August 2024 - Cancer Currents Blog
-
Growing the Cancer Research Pipeline by Expanding OpportunitiesNCI Director Dr. Kimryn Rathmell and Division of Cancer Biology Director Dr. Dan Gallahan explain how the R15 grant program supports researchers at smaller institutions and encourages students to pursue careers in cancer research.
-
FDA Approves Engineered Cell Therapy for Advanced Synovial SarcomaFDA approved afami-cel (Tecelra) to treat metastatic synovial sarcoma, a type of soft tissue sarcoma. The approval is for patients who have already received chemo and whose tumors are positive for MAGE-A4. Afami-cel is the first T-cell receptor therapy approved for cancer.
-
To Combat Cancer Treatment Resistance, Researchers Try Leveraging EvolutionScientists have developed a strategy for treating cancer that takes advantage of tumors’ ability to rapidly evolve and turns it against them. It involves intentionally making some tumor cells resistant to a specific treatment from the get-go.
-
Can Chemo Help KRAS Inhibitors Work Better Against Pancreatic Cancer?Two new studies in mice show that adding chemotherapy to the experimental KRAS inhibitor MRTX1133 greatly reduced tumor growth and spread compared with either treatment alone.
-
New on NCI’s Websites for August 2024NCI periodically provides updates on new websites and other online content of interest to the cancer community. See selected content that has been added as of August 2024.
-
Understanding the Risk of Second Cancers After CAR T-Cell TherapyIn late 2023, FDA announced it was investigating instances of second cancers following treatment with CAR T-cell therapies. In this Q&A, NCI’s Dr. Stephanie Goff explains what’s known about the issue, stressing that second cancers “of any kind are rare.”
-
Drug Combo JAKs Up Immunotherapy in Two Clinical TrialsScientists have been searching for ways to make immune checkpoint inhibitors work for more patients. In two trials, researchers explored a possible role for JAK inhibitors, which dampen chronic inflammation.
-
More Immunotherapy Options Approved for Treating Endometrial CancerPeople with advanced endometrial cancer now have new FDA-approved treatment options: pembrolizumab and durvalumab, paired with chemotherapy, for tumors with a genetic change called mismatch repair deficiency. The agency also expanded the approved uses of dostarlimab for the disease.
-
Screening People at High Risk for Pancreatic Cancer May Help Them Live LongerRegular imaging tests to monitor the pancreas may help detect pancreatic cancer at an early stage in people who are at high risk, a new study suggests. This type of surveillance could also help improve how long these patients live.