Andrew Srisuwananukorn, MD, of The Ohio State University, and Alexander T. Pearson, MD, PhD, of the University of Chicago, discuss the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the clinic, its potential benefits in diagnosis and treatment, resources available to help physicians learn more about AI,...
An ASCO guideline update offers new recommendations on systemic treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), based on promising findings from several recent randomized controlled trials as well as the approval of new first- and second-line immunotherapy combinations.1 “This guideline...
OCE Insights is an occasional department developed for The ASCO Post by members of the Oncology Center of Excellence (OCE) at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In this installment, the OCE’s Steven Cunningham, MD, MLA, FACS, Clinical Reviewer on the Gastrointestinal Cancers Team,...
When Jamie H. Von Roenn, MD, FASCO, graduated from high school in 1970 and enrolled at the University of Illinois in Champaign, she was determined to seek a career in special education, because she wanted to “help people through difficult situations.” Although Dr. Von Roenn ultimately decided to...
Several years ago, a visit to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC, so fascinated and inspired Mace L. Rothenberg, MD, FASCO, about the history of flight, he wondered why there was not a similar museum showcasing the past and present achievements in science and medicine. The result...
On April 22, 2024, the interleukin-15 receptor agonist nogapendekin alfa inbakicept-pmln was approved for use with bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) for adults with BCG-unresponsive non–muscle-invasive bladder cancer with carcinoma in situ with or without papillary tumors.1 Supporting Efficacy Data...
On February 15, 2024, tepotinib (Tepmetko)-—a kinase inhibitor directed against MET, including variants with exon 14 skipping—was granted regular approval for patients with metastatic non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) harboring mesenchymal-epithelial transition (MET) exon 14–skipping ...
Results of the phase III NADINA trial support a new standard of care for the treatment of resectable macroscopic stage III melanoma. Treatment with preoperative ipilimumab plus nivolumab followed by total lymph node dissection, with adjuvant therapy guided by depth of response, led to a highly...
A little more than 12 months ago, the first major cardio-oncology guidelines were published by the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).1 The extensive document embodied the immense progress of this subspecialty over its short existence. In reaching this milestone, it is worth considering what...
“Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), once a rare entity, now comprises 20% to 30% of newly diagnosed breast cancers detected on mammography and is appreciated to be a widely heterogeneous disease,” said E. Shelley Hwang, MD, MPH, the Mary and Deryl Hart Distinguished Professor at Duke University, who ...
Osimertinib significantly improved progression-free survival compared with placebo in patients with unresectable stage III EGFR-mutated non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) following definitive chemoradiotherapy. These findings of the phase III LAURA trial suggest that osimertinib may become a new...
In a component of the phase III RADICALS-HD trial reported in The Lancet, Chris C. Parker, MD, and colleagues found that metastasis-free survival was not significantly improved with 6 months of androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) vs no ADT together with adjuvant radiotherapy in patients with...
In a study reported in JAMA Oncology, Canavan et al found no differences in overall survival between oncology practices that were more vs less likely to provide chemotherapy within the last 2 weeks of life to patients with very advanced solid tumors. As stated by the investigators, “ASCO and the...
A novel ultrasensitive liquid biopsy may be predictive of breast cancer recurrence up to years prior to relapse in high-risk patients with early breast cancer, according to recent findings presented by Garcia-Murillas et al at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting (Abstract 1010). Background Circulating...
In a Korean study reported in JAMA Network Open, Song et al identified risk factors for interval breast cancer vs screen-detected breast cancer and described mortality outcomes for women in the two categories. Study Details The retrospective cohort study used data from the Korean National Health...
Yasmin H. Karimi, MD, of the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses data reaffirming the efficacy and feasibility of using epcoritamab plus R-DHAX/C (rituximab, dexamethasone, cytarabine, and oxaliplatin or carboplatin) in autologous stem cell transplant–eligible patients...
