Patients with nonmetastatic soft-tissue sarcoma who need preoperative radiation therapy can safely receive hypofractionated treatment for 3 weeks instead of 5 weeks, with comparable tumor control and no increased risk of major complications in wound healing, according to a new study published by...
A small subset of patients who have undergone treatment for head and neck cancer may require a gastrostomy tube many years into survivorship, according to a new study published by Galloway et al in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, and Physics. The findings were also...
On November 8, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the PD-1 inhibitor cemiplimab-rwlc (Libtayo) in combination with platinum-based chemotherapy for adult patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with no EGFR, ALK, or ROS1 aberrations. Study 16113 Efficacy was...
In the NCI-MATCH trial, which matches new treatments to patients with cancer based on the genetic makeup of their tumors, 22% of patients with AKT1 E17K–mutant metastatic tumors treated with the AKT inhibitor ipatasertib saw their tumors shrink, according to a novel study published by Kalinksy et...
Researchers have found that a new drug may be able to target—and for the first time, inhibit—the function of the MYC gene. Until now, no other drug has been able to do this safely and effectively, according to findings from a phase I clinical trial published by Garralda et al in the European...
Jonathan E. Rosenberg, MD, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses recent findings on the safety and antitumor activity of enfortumab vedotin-ejfv given intravenously as monotherapy or in combination with pembrolizumab to previously untreated cisplatin-ineligible patients with locally...
Robert J. Motzer, MD, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses phase III results of the CheckMate 914 trial, which explored the efficacy of adjuvant nivolumab plus ipilimumab vs placebo in the treatment of patients with localized renal cell carcinoma who are at high risk of relapse...
Early trials of the targeted oral drug repotrectinib discovered that it may help treat patients with a certain type of non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), according to a new study published by Cho et al in the European Journal of Cancer. The results of the TRIDENT-1 trial—presented at the 34th...
Preliminary data from a phase I clinical trial of the ROS1 inhibitor NVL-520 to treat patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and other solid tumors suggested that it may have the potential to both halt tumor growth by inhibiting a cancer-causing gene change and reach cancer cells within...
A new drug designed to inhibit an enzyme that plays a crucial role in cell division and growth has shown signs of anticancer activity with manageable side effects in patients with liver cancer and up to three lines of previous unsuccessful treatment, according to a new study published by Reig et al ...
Researchers have found that an incidental finding of clonal hematopoiesis in liquid biopsies can be used to trigger hematologic tests to assess the risk of developing myeloid malignancies, according to a new study published by Tagliamento et al in the European Journal of Cancer. The findings were...
Olaparib and adavosertib can be safely used to treat patients with cancers that are driven by certain mutations occurring in response to DNA damage if they are given in sequence rather than concurrently, according to a novel study published by Yap et al in the European Journal of Cancer. The...
Researchers have identified a range of genetic mutations in gliomas that may help them understand how different mutations in the BRAF gene interact with other gene mutations—and which ones are more susceptible to targeted treatments in adults—according to a new study published by Schreck et al in...
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...
Pembrolizumab plus chemoradiation therapy failed to demonstrate a statistically significant improvement in event-free survival vs chemoradiation therapy alone in patients with locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, but favorable numerical trends were demonstrated, according to...
The results of SWOG S18011 were met with enthusiasm by attendees at the Presidential Symposium of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2022. The ASCO Post captured the thoughts of several melanoma experts, who had somewhat different ideas about the immediate clinical...
Robin Kate Kelley, MD, Professor of Clinical Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, was invited to discuss the results of LEAP-002.1 She said the main take-away is that lenvatinib monotherapy is active as a preferred first-line agent for fit patients who have contraindications to ...
The highly anticipated final analysis of the phase III LEAP-002 trial failed to meet expectations, as first-line treatment with lenvatinib plus pembrolizumab did not significantly improve outcomes in unresectable advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. Both progression-free survival and overall survival ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved cobimetinib (Cotellic), an oral inhibitor of MEK1 and MEK2, for the treatment of adult patients with the family of blood diseases known as histiocytic neoplasms. These diseases include Erdheim-Chester disease, Rosai-Dorfman disease, and...
Invited discussant James Larkin, PhD, a clinical researcher at the Royal Marsden Hospital, London, commented on the findings from NICHE-2.1 “These striking data are consistent with the recent report in locally advanced mismatch repair–deficient [dMMR] rectal cancer from Memorial Sloan Kettering.2...
To put the CheckMate 914, IMmotion010, and PROSPER trials into context, The ASCO Post spoke with Bernard Escudier, MD, former Chair of the Genitourinary Group of the Institut Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France. In general, Dr. Escudier believes that studies to date are not robust enough to justify...
Formal discussant Mary O’Brien, MD, Head of the Lung Unit, the Royal Marsden Hospital, NHS Foundation Trust, London, commented on the POSEIDON trial. “The POSEIDON trial is the largest data set we have on KRAS-mutated [non–small cell lung cancer], with a positive signal in picking up some patients...
After 4 years, a limited course of five cycles of tremelimumab added to durvalumab plus chemotherapy extended overall survival in patients with metastatic non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) compared with chemotherapy alone, according to an updated exploratory analysis of the phase III POSEIDON...
“CodeBreaK 200 clearly establishes sotorasib as the new standard of care, replacing docetaxel as second- or third-line therapy for advanced KRAS G12C–mutated lung cancer,” stated invited discussant Natasha Leighl, MD, of the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto. “Sotorasib improved...
The KRAS G12C inhibitor sotorasib doubled the rate of progression-free survival at 12 months and reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 34% compared with standard second-line docetaxel for patients with previously treated non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and KRAS G12C mutations....
