The World’s Largest Cancer Organization ASCO 2017 and Noteworthy New Treatments

ASCO, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, was founded in 1964 when 7 oncologists came together. The aim of that team, and today’s more than 40 thousand ASCO members, is to offer cancer patients better treatment opportunities.

Over more than 50 years, ASCO and its members have made revolutionary advances in oncology. Cancer drugs, once numbering only a few, now exceed 170. Patients live longer with better quality of life. However, cancers difficult to diagnose and treat still exist. New studies in the coming years will offer hope to many patients.

Every first week of June, oncologists worldwide turn their attention to ASCO’s annual congress. With over 40 thousand participants—44 thousand registered this year—it is the world’s largest oncology meeting. Although more than half attend from America, many come from Germany, Japan, France, the United Kingdom, China, Canada, Brazil, Spain, Switzerland and Türkiye. Some clinical results presented here can change practice overnight.

The ASCO Congress has not yet begun, but study abstracts have been published. We compiled studies likely to attract attention:

• One concerns capecitabine (available as Xeloda, Xeltabin and Kapeda), a chemotherapy drug frequently used for various cancers. It is taken orally as tablets. According to BILCAP results, capecitabine in bile duct cancer after surgery, given for 6 months as adjuvant (protective) treatment, extends survival from 36 to 51 months.
• Colon cancer and the IDEA study: concerning stage 3 colon (large bowel) cancer, this study compares outcomes of 3 or 6 months of Oxaliplatin, the main chemotherapy routinely used after surgery to reduce recurrence risk.
• In high-risk metastatic disease without previous hormonal treatment, prostate cancer is the subject of LATITUDE. This study examines Abiraterone (brand name Zytiga) started earlier than its current use—that is, before resistance to hormonal treatment develops (for example, with androgen suppression in the first line).
• The OlympiAD study compares the DNA repair-blocking PARP inhibitor Olaparib (brand name Lynparza) with conventional chemotherapy. It was tested in HER2-negative stage 4 breast cancer patients and those carrying congenital/inherited BRCA mutations.

Three other noteworthy studies evaluated psychological support interventions for patients at different cancer stages. Their titles are:

• Conquer Your Fear . This study concerns disease recurrence after treatment , referred to as recurrence or relapse. It assesses levels of fear that cancer will return after treatment.
• CALM
• Managing Cancer and Living Meaningfully study
• The STREAM study concerns an internet-based stress management intervention for newly diagnosed cancer patients.

Another noteworthy topic at ASCO 2017 is new approaches to malignant mesothelioma (cancer of the lung lining). Mesothelioma generally develops after prolonged asbestos exposure, and our country is among those where it is common. Treatment can be very challenging. Results of immunotherapy drugs and new agents such as nintedanib in mesothelioma will be presented at the congress.

Starting tomorrow, as the OncoTrust team we will closely follow all new treatments reported at ASCO and share them with our own commentary...