Revisit Every OncLive On Air Episode From September 2025

In case you missed any, below is a recap of the episodes of OncLive On Air® that debuted in September 2025. Check out our podcast page for a full episode lineup and to stay up to date with all the latest releases!

FDA Approval Insights: Dordaviprone in H3K27M-Mutated Diffuse Midline Glioma: With Patrick Y. Wen, MD

In this episode, Patrick Y. Wen, MD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts, discussed the significance of the FDA’s accelerated approval of dordaviprone (Modeyso) for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients 1 year of age or older who have H3K27M-mutated diffuse midline glioma that has progressed following prior therapy.

“Being aware of the existence of this subtype of gliomas, the need for molecular testing to make a diagnosis of the H3K27M mutation is important,” Wen emphasized. “It would be helpful to refer these patients to brain tumor centers that have more experience with these tumors for a consultation. And if it turns out that the patient would benefit from treatment, such as dordaviprone, they can be referred back to the community physician for the actual treatment.”

Safety and Quality-of-Life Considerations Shape ADT Use in Prostate Cancer: With Tanya B. Dorff, MD

In this episode, Tanya B. Dorff, MD, of City of Hope in Duarte, California, highlighted the role of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in the treatment of patients with prostate cancer, highlighting where ADT is recommended in the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines, the evolution of this class of agents, and the clinical applicability of data from the ongoing observational OPTYX study (NCT05467176), a registry of relugolix (Orgovyx) use in patients with advanced prostate cancer.

“Looking forward, we’re finally perhaps approaching an era where we may have some treatment strategies that will not require the foundational hormone therapy or ADT as a base,” Dorff contextualized. “This is something our patients have been asking us for. ADT is effective, and it’s going to take a lot to find something that’s as good, let alone better. But it’s exciting that we’re on the brink of having some treatments where we won’t just be saying everyone gets ADT and then some people get a new drug. Maybe we will develop some treatment approaches that allow some ADT sparing, which could be significant for patients’ quality of life [QOL].”

Advances in ctDNA Testing Guide Clinical Decision-Making in GI Cancer Management: With Scott Kopetz, MD, PhD, FACP

In this episode, Scott Kopetz, MD, PhD, FACP, of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, explained the predictive value of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) assays in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), clinical research that has demonstrated the prognostic implications of this type of assay, and ways that ctDNA results might reduce chemotherapy use without compromising efficacy.

“Overall, get comfortable with ctDNA,” Kopetz highlighted. “This is not something that is a passing fad. The data are emerging. We’re going to learn more how to do this. Think about how to utilize this.”

Clinical Trial and Real-World Data With NALIRIFOX Shape the Future of Pancreatic Cancer Care: With Tara E. Seery, MD; Paul E. Oberstein, MD; and Priyadarshini Pathak, MBBS

In this episode, Tara E. Seery, MD, of the Hoag Family Cancer Institute in Newport Beach, California, moderated a discussion with Paul E. Oberstein, MD, of the New York University Grossman School of Medicine and Priyadarshini Pathak, MBBS, of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, about the evolving pancreatic cancer treatment paradigm, highlighting findings from the phase 3 NAPOLI 3 trial (NCT04083235) investigating NALIRIFOX (liposomal irinotecan, 5-fluorouracil [5-FU], leucovorin, and oxaliplatin) compared with nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane) and gemcitabine in treatment-naive patients with metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

“If we modify the dose [of NALIRIFOX] and we can keep patients on longer, they’re going to sometimes do better,” Oberstein noted. “That’s our practice. The key thing here is not necessarily being too aggressive on day one; it’s keeping patients on treatment. If it’s working—and for a large number of patients, it is working—we get a high response rate.”

“When you see patients and you tell them you are going to reduce your dose or you have to delay [dosing for] a week, some of them get upset,” Seery added. “Now you can say: the data show you do better when we can [modify the dose of NALIRIFOX].”

“QOL discussions are important,” Pathak explained. “If the patient is in favor of continuing treatment, and is getting benefit in terms of clinical symptoms, like pain and energy levels, and the patient chooses to continue gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel in the first-line setting, I would go for 5-FU with liposomal irinotecan in the second-line setting, and as long as it’s benefiting the patient, keep going.”

