Taylor & Francis

POLARIS was a study to evaluate different doses of encorafenib plus binimetinib for people with BRAF V600-mutant melanoma with brain metastasis. The first part, known as the safety lead-in, looked at a high dose of encorafenib (300 mg twice daily) combined with standard binimetinib (45 mg twice daily); in the phase 2 part, patients were given the standard dose of encorafenib (450 mg once daily) plus binimetinib. In the safety lead-in, many patients were unable to tolerate the high dose of encorafenib plus binimetinib. Despite recruitment challenges in POLARIS, in the 13 enrolled patients with unresectable metastatic BRAF V600-mutant melanoma with brain metastases, treatment with encorafenib plus binimetinib demonstrated intracranial activity, with a brain metastasis response rate of over 60%. From Future Oncology - https://doi.org/10.1080/14796694.2025.2514426

People living with cancer should have access to clear and comprehensible treatment information to empower informed decision-making. With the increasing adoption of open access publishing and plain-language summaries, clinical trial findings in journals are becoming more accessible. However, this will only help patients if they are equipped with the relevant knowledge and understanding to make sense of these findings. This podcast highlights the need to support this aspect of health literacy by bringing together the perspectives of a patient, a patient advocate and a medical oncologist. It is accompanied by two visual, plain-language guides designed to help general audiences understand the key efficacy end points that are commonly used in trials of solid tumor treatments. Find the full article here in Future Oncology - https://doi.org/10.1080/14796694.2024.2433411

Relugolix is a once-daily oral gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist that was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2020 for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer. Relugolix is commonly co-prescribed with complementary oncologic therapies or agents targeting associated comorbidities (e.g. cardiovascular disease). In this podcast, we review studies which evaluate relugolix with concomitant next-generation hormonal therapies (abiraterone, apalutamide, and enzalutamide), chemotherapy (docetaxel), radiotherapy, and common cardiovascular medications (antihypertensives, antithrombotics, and lipid‑lowering agents). Based on these studies, these therapies do not appear to affect relugolix efficacy and no new safety concerns were reported.

People living with cancer have a profound need to understand any potential negative impacts of treatment on their everyday lives and whether the treatment itself could cause other long-term health challenges. This podcast brings together the perspectives of a patient, patient advocates and an oncologist, to highlight opportunities to better support people in understanding the possible side effects of a treatment and potential impact on quality of life. In addition to bridging gaps between the perspectives of healthcare providers and patients, it may be helpful to support people in interpreting relevant clinical trial findings. With this in mind, two accompanying visual guides use patient-friendly language to help people understand how safety and quality of life are measured in clinical trials. https://doi.org/10.1080/14796694.2024.2422808

Testosterone recovery post discontinuation of androgen deprivation for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer by Taylor & Francis Group

In this podcast discussion, we review the landscape of androgen deprivation therapies (ADT) for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer. Prior to 2020, available ADT options to achieve chemical castration included gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor agonists (e.g., leuprolide) and antagonists (e.g., degarelix) administered via muscular or subcutaneous injection. In 2020, the once-daily oral gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist, relugolix, received US regulatory approval for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer based on results from the Phase III HERO trial. In this podcast, we also discuss the primary efficacy and safety results of this trial, and key points for providers and patients to consider as they discuss the different ADT options. https://doi.org/10.1080/14796694.2024.2418801

Drs. Ramalingam and Carlisle discuss the incidence and pathophysiology of BRAF V600E-mutant metastatic non-small cell lung cancer and current treatment options. The podcast provides an overview of the data from the recent Pfizer-sponsored phase 2 PHAROS (NCT03915951) study, which were the basis for the recent US Food and Drug Administration approval of encorafenib plus binimetinib for BRAF V600E-mutant metastatic non-small cell lung cancer. doi.org/10.1080/14796694.2024.2391270

Patients with advanced breast cancer in which the cancer cells have the receptor for the hormone estrogen and/or progesterone are typically treated with an aromatase inhibitor, a hormone therapy that decreases estrogen being made in the body, together with an inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinases 4 and 6 (CDK4/6), a drug that blocks the growth of cancer cells. Although cancers usually respond to treatment initially, the cancer cells eventually change, so the drug combination no longer works. For example, mutation of the estrogen receptor (referred to as ESR1m) can stop aromatase inhibitors from working. Camizestrant is an investigational drug that blocks estrogen receptors, including mutated receptors, reducing the growth and spread of cancer. Here we describe the SERENA-6 clinical trial, which is testing camizestrant as a treatment for patients with breast cancer with ESR1m. How will we perform this research? The phase III SERENA-6 trial will use blood tests to monitor if patients with breast cancer develop ESR1m while being treated with an aromatase inhibitor and a CDK4/6 inhibitor. If ESR1m is detected, yet the disease is stable, participants will be randomly assigned to either continue with the same aromatase inhibitor or switch to camizestrant while continuing with the same CDK4/6 inhibitor. The study will assess whether switching to camizestrant prolongs the time before the cancer grows, spreads or worsens. It will also assess the length of time that participants live for versus those who continue with an aromatase inhibitor.

The patient authors with over 48 years of combined real-world experience with chronic myeloid leukemia, and a healthcare professional, use their own personal experiences to describe the factors that may affect the patiet–doctor relationship, patient care and outcomes. The authors believe that this podcast series and associated manuscript will aid both patients and healthcare professionals to improve their patient–doctor relationships and communication through diagnosis, treatment decision-making and learning to live with CML (or another disease). In this episode, they discuss managing financial costs and where to find resources and support groups. This is podcast three in a series of three. - doi.org/10.2217/fon-2023-0404 Podcast 2 - The Journey: Staying on top of your Cancer - doi.org/10.2217/fon-2023-0403 The Beginning: Diagnosis and Selecting Your Doctor - doi.org/10.2217/fon-2023-0402 This podcast is related to this article - www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.2217/fon-2022-1267

The patient authors with over 48 years of combined real-world experience with chronic myeloid leukemia, and a healthcare professional, use their own personal experiences to describe the factors that may affect the patient–doctor relationship, patient care and outcomes. The authors believe that this podcast series and associated manuscript will aid both patients and healthcare professionals to improve their patient–doctor relationships and communication through diagnosis, treatment decision-making and learning to live with CML (or another disease). In this episode, they discuss the importance of the patient–doctor relationship, the patient authors' own diagnosis experiences and considerations when selecting a health care team. This is podcast two in a series of three. - doi.org/10.2217/fon-2023-0403 The Beginning: Diagnosis and Selecting Your Doctor - doi.org/10.2217/fon-2023-0402 Podcast 3. Lessons Learned: Managing Financial Costs and where you can go for more Information - doi.org/10.2217/fon-2023-0404 This podcast is related to this article - www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.2217/fon-2022-1267