Solange Peters, MD, PhD, of the Oncology Department of CHUV, discusses study findings from the first phase III trial to show PD-1 and CTLA-4 inhibition is effective in non–small cell lung cancer, with improved overall survival vs chemotherapy (Abstract LBA4).
Véronique Diéras, MD, of Institut Curie Paris & Saint Cloud, discusses results from the phase III BROCADE 3 trial, which investigated the PARP inhibitor veliparib in combination with carboplatin/paclitaxel in patients with advanced HER2-negative, germline BRCA–mutated breast cancer (Abstract...
Sungjune Kim, MD, PhD, of the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, discusses phase II study findings on the safety and tolerability of nivolumab/ipilimumab plus stereotactic body radiation therapy (Abstract 1321P).
Patients with advanced RET fusion–positive thyroid cancer and RET-mutant medullary thyroid cancer had high rates of response following treatment with selpercatinib, according to findings from the phase I/II LIBRETTO-001 trial presented by Wirth et al at the European Society for Medical Oncology...
Patients with ALK-positive non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that was metastatic to the brain at baseline demonstrated whole-body, intracranial, and extracranial responses following treatment with ceritinib, according to findings from the phase II ASCEND-7 study presented by Chow et al at the...
Volker Kunzmann, MD, of the University of Würzburg/Comprehensive Cancer Center Mainfranken, discusses the final results of a phase II multicenter trial on the conversion rate in locally advanced pancreatic cancer after nab-paclitaxel/gemcitabine- or FOLFIRINOX-based induction chemotherapy (Abstract ...
Sherene Loi, MD, PhD, of Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre at the University of Melbourne, and Leisha A. Emens, MD, PhD, of UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, discuss overall survival in this phase II study of atezolizumab/trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1) vs placebo/T-DM1 in previously treated HER2-positive...
Tim Meyer, PhD, of the University College London, and Lorenza Rimassa, MD, of Humanitas Research Hospital, Milan, discuss their phase III findings on prognostic and predictive factors of cabozantinib vs placebo in previously treated liver cancer, and outcomes based on clinical characteristics and...
Angela Lamarca, MD, PhD, of the Christie NHS Foundation Trust, discusses findings from a study that showed new staging criteria should be considered for patients diagnosed with liver metastases in the absence of other extrahepatic tumor spread (Abstract 731P).
Aleix Prat, MD, PhD, of Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, discusses the findings of a meta-analysis showing that the HER2-E subtype may predict pathologic complete response beyond hormone receptor status in HER2-positive early breast cancer (Abstract 248P).
Peter Schmid, MD, PhD, of Queen Mary University of London Barts Cancer Institute, discusses pathologic complete response data from a phase III study of pembrolizumab/chemotherapy vs placebo/chemotherapy as neoadjuvant treatment, followed by pembrolizumab vs placebo as 6-month adjuvant treatment for ...
Robin L. Jones, MD, MBBS, of The Royal Marsden/Institute of Cancer Research, discusses the first phase III study in angiosarcoma, which showed no difference in outcome between pazopanib vs pazopanib plus the novel monoclonal antibody TRC105 (Abstract 1667O).
Thomas Powles, MD, PhD, of Queen Mary University of London, discusses the first study to examine immunotherapy and targeted treatment combinations with a personalized approach in bladder cancer. FGF, TORC1/2, and PARP inhibitors were explored in combination with durvalumab in selected patients...
Paolo A. Ascierto, MD, of the Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Napoli, discusses phase III study findings confirming the superior activity of nivolumab vs ipilimumab in resected stage III/IV melanoma in terms of regression-free survival after a minimum follow-up of 36 months (Abstract 1310O).
Laura Q.M. Chow, MD, of the University of Texas at Austin, Dell Medical School and LIVESTRONG Cancer Institutes, discusses phase II study findings that showed the ALK inhibitor ceritinib achieved durable intracranial response in patients with ALK-positive non–small cell lung cancer that has spread...
