Focus: Cancer Center Featured Story 2

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For an investment of $125 for each year of life gained since the 1950s, the National Cancer Institute-funded SWOG clinical trials program has added 3.34 million years of life for cancer patients in the United States because of successful therapies that were proved through its trials.That is the conclusion of an analysis, led by a faculty member at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, of outcomes data from 193 randomized Phase III clinical trials tested by SWOG.

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The blend of bacteria in the digestive tract of metastatic melanoma patients is associated with disease progression or delay in patients treated with immunotherapy, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report at the 2017 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

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A recent study by Yale Cancer Center researchers revealed a 41% response to the antibody drug, enfortumab vedotin, by metastatic urothelial (mUC) tumors in a phase I clinical trial

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In a dramatic shift since the publication of margin guidelines for breast cancer surgery, lumpectomy rates have substantially increased and more-aggressive surgical options have been used less often, according to research findings from a new study being presented at the 2017 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago. The study will also be published in a corresponding issue of JAMA Oncology.

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Worldwide phase II clinical trial results presented at the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting 2017 show the promise of the second-generation drug dasatinib against pediatric CML. Of 113 pediatric patients studied, 75 percent of patients who had previously failed or did not tolerate imatinib saw progression-free survival 48 months after starting treatment with dasatinib.

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Study presented at ASCO 2017 shows that only 9 percent of 259 evaluated AML patients received all seven of the NCCN-recommended genetic tests.

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A combination regimen of two immunotherapies and another of two targeted therapies each significantly shrank metastatic brain tumors in at least 50 percent of patients in separate multi-center clinical trials presented today at the 2017 ASCO Annual Meeting by principal investigators from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

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Updated results of a clinical trial that launched in 2007 were presented today by Ethan Basch, MD, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) and UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Data showed that systematic symptom monitoring during outpatient chemotherapy using web-based patient-reported outcomes (PROs) improved overall survival.

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The first phase III trial of a PARP inhibitor used to treat breast cancer reported promising data at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). Mark Robson, MD, Clinic Director of the Clinical Genetics Service and medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), led the multicenter, international trial. He presented the study results in the plenary session of the annual meeting on June 4.

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Larotrectinib (LOXO-101) has demonstrated consistent and durable antitumor activity in tropomyosin receptor kinase (TRK) fusion cancers across a wide range of patient ages and tumor types and was well tolerated by patients, according to results from three clinical trials presented today at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago. David Hyman, MD, Chief of the Early Drug Development Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) and global principal investigator of the NAVIGATE trial testing larotrectinib, shared the landmark data from three multisite clinical trials in a press conference at the meeting.

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Findings from an early study evaluating a sophisticated new genomic-sequencing approach that analyzes cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in the blood of people with advanced cancer will help inform development of a future assay that could potentially detect cancer in its earliest stages, according to research presented today by a Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) investigator at the 2017 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago.

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A study at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center has shown promise for effective treatment of therapy-resistant cancers caused by a mutation of the RAS gene found in many cancers. The pre-clinical study combined therapies targeting the inhibitors polyADP ribose polymerase (PARP) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MEK). The findings were published this week in Science Translational Medicine.

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Immune checkpoint inhibitor (durvalumab/MEDI4736) with chemotherapy as a preoperative treatment shows promise in early stage TNBC.

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The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has awarded four Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers with Outstanding Investigator Awards (OIA) for ongoing progressive research within their respective areas of study.

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The critical component of an experimental vaccine led to an escalating immune response in patients with sarcoma, an indicator of its potential anti-cancer effects. The findings will be presented by Dr. Seth Pollack, a physician-scientist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, June 5 in a poster at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting in Chicago.

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The NCCN Policy Summit: Ensuring Patient Access and Safety in Cancer Care takes place on Thursday, June 15, 2017, from 9:30 am – 3:00 pm at the National Press Club in Washington, DC.

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A genetic test that helps doctors determine how best to treat breast cancer—and whether chemotherapy is likely to help—is significantly more likely to be administered to white women than blacks or Hispanics, a Yale study has found.

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Cancer Immunotherapy Month in June to feature educational and awareness programming for patients, caregivers, and the public

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By adding an experimental drug to a standard chemotherapy regimen, a subset of patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer had a significantly longer period before the cancer progressed as compared with those who received the standard treatment, according to a Phase 2 clinical trial led by an investigator at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

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Dana-Farber Cancer Institute has named Lesley Solomon to the newly-created position of senior vice president for innovation and chief innovation officer. Solomon has been serving as executive director of the Brigham Innovation Hub at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and director of strategy and innovation in the Brigham Research Institute.

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The American Cancer Society estimates more than 95,000 Americans will be diagnosed with colon cancer this year. Dr. Charles Fuchs at Yale Cancer Center discusses way to prevent the disease.

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The vaccine for HPV is proving to have significant population-level effects in Connecticut, a new Yale School of Public Health study finds.

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Moffitt researchers have developed a test called the radiosensitivity index that determines how sensitive a patient’s tumor is to radiation therapy. The radiosensitivity index is based on the expression of different genes in a patient’s tumor and has been validated in 9 different patient groups across different tumor types.

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New Collaboration Will Grant CancerLinQ Subscribers Streamlined Access to the NCCN Compendium®

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Ludwig Cancer Research released today the full scope of Ludwig’s participation at this year’s American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago, June 2-6.

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Combo of T-cell therapy, newly FDA-approved drug and another immunotherapeutic agent kept cancer at bay for three out of four patients with metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma. The findings will be presented June 5 at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

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As many as 53 percent of cancer patients’ Emergency Department visits that do not require admission could be avoided with better symptom management and greater availability of outpatient care tailored to their needs, according to a new study from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. This study will be presented at the 2017 American Society for Clinical Oncology meeting on June 5, 2017. It is Abstract #6505 (link here: http://abstracts.asco.org/199/AbstView_199_193735.html).

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These studies were funded through a collaboration with AstraZeneca to evaluate the effectiveness of osimertinib in EGFRm+ non-small cell lung cancer

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Every animal starts as a clump of cells, which over time multiply and mature into many different types of cells, tissues, and organs. This is fundamental biology. Yet, the details of this process remain largely mysterious. Now, scientists have begun to unravel an important part of that mystery.

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All cancer tumors have one thing in common – they must feed themselves to grow and spread, a difficult feat since they are usually in a tumor microenvironment with limited nutrients and oxygen. A study at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center has revealed new details about how an enzyme called acetyl-CoA synthetase 2 (ACSS2) allows brain tumors to grow despite their harsh surroundings.

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Funding announcement from the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research

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A study from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center that will be presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting on June 5 in Chicago shows that asymptomatic women who have been treated for early-stage breast cancer often undergo advanced imaging and other tests that provide little if any medical benefit, could have harmful effects and may increase their financial burden.

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A new study led by researchers at Roswell Park Cancer Institute establishes a connection between a sedentary lifestyle and risk of developing kidney or bladder cancer.

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The University of Kansas Cancer Center joins Blood Cancer Research Partnership

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A Yale research team has found that by tinkering with the surface properties of drug-loaded nanoparticles, they can potentially direct these particles to specific cells in the brain.

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Researchers in the Integrated Mathematical Oncology Department at Moffitt Cancer Center recent study found that mathematical models can be used to predict how different tumor cell populations interact with each other and respond to a changing environment.

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On May 31, 1-2 p.m. (CDT), The University of Kansas Cancer Center and Children’s Mercy Hospital will co-host an online discussion, via Twitter, about changing the way healthcare providers treat tobacco dependence.

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Plans to cut nearly $8.2 billion from the National Institutes of Health, including a $1 billion reduction for the National Cancer Institute, would decimate cancer research and patient care, according to the Association of American Cancer Institutes.

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data from four early-phase immunotherapy combination trials will be presented at the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual meeting in Chicago on June 5, 2017.

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Drinking just one glass of wine or other alcoholic drink a day increases breast cancer risk, finds a major new report by the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) and the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF).

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NCCN and Pfizer seek grant proposals for use of clinical care pathways aimed at quality improvement along the continuum of care for patients with breast cancer.

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Moffitt Cancer Center moved up two spots to be the No. 4 ranked health care facility on DiversityInc’s 2017 Top Hospitals & Health Systems list. Moffitt is the only cancer center and the only Florida health institution on the specialty list. DiversityInc announced the ranking during its diversity and inclusion keystone event May 2 at Cipriani Wall Street in New York.

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A team of investigators led by researchers at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center has found that the tumor mutation load, or TML, in a patient’s cancer biopsy varied by age and the type of cancer, along with several other factors.

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A new investigation of more than 48,000 stored tumor samples finds evidence of a key deficiency in a repair mechanism designed to keep DNA from being mutated and causing cancer.

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Younger colon cancer patients appear to have more than three times as many mutations in their tumors as older patients, which could lead to more effective treatment decisions, say researchers at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.

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Improvements in chemotherapy and liver surgery have resulted in increased overall survival in patients with advanced stage colorectal cancer in recent decades. In order to better predict outcomes for these patients, researchers at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey conducted a retrospective analysis and found that stage IV colorectal cancer patients who survived at least two years have a better prognosis than originally thought.

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While gemcitabine and brentuximab vedotin each have benefit when given individually in the treatment of Hodgkin lymphoma, Investigators from the Children’s Oncology Group including a Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey physician-scientist examined the two therapies when combined in pediatric patients. They found the combination to be safe and to have a greater complete response rate than when the drugs are given individually.