Latest Conference Articles

Pembrolizumab Yields Durable Responses in Advanced NSCLC

Almost 60% of patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer experienced tumor shrinkage when treated with the PD-L1 inhibitor pembrolizumab.

Vintafolide Added to Docetaxel Improves Survival in Folate Receptor-Positive NSCLC

Vintafolide in combination with docetaxel showed improvements in PFS and OS compared with single-agent docetaxel as second-line treatment of patients with folate receptor–positive NSCLC.

Dr. Kluger on a Phase I Trial of Concurrent Nivolumab and Ipilimumab

Harriet Kluger, MD, associate professor of medicine, Yale Cancer Center, discusses the results from a phase I trial of nivolumab and ipilimumab for the treatment of patients with advanced melanoma.

Anamorelin Improves Appetite, Slows Weight Loss in Lung Cancer

Patients with advanced lung cancer had improved appetite, less weight loss, and a significant increase in lean body mass when treated with the ghrelin agonist anamorelin.

Afatinib Improves PFS and Quality of Life in Advanced HNSCC

Afatinib delayed disease progression for approximately one month longer than chemotherapy and helped prevent painful symptoms from worsening for patients with relapsed or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Dovitinib Meets Primary Endpoint in Phase II Trial of Advanced GIST

Dovitinib, an investigational oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), demonstrated a "manageable" safety profile while controlling disease in about half of patients with advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) who had discontinued treatment with imatinib due to disease progression or intolerance

Peter Emtage on the Combination of MEDI4736 and Tremelimumab for NSCLC

Peter Emtage, discusses a phase I open-label study evaluating the safety and tolerability of MEDI4736 in combination with tremelimumab for the treatment of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Dr. Petrylak on the Results of the Phase II STRIDE Study

Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, Professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology) and of Urology, Professor and Co-Director, Signal Transduction Research Program, Yale Cancer Center, discusses results from the phase II STRIDE study.

Bevacizumab Improves Survival in Metastatic Breast Cancer

Treatment with the combination of bevacizumab and chemotherapy improved PFS and OS in women with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer.

Blood-Based Biomarkers Predict Outcomes Following Neoadjuvant Treatment in Esophageal Cancer

High pretreatment levels of serum VEGF-A and TGF-β1 indicated significantly worse disease-free survival (DFS) following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Aggressive Treatment Leads to Long-Term Survival in Low-Risk Stage IV NSCLC

Timing of metastatic development, lymph node involvement, and type of disease all factor into the overall survival rate of patients with stage IV NSCLC.

Potentially Curative Surgery Achievable With Chemo/SABR Combination for Advanced Pancreatic Cancer

The combination of chemotherapy and stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) may allow patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer to undergo surgery, a procedure that might not have otherwise been an option

Vessel-Sparing Radiation Preserves Sexual Function in Men With Prostate Cancer

With the use of MRI imaging to restrict doses to erectile tissues, nearly half of men treated with external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) for prostate cancer were able to be sexually active without aids or medications 5 years later, and nearly 80% could be sexually active if such support was an option

Abbreviated Course of ADT + Radiation Improves QoL in High-Risk Prostate Cancer

When given along with radiation therapy to men with high-risk prostate cancer, 18 months of androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT)-as opposed to a 36-month course-not only generates similar long-term outcomes, but results in a better quality of life

Radiotherapy Without Chemo Can Ease Dysphagia in Patients With Advanced Esophageal Cancer

Radiotherapy is equally as effective in the palliation of dysphagia (difficulty swallowing) as chemoradiotherapy for patients with advanced esophageal cancer

Radiation Therapy Improves Survival in Hodgkin's Lymphoma

Despite a recent decline in utilization, consolidated radiation therapy has been shown to improve 10-year survival rates for patients with stage I/II Hodgkin's lymphoma following treatment with chemotherapy

CDK 4/6, PI3K Inhibitor Combinations Explored in Breast Cancer

The combination of letrozole with either the CDK4/6 inhibitor LEE011 or the PI3 kinase Inhibitor BYL719 demonstrated clinical activity for women with ER-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer.

