In a pooled analysis reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Shi et al found that a clinical trial endpoint of complete response with minimal residual disease (also known as measurable residual disease) at the 10-5 threshold (MRD-CR) at 9 or 12 months could be used to support accelerated...
Based on results from the phase II SKIPPirr trial, the addition of 8 mg of dexamethasone to standard infusion-related reaction prophylaxis appeared to reduce the incidence of such events by approximately threefold in patients with EGFR-mutated advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who were...
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...
Breast-conserving therapy may be associated with improved sexual well-being compared with mastectomy followed by breast reconstruction in patients with breast cancer, according to a recent study published by Stern et al in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Background Many patients with breast...
In an analysis of an Australian phase II trial (ENZA-p) reported in The Lancet Oncology, Emmett et al reported that the addition of lutetium-177–labeled PSMA-617 (LuPSMA) to enzalutamide improved overall survival and several aspects of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in the first-line...
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...
Physical activity may help colorectal cancer survivors achieve long-term survival rates comparable to those of individuals in the general population, according to a recent study published by Brown et al in Cancer. Background Patients with colorectal cancer often face higher rates of premature...
In a single-center retrospective study reported in JAMA Oncology, Lochrin et al identified activity of ipilimumab/nivolumab in melanoma brain metastases after progression on anti–PD-1 treatment. Study Details The study involved 28 patients with prior PD-1 inhibitor treatment who developed...
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...
In a retrospective study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kaiser et al found that the presence of two or more high-risk cytogenetic abnormalities was associated with poorer outcomes in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM) and relapsed or refractory MM. Study Details The...
In a meta-analysis reported in the journal Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, Kumar et al found that the use of cryotherapy decreased the incidence of moderate or worse peripheral neuropathy by more than 50% in patients with breast cancer who received paclitaxel or nab-paclitaxel. Cryotherapy...
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....
In a single-institution phase I study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Jae H. Park, MD, and colleagues found that first-in-human use of a CD19-1XX chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy with calibrated signaling showed high activity in patients with relapsed or refractory large ...
“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 ...
Studies show that although radical cystectomy has long been recognized as the standard-of-care for localized muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), the surgery carries significant morbidity and the risk of subsequent loss of quality of life for patients. Preclinical studies have suggested that a...
As reported in JAMA Oncology by Kristeleit et al, the UK-based phase II PEACOCC trial has shown the benefit of pembrolizumab in previously treated patients with advanced clear cell gynecological cancers (CCGCs). As stated by the investigators, “Advanced CCGCs have a poor prognosis, with response...
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 Lancet Oncology by Michael Wang, MD, and colleagues, the phase III SYMPATICO trial has shown that venetoclax/ibrutinib significantly improved progression-free survival vs placebo/ibrutinib in patients with relapsed or refractory mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). Study Details In the...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Taieb et al, a combined analysis of two phase III adjuvant trials (IDEA-France and IDEA-Greece) in stage III colon cancer showed that the presence of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) after surgery was prognostic for poorer outcomes and that...
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...
The final overall survival results from cohort 1 of the phase III TALAPRO-2 trial showed a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement with the PARP inhibitor talazoparib plus the androgen receptor inhibitor enzalutamide vs standard-of-care enzalutamide in treatment-naive...
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...
Studies show that about one-quarter of advanced prostate cancers have alterations in DNA damage response genes involved directly or indirectly in homologous recombination repair (HRR) gene alterations, including BRCA1/BRCA2 genes, which can sensitize them to treatment with PARP inhibitors. Final...
The BRAF inhibitor encorafenib plus the monoclonal antibody cetuximab combined with mFOLFOX (modified folinic acid, fluorouracil, and oxaliplatin) significantly improved overall response in BRAF V600E–mutant metastatic colorectal cancer, according to data presented at the 2025 ASCO Gastrointestinal ...
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...
The World Health Organization (WHO) and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital have begun distributing critical cancer drugs to pediatric patients in two of six pilot countries through the new Global Platform for Access to Childhood Cancer Medicines. Background Every year, about 400,000 children...
In a single-institution phase I trial reported in JAMA Oncology, Ramalingam et al found that intratumoral injection of pembrolizumab and mRNA-2752 (a combination of interleukin [IL]-23, IL-36γ, and OX40L mRNAs) was active in patients with high-risk ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). Study Details Ten ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris) in combination with lenalidomide and a rituximab product for adult patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma (LBCL)—including diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) not otherwise specified, DLBCL ...
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 ...
The BRAF inhibitor encorafenib plus the monoclonal antibody cetuximab combined with mFOLFOX (modified folinic acid, fluorouracil, and oxaliplatin) significantly improved overall response in BRAF V600E–mutant metastatic colorectal cancer, according to data presented at the 2025 ASCO Gastrointestinal ...
An immunotherapy combination for advanced, highly mutated colorectal cancer has significantly delayed disease progression vs single-agent therapy, according to data presented at the 2025 ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium.1 The phase III CheckMate 8HW trial compared the PD-1 inhibitor...
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....
Experiencing pain may increase the risk that cancer survivors will use cigarettes and cannabis, according to a recent study published by Powers et al in Cancer. Background Pain and the use of cigarettes, e-cigarettes, alcohol, and cannabis commonly occur together in the general population. Cancer...
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...
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...
Researchers have found that inhibiting the S6K2 gene could be an effective strategy for managing treatment-resistant melanoma, according to a recent study published by Lipchick et al in Science Translational Medicine. Background Cases of melanoma—the deadliest type of skin cancer—are currently...
A retrospective study provides new evidence that thyroid cancer continues to be overdiagnosed and that aggressive screening and treatment of thyroid cancer has not led to higher survival rates. The research was published by Chen et al in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. “Many studies have...
First-line treatment with the Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitor zanubrutinib plus the anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody obinutuzumab and the BCL2 inhibitor venetoclax appeared to be safe and active in previously untreated patients with TP53-mutated mantle cell lymphoma, based on the results of the...
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, ...
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 ...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Mascarenhas et al, follow-up of a cohort of pediatric patients with TRK fusion sarcomas and related mesenchymal tumors treated with larotrectinib showed that discontinuation of treatment—with resumption for progressive disease—was associated with...
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...
Late relapse of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) may represent a new lymphoma arising from a common precursor cell that is essentially chemotherapy-naive. Treatment with curative intent using a second-line regimen like R-CHOP (rituximab cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, prednisone, and...