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Showing 251 - 300Optimizing the Use of Multicancer Early Detection Tests
Multicancer early detection (MCED) tests are beginning to enter clinical practice, but how useful will they be? “This is an exciting field, with many competing technologies. MCED assays will be coming across your desk in the near future if they haven’t already. But they are not a panacea. They are ...
Use of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors Under Study in High-Risk, Hormone Receptor–Positive, Early-Stage Breast Cancer
Clinical trials are now demonstrating the value of immune checkpoint inhibitors as neoadjuvant therapy in certain subsets of patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative breast cancer. Hope S. Rugo, MD, FASCO, described this newer approach—specifically, which subsets of patients may...
The Formative Years of Medical Oncology in the United States: A Rough and Tumble Road, Part 2
Medical oncology had a turbulent beginning, as we explained in part 1 of this commentary published in the September 25, 2024, issue of The ASCO Post. And although no other specialty we know of struggled as much, with perseverance and time, it had become a stable specialty of internal medicine by...
The Formative Years of Medical Oncology in the United States: A Rough and Tumble Road, Part 1
Medical oncology had a turbulent beginning. No other specialty we know of struggled as much. But by 1980, it had become a stable specialty of internal medicine and was off and running—with the major problem of how to marshal available resources to freely test the myriad opportunities presented by ...
HARMONi-2: Ivonescimab Outperforms Pembrolizumab as First-Line Treatment in NSCLC
In a phase III study conducted in China, the bispecific antibody ivonescimab demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in progression-free survival compared with the PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab as a first-line treatment of PD-L1–positive advanced non–small...
Too Much, Too Little, Just Right: Optimizing Cancer Care for Older Adults
Imagine walking into a fancy restaurant only to find a menu consisting mostly of kids’ dishes. It would make no sense. Just 25% of restaurant diners are younger than age 12, and they rarely write Yelp reviews. But when it comes to cancer treatment, this is not very far from what we do. The median...
IDEA Awardees’ Reflections on the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting
It happened! We received the International Development and Education Award (IDEA) from Conquer Cancer®, the ASCO Foundation, and it was a journey of growth, global collaboration, leadership, mentorship, and more. We have much to share after this breakthrough in our careers. The ASCO Annual Meeting...
Phase III ALEXANDRA/IMpassion030: No Survival Benefit for Adjuvant Atezolizumab in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
In patients with early-stage triple-negative breast cancer, the addition of atezolizumab to standard adjuvant chemotherapy provided no benefit over chemotherapy alone in the final analysis of the phase III ALEXANDRA/IMpassion030 trial. The results were presented at the 2024 European Breast Cancer...
New Collaborative Guideline Highlights the Importance of Multidisciplinary Care for Patients With Osteoradionecrosis
A joint guideline from the International Society of Oral Oncology–Multinational Association for Supportive Care in Cancer and ASCO seeks to fill a gap in the clinical guidance for patients with head and neck cancers who develop osteoradionecrosis following their head and neck radiation therapy.1...
Use of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors Under Study in High-Risk, Hormone Receptor–Positive, Early-Stage Breast Cancer
Clinical trials are now demonstrating the value of immune checkpoint inhibitors as neoadjuvant therapy in certain subsets of patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative breast cancer. Hope S. Rugo, MD, FASCO, described this newer approach—specifically, which subsets of patients may...
T-DXd Effective for Breast Tumors With HER2-Low and HER2-Ultralow Expression in Earlier Line of Therapy
In patients with hormone receptor–positive metastatic breast cancers with HER2-low or HER2-ultralow expression, treatment with the antibody-drug conjugate fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki (T-DXd) was found to be superior to chemotherapy after one or more lines of endocrine therapy. In...
What Is the Better Target for Bispecific Antibodies in Multiple Myeloma: BCMA or GPRC5D?
For relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, there are three available bispecific antibodies—two that target B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) and one that targets G protein–coupled receptor class C group 5 member D (GPRC5D). Which is the preferred target? This question was addressed at the 2024...