Recent FDA Approvals and Ongoing Research Expand Treatment Options for Soft Tissue Sarcoma: With Samantha A. Armstrong, MD; and Karine Tawagi, MD

In this episode, a partnership between Two Onc Docs and OncLive On Air, hosts Samantha A. Armstrong, MD, of Indiana University Health in Indianapolis, and Karine Tawagi, MD, of the University of Illinois in Chicago, talked through the ins and outs of soft tissue sarcoma management, including the heterogeneity of this disease, the importance of becoming familiar with these sarcomas when studying for board examinations, risk factors for developing this disease, diagnosis details, and hallmarks of localized and metastatic disease management.

“Sarcomas arise from mesenchymal origin,” Armstrong summarized. “Sarcoma is rarely spread through the lymph nodes, but the 5 that do are synovial sarcoma, clear cell sarcoma, angiosarcoma, rhabdosarcoma, and epithelioid sarcoma. Primary treatment for soft tissue sarcoma is surgery. We prefer limb sparing plus radiation over amputation whenever possible. Re-excision is the treatment for local recurrence with or without radiation.”

“Growing mass is a reason to get checked out by your primary care doctor or dermatologist,” Tawagi added.

Tepotinib Efficacy and Safety Profiles Underscore the Importance of Biomarker-Directed Decision-Making in NSCLC: With Balazs Halmos, MD, MS

In this episode, Balazs Halmos, MD, MS, of Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center in Bronx, New York, discussed the rationale, design, key findings, and clinical implications of the phase 2 VISION trial (NCT02864992) of tepotinib (Tepmetko) in patients with MET exon 14 skipping mutation–positive non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

“A subset analysis looked at patients in different age groups—75 [years or older vs] not, patients in terms of front-line or second-line or beyond, as well as patients with central nervous system [CNS] disease,” Halmos explained. “What this important subset analysis highlighted is excellent activity for patients independent of age, excellent activity for patients independent of the line of treatment, and notable activity in the CNS, which is critical information for us in thoracic oncology, as many of these patients over the course of illness will develop CNS disease.”

How a Career of Hearing and Amplifying Patient Voices Has Reached the Pinnacle of Patient Advocacy: With D. Ross Camidge, MD, PhD; and Ken Culver, MD

In this episode of How This Is Building Me, host D. Ross Camidge, MD, PhD, was joined by Ken Culver, MD, of ALK Positive Inc., to talk through the highlights of Dr Culver’s wide-ranging career, which has included clinical practice, research, industry leadership, and most recently, patient advocacy through ALK Positive, where he collaborates with patients with ALK-positive lung cancer to expand treatment opportunities.

“The things that characterizer me are primarily a person who’s trying to be in service to creating a better world and a better quality of medicine and care for people around the world,” Culver shared.

“Your objectivity and your history in [the pharmaceutical industry] has taken the patient organization to a different level, and I suspect it will be a model that will be replicated hopefully by other patient advocacy groups,” Camidge said of Culver’s involvement with ALK Positive.

Patient Characteristics and Care Team Collaboration Influence Treatment Decision-Making in CLL: With John N. Allan, MD; and Melissa Rubianes

In this episode, John N. Allan, MD, and Melissa Rubianes, both from Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, New York, discuss the importance of collaboration between oncologists and physician assistants (PAs) to make optimal treatment decisions for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), factors that affect their treatment sequencing decisions in clinic, ongoing CLL research they’re excited to see, and more.

“CLL and any oncologic management is always a team effort,” Allan explained. “There are a lot of moving parts and coordination that needs to occur. Having a tight-knit process with your physician extenders, as well as the other components of the team, is important. Getting on the same page with your PAs is going to be important to understand who’s going to take over what role regarding ordering or follow-up or management of some toxicities, and what type of toxicities, when to escalate issues to you when the patient calls in with specific problems, and understand that comfort level of everybody involved in managing these issues.”

“It’s also important that we get to know our patients and get to understand that when the symptoms become enough that we need to make a change, that we actually do,” Rubianes added. “It’s a big part of being in tune with the patients, being in tune with the providers, and having an open communication loop where we can make the best decision for the patient.”

Cohort Analysis Shows Importance of Early-Onset CRC Awareness and Investigation: With Evelyn Y. Wong, MD

In this episode, Evelyn Y. Wong, MD, of National Cancer Centre Singapore, highlighted the rationale for investigating early-onset CRC based on the rising incidence of this disease worldwide, as well as findings from a study showing that although molecular disease characteristics were largely consistent across age groups, survival outcomes appeared more favorable in younger patients.

“One of the things I feel that we can do to better [validate the predictive utility of] molecular characteristics [in CRC] is have multicenter collaboration,” Wong said. “[Our study] was limited because we are just 1 institution; although we [enrolled] 2379 patients, which is a good number, it would always be better to have collaborative efforts in and outside of Asia.”

