Forging Ahead in the COVID-19 era

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) shows no signs of slowing down or burning out, with cases in the United States reaching daily highs in several locations. Although infectious disease specialists and epidemiologists investigate and discuss the best courses of action for treating and mitigating the effects of this devasting pandemic, medical oncologists around the world continue their own daily fight against cancer.

In this issue of ONCOLOGY®, we honor that fight by recapping and reviewing some of the most important posters and presentations from the 2020 American Society of Clinical Oncology Virtual Scientific Program. The virtual format did nothing to dampen the quality of the conference, with several studies reaching practice-influencing conclusions.

The phase 3 HERO trial was one such study, with presented data suggesting that relugolix (Relumina) may become the new standard of care for patients with advanced prostate cancer. Interim and early results from the phase 2 ZUMA-5 trial and phase 1b FORWARD II trial weren’t quite as decisive, but nonetheless, patients with indolent B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma and patients with ovarian cancer, respectively, were given promising data on new treatments.

Also in this issue, you will read a review of immunotherapy treatments for advanced lung cancer. Despite a recent avalanche of FDA approvals in the lung cancer space, there is an urgent need for reliable biomarkers to best match patients to therapeutics, and questions regarding the proper sequencing and duration of treatment still remain.

For this month’s clinical quandary, you will read about the psychological impact of COVID-19 on patients with cancer. How can the field of psycho-oncology contribute to patient care and alleviate some of the issues brought forth by this pandemic? Read on to find out.

Within these pages, you will also find a review of current challenges to cancer clinical trials resulting from the pandemic, and an article discussing the implementation and framework of telemedicine for oncologists.

I hope you find our journal helpful in caring for your patients through what is likely one of the most challenging times in their lives. As always, thank you for reading.