May 2017 - Cancer Currents Blog
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Study Identifies Genetic Mutations in Tumors From 10,000 Patients with Metastatic CancerResearchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center have reported the results of an initiative to characterize the genetic mutations in tumors from more than 10,000 patients with advanced cancer treated at the center.
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FDA Approves Immunotherapy Drugs for Patients with Bladder CancerThe FDA has approved four immunotherapy drugs—avelumab, atezolizumab, durvalumab, and pembrolizumab—for the treatment of patients with bladder cancer. All four drugs belong to a class of cancer therapies known as checkpoint inhibitors.
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New on NCI’s Websites for May 2017NCI periodically provides updates on new websites and other online content of interest to the cancer community.
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Intensive Pre-Stem Cell Transplant Regimen May be Best for Younger Patients with AML, MDSResults from a large phase III clinical trial suggest that a highly intensive preparatory regimen should be used for younger patients with acute myeloid leukemia or myelodysplastic syndromes preparing to undergo an allogeneic stem cell transplant.
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Regorafenib Becomes First FDA-Approved Drug for Liver Cancer in Nearly a DecadeFDA approved the kinase inhibitor regorafenib for some patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, the most common form of liver cancer.
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FDA Grants Brigatinib Accelerated Approval for Metastatic Non-Small Cell Lung CancerOn April 28, the FDA granted accelerated approval to the targeted therapy brigatinib (Alunbrig™) for patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and alterations in the ALK gene whose cancer has progressed during their initial therapy.
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Counseling Improves Survivorship Plan Implementation for Low-Income Breast Cancer SurvivorsIn a randomized trial, low-income women who role-played talking with their doctor about their survivorship care plan in a counseling session reported receiving more of their recommended care than women who did not get counseling.
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NCI ALMANAC: A New Tool for Research on Cancer Drug CombinationsNCI has released a new, easy-to-use resource called the NCI ALMANAC to help researchers identify potentially promising combinations of cancer drugs.
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Collection of Patient-Reported Outcomes Feasible in Cancer Clinical TrialsCancer patients, even those who are undergoing difficult treatments, are willing to devote time to completing thorough assessments of the side effects they encounter in clinical trials, a new study finds.
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Nanoparticles Create Effective CAR T Cells in Living MiceResearchers have developed a method to genetically engineer cancer-fighting immune cells in living animals using nanoparticles that carry DNA. The new study shows that the resulting immune cells, known as CAR T cells, eliminated leukemia in mice.