The use of autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) early in the course of treatment showed a significant 21.4-month gain in median progression-free survival in younger, newly diagnosed patients with multiple myeloma compared with patients who received chemotherapy without an initial...
Use of high-dose ifosfamide was found to be superior for treating recurrent and primary refractory Ewing sarcomas compared with three other standard-of-care treatments used for the disease, according to research presented by McCabe et al during the Plenary Session at the 2022 ASCO Annual Meeting...
The use of fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki doubled progression-free survival compared with the standard-of-care treatment plus conventional chemotherapy. It also significantly improved overall survival for patients with metastatic breast cancers expressing low levels of the HER2 receptor,...
The use of panitumumab plus mFOLFOX6 significantly improved overall survival in patients with RAS wild-type metastatic colorectal cancer that was classified as left-sided compared with patients who received mFOLFOX6 plus bevacizumab, according to findings presented during the Plenary Session by...
Ruben A. Mesa, MD, of Mays Cancer Center at UT Health San Antonio MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses new findings from the MOMENTUM study. This trial showed that in symptomatic and anemic patients with myelofibrosis, momelotinib was superior to danazol for symptom and spleen responses, as well as ...
Pamela L. Kunz, MD, of the Yale University School of Medicine, discusses new findings from the ECOG-ACRIN E2211 trial, which showed the longest progression-free survival and highest response rates with temozolomide plus capecitabine reported to date for patients with pancreatic neuroendocrine...
A new genomic test designed to measure the endocrine sensitivity of estrogen receptor–positive breast cancer has the potential to identify patients diagnosed with the disease who could benefit more from dose-dense chemotherapy—a regimen in which chemotherapy is administered more frequently than...
In a large national study, Black patients diagnosed with early-onset colorectal cancer received worse and less timely care than their White counterparts. Differences in health insurance coverage type, a modifiable factor, according to the findings, accounted for the largest identified contributor...
According to a new study led by researchers at the American Cancer Society, the COVID-19 pandemic increased the number of cancer-related deaths by 3.2% in the United States from 2019 to 2020. Compared to 2019, the monthly cancer-related mortality rate was higher in April 2020, when health-care...
Nearly 43% of patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose lung cancers harbored a specific KRAS mutation responded to the experimental drug adagrasib, and the targeted agent also showed activity against lesions in the brain that metastasized from the lung tumors, according to results of...
In a collaboration announced today, ASCO will work with the World Health Organization (WHO) to measure and improve the quality of cancer care internationally. The goal is to achieve health-related targets of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and WHO Global Action Plan on...
In patients with stage II colon cancer where cancer DNA was not present in the blood (as circulating tumor DNA, or ctDNA), adjuvant chemotherapy could be skipped without compromising recurrence-free survival. Conversely, for patients where ctDNA was present after surgery, the rate of recurrence...
Treatment with the antibody-drug conjugate sacituzumab govitecan-hziy resulted in longer progression-free survival compared to physician’s choice of chemotherapy in patients who have received many prior therapies for hormone receptor–positive/HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer, according to...
Initial results from the ARTISTRY-1 study to be presented by Vaishampayan et al at the 2022 ASCO Annual Meeting showed that an experimental drug called nemvaleukin alfa, when used alone or in combination with pembrolizumab, may be effective in treating several types of late-stage cancers in some...
A new study led by researchers at the American Cancer Society showed physician, practice, and patient characteristics were associated with oncologists’ ratings of the importance of patient health insurance and out-of-pocket costs for genomic testing in treatment decisions. The findings are being...
The addition of nimotuzumab, an EGFR-targeting monoclonal antibody, to gemcitabine increased overall survival in patients with KRAS wild-type advanced pancreatic cancer, particularly those who did not need surgery for obstruction of a pancreatic bile duct, according to data from the phase III...
Colonoscopies performed with computer-aided detection, or artificial intelligence (AI), saw an increase in the overall rate of detection of adenoma, or cancerous and precancerous polyps, by 27% in average-risk patients, according to new data presented by Shaukat et al at Digestive Disease Week 2022 ...
On June 4, 2022, 17 individuals received the distinction of FASCO, “Fellow of the American Society of Clinical Oncology” during the ASCO Annual Meeting. The FASCO distinction recognizes ASCO members for their extraordinary volunteer service, dedication, and commitment to ASCO. The following members ...
Global health crusader Paul Farmer, MD, PhD, had a wildly unconventional childhood, which helped inform his adult life as a medical humanitarian. Dr. Farmer was born in West Adams, a town that lies along the verdant valley surrounding the Hoosic River in northern Massachusetts. He was the second of ...
City of Hope’s Department of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine has received a $4.9 million grant to train the next generation of scientific leaders in basic stem cell research and its translation into novel, life-saving treatments. The award from the California Institute for Regenerative ...
On April 12, 2022, ASCO announced the establishment of the ASCO Center for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, which will advance the Society’s equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) goals across the organization and throughout the wider oncology community. ASCO Chief Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion ...
Beginning in 2012, The ASCO Post introduced Narratives in Oncology, a special commemorative issue profiling several of the many leaders in the oncology community. Over the past years, many in the oncology community have been profiled in this commemorative issue. Here is a complete list of...
The Albert Einstein Cancer Center (AECC) in Bronx, New York, has announced the appointment of three faculty members to key leadership positions, reflecting the center’s commitment to basic science, translational, and clinical research and its core principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion. New ...
Yuman Fong, MD, Chair of City of Hope’s Department of Surgery and Director of its Center for Surgical Innovation, has been named a recipient of the 2022 Flance-Karl Award by the American Surgical Association (ASA). The award is given annually to one surgeon in the United States who has made...
