Medical Oncology
Physician insights on cancer treatment protocols, immunotherapy, targeted therapies, and clinical trial updates.
Recent Discussions
Would you add immunotherapy to FOLFOX if the patient is not a FLOT candidate for neoadjuvant gastric cancer, extrapolating data from the MATTERHORN study?
While it is always somewhat perilous to extrapolate from a proper study to lesser situations, this seems quite reasonable. It seems highly unlikely that the removal of Taxotere from a fluoropyrimidine-oxaliplatin-based regimen would render immunotherapy less effective in gastric cancer. In the MATTE...
Is DESTINY Breast-09 data sufficient for T-DXd/P to replace THP as the first line standard of care for HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer?
With the impressive improvement in PFS to a 1L PFS to a remarkable 40.7 months, T-DXd + P is definitely an attractive option. However, I do not think this will be an approach I use for all patients. For ER+ patients, a THP induction strategy, followed by maintenance HP + AI and palbociclib, is also ...
How do you counsel eligible patients on lung cancer screening who are hesitant because of the cancer risk from CT scans?
This is simple. The risk of lung cancer in patients who have smoked for >20 years is orders of magnitude higher than the theoretical risk of medical X-ray-induced cancers from low-dose CT (LDCT) screening. A typical LDCT scan exposes patients to approximately 1.5 mSv of radiation, equivalent to abou...
How do you manage a cytology-negative pleural effusion that develops after lung RT?
I think most times you can just watch them as long as they are stable and not symptomatic. I see them not infrequently after RT, especially lung SBRT, and find they often find a size they feel comfortable with and don't change much over time. I wonder about their physiology... my impression is there...
Is there a role for induction chemotherapy for locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma prior to definitive chemoradiation?
Induction chemotherapy can be considered in some patients with locally advanced SCCHN, primarily those patients with large bulky tumors who are at highest risk for developing distant metastases. Moreover, if you are looking to attain reduction in tumor bulk for symptom control and possibly control o...
How would you manage a patient with DLBCL that progressed on/after EPOCH and subsequently treated with a CD19 allo CAR-T product within 90 days of receiving apheresis?
I'm sorry, but the question is unclear. Did his disease progress after CD19 allo CAR-T? If so, I would offer commercially FDA-approved CD19 CAR-T. The fact that his disease progressed quickly after allo CAR-T is possibly due to a lack of expansion and long-term persistence, which can be mitigated by...
In what scenarios do you use a chromogenic factor X assay in adjusting INR goals for patients on warfarin?
I do not use this method. It has been suggested that such assays be used in patients with lupus-type inhibitors who have significantly prolonged prothrombin times at baseline. In this setting, if the INR is "therapeutic," one would confirm an adequate warfarin effect if the factor X activity was in ...
For a patient with large volume glioblastoma, what do you do if they are found to have a subdural infection in the middle of chemoRT requiring repeat surgery?
In this scenario, the patient will likely stop the daily treatments for a variable period of time that I would estimate to be measured in weeks while recuperating from surgery and receiving IV antibiotics. When cleared for radiation, I would start by doing a new Simulation using an updated MRI to ac...
Are there scenarios that new visits/consults with patients can be done virtually amidst the COVID-19 outbreak?
Starting 3/16, we began offering lower-complexity / lower-risk patients the option of having a Tele-medicine consult vs re-scheduling to a later date. This offer has been extended broadly to all new consults at our facility when the provider indicates that s/he can extend comparable service virtuall...
In ES-SCLC presenting with limited asymptomatic brain metastases and treated upfront with systemic therapy alone (carbo/etop/atezo), how would you approach the brain if MRI shows PR after a few cycles?
In our practice, we would typically watch such a patient on systemic therapy. However, we would stress the need for vigilant monitoring and likely administration of RT (SRS ideally) at the carbo/etop/atezo transition to atezo monotherapy, given the poor intracranial efficacy of the maintenance syste...