The combination of avelumab and cetuximab may improve progression-free survival in patients with advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma compared with avelumab alone, according to recent findings presented by Zandberg et al at the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting (Abstract 6002) and simultaneously...
A new four-drug combination appears to be effective and safe in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma, according to data from the ADVANCE clinical trial conducted by investigators at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Presented ...
Results from the phase III DESTINY-Breast09 clinical trial found that the combination of fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki (T-DXd) with pertuzumab may delay cancer growth for longer than the current standard of care in people with HER2-positive locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer. The...
Switching to treatment with camizestrant if an ESR1 mutation is detected during first-line treatment can help slow cancer growth for patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer, according to findings from the phase III SERENA-6 clinical trial. The research is...
Greater intake of a proinflammatory dietary pattern may be linked to worse overall survival in patients with stage III colon cancer who have undergone curative-intent resection. Sara K. Char, MD, a clinical fellow at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, presented the results of a prospective...
A phase III study has found that a 3-year structured exercise program initiated soon after completion of adjuvant chemotherapy improves disease-free and overall survival, as well as patient-reported physical functioning and health-related fitness, in patients with stage III and high-risk stage II...
Results from VERITAC-2 trial showed that the proteolysis-targeting chimera (PROTAC) vepdegestrant could extend progression-free survival for people with previously treated estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer with an ESR1 mutation. The research will be presented at...
Treatment options for aggressive-variant prostate cancer are limited, but a subset of patients have had promising long-term responses with a combination of carboplatin plus cabazitaxel chemotherapy, followed by PARP inhibitor maintenance. This novel combination treatment approach was the focus of a ...
The ASCO Post’s Integrative Oncology series is intended to facilitate the availability of evidence-based information on integrative and complementary therapies sometimes used by patients with cancer. In this installment, Yen Nien (Jason) Hou, PharmD, DiplOM, LAc, and Jyothirmai Gubili, MS, focus...
Climate change may be contributing to a small but notable increase in the incidence and mortality rates of breast, ovarian, endometrial, and cervical cancers in the Middle East and North Africa, according to a recent study published by Mataria and Chun in Frontiers in Public Health. Background...
At just 5 years old, Charu Aggarwal, MD, MPH, FASCO, already knew that she wanted to be a physician when she grew up, although she can’t explain where the idea came from. She just knows the desire to help others was ingrained in her from a very early age. Growing up in New Delhi, India, where...
Investigators may have uncovered a modest but potentially significant association between alcohol consumption and the risk of developing pancreatic cancer, according to a recent study published by Naudin et al in PLOS Medicine. Background Pancreatic cancer is the twelfth most common cancer type...
The European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) has announced the publication of the latest version of its scale that measures the clinical benefit of cancer treatments, the ESMO-MCBS (ESMO-Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale). The ESMO-MCBS was first introduced in 2015 and updated to version 1.1...
With the currently available BCR::ABL1 tyrosine kinase inhibitors, chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) has transformed from an invariably fatal disorder (10-year overall survival < 10%) to an indolent one, associated with a near-normal life expectancy on optimal tyrosine kinase inhibitor...
Although I have spent the past 2 decades of my medical career as a primary care physician, educator, and researcher in conditions that disproportionately affect people of Asian descent, including lung cancer, I was still unprepared to hear the words “You have stage IV non–small cell lung...
Despite the significant rise over the past 50 years in the use of evidence-based integrative medicine in conjunction with conventional cancer treatments—up from just 20% in the 1970s to about 80% in 20171—training opportunities in the fundamentals of this emerging field within the specialty of...
In January 2025, the Trump Administration issued executive orders asserting opposition to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs on the federal level1,2 and rescinding Biden Administration orders that emphasized the importance of these efforts to promote equal opportunity across government ...
The JAK (Janus kinase) inhibitor ruxolitinib may prove to be an effective treatment of parkinsonism arising from immunotherapy for patients with multiple myeloma, according to the results of two case reports by Baldeep Wirk, MD, and Jin Lim, MD, PhD, both of Virginia Commonwealth University,...
Several recent studies have shown the value of cancer screening in reducing the number of deaths from the disease. One study using computer modeling to estimate the number of cancer-related deaths that could be averted by increasing the use of U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF)...
Thousands of forward-looking research studies defined the 2025 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting. Here, aside from our fuller coverage of key presentations in The ASCO Post, we offer a snapshot of a few additional abstracts that may be of interest to cancer researchers...
Mismatch repair–deficient (dMMR) tumors beyond those in the rectum may respond to PD-1 blockade in the neoadjuvant setting, offering the option of organ preservation in early-stage cancer regardless of the tumor type, researchers from Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) Cancer Center reported at the...
For more than 25 years, my goal as a community oncologist has been to ensure that all patients have access to the highest-quality cancer care. This is the future I stood for when I became ASCO’s 61st President and what I know our more than 50,000 members stand for. And I believe we will get there...
Despite a 30-year history as an ASCO volunteer, for Eric J. Small, MD, FASCO, this past year as President-Elect has opened new perspectives on the organization he will soon lead as ASCO’s 62nd President, effective during the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting, May 30–June 3, 2025, in Chicago. After serving...
Studies have shown that having overweight or obesity increases the risk of developing more than a dozen cancers, including meningioma; multiple myeloma; and esophageal, thyroid, breast, gallbladder, stomach, liver, pancreatic, kidney, ovarian, uterine, and colorectal cancers. The presence of excess ...
Results from a global phase III clinical trial found that maintenance therapy with a combination of the alkylating agent lurbinectedin and the PD-L1 inhibitor atezolizumab improved survival in some patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (SCLC) compared with maintenance therapy with...
