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Showing 6201 - 6250New Data Reported on Vemurafenib, Vitamin D, Selective Internal Radiotherapy, and Circulating Tumor DNA in Colorectal Cancer
RESULTS OF the IDEA trial, which showed that some patients with stage III low-risk colon cancer may require less oxaliplatin therapy (see the June 25 issue of The ASCO Post), were among the findings highlighted at the 2017 ASCO Annual Meeting Plenary Session. Other studies of interest in colorectal ...
In Case You Missed It: Short Takes on Current Cancer Research
MOST ONCOLOGISTS are familiar with the findings of the plenary sessions featured at the 2017 ASCO Annual Meeting, with topics ranging from the duration of adjuvant oxaliplatin-based therapy in stage III colon cancer to patient-reported outcomes for symptom monitoring during routine cancer...
FDA’s First Site-Agnostic Drug Approval Marks a Paradigm Shift in Regulatory Criteria
IN MAY, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to pembrolizumab (Keytruda) for patients with solid tumors that have the microsatellite instability–high (MSI-H) or mismatch repair deficient (dMMR) biomarker, which disrupts the ability of cells to repair DNA. The...
An Educational Program for Safe Handling of Opioids
Improper storage, use, and disposal of prescribed opioids can lead to diversion or accidental overdose. Given that opioids are the mainstay of cancer pain treatment, this issue is particularly germane in the oncology community. The ASCO Post recently spoke with Akhila Reddy, MD, and Maxine de la...
First Oncologist Elected AMA President, Barbara L. McAneny, MD, Advocates for Access to Health Care for Everyone
Since the founding of the American Medical Association (AMA) in 1847, Barbara L. McAneny, MD, is the fourth woman and first oncologist to be elected President of the venerable medical association. “I’m a generic Midwesterner. I was born in Missouri and raised in Madison County, Illinois, and went...
Two San Diego Nonprofits to Receive 2017 ASTRO Survivor Circle Grants
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) will award its annual Survivor Circle grants to two San Diego–based cancer support charities: Cancer Angels of San Diego and The Seany Foundation. Each organization will receive an $8,500 grant to support its programs for those who have been...
NETRF Commits $4 Million for Neuroendocrine Tumor Research
The Neuroendocrine Tumor Research Foundation (NETRF) has announced its largest research commitment ever—$4 million in collaborative grants—most from its new Accelerator Grants program to study neuroendocrine tumors, a widely misunderstood, commonly misdiagnosed cancer type without adequately...
Comparison of Circulating Tumor DNA and Metastatic Tissue Biopsy in Identifying Mutations in Prostate Cancer
In a study reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Wyatt et al found high agreement between driver mutations in plasma circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) and metastatic tissue biopsy in castration-resistant prostate cancer. Mutations Identified in ctDNA In the study, targeted...
FDA Grants Acalabrutinib Breakthrough Therapy Designation for the Treatment of Mantle Cell Lymphoma
Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation for acalabrutinib for the treatment of patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) who have received at least one prior therapy. Acalabrutinib is a highly selective, potent Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK)...
FDA Approves Nivolumab in MSI-H or dMMR Metastatic Colorectal Cancer
Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved nivolumab (Opdivo) injection for intravenous use for the treatment of adult and pediatric (12 years and older) patients with microsatellite instability–high (MSI-H) or mismatch repair deficient (dMMR) metastatic colorectal cancer...
Association of Bisphosphonate Use and Breast Cancer Risk in Postmenopausal Women
A study in postmenopausal women in the French E3N prospective cohort indicated bisphosphonate use was not associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer. These findings were reported by Fournier et al in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Study Details The study included 64,438 postmenopausal...
Genetic Study Identifies Susceptibility Loci Modifying Risk for Breast Cancer After Radiation Therapy for Childhood Cancer
As reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Morton et al have identified gene loci associated with radiation-related risk of breast cancer in survivors of childhood cancer. Study Details The study was a genome-wide association study of breast cancer in female survivors of...