Alex Choi, MD, recently joined the faculty of the Palliative Care Program at Smilow Cancer Hospital as Instructor of Medicine (General Internal Medicine). Dr. Choi received his medical degree from the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria and completed a combined internal medicine...
Individuals elected to ASCO leadership for the 2022–2023 term were announced earlier in the year. ASCO elected Lynn M. Schuchter, MD, FASCO, a long-time member and volunteer, to serve as its President beginning in June 2023. Dr. Schuchter will take office as President-Elect immediately after the...
Leslie Bernstein, PhD, Director of City of Hope’s Division of Biomarkers of Early Detection and Prevention, received the Margaret L. Kripke Legend Award for Promotion of Women in Cancer Medicine and Cancer Science. Dr. Bernstein has made a substantial mark on both science and society by...
In support of President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot goal of fostering data sharing in cancer research, the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which is part of the National Institutes of Health, has launched the Molecular Characterization Initiative for pediatric tumors. This program offers tumor...
Individuals elected to ASCO leadership for the 2022–2023 term were announced earlier in the year. Lynn M. Schuchter, MD, FASCO, was elected to serve as the Society’s President beginning in June 2023. Dr. Schuchter will take office as President-Elect immediately after the 2022 ASCO Annual Meeting in ...
Community practices have long been a keystone of our nation’s oncology care delivery system by allowing patients with cancer to receive specialized treatment near their homes and places of business. Innovative clinicians in the community setting are also leading efforts to create a more efficient...
The Tisch Cancer Institute (TCI) at Mount Sinai and the Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation (SWCRF) are launching a unique research program that will fund collaborations between TCI physician-scientists and colleagues from other established cancer research institutions to address the worldwide ...
The underrepresentation of older patients (≥ 65 years) in clinical trials has been well documented for more than 20 years. This has been an issue at all phases of drug development, including pivotal trials for drug approvals,1 despite the fact that many of these new therapeutics will primarily be...
Recently, the American Urological Association (AUA), in partnership with the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), released the 2022 clinical practice guideline for the management of clinically localized prostate cancer. The guideline has been endorsed by the Society of Urologic Oncology ...
On May 27, 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the following for the first-line treatment of patients with advanced or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: Nivolumab (Opdivo) in combination with fluoropyrimidine- and platinum-based chemotherapy Nivolumab in...
On May 28, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to the chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah) for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma after two or more lines of systemic therapy....
Patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma were six times more likely to have had gallstone disease within the year prior to diagnosis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma than patients without cancer, according to research presented by Papageorge et al at Digestive Disease Week 2022 (Abstract...
Adults aged 45 to 64 years experienced a nearly doubled rate of esophageal cancer and a 50% increase in the precancerous condition Barrett’s esophagus between 2012 and 2019, according to a database analysis of roughly 5 million patients presented by Qumseya et al at Digestive Disease Week 2022...
The 5-year survival for younger adults with colorectal cancer improved for White patients alone between 1992 and 2013, according to a new analysis presented by Zaki et al at Digestive Disease Week 2022 (Abstract 895). However, no survival gains were found for Black, Hispanic, or Asian patients with ...
A survey of patients with metastatic breast cancer found that 83% of Black respondents were somewhat or very likely to consider clinical trial participation; however, 40% of those respondents reported that they had not been informed by their care team about the opportunity to enroll in a trial. The ...
With the rapid acceleration of the spread of the COVID-19 virus in the United States in March 2020, telemedicine visits became more common for cancer care. However, in an evaluation of telemedicine inequities among patients with 21 common cancers, there were distinctly lower levels of telemedicine...
On May 25, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved ivosidenib (Tibsovo) in combination with azacitidine for patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a susceptible IDH1 mutation as detected by an FDA-approved test in adults aged 75 or older, or who have...
New England Cancer Specialists has recently become an Affiliate Member of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Affiliate Membership reflects a demonstrated commitment to excellence by meeting a wide array of standards and best practices in oncology care. Although New England Cancer Specialists is the...
Lung cancer mortality rates have declined by more than 50% in men since 1990 and more than 30% in women since 2002. These declines in mortality are largely due to increases in smoking cessation. However, in recent years, clinical treatment advances, such as targeted therapies and immunotherapy,...
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) announced it has received a significant gift from Susan and Steve Kelly, local philanthropists and long-time supporters of CHOP, to establish the Susan S. and Stephen P. Kelly Center for Cancer Immunotherapy. The new Center, led by Stephan Grupp, MD, PhD,...
Despite studies showing the benefits of early palliative care in improving the quality of life of patients with advanced cancer (including reducing symptoms of depression),1 a recent survey of oncologists found there is broad variation in the appropriate utilization of this care.2 Conducted by...
The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) announced that John E. Dick, PhD, FAACR, Canada Research Chair in Stem Cell Biology, Senior Scientist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, and Professor in the Department of Molecular Genetics at the University of...
Faith E. Davies, MD, a nationally renowned hematology expert, has been appointed the inaugural Director of the Center for Blood Cancers at NYU Langone Health’s Perlmutter Cancer Center. Dr. Davies currently serves as Professor in the Department of Medicine at NYU Grossman School of Medicine and...
At the recent American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2022, Elaine S. Jaffe, MD, received the inaugural AACR James S. Ewing–Thelma B. Dunn Award for Outstanding Achievement in Pathology in Cancer Research. The AACR established this new award to honor pathologists who continue ...
The Pezcoller Foundation–American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) International Award for Extraordinary Achievement in Cancer Research was presented to Steven A. Rosenberg, MD, PhD, at the Association’s 2022 Annual Meeting, held in New Orleans. Dr. Rosenberg was honored for his discovery and ...
To address cancer health disparities in the region, the University of California (UC) Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center is launching the Center for Advancing Cancer Health Equity, which will conduct community-engaged research and interventions using multilevel approaches. The new center will build...