ASCO 2015 Highlights

Orlando, FL—Treatment with enzalutamide (Xtandi) after progression with androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) led to a significant improvement in survival for men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), according to a new randomized trial reported at the 2014 American Urological Association annual meeting.

Chicago, IL—The question of value in oncology continues to pose challenges for oncologists and payers alike, as the costs of therapy continue to rise and health plans are wrestling with the need to design insurance coverage that promotes value.

Los Angeles, CA—Increasing complexities in diagnostic science, the development of precision medicine, and the use of targeted agents require un­precedented levels of collaboration between pharmaceutical manufacturers, government agencies, and payers, said oncology experts during a panel discussion on personalized medicine at the Fourth Annual Conference of the Association for Value-Based Cancer Care.

Chicago, IL—Although the majority of oncologists believe that discussing the costs of care with the patient is impor­tant, many report a lack of resources available to them to inform cost-benefit decisions and a lack of time to discuss these issues with patients.

This was a retrospective analysis of the phase 3 IMCL-9815 trial assessing the role of HPV-p16 status in patients with locally advanced SCCHN receiving radiation therapy (RT) plus cetuximab (cetux) or RT alone (Rosenthal DI, et al. ASCO 2014. Abstract 6001).

Platinum-based chemoradiation therapy (CRT) is the current standard treatment for locally advanced SCCHN, and induction docetaxel/cisplatin/5-fluorouracil (TPF) is superior to cisplatin/5-fluorouracil alone, but it has not been tested when added to concomitant therapy.

In the E2399 trial, HPV+ patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) attained 2-year overall survival (OS) of 95% and progression-free survival (PFS) of 86% when treated with induction chemotherapy (IC) and 70 Gy chemoradiation.

In many cancers, KRAS mutations can predict cancer risk, unique cancer biology, and response to certain therapeutic agents. RTOG 0522 was a phase 3 trial of cisplatin/radiation ± cetuximab for patients with locally advanced SCCHN, evaluating whether KRAS mutation status would predict the response to cetuximab in these patients (Weidhaas JB, et al. ASCO 2014. Abstract 6000).