ASCO and Google Cloud have announced a collaboration to launch an artificial intelligence (AI)-based ASCO Guidelines Assistant. Developed with Google Cloud’s Vertex AI platform and Gemini models, the tool is poised to transform how oncology professionals access and use critical clinical...
Whole-genome sequencing (WGS)-based circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) detection of human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), termed HPV-DeepSeek by the study investigators, showed greater sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic accuracy than any current...
Cellular therapies such as chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy and tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte therapy are transforming outcomes for patients with cancer, particularly in the relapsed or refractory setting. “We’re seeing outstanding response rates in patients with B-cell malignancies...
Abbreviated breast MRI scans demonstrated comparable diagnostic accuracy to full multiparametric protocol MRI scans for women with extremely dense breasts, according to findings from the DENSE trial published in Radiology. MRI scans have greater diagnostic accuracy than mammograms for women with...
In an international cohort study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Blondeaux et al evaluated whether both risk-reducing mastectomy and risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy were associated with improved survival among women aged 40 or younger who have invasive breast cancer with germline BRCA1/2...
Investigators have found that a large proportion of U.S. adults are behind on their cancer screenings, according to a new survey from the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN). Survey Methods and Findings In the Survivor Views Special Report: National Screening Survey,...
According to his office, Former President Joseph R. Biden Jr has been diagnosed with an “aggressive” type of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones. The New York Times reported that Mr. Biden’s cancer “is characterized by a Gleason score of 9 with metastasis to the bone.” The American Cancer...
The disease we now call diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) has gone by the names of reticulum cell sarcoma, diffuse histiocytic lymphoma, and diffuse large cell lymphoma, and included both lymphomas of B cells and T cells. We now know DLBCL is still heterogenous and some subtypes might benefit...
Total neoadjuvant therapy of intensified chemoradiotherapy was shown to be less effective for treating patients with rectal cancer with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) than those with sporadic rectal cancer, according to study findings presented during Digestive Disease Week 2025. However, there...
Six parenchymal phenotypes were established that may be associated with a higher risk of developing breast cancer. Studies of these phenotypes identified by radiomics on mammograms demonstrated that these patterns were associated with an increased risk of invasive breast cancer, according to...
Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) has emerged as a promising biomarker in colorectal cancer, offering dynamic insight into disease burden and recurrence risk. However, questions remain about its clinical utility and optimal application, as well as its equitable access across practice settings. At the...
Forty nonprofit, nonpartisan organizations issued a statement this week to the House Energy & Commerce and Ways & Means Committees in regard to budget cuts and policy changes affecting Medicaid and health-care marketplaces. “As organizations representing millions of patients with serious...
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) released its first set of Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines®) in 1996, covering eight tumor types. Today, guidelines are available for more than 60 tumor types, subtypes, and related topics. During the NCCN’s 30th Annual...
FaceAge, a deep learning system, was developed and validated to estimate biological age from photographs of faces. In a study published in The Lancet Digital Health, FaceAge showed the ability to predict short-term outcomes in patients with cancer. The study demonstrated that FaceAge could...
For postmenopausal women with hormone receptor–positive ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) treated with breast-conserving surgery, whole-breast irradiation, and adjuvant endocrine therapy, reexcision to achieve wider surgical margins (≥ 1 mm or ≥ 2 mm) may not be necessary, according to data presented ...
Investigators have found that the risk of developing breast cancer could be nearly three times higher among women who experience notable weight gain after the age of 20 years and either give birth after age 30 or don’t have children compared with those who give birth before age 30 and whose weight...
Thousands of forward-looking research studies defined the 2025 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting. Here, aside from our fuller coverage of key presentations in The ASCO Post, we offer a snapshot of a few additional abstracts that may be of interest to cancer researchers...
Teal Health announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of the Teal Wand™, an at-home vaginal sample self-collection device for cervical cancer screening in the United States. The Teal Wand is a prescription device that will soon be available at getteal.com for individuals aged ...
Recent studies have shown increasing rates of early-onset cancers, often defined as cancers occurring in people younger than age 50, especially colorectal, pancreatic, female breast, and uterine cancers, and younger birth cohorts seem to have a higher risk of some cancer types compared with older...
When screening for breast cancer, the most effective strategy to utilize artificial intelligence (AI) may involve collaboration with human radiologists, according to a recent study published by Ahsen et al in Nature Communications. The findings could help shape how hospitals and clinics integrate...
The first sign that something was terribly wrong was in 2015, when I began to feel so fatigued that it was difficult to get out of bed even after 8 to 10 hours of sleep. I’ve been full of energy my whole life and couldn’t understand why I was so tired all the time. Then I began to experience...
Ablative radiation therapy is considered to be an alternative to surgery, providing an effective noninvasive option for local treatment of many types of cancer, but it is unknown whether ablative radiation therapy is effective for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. Surgery provides improved...
Thomas B. Tomasi, Jr, MD, PhD, who led Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center as President and Chief Executive Officer from 1986 to 1996, died on March 23 at age 97. His tenure marked a renaissance at Roswell Park that elevated it to a place among the nation’s top cancer centers. The pinnacle of ...
The members of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) have elected Keith T. Flaherty, MD, FAACR, as the AACR President-Elect for 2025–2026. He will assume the Presidency in April 2026 at the AACR Annual Meeting in San Diego. Dr. Flaherty is Director of Clinical Cancer Research and the ...
The recent approval of the oral menin inhibitor revumenib brought much-needed treatment to patients with a challenging subset of disease: adults and children with relapsed or refractory acute leukemia harboring a lysine methyltransferase 2A gene (KMT2A) translocation or rearrangement. Approval was...