Low-dose oral cyclophosphamide plus methotrexate maintenance therapy yielded no disease-free survival benefit in women with hormone receptor–negative early breast cancer, according to the phase III International Breast Cancer Study Group (IBCSG) 22-00 trial. Some evidence of benefit was...
In a phase III trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Sternberg et al found that tasquinimod, an oral therapy targeting components of the tumor microenvironment, increased radiographic progression-free survival but not overall survival vs placebo in men with chemotherapy-naive...
The addition of olaratumab, an anti–platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha (anti–PDGFRα) antibody, to doxorubicin resulted in prolonged progression-free and overall survival in the phase II evaluation of patients with advanced soft-tissue sarcoma, according to findings...
In the French phase III OS2006 trial reported by Piperno-Neumann et al in The Lancet Oncology, the addition of zoledronate to chemotherapy and surgery provided no event-free survival benefit in the treatment of patients with newly diagnosed high-grade osteosarcoma. Study Details In the open-label ...
In the phase III GADOLIN trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Sehn et al found that adding the anti-CD20 antibody obinutuzumab (Gazyva) to bendamustine (Bendeka, Treanda) increased progression-free survival in patients with rituximab-refractory indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). Outcomes in...
Although high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) is essential for developing high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN2 and CIN3) and has also been associated with noncervical anogenital cancers, little is known about the long-term risk for anal, vulvar, and vaginal cancer following a...
Today, the Cancer Moonshot hosted a summit at Howard University, in Washington, DC, as part of a national day of action that also included more than 270 events in communities across the United States. Vice President Joe Biden joined over 350 researchers, oncologists, care providers, data and...
Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are the result of genetic alterations that cause blood stem cells to become abnormal, rendering bone marrow unable to create new, mature blood cells for release into the body. It is estimated that up to 15,000 new cases of MDS are diagnosed in the United States each...
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Robert Califf, MD, issued the following statement today regarding the appointment of the Acting Director of the FDA Oncology Center of Excellence. “The FDA is honored to be an integral part of the Vice President’s National Cancer...
On June 28, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a fixed-dose combination of sofosbuvir, 400 mg, plus velpatasvir, 100 mg (Epclusa) to treat adult patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) either with or without cirrhosis. For patients with moderate to severe cirrhosis...
ASCO voiced its strong opposition to the proposed Medicare Part B demonstration project in comments submitted on June 28 for the U.S. Senate Finance Committee hearing, “Examining the Proposed Medicare Part B Drug Demonstration.” ASCO underscored the urgent need to advance a fairer...
According to the European phase III PENELOPE trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kurzeder et al found that adding pertuzumab (Perjeta) to investigator’s choice of chemotherapy did not improve progression-free survival in women with low-HER3 mRNA–expressing...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Chapuis et al, concurrent use of cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) antigen-4 (CTLA-4) blockade with ipilimumab (Yervoy) and adoptively transferred antigen-specific CTLs produced enduring responses in patients with stage IV melanoma. Study...
The College of American Pathologists (CAP), the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), and the Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP) announced today the open comment period for the revised evidence-based guideline, “Molecular Testing Guideline for Selection of...
Bacteria that have the potential to abet breast cancer are present in the breasts of cancer patients, while beneficial bacteria are more abundant in healthy breasts, where they may actually be protecting women from cancer, according to Gregor Reid, PhD, of the Lawson Health Research Institute, and...
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company announced June 27 that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation to nivolumab (Opdivo) for the potential indication of unresectable locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma that has progressed on or after a...
In an analysis of the observational data base of the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Ghosh et al found that lymphoma patients undergoing reduced-intensity conditioning had similar outcomes with related-donor haploidentical...
In the phase I/II CheckMate 032 study, nivolumab (Opdivo) alone and with ipilimumab (Yervoy) demonstrated activity in patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) progressing after at least one previous platinum regimen, as reported in The Lancet Oncology by Antonia et al. Study Details In the...
1. General views. Photo © ASCO/Matt Herp 2016; 2. Amanda Redig, MD, PhD, recipient of the 2016 Women Who Conquer Cancer Young Investigator Award. Photo © ASCO/Danny Morton 2016; 3. Himisha Beltran, MD, speaks during Precision Medicine in Advanced Prostate Cancer: Understanding Genomics,...
President Barack Obama has tapped Lawrence O. Gostin, JD, LLD, Georgetown University Professor and Faculty Director of the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown Law, to serve as a member of the National Cancer Advisory Board (NCAB). He will serve a 6-year term. The 18 ...
At my last screening mammogram in 2015, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The technician took the usual four x-rays of my breasts, and I was told I could leave. So it was especially shocking to get a phone call from the radiologist a week later telling me that I had to come back for an additional ...
The first clinical trial to compare standard-of-care chemotherapy with molecularly tailored therapy (also known as precision medicine) for metastatic pancreatic cancer is now enrolling patients at multiple sites around the country. Patients who have been treated with one round of chemotherapy for...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Jeffrey Yu, MD, of the Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, and colleagues identified a four-biomarker panel that was predictive of chronic graft-vs-host disease after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation. Discovery...
A large prospective Swedish study reported by Susanna C. Larsson, PhD, of the Unit of Nutritional Epidemiology at the Institute of Environmental Medicine at Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden, and colleagues found a 2.2-fold increased risk of gallbladder cancer in people who consumed two or ...
In a French retrospective study reported by David Tougeron, MD, PhD, of Poitiers University Hospital, Poitiers, France, and colleagues in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, the addition of adjuvant oxaliplatin to fluoropyrimidine treatment improved disease-free survival in patients with...
A phase I study by Timothy F. Cloughesy, MD, Director of the Neuro-Oncology Program at the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, and colleagues published in Science Translational Medicine investigated the effectiveness of vocimagene amiretrorepvec (Toca 511), an experimental nonlytic,...
The American Medical Association (AMA) has introduced the 21 members of its Board of Trustees for the coming year, following elections held during the Annual Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates. Andrew W. Gurman, MD, an orthopedic hand surgeon, was sworn in as the 171st President of the AMA. In...
Recent reports about treatment options for patients with ductal carcinoma in situ, and the ensuing debate and comments played out in the media, may prompt increased questions from patients. A review summarizing data about these treatment options concluded that surgery and radiation therapy “remain...
A review of more than 50 studies (many randomized controlled trials) concluded that surgery and radiation therapy “remain standard-of-care treatment options” in the management of ductal carcinoma in situ.1 The review continues the widely reported discussion on managing ductal carcinoma in situ,...
Two clinician-scientists whose groundbreaking work has shown how the human body’s own immune system can fend off cancer will share the 2016 $100,000 Taubman Prize for Excellence in Translational Medical Science, the University of Michigan’s A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute announced....
Over the years, my patients have been my most important teachers. I’ve learned so much from them about human nature and the resilience of the human spirit. When my time came to pass through the fire and confront the same challenges they and their families face so bravely and with such compassion, ...
The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center has appointed a nationally recognized surgeon and liver cancer expert to lead its surgical and surgical oncology programs. Timothy Pawlik, MD, MPH, PhD, will be the Chair of the Medical Center’s Department of Surgery, as well as The Urban Meyer III...
Scientific Name: Cimicifuga racemosa Common Names: Black snakeroot, rattlesnake root, squawroot, bugbane, bugwort Brand Names: Remifemin, Menofem, Klimadynon Overview A perennial plant native to the eastern United States and Canada, black cohosh root was used by Native Americans to treat colds,...
Curtis Pesmen is a well-regarded writer who has authored six books of nonfiction as well as numerous articles for publications such as Esquire and The New York Times. He also has served as founding editor of LIVESTRONG Quarterly and often speaks and writes on patient advocacy. Shortly after...
