Improvements in protocol-driven clinical trials and supportive care for children and adolescents with cancer have markedly reduced mortality rates over the past 5 decades. Yet, along with clinical advances, oncologists and their young patients with cancer face a host of ethical issues, made more...
Considered the “guardian of the genome,” TP53 is the most commonly mutated gene in patients with cancer. TP53's normal function is to detect DNA damage and prevent cells from passing this damage on to daughter cells. When TP53 is mutated, the protein made from this gene, called p53, can no longer...
Although the United States spends billions of dollars each year on cancer research, very little of that funding is dedicated to mental health research in patients with cancer, despite the fact that cancer survivors have a six-time higher risk for psychological disability than people without...
A European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) interdisciplinary expert consensus paper on how to manage patients with cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic was published by Giuseppe Curigliano, MD, PhD, and colleagues in Annals of Oncology. The guidance encourages medical oncologists worldwide not...
“Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health is the most shocking and the most inhumane because it often results in physical death. I see no alternative to direct action and creative nonviolence to raise the conscience of the nation.” —Martin Luther King, Jr, speaking before the Medical...
The ASCO Post is pleased to reproduce installments of the “Art of Oncology,” as published previously in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. These articles focus on the experience of suffering from cancer or of caring for people diagnosed with cancer, and they include narratives, topical essays,...
ASCO’s CancerLinQ® has launched the SmartLinQ™ QOPI® Certification Pathway, an application that empowers oncology practices to automate quality measure tracking and reporting for participation in ASCO’s Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI) Certification Program, a 3-year certification...
Mark Lewis, MD, was 8 years old when his father was diagnosed with cancer. Decades later, he was 1 week into an oncology fellowship when he self-diagnosed his own rare cancer, multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1). In the latest Your Stories podcast from Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation,...
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, the Mark Foundation for Cancer Research, and the Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group recently announced the awarding of more than $6.75 million to nine scientists. Each project will be supported by an award of $750,000 over a 3-year period. Grant Recipients The Blood ...
The ASCO Post is pleased to present Hematology Expert Review, an ongoing feature that occasionally quizzes readers on issues in hematology. In this installment, Drs. Abutalib and Medeiros highlight the rare primary diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) of the central nervous system (CNS). For each ...
Janice M. Mehnert, MD, a researcher in early-phase therapeutics and the treatment of skin malignancies, has been appointed Associate Director for Clinical Research at New York University Langone Health’s Perlmutter Cancer Center. Dr. Mehnert was Associate Professor of Medicine at Robert Wood...
When paired with palbociclib in the first-line treatment of metastatic breast cancer, fulvestrant and letrozole performed comparably, with no statistical superiority in progression-free or overall survival shown for either endocrine agent, in the phase II PARSIFAL study presented during the ASCO20...
Ahmad Tarhini, MD, PhD, Director of Cutaneous and Translational Research at Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, was optimistic about neoadjuvant use of nivolumab/ipilimumab and looks forward to further randomized studies. “Taken together, the results of the OpACIN and OpACIN-neo trials support the value ...
As reported in the Journal of Thoracic Oncology by Simron Singh, MD, MPH, and colleagues, the Commonwealth Neuroendocrine Tumour Research Collaboration (CommNETs) and North American Neuroendocrine Tumor Society (NANETS) have collaborated to produce a best practice guideline for the diagnosis and...
Lung cancer in nonsmokers is a diverse and distinct disease from lung cancer in smokers and is likely to respond differently to targeted treatments, according to results from a new study published by Chen et al in the journal Cell. Scientists studied a patient population in Taiwan with high rates...
The ASCO Post is pleased to reproduce installments of the Art of Oncology, as published previously in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. These articles focus on the experience of suffering from cancer or of caring for people diagnosed with cancer, and they include narratives, topical essays,...
It was ambitious and it was controversial, but the bipartisan 21st Century Cures Act (Cures) made it through both houses of Congress and was signed into law in December 2016. Sponsored by Representatives Diana DeGette (D-CO) and Fred Upton (R-MI), the landmark legislation funded new medical...
In this edition of the Living a Full Life series, guest editor Jame Abraham, MD, FACP, interviewed his colleague Brian J. Bolwell, MD, FACP, Chairman of the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute and Professor of Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic. Among other things, Dr. Bolwell discussed his...
