The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) has announced it will hold its 62nd Annual Meeting October 25–28, 2020, via an interactive virtual platform. The meeting, “Global Oncology: Radiation Therapy in a Changing World,” will feature reports from the latest clinical trials; panels on...
Allen S. Lichter, MD, of the Value in Cancer Care Consortium, interviews Clifford A. Hudis, MD, Chief Executive Officer of ASCO, on the question of whether cancer drug prices in the United States are the problem, or just the symptom, of a larger systemic issue.
An exploratory subgroup analysis of the KAMILLA trial represents the largest reported cohort of patients with HER2-positive breast cancer and brain metastases treated with the anti-HER2 antibody-drug conjugate ado-trastuzumab emtansine, or T-DM1, in a prospective setting. Researchers observed...
Newly released data on treatment outcomes of patients with cancer infected with COVID-19 revealed a racial disparity in access to remdesivir, an antiviral drug that has been shown to shorten hospital stays, and increased mortality associated with dexamethasone, a steroid that has had the opposite...
Adam C. Palmer, PhD, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, discusses combining immune checkpoint inhibitors with other cancer therapies to provide patients with more chances of a response. In principle, similar benefits may result from sequential or biomarker-stratified treatments,...
Nasser K. Altorki, MD, of Weill Cornell Medical College, discusses study findings that suggest neoadjuvant low-dose focal stereotactic body radiation plus immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) is safe and causes no surgical delays in early-stage lung cancer, and that major pathologic response rates are...
Findings from the first international prostate cancer quality-of-life study showed that significant numbers of men treated for the disease are struggling with continence and sexual problems after treatment. Results suggest that any treatment apart from active surveillance may negatively affect...
Syed A. Abutalib, MD, of Cancer Treatment Centers of America, talks with Miguel-Angel Perales, MD, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, about the challenges and concerns related to transplants for patients with hematologic malignancies who are particularly vulnerable to infection with the...
The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC) have announced a new collaboration to foster participation in oncology clinical trials to more fully reflect the diversity of people at risk for or living with cancer. The joint ASCO-ACCC initiative...
Andrew H. Wei, MBBS, PhD, of The Alfred Hospital, Monash University, discusses phase III data from the VIALE-C trial, which appear to support the use of venetoclax plus low-dose cytarabine as a front-line treatment for older patients with acute myeloid leukemia, as well as for those who cannot...
Recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Priority Review to pembrolizumab for the second-line treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma, and also accepted a supplemental new drug application for selinexor for pretreated patients with multiple myeloma....
Eric Zhou, PhD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discusses an existing online program called SHUTi (Sleep Healthy Using the Internet), that he and his team adapted to the needs of adolescent and young adult cancer survivors. After six online cognitive behavior therapy sessions delivered over 8...
Results from the first study using uEXPLORER to conduct total-body dynamic positron-emission tomography (PET) scans in patients with cancer suggested that it can be used to generate high-quality images of metastatic cancer. The research was presented at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular ...
New research outlines the role of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) positron-emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) in the detection and management of recurrent disease in prostate cancer patients. In initial results from a multicenter trial assessing the impact of F-18 DCFPyL...
A first-in-human study presented at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) 2020 Annual Meeting and published by Zhang et al in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine has demonstrated the safety and favorable pharmacokinetic and dosimetry profile of Cu-64 EBRGD, a new, relatively...
Mark J. Ratain, MD, of the University of Chicago, and Daniel Goldstein, MD, of the Rabin Medical Center, discuss the challenges of achieving cancer care value, evolution of the “more-is-better” philosophy when it comes to oncology drugs, and highlights of the First International Summit on...
For people with cancer who have a mental health disorder, getting mental health treatment may help them live longer, a new study published by Berchuck et al in JAMA Oncology suggests. In the retrospective study, of more than 50,000 veterans treated for lung cancer within the Veterans Affairs (VA)...
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has proved to be a valuable treatment option for patients with lymphoma in whom other therapies have failed. In clinical trials, the cellular immunotherapy was shown to provide durable remissions for nearly 40% of patients with large B-cell lymphoma....
Deborah Schrag, MD, MPH, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, offers her perspective on near-equivalence, Bayesian noninferiority, and the value of cancer drug optimization.
Deborah Schrag, MD, MPH, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, offers her perspective on near-equivalence, Bayesian noninferiority, and the value of cancer drug optimization.
Two new studies led by Renuka Iyer, MD, Section Chief for Gastrointestinal Oncology at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, and published in Oncotarget and Cancer, respectively, highlight possible new treatment options for patients with neuroendocrine tumors. SurVaxM The first report,...
Lung cancer in nonsmokers is a diverse and distinct disease from lung cancer in smokers and is likely to respond differently to targeted treatments, according to results from a new study published by Chen et al in the journal Cell. Scientists studied a patient population in Taiwan with high rates...
According to a press release from the National Institutes of Health, an investigational vaccine designed to protect against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19—mRNA-1273—was generally well tolerated and prompted neutralizing antibody activity in healthy adults. These interim results were...
Mark J. Ratain, MD, of the University of Chicago, talks about why ibrutinib—which can lead to cardiotoxicities—should be studied at a lower dose for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Data suggest a reduced dose may prevent dose interruption due to adverse events and may have a better...
In a preplanned secondary analysis of the BRE12-158 trial published in JAMA Oncology, Milan Radovich, PhD, and colleagues found that the presence of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) and circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in the plasma of women who have received neoadjuvant treatment for stage I, II, or...
Medications commonly prescribed to treat high blood pressure may also reduce the risk of colorectal cancer, according to new research published by Cheung et al in the journal Hypertension. Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARB) are often prescribed...
