In an analysis from the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort (SJLIFE) and Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS) reported in The Lancet Oncology, Chen et al found that among long-term survivors of childhood cancers, carriers of germline cancer-predisposing variants were at an increased risk of late mortality...
Researchers have found that a short course of induction chemotherapy prior to chemoradiation may be effective at reducing the rate of relapse and mortality among patients with locally advanced cervical cancer, according to new preliminary findings presented by McCormack et al at the European...
The Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology announced detailed results from CABINET (Alliance A021602), a phase III pivotal trial evaluating cabozantinib compared with placebo in two cohorts of previously treated patients with neuroendocrine tumors. The data were presented by Chan et al at the...
Targeted treatment with the fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) inhibitor erdafitinib improved responses and overall survival compared to standard chemotherapy for patients with advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma with FGFR alterations. Results from the phase III THOR trial, led by...
At the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2023, new findings are being presented in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, late-stage melanoma, and refractory melanoma brain metastases. Presurgical Immunotherapy in Advanced Operable Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma Patients with...
A secondary analysis from the phase III SWOG S0931 EVEREST trial found patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma at very high risk of recurrence after nephrectomy who received adjuvant everolimus had a statistically significant improvement in recurrence-free survival compared to patients who...
Compared with neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone, adding perioperative immunotherapy—given before and after surgery—significantly improved event-free survival in patients with resectable early-stage non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Results from the phase III CheckMate 77T study were presented at the ...
The drug shortage crisis in the United States may continue to impact the care of 10% of patients and survivors of cancer, according to a new survey from the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN). Survey Findings In the new survey, researchers asked 1,222 patients and survivors of...
In the phase III RATIONALE-301 trial reported in JAMA Oncology, Shukui Qin, MD, PhD, and colleagues found that tislelizumab was noninferior to sorafenib in terms of overall survival as first-line treatment for patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma. Study Details In the open-label...
In an analysis of data from two clinical trials and a soft-tissue sarcoma registry reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Koscielniak et al identified which patients aged ≤ 21 years with localized rhabdomyosarcoma appeared to derive benefit from radiation therapy. Study Details The study...
In a prospective cohort study (PATHFINDER) reported in The Lancet, Deb Schrag, MD, MPH, FASCO, and colleagues evaluated the performance of blood-based testing for multicancer early detection in adults without signs or symptoms of cancer. As stated by the investigators, “Multicancer early detection ...
Among the 198 new oncology drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) between 1998 and 2022, approximately 43% of them were precision therapies, according to a recent study published by Suehnholz et al in Cancer Discovery. Background Precision oncology therapies often require...
In a retrospective study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Lewis et al found that prophylactic high-dose methotrexate did not appear to offer a clinically meaningful reduction in risk of central nervous system (CNS) disease progression in patients with high-risk aggressive B-cell...
Researchers have identified significant variations in the gut microbiome of patients with precancerous colorectal lesions, suggesting a potential correlation between gut bacteria and the onset of precancerous lesions and colorectal cancer, according to new findings presented by Gacesa et al at...
On October 16, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved pembrolizumab (Keytruda) with platinum-containing chemotherapy as neoadjuvant treatment, and with continuation of single-agent pembrolizumab as postsurgical adjuvant treatment, for resectable (tumors ≥ 4 cm or node-positive)...
The past year has been an exciting time for breast oncologists and patients with all stages of breast cancer, with new agents approved and long-term results from pivotal trials showing improved survival for patients with metastatic disease. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights in early-stage ...
Overall survival results from two trials of abemaciclib in advanced breast cancer were reported at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2022. Both MONARCH 3 and monarcHER previously met their primary endpoints of progression-free survival. The current results for overall...
Preserving fertility is a driving concern for many young women with breast cancer. Many of these women have hormone receptor–positive breast cancer and are treated with adjuvant endocrine therapy for 5 to 10 years, which is known to compromise fertility. Younger women who may want to take a break...
The invited discussant of the SOFT analysis was Polly Niravath, MD, Associate Professor and Director of the Cancer Survivorship Program at Houston Methodist Hospital in Texas. She noted that the study evaluated the use of the Breast Cancer Index (BCI) as a prognostic tool in early hormone...
In an analysis of the SOFT trial, the Breast Cancer Index accurately identified premenopausal women with hormone receptor–positive early breast cancer who may benefit from ovarian function suppression in addition to adjuvant endocrine therapy. The findings were reported by Ruth O’Regan, MD, Chair...
The combination of capivasertib, an AKT pathway inhibitor, plus fulvestrant, an estrogen receptor antagonist, significantly improved progression-free survival compared with fulvestrant alone in patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer, according to results of...
The combination of palbociclib and fulvestrant did not prolong progression-free survival compared to fulvestrant alone in patients with hormone receptor–positive/HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer who had disease progression on prior treatment with a CDK4/6 inhibitor and endocrine therapy,...
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 ...
Elacestrant—an investigational oral selective estrogen receptor degrader (SERD)—achieved longer progression-free survival vs standard-of-care endocrine monotherapy as second- or third-line therapy in patients with estrogen receptor–positive, HER2-negative advanced or metastatic breast cancer in the ...
Results of a planned interim overall survival analysis of the phase III monarchE trial offered further support for the addition of abemaciclib to adjuvant endocrine therapy for patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative, node-positive, high-risk disease, according to Stephen R.D....
A meta-analysis of randomized trials has revealed a benefit to ovarian ablation or suppression in preventing breast cancer recurrence in premenopausal women with estrogen receptor–positive tumors.1 The findings, based on almost 15,000 women in studies spanning several decades, were presented at the ...
