned gift of any size will deliver a big impact, and: Your...
Arti Hurria, MD, a geriatric oncologist at City of Hope in Duarte, California, is the first graduate of ASCO’s Leadership Development Program to be elected to ASCO’s Board of Directors. Within 5 years of completing the program, Dr. Hurria went from learning leadership skills to applying them to...
As part of ASCO’s ongoing effort to fully support all members of the cancer care team, it recently created three new member categories: Advanced Practice Providers, Practice Administrators, and Patient Advocates (see sidebar). Originally part of the Affiliated Health Professionals member category, ...