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hepatobiliary cancer

Andrew X. Zhu, MD, PhD, on Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Atezolizumab Combined With Bevacizumab

Andrew X. Zhu, MD, PhD, of Massachusetts General Hospital, discusses an exploratory analysis seeking to identify tumor-based molecular biomarkers that may be associated with clinical response or resistance to the combination treatment of atezolizumab and bevacizumab in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (Abstract CT044).

Gastrointestinal Cancer
Lung Cancer
Leukemia
Hepatobiliary Cancer
Kidney Cancer
Immunotherapy

FDA Pipeline: Two Breakthrough Therapy Designations for Fam-Trastuzumab Deruxtecan-nxki, and More

Over the past few weeks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Breakthrough Therapy designations for an antibody-drug conjugate in the treatment of gastric and lung cancers. The Agency has also issued Orphan Drug designations for agents being investigated in chronic myeloid...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

Nivolumab for Advanced Refractory Biliary Tract Cancer

In a phase II trial reported in JAMA Oncology, Kim et al found that nivolumab showed antitumor activity in patients with advanced refractory biliary tract cancer. As noted by the investigators, there currently is no established second-line systemic treatment for biliary tract cancer. Study Details...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

AACR 2020: Atezolizumab Alone or in Combination With Cobimetinib for Biliary Tract Cancer

A randomized multicenter study of a combination of immunotherapy with a targeted therapy improved cancer control for some patients with biliary tract cancer, according to research presented by Yarchoan et al at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Virtual Annual Meeting (Abstract...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

A Clinical Trial Saved My Life

In the fall of 2009, I began experiencing some abdominal discomfort, pain in my right shoulder, and severe fatigue that were easily explained away as the result of gallstones and by my career as a paramedic. I had many of the risk factors for gallbladder disease, and both my mother and sister...

Immunotherapy
Hepatobiliary Cancer

Nivolumab/Ipilimumab in Patients With Sorafenib-Pretreated Hepatocellular Carcinoma

On March 10, 2020, the combination of nivolumab (Opdivo) and ipilimumab (Yervoy) was granted accelerated approval for treatment of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma who have been previously treated with sorafenib.1-3 Supporting Efficacy Data The approval was based on findings in a cohort...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

FDA Approves Pemigatinib for Patients With Cholangiocarcinoma and an FGFR2 Rearrangement or Fusion

On April 17, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to pemigatinib (Pemazyre) for the treatment of adult patients with previously treated, unresectable, locally advanced or metastatic cholangiocarcinoma with a fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) fusion or...

Colorectal Cancer
Gastrointestinal Cancer
Hepatobiliary Cancer
Pancreatic Cancer

Aspirin Use and Risk of Cancers of the Digestive Tract

Aspirin may be associated with a reduction in the risk of developing several cancers of the digestive tract. The largest and most comprehensive analysis to date of the link between aspirin and digestive tract cancers, published by Bosetti et al in Annals of Oncology, found reductions in the risk of ...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

Camrelizumab for Previously Treated Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma

In a Chinese phase II study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Qin et al found that the programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) inhibitor camrelizumab showed activity in patients with previously treated advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. Study Details In the open-label multicenter trial, 217 evaluable ...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Global Cancer Care

Trends in Global Rates of Liver Cancer From 1990 to 2017

New research published by Liu et al in the journal Cancer has revealed rising rates of liver cancer around the world, despite advances aimed at preventing the disease; however, some steps towards alleviation have been made due to control of hepatitis. Methods To obtain trends and estimates of liver ...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Pemigatinib for Previously Treated Advanced Cholangiocarcinoma

In the phase II FIGHT-202 study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Ghassan K. Abou-Alfa, MD, and colleagues found that the fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (FGFR1), FGFR2, and FGFR3 inhibitor pemigatinib was active in patients with previously treated locally advanced or metastatic...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

Expert Point of View: A. Craig Lockhart, MD

A. Craig Lockhart, MD, Professor of Medicine, University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, applauded the study for making patient-reported outcomes a prespecified endpoint and described the value of having this information. Dr. Lockhart was the invited discussant. “The U.S. Food and...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

IMbrave150 Prespecified Analysis Adds Improved Quality-of-Life to Survival Benefits Reaped With Atezolizumab Plus Bevacizumab

New findings from a prespecified analysis of the pivotal IMbrave150 trial revealed improved quality of life for patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma treated with atezolizumab plus bevacizumab in the first-line setting. These results were reported by Peter R. Galle, MD, at the 2020...

