7 Key Cancer Trends For 2018
Few doctors, even oncologists who subspecialize, can keep up with developments in the field.
writer, health care advocate, physician
Few doctors, even oncologists who subspecialize, can keep up with developments in the field.
The paradigm for using chemo first to treat advanced breast cancer may change, as we gain experience with these new drugs.
Perhaps the literature fails to capture the clinical value of oncology drugs. This could happen for several reasons.
A new type of cancer medication, called PARP inhibitors, is gaining traction in clinical practice.
The key to the positive results is molecular matching. Patients received larotrectinib, a TRK inhibitor, only if their cancers were marked by a switch…It’s a perfect example of how precision medicine can benefit patients with rare conditions.
What’s most compelling about the new movie is that it illuminates the patient, Henrietta Lacks, and renders her unforgettable.
Ribociclib is one of several CDK inhibitors being tried in breast cancer and other malignancies.
It was a seemingly innocuous change in the protocol that may have caused this experimental tragedy. Which is all the more reason to be careful, and mind the details.
If these data pan out, this first-in-class antibody might be likened to Herceptin, or Rituxan… a precise treatment that works on malignant cells that have tested positive for the relevant molecule.
This paper offers the clearest demonstration, yet, of the value – to patients – of precision medicine in oncology.
The potential to reduce overtreatment, in women with a low chance of recurrence for which chemo is unlikely to be of benefit, is huge.
Today, Walter White might not be doomed by his lung cancer. The harder problem is how to pay for his care.
If there’s one thing that’s become clear about precision medicine – and the delivery of optimal care based in science – it will require super technology. This need is especially urgent in oncology.
The concept of valuing drugs, at least in part, by how easy it is to reliably produce, distribute and take them, appeals to reason.
These biomarkers should link patients to optimal therapy (when such exists), and lead some to decline therapy that’s unlikely to help. The CDx field is moving forward rapidly in oncology..
A common misconception is that precision medicine is about one drug for one disease. But for most cancer types, it will involve combining medications in effective cocktails.
Over time, the costs should drop, like for smartphone tech, what my Dad – a chemistry major and retired physician – called “magic.”
Taken together, the findings raise many possibilities – and questions about strategy, and expense – for testing and prescribing new small drugs and immune-targeting antibodies to patients with kidney and, potentially, other advanced cancer forms.
One problem is that prospective, randomized clinical trials comparing treatments for conditions like “Stage 3 ovarian cancer” fall behind the pace of advances in science and drug development.
On Twitter this week, I happened upon a discussion having to do with the possibility of curing cancer.
Brain cancer is an outlier in 2015. It’s among a handful of broad tumor types including liver and pancreatic cancer that, sadly, still kill in most cases.
So far, the studies demonstrate that Lynparza has activity in cancer patients with and without inherited BRCA mutations.
We’re in the 1950s of precision medicine, so to speak. Modern oncology care helps some, many but not all.
Anne Parker’s perspective on cancer care – as a family member, patient and advocate – spans over 50 years.
It’s the kind of problem a person who’s had cancer, or a doctor who’s prescribed generally helpful treatment, may not want to think about.
Carr’s story highlights the need for improved survivorship care. As his recent autopsy disclosed, he died with an aggressive form of lung cancer and heart disease.
The FDA’s decision on palbociclib immediately expands treatment options for a large fraction of people living with metastatic breast cancer. What limits enthusiasm is how much this oral drug will cost.
The implications extend beyond cancer drugs. Biosimilars have the potential to significantly reduce the costs of modern health care for people with all kinds of illness
To deny new cancer treatments that might prolong life in a good way, possibly for cure or a remission, or even just to tame the disease, is a misguided proposition.
What’s concerning about the preliminary findings is that the median time to response was 18 weeks. For patients to wait four months or longer to see if there’s a benefit seems like a lot; these are women without much time to spare.
The kinase inhibitor offers a new option for people with polycythemia vera, a condition for which few drugs have been available.
“There is no ‘race for the palliation,’” said Dr. Michael Levy, MD, PhD of Fox-Chase Cancer Center, a palliative care specialist.
Perjeta extends survival in patients with Her2 positive breast cancer. Might drugs targeting Her2 be effective in other malignancies?
Genome sequencing is not routine in oncology practice. But maybe it should be, advocates suggest.
Chemotherapy treatments for early-stage breast cancer vary widely in their possible side effects. But few newly-diagnosed patients press their oncologists about those differences.
The Lung-MAP trial will identify molecular abnormalities in tumors specimens from thousands of patients with squamous cell lung cancer.