Patient Characteristics and Disease Factors Guide the Use of Dostarlimab in Recurrent Endometrial Cancer: With Dana M. Chase, MD

In this episode, Dana M. Chase, MD, of UCLA Health, emphasized the importance of considering biomarker profiles and previous therapies when treating patients with endometrial cancer, treatment decisions upon first recurrence, and data from the phase 3 RUBY trial (NCT03981796) that supported the FDA approval of dostarlimab-gxly (Jemperli) for the treatment of adult patients with primary advanced or recurrent endometrial cancer.

“Based on [data from] the RUBY trial, we [can] use the dostarlimab with carboplatin/paclitaxel, followed by the dostarlimab maintenance in all comers, [including] patients [with disease] that is mismatch repair proficient or deficient,” Chase noted. “We can use it for everybody, and that’s helpful in that we have more options for our patients.”

Zidesamtinib Is Associated With CNS Activity and Low Rates of Neurologic AEs in Pretreated ROS1+ NSCLC: With Alexander Drilon, MD

In this episode, Alexander Drilon, MD, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, New York, noted key efficacy and safety data from the phase 1/2 ARROS-1 trial (NCT05118789), the rationale for investigating zidesamtinib (NVL-520) in TKI-pretreated patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC, and the potential future clinical implications of this research.

“In the 1-prior TKI setting…[efficacy outcomes] look numerically better across multiple metrics with zidesamtinib vs repotrectinib [Augtyro] and taletrectinib [Ibtrozi],” Drilon highlighted. “[This was notable for] overall response rate, especially if we pull out patients who are post-crizotinib [Xakori], which made up the majority of patients treated on [these 3 agents]. Durability also appears to be improved [with zidesamtinib].”

The Evolving Role of Noncovalent BTK Inhibition Informs CLL Treatment Selection: With Asad Dean, MD

In this episode, Asad Dean, MD, of the Texas Oncology-Fort Worth Cancer Center, talked through the importance of considering the use of covalent BTK and BCL-2 inhibitors in CLL management, how molecular profiling can aid treatment rechallenge decisions, and the potential role of pirtobrutinib (Jaypirca) in overcoming treatment resistance.

“The pirtobrutinib [FDA] indication is following prior a covalent BTK inhibitor, as well as prior BCL-2–directed [therapy],” Dean emphasized. “However, the way it is designated in the NCCN guidelines is that following a covalent BTK inhibitor, you have that option [to use pirtobrutinib]. I like that flexibility because we don’t have an indication for combination BTK plus BCL-2 inhibition in the frontline setting. [The combination] is recognized by the NCCN, but we do not have an FDA approval. Based on NCCN as a platform and foundation, I find it advantageous to be able to move to a noncovalent, reversible BTK inhibitor like pirtobrutinib following progression on a covalent BTK inhibitor.”

Early CAR T-Cell Therapy Data Highlight Therapeutic Potential and Emerging Challenges in GI Cancers: With Kohei Shitara, MD

In this episode, Kohei Shitara, MD, of the National Cancer Center Hospital East in Kashiwa, Japan, noted early efficacy data seen with CAR T-cell therapy in gastrointestinal (GI) cancers, challenges associated with administering these therapies in patients, and what the future may hold regarding next-generation CAR T-cell therapy approaches.

“The study clearly suggested the activity of CAR T-cell therapy even for GI cancer, but you can still improve outcomes in terms of duration or how to change nonresponders to responders,” according to Shitara. “One biomarker analysis from the same group showed the infiltration of progenitor-like exhausted T cells in responders, and more fibroblasts and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition signatures in nonresponders. Maybe we need to combine [satricabtagene autoleucel (CT041)] with other agents to improve its durability or change the tumor microenvironment by the depletion of immunosuppressive cells.”

Expanding JAK Inhibitor Use Offers Increased Treatment Options for Cytopenic Myelofibrosis: With Andrew Kuykendall, MD

In this episode, Andrew Kuykendall, MD, of Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida, explained the prevalence of JAK2, CALR, and MPL mutations in patients with myelofibrosis; how the JAK1, JAK2, and IRAK1 pathways affect disease progression; the role of JAK inhibition in managing this disease; and the challenges associated with treating patients who have cytopenic myelofibrosis.

“We counsel patients on all the different options and understand that the first choice may not be the ultimate best choice down the road,” Kuykendall noted. “But at the same time, I want to give the patient the best chance to derive the benefit they’re looking for the most with our initial treatment.”