Gastroesophageal Cancer
Gastrointestinal Cancer
Colorectal Cancer
Hepatobiliary Cancer
Pancreatic Cancer

Conference Highlights From the 2020 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium

This past January, the 2020 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium was held in San Francisco. More than 3,600 individuals attended and more than 900 abstracts and posters were presented. Among the highlights presented at the meeting and reported in the pages of The ASCO Post, several studies in...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Does Aspirin Use Lower the Risk of Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Liver-Related Mortality in Patients With Chronic Viral Hepatitis?

In a study reported in The New England of Medicine, Tracey G. Simon, MD, MPH, and colleagues found that low-dose aspirin use was associated with a reduced risk of hepatocellular carcinoma and liver-related mortality among patients with chronic hepatitis B or C infection. Study Details The study...

Colorectal Cancer
Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

Selected Abstracts on Novel Treatments in Colon, Hepatocellular, and Biliary Tract Cancers

The ASCO Post has reported on the pivotal trials presented at the 2020 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium in several issues. Featured here are the findings of several additional abstracts worthy of mention. Intermittent Oxaliplatin in Stage II or III Colon Cancer As adjuvant treatment for stage II...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

FDA Approves Nivolumab/Ipilimumab for Pretreated Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma

On March 10, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to the combination of nivolumab (Opdivo) and ipilimumab (Yervoy) for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma who have been previously treated with sorafenib. CheckMate 040 Efficacy of the combination was...

Lymphoma
Solid Tumors
Hepatobiliary Cancer

FDA Pipeline: Priority Review in DLBCL, Fast Track Designations in T-Cell Lymphoma and Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma

Over the past week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Priority Review to a combination therapy in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL); gave Fast Track designations for treatments in T-cell lymphoma and adenoid cystic carcinoma; granted Orphan Drug designation to an agent for the ...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

Expert Point of View: A. Craig Lockhart, MD

The invited discussant of the IMbrave150 trial, A. Craig Lockhart, MD, Professor of Medicine, University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, applauded the study for making patient-­reported outcomes a prespecified endpoint and described the value of having this information. “The U.S....

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

Patient-Reported Outcomes From IMbrave150: Better Quality of Life With Doublet

For the first-line treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, atezolizumab plus bevacizumab provided a significant overall survival benefit in the pivotal IMbrave150 trial. New findings from a prespecified analysis also showed numerous benefits for the doublet in terms of quality of life,...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

PRH/HHEX Transcription Factor as a Treatment Target in Patients With Cholangiocarcinoma

Treatment of patients with cholangiocarcinoma could be improved by tailoring medication to the levels of a key protein in people with the disease, according to new research published by Kitchen et al in Cancer Research. Researchers have discovered that the proline-rich homeodomain...

hepatobiliary cancer
immunotherapy

Thomas Yau, MBBS, on Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma: CheckMate 040 Trial of Nivolumab, Ipilimumab, and Cabozantinib

Thomas Yau, MBBS, of the University of Hong Kong, discusses this triplet combination, which yielded better responses than doublet combination therapy in patients with advanced liver cancer, but with more severe adverse events and more treatment discontinuations (Abstract 478).

hepatobiliary cancer
immunotherapy

Peter R. Galle, MD, on Atezolizumab/Bevacizumab vs Sorafenib for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Patient-Reported Outcomes

Peter R. Galle, MD, of the University Medical Center, Mainz, discusses patient-reported outcomes from this phase III study, which showed the combination of atezolizumab plus bevacizumab vs sorafenib is well tolerated and may represent a new standard of care in the first-line setting for unresectable liver cancer (Abstract 476).

Multiple Myeloma
Prostate Cancer
Lung Cancer
Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

FDA Pipeline: Priority Reviews in Multiple Myeloma, Prostate Cancer

Over the past week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Priority Review to treatments for multiple myeloma and prostate cancer; gave Fast Track designation to a targeted gene therapy for lung cancer; granted Orphan Drug designation to a combination therapy for hepatocellular...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

2020 GI Cancers Symposium: Addition of Ramucirumab or Merestinib to Gemcitabine/Cisplatin for Biliary Tract Cancer

According to study results to be presented by Valle et al at the 2020 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium (Abstract 477), the addition of either ramucirumab or merestinib to the standard first-line therapy for biliary tract cancer—gemcitabine plus cisplatin—did not improve progression-free survival, ...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Colorectal Cancer

2020 GI Cancers Symposium: Patient-Reported Outcomes From IMbrave150, BEACON CRC

Patient-reported outcomes from two large studies show that quality of life is maintained longer with newer drug combinations compared with standard-of-care treatments in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma and BRAF V600E­–mutant metastatic colorectal cancer. The results, from...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Treatment Resistance and Novel Therapies in FGFR-Mutated Cholangiocarcinoma

A new study has shown how resistance to fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) inhibitor treatment develops in patients with cholangiocarcinoma and suggests that adding another therapy at the time of disease progression might resensitize tumor cells to initial therapy. These findings were...

Bladder Cancer
Hepatobiliary Cancer

FDA Pipeline: Fast Track/Orphan Drug Designation for Cholangiocarcinoma Treatment, Breakthrough Device Designation for Bladder Cancer Test

This week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Fast Track designation to infigratinib for patients with advanced or metastatic cholangiocarcinoma with a certain genetic mutation, and Orphan Drug designation to the treatment for patients with cholangiocarcinoma. The FDA also granted...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

Does Second-Line Pembrolizumab in Patients With Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma Previously Treated With Sorafenib Confer a Survival Benefit?

As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Richard S. Finn, MD, and colleagues, the phase III KEYNOTE-240 trial has shown no statistically significant progression-free or overall survival benefit with pembrolizumab vs placebo in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma who were...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

ClarIDHy and FIGHT-202 Trials Show Positive Results in the Treatment of Patients With Biliary Tract Cancer

Two studies reported at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2019—ClarIDHy and FIGHT-202—demonstrated clinical benefits with novel molecularly targeted agents in the treatment of advanced cholangiocarcinoma. Currently, first-line treatment for locally advanced or metastatic...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Lymphoma
Neuroendocrine Tumors
Gastrointestinal Cancer
Genomics/Genetics

FDA Pipeline: Recent Designations in Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Cholangiocarcioma, Lymphoma, and More

Over the past few weeks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted reviews or designations to treatments for gastrointestinal cancers and lymphoma, and also provided authorizations for products designed to screen for malignancies and tumor mutational burden. Priority Review for Nivolumab...

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

ESMO Asia 2019: Combination of Atezolizumab and Bevacizumab for Unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Combination therapy with the programmed cell death ligand 1 inhibitor atezolizumab and the VEGF inhibitor bevacizumab significantly improved overall and progression-free survival in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) compared to sorafenib, according to findings from the phase ...

Immunotherapy
Hepatobiliary Cancer

‘Clinically Meaningful’ Outcomes Seen in Two Studies of First-Line Immunotherapy for Hepatocellular Carcinoma

In the first-line treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, checkpoint inhibitors led to favorable outcomes in studies reported at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2019—though one study was technically negative. The current first-line standard of care for unresectable ...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Targeted Treatment Advances in Cholangiocarcinoma

For one of the rarest and most aggressive of tumors—cholangiocarcinoma—two novel molecularly targeted agents yielded encouraging outcomes in advanced disease in studies reported at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2019. In the phase III ClarIDHy trial, the risk of disease...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Oral Direct-Acting Antiviral Therapy May Improve Survival in Patients With Hepatitis C Virus–Related HCC

Data from a new study presented by Dang et al at The Liver Meeting (Abstract 40) found that patients with hepatitis C virus–related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who achieved sustained virologic response (denoting an undetectable level of the virus) with any oral direct-acting antiviral therapy...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Hepatic Arterial Infusion of Floxuridine Plus Systemic Gemcitabine/Oxaliplatin for Unresectable Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma

In a single-center phase II trial reported in JAMA Oncology, Andrea Cercek, MD, and colleagues found that hepatic arterial infusion of floxuridine in combination with systemic gemcitabine/oxaliplatin produced high response and disease control rates and was associated with promising overall survival ...

