, which provides oncology professionals with the resources and information they need to provide the best patient care. In both digital and print formats, 

 covers every angle of oncology practice, from new technology to treatment advances to important regulatory decisions.

Today, we had the pleasure of speaking with Chris Labaki, MD, an oncology research fellow at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Quoc-Dien Trinh, MD, an associate professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School, and in the Division of Urology at Brigham and Women's Hospital, to discuss research they recently had published in Cancer Cell, which focuses on the substantial increase in cancer screening procedures documented in more recent time periods following the first peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

When compared with pre-pandemic time periods, investigators noted an increase in all of the following screening procedures, specifically mammography, prostate-specific antigen, Pap smear, and low-dose CT. Colonoscopy was the only procedure that did not see an uptick vs pre-pandemic time points.

Furthermore, the research noted that racial disparities appeared to differ between screening procedures, and they are more marked in patients undergoing mammography.

In our exclusive interview, Drs Labaki and Trinh discussed their research on the recovery of cancer screening tests and its link with potential racial disparities from the COVID-19 pandemic, and how the community can continue to emphasize the importance of cancer screening while working to close the gaps of disparities in cancer care.

Podcasts

Dr. Labaki and Dr. Trinh discuss their research on the recovery of cancer screening tests, its link with potential racial disparities from the COVID-19 pandemic, and how the community can continue to emphasize the importance of cancer screening while working to close these disparities in cancer care. 

DFCI Faculty Relay Insight Into Confirmed Rebounds of Cancer Screenings After COVID-19

, which provides oncology professionals with the resources and information they need to provide the best patient care. In both digital and print formats, OncLive covers every angle of oncology practice, from new technology to treatment advances to important regulatory decisions.

In today’s episode, we had the pleasure of speaking with Sophia George, PhD, a research associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, and Judith D. Hurley, MD, a professor in the Department of Medicine, both at the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, of the University of Miami Health System.

Although it has been known that rates of breast and ovarian cancer are high in the Caribbean, few published data have quantified the prevalence of inherited cancer in those who reside in this region. As such, George, Hurley, and colleagues set out to evaluate whether deleterious variants in genes that characterize hereditary breast and ovarian syndrome are linked with the development of these cancers in populations throughout the Caribbean.

 revealed that 1 in 7 Caribbean-born individuals with either breast or ovarian cancer had hereditary disease with an actionable pathogenic variant, which provides the opportunity for the utilization of targeted therapeutics and precise prevention strategies.

In our exclusive interview, Drs. George and Hurley further discussed the data yielded from their study, called for stronger screening strategies in this region, and outlined next steps for research.

Dr. George and Dr. Hurley discuss the data generated from their study on the correlation between deleterious variants in genes and the development of hereditary breast and ovarian cancers in populations throughout the Caribbean. 



Understanding Actionable Pathogenic Variants Among Caribbean Patients With Breast and Ovarian Cancers

! I’m your host today, Jessica Hergert.

 covers every angle of oncology practice, from new technology to treatment advances to important regulatory decisions. 

In today’s episode, we had the pleasure of speaking with Balazs Halmos, MD, director of Thoracic Oncology and director of Clinical Cancer Genomics at Montefiore Medical Center, to discuss his recent study that examined seroconversion rates following COVID-19 vaccination among patients with cancer.

COVID-19 is known to adversely impact patients with cancer; as such, prophylactic measures are needed. Halmos and his colleagues utilized a validated antibody assay against the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and determined a high seroconversion rate of 94% in 200 patients with cancer in New York City who had received full dosing with 1 of the COVID-19 vaccines that have been authorized by the FDA.

Compared with the rate observed in those with solid tumors, significantly lower rates were observed in patients with hematologic malignancies, at 98% vs 85%, respectively. Additionally, recipients of highly immunosuppressive treatment like anti-CD20 therapies and those who underwent stem cell transplantation also had lower rates, at 70% and 73%, respectively. Notably, patients who received immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy or hormonal therapies were found to have high seroconversion following vaccination, at 97% and 100%, respectively.

In our exclusive interview, Dr. Halmos further discussed the data yielded from the study and underscored the need for novel vaccination or passive immunization strategies for immunosuppressed cohorts.

