Precision Medicine in Oncology®

Virginia G. Kaklamani, MD, discussed the emerging role of PARP inhibitors, practice-changing updates in HER2-positive breast cancer, the utilization of CDK4/6 inhibitors in hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative breast cancer, and the various therapeutic classes and their effects on care in triple-negative breast cancer.

The FDA has granted a fast track designation to the myeloid kinome inhibitor, HM43239, for use as a potential therapeutic option in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia whose tumors harbor a FLT3 mutation.

Christos Vaklavas, MD, discusses the increasing emphasis on investigating tumor biology in breast cancer, plus the evolving treatment landscapes in HER2-positive breast cancer, hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative breast cancer, and triple-negative breast cancer.

Novel strategies to modulate the microbiota are now an area of robust investigation

Jun Zhang, MD, PhD, discusses key clinical trials utilizing immunotherapy in non–small cell lung cancer, the continued importance of biomarker testing to help inform treatment decisions, and targeted therapies for EGFR, MET, and ALK mutations.

Kelvin P. Lee, MD, discusses the importance of sequencing in precision medicine.

Lynette M. Sholl, MD, discusses why cancer pathologists still want better tissue samples.

The European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has recommended granting marketing authorization to capmatinib for use as a single agent in select adult patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer harboring a METex14 skipping alteration.

The safety, tolerability, and preliminary efficacy of the irreversible, small molecule pan-FGFR inhibitor KIN-3248 is under investigation in adult patients with advanced tumors harboring FGFR2 and/or FGFR3 gene alterations, as part of the phase 1 KN-4802 trial.

Christopher A. Fausel, PharmD, MHA, BCOP, discusses how genetic sequencing has played a growing role in cancer care.

Marcia S. Brose, MD, PhD, FASCO, and a panel of thyroid cancer experts share their insights into the evolving treatment landscape, including the use of VEGF receptor inhibitors and some of the precision medicine treatments now identified for molecularly selected subsets of patients with differentiated thyroid cancer, such as BRAF, RET, and TRK inhibitors.

Widespread germline testing in the United States could prevent cancer in hundreds of thousands of people. However, despite known benefits, uptake for genetic testing has been slow: only 1 in 5 individuals use recommended genetic services even when there is a significant family history of colorectal, breast, or ovarian cancer.

Selpercatinib continued to provide clinically meaningful benefit to patients with metastatic RET fusion–positive non–small cell lung cancer.

The FDA has approved the BRACAnalysis CDx assay for use as a companion diagnostic to select patients with germline BRCA-mutated, HER2-negative, high-risk early breast cancer who may derive clinical benefit from treatment with olaparib.

Kelvin P. Lee, MD, discusses the nuances of an effective molecular tumor board, explains the practical application of precision oncology genomics, and highlights the pathways that have the potential to change the treatment landscape for precision oncology.

A marketing authorization application has been submitted to the European Medicines Agency for 2 indications of ivosidenib: in combination with azacitidine in the frontline treatment of patients with IDH1-mutated acute myeloid leukemia who are not candidates for intensive chemotherapy and in previously treated patients with locally advanced or metastatic IDH1-mutated cholangiocarcinoma.

Leveraging the advances made with liquid biopsies in pantumor assays and specific hematologic cancers has laid the groundwork for the shift in care by using single, or multifaceted approaches for identifying, predicting, and monitoring disease progression.

Early data have demonstrated poor outcomes for patients with NRG1 fusions, and limited efficacy with available treatments represents a need for the development of novel therapeutic agents.

Improving patient outcomes is top of mind for investigators at John Theurer Cancer Center in Hackensack, New Jersey.

Upal Basu Roy, PhD, MPH, discusses the challenges of interpreting molecular testing results in lung cancer.

Maurie Markman, MD, explains the concerns surrounding liquid biopsies in cancer screening, and why regulatory agencies should be cautious and not approve any proposed molecularly based cancer diagnostic screening strategy until the tool is shown to effect cancer-specific survival compared with a control population not undergoing such testing.

Primary and metastatic brain tumors present a significant therapeutic challenge, in large part because they are protected by the blood-brain barrier, a highly restrictive interface between the bloodstream and the brain that prevents most drugs from accessing the brain parenchyma.

The European Commission has granted a marketing authorization for lorlatinib for use as a single agent in the treatment of adult patients with ALK-positive advanced non–small cell lung cancer who did not receive a prior ALK inhibitor.

The recent approval of sotorasib for the treatment of patients with advanced KRAS G12C–mutant non–small cell lung cancer marks a milestone for cancer therapy.

High expression of activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule, also known as CD166, occurs in approximately 50% of patients with triple-negative breast cancer and up to 80% of patients with estrogen receptor– positive, HER2-negative breast cancer.