In a retrospective cohort study reported in JAMA Network Open, Logan et al found that inpatient venous thromboembolism (VTE) chemoprophylaxis prescription rates were high and postsurgical VTE rates were low among U.S. veterans undergoing major cancer surgery. Study Details The study included 30,039 ...
Intensive local-regional tumor debulking in addition to standard palliative chemotherapy may not impact the overall quality of life of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer, according to a novel study published by Bakkerus et al in JNCCN–Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network....
On October 13, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved nivolumab (Opdivo) for the adjuvant treatment of completely resected stage IIB or IIC melanoma in patients aged 12 years and older. CheckMate 76K Efficacy was evaluated in CheckMate 76K (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT04099251),...
Lung cancer is a significant global health issue, remaining the leading cause of cancer-related deaths with 2.1 million new cases and 1.8 million deaths. Complete surgical resection is the treatment of choice for operable early-stage non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and resectable stage IIIA...
Clear cell renal cell carcinoma is the most common type of kidney cancer, comprising 80% of all malignant tumors found within the kidney. Although some clear cell renal cell carcinoma tumors are sensitive to immune checkpoint inhibitors, currently, there are no measures to predict whether a tumor...
Sudan is the third-largest country in Africa, spanning 1,886,068 km2. It is situated in an area surrounded by North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East. As of 2020, Sudan had a population of approximately 43.8 million people, with a significant proportion being younger than age 15....
An analysis of patient-reported outcomes in the adjuvant phase III NATALEE trial of ribociclib plus endocrine therapy in early-stage breast cancer showed maintenance of health-related quality of life (QOL), as determined by a number of factors. For patients receiving the inhibitor of...
In an Italian single-institution retrospective study reported in JAMA Surgery, Martelli et al found that prophylactic salpingo-oophorectomy was associated with improved overall survival in patients who had undergone resection of germline BRCA1/2-mutant breast cancer. Study Details The study...
A novel artificial intelligence (AI) software may be effective in detecting skin cancer and precancerous lesions, according to findings presented by Andrew et al at the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Congress 2023. Background Skin cancer detection using AI software has rapidly...
In an international validation study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, El Sissy et al found that the Immunoscore biopsy was capable of distinguishing risk of disease recurrence in patients with rectal cancer treated with a watch-and-wait strategy. As stated by the investigators, “No...
Researchers have found that long-term use of chemical hair relaxers may be associated with an increased risk of uterine cancer in postmenopausal Black women, according to a recent study published by Bertrand et al in Environmental Research. Background Chemical hair relaxers are heavily marketed to...
Nonmelanoma skin cancer may be causing a greater number of global deaths than melanoma, according to findings presented by Salah et al at the European Academy of Dermatology and Venerology Congress 2023. Investigators also suggested that nonmelanoma skin cancer may be underreported and that the...
In a study reported in JAMA Oncology, Darst et al identified germline genetic variants that were associated with increased risk of aggressive vs nonaggressive prostate cancer. As stated by the investigators, “Germline gene panel testing is recommended for men with advanced prostate cancer or a...
In a Chinese phase 1b/II trial (COMPASSION-03) reported in The Lancet Oncology, Gao et al found that the anti–PD-1/CTLA-4 bispecific antibody cadonilimab showed activity in previously treated patients with a range of advanced solid tumors, including advanced cervical cancer, esophageal squamous...
On October 9, HistoSonics, the manufacturer of the Edison System and novel histotripsy therapy platforms, announced the marketing authorization of its platform via the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) De Novo Classification Request process, a rigorous premarket review pathway for medical...
In the phase III CANOPY-A trial reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Edward B. Garon, MD, and colleagues found that adjuvant therapy with the interleukin (IL)-1β pathway inhibitor canakinumab did not significantly improve disease-free survival vs placebo in patients with completely resected...
The children of adolescent and young adult female patients with a history of cancer may face a higher risk of birth defects, according to a recent study published by Murphy et al in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. Background “Concerns like the health of future children are at the ...
In a study using SEER (Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results) registry data reported in JAMA Network Open, Daniel Q. Huang, MBBS, MMED, of the National University of Singapore, and colleagues found that the incidence of cancer among U.S. persons up to age 50 (early-onset cancer) increased...
As a first-line treatment for advanced biliary tract cancer, an experimental formulation of gemcitabine, NUC-1031, given with cisplatin failed to improve outcomes over standard gemcitabine/cisplatin in the global phase III NuTide:121 trial.1 “NuTide:121 has not advanced the field in biliary tract...
Justin F. Gainor, MD, Director of the Center for Thoracic Cancers Program at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, was invited to discuss IMpower151 and ILLUMINATE at the 2023 World Conference on Lung Cancer. IMpower151 vs IMpower150 Dr. Gainor examined why IMpower151 was negative for both...
In advanced non–small cell lung cancer harboring mutations of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), the role of immune checkpoint inhibitors following disease progression with tyrosine kinase inhibitors has been unclear. Several studies reported at the International Association for the Study ...
Jame Abraham, MD, FACP, has been in the field of oncology for more than 2 decades, he and says this is both one of the most exhilarating and challenging times in cancer care. “What excites me the most are the innovations in treatment that are literally transforming the lives of our patients and...
Roy S. Herbst, MD, PhD, cautioned that although FLAURA2 is a positive result, most patients will still develop drug resistance. “The result is really good and clearly positive, but if you look at the survival curves, there is still early overlap in a way that makes it unlikely this combination will ...
First-line treatment with osimertinib plus platinum-based chemotherapy achieved a statistically significant and clinically meaningful progression-free survival improvement compared with osimertinib alone in patients with advanced epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutated non–small cell lung...