Jessica Hergert

The majority of respondents in a survey study indicated that the COVID-19 pandemic made no difference in their decision to participate in an oncology clinical trial; however, the remaining respondents were more than 7 times more likely to indicate that the pandemic made them less likely to enroll in a clinical trial

QIAGEN and INOVIO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. are extending their collaborative efforts with a new agreement to develop liquid biopsy–based companion diagnostic assays for INOVIO agents, according to a news release from INOVIO.

Matthew Lunning, DO, discusses discussed the findings from pivotal CAR T-cell therapy trials in LBCL, the potential to utilize these agents in the outpatient setting, how off-the-shelf allogeneic products could further transform outcomes, and the importance of shortening brain-to-vein time for this patient population.

The real-world utilization of axicabtagene ciloleucel demonstrated favorable outcomes and less frequent toxicity events compared with those reported in the pivotal ZUMA-1 trial and other real-world studies.

The MASP-2 inhibitor narsoplimab demonstrated high response rates and a significant improvement in laboratory markers and organ function irrespective of subgroup in adult patients with high-risk hematopoietic stem cell transplant–associated thrombotic microangiopathy.

The emergence of multiple combination regimens with immunotherapy and TKIs has been welcome for the frontline treatment of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma; however, without head-to-head comparative data, treatment selection has become individualized based on available patient characteristics.

Seema A. Bhat, MD, discusses updates from key studies and highlighted the promise of novel PI3K inhibitors in chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Bipolar androgen therapy demonstrated clinically meaningful activity and a good safety profile compared with enzalutamide in asymptomatic men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer who progressed on abiraterone acetate.

The FDA's accelerated approval of sacituzumab govitecan-hziy in April 2020, filled a previously undefined role for antibody-drug conjugates in patients with triple-negative breast cancer.

Atrayee Basu-Mallick, MD, discusses the emerging role of ctDNA as a predictive biomarker in early-stage CRC and the growing importance of molecular testing in the advanced-stage setting.

The field of triple-negative breast cancer is pushing to improve treatment by answering questions regarding biomarkers of response, defining the utility of neoadjuvant approaches, and exploring potential combinations with checkpoint inhibitors and PARP inhibitors.

A phase 2 clinical trial has been initiated to evaluate Descartes-11, an mRNA CAR T-cell therapy, as a consolidative therapy in patients with newly diagnosed, high-risk multiple myeloma who have residual disease after induction therapy.

Although phase 3 data suggest that the addition of checkpoint inhibitors to neoadjuvant chemotherapy could improve pathologic complete response rates for patients with early-stage triple-negative breast cancer, immature data and the risk of long-term toxicity indicate that the therapy is not ready for primetime

Pathogenic germline variants identified among children and young adults with rhabdomyosarcoma suggest that all children with RMS should undergo germline sequencing to utilize available surveillance guidelines and inform potential gene-specific therapy options.

Genomic sequencing is a critical step in informing the prognosis of patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and more information regarding specific subgroups of ALL, such as lineage ambiguous ALL, could pave the way for more personalized therapies for patients.

Daniel H. Ahn, DO, and Manish A. Shah, MD, discuss the emergence of HER2 as a validated target in GI malignancies, the approval of trastuzumab deruxtecan in gastric/GEJ cancer, and other emerging agents that are poised to propel HER2-targeted therapy in these diseases.

The treatment landscape of Waldenström macroglobulinemia is becoming increasingly complex with second-generation BTK inhibitors; however, the combination of bendamustine and rituximab remains the frontline standard of care for this patient population.

Yttrium-90 glass microspheres administered in a personalized, dosimetric approach demonstrated a 16-month improvement in overall survival compared with a standard dosimetric approach in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma.

High-dose chemotherapy and transplant remains the second-line standard of care for the majority of patients with relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma; however, CAR T-cell therapy and other novel agents, which have transformed the third-line setting, may offer alternative and more personalized second-line options in the coming years.

Timothy M. Schmidt, MD, discusses the integration and utility of bispecific antibodies in relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma, as well as some of the most promising agents in clinical development.

February 23, 2021 - The first patient in a first-in-human phase 1 study has been dosed with DS-6000, a novel CDH6-directed antibody-drug conjugate.

Sara A. Hurvitz, MD, discusses the potential integration of oral taxanes into the treatment paradigm of patients with metastatic breast cancer.

Davey B. Daniel, MD, discusses key immunotherapy trials in advanced non–small cell lung cancer and explains how the results can be extrapolated to clinical practice.

Kanwarpal S. Kahlon, MD, discusses the nuances of approaching treatment in ITP, updated guidelines to inform treatment selection, and recent data presented during the 2020 ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition that have the potential to advance the field.

Parameswaran Hari, MD, MRCP, discusses single-agent and combination strategies that have recently been introduced to the relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma setting and the nuances to utilizing them in clinical practice.

February 11, 2021 - The novel tubulin inhibitor VERU-111 demonstrated early antitumor activity and a well-tolerated safety profile in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer who failed a prior androgen receptor–targeting agent.

Sikander Ailawadhi, MD, discusses the future of relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma, the potential for retreatment with proteasome inhibitors, immunomodulatory drugs, and monoclonal antibodies, and the promise of T-cell engagers in the field.

Shaji K. Kumar, MD, discusses novel combinations that are being introduced to the relapsed/refractory setting in multiple myeloma, the value of minimal residual disease, and the importance of understanding potential toxicity when utilizing newer agents in the space.

Immunotherapy plus chemotherapy is a standard of care for patients with advanced PD-L1–negative non–small cell lung cancer who do not harbor actionable driver mutations.

Yttrium-90 glass microspheres, a personalized radiotherapeutic cancer treatment, induced an overall response rate of 72.2% per blinded independent central review as neoadjuvant or stand-alone treatment in 143 evaluable patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma.