As part of The ASCO Post’s continued coverage of the 2018 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition, here is an update on several studies of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) and cellular therapy, as used in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), acute...
ASCO’S CONQUER CANCER FOUNDATION is pleased to announce the recipients of the Gastrointestinal Cancers, Genitourinary Cancers, and Clinical Immuno-Oncology Symposium Merit Awards. Conquer Cancer Merit Awards recognize oncology fellows’ and trainees’ high-quality research submitted in abstracts to...
Stephen J. Forman, MD, Leader of City of Hope’s Hematologic Malignancies and Stem Cell Transplantation Institute and the Francis & Kathleen McNamara Distinguished Chair in Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, recently received the 2019 DKMS Mechtild Harf Science Award in...
For more than 3 decades, the American Skin Association (ASA) and its affiliates have funded more than $50 million in grants to address the causes and treatments of melanoma, vitiligo, and psoriasis, as well as other skin diseases, and to search for cures. Recently, the American Skin Association...
The incidence of nonmelanoma skin cancer may be more common in recipients of kidney transplants vs patients on maintenance dialysis. Researchers looked to determine if the risk of nonmelanoma skin cancer is lower during periods of graft loss with a return to dialysis vs during periods of...
ASCO and ASCO’s Conquer Cancer Foundation proudly recognize the winners of ASCO’s Special Awards, the Society's highest honors, and Conquer Cancer's Women Who Conquer Cancer Mentorship Awards. The recipients of these awards have worked to transform cancer care around the world. ASCO...
The ASCO Post’s Integrative Oncology series is intended to facilitate the availability of evidence-based information on integrative and complementary therapies sometimes used by patients with cancer. Gary Deng, MD, PhD, and Jyothirmai Gubili, MS, explore the use of omega-3 fatty acids, which have...
With advances in the field, the number of haploidentical stem cell transplants being performed (ie, using human leukocyte antigen [HLA] half-matched donor stem cells) has been increasing. In recognition of evolving strategies to improve outcomes, a group of transplant physicians started the...
The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation named nine scientists with novel approaches to fighting cancer the 2019 recipients of the Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award. Five early career scientists will receive initial grants of $400,000 over 2 years. Another 4 awardees who demonstrated...
In sunny San Diego, the 2018 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition welcomed nearly 30,000 attendees who were eager to present, learn, network, and cheer the joint achievements of many researchers. The packed meeting was filled with important information from...
TO ADD to our ongoing coverage of the 2018 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition, we bring readers of The ASCO Post these summaries of an assortment of interesting studies. They focus on novel therapies under investigation in the treatment of acute lymphoblastic...
REPORTERS FOR The ASCO Post captured the following summaries of noteworthy studies presented at the 2018 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium. In HER2-Negative Metastatic Disease, CTCs Frequently HER2-Positive ALMOST HALF of all patients with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer have circulating...
Data on the risk factors for the development of skin cancer after a solid organ transplant are limited. In a retrospective cohort study, researchers sought to determine the relationship between human leukocyte antigen (HLA) mismatch and risk of skin cancer after transplant. Their findings were...
Each year, The ASCO Post asks Jame Abraham, MD, FACP, Director of the Breast Oncology Program at Taussig Cancer Institute and Professor of Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, to offer his picks for the most important research presented at the 2018 San Antonio Breast Cancer ...
THE UNIVERSITY of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center was awarded $30 million from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas to support research, core facilities, recruitment, and prevention efforts. An additional $19.9 million was awarded to a company co-founded by MD Anderson to support...
A VERY LOW DOSE of tamoxifen—5 mg/d, given for 3 years rather than 5 years—halved the risk of breast cancer recurrence or new lesions over placebo in women with breast intraepithelial neoplasia, without producing the usual toxicities seen with the standard dose, Italian researchers reported at the...
The delivery of all radiotherapy and chemotherapy neoadjuvantly—also known as total neoadjuvant therapy—has improved complete response and downstaging rates compared to treatment after surgery in patients with rectal cancer. In a study presented by Chapman et al at the 2019...
