Expert Talks Liquid Biopsies, Molecular Testing in Lung Cancer
January 3rd 2020Not all patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are recommended for genomic testing when treated in a community setting, and are therefore not being appropriately tested for potential molecular drivers of their disease, explained Nathan Pennell, MD, PhD.
FDA Accepts BLA for Sacituzumab Govitecanto Treat TNBC
December 30th 2019The FDA has accepted a biologics license application (BLA) for sacituzumab govitecan as a treatment for patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) who have received at least 2 prior therapies for metastatic disease, according to a statement from the company developing the antibody-drug conjugate (ADC), Immunomedics.
After Years of Inactivity, AML Field Moves Forward
December 30th 2019After decades of few advances and stagnant treatment approaches, which mainly comprised 7+3 chemotherapy, the acute myeloid leukemia (AML) paradigm now has several agents approved, and plenty of ongoing trials are exploring other novel therapies alone and in combination, according to Melissa L. Larson, MD.
ALL Field Continues to Progress, With CAR T-Cell and Other Therapies
December 23rd 2019The approval of novel agents, specifically blinatumomab (Blincyto) and CAR T-cell therapy, in the acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) paradigm has led has to expanded options for pediatric, adolescent and young adult (AYA), and adult patients; however, ongoing trials are poised to keep moving the field forward, said Joseph Wynne, MD.
New Agents Are Revamping Prostate Cancer Treatment
December 20th 2019Three pivotal trials demonstrating improved metastasis-free survival (MFS) with 3 different oral antiandrogen agents in combination with androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) have led to FDA approvals that have transformed the treatment paradigm in nonmetastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), said Elisabeth I. Heath, MD, FACP.
FDA Grants Tucatinib Breakthrough Therapy Designation Breast Cancer Subset
December 20th 2019The FDA has granted tucatinib a breakthrough therapy designation for use in combination with trastuzumab (Herceptin) and capecitabine (Xeloda) for the treatment of patients with unresectable locally advanced or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer, including patients with brain metastases, who had prior trastuzumab, pertuzumab (Perjeta), and ado-trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1; Kadcyla).
Immunotherapy Brings More Options for Frontline RCC Treatment
December 18th 2019Within approximately 1 year, 3 combination regimens featuring immunotherapy agents were approved by the FDA for the frontline treatment of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC), said Robert J. Motzer, MD.
Breast Cancer Outcomes Can Be Predicted by Residual Cancer Burden
December 16th 2019Residual cancer burden (RCB) after neoadjuvant chemotherapy has been shown to be an accurate long-term predictor of disease recurrence and survival across all breast cancer subtypes, according to data from a large meta-analysis presented at the 2019 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.
Neoadjuvant Durvalumab Is Promising for TNBC Treatment
December 14th 2019A durvalumab (Imfinzi)-based neoadjuvant regimen induced a pathologic complete response (pCR) rate of 44% in patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), according to results of a phase I/II study presented in a poster at the 2019 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.
Palbociclib Shows OS Benefit in Frontline HR+/HER2- Breast Cancer
December 13th 2019Real-world clinical practice results for frontline palbociclib (Ibrance) indicate that the positive progression-free survival (PFS) data previously reported with the CDK4/6 inhibitor in the pivotal PALOMA-2 trial would likely translate to an overall survival (OS) benefit in patients with HR-positive/HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer.
Reducing Transfusion Burden in Patients With Beta-Thalassemia
December 11th 2019A majority of adult patients with β-thalassemia who require regular red blood cell (RBC) transfusions experienced clinically meaningful and durable transfusion burden reduction associated with luspatercept (Reblozyl) in the phase III BELIEVE trial.
Drug Combo Shows 100% ORR in Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Subset
December 10th 2019The combination of lenalidomide (Revlimid) and obinutuzumab (Gazyva) elicited a 100% overall response rate (ORR) in patients with relapsed indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) that was refractory to rituximab (Rituxan), according to findings of a single-arm, phase I/II trial presented at the 2019 ASH Annual Meeting.
Early Steroid Use Reduces Cytokine Release Syndrome Risk With Axi-Cel Treatment
December 9th 2019Steroid use while cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and neurologic toxicities are at grade 1, instead of waiting until grade 3, reduces the rate of CAR T-cell treatment–related CRS and neurologic events.