“Adjuvant osimertinib has been adopted widespread as a standard of care as a result of the primary results of ADAURA,” said formal discussant Sanjay Popat, FRCP, PhD, medical oncologist and lung specialist at the Royal Marsden Hospital, NHS Foundation Trust, London. “We have more granularity about ...
With longer-term follow-up, adjuvant treatment with osimertinib led to a 77% reduction in the risk of disease recurrence or death following complete resection vs placebo-treated patients with EGFR-mutated, stage II to IIIA non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Disease-free survival was improved...
Andrea McKee, MD, and the late Brady McKee, MD, will be honored with the James L. Mulshine, MD, National Leadership Award on Thursday, November 3, at the Prevent Cancer Foundation’s 19th annual Quantitative Imaging Workshop. The annual Mulshine Award is given to an individual or individuals who has ...
Researchers discovered a differential clinical response to pembrolizumab in patients with Lynch-like (mutated) vs methylated microsatellite instability–high endometrial cancer, outlining characteristics of patients who may derive benefit from immune checkpoint blockade antibodies, according to new...
In addition to, or instead of, receiving therapies that are the standard of care, patients with cancer sometimes request to receive complementary (therapies used in conjunction with standard cancer treatment) and alternative (nonstandard treatments used in place of standard cancer treatment)...
The combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors relatlimab and nivolumab for patients with stage III melanoma given before surgery was safe and completely cleared all viable tumor in 57% of patients in a phase II study, according to findings published by Amaria et al in Nature. In addition to...
A new study identified both common and rare genetic mutations that may impact radiation resistance and sensitivity, an important step toward providing more individualized and effective radiotherapy for patients with cancer, according to findings published by Gopal et al in Clinical Cancer ...
A new study has revealed significant racial disparities in how quickly minority patients with non–small cell lung cancer receive radiation therapy compared with their White counterparts, according to findings published by Rekulapelli et al in Health Equity. Researchers reviewed data from more than...
Researchers have developed a new swab test that can identify origins of potentially dangerous cervical cell changes up to 4 years before they happen, according to a new study published by Barrett et al in Genome Medicine. Scientists found that the new cervical screening method was more sensitive...
Do patients with breast cancer and a low 21-gene recurrence score need regional node irradiation to reduce their risk of locoregional recurrence? An analysis of RxPONDER trial data suggests only a randomized clinical trial devoted to this question can provide a decisive answer. An analysis of data...
NRG Oncology investigators analyzed clinical and digital histopathology data from five phase III prostate cancer trials (NRG/RTOG 9202, 9408, 9413, 9910, and 0126) to develop and validate multimodal artificial intelligence models (MMAI) that could outperform the National Comprehensive Cancer...
Overall cancer death rates continued to decline among men, women, children, adolescents, and young adults in every major racial and ethnic group in the United States from 2015 to 2019, according to the latest Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer. From 2014 to 2018, overall cancer...
The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and ASCO have released a joint policy statement outlining the latest research on the use of e-cigarettes and other electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) and recommendations for regulating these products to protect public health. The...
A 3-week course of radiation therapy is as safe and effective as 4 to 6 weeks of treatment for patients with early-stage breast cancer who have a higher risk of having their tumors recur, results of a randomized phase III clinical trial show. Delivering fewer, but higher, doses of radiation...
Researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center demonstrated that adding metastasis-directed radiation therapy to intermittent hormone therapy improved progression-free survival in patients with oligometastatic prostate cancer. Findings from the multicenter EXTEND trial were...
Using a novel response-adapted ultra–low dose radiation therapy strategy, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center observed a 90% complete response rate in patients with orbital indolent B-cell lymphomas. Results were presented by Pinnix et al at the 2022 American Society...
A new study has found that sexual side effects of cancer treatment are discussed far less frequently with female patients than with male patients, even when the treatment directly affects sex organs. Among patients receiving brachytherapy for prostate or cervical cancer at a high-volume cancer...
Meeting with a medical physicist who can explain how radiation therapy is planned and delivered may reduce patient anxiety and increase patient satisfaction throughout the treatment process, according to a new study published by Burmeister et al in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology •...
On October 25, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to teclistamab-cqyv (Tecvayli), the first bispecific B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-directed CD3 T-cell engager, for adult patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who have received at least four...
In 2000, the da Vinci Surgical System broke new ground by becoming the first robotic surgery system approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for general laparoscopic surgery. In its early years, robot-assisted radical prostatectomy was characterized by some in the surgical community as an...
In our continuing effort to connect and learn more about our international oncology colleagues, The ASCO Post recently spoke with Rossana Berardi, MD, Professor in Medical Oncology and Director of the Postgraduate School of Oncology at the Università Politecnica Marche, Ancona, Italy, where she is...
The National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded the University of Oklahoma (OU) an expected $2 million over 5 years to develop a program to improve representation of Oklahoma Native American students in biomedical and cancer research. “American Indian...
It is estimated that one in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in his lifetime. The disease is so prevalent, and other than skin cancer, it is the most common cancer diagnosed in American men. According to the American Cancer Society, this year, about 268,490 new cases of prostate...
Endocrine therapy is the foundation of first-line therapy in most patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer. Many of these patients respond to endocrine therapy but eventually become resistant to it through both intrinsic and acquired resistance mechanisms....
New research from Yale Cancer Center reveals a higher risk of cancer mortality in incarcerated adults, as well as among those diagnosed with cancer in the first year after release from prison. The findings were published in the journal PLoS One.1 “Cancer is the leading cause of death among people...