Among African American adults undergoing liver transplant to treat hepatocellular carcinoma, patients whose organ donor was also African American lived significantly longer than those with a racially unmatched donor, report authors of a new study using national data. Their findings were published...
FOUR AND A HALF YEARS AGO, author Neil Canavan attended a scientific conference to learn what he could about the then-emerging field of immunotherapy for cancer. After a presentation by Zelig Eshhar, PhD, principal investigator in the Department of Immunology at the Weizmann Institute of Science...
ASCO is such a misnomer: the American Society of Clinical Oncology is far more than simply “American.” Over the past several years, I (a Canadian-born breast surgical oncologist, with an Indian-born mother and a Tanzanian-born father) have traveled to Zimbabwe, Bhutan, and the Philippines with this ...
Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in recipients of a solid organ transplant. When organ transplant recipients are diagnosed with SCC, they are also at higher risk for a more aggressive disease course, metastasis, and death than the general population. Researchers ...
ASCO’s Conquer Cancer Foundation is committed to supporting the research and career development of young researchers through its Grants & Awards Program. On October 10–11, 2018, Conquer Cancer hosted its 4th Scientific and Career Development Retreat at ASCO headquarters in Alexandria,...
Four breast cancer researchers from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Hillman Cancer Center have received nearly $1 million from the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) to further breast cancer research from the most basic biology of a cancer cell to developing innovative new...
The ASCO Post’s Integrative Oncology series is intended to facilitate the availability of evidence-based information on integrative and complementary therapies sometimes used by patients with cancer. Shelly Latte-Naor, MD, and Jyothirmai Gubili, MS, explore some of the beneficial effects attributed ...
THE SAN ANTONIO Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS) and the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) will honor three researchers for their work in breast cancer at the upcoming 2018 SABCS in December. They are Ian Smith, MD, FRCP, FRCPE, who will receive the SABCS William L. McGuire Memorial...
Persephone is a 4,088-patient trial that Helena Margaret Earl, MBBS, PhD, reported at the 2018 ASCO Annual Meeting as establishing that 6 months of trastuzumab (Herceptin) is not inferior to 12 months in 4-year survival without invasive or local regional recurrence or distant metastases. Dr. Earl...
A pair of studies showcased the potentially devastating long-term health and financial consequences cancer has on adult survivors of childhood cancer compared with other adults, as well as survival disparities based on health insurance status.1,2 Despite increasing survival rates among the more...
Even before James P. Allison, PhD, made an appearance at the Fourth International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference: Translating Science Into Survival in New York City, the excitement among attendees was palpable. Earlier that day, October 1, 2018, Dr. Allison and Tasuku Honjo, MD, PhD, of Kyoto...
THE ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY CANCER CENTERS (ACCC) has chosen seven cancer centers nationwide to receive 2018 ACCC Innovator Awards. Now in its 8th year, the Innovator Awards recognize ACCC member programs that have created solutions to challenges commonly faced by cancer programs and practices as...
JAMES ALLISON, PHD, Chair of Immunology and Executive Director of the Immunotherapy Platform at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, and Tasuku Honjo, MD, PhD, Distinguished Professor at the Kyoto University Institute for Advanced Study and Professor of Immunology and Genomic Medicine ...
Researchers have shown that autologous fecal microbiota transplantation may be a safe and effective way to help replenish beneficial gut bacteria in patients with cancer who require intense antibiotics during allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Their findings were published by Taur...
These days it can be hard for physicians. Many in the physician workforce wonder whatever happened to the ideals and expectations that drew them to this noble profession. The genuine passion to heal the sick and infirm and in turn improve the health of the entire society The ability to touch human ...
THE PROSTATE CANCER FOUNDATION (PCF) recently announced the 29 recipients of the 2018 Young Investigator Awards. Sponsored by the PCF, the Young Investigator Awards program provides both financial support and a comprehensive career development program to early career scientists to conduct critical...
