Medical Oncology
Physician insights on cancer treatment protocols, immunotherapy, targeted therapies, and clinical trial updates.
Recent Discussions
What are your top takeaways in Hematologic Malignancies from ASH 2025?
The PARADIGM study is a very important one that may result in a paradigm change for the treatment of AML. The study showed that outcomes are equal or better with AZA + VEN among patients with AML suitable for intensive chemotherapy. The efficacy was superior in response rate and EFS (but not overall...
What are your top takeaways in Lymphoma from ASH 2025?
Fixed-duration versus continuous targeted treatment for previously untreated chronic lymphocytic leukemia: Results from the randomized CLL17 trial — This trial may change practice by using the combination of BTK-I and Ven without CD20 antibodies. This time-limited option led to MRD, and I would expe...
Given the 10-year outcomes of UK FAST-Forward presented at ESTRO, how have you expanded the use of ultra-hypofractionation in your practice?
We offer 5 fractions to all early-stage breast cancer patients. If technically suitable, the preferred option is APBI; otherwise, FAST-Forward 26 Gy in 5, ensuring dose homogeneity as specified in the protocol.
What is your approach to iron supplementation in patients with an active infection?
In patients with active infections, I generally avoid intravenous iron due to the potential for promoting pathogen growth, a practice supported by cautions from nephrology and gastroenterology society guidelines. However, evidence for the risk of infection with IV iron is inconsistent, underpowered,...
In previously untreated patients with mTNBC, what is your protocol for prophylactic GCSF use for sacituzumab govitecan?
Sacituzumab govitecan (SG) causes grade 3 or higher neutropenia in 47% of patients and neutropenic fever in 7%. It has a boxed warning for neutropenia and recommends primary prophylaxis with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) for all patients at increased risk of febrile neutropenia. Fata...
How do you manage a symptomatic primary breast tumor in a patient with metastatic disease?
It’s much harder to treat patients palliatively than to cure. The art of palliation generally requires weighing the acute and subacute toxicities of alternative treatments much more heavily and chronic toxicities less than we do for potentially curative care. It also requires assessing whether patie...
Which patients with locally advanced cervical cancer would you consider as candidates for moderately hypofractionated pelvic chemoradiation before brachytherapy?
At present, would not offer outside clinical trials, as data are limited, with some suggesting a higher risk of acute morbidity also. Doses of EBRT in these studies are also not similar, varying from 37.5 in 15, 40 in 16, 44 in 20, and 43.3 in 17.
In patients with advanced endometrial cancer who you plan to treat with chemotherapy + immunotherapy (per GY018 or RUBY), how and when do you utilize adjuvant EBRT and/or brachytherapy?
Reading the question at face value - does advanced endometrial cancer mean stage IVB? III/IVA? If IVB, there is not routinely a role of 'adjuvant' EBRT or BT.Given the discussion of adjuvant therapy, I presume the question is asking for the small fraction of RUBY and GY-018 patients who were stage I...
How would you apply the results of CheckMate 204 in an asymptomatic patient with 10-20 metastatic brain lesions on dual immunotherapy for melanoma?
The results of CheckMate 204 showed that systemic therapy with both nivolumab and ipilimumab has clinically meaningful efficacy in patients with asymptomatic, untreated melanoma metastases to the brain. In this phase 2 study, however, only 22% of the patients had 3 or more lesions. Nevertheless, int...
How do you approach pathologic review and genomic testing, if indicated, of a spindle cell neoplasm?
Experienced sarcoma pathologists should review cases such as this. The rate of a change in diagnosis upon pathology review at a sarcoma center, after an initial review by a general pathologist, is surprisingly high (Ray-Coquard et al 2012, Annals Oncol). Unless there is a specific diagnostic concern...