Classifying Gastric Cancers by Subtype May Provide Tailored Treatment Options
Gastric cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death in both men and women worldwide. In 2014, The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project discovered there are four molecular subtypes of gastric cancer: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), microsatellite instability (MSI), genomically stable (GS), and...
FDA Expands Approval of Ipilimumab to Include Pediatric Patients 12 Years and Older With Unresectable or Metastatic Melanoma
Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) expanded the indication for ipilimumab (Yervoy) injection for intravenous use to now include the treatment of unresectable or metastatic melanoma in pediatric patients 12 years of age and older. Ipilimumab was evaluated in 2 trials of pediatric...
COX-2 Inhibitors May Reverse IDO1-Mediated Immunosuppression in Some Cancers
In preclinical studies, tumors that consitutively expressed the protein indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO1) responded to the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor celecoxib (Celebrex) and had improved infiltration of certain subsets of T cells, making them more likely to respond to...
Concurrent Chemotherapy, Proton Therapy May Improve Survival in Patients With Advanced Lung Cancer
For patients with advanced, inoperable stage III lung cancer, concurrent chemotherapy and proton-beam radiotherapy offers improved survival compared to historical data for standard of care, according to a new study from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The research, published by...
The Art of Networking: Advice for the Oncologist-in-Training
It was Friday night of the 2016 ASCO Annual Meeting in Chicago. I planned to meet a friend, another 2nd-year heme-onc fellow, at a “free drink thing,” as she called it. I sheepishly entered the hotel bar, made a nametag at the insistence of the greeter, and started edging my way through the crowd. ...
2017 ASTRO Gold Medalists Named
THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR RADIATION ONCOLOGY (ASTRO) has announced the 2017 ASTRO Gold Medalists. Søren M. Bentzen, DSc, PhD; Louis B. Harrison, MD, FASTRO; and Michael L. Steinberg, MD, FASTRO, have been awarded the annual honor given to ASTRO members who have made outstanding lifetime...
Insurance Approval Rates for Enrollment in Oncology Clinical Trials Increased Under Affordable Care Act
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010 was the first federal law to mandate that group health insurance plans and state-licensed insurance issuers provide coverage of standard-of-care costs for patients enrolled in approved clinical trials, effective on January 1, 2014. Under...
Analysis Reveals Genomic Alterations, Oncogenes Driving Medulloblastoma Subtypes
The most comprehensive analysis yet of medulloblastoma has identified genomic changes responsible for more than 75% of the brain tumors, including two new suspected cancer genes that were found exclusively in the least understood disease subgroups. The study from an international research...
Breast Cancer and Brain Metastases: Whole-Brain Radiotherapy May Not Be the Answer
FOR PATIENTS WITH BREAST CANCER who have metastases to the central nervous system (CNS), clinicians should think twice before administering whole-brain radiotherapy, according to Kimberly Blackwell, MD, Professor of Medicine and Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology at Duke University Medical...
Are Wearable Physical Activity Monitors Coming of Age in Oncology?
COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE wearable physical activity monitors have been making their way into clinical research in recent years; however, most studies on these devices have been related to non-cancer conditions including obesity, depression, and physical activity. Their application in the field of...
Expert Point of View: Anne Tsao, MD, and John Heymach, MD, PhD
STUDY DISCUSSANT Anne Tsao, MD, Director of the Mesothelioma Program at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, indicated the response rates seen in the MAPS-2 trial are comparable to those demonstrated in smaller studies of pembrolizumab (Keytruda). She considered the...
Expert Point of View: Ritu Salani, MD, MBA
STUDY DISCUSSANT Ritu Salani, MD, MBA, of The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, agreed with the LION trial investigators. “Omitting systemic lymph node dissection in patients who have both radiographic and clinically negative lymph nodes is acceptable,” she said. “I always...
Study Supports Omission of Lymphadenectomy in Node-Negative Advanced Ovarian Cancer
SYSTEMATIC LYMPHADENECTOMY in patients with advanced ovarian cancer and complete resection offered no improvement in progression-free or overall survival in the Gynecologic Cancer Intergroup’s LION trial, reported at the 2017 ASCO Annual Meeting by Philipp Harter, MD, PhD, of the German...
