Men who have had treatment for early-stage testicular cancer may benefit from fewer monitoring scans, freeing them from some of the harmful radiation that comes from computerized tomography (CT) imaging, according to results from the phase III TRISST clinical trial presented by Joffe et al at the...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Martine Piccart, MD, PhD, and colleagues, the preplanned second interim analysis of overall survival in the phase III APHINITY trial showed no significant benefit of the addition of adjuvant pertuzumab to chemotherapy plus trastuzumab after a...
In the midst of growing concerns that patients with cancer have limited access to the COVID-19 vaccines, the Association for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), the advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, issued a joint letter to every...
In a Japanese phase III trial (JCOG1007; iPACS) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kanemitsu et al found that the addition of primary tumor resection to chemotherapy did not improve overall survival vs chemotherapy alone in patients with asymptomatic primary colorectal cancer tumors and...
Breast cancer death rates have stopped declining for women in the United States younger than age 40, ending a trend that existed from 1987 to 2010, according to a report published by Hendrick et al in Radiology. Breast cancer is the most common nonskin cancer and the second most common cause of...
Treatment with the novel JAK inhibitor momelotinib led to long-term overall survival and sustained transfusion independence in patients with intermediate- or high-risk myelofibrosis, according to updates from the SIMPLIFY-1 and SIMPLIFY-2 trials presented at the 2020 American Society of Hematology...
The American Society of Clinical Oncology and the Association for Clinical Oncology, collectively referred to as ASCO, understand the challenges faced by ASCO members and patients with cancer in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, in determining the best treatment for patients, and in addressing...
The Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology (CSCO) and ASCO have approved a joint guideline for the treatment of stage II to IVA nasopharyngeal carcinoma.1 The guideline was drafted by a panel of Chinese and U.S. experts and provides, for the first time, a clear set of recommendations for the use of...
Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma is the second most common type of skin cancer, with more than 1 million cases diagnosed in the United States annually.1 Historically, cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma is grouped together with basal cell carcinoma and collectively referred to as nonmelanoma skin...
The field of allogeneic stem cell transplantation continues to improve survival for patients with previously incurable blood cancers. However, up to 50% of patients who undergo transplantation with donor cells will develop chronic graft-vs-host disease, a potentially deadly condition that can also...
“Knowledge has a beginning but no end.” —Geeta Iyengar To complement The ASCO Post’s continued comprehensive coverage of the 2020 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition, here are three abstracts selected from the meeting proceedings focusing on novel therapies for...
It may be possible to exploit T cells from healthy volunteers who have recovered from COVID-19 as a treatment for this viral infection. Researchers at the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy at Baylor College of Medicine have designed an off-the-shelf COVID virus–specific T-cell product (called...
Neil M. Iyengar, MD, Assistant Attending Physician at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, has researched the links between breast cancer and lifestyle. He provided comments on these two abstracts from the 2020 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS) for The ASCO Post. “These two...
In the phase II ZUMA-5 trial, the cellular immunotherapy axicabtagene ciloleucel led to responses in 92% of patients with indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), researchers reported at the 2020 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition.1 Axicabtagene ciloleucel has improved ...
The study’s invited discussant, Michael J. Overman, MD, Professor of Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, said the findings of the study presented by Henriksen et al1 add to a convincing body of data showing that “the use of circulating...
Patients with stage I to III colorectal cancer who have a high risk for recurrence may be identified by serial testing of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) after resection, according to a study in which ctDNA proved more reliable than carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) surveillance or standard radiologic...
Ivosidenib, an inhibitor of isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1), improved overall survival by almost 3 months in previously treated patients with advanced IDH1-mutated cholangiocarcinoma, compared with placebo, researchers of the global phase III ClarIDHy trial reported at the 2021 Gastrointestinal...
In December 2015, I thought I was through with cancer. I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2011 after a routine blood test showed that my prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level was high. I underwent prostatectomy, and although it was clear the cancer had breached the capsule of the prostate, for ...
As reported in JAMA Oncology by Kevin Kalinsky, MD, MS, and colleagues, the NCI-MATCH trial’s phase II subprotocol EAY131-Y has shown activity of the pan-AKT inhibitor capivasertib in a range of metastatic tumors with an AKT1 E17K mutation. The phase II trial enrolled 35 evaluable adult patients...
The medical career of Richard L. Schilsky, MD, FACP, FSCT, FASCO, spans more than 4 decades and includes a roster of nearly unprecedented accomplishments in patient care, research, and mentoring. He has held leadership positions in academia, first at the University of Chicago, where he spent the...
The Lustgarten Foundation and the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) have announced two new career development awards for early-career female and underrepresented pancreatic cancer researchers, representing a commitment of the Lustgarten Foundation of up to $1.8 million. The awards...
In the prospective LAST study reported in JAMA Oncology, Ehab Atallah, MD, and Kathryn Flynn, PhD, of the Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, and colleagues, found that stopping tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) was associated with the...
Gene therapy pioneer Arthur W. Nienhuis, MD, the fourth Director of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, died on February 3 at age 79. Under his leadership, the hospital grew exponentially in both size and scientific stature. “At St. Jude, the nature of our work requires a bold, ambitious...
At-home tests, which measure blood in stool as a potential marker for colon cancer, are often used for colorectal cancer screening. Usage of these tests has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic as patients try to avoid clinical visits. However, effectiveness of these screening tools, along with...
More than a year since the new coronavirus crisis began, its impact on cancer care has been stark, with “50% of governments (having) cancer services partially or completely disrupted because of the pandemic,” said André Ilbawi, MD, of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Department of...
Patient-reported outcomes from the phase III CROWN study showed that time to treatment deterioration in chest pain, dyspnea, and cough was comparable between those who received lorlatinib and patients who took crizotinib. The research was presented at the International Association for the Study of...
In patients with relapsed malignant mesothelioma, treatment with single-agent nivolumab led to a significant improvement in both overall and progression-free survival in the phase III CONFIRM trial. These findings were presented by Dean A. Fennell, FRCP, PhD, Professor and Chair of Thoracic Medical ...
Emil J Freireich, MD, an oncologist who developed groundbreaking therapies for childhood leukemia and came to be recognized as a founding father of modern clinical cancer research, passed away on February 1. He was 93. Dr. Freireich was a faculty member at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer ...
At a press briefing held by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), researchers presented new data that revealed factors relating to race, gender, sexual orientation, and income continue to be significant barriers to those living with lung cancer. The press briefing is...
The phase II CodeBreak 100 trial has validated the power of KRAS inhibition with sotorasib (AMG 510) in patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In a follow-up to phase I data, the phase II cohort of the study has now shown a durable response rate of 37.1%, a disease control rate...
In a phase Ib/II study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, David A. Sallman, MD, and colleagues found that the combination of azacitidine and the first-in-class small-molecule agent eprenetapopt produced high response rates in patients with TP53-mutant myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS)....
In a prospective cohort study reported in The Lancet, Knight et al found that 30-day mortality after surgery for colorectal and gastric cancers was higher in low- and middle-income countries vs high-income countries (LMICs), with the difference only partly accounted for by patient or disease...
Engineering chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells to overcome CD58 loss may be a way to boost responses in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who do not respond to treatment with axicabtagene ciloleucel and other CAR T-cell therapies, according to an experimental study presented...
A study published by Wang et al in JTO Clinical and Research Reports compared surgeries performed at one Chinese hospital in 2019 with a similar date range during the COVID-19 pandemic. Researchers found that routine thoracic surgery and invasive examinations were performed safely during the...
A modeling study of global demand for cancer surgery and estimated surgical and anesthesia workforce requirements between 2018 and 2040 showed a predicted increase, which could especially impact low-income countries. These findings were published by Perera et al in The Lancet Oncology. Study...
As reported in The Lancet Oncology by Erica L. Mayer, MD, and colleagues, the second interim analysis of the phase III PALLAS trial showed no improvement in invasive disease–free survival with the addition of adjuvant palbociclib to ongoing endocrine therapy in patients with hormone receptor...
In a Chinese single-institution phase III trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Lu et al found that early interdisciplinary supportive care with a focus on nutrition and psychological status was associated with improved overall survival vs standard care in previously untreated...
Researchers have developed the first comprehensive framework to classify small cell lung cancer (SCLC) into four unique subtypes based on gene expression and have identified potential therapeutic targets for each type. These findings were published by Gay et al in Cancer Cell. SCLC is known for...
In a U.S. population-based, case-control study reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Hu et al identified the prevalence of and risk associated with germline pathogenic variants in established and candidate breast cancer predisposition genes. Study Details The study involved 32,247 women...
Sometimes there just is no escaping cancer. I thought I had done everything right. I was diligent about adhering to my annual physical exams, including mammograms, and routinely performed breast self-exams to spot any early changes in my breasts. Still, in the summer of 2015, I was diagnosed with...
Sarah Cannon recently announced that Melissa Johnson, MD, has been named Program Director of Lung Cancer Research. In her new role, Dr. Johnson will lead the lung cancer clinical trial portfolio across the Sarah Cannon network. Dr. Johnson has served as Associate Director of Lung Cancer Research...
The first independent, community oncology practice recently joined the Mayo Clinic Care Network. Minnesota Oncology comprises a group of carefully vetted, independent health-care providers with special access to the Mayo Clinic’s knowledge and expertise, including its research, diagnostic, and...
Cedars-Sinai Cancer Center has announced that Kenneth H. Kim, MD, will direct its Division of Gynecologic Oncology. Dr. Kim also serves as Chair of the institution’s Committee for Oversight of Training and Education. The appointment reflects Dr. Kim’s breadth of experience, which involves novel...
Two recent studies found significant survival benefits for patients older than 70 years with surgically treated nonmetastatic triple-negative breast cancer who also received chemotherapy.1,2 The authors of both studies concluded that the findings support the consideration of chemotherapy for older...
Women older than age 70 diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer had significantly improved overall survival if they received adjuvant and/or neoadjuvant chemotherapy, according to an analysis of data from more than 16,000 women enrolled in the National Cancer Database. The estimated 5-year...
The primary outcome analysis of the phase III monarchE trial, an update of previous data, continued to show significant benefit for abemaciclib in the adjuvant setting, reducing the risk for invasive disease recurrence by 28.7%. Meanwhile, the first results of the phase III PENELOPE-B trial of...
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey has named Christian Hinrichs, MD, as Chief of the Section of Cancer Immunotherapy and Co-Director of the Cancer Immunology and Metabolism Center of Excellence, along with Eileen White, PhD, Deputy Director and Chief Scientific Officer at Rutgers Cancer...
The ASCO Post is pleased to introduce this department on Global Health-Care Equity. On an occasional basis, we will publish interviews between Guest Editor, Chandrakanth Are, MBBS, MBA, FRCS, FACS, and another oncologist or cancer care specialist spanning regions around the world. Our goal is to...
On December 18, 2020, osimertinib was approved for adjuvant therapy after tumor resection in patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with tumors with EGFR exon 19 deletions or exon 21 L858R mutations, as detected by a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved test.1,2 Supporting...
Researchers at Case Western Reserve University and partners in the United States and India are applying the investigative and predictive capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI) to help physicians customize treatments for patients with oral squamous cell carcinomas. Research shows that oral...