New results from the BREAKWATER trial show that the targeted therapy combination of encorafenib and cetuximab with the chemotherapy fluorouracil, folinic acid, and irinotecan (FOLFIRI) can reduce the size or number of tumors in patients with BRAF V600E–mutant metastatic colorectal cancer. Adding...
Two national surveys examining trust and acceptance of medical artificial intelligence (AI) have found that while most people are reluctant to use AI tools to diagnose their health condition, they see potential in the technology’s ability to help diagnose cancer. The findings, published by Sobolev...
The American Society of Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) has announced that they have rebranded their research foundation from the former Radiation Oncology Institute (ROI) to become Speed of Light – The ASTRO Foundation. The intent of the renamed research foundation was to bring both ASTRO and the...
Researchers have proposed a new mechanism of acute kidney injury to account for patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) who have an inferior vena cava (IVC) tumor thrombus, according to findings presented at the 26th Annual Meeting of the Society of Urologic Oncology (SUO).1 By analyzing...
A higher absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) after receipt of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy may be associated with improved progression-free and/or overall survival in patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, according to findings from the 2025 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual...
New findings from the phase II ENHANCE clinical trial indicate that both real and sham acupuncture improve breast cancer survivors’ perceived cognitive impairment more effectively than usual care alone, while real acupuncture improves objective measures of cognitive performance better than sham...
A multicenter trial led by investigators at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center demonstrated that a 5-day regimen of azacitidine provides the best balance of efficacy and safety for patients with lower-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). The researchers compared three abbreviated...
An image-only artificial intelligence (AI) model for predicting the 5-year risk of breast cancer provided stronger and more precise risk stratification than breast density assessment, according to a news statement issued about a study presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of...
When Julie began chemotherapy for breast cancer, her oncologist adjusted antiemetics weekly and carefully tracked neutrophil counts. Still, no one asked about the panic attacks that kept her awake at night. She told herself this was just part of cancer. It was not until she stopped showing up for...
As a medical oncologist and palliative care physician, I have spent years preparing for difficult conversations. I’ve guided patients and families through the uncertainty of cancer, helped them navigate complex decisions, and sought meaning amid shifting prognoses. As an academic, I teach future...
On October 30, 2025, Google Cloud held its second annual Cancer AI Symposium to explore how artificial intelligence (AI) is advancing cancer research, diagnosis, and treatment, in unparalleled ways. Held at Google’s St. John’s Terminal office in New York City, the event brought together leaders in...
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) announced that Ross Levine, MD, has been named MSK’s new Chief Scientific Officer (CSO). Dr. Levine previously served as Senior Vice President of Translational Research in Memorial Hospital (MH) and holds the Edward P. Evans Endowed Chair for...
There is something deeply moving about watching hope take shape, not as a slogan or a speech, but as people coming together to build the cancer care Africa deserves. The African Organization for Research and Training in Cancer (AORTIC) 2025 Congress in Tunisia held in November was a vivid reminder...
The Combined Analysis of Pathology and Artificial Intelligence (AI; CAPAI) model effectively stratified patients with colon cancer into distinct prognostic groups, identifying nearly half as low-risk, with “favorable” cancer-specific survival outcomes in the absence of adjuvant chemotherapy,...
Three Plenary Sessions were presented recently at the 2025 Annual Meeting of the Society of Hematologic Oncology (SOHO 2025), which focused specifically on new advances and practical clinical applications in the field of hematologic malignancies. The theme of SOHO 2025 was “Unleashing AI, Genomics, ...
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) congratulates former President Joe Biden on completing his course of radiation therapy, which he marked by ringing the ceremonial bell alongside his radiation oncology care team. “President Biden’s bell-ringing milestone underscores the vital role ...
A new analysis spanning more than 3 decades of Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group and American College of Radiology Imaging Network (ECOG-ACRIN) clinical trial data demonstrates that Black patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) present with the disease at a significantly younger age and...
Two randomized phase III trials presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2025 bolster support for the use of antibody–drug conjugates—in particular, trophoblast cell surface antigen 2 (TROP2)-targeted agents—as first-line treatments for patients with triple-negative...
Early results from the CLL17 trial show that fixed-duration doublet regimens with venetoclax are noninferior to continuous ibrutinib therapy, with similar 3-year progression-free survival rates, for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), according to findings presented at the 2025...
The addition of the PD-L1–targeting monoclonal antibody durvalumab to conventional perioperative chemotherapy with fluorouracil, leucovorin, oxaliplatin, and docetaxel (FLOT) resulted in a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in overall survival, with benefit seen...
A machine learning–based survival model, incorporating preoperative CT images and routinely available clinical data, outperformed standard clinical staging systems in predicting recurrence after surgery in patients with lung cancer, especially in stage I, and showed correlations with established...
In 2016, Filippo Milano, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Translational Science and Therapeutics Division, and Director of the Cord Blood Transplant Program at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle, published the results of his landmark study investigating whether an alternative stem cell donor...
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule final rule for 2026 on October 31, 2025.1 The rule finalizes physician reimbursement and policy reforms under the Physician Fee Schedule as well as changes to reporting requirements and policy...
Allison J. Applebaum, PhD, FAPOS, recently announced the launch of the website for the Steven S. Elbaum Family Center for Caregiving at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York (www.mountsinai.org/care/palliative-care/elbaum-center-caregiving). Dr. Applebaum is Director of the...
The pace of therapeutic innovation in hematologic oncology continues to accelerate, moving clinical practice away from broad-spectrum chemotherapy and toward an era of highly personalized, biologically driven treatment. This transformation was the central theme of the 2025 National Comprehensive...