Expert Point of View: Steven J. Cohen, MD, and Josep Tabarnero, MD, PhD
STEVEN J. COHEN, MD, Director of the Rosenfeld Cancer Center at Jefferson Health/Abington Hospital, Abington, Pennsylvania, and Vice Chair of Medical Oncology at Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson, and Josep Tabernero, MD, PhD, Head of Medical Oncology and the Gastrointestinal Tumors and...
Expert Point of View: Lynn Schuchter, MD
DISCUSSANT LYNN SCHUCHTER, MD, the C. Willard Professor of Medicine at the Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, said the findings herald “a new era on two fronts…. Systemic therapy as initial treatment for patients with asymptomatic central nervous system (CNS)...
Maintaining Predictable Increases in NIH Funding for Cancer Research
CONGRESS RECENTLY passed its fiscal year (FY) 2017 spending bill, which contains an additional $2 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This marks the first time in more than a dozen years that Congress funded back-to-back increases for the NIH, demonstrating the bipartisan...
ASCO Offers Path to Addressing Affordability of Cancer Drugs in New Position Statement
Today, ASCO issued a position statement aimed at contributing to the national dialogue on rising cancer drug prices. The statement, which asserts that any solutions must also preserve patients' access to care and foster innovation, analyzes a wide array of options and recommends that a panel of...
Understanding of Stage and Cancer Status Among Patients in a Community-Based Cancer Institute
As reported by Sivendran et al in the Journal of Oncology Practice, half of patients in a large community-based cancer institute did not know their stage of cancer, and one-third did not know of their cancer-free/in-remission status. Study Details The study involved 208 adult patients treated at...
Edus H. Warren, MD, PhD, Named Leader of Fred Hutch Global Oncology Program
Immunotherapy researcher and oncologist Edus H. Warren, MD, PhD, has been selected to lead the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (Fred Hutch) program in Global Oncology in its effort to transform cancer care in sub-Saharan Africa, China, and other regions by providing greater access to the...
Educating Young People on Sun-Safe Behaviors and Reducing the Risk of Melanoma
“If minors don’t tan, then they may never become adult tanners,” Jeffrey E. Gershenwald, MD, said in explaining the emphasis on teaching sun safety behaviors to young children as part of the Melanoma Moon Shot Program at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston. Dr. Gershenwald is ...
Shiitake Mushroom: Insufficient Evidence to Support It Boosts Immune System
In the June 25 issue of The ASCO Post, the Integrative Oncology column by Ting Bao, MD, DABMA, MS, and Jyothirmai Gubili, MS, focused on how to counsel a patient about shiitake mushroom. They concluded: “We advised our patient that it is safe to take shiitake mushroom to boost her immune system.”...
Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy for Poor Performance Status Patients With Pancreatic Cancer
There are few data to guide the management of nonmetastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma in patients who are elderly or have a poor performance status. Although most such patients are offered supportive care or gemcitabine alone, the addition of stereotactic body radiotherapy may improve...
Living With Cancer Survivorship Guilt
Although I was officially diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 1997, the first sign of the cancer was evident 2 years earlier, when a single lesion (a plasmacytoma) was found in a bone in my lower back. The bone was replaced with two thin stainless steel rods, and after a course of radiation therapy, ...
Huntsman Unveils New Primary Children’s and Families’ Cancer Research Center
On June 21, 2017, the Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at the University of Utah announced the official opening of its Primary Children’s and Families’ Cancer Research Center, a world-class facility dedicated to advancing research in cancer. Jon M. Huntsman also announced a commitment from the...
A Social Media Guide by a Doctor for Doctors
Today’s brave new world of digital technology has both enhanced and compromised the day-to-day operational efficiency of ultrabusy oncologists who are struggling to balance patient care with the rapid evolution of technology. Like all scientific advances, health-care technology is a double-edged...
No Survival Benefit When Pravastatin Is Added to Standard Chemotherapy in Small Cell Lung Cancer
In a UK phase III study (LUNGSTAR) reported in the Journal of Clinical -Oncology, Michael J. Seckl, MD, PhD, of Imperial College London, and colleagues found that adding pravastatin to first-line standard chemotherapy did not improve overall survival in patients with small cell lung cancer...
The Immune System: Deciphering Recent Advances
Over the past decade, there has been renewed interest in developing immunologic therapies in cancer. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved several new biologic agents that target a patient’s immune system, some of which have produced profound clinical responses. However, the...
ASTRO Updates Insurance Coverage Recommendations for Proton Therapy
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) has issued an update to its recommendations for medical insurance coverage regarding the use of proton beam therapy to treat cancer. The updated Proton Beam Therapy Model Policy provides guidance to payers on clinical indications that are...
CD33 Splicing Polymorphism and Response to Gemtuzumab Ozogamicin in AML
In an analysis of the phase III Children’s Oncology Group AAML0531 trial, published by Lambda et al in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, the CD33-targeted immunoconjugate gemtuzumab ozogamicin was shown to have benefit among patients with de novo acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who carry the CC...
Study Demonstrates Potential for Artificial Intelligence and Whole-Genome Sequencing to Scale Access to Precision Medicine
In a study published by Wrzeszczynski et al in Neurology: Genetics, researchers at the New York Genome Center (NYGC), The Rockefeller University, and IBM illustrated the potential of IBM Watson for Genomics to analyze complex genomic data from state-of-the-art sequencing of whole genomes. The study ...
FDA Accepts sNDA for Dasatinib in Pediatric Patients With Philadelphia Chromosome–Positive Chronic-Phase CML
On July 10, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accepted a supplemental new drug application (sNDA) to include an indication for dasatinib (Sprycel) to treat children with Philadelphia chromosome–positive chronic-phase chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), as well as a powder for oral...
Factors Associated With Near-Miss/Safety Incidents in Cancer Radiotherapy
In a single-institution case-control analysis reported in the Journal of Oncology Practice, Judy et al found that complexity of procedure or schedule was a significant factor in near-miss or safety incidents involving cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy. Study Details The study involved a...
Has a New Standard Really Been Established for the Adjuvant Treatment of Pancreatic Cancer?
THE PAST YEAR has undoubtedly been a disappointing one as far as clinical advances in pancreatic cancer go. No fewer than five high-profile randomized phase II or III trials in this setting reported negative results in 2016, ranging from next-generation cytotoxic agents1 to novel immunotherapeutic ...
Conquer Cancer Foundation Researcher Spotlight: Dr. Supriya Mohile
SUPRIYA MOHILE, MD, MS Associate Professor of Medicine, Director of the Geriatric Oncology Clinic University of Rochester Medical Center Rochester, New York Older adults are the population most affected by cancer: 60% of all cancer occurs in this group. Yet the field of oncology that focuses on...
Preparing for Future Challenges in Geriatric Surgical Oncology
In the past decade, advances in surgical oncology have been echoed in the field of geriatric oncology. The current literature regarding older people with cancer includes mainly retrospective cohort studies, focusing on alternatives to radical surgery in comorbid patients. More recently, work has...
Autologous and Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation
HERE ARE SEVERAL ABSTRACTS selected from the proceedings of the 2016 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition, highlighting clinical trials on autologous and allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation for various hematologic malignancies. Additional selected...
Retreatment With Checkpoint Inhibitors May Be Feasible for Some Patients With NSCLC
INCREASING NUMBERS of patients are being treated with checkpoint inhibitors, and about one-quarter to one-third will develop immune-related adverse events. One question on the minds of oncologists is can these patients be safely re-treated once their adverse events resolve? One of the first...
Big Data and the Learning Machine
BOOKMARK Title: The Master Algorithm: How the Quest for the Ultimate Learning Machine Will Remake Our WorldAuthor: Pedro DomingosPublisher: Beacon PressPublication date: February 2017Price: $24.95, hardcover, 288 pages Technology is revolutionizing our understanding and treatment of diseases....