Issues in Oncology
Hepatobiliary Cancer

Financial Burdens of Patients With Cirrhosis and Impact on Screening for HCC

Data from a new study presented by Singal et al at The Liver Meeting found that patients with cirrhosis in the United States have substantial financial burden and this is associated with underuse of surveillance for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (Abstract 201). Improved intervention strategies are ...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

2019 NCRI: Hepatocellular Carcinoma Incidence and Mortality Rates in England Have Tripled Over the Past 20 Years

From 1997 to 2016, incidence and deaths from hepatocellular carcinoma have tripled in England, according to research presented by Burton et al at the 2019 National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) Cancer Conference. Anya Burton, PhD, a cancer epidemiologist at Public Health England, said in a press ...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Studies Report Efficacy of Proton Radiotherapy for Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Two new studies published in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology • Biology • Physics focused on the use of proton radiation therapy to treat patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. The first study, by Sanford et al, found that proton radiation may extend overall survival compared to...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Postdiagnosis Use of Aspirin in Patients With Biliary Tract Cancer

In a study reported in a research letter in JAMA Oncology, Jackson et al found that postdiagnosis aspirin use was associated with significantly improved overall survival across biliary tract cancer types. Study Details The study involved 2,934 adult patients diagnosed with biliary tract cancer...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound May Help to Predict Cirrhotic Nodule Transformation to Hepatocellular Carcinoma

An article published by Lin et al in the American Journal of Roentgenology has identified sonographic biomarkers that may predict eventual malignant transformation of pathologically confirmed cirrhotic nodules for patients at risk for hepatocellular carcinoma. Lead investigator Manxia Lin, MD, of...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Addition of Doxorubicin to Sorafenib in Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma

As reported in JAMA Oncology by Ghassan K. Abou-Alfa, MD, and colleagues, the phase III Alliance/CALGB 80802 trial has shown no progression-free or overall survival benefit with the addition of doxorubicin to sorafenib in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. The study was stopped early...

hepatobiliary cancer

Ghassan K. Abou-Alfa, MD, MBA, on Cholangiocarcinoma: ClarIDHy Trial of Ivosidenib vs Placebo

Ghassan K. Abou-Alfa, MD, MBA, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses phase III study findings showing improvement in progression-free survival among patients with an isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) mutation who received ivosidenib compared with a similar group that received placebo (Abstract LBA10).

Hepatobiliary Cancer

ESMO 2019: Ivosidenib in IDH1-Mutated Advanced Cholangiocarcinoma

Patients with advanced cholangiocarcinoma with an isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) mutation showed clinical benefit and improved progression-free survival (PFS) when treated with ivosidenib vs placebo, according to results presented by Ghassan K. Abou-Alfa, MD, at the European Society for Medical...

hepatobiliary cancer

Tim Meyer, PhD, and Lorenza Rimassa, MD, on Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma: CELESTIAL Trial of Cabozantinib

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 plasma biomarkers in the advanced setting (Abstracts 749P & 678PD).

hepatobiliary cancer

Angela Lamarca, MD, PhD, on Liver Metastases From Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma

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).

Hepatobiliary Cancer
Immunotherapy

ESMO 2019: First-Line Immunotherapy Shows Clinical Benefit in Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma

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...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Sorafenib Plus Transarterial Chemoembolization for Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma

During the past decade, scientists began to test whether the addition of transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) to treatment with sorafenib could increase survival in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. Scientists from Taiwan and Japan performed the first large, national-level,...

Hepatobiliary Cancer

Real-Time ctDNA Evaluation in Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma

In a study published in the Journal of Gastrointestinal Oncology, Mody et al described results from patients with hepatocellular carcinoma undergoing circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) testing in a real-time clinical context. The authors wrote, “[ctDNA assessment] holds incredible promise for early...

Myelodysplastic Syndromes
Leukemia
Lung Cancer
Solid Tumors
Colorectal Cancer
Hepatobiliary Cancer

FDA Pipeline: Fast Track Designation in Myelodysplastic Syndrome and AML, Plus Multiple Breakthrough Designations

Recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Fast Track designation to magrolimab in myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The agency also granted Breakthrough Therapy designations in lung cancer and desmoid tumors, as well as Breakthrough Device designations...

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