Research grants are vital to the success of academic research and researchers apply for these grants at all stages of their career. This makes writing stand-out grant applications an incredibly valuable skill for clinical investigators—and an intimidating task for first-time grant applicants....
THREE SCIENTISTS whose work in immuno-oncology has led to a revolutionary way to treat cancer have been announced as the recipients of the 2018 Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research. The awardees were chosen to receive the 2018 Albany Prize for their research in...
The Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) and the Movember Foundation recently announced four new Movember Foundation–PCF Challenge Award teams at some of the world’s leading academic research institutions will receive a total of $3.5 million to support cross-disciplinary pioneering research toward the...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently accepted a supplemental biologics license application (sBLA) for elotuzumab (Empliciti) in combination with pomalidomide (Pomalyst) and low-dose dexamethasone for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who...
The Conquer Cancer Merit Awards support oncology trainees who are first authors on abstracts selected for presentation at an ASCO scientific meeting, including the ASCO Annual Meeting and thematic symposia. Conquer Cancer recognized 127 recipients with Merit Awards at the 2018 ASCO Annual Meeting,...
The St. Baldrick’s Foundation has announced its 2018 summer grant recipients, including seven from Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Cancer and Hematology Centers. 2018 Recipients Nmazou Ozuah, MD, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, received an international scholar grant for...
Research published by Jung et al in OncoImmunology showed organ transplant recipients may reduce their risk of developing secondary skin cancer by changing their immunosuppressant medication. University of Queensland (UQ) researchers have studied the impact of such medications on the immune...
THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has selected recipients of the 2018 William G. Coleman, Jr, PhD, Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Innovation Award. Now in its second year, this competitive...
ASCO’s Conquer Cancer Foundation presented more than $7.3 million in grants and awards to exceptional oncology researchers at the 2018 ASCO Annual Meeting. ASCO and Conquer Cancer congratulate the recipients and offer their profound thanks to those who generously supported these awards. Visit...
In 2015, Congress passed the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization ACT (MACRA), which aims to move Medicare toward reimbursement based more on outcomes and values, a goal, in theory, shared by the oncology community. To shed light on the complicated and problematic attempt to restructure the...
Mailing colorectal cancer screening tests to patients insured by Medicaid increased screening rates for this population, reported researchers at the University of North Carolina (UNC) Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. In collaboration with the Mecklenburg County Health Department in...
GUEST EDITOR Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology explores the unique physical, psychosocial, social, emotional, sexual, and financial challenges adolescents and young adults with cancer face. The column is guest edited by Brandon Hayes-Lattin, MD, FACP, Associate Professor of Medicine and Medical...
The likelihood of severe complications after emergency colon cancer surgery is significantly higher over the weekend, according to a study published by Huijts et al in JNCCN – Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. The research was led by Perla Marang-van de Mheen, PhD, of the...
THE COLORECTAL CANCER Alliance has announced up to $775,000 in available funding for up to five grants supporting research in young-onset colorectal cancer, rectal cancer, and colorectal cancer prevention. The Colorectal Cancer Alliance is committed to investing $10 million in research by 2021,...
WOMEN WHO CONQUER CANCER is a group dedicated to advancing cancer research by supporting young women researchers early in their careers through Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO Young Investigator Awards (YIAs). These 1-year grants give promising researchers the boost they need to get started on...
THE QUANTITY of original research presented at the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) Annual Conference has been growing, and at the 2018 meeting, 121 researchers presented their work. The ASCO Post captured some of the findings for this report. Blood Markers Correlate With Anti–PD-1...
The Conquer Cancer Foundation of the ASCO recently announced the recipients of its 2018 ASCO Annual Meeting Merit Awards, Medical Student Rotations for Underrepresented Populations (MSR), Resident Travel Awards for Underrepresented Populations (RTA), and Long-term International Fellowship (LIFe)....