Patients with advanced colon cancer and plasma samples containing circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) were less likely to achieve 2-year disease-free survival with oxaliplatin-based adjuvant treatment than patients with ctDNA-negative samples, according to findings presented at the European Society for...
Two studies presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2019 Congress showed the efficacy of poly ADP ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitors in patients with newly diagnosed ovarian cancer. In the PRIMA/ENGOT-OV26/GOG-3012 study, presented by González Martín et al (Abstract LBA1;...
Treatment tailored by comprehensive molecular gene-expression analysis of tumors from patients with carcinomas of an unknown primary site did not improve progression-free survival vs empiric chemotherapy consisting of cisplatin/gemcitabine. Fizazi et al presented these findings at the European...
An update of results of the phase III CheckMate 067 trial at 5 years presented by Larkin et al at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2019 Congress showed that both nivolumab in combination with ipilimumab and nivolumab alone provided significant improvements in overall survival,...
New data have shown a trend toward clinically meaningful improvements in survival and response rates and a favorable safety profile with first-line immunotherapy compared to current standard treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The data, reported by Yau et al at the European...
Men with prostate cancer may be spared radiotherapy after surgery, according to late-breaking results of the RADICALS-RT trial presented by Parker et al at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2019 (Abstract LBA49_PR). The study answers a long-standing question about whether...
On September 26, 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved daratumumab (Darzalex) in combination with bortezomib, thalidomide, and dexamethasone for newly diagnosed adult patients with multiple myeloma who are eligible for autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT). Efficacy was investigated ...
This week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) alerted health-care professionals and patients of a voluntary recall of 14 lots of prescription ranitidine capsules distributed by Sandoz Inc, used to decrease the amount of acid created by the stomach. This recall is due to a nitrosamine...
Earlier this week, Acting Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Ned Sharpless, MD, testified before the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on the FDA’s planned regulation of electronic nicotine delivery systems and investigation of vaping illnesses. His remarks are...
As our aging population increases, so does the demand for oncology services; however, as ASCO and other organizations have pointed out, a workforce shortage of oncology care specialists looms in the not-so-distant future. Given the growing need for care models that meet this demand, a better...
The ASCO Post has offered comprehensive coverage of the 2019 ASCO Annual Meeting. To complement this news coverage, here are featured clinical trials of several treatments in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). They focus on the monoclonal antibody obinutuzumab in combination therapy in the CLL14...
The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) recently awarded 71 new grants, totaling close to $136 million, to advance cancer research. This total includes 58 academic research grant awards, 10 prevention awards, and 3 product development research awards. CPRIT has now brought 181 ...
The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001*, on the World Trade Center in New York City resulted in the deaths of more than 2,700 people.1 Nearly 2 decades later, that number may soon be exceeded by the more than 2,000 deaths—and climbing—of first responders to the attack, including firefighters,...
To improve cancer outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa, a collaborative project from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®), the African Cancer Coalition (ACC), the American Cancer Society, and others recently entered a new phase in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Oncologists from 11 African...
This past June, the University of Pennsylvania established the Mark Foundation Center for Immunotherapy, Immune Signaling, and Radiation to study the role interferon and pattern recognition receptor signaling transduction pathways play in modulating the immune system’s ability to recognize and...
Both Charles Rudin, MD, PhD, and Andrew Nicholson, MD, were recognized by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) at the IASLC 2019 World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC). The 19th WCLC, the world’s largest international gathering of clinicians, researchers and scientists ...
Denise R. Aberle, MD, of the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), was recognized by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) with the Joseph W. Cullen Prevention/Early Detection Award at the IASLC 2019 World Conference on...
"Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health is the most shocking and the most inhumane….” —Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr Progress has been made in expanding access to health care for low-income populations, but the quality of care still lags behind and can result in less successful outcomes...
