ASCO, Author Interviews, Biomarkers, Cancer Research / 06.06.2015

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Kirsten Timms, PhD Program Director VP Biomarker Discovery at Myriad Genetics Inc Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Timms: The Homologous Recombination Deficiency (HRD) score is a tumor biomarker which quantitates genomic rearrangements associated with defects in DNA damage repair. It has been shown in multiple studies that HRD score can identify tumors sensitive to DNA damaging agents such as platinum salts or PARP inhibitors. Many tumors are spatially heterogeneous: different parts of a tumor show variation at both the genomic level, and in their appearance. This tumor heterogeneity has the potential to negatively impact the accuracy of biomarker tests. This study assessed the consistency of the HRD score in multiple biopsies obtained from the same cancer to understand the impact of tumor heterogeneity on the HRD score. The main finding of this study is that the HRD score is highly conserved between different biopsies of the same tumor. (more…)
ASCO, Author Interviews, Chemotherapy / 03.06.2015

Professor Patrick Schöffski Head, Department of General Medical Oncology and the Laboratory of Experimental Oncology at the University Hospital Leuven, KU Leuven, BelgiumMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Patrick Schöffski Head, Department of General Medical Oncology and the Laboratory of Experimental Oncology at the University Hospital Leuven, KU Leuven, Belgium MedicalResearch: What are the key points of the study? Professor Schöffski: This is the first and only randomised controlled trial of a single agent systemic therapy to demonstrate an improvement in overall survival in people previously treated for advanced soft tissue sarcomas. The study met its primary objective for overall survival benefit (OS) for investigational use in patients treated with eribulin compared to dacarbazine. Median OS for eribulin was 13.5 months versus 11.5 months for dacarbazine representing a significant benefit, meaning that patients treated with eribulin may have a 23% reduction in the risk of death. Furthermore, an additional study endpoint included progression-free survival (PFS) at 12 weeks.  While there was a numerical difference between arms favouring eribulin versus dacarbazine (33% vs 29%) this was not statistically significant. Median PFS was 2.6 months in both arms. (more…)
ASCO, Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Chemotherapy, Genetic Research / 03.06.2015

MedicalResearch.com spoke with Dr. Jonathan Lancaster, MD, Ph.D. at the 2015 ASCO meeting in Chicago. Dr. Lancaster is the new Vice President of Medical Affairs for Oncology, Myriad Genetic Laboratories, at Myriad. Dr. Lancaster jointed Myriad in February 2015 after twelve years at the Moffitt Cancer Center. Prior to Moffitt, Dr. Lancaster was medical director of the Gynecologic Dysplasia Clinic at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC, where he also completed his residency and fellowship training.MedicalResearch.com spoke with Dr. Johnathan Lancaster, MD, Ph.D. at the 2015 ASCO meeting in Chicago. Dr. Lancaster is the new Vice President of Medical Affairs for Oncology, Myriad Genetic Laboratories, at Myriad. Dr. Lancaster jointed Myriad in February 2015 after twelve years at the Moffitt Cancer Center. Prior to Moffitt, Dr. Lancaster was medical director of the Gynecologic Dysplasia Clinic at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC, where he also completed his residency and fellowship training. MedicalResearch.com: Can you tell us a little more about your background? How did you come to work at Myriad? Dr. Lancaster: My background and interests lie at the intersection of patient care and the molecular and genetic understanding of cancer. I completed my MD and Ph.D. in molecular genetics at the University of Wales, and then came to Duke for a research fellowship and residency training in Obstetrics & Gynecology. I spent twelve years as a gynecology-oncology surgeon. At the Moffitt Cancer Center, I ran a research lab attempting to understand the molecular and genetic underpinnings of ovarian cancer development and progression. Our translation research attempted to identify markers, or microRNAs, that help predict ovarian tumors’ response to chemotherapeutic agents. I also have experience in the management and financial issues facing medicine and health care. While at Moffitt, I was president of the 350-member Moffitt Medical Group, deputy physician-in-chief and director of the Center for Women's Oncology. The opportunity at Myriad Genetics allows me to utilize my experience in all three interests, clinical care, research and management, to contribute to a broader mission of cancer treatment and prevention. MedicalResearch.com: What studies are being presented at ASCO this year by Myriad associated researchers? Dr. Lancaster: There are 19 abstracts presented by Myriad at ASCO 2015, which is a testament to the emphasis Myriad places on basic and translational research (Myriad reinvests $300-400 of the proceeds from every clinical test performed into research). The studies center around two main themes: 1: An enhanced panel of genes, called MyRisk, to test for increased risk of hereditary cancers. 2: The use of Homologous Recombination Deficiency (HRD) testing and score, called MyChoice, which helps clinicians determine which patients may respond best to some chemotherapeutic agents. MedicalResearch.com: What does the MyRisk panel offer over and above the information learned from BRAC1/2 testing? Why should a patient or clinician want this testing performed? Dr. Lancaster: The MyRisk panel tests for 25 state-of-the-art genes with the goal of determining who may be at increased risk for certain malignancies even if they are BRAC1/2 negative. The typical patient is one who has a family history of cancer but may have been told she doesn’t have the ‘breast cancer gene’ because she is BRAC1/2 negative. We now know that up to 50% of these patients may carry other genes that make them more susceptible to cancer. Panel testing allows clinicians to identify many more patients at risk for cancer who would have been missed with more traditional BRAC1/2 testing alone. (more…)
ASCO, Author Interviews, Journal Clinical Oncology, Melanoma / 02.06.2015