Readers of the recently published memoir A Series of Catastrophes & Miracles: A True Story of Love, Science, and Cancer find out that the book has a happy ending on the cover page of chapter 1. Spoiler: I lived, writes the author, Mary Elizabeth Williams, an acclaimed journalist with a list...
In his new book, Sharks Get Cancer, Mole Rats Don’t: How Animals Could Hold the Key to Unlocking Cancer Immunity in Humans, James S. Welsh, MD, examines a wide array of animal and human biologic phenomena, searching for clues that might help us unlock the full power of the human immune system....
The Genomic Data Commons (GDC), a unified data system that promotes sharing of genomic and clinical data among researchers, was launched on June 6 with a visit from Vice President Joe Biden to the operations center at the University of Chicago. An initiative of the National Cancer Institute (NCI),...
The St. Jude Department of Pathology has received accreditation to the ISO15189 standard under the College of American Pathologists (CAP) 15189SM Accreditation Program. St. Jude is the first children’s hospital in the nation to be accredited under this program. The accreditation is based on the...
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital has named Michael Dyer, PhD, Chair of the Department of Developmental Neurobiology. “A true visionary in his field, Dr. Dyer is a remarkable scientist who has worked tirelessly to unravel some of the long-held mysteries of childhood cancer,” said James R....
JULY The 5th International Inflammatory Breast Cancer ConferenceJuly 9-10 • Boston, MassachusettsFor more information:www.hmscmeregistration.org/events/breast-cancer-new-horizons-current-controversies/custom-21-857304c388f143b7840614d1bb151442.aspx 24th Biennial Congress of the European Association ...
Peter S. Conti, MD, PhD, Professor of Radiology, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Biomedical Engineering, and Director of the Molecular Imaging Center at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, has been named the 2016 recipient of the prestigious Paul C. Aebersold Award....
A 65-year-old patient with widely metastatic pancreatic cancer was emergently transferred to our facility in the early hours of the morning with free air suggestive of a perforated viscus. The patient is from a small town several hundred miles away from our academic center, which can be quite...
Phase 0 Study Title: Use of Definity® Contrast Agent for Ultrasound of Intraocular Tumors Study Type: Interventional/single-group assignment Study Sponsor and Collaborators: Emory University Purpose: To determine if microbubbles may be used as a contrast agent to help image tumors in the eye. In...
Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) has been designated a Lung Cancer Screening Center by the American College of Radiology (ACR). The ACR Lung Cancer Screening Center designation is a voluntary program that recognizes facilities that have committed to practice safe, effective diagnostic...
Katherine L. Nathanson, MD, Professor of Medicine in the Division of Translational Medicine and Human Genetics at the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania, has received the 2015 Frohlich Visiting Professorship through the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)....
CancerLinQ LLC, recently announced that it has completed agreements with 36 vanguard oncology practices from around the country to begin implementing the tool. According to physicians at the vanguard practices, gaining access to the experience of oncology practices across the country motivated...
In 2010, ASCO established the Community Research Forum to support clinical investigators and community-based research sites. Building on the Forum’s success in providing solutions for community-based research programs and the cancer research community at large, ASCO has decided to expand the Forum...
ASCO and Friends of Cancer Research (Friends) have launched a collaborative effort to modernize eligibility criteria to promote greater patient participation in cancer clinical trials. Although it is important for defining the population under study and ensuring patient safety, overly strict...
Thomas G. Roberts, Jr, MD, is Managing Member at Farallon Capital Management, LLC and Chair of the Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO Board of Directors and Executive Committee. What led you to oncology prior to your career in finance? TGR: As an intern at Massachusetts General Hospital, I was...
Cancer.Net has newly updated information specifically for older patients with cancer and is expanding coverage of this segment of cancer care across the site. Direct your patients and their caregivers to cancer.net/olderadults to find articles on aging and cancer, making treatment decisions, and...