1. (Left to right) Sandra Swain, MD, FASCO, Lynn M. Schuchter, MD, FASCO, and Linda Bosserman, MD, FACP, FASCO, among the speakers and guests at the Women Leaders in Oncology Event, held in conjunction with the ASCO Annual Meeting, June 3, 2019. Photo by © ASCO/Matt Herp 2019. 2. Attendees at the...
In the early fall of 2015, my daughter and I were on our way to our favorite nail salon to get picture-perfect ready for a gala later that evening at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York, when I got a call from my gynecologist saying I had “flunked my Pap test.” The Pap smear showed...
On September 12, 2019, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced the updated number of confirmed and probable cases of lung disease associated with e-cigarette product use, or vaping. The new case count is the first national aggregate based on the new CDC case definition...
Through its community grants program, the Prevent Cancer Foundation is supporting 10 projects that are focused on increasing cancer prevention and early detection in communities across the United States, from Honolulu to Baltimore. The projects were selected through a competitive grants process,...
The ASCO Post is pleased to reproduce installments of the Art of Oncology as published previously in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. These articles focus on the experience of suffering from cancer or of caring for people diagnosed with cancer, and they include narratives, topical essays,...
Medicare patients from lower socioeconomic groups and several ethnic minority groups were more likely to be diagnosed with cancer following an emergency department visit, according to results of a study presented at the 12th American Association for Cancer Research Conference on The Science of...
An international study has revealed the origin of mucinous ovarian cancer, confirming that unlike other types of ovarian cancer, this cancer arises from benign and borderline precursors at the ovaries and are not extraovarian metastases. These findings were published by Cheasley et al in Nature...
Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the noninvasive colorectal cancer screening test Cologuard for eligible average-risk individuals aged 45 years and older, expanding on its previous indication for those aged 50 years and older. Cologuard is a stool DNA-based colorectal...
Andrew Kneebone, MD, of Royal North Shore Hospital, discusses phase III study findings showing that at 5 years, biochemical control was similar between adjuvant and early salvage radiotherapies, the latter sparing half of the men potential side effects of radiotherapy without any significant...
Robert Olson, MD, of the BC Cancer Centre for the North, discusses a secondary analysis of the SABR-COMET trial, which showed there was a small magnitude decline in quality of life in both arms of the study but no associated detriment with stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (Abstract 148).
Erica H. Bell, PhD, of The Ohio State University, discusses phase III findings from a prognostic and predictive molecular subgroup analysis of radiotherapy vs radiotherapy plus procarbazine/lomustine/vincristine in high-risk low-grade gliomas (Abstract 161).
Michael J. LaRiviere, MD, of the University of Pennsylvania, discusses the safety and efficacy of an alternate radiation-based approach to using cytotoxic chemotherapy alone in preparation for CAR T-cell treatment (Abstract 135).
Sue Sun Yom, MD, PhD, of the University of California, San Francisco, discusses phase II results showing that swallowing-related quality of life after deintensified chemoradiation therapy may improve in patients with p16-positive, nonsmoking-associated, locoregionally advanced disease (Abstract...
Alejandra Méndez Romero, MD, PhD, of Erasmus University Medical Center, discusses findings that show high local control rates with stereotactic body radiation for patients in this large published series, most of whom had colorectal cancer (Abstract 230).
David Routman, MD, of the Mayo Clinic, discusses his study findings showing that detectable human papillomavirus circulating tumor DNA in the postoperative setting may be linked to disease progression, which may help improve patient selection for treatment intensity (Abstract LBA5).
Daniel M. Trifiletti, MD, of the Mayo Clinic, discusses study findings showing that, between two different radiation doses (30 Gy/10 fractions vs 37.5 Gy/15 fractions), there was no difference in the time to cognitive failure, tumor control, or overall survival for patients with brain metastases...
Youssef Zeidan, MD, PhD, of the American University of Beirut Medical Center, discusses study findings showing that, in patients with one to three positive lymph nodes, postmastectomy radiation treatment decreased the risk of locoregional recurrence, particularly in estrogen receptor–positive...