The invited discussant of the VERSATILE-002 and CUE-101-01 trials, Erminia Massarelli, MD, PhD, MS, said both are examples of a growing interest in evaluating immunotherapeutic strategies and treatment sequences in early-stage head and neck squamous cell cancer as well as in metastatic disease. Dr. ...
In patients with relapsed or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, a regimen of the immune checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab plus carboplatin and paclitaxel, evaluated in the phase IV KEYNOTE-B10 trial, demonstrated antitumor activity, with a good safety profile, investigators reported ...
The ASCO Post asked for comment from Glenn J. Hanna, MD, Director of the Center for Salivary and Rare Head and Neck Cancers, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Hanna said it is important to put the findings of KEYNOTE-4121 into context...
A modified adenocarcinoma classification approach may enhance reproducibility and may be an improvement on the existing World Health Organization (WHO) classification system, according to findings presented by Thunnissen et al at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC)...
The newly renamed Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center (MECCC) has been awarded comprehensive designation by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of the National Institutes of Health. As a result, MECCC was awarded a 5-year, $20 million Cancer Center Support Grant to advance the...
In a Chinese study reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Li et al found evidence that the anti–Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) anti-BNLF2b total antibody, P85-Ab, may be a promising biomarker for nasopharyngeal cancer screening. Study Details In the study, a peptide library representing highly...
Researchers have discovered that epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors may improve survival outcomes after treatment with chemoradiation in patients with stage III EGFR-mutated non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) compared to the PD-L1 inhibitor durvalumab, according to...
Lung cancer, both small cell and non–small cell, is the second most common cancer in both men and women in the United States, with about 238,340 new cases diagnosed each year, and the leading cause of cancer-related mortality, accounting for more than 127,000 deaths annually.1 Lung cancer in...
Long ago, as an ethical alternative to military service, I joined the National Cancer Institute’s Yellow Beret Program, and was assigned to its Division of Cancer Treatment (Dr. Vince DeVita) Cancer Therapy Development Branch (Dr. Steve Carter). This program reviewed and rejected or approved all...
Atrium Health Levine Children’s is expanding its commitment to deliver oncology, hematology, and cellular therapies care to patients across the region, the United States, and the world with the recent opening of its completely reimagined outpatient center. The Torrey Hemby Center for Cancer and...
Sarah Cannon Research Institute (SCRI) recently announced the appointment of Ishwaria Subbiah, MD, MS, as Executive Director, Cancer Care Equity and Professional Wellness. In this role, Dr. Subbiah will focus on reducing cancer outcomes disparities and diversifying clinical trial participation...
A new artificial intelligence (AI)-based diagnostic tool for colposcopy examinations may improve the accuracy of diagnosing cancerous and precancerous cervical lesions, including cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), according to a retrospective validation study presented at the 2023 ASCO...
It seems that exercise is good for almost everything, including prostate cancer. In fact, exercise had a positive effect on sexual function and enjoyment in men with prostate cancer, according to a recent study presented at the 2023 ASCO Breakthrough meeting by lead study author Daniel Galvão, PhD, ...
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®)—a not-for-profit alliance of leading academic cancer centers—announced Crystal S. Denlinger, MD, FACP, as incoming Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Dr. Denlinger—who is currently NCCN’s Senior Vice President, Chief Scientific Officer—will lead the ...
ASCO is saddened by the passing of Irwin H. Krakoff, MD, on August 9, 2023, at the age of 100. He is remembered as one of the founding fathers of modern chemotherapy. Dr. Krakoff was born on July 20, 1923, in Columbus, Ohio. He attended The Ohio State University, earning his bachelor’s degree in...
After a year of hard work preparing a strong abstract for the prestigious 2023 ASCO Annual Meeting, I finally received an acceptance letter from the scientific committee. I was overjoyed to see the efforts of our multinational team being rewarded. A few moments later, I received the decision...
“Dr. Hope Kestrel was the only person who knew the patient in Room 132 wasn’t responding to the algorithm-selected treatment. She shuffled forward in the hospital security line, wanting to ger her day started already yet dreading how she’d tell her patient the unexpected and devastating news.” So...
Thomas J. Herzog, MD, took office as President of the GOG Foundation (GOG-F, formerly the Gynecologic Oncology Group), Inc, on July 20, 2023, at the NRG Oncology Summer Meeting. Former GOG-F President, Larry J. Copeland, MD, passed the presidential gavel to Dr. Herzog at the GOG-F Board of...