Remembering a Pioneer in Melanoma and Immunotherapy: Jeffrey S. Weber, MD, PhD, FASCO
Jeffrey S. Weber, MD, PhD, FASCO, an internationally recognized pioneer in melanoma and cancer immunotherapy, died on August 19, 2024, according to an announcement from the Melanoma Research Foundation. He most recently served as Deputy Director of the Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center at...
Hypofractionated vs Conventionally Fractionated Radiation After Implant-Based Breast Reconstruction
In a trial reported in JAMA Oncology, Julia S. Wong, MD, and colleagues found that hypofractionated postmastectomy radiation therapy did not improve outcomes in the physical well-being domain of the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–Breast (FACT-B) assessment vs conventionally fractionated...
BTK Degraders and CELMoDs: Novel Mechanisms Overcoming Resistance in Hematologic Malignancies
Despite advances in targeted therapies for hematologic malignancies, drug resistance and persistent side effects continue to challenge clinicians and limit patient outcomes, underscoring the urgent need for novel therapeutic approaches. At the 2024 Pan Pacific Lymphoma Conference, Marc S. Hoffmann, ...
ASCO Guideline Update Highlights the Importance of Early Integration of Palliative Care for Patients With Cancer
Growing awareness of the benefits of palliative care in patients with cancer has prompted ASCO to update its recommendations for clinicians, patients, caregivers, and health-care organizations on integrating palliative care in oncology.1 The updated guideline reinforces prior recommendations in the ...
An Integrated Approach to Treating Cancer and Cardiovascular Disease: When Oncologists and Cardiologists Collaborate
At the 2024 Debates and Didactics in Hematology and Oncology Conference, sponsored by Emory’s Winship Cancer Institute, cardiologist-by-training Anant Mandawat, MD, FACC, briefly reviewed how the emerging field of cardio-oncology is blazing a path toward “bigger and bolder cancer care” and offered...
LIBRETTO-431 Trial Shows Selpercatinib Is Effective in East Asian Patients With RET Fusion–Positive Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer
A subgroup analysis of data from the LIBRETTO-431 trial (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT04194944) showed that the selective RET inhibitor selpercatinib safely improved progression-free survival compared to chemotherapy plus pembrolizumab in East Asian patients diagnosed with RET fusion–positive...
Age Is Just a Number: Treatment Considerations for Endometrial Cancer in Older Women
Endometrial cancer is most frequently diagnosed among women aged 55 to 65, with a median age at diagnosis of 64 years.1 In epidemiologic studies, women diagnosed with endometrial cancer at an older age are more likely to have high-grade disease, aggressive histology, deep myometrial invasion, lower ...
What Is the Optimal First-Line Therapy for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia?
Is the optimal first-line treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) monotherapy with a Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor or some combination regimen? This clinical question was explored by two speakers at the 2024 Pan Pacific Lymphoma Conference, sponsored by the University of...
Discontinuation of CML Therapy: Which Patients Are Ideal Candidates?
With the introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors, chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) has become a chronic disease for most patients. Furthermore, we now know that some patients can successfully stop treatment and remain in remission. “Stopping tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy is something we get a...
Physician Community Comes Together to Urge Congress to Act on Medicare Payment Reform
ASCO, along with more than 100 medical organizations and societies, sent a letter to members of the U.S. House and Senate leadership urging Congress to prioritize and advance several bills and legislative proposals that would provide greater fiscal stability for physicians and reform key elements...
Extranodal Marginal Zone Lymphoma: Is Overtreatment Common?
Most patients with extranodal marginal zone lymphoma (MZL) are overtreated, according to Emanuele Zucca, MD, of the Oncology Institute of Southern Switzerland and Institute of Oncology Research in Bellinzona and the Università della Svizzera Italiana in Lugano. “Aggressive therapy is not needed in...
Glofitamab Combination Therapy Shows Survival Benefit in Relapsed or Refractory Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma
A novel treatment regimen with the bispecific antibody glofitamab has demonstrated improvements in survival outcomes for patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), according to data presented at the European Hematology Association (EHA) 2024 Congress.1 The phase III ...
Key Immune Cells for Combating Aggressive Merkel Cell Carcinoma Uncovered
Researchers may have uncovered why some patients with Merkel cell carcinoma do not respond to immune checkpoint blockade therapy, according to a recent study published by Reinstein et al in Cancer Discovery. Background Merkel cell carcinoma—a rare but highly aggressive type of skin cancer—is known...
Long-Term Survival Possible After Liver Transplant for Colorectal Liver Metastases
In selected patients with unresectable colorectal liver metastases, liver transplantation plus chemotherapy significantly boosted overall survival as compared with chemotherapy alone in the multicenter, European TRANSMET trial, presented at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting.1 The combined approach led...
High-Risk Melanoma: Inhibiting MEK and PD-L1 in Tandem
Cobimetinib and atezolizumab administered prior to surgery eliminated or shrunk tumors in 70% of patients with melanoma enrolled in the NeoACTIVATE trial. Results were published by Hieken et al in Nature Communications. Background Melanoma of the skin is the fifth most common cancer type in the...
Chronic Graft-vs-Host Disease: Clinical Trial Updates
Chronic graft-vs-host disease, an immune-mediated disorder that follows allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT), is characterized by debilitating tissue injury with inflammatory and fibrotic pathology leading to significant morbidity and mortality. Historically, the treatment of...
Breaking the Silence: Addressing Sexual and Reproductive Health in Cancer Care
For patients with cancer and cancer survivors, sexual dysfunction and reproductive health concerns are often the elephant in the exam room—a significant quality-of-life issue that both patients and clinicians struggle to discuss openly and effectively. At the recent NCCN Policy Summit on Sexual and ...
In Gastroesophageal Cancer, ‘Switch’ Maintenance Improves Outcomes Over Chemotherapy Continuation
In patients with advanced HER2-negative gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancer and disease control after oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy, “switch” maintenance with paclitaxel plus ramucirumab in the phase III ARMANI trial significantly improved both progression-free and overall survival,...
Novel Biomarker May Be Predictive of Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma Recurrence
Researchers have discovered a biomarker that could help identify which patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma may be at greater risk of cancer recurrence, according to a recent study published by Mehra et al in JCO Precision Oncology. Background Approximately 3% to 5% of all cancer diagnoses ...
New Survey Finds Cancer Drug Shortage Management Remains a Moving Target
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) published new results from its latest survey on cancer drug shortages in the United States. This follows data published 1 year ago and 6 months ago illustrating how up to 93% of centers surveyed were experiencing shortages of the crucial...
DREAMM-8: Belantamab Mafodotin-blmf Shows ‘Robust’ Benefit in Early Relapse of Myeloma
Recent phase III findings support the antibody-drug conjugate belantamab mafodotin-blmf as a treatment option for patients with multiple myeloma in early relapse. Belantamab mafodotin is an antibody-drug conjugate targeting B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) expressed on multiple myeloma cells,...
Advanced Lung Cancer: Studies Explore Palliative Care Delivered by Telehealth and in a Stepped-Care Approach
Early palliative care can be integrated into the course of treatment for patients with advanced lung cancer via delivery by telehealth with outcomes similar to when palliative care is delivered via in-person visits, according to results of the REACH PC trial presented by Joseph Greer, PhD, of...
ASTRO Names New Chief Executive Officer
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) announced that following a nationwide search, Vivek S. Kavadi, MD, MBA, FASTRO, will become Chief Executive Officer of the Society, effective November 1, 2024. Dr. Kavadi will succeed Laura Thevenot, who had already announced her intent to retire...
Pretargeted Dual-Isotope Radionuclide Therapy in Colorectal Cancer
A combination of alpha- and beta-radionuclide therapy may be feasible, tolerable, and effective in colorectal cancer, according to preclinical findings presented by Rinne et al at the 2024 Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) Annual Meeting (Abstract 241498). The new approach...
Ribociclib Plus Endocrine Therapy vs Combination Chemotherapy in Premenopausal Women With HR-Positive, HER2-Negative Advanced Breast Cancer
As reported by Yen-Shen Lu, MD, PhD, and colleagues in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, final results of the phase II RIGHT Choice study indicate that ribociclib plus endocrine therapy significantly prolonged progression-free survival vs combination chemotherapy in premenopausal women with...
Guideline Update Seeks to Aid Clinicians in the Selection of Systemic Treatments for Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma
An ASCO guideline update offers new recommendations on systemic treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), based on promising findings from several recent randomized controlled trials as well as the approval of new first- and second-line immunotherapy combinations.1 “This guideline...
In Celebration of a Remarkable Life and Career in Oncology
When Jamie H. Von Roenn, MD, FASCO, graduated from high school in 1970 and enrolled at the University of Illinois in Champaign, she was determined to seek a career in special education, because she wanted to “help people through difficult situations.” Although Dr. Von Roenn ultimately decided to...
Cardiotoxicity: How Far Have We Come?
A little more than 12 months ago, the first major cardio-oncology guidelines were published by the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).1 The extensive document embodied the immense progress of this subspecialty over its short existence. In reaching this milestone, it is worth considering what...
Optimizing the Management of DCIS
“Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), once a rare entity, now comprises 20% to 30% of newly diagnosed breast cancers detected on mammography and is appreciated to be a widely heterogeneous disease,” said E. Shelley Hwang, MD, MPH, the Mary and Deryl Hart Distinguished Professor at Duke University, who ...
Osimertinib Therapy Poised to Become New Standard of Care for Unresectable Stage III EGFR-Mutated NSCLC
Osimertinib significantly improved progression-free survival compared with placebo in patients with unresectable stage III EGFR-mutated non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) following definitive chemoradiotherapy. These findings of the phase III LAURA trial suggest that osimertinib may become a new...
FDA Approves Imetelstat for Patients With Low- to Intermediate-1 Risk MDS and Transfusion-Dependent Anemia
On June 6, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved imetelstat (Rytelo), an oligonucleotide telomerase inhibitor, for adults with low- to intermediate-1 risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) with transfusion-dependent anemia requiring four or more red blood cell units over 8 weeks...
New Study Highlights Benefits of Stepped Palliative Care in Advanced Lung Cancer
Researchers have shown the effectiveness of more scalable ways of delivering palliative care in patients with advanced lung cancer, according to new findings published by Temel et al in JAMA and simultaneously presented at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting (Abstract 12000). Background More intensive...
Narjust Florez, MD, and Suresh S. Ramalingam, MD, on EGFR-Mutated NSCLC: Update on Osimertinib and Chemoradiotherapy
Narjust Florez, MD, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Suresh S. Ramalingam, MD, of Emory University School of Medicine, Winship Cancer Institute, discuss potentially practice-changing phase III results from the LAURA study. This trial showed that osimertinib after definitive chemoradiation...
Don S. Dizon, MD, on Ovarian and Other Extrarenal Clear Cell Carcinomas: Update on Nivolumab and Ipilimumab
Don S. Dizon, MD, of Legorreta Cancer Center at Brown University and Lifespan Cancer Institute, discusses final phase II results of the BrUOG 354 trial showing that, for patients with ovarian and other extrarenal clear cell cancers, nivolumab and ipilimumab warrant further evaluation against...
Motivated by His Mother’s Brain Cancer and His Own Life-Threatening Disease, a Young Physician Works to ‘Pay Back the Universe’
Like many young boys, David Fajgenbaum, MD, MBA, MSc, loved sports and dreamed about playing college football. He attained that dream, but along the way, family tragedy and a personal battle with a life-threatening disease reshaped his worldview and accelerated his ambitions as a...
A Daughter of First-Generation Immigrants Follows Their Can-Do Philosophy in Her Research Efforts in Hematologic Oncology
Leukemia expert Eunice S. Wang, MD, is the daughter of first-generation immigrants, whose work ethos inspired in her a world without boundaries. “My parents were born in China during the communist era, and they immigrated to Taiwan when the communists took over in the 1940s and then subsequently...
Narratives in Oncology Through the Years
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 dozen years, many in the oncology community have been profiled in this special issue. A complete list of individuals...
Innovative Staging System for De Novo Metastatic Breast Cancer Validated Internationally
A ground breaking staging system for de novo metastatic breast cancer has been validated in an international cohort, perhaps paving the way for more personalized care and improved outcomes for patients diagnosed with this challenging disease. The staging system, developed by surgical oncologist...
