In a phase II trial reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Farag et al found that the addition of the dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4; CD26) inhibitor sitagliptin to tacrolimus and sirolimus prophylaxis resulted in a low rate of acute graft-vs-host disease among patients with hematologic...
In a single-institution phase III trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Absolom et al found that use of the electronic patient self-reporting of adverse events: patient information and advice (eRAPID) system was associated with improvements in patient-reported outcomes vs usual care...
Kai-Keen Shiu, MD, PhD, of the University College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust - London, discusses an interim analysis of PFS 2 results (defined as time from random assignment to progression on the next line of therapy or death) from the phase III KEYNOTE-177 trial. This study has already shown...
Afsaneh Barzi, MD, PhD, of the City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center and the University of Southern California, discusses reasons for the incomplete understanding of the molecular landscape of minority patients with cancer, lack of screening chief among them. This underrepresentation, Dr. Barzi...
A new study has found that patients with recurrent glioblastoma and a very low tumor mutation burden are more responsive to immunotherapies than similar tumors with an abundance of mutations. These findings, published by Gromeier et al in Nature Communications, could serve as a predictive biomarker ...
In the Dutch LOGICA trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, van der Veen et al found that laparoscopic gastrectomy was not associated with shorter hospital stay vs open gastrectomy in patients with gastric cancer. Study Details In the trial, conducted at 10 sites in the Netherlands,...
Patients with stage I to III colorectal cancer and a high risk for disease recurrence may be identified by serial testing of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) after resection, according to a study in which ctDNA was more reliable than carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) surveillance or standard radiologic...
Ivosidenib, an inhibitor of isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1), improved overall survival by almost 3 months compared with placebo in previously treated patients with advanced IDH1-mutated cholangiocarcinoma. Researchers presented results from the global phase III ClarIDHy trial at the 2021...
On January 15, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to daratumumab plus hyaluronidase-fihj (Darzalex Faspro) in combination with bortezomib, cyclophosphamide, and dexamethasone for newly diagnosed light chain amyloidosis. ANDROMEDA Trial Efficacy was evaluated in ...
On January 15, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki (Enhertu) for adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic HER2-positive gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma who have received a prior trastuzumab-based regimen....
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted two Fast Track designations to cavrotolimod (AST-008). The designations include cavrotolimod in combination with anti–PD-1 therapy for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma refractory to prior...
Electronic health record–based artificial intelligence may help uncover new risk factors in the development of early-onset colorectal cancer, according to study findings presented by Parker et al at the AACR Virtual Special Conference: Artificial Intelligence, Diagnosis, and Imaging (Abstract...
Guest Editor’s Note: Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Society for Integrative Oncology (SIO) held its 2020 international conference in a virtual format. It focused on key issues of health disparities in integrative cancer care, innovative integrative oncology service delivery models, and...
In a cohort study reported in JAMA Network Open, Washington et al found that the use of active surveillance or watchful waiting for patients with low-risk prostate cancer in the United States varied by region, but not according to factors such as Black race or county-level socioeconomic status. As...
In an Italian single-institution study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Merz et al evaluated the use of electronic medical record–assisted telephone follow-up (E-TFU) of breast cancer survivors to minimize hospital exposure over a 3-month period during the COVID-19 pandemic. The strategy was...
On January 14, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved crizotinib (Xalkori) for pediatric patients aged 1 year and older and young adults with relapsed or refractory systemic anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) that is ALK-positive. The safety and efficacy of crizotinib have not been ...
Ajay K. Nooka, MD, MPH, Associate Professor of Hematology and Medical Oncology at Emory University and Medical Director, Winship Research Informatics Shared Resource at Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, considered the presentations on bispecific T-cell–engaging antibodies in myeloma to be among...
B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) is the most frequent target of immunotherapies in relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, but bispecific T-cell–engaging (BiTE) antibodies with novel targets are also achieving promising results. Studies presented at the 2020 American Society of Hematology (ASH)...
Today, leadership from the Community Oncology Alliance (COA) sent a letter urging the nation's governors and public health officials to prioritize supplying cancer treatment practices with COVID-19 vaccines and allowing the practices to administer the vaccines. The letter, signed by Kashyap Patel,...
Although patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive, HER2-negative, aromatase inhibitor–resistant metastatic breast cancer maintained quality of life for a longer time following treatment with palbociclib plus either exemestane or fulvestrant than capecitabine, those receiving chemotherapy...
Alphonse G. Taghian, MD, Professor at Harvard Medical School and Co-Director of Breast Cancer Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, said that these results from the PRIME II trial are quite similar to those of the older CALGB study first initiated in 1994.1 Both studies had a ...
Omitting postoperative radiotherapy with whole-breast irradiation may not compromise 10-year overall survival or increase the risk of developing metastasis in most women 65 years and older with low-risk breast cancer, according to results of the large randomized PRIME II trial reported at the 2020...
In a pooled analysis reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Cohen et al found that the addition of oxaliplatin to fluoropyrimidine was associated with improved overall and disease-free survival in patients with stage III colon cancer with microsatellite instability (MSI). They also found the ...
New research published by Abdel-Rahman in JNCCN—Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network found more than one-third of eligible people miss timely screening tests for colorectal cancer, and at least one-quarter appear to miss timely screening tests for breast and cervical cancers....
Some patients with metastatic breast cancer are taking smaller doses of opioid prescriptions over decreased amounts of time, according to results published by Shen et al in Scientific Reports. Researchers said that the results indicate that clinicians may be more aware of the negative impacts of...
Overall cancer death rates in the United States dropped continuously from 1991 through 2018, for a total decrease of 31%, including a 2.4% decline from 2017 to 2018. These findings were reported in the American Cancer Society’s “Cancer Statistics, 2021” article, published by Rebecca L. Siegel, MPH, ...
As reported in JAMA Oncology by Kevin Kalinsky, MD, MS, and colleagues, the NCI-MATCH trial’s phase II subprotocol EAY131-Y has shown activity of the pan-AKT inhibitor capivasertib in a range of metastatic tumors with an AKT1 E17K mutation. The NCI-MATCH trial, which opened in 2015, is an...
In a registry-based observational study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Chalkidou et al found that stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy (SABR) was associated with high overall survival and low rates of toxicity in patients with extracranial oligometastatic cancers. Study Details The prospective ...
Sean Khozin, MD, MPH, has been named Chief Executive Officer of CancerLinQ LLC, a wholly owned nonprofit subsidiary of ASCO. A board-certified oncologist, physician-scientist, and data science expert, Dr. Khozin is a proven leader and visionary in deploying cutting-edge data science and technology...
Sagar Lonial, MD, the Anne and Bernard Gray Family Chair in Cancer, Chair and Professor of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, commented on the APOLLO trial for The ASCO Post. “APOLLO is a highly awaited study, as the use of daratumumab plus...
The first phase III study to evaluate the subcutaneous form of daratumumab has met its primary endpoint, investigators of the APOLLO trial reported at the 2020 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition.1 The triplet of daratumumab, pomalidomide, and low-dose dexamethasone ...
Ann H. Partridge, MD, MPH, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discusses results from the ALTERNATE trial on response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in postmenopausal women with clinical stage II or III estrogen receptor–positive and HER2-negative breast cancer that is resistant to endocrine therapy. The ...
Ultraviolet (UV) radiation may contribute to the development of a rare type of eye cancer, conjunctival melanoma, according to research published by Mundra et al in Nature Communications. The new study has revealed similar genetic changes in patients with conjunctival melanoma to those with...
A new study published by Hodge et al in the International Journal of Cancer suggests a link between Toxoplasma gondii infection and the risk of glioma in adults. The report found that people who have glioma are more likely to have antibodies to T gondii than a similar group that was cancer-free....
As reported in The New England Journal of Medicine by Andrew H. Wei, MBBS, PhD, and colleagues, the phase III QUAZAR AML-001 trial has shown prolonged overall survival with oral azacitidine maintenance therapy vs placebo in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in first remission. The oral...
In the phase II FIGARO trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Craddock et al found that intensified reduced-intensity conditioning with fludarabine/amsacrine/cytarabine–busulfan (FLAMSA-Bu) did not improve outcomes following allogeneic stem cell transplantation vs standard...
Elizabeth A. Mittendorf, MD, PhD, of Brigham and Women’s Hospital, summarizes her plenary talk, which featured the uncertainties in treatment knowledge: excision of postchemotherapy calcifications; the best sentinel lymph node biopsy technique for patients with node-positive disease who convert to...
Researchers have found evidence that opioid use may be an unidentified risk factor contributing to the increasing incidence of pancreatic cancer in the United States. These findings were published by Barlass et al in PLOS One. The use of prescription opioids for the management of chronic pain has...
In a comprehensive molecular characterization of the most common type of head and neck cancer, researchers from the United States and Poland have clarified the contribution of key cancer-associated genes, proteins, and signaling pathways in these cancers, while proposing possible new treatment...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is alerting clinical laboratory staff and health-care providers that it is monitoring the potential impact of viral mutations, including an emerging variant from the United Kingdom known as the B.1.1.7 variant, on authorized SARS-CoV-2 molecular tests....
In a brief report published in The New England Journal of Medicine, Arakawa et al described the identification of lung cancer in two children that likely resulted from transmission of maternal cervical cancer tumor cells during vaginal delivery. As noted by the investigators, the transmission of...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Wu et al found that almost two-thirds of patients undergoing active cancer management who were diagnosed with COVID-19 over a 4-month period in 2020 had significant delays in planned management. Study Details The retrospective study involved data on...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Michael S. Ewer, MD, JD, PhD, and colleagues, an analysis of data from clinical trials of osimertinib suggests the absence of a “causal relationship” between osimertinib and cardiac failure. Study Details The study involved a post hoc assessment of ...
This week, we’ll review a meta-analysis of several trials studying the efficacy of 3 vs 6 months of adjuvant chemotherapy for patients with advanced colon cancer. We’ll also discuss a report on the frequency of osteonecrosis of the jaw among patients with metastatic bone disease treated with...
Recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Priority Review to lorlatinib in ALK-positive non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and Breakthrough Therapy designation to the combination of tiragolumab plus atezolizumab in NSCLC with high PD-L1 expression. The FDA also updated the...
In a study examining the effect of a Mediterranean diet in relation to prostate cancer progression in men on active surveillance, researchers found that men with localized prostate cancer who reported a baseline dietary pattern that more closely follows the key principles of a Mediterranean-style...
Patients with hematologic malignancies varied in their immune response to COVID-19, and some struggled to clear the infection, according to new research published by Abdul-Jawad in Cancer Cell. In contrast, most patients with solid tumors—even those with advanced cancer—were shown to be able to...
In a study reported in a research letter in JAMA Network Open, Zhao et al found that the rate of complications from invasive diagnostic procedures after low-dose computed tomography (CT) lung cancer screening in the community setting was lower than a prior estimate—but still higher than reported in ...
In a systematic review and meta-analysis reported in JAMA Network Open, Kasi et al found that total neoadjuvant therapy was associated with improved pathologic complete response rates vs standard therapy with neoadjuvant concurrent chemoradiotherapy plus adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Burnett et al, findings from the phase III MRC AML17 trial indicated that four courses of chemotherapy, compared to three courses, reduced the cumulative incidence of relapse and improved relapse-free survival, but not overall survival, in younger...