In the ‘Oncology On-The-Go’ Podcast posted on April 24th, 2023, Dr. Ritu Salani and Dr. Dana Chase discussed results presented at the Society of Gynecologic Oncology (SGO) 2023 Annual Meeting with CancerNetwork®.

Dr. Salani and Dr. Chase are providers at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). They spoke about key findings and possibilities for improving patients’ quality of life. They reviewed the results from those three trials:

• Trial NCT03914612
  The results are published in The New England Journal of Medicine: Pembrolizumab plus Chemotherapy in Advanced Endometrial Cancer
• Trial NCT03981796
  The results are published in The New England Journal of Medicine: Dostarlimab for Primary Advanced or Recurrent Endometrial Cancer
• Trial NCT01847274
  The results are published in the Journal of clinical oncology: Niraparib Maintenance Therapy in Patients With Recurrent Ovarian Cancer After a Partial Response to the Last Platinum-Based Chemotherapy in the ENGOT-OV16/NOVA Trial

Researchers from the University of Michigan developed a real-time 3D imaging technique to know precisely where the X-rays hit and how much radiation is delivered when cancer patients receive radiation therapy. With a lack of precision in current imaging, providers could not specifically see which cells in the tumors were targeted by X-rays, leading to both the killing of cancerous cells and some healthy cells. This breakthrough technology could be used to position patients better and adjust the trajectory and the level of radiation to protect healthy cells in the areas surrounding the tumor. The study was published in Nature Biotechnology.

A paper published by authors from multiple National Cancer Institute consortia in the United States and Europe presents the vision of leaders in the oncology field on next-generation precision oncology. The leaders emphasize the importance of developing “3D patient tumor avatars” to allow testing and identifying optimal treatments before applying them to patients. Those “avatars” and their associated data will increase the precision of cancer treatments, reduce the side effects, and improve treatment outcomes. The authors outline the challenges and processes for widespread tumor “avatars” implementation. The study was published in Cancer Cell.

A research team from Ireland conducted a prospective multi-center study on the role of MicroRNAs (miRNAs) in breast cancer prognosis. One hundred twenty-four patients participated in the study. The authors found that miRNAs, detected in blood samples, could be used as biomarkers to predict breast cancer recurrence. Indeed, the results established that patients with a higher expression of the miRNA type 145 were unlikely to see breast cancer recurrence. This discovery could be instrumental in providing tailored surveillance to patients based on their miRNA-145 levels. The study was published in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons (JACS).

A study on a Breast Cancer Vaccine was conducted by researchers from the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle. The authors found that an experimental DNA vaccine generated a robust immune response to a tumor protein. The vaccine was administered to 66 women who were followed for three to thirteen years. However, because the trial was not randomized, the results could be viewed only as preliminary. Therefore, a larger trial with randomization will be conducted by the team. The study was published in JAMA Oncology.