Paula Rodríguez-Otero, MD, PhD, of Spain’s Cancer Center Clínica Universidad de Navarra, and Amrita Y. Krishnan, MD, of the City of Hope Cancer Center, discuss two key studies on B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-directed therapies: CARTITUDE-4 on ciltacabtagene autoleucel in patients with...
Yukio Suzuki, MD, PhD, of Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, discusses data showing that reproductive-age patients with early-stage endometrial cancer who use fertility-preserving hormonal therapy seemed to have good overall survival after a 10-year follow-up (Abstract 5508).
Heather Wakelee, MD, of Stanford University Medical Center, discusses phase III findings showing that the disease-free survival benefit with adjuvant atezolizumab continues to translate into a positive overall survival trend vs best supportive care in patients with stage II–IIIA non–small cell lung ...
Telemedicine visits for cancer care are not only more convenient and possibly easier to schedule than in-person appointments—they may also be better for the planet. These findings were presented by Andrew Hantel, MD, and colleagues at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting (Abstract 1522) and simultaneously...
Peter Riedell, MD, of The University of Chicago, discusses phase III results on the use of tucidinostat plus R-CHOP in patients with previously untreated diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) with double expression of MYC and BCL2. The regimen appeared to improve event-free survival and complete...
Emily L. Podany, MD, of Washington University, St. Louis, discusses disparities in the use of PI3K inhibitors for Black patients with estrogen receptor–positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer while other drugs that do not require genomic profiling were similarly used (Abstract 1017).
Neoadjuvant immunotherapy given for stage III melanoma—followed by adjuvant therapy only if there is not a deep response to treatment—may produce better outcomes for patients than the current standard of care, which is adjuvant immunotherapy alone. These results from the NADINA trial were presented ...
David J. Andorsky, MD, of the Sarah Cannon Research Institute and Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers, discusses EPCORE NHL-6, an ongoing study of patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and follicular lymphoma (FL). As outpatients, the study participants were given...
Fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki (T-DXd) delayed cancer growth in patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive, HER2-low or -ultralow metastatic breast cancer that progressed following endocrine therapy, according to findings from the phase III DESTINY-Breast06 trial. The research was presented by...
Lisa A. Carey, MD, of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Dejan Juric, MD, of the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, discuss phase III findings on first-line use of inavolisib or placebo plus palbociclib and fulvestrant in...
When combined with azacitidine, a 7-day course of venetoclax demonstrated similar remission rates and was more tolerable compared to the standard 28-day course for older or chemotherapy-ineligible patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML). These results from a retrospective...
Researchers have uncovered differences in the genomic makeup of metastatic prostate cancer cells among U.S. veterans that may be associated with race and ethnicity. These findings will be presented by Valle et al at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting (Abstract 5017). The research could translate into...
A novel treatment strategy using cyclophosphamide-based graft-vs-host disease prophylaxis may enable more patients with high-risk hematologic malignancies to receive stem cell transplantation from mismatched unrelated donors. These findings were presented by Al Malki et al at the 2024 ASCO Annual...
ASCO President for the 2024–2025 term, Robin Zon, MD, FACP, FASCO, was born and reared in Cheektowaga, a town in the western part of New York. “Cheektowaga is the Native American name for ‘land of the crabapple tree.’ Western New York was first settled by one of seven tribes belonging to the...
Lymphoma expert Jane N. Winter, MD, grew up on the south shore of Long Island in New York. “My dad sold cars in my great uncle’s dealership after a failed foray into business after World War II. My mom graduated high school at 16 to go to work to help support her family. When my younger brother...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Oncology Center of Excellence (OCE) recently announced a new initiative called “Project 5 in 5.” Project 5 in 5 is a crowdsourcing initiative to ultimately identify five clinically relevant questions that can be answered through use of pragmatic...
I’m not prepared. It could be a few months, a few years, maybe longer. I don’t know how bad the verdict will be, but whatever it is, I’m not prepared. They always told us to be prepared. That was our motto. At age 7, I joined the Brownies, the beginning of 12 years of being molded by Girl Scout...
