NOSCM 2017

Dr Pegram talks with ecancer at NOSCM 2017 about translational research in breast cancer, with the focus on diagnostics and the challenges faced in diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. He discusses a recent paper from Christina Curtis at the Stanford Medical School investigating the evolutionary dynamics of outgrowth in different sub-populations of mutant tumour cells in solid tumours. He goes on to talk about a number of other papers that he discusses in this talk at the meeting.

Dr Raez speaks with ecancer at NOSCM 2017 about treatment options for squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). He discusses immunotherapies are providing an alternative to chemotherapy, noting the approvals for nivolumab and pembrolizumab in second and first line cases, and highlights the OAK study of atezolizumab as showing a clear benefit for SCC patients. Dr Raez also considers investigational targets, including PI3K and FGFR, and describes the design of the Lung MAP trial, taking place in clinics across America.

Dr Marx speaks with ecancer at NOSCM 2017 to discuss osteonecrosis of the jaw. He outlines the cancer drugs linked to disease onset, and gives the perspective of facial/dental surgeons in minimising adverse events and promoting therapy adherence. In terms of managing infection, Dr Marx recommends penicillin-based antibiotics or anthracyclines, and in the case of advanced disease he describes how surgical interventions can preserve appearance and quality of life.

Prof Mekhail speaks with ecancer at NOSCM 2017 targeted therapies for lung cancer. He looks beyond EGFR and ALK mutations to emerging targets in lung cancer including BRAF and HER2, which have significant histories in other disease but are now becoming apparent as lung cancer drivers, and rearrangements in MET and RET genes. Prof Mekhail also discusses immune evasion of tumours, and how immunotherapies can reawaken immune cells to clear cancer cells.

Dr Fidler speaks with ecancer at NOSCM 2017 about treating brain and central nervous system cancers with EGFR and ALK mutations. She describes how results from small phase I trials are providing useful insights into rare or relapsed diseases, and outlines promising agents, including alectinib in place of crizotinib.

Prof Petrylak talks with ecancer at NOSCM 2017 about the management and treatment of advanced prostate cancer and new drug approvals for prostate cancer. He goes on to discuss new FDA drug approvals and the benefit on survival rates for patients with prostate cancer. He continues by talking about the side effects and secondary effects of the new drugs outlined.

Dr Santos talks with ecancer at NOSCM 2017 about the New Orleans Summer Cancer Meeting 2017 and his talk about how immunotherapy has moved to the frontline in treatment of lung cancer. He goes on to discus the treatment of lung cancer using carboplatin plus pemetrexed in combination with pembrolizumab. He continues by outlining the clinical trial looking at using nivolumab plus ipilimumab in small cell lung cancer.

Dr Klemp talks with ecancer at NOSCM 2017 about the unmet needs of cancer survivors and how this is becoming an imperative part of cancer care delivery. She goes on to outline how important it is to address the physical and psychological consequences of cancer survivorship. Dr Klemp continues by discussing how to manage survival issues through drug prescription. She states how survivorship care allows a platform to assess, educate and manage patients throughout the process.

Adrienne Vazquez talks to ecancer at NOSCM 2017 about precision medicine from a nurses perspective. She goes on to discuss the ways in which the University of Miami operates in relation to precision medicine. She outlines the next generation sequencing test, looking for genetic mutations, and talks about the way in which this test is completed. She concludes by outlining the positive response from patients to this programme.