Medical Oncology
Physician insights on cancer treatment protocols, immunotherapy, targeted therapies, and clinical trial updates.
Recent Discussions
How would you treat a patient with newly diagnosed stage IV NSCLC who has an activating mutation in the ERBB2 extracellular domain and a concurrent classical EGFR mutation?
No high-level evidence/guidelines for such a situation since oncogenic ECD mutation in HER2 itself is quite uncommon (approximately <10% of HER2 mutations [Robichaux et al., PMID 31588020]), and co-occurrence with classical EGFR mutation will be even less common. Will generally treat based on the cl...
Can aplastic anemia present with multiple infiltrative bone lesions, such as in the spine and pelvis?
There are several studies showing diffuse hypointense pictures with an infiltrative-like pattern on MRI in aplastic anemia and MDS. Some aplastic anemia and refractory cytopenia of childhood show patchy pattern of hematopoiesis with some regions having increased fat fraction and some remnants of hem...
Does receipt of chemoimmunotherapy for LS-SCLC impact your recommendation for PCI?
Historic data showed that the addition of PCI for patients with limited-stage small cell lung cancer showing response after chemoradiotherapy improves overall survival and decreases brain failure rates by about 50%. Recently, the addition of consolidation immunotherapy after concurrent chemoradiothe...
Do you modify dosing and monitoring of Lu-177–PSMA therapy for patients with prior large-field RT involving substantial active marrow compared with patients who only had focal bone SBRT?
No, we do not modify dosing and monitoring of PSMA therapy with prior large-field RT. In the VISION trial, the vast majority of patients were heavily pre-treated, presumably many with pelvic radiation for definitive treatment or treatment for bCR prior to metastasis. Assuming that the patient had ap...
Can you give Pluvicto with concurrent palliative EBRT?
Short answer: Yes, you can, and I do not modify my dose. I have no issues with this and have done it multiple times for patients who need more immediate symptom relief (pain, bleeding, etc.).Why? Because Pluvicto is a medium energy isotope with a relatively short path length of around 2 mm. Even nea...
Does postpartum status impact your choice of chemotherapy regimen for young women with a HR+/HER2- invasive ductal carcinoma with 1-3 positive lymph nodes?
No, the postpartum state would not affect my choice of adjuvant chemotherapy in a node-positive patient with HR+/HER2- breast cancer. Would submit tissue for Oncotype analysis to determine if the regimen should include an anthracycline (for Oncotype >30); if not, would favor TC x6 with concurrent ov...
How would you manage an isolated nodal recurrence of breast cancer in a patient with a prior history of mantle-field radiation?
The clinical details of the patient's "initial" radiation-associated breast cancer and what adjuvant treatment(s) she received after her mastectomy and reconstruction would be helpful here, both in determining the risk of the nodal recurrence she has now experienced and what additional therapies she...
How does one interpret the LUMINA trial in the FLORENCE APBI ERA?
This is a common scenario. My practice is to discuss this with the patient. I discuss 5 fraction PBI or 5 fraction WBI depending on the scenario, as well as endocrine therapy and the differences in toxicity profiles. Given compliance rates of 50-60% with endocrine therapy long-term, many patients pr...
Would you offer other antibody-drug conjugates to a patient who had a history of G2 trastuzumab deruxtecan-induced pneumonitis that is now resolved?
There are no prospective data to guide this decision; the decision requires careful individualization. TDM-1 (ado-trastuzumab emtansine has a substantially lower pneumonitis risk than trastuzumab deruxtecan (1.6-1.9% with TDM-1 compared to 9.6-10.5% with trastuzumab deruxtecan), and TDM-1 uses a dif...
Despite the paucity of strong data showing benefit of chemotherapy + radiotherapy in patients with stage I-II high risk histology endometrial cancer, if you recommend treatment with both modalities, how do you determine treatment schedule?
For the purpose of this answer, I'll define high risk as serous, carcinosarcoma, undifferentiated, and dedifferentiated. Clear cell carcinoma can be considered and likely treated more by its molecular profile. As you indicate, there is little data to support the routine use of chemotherapy for FIGO ...