Dr. Gralow on the Use of Bisphosphonates in Early-Stage Breast Cancer

Julie R. Gralow, MD, discusses the use of bisphosphonates in early-stage breast cancer.

Dr. Chan on Improving Mammography Screening Rates With Signed Letters

Elisa K. Chan, MD, discusses improving mammography screening rates with signed letters from physicians. Chan worked for the BC Cancer Agency during the study.

Adding Trastuzumab to Fulvestrant Prolongs Responses in Metastatic Breast Cancer

The addition of trastuzumab to fulvestrant prolonged responses compared with fulvestrant alone for certain patients with metastatic breast cancer.

Novel Peptide Vaccine Safe, Effective in High-Risk Breast Cancer

A novel HER2-derived peptide vaccine designed to stimulate CD8+ cytotoxic T-lymphocytes reduced the rate of breast cancer recurrence and proved safe and well tolerated in the adjuvant setting.

Veliparib Active in Patients with BRCA-Positive Breast, Ovarian Tumors

The PARP inhibitor veliparib exhibits antitumor activity and is safe and tolerable on a continuous dosing schedule when used for the treatment of patients with BRCA-positive and BRCA-wild type tumors.

Fertility May Be Preserved With Triptorelin Adjuvant to Chemotherapy in Younger Breast Cancer Patients

Long-term follow-up of a phase III clinical trial shows strong trends toward a greater likelihood of resuming menses and becoming pregnant when a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) analog is administered with chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer

In Early Breast Cancer, Outcomes Affected by Tumor Biology and Choice of Local Treatment

Breast conserving therapy (BCT) improves overall survival compared with other local treatments in patients with stage I breast cancer, according to an examination of the National Cancer Database (NCDB).

Dr. Sisco Discusses Complications After Bilateral and Unilateral Mastectomies with Immediate Reconstruction

Mark Sisco, MD, Clinical Assistant Professor, Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, NorthShore Univeristy HealthSystem, discusses the results of a NSQIP analysis of 30-day complications after bilateral versus unilateral mastectomy with immediate reconstruction

Dr. Verma Discusses Clinical Trial Endpoints in Metastatic Breast Cancer

Sunil Verma, MD, MSEd, FRCPC, associate professor, University of Toronto, chair, Breast Medical Oncology, Sunnybrook Odette Cancer Centre, discusses targeting HER2 in early-stage breast cancer.

"Angelina Jolie Effect" Sparks More BRCA Testing at Cancer Center

The actress Angelina Jolie's decision to undergo a preventive double mastectomy after learning she carried the BRCA1 gene mutation-associated with an increased risk of breast and/or ovarian cancer-apparently sparked an "Angelina effect" on public health.

Subtype, pCR Predict Locoregional Recurrence Following Neoadjuvant Therapy

The combination of multiple independent factors minimized the impact of baseline stage for predicting locoregional recurrence (LRR) following neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer, according to a large retrospective analysis presented in advance of the 2014 Breast Cancer Symposium.

Patient Decisions About Bilateral Mastectomy Influenced by Anxiety, Worry About Recurrence

One of the first studies to prospectively examine women's breast surgery preferences has revealed that newly diagnosed women with breast cancer who decide to undergo contralateral prophylactic mastectomy (CPM), may be making this decision as result of high anxiety and fear of recurrence, rather than relying on evidence-based information.

Some Surgical Complications Greater With Bilateral Versus Unilateral Mastectomy

Postsurgery complications are infrequent among breast cancer patients undergoing surgery with reconstruction; however, according to a large database study, the rates of certain complications, including reoperation, blood transfusion, and implant loss, are higher with bilateral mastectomy versus unilateral mastectomy.