Updated consensus recommendations from the U.S. Multi-Society Task Force on Colorectal Cancer (MSTFCRC) address optimizing the quality of bowel preparation for colonoscopy. The document, published today by Jacobson et al, presents clinical strategies to improve bowel preparation as they apply...
Skin cancers and lymphoma may be more prevalent among individuals with tattoos compared with those without tattoos, according to a recent study published by Clemmensen et al in BMC Public Health. Prior research has shown that tattoo ink does not just remain at the site of injection—instead, when...
The receipt of chemotherapy or endocrine therapy without chemotherapy could be associated with different long-lasting physical health declines among breast cancer survivors compared with those without breast cancer, according to a recent study published in JAMA Network Open. Background Physical...
The Cancer Drug Development Forum (CDDF) held its annual conference in the Netherlands from February 3–5, 2025. Under the title “Challenges, Advances, and Open Questions in Global Cancer Drug Development and Clinical Trials,” the workshop focused on diversity and real-world evidence in anticancer...
It’s a fast-paced world, no two ways about it. People move on from one event to another. We have to move on either for our own sake or the sake of someone near and dear. In the medical field, patients come and go, surgeries are performed, treatments are given, and everybody moves on. Being kind to...
Researchers may have uncovered insights into the role of bacteria in the development of gastric cancer, according to a novel study published by Giddings et al in Helicobacter. The findings could pave the way for a more effective precancer treatment option. Background Gastric cancer is the fourth...
A new clinical guideline from the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) provides guidance on the use of radiation therapy to treat adult patients with primary squamous cell carcinoma of the anal canal and anal margin. The guideline, ASTRO’s first for anal cancer, is published in...
Among the high-quality abstract presentations at the 2024 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS), a few always stand out as particularly meritorious. Each year, The ASCO Post asks our Deputy Editor, breast cancer specialist Jame Abraham, MD, FACP, to give us his picks. Dr. Abraham is Chairman...
Germline or somatic mutations in the BRCA1 gene might not be key to the initiation of prostate cancer, as previously thought, suggests the first study of its kind, published in BMJ Oncology. If confirmed in further studies, the findings suggest that it may be time to reassess current treatment...
Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have developed a novel antibody-toxin conjugate (ATC) designed to stimulate immune-mediated eradication of tumors. According to preclinical results published in Nature Cancer, the new approach combined the benefits of antibody-drug...
Investigators have found that nearly 50% of patients with advanced cancer may receive potentially aggressive treatment at the expense of supportive care, despite considerable efforts to improve the quality of end-of-life care in the United States, according to a recent study published by Kwon et al ...
Remembering Alexi Anatolyevich Navalny: The Russian opposition leader, lawyer, anticorruption activist, and political prisoner, Alexi Navalny died in the Arctic Wolf prison in Siberia approximately 1 year ago on February 16, 2024. He was designated a Prisoner of Conscience by Amnesty...
Age discrimination, often referred to as ageism, is an increasingly pressing issue within society. Although it can impact individuals across all age groups, older adults are particularly vulnerable. According to the U.S. Census Bureau projections, by 2040, individuals aged 65 and older will...
Digital technology may help to safely reduce the amount of time some patients with cancer spend receiving care—also referred to as “time toxicity”—according to a recent study published by Bange et al in NEJM Catalyst. Background Patients with cancer often spend a large amount of time on activities...
The Annual Meeting of the International Society of Geriatric Oncology (SIOG) was held from October 17–19, 2024, in Montreal. The conference theme was “Promoting Equity and Enhancing Optimal Care Delivery.” The conference chairs were Shabbir Alibhai, MD, MSc, FRCPC, and Martine Puts, RN, PhD, FAAN,...
Offering genetic testing to patients with multiple myeloma may help physicians to determine which patients have the most aggressive types of the disease and how to target their malignancy more effectively, according to a recent study published by Kaiser et al in the Journal of Clinical Oncology....
