Gastrointestinal Cancer

A thought-provoking installment of Clinical Quandaries is presented by Alejandro Gabutti, MD; and Tommaso Cascella, MD, of a 36-year-old patient with hepatitis C virus-related cirrhosis and a subsequent diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Based on positive results of the phase 2 FIGHT trial, the FDA has granted the investigation antibody bemarituzumab plus FOLFOX6 breakthrough therapy designation for the treatment of locally advanced or metastatic gastric and gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma with FGFFR2b overexpression in the frontline setting.

Twenty percent of patients with resectable hepatocellular carcinoma experienced significant tumor necrosis when treated with neoadjuvant cemiplimab-rwlc, according to data from a phase 2a open label.

The addition of nivolumab to either chemotherapy or ipilimumab improved overall survival among patients with unresectable advanced or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, according to data from the phase 3 CheckMate-648 trial.

Phase 2 trial data support the FDA breakthrough therapy designation for futibatinib in cholangiocarcinoma tumors positive for FGFR2 gene fusions and rearrangements.

The phase 3 CheckMate 577 trial is the first to show a checkpoint inhibitor in the adjuvant setting after trimodality therapy demonstrate a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in disease-free survival in patients with resected esophageal and gastroesophageal junction cancer.

Based on positive overall and progression-free survival data from the phase 3 KEYNOTE-590 trial, pembrolizumab was approved by the FDA for use in patients with metastatic or locally advanced esophageal or gastroesophageal junction carcinoma.

In order to properly utilize cancer therapies for personalized care, adequate molecular testing must be performed in patients who are eligible for these therapies, with this necessity becoming more and more prevalent in the treatment of gastrointestinal malignancies.

A selective internal radiation therapy from Boston Scientific Corporation, TheraSphere Y-90 Glass Microspheres, was granted FDA approval for the treatment of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma.

ONCOLOGY® sat down with John L. Marshall, MD, chief of the Division of Hematology/Oncology at Medstar Georgetown University Hospital and director of the Ruesch Center for the Cure of Gastrointestinal Cancer as well as co-chair of the 6th Annual School of Gastrointestinal Oncology® (SOGO®), hosted by Physicians' Education Resource, LLC (PER®), to discuss how personalized approaches to treating various gastrointestinal malignancies has changed the therapy landscape.

Richard Schilsky, MD, touched on the research driving ASCO to award “Advance of the Year” to molecular profiling in gastrointestinal cancers, and what the organization’s top priorities are in the near future.

Data published in Cancer found adjuvant radiotherapy after distal cholangiocarcinoma resection was associated with a survival benefit for patients, regardless of margin or nodal status.

The BLA submission is based on data observed in the phase 2 POD1UM-202 trial of retifanlimab in previously treated patients with locally advanced or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the anal canal who had progressed on, or were intolerant of, standard platinum-based chemotherapy.

Bristol Myers Squibb announced that nivolumab has been granted priority review for indications in both the first-line and adjuvant treatment settings as therapy for gastrointestinal cancers.

Lenvatinib monotherapy was an effective first-line therapy for patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma, according to data from a retrospective, real-world analysis.

The approval was based on results from the phase 2 DESTINY-Gastric01 trial which evaluated patients with HER2-positive locally advanced or metastatic gastric or GEJ adenocarcinoma who had progressed on at least 2 prior regimens.

Cancertrialsearch.com helped to match patients with gastrointestinal cancers to clinical trials using 7 different criteria, possibly paving the way for patients to find, understand, and enroll in oncology clinical trials.

Stage 4 gastrointestinal stromal tumors were analyzed through a database query, results of which were presented in a poster at a recent medical meeting.

The phase 1b/2 PLANET study demonstrated promising results for patients with these rare gastrointestinal cancers.

The medical oncologist at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, spoke about the progress seen in gastrointestinal cancer research in 2020, as well as what improvements he hopes will occur in 2021.

This study indicated that appendiceal cancer diagnosed among younger individuals harbors a distinct genomic landscape, as compared with appendiceal cancer diagnosed among older individuals.

The FDA granted priority review to a new supplemental biologics license application for pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in combination with chemotherapy for the first-line treatment of patients with locally advanced unresectable or metastatic esophageal and gastroesophageal junction cancer.

The agent’s new drug application will be reviewed under the FDA’s Real Time Oncology Review pilot program and under Project Orbis.

A recent study found that rural non-Hispanic whites and blacks have experienced increased HCC case incidence rates, while urban areas have seen the rate decline since 2009.

Data from a Japanese cohort of patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis suggested ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) was significantly associated with reduced mortality or need for liver transplantation and was also likely to be associated with a reduction of biliary tract cancer.

“These results bring us one step closer to the first potential targeted therapy for advanced gastric cancer in over a decade,” said Helen Collins, MD.

The FDA granted priority review to the supplemental biologics license application for trastuzumab deruxtecan (Enhertu) for the treatment of patients with HER2-positive metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma.

Researchers indicated that this economic evaluation supports the widespread adoption of standard genetic testing for newly diagnosed patients with metastatic gastrointestinal stromal tumors.

The expert from the Otto J. Ruesch Center for the Cure of Gastrointestinal Cancers discussed precision medicine with regard to cancer care, as well as the need to make such care more accessible for the global community.

The study is evaluating the efficacy and safety of sintilimab injection in combination with bevacizumab biosimilar injection compared to sorafenib in the first-line treatment of patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma.