Oncology news.

The open-label phase 1b/2 HERBOT trial evaluated first-line trastuzumab, nivolumab, gemcitabine and cisplatin in 40 participants with HER2-positive advanced biliary tract cancer. Objective response was 55%, and median progression-free survival was 10.6 months; comparative efficacy remains unestablished.

The FDA granted accelerated approval to camizestrant plus a CDK4/6 inhibitor when an ESR1 mutation is detected during treatment for HR-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer. A clinical trial reported median progression-free survival of 16 versus 9.2 months with continued aromatase inhibitor therapy; confirmatory studies are required.

An observational biopsy study compared 10 patients with enterocolitis after ciltacabtagene autoleucel, seven CAR-T-treated controls without enterocolitis and 26 healthy volunteers. Findings linked enterocolitis to mucosal immune depletion and inflammatory remodeling; two affected patients improved after upadacitinib, providing preliminary support for further study.

The randomized, open-label phase 2 ASPEN-06 trial evaluated adding evorpacept to trastuzumab, ramucirumab and paclitaxel in 127 patients with pretreated HER2-positive advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancer. Response-rate differences exceeded prespecified thresholds, but comparisons against a historical benchmark did not meet the required statistical criterion.

A JAMA paper by World Trade Center Health Program staff reviews long-term care and health outcomes among people affected by 9/11. A CDC announcement reports 54% lung cancer screening uptake among eligible members in 2024 and lower cancer mortality among enrolled responders, but provides no sample sizes or detailed methods.

A randomized phase 2b trial involving 101 patients evaluated VCN-01 plus chemotherapy as first-line treatment for metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. Overall survival was not significantly improved in the intent-to-treat population, although progression-free survival favored the combination and investigators reported meeting the survival endpoint in the full analysis set.

EMA’s human medicines committee recommended 12 medicines for approval at its 14–17 September 2026 meeting, including two biosimilars and two generics. It also recommended extensions of therapeutic indications for 11 medicines.

The randomized NHS-Galleri trial enrolled 142,250 adults aged 50–77 years. Secondary analyses across three annual screening rounds found high specificity but limited sensitivity for all cancers; the trial previously reported no reduction meeting its primary endpoint for stage III/IV cancer diagnoses.

The 2026 Annual Report to the Nation reports declining cancer death rates among men and women from 2019 to 2023, driven largely by lung cancer progress. The population-based analysis uses cancer registry and mortality data; overall cancer incidence rose slightly each year from 2018 to 2022.

A phase 1 trial enrolled 23 adults with relapsed or refractory CD22-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoblastic lymphoma. Venetoclax plus inotuzumab ozogamicin produced complete remission in 21 of 22 evaluable patients, but the small cohort and sinusoidal obstructive syndrome risk warrant caution.

A laboratory study using genetically engineered mice and patient-derived cells linked CALR-mutated myeloproliferative neoplasms to expansion of platelet-biased hematopoietic stem cells. PERK inhibition reduced proliferation of mouse CALRdel52 stem cells and impaired megakaryocytic differentiation of patient CALRdel52-like cells; clinical efficacy was not evaluated.

A translational study combining bone marrow analyses from treatment-naïve stage III breast cancer patients with mouse experiments implicates bone-derived DKK1 in persistent myeloid bias. Targeting DKK1 reduced tumor progression and myeloid output in mice; patient sample size and quantitative effect estimates were not provided in the abstract.

A review in Blood describes how hematologists and oncologists can apply existing expertise to acute radiation syndrome during mass casualty incidents. It emphasizes established clinical resources, rapid training and outpatient management of stable exposed individuals; the supplied abstract reports no patient outcomes.

A preclinical mouse study in Circulation linked PD-1 blockade to worsened pressure overload–induced cardiomyopathy and heart failure through cytotoxic CD8+ T-cell infiltration. Genetic or pharmacological inhibition of CXCR3 or granzyme B rescued the aggravated cardiac phenotype; clinical applicability remains untested.

A first-in-human phase 1 dose-escalation trial evaluated RO7589831 in 88 patients with advanced MSI and/or mismatch repair-deficient solid tumors. Among 66 MSI efficacy-evaluable patients, the objective response rate was 10.6%; two twice-daily doses were selected for further optimization.

A phase 3 randomized trial enrolled 218 patients with resectable esophageal or esophagogastric junction adenocarcinoma; 202 underwent surgery. Robotic esophagectomy yielded more lymph nodes than conventional minimally invasive surgery, but postoperative complication rates were similar and 1-year survival did not differ.

An observational analysis of German pension insurance data found that 67.2% of people with cancer returned to employment two years after rehabilitation. Return to work was less common among those with lower incomes than among higher-income groups.

An Annals of Surgery review evaluates robotic-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy using the IDEAL framework. It reports fewer complications and better patient-reported outcomes than open surgery in comparative trials, alongside registry benchmarks from 5,567 cases, but no demonstrated long-term survival difference.

An observational UNOS database study of 7,398 liver transplant recipients with hepatocellular carcinoma found complete pathologic response in 29.3%. Response was associated with better five-year survival, and rates were higher after yttrium-90 treatment or ablation than after transarterial chemoembolization.

An open-label phase Ib study evaluated izalontamab brengitecan in 52 patients with previously treated extensive-stage small cell lung cancer. The objective response rate was 48.1%, with median progression-free survival of 4.1 months; the small, uncontrolled study cannot establish comparative benefit.

A longitudinal analysis of 895 doxorubicin-treated patients found that dexrazoxane exposure was associated with better preserved left ventricular systolic function. Reduced-function event rates were lower among high-risk survivors, but implications for cardiomyopathy screening require further evaluation.

An open-label phase I/II study reported a 71.0% confirmed response rate among 31 patients with recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma previously treated with platinum and anti–PD-1/PD-L1 therapy. Median progression-free survival was 12.0 months; comparative efficacy remains unestablished.

An updated analysis of the phase III PIVOTAL trial, involving 256 patients with resectable stage III melanoma, reports sustained recurrence-free and distant metastasis-free survival benefits with neoadjuvant intralesional daromun versus upfront surgery. Median follow-up reached 36.8 months, with no new safety signals reported; updated effect estimates were not provided in the abstract.

ASCO’s living guideline provides recommendations for recurrent high-grade serous or endometrioid ovarian, fallopian tube, and primary peritoneal cancer. A systematic review included 147 publications, with 36 directly informing recommendations; the supplied abstract notes that this version has been updated.

A Journal of Clinical Oncology review examines treatment selection for relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma in the targeted-therapy era. It emphasizes reassessment of disease biology, prior treatment response, and patient factors when sequencing BTK inhibitors, venetoclax, and cellular therapies.

A prognostic model development and validation study incorporated longitudinal measurable residual disease data to predict outcomes after limited-duration CLL therapy. Validated using CLL14 and CLL13 trial data, CIRI2-CLL outperformed individual prognostic indices for progression-free survival; sample sizes were not provided in the abstract.

An updated pooled analysis included 1,038 patients receiving neoadjuvant therapy for melanoma across 26 international sites. Five-year overall survival approached 98–99% among patients achieving a major pathological response to immune checkpoint inhibitors, although treatment comparisons and postsurgical management findings require cautious interpretation.