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) outlined recommendations on best practices for treating patients with symptomatic bone metastases and strategies to improve their quality of life, according to updated clinical guidelines published by Alcorn et al in Practical Radiation Oncology....
In an analysis of clinical trials reported in a research letter in JAMA Oncology, Brooks et al found no differences in long-term outcomes with the use of axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) vs sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB)—usually paired with adjuvant radiotherapy—among patients with breast...
The Immune-Related Adverse Events (irAE) Consortium has launched ASPIRE and STORIES with the aim of uniting clinicians, researchers, and patients to advance clinical care and advocacy. As the indications for immune checkpoint inhibitors in oncology have rapidly expanded over the past decade, the...
ASCO has issued new evidence-based updates to two living guidelines on the treatment of stage IV NSCLC with and without driver alterations.1,2 Updated Recommendations: Stage IV NSCLC With Driver Alterations The most “extensive work” in the updates occurred in the guideline on stage IV NSCLC with...
The profound progress in cancer care since President Richard Nixon signed the National Cancer Act of 1971 into law is evidenced by the soaring number of cancer survivors since the law went into effect. In the 1970s, there were 3 million cancer survivors1; today, there are more than 18 million, and...
Serving as ASCO’s 60th President over the past year has been an honor and a privilege, said Lynn M. Schuchter, MD, FASCO, who will end her Presidential term during ASCO’s Annual Meeting, being held from May 31 to June 4, 2024, in Chicago, and welcome incoming President Robin Zon, MD, FACP, FASCO,...
Guest Editor’s Note: Children with cancer and their caregivers face physical and psychosocial challenges during and after treatment. Dance/movement therapy has been used to improve well-being, promote healthy coping, and mitigate the impact of illness, but limited knowledge exists regarding its...
A novel artificial intelligence (AI)-based virtual patient navigator, MyEleanor, improved colonoscopy uptake among U.S. patients who were previously nonadherent to prior colonoscopy appointments. These findings will be presented by Moadel et al at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting (Abstract 100)....
In 2002, the federally funded Women’s Health Initiative—a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial investigating the effects of menopausal hormone therapy in healthy menopausal women—was abruptly halted when it was determined that taking estrogen and progestin hormones after menopause...
The field of oncology is experiencing a revolution driven by artificial intelligence (AI) technology. Artificial intelligence tools are already being used in medical imaging analysis, treatment planning, and even patient counseling. These advancements hold immense promise for earlier cancer...
On April 30, 2024, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) published a final recommendation statement on screening for breast cancer.1 The USPSTF now recommends that all women undergo screening for breast cancer every other year starting at age 40 and continuing through age 74. More...
For breast cancer that is estrogen receptor–positive, CDK4/6 inhibitors, given with endocrine therapy, have become the standard of care, especially in metastatic disease. However, resistance to both endocrine therapies and CDK4/6 inhibitors is common, and new approaches are needed to counteract...
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, since the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine was introduced in the United States in 2006, HPV infections that cause most HPV-related cancers and genital warts have decreased by 88% among teenage girls and 81% among young adult women. Now, ...
In an Indian single-center phase III trial (D-TORCH) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Santhosh et al found that the nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory topical diclofenac gel significantly reduced the risk of capecitabine-associated hand-foot syndrome vs placebo gel in patients with breast ...
Evidence from a small early trial called COBALT-RCC provides proof of concept for use of an allogeneic off-the-shelf CD70-targeted chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy called CTX130 in patients with advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC). CTX130 is engineered using gene-editing...
The female partners of patients with prostate cancer may experience quality-of-life issues that impact their sexual well-being, according to a recent study published by Loeb et al in European Urology Oncology. Background Prostate cancer—one of the most common cancer types in U.S. men—and its...
Treatment with metformin may be associated with a lower risk of developing myeloproliferative neoplasms over time, according to a recent study published by Kristensen et al in Blood Advances. Background Myeloproliferative neoplasms are a group of diseases that develop over long periods of time and...