Nearly 20% of patients participating in middle-stage cancer drug trials may receive treatments that eventually receive U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval, according to a recent study published by Ouimet et al in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. The findings may have...
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 ...
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...
ASCO issued the following statement on February 21, 2025: "Cancer research is the core of ASCO’s mission and cancer cannot be conquered without continued robust federal investment for biomedical research through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI)....
Although the cancer mortality rate among Black patients in the United States has dropped over the past 30 years, this patient population may continue to experience a disproportionately elevated cancer burden compared with other patient populations, according to a recent study published by Saka et...
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...
In a French phase II trial (UCBG 3-06 START) reported in The Lancet Oncology, Bonnefoi et al found that treatment with the antiandrogen darolutamide did not reach the clinical benefit endpoint in patients with triple-negative, androgen receptor (AR)-positive advanced breast cancer. Triple-negative...
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...
This is Part 1 of Evolving Treatment Landscape of Indolent Lymphoma, a three-part video roundtable series. Scroll down to watch the other videos from this roundtable. In this video, Drs. Laurie Sehn, Gilles Salles, and Sonali Smith discuss the second-line treatment of early relapsing follicular...
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....
As reported in The Lancet Oncology by Zhang et al, final outcomes of the Chinese phase III RESOLVE trial showed improved overall survival with adjuvant S-1 and oxaliplatin (SOX) and perioperative SOX vs adjuvant capecitabine/oxaliplatin (CapOx) in patients with locally advanced gastric or...
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 ...
Masood Moghul, PhD, of The Institute of Cancer Research and The Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, describes the impact of a nurse-led mobile clinical unit on targeted screening invitations to men at high risk for prostate cancer in disadvantaged communities in London (Abstract 317).
“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...
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...
As reported in The New England Journal of Medicine by Jennifer Brown, MD, and colleagues, the phase III AMPLIFY trial found that fixed-duration acalabrutinib combined with venetoclax or venetoclax/obinutuzumab improved progression-free survival vs chemoimmunotherapy in fit, previously untreated...
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...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved vimseltinib (Romvimza), a kinase inhibitor, for adults with symptomatic tenosynovial giant cell tumor (TGCT) for which surgical resection will potentially cause worsening functional limitation or severe morbidity. MOTION Trial Efficacy was...
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 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...
Researchers may have uncovered a major factor contributing to treatment resistance in patients with colorectal cancer, according to a recent study published by Mzoughi et al in Nature Genetics. Background Colorectal cancer is one of the deadliest cancer types across the world, with treatment...
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...
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...
In a UK phase III noninferiority trial (Mammo-50) reported in The Lancet, Dunn et al found that less frequent mammographic surveillance was noninferior to annual surveillance in outcomes among patients with breast cancer aged 50 years or older. Study Details In the multicenter trial, 5,235 women...
In an individual patient data meta-analysis reported in The Lancet Oncology, Nikitas et al found that early toxicity associated with radiotherapy for prostate cancer was associated with increased risk for late toxicity. Study Details The study included patient-level data from six randomized phase...
In an analysis reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Stintzing et al found that baseline liquid biopsies identified RAS and BRAF mutations in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer considered RAS wild-type on the basis of tissue analyses. Study Details The study included patients from...
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...
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...
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 ...
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...
Kenneth H. Cowan, MD, PhD, served for 24 years as Director of the National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated cancer center at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), now called the Nebraska Medicine Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center in Omaha. Dr. Cowan died on December 15, 2024, at ...
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...
In an article in The Lancet Oncology, Oza et al presented the final overall survival analysis of the phase III ARIEL trial of rucaparib vs standard-of-care chemotherapy in patients with relapsed BRCA-mutated ovarian carcinoma. Study Details In the open-label trial, 349 patients from sites in 12...
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...
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...