“Care more particularly for the individual patient than for the special features of the disease.”—Sir William Osler Chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma (CLL/SLL) is the most common leukemia in the Western hemisphere. The majority of patients who require treatment are older than ...
Investigators may have uncovered racial and ethnic disparities in the receipt of same-day diagnostic services and biopsies following abnormal mammogram findings in spite of the similar availability of diagnostic technologies, according to a recent study published by Lawson et al in Radiology....
Ceasing or pausing a combination of the immune checkpoint inhibitor nivolumab and the oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) axitinib after 2 years may be safe among patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma who achieved a positive response to this treatment, according to updated analysis of a...
I’ve learned a lot about medicine over the years, but one thing I wasn’t taught was how to guide someone through the existential weight of dying. My education centered on diagnosing, curing, or at least managing disease—not on the delicate art of helping people and their loved ones cope with what...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Bhatia et al, nivolumab/ipilimumab did not produce better outcomes vs nivolumab alone in a cohort of immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI)-naive patients with recurrent or metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) enrolled in the phase I/II CheckMate 358...
Several cardiovascular risk factors such as advanced age and smoking history may be prevalent among patients with lung cancer at the time of diagnosis and may increase their risk of future cardiovascular disease, according to findings presented by Malozzi et al at the American College of...
Immune checkpoint inhibitors may be ineffective among patients hospitalized with cancer, according to a recent study published by Riaz et al in JCO Oncology Practice. Background Immune checkpoint inhibitors have transformed treatment for many cancer types but are often restricted for inpatient use...
The interference of gut bacteria could explain the ineffectiveness of immune checkpoint therapy in some patients with ovarian cancer, according to a recent study published by McGinty et al in Cancer Immunology Research. Background There are over 10,000 ovarian cancer–related deaths in the United...
Long-term yogurt intake may protect against the development of colorectal cancer through changes in the gut microbiome, according to a recent study published by Ugai et al in Gut Microbes. Background Yogurt—which contains live strains of bacteria—is thought to protect against many types of...
A novel blood test may aid physicians in the earlier detection of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and potentially improve survival rates for the disease, according to a recent study published by Montoya et al in Science Translational Medicine. Background Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is the...
Treatment with the HER2 × HER3 bispecific antibody zenocutuzumab-zbco appeared to be safe and active in patients with advanced NRG1 gene fusion–positive solid tumors, according to results from the registrational phase II eNRGy study published by Schram et al in The New England Journal of Medicine....
The findings in the American Cancer Society (ACS) annual report, Cancer Statistics, 2025,1 showed a mixed trend in cancer incidence and mortality rates. Although cancer mortality declined by 34% from 1991 to 2022 in the United States—largely because of smoking reductions, earlier detection, and...
Although there’s no history of breast cancer in my family, when I was 10, my pediatrician introduced me to breast self-exams, so I would become familiar with my breasts and learn to spot any unusual changes as I got older. I remember her telling me this was an especially important exercise to do...
NRG Oncology, the RTOG Foundation, and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), announced the death of Felix Feng, MD, from cancer at age 48 on December 10, 2024. Dr. Feng was a George and Judy Marcus Distinguished Professor; Professor of Radiation Oncology, Urology and Medicine; Vice...
Although national guidelines, including ASCO’s palliative care guideline,1 call for the early integration of palliative and oncology care for patients with advanced cancer, only 36% of those with a very poor prognosis and 18% of those with a poor prognosis receive palliative care services.2 The...
ZUMA-2 is a single-arm, multicenter, open-label phase II study that investigated leukapheresed adults with mantle cell lymphoma whose disease was refractory to or had relapsed after up to five prior lines of therapy, including anthracycline or bendamustine-containing chemotherapy; anti-CD20...
ASCO has updated its guidelines on the role of neoadjuvant chemotherapy for patients newly diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer, underscoring key considerations in selecting patients for treatment and where to go from there.1 Since ASCO’s previous guidelines were published in 2016, there has been ...