Dr. Halmos discusses the data from a study examining seroconversion rates following COVID-19 vaccination among patients with cancer and underscores the need for novel vaccination or passive immunization strategies for immunosuppressed cohorts.

Halmos Highlights Effort Exploring COVID-19 Vaccines in Patients With Cancer

In today’s episode, we had the pleasure of speaking with C. Ola Landgren, MD, PhD, professor of medicine; chief of the Myeloma Program in the Division of Hematology; and leader of the Experimental Therapeutics Program at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, of the University of Miami Health System, to discuss the phase 2 MANHATTAN trial examining a novel quadruplet regimen in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma.

The trial examined whether the addition of daratumumab (Darzalex) to weekly carfilzomib (Kyprolis) plus lenalidomide (Revlimid) and dexamethasone would result in high rates of minimal residual disease (MRD) negativity in the absence of high-dose chemotherapy and transplant. Investigators also sought to establish the safety of the regimen.

Data showed that the MRD negativity rate of 40% or higher following up to 8 cycles of the weekly combination was achieved by 71% of 41 patients, meeting the primary end point of the trial. Moreover, the median time to MRD negativity was 6 treatment cycles.

The 4-drug regimen was also found to elicit an overall response rate of 100% and a very good partial response or complete response rate of 95%. For individual patients, the response achieved with the regimen was noted to deepen over time. At a median of 11 months of follow-up, the 1-year progression-free survival rate with the regimen was 98%, with a 1-year overall survival rate of 100%.

In terms of safety, the most common grade 3 or 4 adverse effects experienced with the combination included neutropenia, rash, and lung infection. Serious toxicities associated with the regimen were reported in 18% of patients; however, no deaths were reported.

In our exclusive interview, Dr Landgren further discussed the trial, the potential of the 4-drug regimen in this population, and the next steps for this research.

Dr. Landgren discusses the potential of a quadruplet regimen comprised of carfilzomib, lenalidomide, dexamethasone, and daratumumab in the treatment of patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma.

Landgren Breaks Down the Benefit of Novel Quadruplet in Newly Diagnosed Myeloma

, which provides oncology professionals with the resources and information they need to provide the best patient care. In both digital and print formats,

Today, we had the pleasure of speaking with Toni K. Choueiri, MD, director of the Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology, director of the Kidney Cancer Center, and senior physician at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, as well as Jerome and Nancy Kohlberg chair and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and Robert J. Motzer, MD, the Kidney Cancer section head in the genitourinary oncology service and Jack and Dorothy Byrne chair in Clinical Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Both Choueiri and Motzer were authors on the CheckMate-9ER study, results of which were recently published in the 

and were the basis for the January 2021 approval of nivolumab (Opdivo) and cabozantinib (Cabometyx) as a frontline treatment for patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC).

In the phase 3 CheckMate-9ER trial, investigators set out to examine the safety and efficacy of nivolumab/cabozantinib vs sunitinib (Sutent) as a frontline treatment in patients with advanced RCC with clear-cell histologic features. 

Data showed that the combination of nivolumab and cabozantinib showcased significant benefit in terms of progression-free survival, overall survival, and responses vs sunitinib in the frontline treatment of patients with advanced RCC.

In our exclusive interview, Choueiri and Motzer discussed the clinical implications of the phase 3 CheckMate-9ER trial in advanced RCC and how to best use the combination in practice.

In our exclusive interview, Dr. Choueiri and Dr. Motzer discuss the clinical implications of the phase 3 CheckMate-9ER trial in advanced renal cell carcinoma and how to best use the combination in practice. 

Onc Club | Podcasts

DFCI Faculty Relay Insight Into Confirmed Rebounds of Cancer Screenings After COVID-19

Understanding Actionable Pathogenic Variants Among Caribbean Patients With Breast and Ovarian Cancers

Halmos Highlights Effort Exploring COVID-19 Vaccines in Patients With Cancer

Landgren Breaks Down the Benefit of Novel Quadruplet in Newly Diagnosed Myeloma

Choueiri and Motzer Chat on CheckMate-9ER and Other RCC Research