ADDING ENZALUTAMIDE to androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) significantly prolonged radiographic progression-free survival in men with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer, reducing the risk of progression or death by 61% compared with ADT plus placebo, according to results of the phase III...
THE FORMAL discussant of the ARAMIS trial, Ian Davis, MBBS (Hons), PhD, FRACP, FAChPM, of Monash University and Eastern Health, Melbourne, commented: “ARAMIS is a positive trial with encouraging early results. It has a meaningful endpoint of metastasis-free survival with acceptable toxicity....
THE INVESTIGATIONAL androgen receptor inhibitor darolutamide significantly improved metastasis-free survival in men with high-risk nonmetastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer vs placebo in the large phase III ARAMIS trial.1 Men treated with darolutamide had a median metastasis-free survival...
THE COMBINATION of savolitinib and durvalumab achieved durable responses in approximately one-fourth of patients with metastatic papillary renal cell carcinoma in the phase II CALYPSO study.1 Treatment options are limited for papillary renal cell carcinoma. Clinical guidelines recommend enrollment...
NIVOLUMAB PLUS low-dose ipilimumab continued to demonstrate strong responses as well as a survival benefit with a median of 32.4 months of follow-up as front-line treatment for patients with intermediate- and poor-risk advanced renal cell carcinoma, according to an update of the phase II CheckMate...
THE PROGRAMMED cell death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) inhibitor, avelumab, was combined with the multitargeted vascular growth endothelial factor (VEGF) agent, axitinib, and compared to monotherapy with sunitinib in the first-line treatment of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma. Toni K. Choueiri,...
AS REPORTED at the 2019 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium by Thomas Powles, MD, and as published in The New England Journal of Medicine by Brian Rini, MD, and colleagues, significant benefits in overall and progression-free survival were achieved with the combination of pembrolizumab plus axitinib...
THIS YEAR saw a huge turnout and a large number of scientific abstracts presented at both the 2019 Gastrointestinal (GI) Cancers Symposium, held on January 17–19, and the 2019 Genitourinary (GU) Cancers Symposium, held on February 14–16, both in San Francisco. The GU Cancers Symposium attracted...
This week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted designations for treatments for recurrent glioblastoma, neurofibromatosis type 1 and plexiform neurofibromas, multiple myeloma, and relapsed or refractory FLT3-ITD acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Fast Track Designation for Ad-RTS-hIL-12...
A new study reveals that preventive medications—such as those to lower blood pressure or cholesterol, or to protect bone health, among others—are commonly prescribed during the last year of life of older adults with cancer, even though they are unlikely to provide meaningful benefits....
As reported in The New England Journal of Medicine by Mehta et al, the final overall survival results of the phase III SWOG S0226 trial show that the addition of first-line fulvestrant to anastrozole was associated with improved overall survival in postmenopausal women with hormone...
In an interim analysis of a phase II study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Makker et al found that lenvatinib plus pembrolizumab was active in advanced endometrial cancer. Study Details In the study, 54 patients from 11 sites with metastatic endometrial cancer unselected for microsatellite...
People with and without cancer are more likely, over time, to use a more potent form of medical marijuana with increasingly higher amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a new study published by Kim et al in the Journal of Palliative Medicine has shown. “Although there is growing...
New research presented by Gu et al at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2019 found that administering radiation treatments in the morning as opposed to later in the day may significantly reduce the severity of mucositis and its related impacts (Abstract 4860). ...
Although the pool of registered bone marrow donors has increased in recent years, a new study suggests that most patients of southern European and non-European descent are unlikely to have a suitable match if they need a bone marrow transplant. If an immediate registry search does not identify a...
In a study reported in the Journal of Oncology Practice, Williams et al found that items in geriatric assessment were significantly predictive of hospitalization frequency and long-term care use among older cancer survivors. Study Details The study included 125 patients aged ≥ 65 years from...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Van Cutsem et al, treatment with encorafenib, binimetinib, and cetuximab for BRAF V600E–mutant metastatic colorectal cancer was associated with a manageable safety profile and evidence of activity in the safety lead-in to the phase III BEACON ...
A higher body mass index (BMI) before age 50 may be more strongly associated with pancreatic cancer mortality risk than excess weight at older age, according to the results of a study presented by Jacobs et al at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2019 (Abstract...
Treatment with the FLT3-targeted therapeutic gilteritinib improved survival for patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) harboring an FLT3 mutation compared with standard chemotherapy regimens, according to results from the phase III ADMIRAL trial presented by Perl et al at ...
An interim analysis of a small phase Ib study by O’Hara et al evaluating the CD40 agonistic monoclonal antibody APX005M in combination with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel with or without the programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) inhibitor nivolumab in untreated patients with metastatic...
The results of an analysis of pooled data from the phase Ib KEYNOTE-028 trial and the phase II KEYNOTE-158 study of the anti–programmed cell death protein 1 monoclonal antibody pembrolizumab in the treatment of advanced small cell lung cancer has found that the therapy provided antitumor...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Oncology Center of Excellence (OCE) has issued its 2018 Annual Report, including updates on regulatory reviews and initiatives, OCE programs, guidances, and more. Regulatory Reviews The OCE is tasked with clinical medical oncology reviews, irrespective...
This week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced policy changes to modernize mammography policies and issued a Breakthrough Therapy designation, an Orphan Drug designation, and an investigational new drug application. FDA Advances Policy Changes to Modernize Mammography Services...
The members of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) have elected Antoni Ribas, MD, PhD, as their President-Elect for 2019–2020. He will officially become President-Elect at the AACR Annual Meeting 2019 and he will assume the presidency in April 2020 at the AACR Annual Meeting...
Keratinocyte carcinoma, previously known as nonmelanoma skin cancer, is the most common malignancy in fair-skinned populations worldwide. In a review article published in Current Opinion in Pharmacology, Alexander Zink, MD, MPH, PhD, of the Technical University of Munich, proposed that...
APPROXIMATELY 5 MILLION middle and high school students reported currently using a tobacco product, with over 3.6 million currently using e-cigarettes and about 2.5 million currently using a combustible tobacco product, according to the latest findings from the National Youth Tobacco Survey ...
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS recently reintroduced bipartisan legislation, the ‘Covering Life-Saving Investigations Needed in Cancer and Other Life-Threatening Conditions Through Timely Use of Resources for Easy and Affordable Treatment from Medicaid for Enrollees in Need Today Act,’ or the CLINICAL...
ASCO’S CONQUER CANCER FOUNDATION is pleased to announce the recipients of the Gastrointestinal Cancers, Genitourinary Cancers, and Clinical Immuno-Oncology Symposium Merit Awards. Conquer Cancer Merit Awards recognize oncology fellows’ and trainees’ high-quality research submitted in abstracts to...
The National Center of Oncology (NCO) in Azerbaijan partnered with ASCO, the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP), and the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) to conduct a highly successful Multidisciplinary Cancer Management Course (MCMC) in September 2018 in Baku, Azerbaijan. The conference...
ASCO HAS PUBLISHED a new guideline, “Safe Handling of Hazardous Drugs: ASCO Standards,” to promote the safety of pharmacists, nurses, and all staff who handle potentially dangerous medicines, such as chemotherapy compounds.1 Safety is pivotal in the entire drug workflow, including drug mixing and...
ASCO ENDORSES and reinforces the evidence-based American Urological Association (AUA), American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), and the Society of Urologic Oncology (SUO) Guideline published in 2018 in the Journal of Urology. ASCO’s endorsement of a guideline on clinically localized...
RECENTLY, CANCERCARE celebrated its 75th anniversary by revealing a new campaign, “If It Matters To You, It Matters To Us.” The campaign highlights CancerCare’s commitment to holistic, patient-centered support services and comprehensive care for people living with cancer. The new messaging features ...
NYU LANGONE Health’s Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center has been designated a Comprehensive Cancer Center by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). Perlmutter Cancer Center is now among 50 cancer centers across the country to earn this distinction. Perlmutter Cancer Center received an overall...
AS REPORTED in The New England Journal of Medicine by Anna Bill-Axelson, MD, PhD, Lars Holmberg, MD, PhD, both of Uppsala University Hospital, and and colleagues, the 29-year follow-up of the Scandinavian Prostate Cancer Group Study Number 4 (SPCG-4) trial has shown that radical prostatectomy is...
IN PATIENTS with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma who responded well to induction therapy and underwent transplant, 2 years of maintenance therapy with ixazomib led to a 38% improvement in progression-free survival compared with placebo, according to the results of the phase III TOURMALINE-MM3...
THE PHASE III IMpassion130 trial, first reported at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2018 Congress1 and published in The New England Journal of Medicine,2 found that the combination of front-line atezolizumab plus nab-paclitaxel significantly improved disease-free and overall...
A NEW ASCO guideline, “Management of the Neck in Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Oral Cavity and Oropharynx: ASCO Clinical Practice Guideline,” aims to clarify issues in lymph node management.1 “This guideline represents a true multidisciplinary synthesis of some important new information about...
ON MARCH 5, 2019, Scott Gottlieb, MD, announced his resignation as Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a post he began in 2017. Dr. Gottlieb’s resignation will be effective in April. In a resignation letter to Alex M. Azar II, Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS),...
WHEN BRANDON CANYON’S mother Leone was diagnosed with uterine cancer, he drove her to treatment sessions at the nearest cancer center—a 200-mile round trip on rough roads. Gas was a significant expense, but their only other option was to forgo treatment. The Canyons are members of the Navajo...
IN A MOVE that is a significant departure from current testing recommendations, the American Society of Breast Surgeons (ASBrS) recommends that genetic testing be available to all individuals newly diagnosed with breast cancer.1 The new recommendations expand on common restrictions by the National...
CITY OF HOPE announced recently that it received its third lymphoma Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE) grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The grant covers a 5-year period and totals $12.5 million. SPORE grants involve both basic as well as clinical and applied...
FORMAL STUDY discussant Matthew I. Milowsky, MD, of the University of North Carolina, Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, Chapel Hill, said there had been few drug approvals in advanced bladder cancer until 5 new checkpoint inhibitors were approved over the past 2 years. “Although these agents...
THE ANNUAL GASTROINTESTINAL CANCERS SYMPOSIUM took place earlier this year in San Francisco. In addition to important studies captured in our past few issues, The ASCO Post here briefly summarizes additional interesting studies. Adjuvant Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy in Colon Cancer...
YOU CANNOT write about caring; you must practice it. None of us went to medical school thinking we would be an oncologist or a neurosurgeon or a stem cell biologist. But we did have vague aspirations of wanting to help others: to be involved in other lives. It was an altruistic avocation; how...
Fewer women are assigned to a dense-breast category when evaluated with advanced mammographic screening technologies compared to standard digital mammography, according to a new study published by Gastounioti et al in Radiology. Density Assessment A woman’s breast density is assessed during ...
A new method of determining the sequence of molecules in DNA can be used to detect small fragments of cancerous genetic material in blood samples from patients with lung cancer with a high degree of accuracy, according research published by Li et al in Annals of Oncology. Liquid Biopsies and...
New research published by Dinan et al in JNCCN—Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network provides evidence that genomic recurrence score testing using the 21-gene assay is associated with decreased cancer care costs in real-world practice among certain patients with breast...
In a retrospective cohort study reported in JAMA Oncology, Cagney et al found that pachymeningeal seeding was fairly common after neurosurgical resection in patients with brain metastases treated with adjuvant stereotactic radiation. Study Details The study involved 1,188 consecutive patients...
Margaret A. Tempero, MD, of the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses new adjuvant therapy options for patients with pancreatic cancer, and germline testing, including testing for microsatellite instability/mismatch repair genes as well as molecular analysis of all tumors.
Gary H. Lyman, MD, MPH, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, discusses current strategies for the use of biosimilars to treat cancer-induced anemia and neutropenia, and the need to provide evidence for the efficacy of these agents to allay any concerns about...