Paxman’s advanced scalp-cooling system has now been cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use during treatment of patients with solid tumors. The system is now indicated to reduce the likelihood of chemotherapy-induced alopecia in cancer patients with solid tumors such as...
In an article in The New England Journal of Medicine, Lyman et al reviewed opportunities, issues, and challenges posed by the advent of biosimilar medications, focusing on biosimilars in cancer treatment. Although these agents could help to meet the health-care goals of high quality care with cost...
In a study reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Jemal et al found that the incidence of lung cancer in young white and Hispanic women is now higher than that in men in the US. Study Details The study involved analysis of data from the North American Association of Central Cancer...
Recent research has shown that the tumor microenvironment in older patients promoted melanoma metastasis and resistance to targeted therapy with a BRAF inhibitor. Now, a new study investigating the relationships among age, response to anti–programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)...
Twenty-five years after it opened for enrollment, the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT) has delivered a final verdict: finasteride, a common hormone-blocking drug, reduces men's risk of getting prostate cancer without increasing their risk of dying from the disease. Initial study...
ASCO’S TARGETED Agent and Profiling Utilization Registry (TAPUR) Study now provides a full list of patient cohort expansions and closures on its website. Based on treatment responses in stage I, patient cohorts are either expanded to stage II for further study and identification of a signal or...
For the third year, the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) is supporting the ASCO/American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Workshop on Methods in Clinical Cancer Research, to take place July 18–August 3, 2018, at Vail Mountain Marriott Resort in Vail, Colorado. Celebrating its ...
FORMAL DISCUSSANT of this trial, John V. Heymach, MD, PhD, of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, also was optimistic about these early findings. “This is a proof-of-concept study showing this approach is safe. Only modest activity was observed with standard [Response...
NEW RESEARCH suggests that current genetic testing guidelines for breast cancer are far too restrictive, excluding nearly half of high-risk patients. According to a pair of studies presented at the 2018 American Society of Breast Surgeons (ASBrS) Annual Meeting, women with breast cancer who did not ...
A STUDY OF local recurrence rates following lumpectomy has shown significant improvement in patients receiving modern, multimodal therapies, suggesting breast-conserving surgery may be an option for more patients with breast cancer, according to data presented at the 2018 American Society of Breast ...
Dr. Hayes, ASCO President 2016–2017, is Professor of Internal Medicine; Stuart B. Padnos Professor in Breast Cancer; and Clinical Director of the Breast Oncology Program at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Ann Arbor. AS I COMPLETE my 3-year term as ASCO President, I am...
LISA CAREY, MD, the Richardson and Marilyn Jacobs Preyer Distinguished Professor in Breast Cancer Research at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, commented as the invited discussant for TAILORx, and Dawn L. Hershman, MD, FASCO, Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology and Leader of the...
THE HIGHLY ANTICIPATED results of the phase III TAILORx study are in—and they indicate that the vast majority of patients with “intermediate-risk” early-stage breast cancer can forgo chemotherapy. “Our study shows that chemotherapy may be avoided in about 70% of women with hormone...
Ulixertinib (BVD-523) is an ERK1/2 kinase inhibitor with potent preclinical activity in BRAF- and RAS-mutant cell lines. Now, a multicenter phase I study investigating its safety and efficacy in the treatment of patients with advanced solid tumors has found that ulixertinib has an acceptable...
In the fall of 2015, I was feeling great. At age 37, I had just completed running my fourth half-marathon and regularly hiked trails near my home in Arlington, Texas, to stay fit in-between races. The only symptom that foretold what was in my future was some light watery discharge I was...
Following guidelines for proper nutrition, maintaining a healthy weight, and staying physically active may improve survival among patients treated for colon cancer, according to the results of a study with nearly 1,000 patients followed for a median of 7 years.1 “The study suggests that if...
The text and photographs on this page are excerpted from a four-volume series of books titled Oncology: Tumors & Treatment, A Photographic History, by Stanley B. Burns, MD, FACS, and Elizabeth A. Burns. The photos below are from the volume titled “The X-Ray Era: 1901–1915.” The photographs...
Interim results from cohort A of KEYNOTE-427, a phase II trial evaluating pembrolizumab (Keytruda) as first-line treatment for advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC), were presented by McDermott et al at the 2018 ASCO Annual Meeting (Abstract 4500). Interim data showed an overall response...
Updated results of the global phase III ALEX trial comparing alectinib (Alecensa) with crizotinib (Xalkori) as first-line treatment against ALK-positive non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) show a median progression-free survival of 34.8 months in 152 patients treated with alectinib vs 10.9...
Premenopausal women with hormone receptor (HR)–positive, HER2-negative breast cancer and a high risk of recurrence who are treated with an aromatase inhibitor plus ovarian function suppression may gain a 10% to 15% improvement in freedom from distant recurrence at 8 years, according to a ...
The randomized phase III Carmena trial showed that many people with advanced kidney cancer can avoid nephrectomy without compromising survival. The median overall survival for people who received the targeted therapy sunitinib (Sutent) alone was 18.4 months, compared with 13.9 months for those who...
A large, randomized phase III trial shows that the immunotherapy pembrolizumab (Keytruda) is a more effective initial treatment than chemotherapy (the current standard of care) for the majority of patients with the most common type of lung cancer. People with advanced non–small cell lung...
In a phase III clinical trial, the investigational PI3K inhibitor taselisib combined with standard hormone therapy fulvestrant (Faslodex) halted the growth of advanced breast cancer growth by 2 months longer than hormone therapy alone. In addition, the novel combination decreased the chance of...
Initial findings from a randomized phase III clinical trial showed that patients with advanced squamous non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) benefit more from initial treatment with the programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1)-targeted immunotherapy atezolizumab (Tecentriq) and chemotherapy than...
Researchers conducted a retrospective analysis of consecutive, prospectively molecularly profiled patients with advanced cancer who participated in a large, personalized medicine trial. They found that using molecular tests of tumors to select targeted therapy resulted in slower cancer growth and...
An updated American Cancer Society guideline now says colorectal cancer screening should begin at age 45 for people at average risk, based in part on data showing rates of colorectal cancer are increasing in young and middle-aged populations. The updated recommendations were published by Wolf et al ...
Lung cancer expert Alice Tsang Shaw, MD, PhD, was born and reared in Gaithersburg, a small suburb located to the northwest of Washington, DC. Both her parents were chemists, and during high school, Dr. Shaw had a keen interest in science, particularly biology, yet the thought of pursuing a career...
Beverly Moy, MD, MPH, grew up in Brooklyn, New York, in a modest working-class home. Both her parents were immigrants from China. “Education is highly prized in Chinese culture, and my home life was no exception. I didn’t speak any English when I began kindergarten, so that was a bit challenging,...
Razelle Kurzrock, MD, regarded internationally for her work in translational science, was born and reared in Toronto, Canada. “My parents were immigrants from Eastern Europe. My father, who was Jewish, was a Holocaust survivor. My parents put a strong emphasis on education,” she said. ‘The...
ASCO recently announced that Trevor Royce, MS, MD, MPH, and Sheetal Kircher, MD, have been selected for the ASCO Health Policy Fellowship Program. Now entering its third year, the fellowship program offers oncologists the opportunity to gain the knowledge-base, skills, and experience necessary to...
The remarkable careers of Jimmie C. Holland, MD, and James F. Holland, MD, spanned collectively for more than a century, leaving an indelible footprint in oncology clinical care and research. Synonymous with cancer care itself, the Hollands were a living documentary of the rich and dramatic history ...
Internationally renowned expert on the early detection, prevention, and treatment of younger women with breast cancer, Nagi S. El Saghir, MD, FACP, FASCO, was born on January 5, 1953, in Bint Jbeil, a village in southern Lebanon. His parents moved to Beirut in 1948, at the height of the...
Volker S. Diehl, MD, the internationally renowned hematologist and researcher, was born in Berlin, Germany, on February 28, 1938—arguably one of the most tumultuous periods in world history. Germany had just invaded Austria, signaling the dark intentions of the Third Reich. In 1943, the air raids...
