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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Targeted Treatment for Rare Digestive Tract Cancers May Extend SurvivalIn an early-phase trial, dabrafenib plus trametinib shrank tumors in patients with biliary tract cancer and adenocarcinoma of the small intestine whose tumors had a specific mutation in the BRAF gene.
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Tailored Radiation to Treat Brain Metastases Reduces Impact on Cognitive FunctionResults from a clinical trial suggest that, in patients with brain metastases, an advanced radiotherapy technique limits harm to patients’ cognitive function without affecting the treatment’s effect on tumors.
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Olaparib after Initial Treatment Delays Ovarian Cancer ProgressionIn a recent trial, the PARP inhibitor olaparib substantially delayed ovarian cancer from coming back after the first line of chemotherapy. Could the findings change the standard of care for newly diagnosed ovarian cancer with a BRCA mutation?
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NCI-MATCH Update: More Labs, New Arms, and Initial FindingsNCI’s Dr. Lyndsay Harris provides an update on the NCI-MATCH trial, including the opening of new trial treatment arms and the addition of new laboratories to perform testing on tumor samples of prospective trial participants.
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Trial Results Highlight Changing Lung Cancer Treatment LandscapeResults from two large clinical trials should cement the value of the drugs brigatinib (Alunbrig) and durvalumab (Imfinzi) in treating non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The trial results, several experts said, confirm that the drugs can improve the outcomes of patients with advanced NSCLC.
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Nivolumab and Ipilimumab Effective against Melanoma That Has Spread to the BrainResults from a clinical trial show that the combination of nivolumab (Opdivo) and ipilimumab (Yervoy) halted the growth of or shrank metastatic brain tumors in more than half of participants with melanoma that had spread to the brain.
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Altering Chemotherapy Improves Outcomes in Early-Stage Pancreatic CancerResults from two clinical trials are expected to improve the outlook for some people with early-stage pancreatic cancer. Altering the chemotherapy drugs used and the timing of treatment substantially improved survival.
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Trial Produces Practice-Changing Findings for Some Children, Young Adults with LeukemiaThis NCI-funded Children’s Oncology Group trial tested the addition of nelarabine (Arranon) to standard treatment for children and young adults with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL).
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Selumetinib Continues to Show Promise in Children with NF1In a phase 2 clinical trial, the investigational drug selumetinib shrank tumors in some children with the genetic syndrome neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1). The tumors, called neurofibromas, can cause pain, difficulty breathing or walking, and disfigurement.
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Toxin-Based Drug Moxetumomab Pasudotox May Be New Option for Rare LeukemiaPeople diagnosed with hairy cell leukemia (HCL) may have an effective new treatment option, a type of drug called an immunotoxin. Read more about how this treatment, moxetumomab pasudotox, fared in a phase 3 clinical trial in patients with advanced HCL.
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Take with Food: Study Tests Lowering Dose of Prostate Cancer DrugIn a small clinical trial, researchers compared the efficacy of a much lower dose of the cancer drug abiraterone (Zytiga) taken with a low-fat breakfast with a full dose taken on an empty stomach, as directed on the drug’s label.
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Brentuximab Approved for Initial Treatment of Advanced Hodgkin LymphomaThe FDA has expanded the approved uses of brentuximab (Adcetris) in people with Hodgkin lymphoma. Under the new approval, brentuximab can be used in combination with three other chemotherapy drugs as an initial treatment in patients with advanced disease.
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Acupuncture May Reduce Treatment-Related Joint Pain for Breast Cancer PatientsJoint pain caused by aromatase inhibitors in postmenopausal women with breast cancer can cause some women to stop taking the drugs. Reducing their symptoms may translate into better adherence to therapy.
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Drug Combination Improves Outlook for Some Patients with Chronic Lymphocytic LeukemiaInterim results from an ongoing clinical trial show that patients with relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia treated with rituximab plus venetoclax have longer progression-free survival compared with patients treated with chemotherapy.
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Expanding Cancer Clinical Trial Access for Patients with HIVPeople with HIV are often excluded from clinical trials to protect their safety. Preliminary results from an NCI-sponsored study of an immunotherapy drug show that people with HIV can safely participate in clinical trials.
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Studies Identify Therapies That May Delay Melanoma Recurrence after SurgeryTwo recent clinical trials have identified treatments that may delay cancer from returning in some patients with melanoma. Patients in both trials had advanced melanoma that was surgically removed, and each trial tested different forms of post-surgical, or adjuvant, therapy.
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Extensive Lymph Node Removal Doesn't Improve Survival in Some Women with Early-Stage Breast CancerLong-term results from a large clinical trial confirm that, for some women with early-stage breast cancer who have lumpectomy as their surgical treatment, a less extensive lymph node biopsy approach is sufficient.
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Crizotinib Shows Promise for Childhood CancersIn a small clinical trial, the drug crizotinib shrank tumors in children with cancers that have alterations in the ALK gene.
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Extensive Lymph Node Surgery Does Not Increase Survival in MelanomaA conservative approach to lymph node removal surgery may be best for people with melanoma that has spread from the skin to one or a small number of nearby lymph nodes, new results from a large international clinical trial suggest.
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Abiraterone Improves Survival for Some Men with Hormone-Sensitive Prostate CancerIn two large clinical trials, adding the hormone-blocking drug abiraterone to androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) allowed men with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer to live longer than men who were treated with ADT alone.