Important Papers Presented at Press Conference

The following titles are written from AACR. Oncoletter just provides the links to the official AACR website & press releases:

Copanlisib-Rituximab Combination Cuts Lymphoma Progression or Death by Nearly Half in CHRONOS-3 Trial

CHRONOS-3: Randomized Phase III study of copanlisib plus rituximab vsrituximab/placebo in relapsed indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma (iNHL)

Matthew J. Matasar, Marcelo Capra, Muhit Özcan, et al.

Abstracts Conclusion: C+R demonstrated broad and superior efficacy vsP+R in pts with relapsed iNHL. The safety profile of C+R was manageable and consistent with C and R as monotherapy. Copanlisib is the first PI3K inhibitor to be safely combined with R in relapsed iNHL, representing a potential new therapy option for relapsed iNHL across all subtypes.

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Bispecific Fusion Protein Tebentafusp Significantly Improves Overall Survival in Patients With Metastatic Uveal Melanoma

Phase 3 randomized trial comparing tebentafusp with investigator’s choice in first line metastatic uveal melanoma

Sophie Piperno-Neumann, Jessica C. Hassel, Piotr Rutkowski, et al.

Abstracts Conclusion: In first-line systemic mUM pts, tebe monotherapy significantly improved OS compared to IC; the first investigational therapy to improve OS in pts with mUM. Tebe had a predictable and manageable AE profile with low rate of related discontinuation. An OS benefit of tebe in pts with PD suggests that RECIST-based radiologic endpoints may underestimate the benefit from TCR bispecifics.

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Neoadjuvant Nivolumab plus Chemotherapy Increased Pathological Complete Response Rate in CheckMate-816 Lung Cancer Trial

Nivolumab (NIVO) + platinum-doublet chemotherapy (chemo) vs chemo as neoadjuvant treatment (tx) for resectable (IB-IIIA) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the phase 3 CheckMate 816 trial

Patrick M. Forde, Jonathan Spicer, Shun Lu, et al.

Abstracts Conclusion: CheckMate 816 met its first primary endpoint with a statistically significant improvement in pCR with neoadjuvant NIVO + chemo vs chemo alone per independent review. The safety profile of NIVO + chemo was consistent with the known profile of this combination regimen, and the addition of NIVO did not decrease the ability to perform surgery. CheckMate 816 is the first positive phase 3 trial demonstrating a significant improvement in pathologic response with neoadjuvant immunotherapy plus chemo in resectable NSCLC.

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Rare Pathogenic Germline Variants Were Observed in Sporadic Pediatric Neuroblastoma Cases and Were Inherited

Heritability of cancer predisposition gene mutations in 556 neuroblastoma patients with paired parental DNA whole genome sequences.

Emily Blauel, Zalman Vaksman, Alex Lee, et al.

Abstracts Conclusion: Here we show that approximately 13.5% of patients with neuroblastoma harbor a rare P/LP germline variant in a CPG, and the vast majority of these are inherited. Neuroblastoma patients with P/LP germline variants are more likely to have high-risk disease and several variants suggest potential therapeutic opportunities. Work is ongoing to understand the genetic factors that explain why parents harboring the same P/LP variant did not develop neuroblastoma, and to determine the genetic counseling implications of these data.

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Healthy Lifestyle May Offset Risk of Lethal Prostate Cancer in Men With High Genetic Risk

Can the genetic risk of prostate cancer be attenuated by a healthy lifestyle?

Anna Plym, Yiwen Zhang, Konrad Stopsack, et al.

Abstracts Conclusion: In this large prospective cohort of US men, inherited genetic factors increased the risk of both overall and lethal prostate cancer. The associated decreased risk of aggressive disease in those with a favorable lifestyle may suggest that the excess genetic risk of lethal prostate cancer could be offset by adhering to a healthy lifestyle.

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