Howard L. Kaufman, MD, FACS Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey New Brunswick, NJMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Howard L. Kaufman, MD, FACS Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey New Brunswick, NJ Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The study clearly demonstrated that advanced melanoma patients achieved a significant improvement in both response rate and durable response rate with Talimogene laherparepvec, or T-VEC. T-VEC is the first oncolytic virus to show a clinical benefit in a randomized phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of cancer. Patients who received T-VEC also had an improved progress-free and overall survival with nearly 11% obtaining a complete response. T-VEC is an oncolytic virus that mediates anti-tumor activity by directly killing injected tumor cells and by initiating a systemic immune response. Treatment was also associated with few side effects, which were mostly low grade fever, fatigue, chills, nausea and pain at the injection site. (more…)
ASCO, Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Cancer Research, NEJM, Surgical Research, Yale / 31.05.2015

Anees B. Chagpar, MD, MSc, MPH, MA, MBA, FRCS(C), FACSAssociate Professor, Department of Surgery Director, The Breast Center -- Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale-New Haven Assistant Director -- Global Oncology, Yale Comprehensive Cancer Center Program Director, Yale Interdisciplinary Breast Fellowship Yale University School of Medicine Breast Centerm New Haven, CT 06510MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Anees B. Chagpar, MD, MSc, MPH, MA, MBA, FRCS(C), FACS, Associate Professor, Department of Surgery Director, The Breast Center -- Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale-New Haven, Assistant Director -- Global Oncology, Yale Comprehensive Cancer Center Program Director, Yale Interdisciplinary Breast Fellowship Yale University School of Medicine Breast Centerm New Haven, CT, Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Every year in the US, nearly 300,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer -- the majority of these will have early stage breast cancer, and will opt for breast conserving surgery to remove their disease.  The goal of this operation is to remove the cancer with a rim of normal tissue all the way around it (i.e., a margin), but sadly, 20-40% of women will have cancer cells at the edge of the tissue that is removed, often mandating a return trip to the operating room to remove more tissue to ensure that no further disease is left behind.  No one likes to go back to the operating room -- so we asked the question, "How can we do better?".  Surgeons have debated various means of obtaining clear margins.  Some have advocated taking routine cavity shave margins -- a little bit more tissue all the way around the cavity after the tumor is removed at the first operation.  Others have argued that this may not be necessary; that one could use intraoperative imaging of the specimen and gross evaluation to define where more tissue may need to be removed (if at all) -- i.e., selective margins.  We conducted a randomized controlled trial to answer this question.  We told surgeons to do their best operation, using intraoperative imaging and gross evaluation, and removing selective margins as they saw fit.  After they were happy with the procedure they had performed and were ready to close, we opened a randomization envelope intraoperatively, and surgeons were either instructed to close as they normally would ("NO SHAVE"), or take a bit more tissue all the way around the cavity ("SHAVE"). Patients in both groups were evenly matched in terms of baseline characteristics.  The key finding was that patients who were randomized to the "SHAVE" group half as likely to have positive final margins and require a re-operation than patients in the "NO SHAVE" group.  On their postoperative visit, we asked patients, before they knew which group they had been randomized to, what they thought of their cosmetic results.  While the volume of tissue excised in the "SHAVE" group was higher than in the "NO SHAVE" group, the distribution of patient-perceived cosmetic outcomes were identical in both groups.  Complication rate was also no different between the two groups.  We will be following patients for five years for long-term cosmetic and recurrence outcomes. (more…)
ASCO, Author Interviews, Cancer Research / 31.05.2015