Education is such an integral part of ASCO’s strategic plan to reduce the burden of cancer for all patients, it is incorporated into the Society’s mission statement to “conquer cancer through research, education, and promotion of the highest patient care.” In 2017, ASCO’s Board of Directors voted...
A veteran mountain climber and skier, I’ve been healthy for most of my 61 years, so it was especially shocking to experience a bout of shortness of breath during a moderately intense mountain bike ride with my wife, Jan, in the spring of 2014. A never-smoker, I was used to climbing up high mountain ...
In a report from the diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) registries of the International and European Societies for Pediatric Oncology, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Hoffman et al identified characteristics of long-term survivors among pediatric and young adult...
With the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approvals of tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah)1 and axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta),2 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has moved into real-world practice, offering new potentially curative options for incurable hematologic malignancies. Its ...
For this installment in the Living a Full Life series of articles, guest editor Jame Abraham, MD, interviewed immunology pioneer James Allison, PhD, Chair of the Department of Immunology, the Vivian L. Smith Distinguished Chair in Immunology, Director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Research,...
The Tennessee Oncology Practice Society (TOPS) is among the oldest and one of many politically active ASCO State Affiliates. Founded in 1990, the organization has since been a voice for Tennessee’s diverse community of oncology professionals, advocating for patient access to the best available care ...
On May 22, the Childhood Cancer Survivorship Treatment Access and Research (STAR) Act was passed by the Senate and House and is now being sent to President Donald Trump to be signed into law. As the most comprehensive childhood cancer bill ever introduced to Congress, the Childhood Cancer STAR Act...
The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) held its first scientific Annual Meeting on April 9, 1965, in the Bellevue Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia. More than 70 members and invited guests attended the inaugural event, which featured three presentations on leukemia and multiple myeloma. The ...
Sir Murray F. Brennan, MD, FACS, was born on April 2, 1940, in Auckland, New Zealand, which lies on and around an isthmus surrounded by the sparkling azure waters of the Hauraki Gulf. “I was born at the beginning of World War II. Fortunately, my father was too old to be drafted into the army. I...
The Fellow of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (FASCO) distinction recognizes ASCO members for their extraordinary volunteer service, dedication, and commitment to ASCO. Their efforts benefit ASCO, the specialty of oncology, and, most importantly, the individuals at risk for, or with...
ASCO AND ASCO’s Conquer Cancer Foundation recognized winners of ASCO’s 2018 Special Awards and Conquer Cancer’s Women Who Conquer Cancer Mentorship Awards during the 2018 ASCO Annual Meeting, June 1 to June 4, in Chicago. The recipients of these awards included researchers, patient advocates, and...
Applications for the session of ASCO’s Quality Training Program (QTP) being held at ASCO headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia, are being accepted now. The deadline for submission is June 4, but applicants are encouraged to submit early to prepare for Session 1. Once applicants are accepted, they...
THIS PAST January, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), along with more than a dozen other federal agencies, finalized updates to the Common Rule, which protects human participants in biomedical research. This marked the first time that the Common Rule has been updated in nearly 3...
Network The Conquer Cancer Donor Lounge! (S401) Enjoy light refreshments, computer access, and a quiet place to network with friends and colleagues. Not a donor? Not a problem! Stop by the Donor Lounge between 8:30 AM–5:00 PM or visit CONQUER.ORG/ASCO to make your gift. Shop Pick up a copy of the...
Register now to join research colleagues from across the United States at the ASCO Research Community Forum Annual Meeting. The meeting offers physician researchers and research staff from a variety of programs a unique platform to collaborate and develop solutions to common challenges with...
Nationally recognized oncologist Nancy L. Bartlett, MD, had an early love for mathematics and a swooning aversion to the sight of blood. “I was born and reared in Kansas City, Missouri and am a Midwesterner at heart. No one in the family was involved in medicine. My mom was an elementary school...
Individuals, foundations, and corporations continue to fuel the brightest minds in cancer research through lifetime investments in the Conquer Cancer Grants & Awards program. The roster of endowed Young Investigator Awards (YIA) grew by three in 2018, with awards gifted by Thomas G. Roberts,...