Hematologic malignancies make about 10% of all cancer types in the United States, and the multidisciplinary care of these malignancies has evolved rapidly over the past 20 years. In fact, death rates across all blood cancers have been reduced, and once rapidly fatal diseases such as chronic myeloid ...
In this installment of The ASCO Post’s Living a Full Life series, guest editor Jame Abraham, MD, FACP, spoke with Benjamin Besse, MD, PhD, Professor of Medical Oncology at Paris-Saclay University, Orsay, France, and lung cancer specialist at Gustave Roussy Cancer Campus, Villejuif. Currently, Dr....
Patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who received vitamin C and D supplements during intensive chemotherapy had lower rates of complications such as infections, bleeding, and inflammation compared with patients who did not receive the supplements, according to a recent study published by...
ASCO joined the President’s Cancer Panel on September 7, 2023, to highlight the numerous ways ASCO is working to advance the National Cancer Plan and achieve President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot goal of “ending cancer as we know it.” This all-day, virtual event was the first public meeting in support...
In an analysis of the UKCTOCS study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Menon et al found that patients with high-grade serous tubo-ovarian cancer detected on multimodal screening may have a survival benefit over those whose disease was diagnosed without screening. The investigator stated, “In...
Improving hospital care pathways may help reduce inpatient opioid use by 50% and cut the median opioid prescription volumes at discharge to zero in patients undergoing pancreatic cancer surgery, according to a recent study published by Boyev et al in JAMA Surgery. The new findings could help reduce ...
A commercially available artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm may perform comparably to human readers at assessing screening mammograms, according to a recent study published by Chen et al in Radiology. False-positive interpretations on screening mammograms can result in women without cancer...
Black patients with stage IA low-grade endometrioid endometrial carcinoma may be less likely to undergo a hysterectomy and survive their cancer than White patients with the same type of cancer, according to a recent study published by Taylor et al in Gynecologic Oncology. Background “We’ve known...
23andMe has announced that the company has received a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 510(k) clearance to expand its existing BRCA1/BRCA2 (Selected Variants) Genetic Health Risk Report. The clearance allows 23andMe to report an additional 41 variants in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes known to be ...
Cholesterol-lowering statins may reduce colorectal cancer incidence and mortality in patients with ulcerative colitis, according to a recent study published by Sun et al in eClinicalMedicine. The findings also suggested that statin use may be associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality in...
Researchers have identified new strategies to help physicians predict which patients with advanced colorectal cancer may benefit from immunotherapy, according to a recent study published by Saberzadeh-Ardestani et al in Clinical Cancer Research. The findings demonstrate the potential of using...
Researchers have demonstrated that, in preclinical models, multiple beams and intervals in delivery during FLASH radiation therapy may compromise the skin-sparing effects of the technique, according to a novel study published by Mascia et al in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology •...
Research shows that the United States’ health-care delivery and financing system is so complex that streamlining administrative costs alone could reduce total health-care spending by 15%. In addition, health insurance payment and medical billing processes are time-consuming and expensive for both...
Patients with cancer who live in rural Pennsylvania counties appear to know that they may have better outcomes if they receive their cancer surgery at a hospital that performs a high volume of those procedures—but many still opt for lower-volume hospitals closer to home when their cancer is likely...
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)...
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...
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...
Understanding the complexities of health disparities within cancer care requires an exploration beyond immediate clinical factors. According to Elisa Rodriguez, PhD, MS, of Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, New York, geography plays a critical role in defining health outcomes in...
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 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....
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...
A Vietnamese prospective study by Hanh Thi-Hue Nguyen, BS, and Le Son Tran, PhD, both of the Medical Genetics Institute and Gene Solutions, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and colleagues, investigating the feasibility and performance of a circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) analyzing test in the early...
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 ...
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 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 ...
Presented here are summaries of three abstracts from the 2023 ASCO Annual Meeting that are pertinent for patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. The first two focus on men with homologous recombinant repair (HRR) gene alterations, including BRCA1/2. In the first study,...
It is an exciting time in the development of new treatments for urologic cancers. There have been a number of major changes both in advanced disease and in the perioperative setting over the past year. Urothelial and Bladder Cancers In urothelial cancer, at last, we have randomized data supporting...