Tanguy Seiwert, MD Assistant Professor, Dept. of Medicine Associate Director, Head and Neck Cancer Program Section of Hematology/Oncology Fellow, Institute for Genomics and Systems Biology Speciality Chief Editor, Frontiers in Head and Neck Cancer University of Chicago Chicago, IL 60637MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Tanguy Seiwert, MD Assistant Professor, Dept. of Medicine Associate Director, Head and Neck Cancer Program Section of Hematology/Oncology Fellow, Institute for Genomics and Systems Biology Speciality Chief Editor Frontiers in Head and Neck Cancer University of Chicago Chicago, IL 60637 Medical Research: What is the background for this study? Dr. Seiwert: Recurrent/metastatic Head and Neck Squamous Cell Cancer (HNSCC) remains poorly treatable with a median OS of 10-13 months There is evidence of a  prominent immune escape observed in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) suggesting that anti-PD1 agents (similar to e.g. melanoma) may be active. Medical Research: What are the main findings? Dr. Seiwert:
  • One in four patients with Head/Neck cancer treated with pembrolizumab showed marked tumor shrinkage (so called – partial/complete responses), and 57% of patients experienced any decrease in the size of their tumors.
  • Pembrolizumab is broadly active in both HPV(-) and HPV(+) types of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.
  • Pemborliuzmab treatment is active in heavily pretreated squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck patients.
  • Responses seem to be durable è 86% of responding patients remain in response.
Treatment overall was well tolerated with less than 10% of patients experiencing severe side effects (≥Grade 3). (more…)
ASCO, Author Interviews, Journal Clinical Oncology, Mayo Clinic / 31.05.2015

Ruben A. Mesa, MD, FACP Consultant Hematologist Chair, Division of Hematology & Medical Oncology Deputy Director, Mayo Clinic Cancer Center Professor of Medicine Mayo Clinic Cancer Center NCI Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center Scottsdale, AZMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Ruben A. Mesa, MD, FACP Consultant Hematologist Chair, Division of Hematology & Medical Oncology Deputy Director, Mayo Clinic Cancer Center Professor of Medicine Mayo Clinic Cancer Center NCI Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center Scottsdale, AZ Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Mesa: Myelofibrosis is a rare and chronic blood cancer associated with significantly reduced quality of life and shortened survival. In patients with this disease, spleen enlargement (splenomegaly) is a very common and debilitating symptom – and as the disease progresses, the body slows production of important blood cells. The results presented at ASCO were from the PERSIST-1 study, which is a Phase 3 registration-directed trial designed to compare pacritinib — an investigational oral multikinase inhibitor with specificity for JAK2 and FLT3 – to best available therapy (exclusive of a JAK inhibitor) in patients with myelofibrosis — regardless of their platelet counts.  Data from this study showed that compared to best available therapy, pacritinib resulted in a significantly higher proportion of patients with spleen volume reduction and control of disease-related symptoms, regardless of platelet levels at the time of enrollment. (more…)