Treatment - Cancer Currents Blog
Cancer treatment related news, with context from leading experts. Includes articles on new therapies, treatment side effects, and important trends in treatment-related research.
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A Vaccine to Treat Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Advancing in Clinical TrialsIn some people with non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), treating a single tumor with an in situ vaccine can help to shrink, or eliminate, tumors in other parts of the body, findings from a small clinical trial suggest.
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Immunotherapy Drug with Two Targets Shows Promise against HPV-Related CancersThe investigational immunotherapy drug bintrafusp alfa (also called M7824), a bifunctional fusion protein, shrank the tumors of some patients with advanced HPV-related cancers, according to results from a phase 1 clinical trial.
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Fewer Women with Ovarian, Breast Cancer Undergo Genetic Testing than ExpectedMany women diagnosed with ovarian and breast cancer are not undergoing tests for inherited genetic mutations that can provide important information to help guide decisions about treatment and longer-term cancer screening, a new study has found.
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Researchers Discover Potential Way to Hit Elusive Target in Pancreatic CancerThree research groups have found a potential way to kill cancer cells in pancreatic tumors by simultaneously blocking the activity of proteins that interact with KRAS proteins and disrupting an energy-creating process called autophagy.
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Atezolizumab Approved for Some Patients with Triple-Negative Breast CancerFDA has approved atezolizumab (Tecentriq) in combination with chemotherapy for the treatment of some women with advanced triple-negative breast cancer. This is the first FDA-approved regimen for breast cancer to include immunotherapy.
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Trial Examines Value of Lymph Node Surgery in Advanced Ovarian CancerSurgery to remove all the lymph nodes in the area around an advanced ovarian tumor did not improve survival in a recent randomized clinical trial. The study also found systematic lymphadenectomy was associated with more frequent serious complications.
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Targeted Therapy–Immunotherapy Combinations Effective for Advanced Kidney CancerIn two clinical trials, combination treatments that included an immune checkpoint inhibitor and axitinib (Inlyta) led to better outcomes for patients with advanced kidney cancer than treatment with sunitinib (Sutent), the standard initial therapy.
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Darolutamide Delays the Spread of Some Prostate CancersThe investigational drug darolutamide can help delay the spread of prostate cancer in some men with the disease, a recent clinical trial shows. In addition, the drug caused fewer side effects than similar prostate cancer drugs.
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Multipronged Approach Eliminates Racial Disparities in Early-Stage Lung Cancer TreatmentUse of a multipronged approach within hospitals, including community centers, not only eliminated treatment disparities among black and white patients with early-stage lung cancer, it also improved treatment rates for all patients, results from a new study show.
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NCI’s Rare Cancer Clinics: Engaging Patients and Fostering CollaborationNCI has created special clinics that bring together clinicians, patients, and advocates to promote more rapid progress against rare cancers. The effort includes both rare pediatric cancers and central nervous system tumors in adults.
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Treatment for Children with Leukemia Also Effective for Adolescents, Young AdultsA clinical trial found that an intensive treatment regimen developed specifically for children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia is also effective for older adolescents and young adults with the disease.
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Dormant Tumor Cells Can Be Sensitized to ChemotherapyA new study in mice shows that disrupting the relationship between breast cancer cells that spread to bone and normal cells surrounding them makes the cancer cells sensitive to treatment.
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A CAR T-Cell Therapy for Multiple Childhood Cancers?An experimental CAR T-cell therapy may have potential as a treatment for several types of childhood cancer, results from a new study in mice suggest. The CAR T cells eradicated tumors in mouse models of several different childhood cancers, including two forms of sarcoma and medulloblastoma.
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HTAN: Mapping Tumors across Space and Time Using Cutting-Edge TechnologiesThe Human Tumor Atlas Network, an NCI-led collaborative research project, is creating detailed maps of cancers that will be used to learn how cancer develops, spreads, and responds to treatment.
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Curbing Production of Immune Checkpoint Protein Slows Liver Cancer in MiceResearchers have found an unconventional way to unleash the immune system against liver cancer in mice. The researchers used an investigational drug to curb the production of a checkpoint inhibitor protein that shields tumors from the immune system.
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Immunotherapy Effective in Alveolar Soft Part SarcomaPeople with advanced alveolar soft part sarcoma (ASPS), a rare cancer, appear to benefit from a type of immunotherapy called an immune checkpoint inhibitor, according to results from a small clinical trial.
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FDA Approvals Bring New Options for Older Patients with AMLFDA has approved venetoclax (Venclexta) and glasdegib (Daurismo) for use in people with acute myeloid leukemia aged 75 and older and those with health conditions that prevent them from receiving the intensive chemotherapy regimen that is the standard initial treatment.
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Whole- and Partial-Breast Radiation Effective at Preventing Breast Cancer from ReturningIn women with early-stage breast cancer, two clinical trials have shown that both whole- and partial-breast radiation therapy are effective at preventing the cancer from returning after breast-conserving surgery.
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Drug Combination May Target the Unique Metabolism of Leukemia Stem CellsTwo new studies show how the drugs venetoclax (Venclexta) and azacitidine (Vidaza) team up to block the unique metabolism of leukemia stem cells and may explain why the drug combination is effective against acute myeloid leukemia.
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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.