Clinical Trial Results - Cancer Currents Blog
Reports on findings from cancer clinical trials, with commentary from leading researchers on how the trial results will affect patient care.
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Trial Results Support Adding Daratumumab to Initial Treatment for Multiple MyelomaAdding daratumumab (Darzalex) to standard treatment helped people with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma live longer without their cancer getting worse or dying. People taking daratumumab were also more likely to have no detectable signs of cancer (minimal residual disease) after treatment.
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Enzalutamide Gets Added Approval for Prostate Cancer That Hasn’t SpreadUnder a new FDA approval, enzalutamide (Xtandi) can now be used alone, or in combination with leuprolide, to treat people with nonmetastatic prostate cancer that is at high risk of returning after surgery or radiation.
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Toripalimab Becomes First Immunotherapy Drug Approved for Nasopharyngeal CancerFDA approved toripalimab (Loqtorzi) based on the results of a large clinical trial showing that, when added to chemotherapy, the drug extended survival in people with nasopharyngeal cancer that returned after initial treatment or spread in the body.
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Following Abnormal Cancer Screening Results, Multi-Level Reminders May Increase Follow-UpIn a clinical trial, a simple letter and phone call helped increase the number of people who completed the recommended follow-up testing after an abnormal cancer screening result.
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Virtual Mind–Body Fitness Classes Show Unexpected Benefit in People with CancerIn a clinical trial, people being treated for cancer who participated in virtual mind–body fitness classes were less likely to be hospitalized, and had shorter stays when they were hospitalized, than people who did not take the classes.
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Tarlatamab Shows Promise for Some People with Small Cell Lung CancerTarlatamab, a new type of targeted immunotherapy, shrank small cell lung cancer (SCLC) tumors in more than 30% of participants in an early-stage clinical trial. Participants had SCLC that had progressed after previous treatments with other drugs.
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Groundbreaking Trial Results Expand Treatment Options for Some People with Bladder CancerFor the first time in decades, people with advanced bladder cancer have more effective treatment options. New clinical trial results mark a pivotal moment following years of little progress, bladder cancer experts believe.
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FDA Amends Approval of Pembrolizumab to Treat Stomach and Esophageal Junction CancerFDA has changed its 2021 approval of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) along with trastuzumab (Herceptin) and chemotherapy for treating HER2-positive stomach or GEJ cancer. The agency also announced a new approval of pembrolizumab for HER2-negative forms of these same cancers.
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Selpercatinib Slows Progression of RET-Positive Lung, Medullary Thyroid CancersFor people with lung cancer and medullary thyroid cancer whose tumors have changes in the RET gene, selpercatinib improved progression-free survival compared with other common treatments, according to new clinical trial results.
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SBRT Emerging as an Important Treatment for Early-Stage Kidney CancerStereotactic body radiotherapy was effective in people with localized kidney cancer who weren’t able to have surgery to remove their tumor, a clinical trial has shown. No patients had their cancer start growing or died from cancer over the next 5 years.
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Trial Results Confirm Effectiveness of Atezolizumab Against a Rare SarcomaTreatment with atezolizumab (Tecentriq) shrank tumors in about 40% of people with alveolar soft part sarcoma, including one complete response, new clinical trial findings show. Some people were later able to stop treatment without the cancer returning.
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Cholesterol Drug May Help Protect the Heart during Chemotherapy for LymphomaThe cholesterol-lowering drug atorvastatin (Lipitor) may help reduce the risk of heart failure in people with lymphoma who receive chemotherapy drugs called anthracyclines, results from a clinical trial suggest. Anthracyclines, such as doxorubicin, are used to treat many types of cancer.
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Targeted Drug Combo May Change Care for Rare Brain Tumor CraniopharyngiomaTreating craniopharyngioma often requires surgery, radiation therapy, or both. But results of a study suggest that, for many, combining the targeted therapies vemurafenib (Zelboraf) and cobimetinib (Cotellic) may substantially delay, or even eliminate, the need for these treatments.
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Some People with Rectal Cancer Can Skip Radiation before SurgeryRadiation may not be needed for people undergoing surgery for rectal cancer, a large clinical trial has shown. A combination of two chemotherapy drugs before surgery appears to be as effective as chemo and radiation and may spare patients from long-term side effects.
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Three-Drug Regimen Improves Protection against GVHD after Stem Cell TransplantA large clinical trial has shown that in people with blood cancers, a cyclophosphamide-based regimen better protects against graft-versus-host-disease (GVHD) after an allogeneic stem cell transplant than the standard regimen.
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Trial Confirms CAR T-Cell Therapy Benefits People with Aggressive LymphomasNew findings show that the CAR T-cell therapy axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta) improved survival for people with large B-cell lymphoma that was not responding to initial treatment or had quickly relapsed. The new results from the ZUMA-7 trial offer real hope for this group of patients.
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Lung Cancer Trial of Osimertinib Draws Praise—and Some CriticismIn the ADAURA clinical trial, people with early-stage lung cancer treated with osimertinib (Tagrisso) after surgery lived longer than people treated with a placebo after surgery. Despite some criticisms about its design, the trial is expected to change patient care.
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Vorasidenib Treatment Shows Promise for Some Low-Grade GliomasIn a large clinical trial, vorasidenib slowed the growth of low-grade gliomas that had mutations in the IDH1 or IDH2 genes. Vorasidenib is the first targeted drug developed specifically to treat brain tumors.
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Blinatumomab Increases Survival for Infants with an Aggressive Type of ALLGiving the drug blinatumomab (Blincyto) after standard chemotherapy substantially increased survival for infants with an aggressive form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), a recent study showed. If confirmed in larger studies, the treatment may become standard therapy for infants with ALL caused by KMT2A rearrangements.
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3-in-1 Approach Helps Women in Rural Areas Get Cancer ScreeningsIn a new study, providing rural women with an interactive video about cancer screening and follow-up calls with patient navigators helped get them up to date on screenings for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer.