OncLive On Air Podcast Recap

In case you missed any, below is a recap of every episode of OncLive On Air® that aired in April 2024. Check out our podcast page for a full episode lineup and to stay up-to-date with all of the latest releases!

Schmid Summarizes Updates in HER2-Positive Breast Cancer Management

In this exclusive episode, Peter Schmid, MD, PhD, FRCP, of Barts Cancer Institute of Queen Mary University in London, England, discussed the application of updated data in the treatment of patients with HER2-positive breast cancer and details how he manages HER2-positive disease in differing settings.

“We’re learning a lot about how to use antibody-drug conjugates in general, whether it’s in HER2-positive disease or whether it’s outside HER2-positive disease,” Schmid emphasized in the interview.

Camidge and Rabinowitz Reflect on Finding Strength and Inspiration on Both Sides of a Cancer Diagnosis

In this episode of How This Is Building Me, host D. Ross Camidge, MD, PhD, was joined by Ian Rabinowitz, MD, of the University of New Mexico Cancer Center, to talk through the balancing act between personal and professional life that Rabinowitz navigated when he was diagnosed with metastatic, ALK-positive lung cancer; the outlook on life he cultivated when faced with an unfavorable prognosis; and how he connected with the patients he cared for when receiving treatment for his own disease.

“[For] people who don’t have cancer or a bad illness, [their perception of life is] in their brain, they’re thinking about it,” Rabinowitz said. “If you’ve been told you’ve got a serious illness that’s going to take you eventually, [your perception of life] becomes in the heart and in the soul. It’s a different way of thinking about life; it’s a different way of thinking about your existence and how you’re going to go through it. One of the things I learned is that the worst thing to do is to sit around and wait for that moment to come. You’ve got to get up and find meaning in your life. You’ve got to find something to do that’s going to give you the meaning to continue. And then you forget about the cancer.”

“I remember you told me at the time [of your diagnosis] that one of the things you changed up was you had some research roles…and you initially dropped all the research and concentrated on the clinical,” Camidge emphasized. “You may not remember telling me this, but this is what I remember: you said ‘To produce results in research, it might take 5 years, and I don’t know if I’ve got 5 years. But I can make a patient better tomorrow.’ It made a big impression on me. I thought, that’s very true and is really the heart of being a physician.”

FDA Approval Insights: Ponatinib in Ph+ ALL

On March 19th, 2024, the FDA granted accelerated approval to ponatinib (Iclusig) plus chemotherapy for patients with Philadelphia chromosome (Ph)–positive acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) based on data from the phase 3 PhALLCON trial (NCT03589326). Treatment with first-line ponatinib plus reduced-intensity chemotherapy led to a minimal residual disease–negative complete response rate of 30% at the end of induction in efficacy-evaluable patients (n = 164); this rate was 12% in evaluable patients who received imatinib (Gleevec) plus chemotherapy (n = 81; risk difference, 0.18; 95% CI, 0.08-0.28; P = .0004).

In this exclusive interview, Elias Jabbour, MD, of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, highlighted the milestones achieved through ponatinib’s approval for patients with Ph-positive ALL, the agent’s unique mechanism of action, and key efficacy and safety data from the PhALLCON trial.

“It’s the first time ever that we have a frontline TKI approved in ALL,” Jabbour noted in the interview. “From now on, we have a new standard of care [SOC].”

Breast Cancer Experts Share Obstacles and Successes as Women in Oncology

In this exclusive episode, we passed the microphone to panelists from OncLive’s inaugural Women in Oncology event, which took place at the 41st Annual Miami Breast Cancer Conference. The panelists shared moments throughout their lives and careers that sparked their interest in oncology, setbacks they overcame as they built their careers, obstacles they encounter as women in the oncology field, and ways gender bias can be mitigated at individual and institutional levels.

“If you widen your thinking and challenge yourself to be uncomfortable, which is where our biggest growth can come from as humans, amazing things can happen,” Stephanie L. Graff, MD, of Lifespan Cancer Institute and Brown University, both in Providence, Rhode Island, said.

“By experiencing those moments of uncertainty and vulnerability, it taught me lessons about empathy and patient care. I also gained a deeper understanding of the fears and concerns that my future patients may have,” Reshma L. Mahtani, DO, of Miami Cancer Institute in Florida, added.

“Being able to reach out to somebody, talk to them about their story, understand where they’re coming from can go a long way in supporting them,” Kelly E. McCann, MD, PhD, of the University of California, Los Angeles Health David Geffen School of Medicine, emphasized.

“One thing I learned from the [panel] is that we need to be sharing our stories. We need to be talking, and we need to help women with their careers and all the things they want to do, whether that’s [starting a] family or having a partner, [regardless of gender or orientation],” Hope S, Rugo, MD, of the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, said.