The invited discussant for the RAPIDO and PRODIGE 23 trials, Christopher Leigh Hallemeier, MD, Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, noted the standard approach to locally advanced rectal cancer has been, for the past 2 decades, a long course of chemoradiotherapy...
A visiting away elective is a resident’s designated time to visit another academic program to foster the growth of medical knowledge through patient care from the perspective of another health-care system and educational experience. The time dedicated to make this dream happen is grueling. First...
With the rapid expansion of scientific advances, the intersection of ethics and the delivery of cancer care becomes ever more complicated. To shed light on some of the challenging ethical issues faced by today’s busy oncology practitioners, The ASCO Post spoke with Rebecca D. Pentz, PhD, Professor ...
Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation, announced its 2020 grant and award recipients in conjunction with the 2020 ASCO Virtual Scientific Program. The awards will support researchers with projects spanning many areas in cancer care, including immunotherapy, lung and breast cancers, and palliative...
The world is grappling with a pandemic and we are all adjusting to a new reality. Fewer handshakes, more masks. Fewer hugs, more fear. COVID-19 has tested us, challenged us, changed us. It’s changed the way we look, the way we work, the way we socialize. It’s changed us, but it can’t stop us. It...
Patients who were unexpectedly hospitalized for dehydration, fever, or other events while undergoing radiotherapy for head and neck cancer were at a higher risk for less favorable outcomes, according to a study published by Anurag K. Singh, MD, and colleagues in Oral Oncology. Researchers found...
New, longer-term data from a pivotal phase II trial in advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC), were presented during the ASCO20 Virtual Scientific Program and discussed during a poster discussion.1 Danny Rischin, MD, of the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Victoria, Australia, presented...
Two gynecologic oncologists and ASCO’s Chief Medical Officer and Executive Vice President Richard L. Schilsky, MD, FACP, FSCT, FASCO, commented on the findings of the TROPHIMMUN trial for The ASCO Post. “The authors demonstrate efficacy of a new treatment approach for gestational trophoblastic...
Sharing his perspective on KEYNOTE-177 with The ASCO Post was Axel Grothey, MD, Director of GI Cancer Research at the West Cancer Center, OneOncology, Memphis. “This is a very important, highly anticipated study,” he said. “It’s the first randomized trial of any checkpoint inhibitor in...
LYNN M. SCHUCHTER, MD, FASCO, Chief of Hematology/Oncology at the Penn Medicine’s Abramson Cancer Center, Philadelphia, was optimistic about the vaccine approach in this study. “We have seen broad use of PD-1 and PD-L1 agents across a range of cancers, and it makes sense to combine the immune...
LYNN M. SCHUCHTER, MD, FASCO, Chief of Hematology/Oncology at the Penn Medicine’s Abramson Cancer Center, Philadelphia, was optimistic about the vaccine approach in this study. “We have seen broad use of PD-1 and PD-L1 agents across a range of cancers, and it makes sense to combine the immune...
In a new study published by Wentzensen et al in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, a computer algorithm improved the accuracy and efficiency of cervical cancer screening compared with cytology (Papanicolaou [Pap] test), the current standard for follow-up of women who test positive in...
In a new study published by Wentzensen et al in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, a computer algorithm improved the accuracy and efficiency of cervical cancer screening compared with cytology (Papanicolaou [Pap] test), the current standard for follow-up of women who test positive in...
Extended analysis of the phase III KEYNOTE-426 study upholds pembrolizumab plus axitinib as a preferred front-line regimen over sunitinib in patients with advanced sporadic renal cell carcinoma.1 These updated results were presented at the ASCO20 Virtual Scientific Program by Elizabeth R. Plimack,...
A visiting away elective is a resident’s designated time to visit another academic program to foster the growth of medical knowledge through patient care from the perspective of another health-care system and educational experience. The time dedicated to make this dream happen is grueling. First is ...
In patients with metastatic urothelial carcinoma, a novel combination of biomarkers from baseline tumor tissues was predictive of improved clinical responses and prolonged survival following treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors, according to findings published by Goswami et al in Science...