The Lung Cancer Master Protocol (Lung-MAP) is an innovative clinical trial designed to efficiently address the unmet needs of patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) following front-line therapy. This pioneering effort was the first biomarker-driven umbrella master protocol...
Kidney transplantation using donor organs carrying the Epstein-Barr virus may increase the risk of posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorder among recipients who have never been exposed to the virus, according to a recent study published by Potluri et al in the Annals of Internal Medicine....
Short-course, higher-dose vaginal brachytherapy for endometrial cancer may demonstrate comparable efficacy to more frequent, lower-dose sessions, according to a recent study published by Suneja et al in JCO Oncology Advances. Background Endometrial cancer is the most common cancer type of the...
Each year in the United States, approximately 90,000 adolescents and young adults (AYAs), defined as those between the ages of 15 and 39, are diagnosed with cancer, and about 9,300 die of the disease.1 Worldwide, the number of new cases of cancer in this age population tops 1,300,200—an increase of ...
In JCO Oncology Advances, Schenkel et al published the results of an ASCO survey measuring professional well-being, satisfaction, and the effect of both on career plans among oncologists in the United States. The analysis revealed a higher rate of burnout compared with that observed a decade ago....
Investigators may have uncovered notable pharmacokinetic differences between male and female patients in at least 14 anticancer drugs, according to a recent study published by Delahousse et al in ESMO Open. Background Many cancer drugs have a narrow therapeutic window. As a result, slight...
A record-breaking number of abstracts were submitted for the 2024 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition, and nearly 8,000 were accepted. The ASCO Post strives to provide in-depth coverage of those with the greatest impact. Here, we offer snapshots of others of...
The recently approved menin inhibitor revumenib is poised to improve the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), specifically for disease with a KMT2A rearrangement. Promising results for other novel menin inhibitors now in development—with their unique safety and activity profiles—suggest the...
Investigators have found that although fewer patients may be diagnosed with and dying from cancer in Appalachia, cancer incidence and mortality rates remain substantially higher compared with elsewhere in the United States, according to a recent study published by Burus et al in the Journal of the...
A novel artificial intelligence (AI) tool uncovered an effective treatment for a patient with idiopathic multicentric Castleman’s disease, according to a recent study published by Mumau et al in The New England Journal of Medicine. Background Idiopathic multicentric Castleman’s disease is a rare...
Patients with stage III or IV clear cell renal cell carcinoma may have achieved a successful anticancer immune response following initiation of a novel personalized cancer vaccine, according to a recent study published by Braun et al in Nature. Background The standard treatment for stage III or IV...
High-risk patients with clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance have very similar characteristics and outcomes as patients with lower-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), which can be informative with regard to prognosis, management, and clinical trial eligibility, said Zhuoer (Zoey) Xie, MD, ...
Researchers have found no evidence that chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy caused secondary cancers in the modified T cells, according to a recent study published by Jadlowsky et al in Nature Medicine. Background CAR T-cell therapy is a personalized type of immunotherapy that employs...
The risk of developing more serious long-term urinary and bowel health issues may be higher in men undergoing radiation therapy for prostate cancer who experience side effects early in treatment, according to a recent study published by Nikitas et al in The Lancet Oncology. The findings highlighted ...
Although artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted radiotherapy may help physicians make more informed decisions when treating patients with cancer, there may be challenges in how physicians work with the technology, according to a recent study published by Niraula et al in Nature Communications. Study ...
Researchers have provided novel insights into the effects of radiation on the immune cells surrounding breast cancer tumors, according to a recent study published by Yoneyama et al in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology • Biology • Physics. The findings revealed that the relationship...
A novel bicistronic CD19/CD22-directed CAR T-cell therapy (B019) has demonstrated high remission rates, durable responses, and a favorable safety profile among children with relapsed or refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), including those with isolated or combined extramedullary...