Camidge and Rimel on the Importance of Cultivating Inclusive Gynecologic Oncology Practices

In this episode of How This Is Building Me, host D. Ross Camidge, MD, PhD, was joined by B.J. Rimel, MD, of the Cedars-Sinai Cancer Institute in Los Angeles, California, to discuss the steps along Dr Rimel’s journey to becoming a gynecologic oncology surgeon, the ways her career is informed by her identity as a member of the LGBTQ community, the work she does to increase access to medical care for transgender patients, and more.

“My guest today is somebody who I had dinner with at a faculty dinner at a conference, and I had such a wonderful time; I really felt I wanted to share that experience with a wider audience,” Camidge said of Rimel.

“In 5 years, I would love to see some of the work we’ve been doing in clinical trials really translate to a larger number of the people in Los Angeles,” Rimel shared. “Having true access and enrollment onto clinical trials that are relevant to them. I just really love this city, and I want to give back to it by hopefully giving these opportunities to the patients who need them.”

Lunning and Rutherford Detail Considerations for BV-AVD Use in Older Patients With Hodgkin Lymphoma

In this episode of Blood Club, host Matthew Lunning, DO, FACP, of the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, sat down with Sarah Rutherford, MD, of Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, New York, to spotlight key findings from the phase 3 ECHELON-1 trial (NCT03907488) of brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris; BV) plus doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (AVD) in the cohort of patients with Hodgkin lymphomawho were older than 60 years of age, differentiating factors of Hodgkin lymphoma in younger patients compared with older patients, the importance of determining an optimal yet tolerable balance of checkpoint inhibitors plus chemotherapy, and more.

“What came out of ECHELON-1 was this over 60 [years of age patient] population and whether we should be using BV-AVD, or even BV-containing regimens in general, [in this population],” Lunning said.

“This study is already changing care,” Rutherford emphasized.

FDA Approval Insights: Cilta-Cel in R/R Myeloma After at Least 1 Prior Line of Therapy

On April 5, 2024, the FDA approved ciltacabtagene autoleucel (cilta-cel; Carvykti) for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma who have received at least 1 prior line of therapy, including a proteasome inhibitor and an immunomodulatory agent, and who are refractory to lenalidomide (Revlimid). This regulatory decision was supported by findings from the phase 3 CARTITUDE-4 study (NCT04181827), in which, at a median follow-up of 15.9 months (range, 0.1-27.3), patients who received cilta-cel (n = 208) achieved a median progression-free survival that was not yet reached vs 11.8 months (95% CI, 9.7-13.8) for patients who received SOC combination regimens (n = 211; HR, 0.26; 95% CI, 0.18-0.38; P <.001).

In this exclusive interview, Saad Z. Usmani, MD, MBA, FACP, FASCO, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, New York, discussed the significance of this approval; the efficacy and safety data from CARTITUDE-4; and how CAR T-cell therapy now fits into the multiple myeloma treatment paradigm.

“Cilta-cel will play an important role for patients with functional, high-risk and/or lenalidomide-refractory multiple myeloma who experience early relapse within the first 2 years of diagnosis,” Usmani highlighted.

Camidge and Su Compare Lung Cancer Treatment Strategies in China and the United States

In this episode of How This Is Building Me, host D. Ross Camidge, MD, PhD, sat down with Chunxia Su, MD, PhD, of the Tongji University School of Medicine and Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital in China, to highlight the aspects of medicine that piqued Dr Su’s interest in practicing medical oncology, the details of delivering lung cancer care in China, how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected Dr Su’s outlook on her life and career goals, and more.

“The reason why I wanted to work in oncology was that I have a positive attitude toward overcoming difficulties,” Su shared in the interview.

“You’ve allowed us to get a glimpse of just what amazing work you’re doing, but you’re actually a very interesting and rich personality underneath all of your career success,” Camidge said of Su.

Bou Farhat and Nassar on the Use of NGS Mutation Signature vs IHC for Identifying dMMR Tumors

In this exclusive episode, Amin Nassar, MD, of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, and Elias Bou Farhat, MD, of Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, explained how tumor-only next-generation sequencing (NGS) could address the limitations of immunohistochemistry (IHC) testing for mismatch repair (MMR) mutation signatures, highlight primary findings from a study assessing the use of NGS mutation signature vs standard IHC testing for identifying MMR-deficient tumors, and proposed revisiting guideline recommendations for diagnostic testing to reduce the impact of MMR status misdiagnosis on treatment outcomes.

“Analysis of MMR signature using NGS is somewhat more sensitive than IHC analysis,” Bou Farhar explained. “If this method were applied across the whole United States, I think that [many] more [patients with] colorectal cancer and endometrial cancer who could benefit from immunotherapy would be identified.”

“IHC is here to stay because it’s quick, it’s cheap, and it’s [widely] available,” Nassar added. “[We should] move [NGS] earlier in the diagnostic algorithm for patients whenever possible.”