The addition of the PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab to weekly paclitaxel, with or without the VEGFA-targeted bevacizumab, significantly improved progression-free survival and overall survival in patients with platinum-resistant recurrent ovarian cancer, in the randomized, double-blind, phase III...
Two pivotal studies of fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki (T-DXd) in early HER2-positive breast cancer suggest this antibody-drug conjugate (targeting the HER2 protein) may be moving into the curative setting after having shown benefit in metastatic disease in multiple previous trials. The new...
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has transformed treatment for patients with hematologic malignancies, achieving unprecedented responses in some patients, especially those diagnosed with relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and multiple...
A large international study published by Kunkler et al in The New England Journal of Medicine examined whether chest wall radiation therapy after mastectomy improves survival for patients with early-stage breast cancer. The study, known as the SUPREMO trial, found no overall survival difference...
In 2021, The ASCO Post had a wide-ranging discussion with Robert A. Hiatt, MD, PhD, Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and Associate Director of Population Sciences at UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer...
Although 2023 made headlines as the hottest year in human history,1 drawing the world closer to breaching the goals outlined in the Paris Agreement to substantially reduce global greenhouse gas emissions to limit global warming to well below 2°C above preindustrial levels (and preferably to...
Researchers have found that firefighters who battled the massive urban fires in the Los Angeles area in January 2025 developed physiologic changes that may increase their risk of diseases, including cancer. The research, which was published by Furlong et al in the Journal of Occupational and...
The addition of the PD-L1–targeting monoclonal antibody durvalumab to conventional perioperative chemotherapy with fluorouracil, leucovorin, oxaliplatin, and docetaxel (FLOT) resulted in a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in overall survival, with benefit seen...
The American Lung Association has released its 2025 “State of Lung Cancer” report, which reveals great strides in efforts to end lung cancer—the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. This year, nearly 227,000 people in the United States will be diagnosed with lung cancer....
The addition of the PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab to weekly paclitaxel, with or without the VEGFA-targeted bevacizumab, significantly improved progression-free survival and overall survival in patients with platinum-resistant recurrent ovarian cancer, in the randomized, double-blind, phase III...
A major study of three of the most common cancers in women, conducted by the Cancer Survival Group at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, found variations in the stage of disease at diagnosis, the type of treatment, and the extent to which treatment was consistent with...
Elironrasib, a novel RAS G12C–selective tri-complex inhibitor, demonstrated initial clinical activity and a differentiated safety profile in heavily pretreated patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and KRAS G12C mutations, according to findings from a phase I trial presented at the 2025...
Two pivotal studies of fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki (T-DXd) in early HER2-positive breast cancer suggest this antibody-drug conjugate (targeting the HER2 protein) may be moving into the curative setting after having shown benefit in metastatic disease in multiple previous trials. The new...
On October 24, 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved revumenib (Revuforj), a menin inhibitor, for the treatment of relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia with a susceptible nucleophosmin 1 (NPM1) mutation, in adult and pediatric patients 1 year and older who have no...
Combination immunotherapy significantly improved disease-free survival after surgery in patients with primary renal cell carcinoma (RCC), according to results from the phase III RAMPART trial. These findings were presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2025 by James...
There is a perception among many scientists that scientific fraud is a rare occurrence, resulting from the actions of a few isolated bad actors. However, an extensive investigation by Reese A.K. Richardson, PhD, postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Science of Science and Innovation, Kellogg School ...
Use of PAM50 subtyping allowed clinicians to determine which patients with recurrent prostate cancer were most likely to benefit from the addition of apalutamide hormonal therapy to salvage radiotherapy, according to findings from the phase II BALANCE trial (NRG GU006). These results were presented ...
Growing up in Draksharamam, a small village in India, Neelima Denduluri, MD, FASCO, was attracted to the field of medicine after witnessing her grandfather, a general practitioner in the village, care for patients so poor he often provided medical services at no cost. Although Dr. Denduluri’s...
On August 14, 2025, Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) announced that Phil Knight, a cofounder of Nike, and his wife, Penny, donated $2 billion to the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute. The record-setting gift is the largest single donation ever made to a U.S. university, college, or academic ...
Despite numerous studies showing the benefits of integrating palliative care in both the early- and advanced-stage cancer settings,1 palliative care remains underutilized for most patients with cancer. A recent study by the American Cancer Society found that only 10% of Medicare beneficiaries with...
Enzalutamide in combination with leuprolide demonstrated a significantly longer overall survival than either leuprolide or enzalutamide monotherapy in patients with biochemically recurrent prostate cancer, according to the final overall survival analysis of the phase III EMBARK trial presented at...
Patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer who tested positive for circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) after cystectomy may benefit from immunotherapy with the PD-L1 inhibitor atezolizumab compared to placebo, whereas ctDNA-negative patients may potentially be spared unnecessary treatment. These...
Researchers have created a roadmap to improve national lung cancer screening rates that doubled lung cancer screening rates through their multidisciplinary lung cancer screening program, according to a study published in NEJM Catalyst. “Our biggest success was not only screening a high percentage...
New research published by Tohmasi et al in JNCCN—Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network has found that people with cancer who quit smoking had a much lower risk of dying within 2 years compared to those who kept smoking. Researchers followed more than 13,000 individuals with cancer,...
In a prospective cohort study published in JCO Oncology Practice, Ssebyala et al examined long-term health-care utilization and adherence to follow-up care among young adult survivors of breast cancer. Their findings reveal high rates of mammography adherence but persistent gaps in other areas of...