R. Donald Harvey, PharmD, BCOP, FCCP, FHOPA, of Emory University, discusses the ways in which clinical pharmacology can help yield cost savings without sacrificing efficacy by, for example, altering regimens to extend drug supplies, lowering doses, dosing less frequently, or shortening the duration ...
Blase N. Polite, MD, MPP, of the University of Chicago Medical Center, discusses his belief that, in the next few years, we can bend the cancer drug cost curve and tame health-care costs if physicians, pharmaceutical companies, payers, and government come together and agree on the value of...
New research published by Douglas et al in JNCCN—Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network examined coverage trends for circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) testing, also known as liquid biopsy. In the first-ever study to analyze insurance coverage for ctDNA-based panel tests, researchers found ...
The American Cancer Society (ACS) has updated its guideline for human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination, adapting a 2019 update from the Federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). The ACS first issued a guideline for routine use of the HPV vaccine in 2007, with an update issued in...
The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) has honored Patricia S. Steeg, PhD, with its 2020 Women in Cancer Research Charlotte Friend Memorial Lectureship. Dr. Steeg, Co-Director of the Office of Translational Resources and Associate Director of the Center for Cancer Research at the...
The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is honoring Christopher I. Amos, PhD, with the 2020 AACR–American Cancer Society (ACS) Award for Research Excellence in Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention. Dr. Amos, the Selzman Endowed Professor, Director of the Institute for Clinical and...
The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is honoring Benjamin F. Cravatt, PhD, with the 2020 AACR Award for Outstanding Achievement in Chemistry in Cancer Research. Dr. Cravatt, Professor at the Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology and the Gilula Chair of Chemical Biology for the...
The Fellows of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Academy have chosen Charles L. Sawyers, MD, FAACR, as President-Elect for 2020–2021. Dr. Sawyers will assume the presidency during the 2021 AACR Annual Meeting. Dr. Sawyers holds the Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis Chair in Human...
Neil Spector, MD, a physician-scientist, translational research leader, and oncology mentor died on June 14, 2020. He was 63. Dr. Spector was the Sandra Coates Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, and a member of the Duke Cancer ...
Beth Levine, MD, Professor of Internal Medicine and Microbiology, Director of the Center for Autophagy Research, and Charles Cameron Sprague Distinguished Chair in Biomedical Sciences at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (UT Southwestern), and an investigator at the Howard Hughes ...
Oscar Colegio, MD, PhD, the Lawrence P. & Joan Castellani Family Endowed Chair in Dermatology at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, New York, died unexpectedly on June 13, 2020, at a family residence in Connecticut. He was 47. Dr. Colegio had relocated to Buffalo when he was...
A recently opened center at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center–Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC–James) gives patients direct, expedited access to diagnostic testing for cancer. The goal, said Chief Medical Officer David Cohn, MD,...
During its recent Virtual Annual Meeting II, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) presented its 2020 Team Science Awards to the founding members and the current project team associated with The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). TCGA began in 2006 as a joint effort between the National...
Elected by a body of fellow immunotherapy researchers from across the globe, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center Deputy Director Kunle Odunsi, MD, PhD, FRCOG, FACOG, has been named At-Large Director of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) Board of Directors. Dr. Odunsi will begin his ...
An international panel of experts led by researchers and thought leaders at the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center–Jefferson Health (SKCC) and the Department of Urology at Jefferson have published the first multidisciplinary, consensus-driven, prostate cancer genetic implementation framework for the...
On June 18, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) took an additional step in harnessing real-world data to help inform the agency’s overall response to the COVID-19 public health emergency. The FDA announced its participation in the COVID-19 Diagnostics Evidence Accelerator, a...
The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is honoring three clinical cancer researchers for their outstanding achievements. Jedd D. Wolchok, MD, PhD, FASCO, will receive the 2020 AACR–Joseph H. Burchenal Award for Outstanding Achievement in Clinical Cancer Research. Lisa A. Newman, MD,...
Fox Chase Cancer Center announced that Jessica Karen Wong, MD, MEng, recently joined the Department of Radiation Oncology as Assistant Professor in the academic clinician track. Dr. Wong completed her radiation oncology residency program at Fox Chase, where she served as Chief Resident in 2019 and...
The ASCO20 Virtual Scientific Program was the forum for an unusual but profoundly important event in oncology. Four studies that should be practice-changing were presented.1-4 These studies provided irrefutable evidence that we can improve the quality of life of older patients by reducing toxicity. ...
Philip McCarthy, MD, Professor of Oncology and Internal Medicine and Director of the Transplant and Cellular Therapy Center at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, New York, found the results of the DREAMM-6 study to be “exciting and promising.” He commented: “The overall response...
The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) has announced its newest class of grant recipients. Fellowships The 2019 Anna D. Barker Fellowship in Basic Cancer Research was awarded to Chaoyun Pan, PhD, of Emory University, Atlanta, and Conghui Yao, PhD, of Harvard Medical School, Cambridge....
The Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF) recently announced that Trudy Oliver, PhD, has joined its Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Oliver is Associate Professor of Oncological Sciences at the University of Utah’s Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI), where she has served since 2011, and is an HCI...
Data from the phase II PrE0505 multicenter trial showed that adding durvalumab, an immune checkpoint antibody targeting programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1), to the combination of cisplatin and pemetrexed chemotherapy improved outcomes in previously untreated patients with unresectable malignant...
Health-care innovator and leader Glenn D. Steele Jr, MD, PhD, has been elected Board Chair at City of Hope. Dr. Steele joined the City of Hope Board of Directors in 2016 and was Chair of the Executive Compensation and Governance Committee from 2018 to 2020. “City of Hope has benefited from...