Conquer Cancer®, the ASCO Foundation honored recipients of the 2020 Medical Student Rotation for Underrepresented Populations (MSR), Resident Travel Awards for Underrepresented Populations (RTA), Long-Term International Fellowship (LIFe), and International Development and Education Awards (IDEA)...
When I was 18, I was diagnosed with stage II melanoma. I had a strange spot on my back that I mentioned to my dermatologist, almost as an afterthought. It never occurred to me it could be skin cancer, let alone the most dangerous kind. I have fair skin but was by no means a sun worshipper. My...
The path that led Donald I. Abrams, MD, to a career in oncology was a circuitous one. Although his love of science began when he was a student at Cleveland Heights High School in Ohio, and continued during college at Brown University, where he received an AB in molecular biology in 1972, he was...
As oncology trainees, we develop skills to synthesize complex data and communicate this information with empathy as we accompany our patients through the trenches of a cancer diagnosis. With the current COVID-19 pandemic, an unprecedented layer of challenges has surfaced, as our patients who are...
The antipsychotic agent olanzapine may be helpful in reducing nausea and vomiting caused by advanced cancer, according to results of a study by Loprinzi et al published recently in JAMA Oncology. “There was a dramatic reduction [in nausea and vomiting] within 24 hours in the people who received...
GUEST EDITOR Dr. Abraham is Professor of Medicine, Lerner College of Medicine, and Chair of the Hematology and Medical Oncology Department at Taussig Cancer Institute, Cleveland Clinic. In this edition of the Living a Full Life series, guest editor Jame Abraham, MD, FACP, spoke with pioneering art ...
Question 1 Which of the following statements about mixed-cellularity classic Hodgkin lymphoma is correct? A. It has a female predominance. B. This type of classic Hodgkin lymphoma is relatively more common in developing nations and is frequently associated with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) positivity....
The ASCO Post is pleased to present Hematology Expert Review, an ongoing feature that occasionally quizzes readers on issues in hematology. In this first-part of a two-part installment, Drs. Abutalib and Medeiros highlight the histologically rare lymphocyte-rich type of classic Hodgkin lymphoma,...
Breast surgical oncologist Laura S. Dominici, MD, was born and reared in Litchfield, a small town in the southern portion of New Hampshire. “Our house was on a long dirt road, in a very rural area,” she shared. “There were only about 5,000 residents in the town. My mother was a teacher, and my dad...
The text and photograph here are excerpted from a four-volume series of books titled Oncology: Tumors & Treatment, A Photographic History, The Anesthesia Era: 1845–1875 by Stanley B. Burns, MD, FACS, and Elizabeth A. Burns. The photograph appears courtesy of Stanley B. Burns, MD, and The Burns...
The Colorectal Cancer Alliance recently released findings from its latest survey of patients with young-onset colorectal cancer and survivors. The Never Too Young Survey shares the self-reported medical, psychosocial, and quality-of-life experiences of this often-overlooked population to better...
Studies have shown a disconnect between where patients say they want to die and where they actually die. According to research from Stanford School of Medicine, although an overwhelming majority of Americans—about 80%—would prefer to die at home, just 20% do. In fact, 60% die in acute care...
The global toll of breast cancer on women is staggering. In 2018, nearly two million new breast cancer cases were diagnosed, an increase of more than 20% since 2008,1 and mortality rates have increased by 14%, bringing the annual number of deaths worldwide from the cancer to more than 611,625.2...
Commenting on the final overall survival analysis of the LOTUS trial, the study’s invited discussant, Suzette Delaloge, MD, MSc, Chair of the Breast Cancer Group at the Institut Gustave Roussy, Paris, said: “We see there might also be an overall survival effect with ipatasertib and paclitaxel…....
In the phase II LOTUS trial, the addition of the AKT inhibitor ipatasertib to paclitaxel in the first-line treatment of patients with advanced triple-negative breast cancer yielded a strong numerical improvement—a median gain of 9 months—in overall survival, in the final survival analysis reported...
ASCO announced record-breaking attendance at its 3-day ASCO20 Virtual Scientific Program, held online from May 29 through May 31. More than 42,700 attendees from 138 countries have participated thus far, learning virtually about new clinical cancer advances in every area of cancer research....