Oncology

Type 3c diabetes is caused by injury to the pancreas, and is often misdiagnosed as type 2 diabetes.

Novel oral neoadjuvant therapy shows promising phase II results

Yesterday

The novel neoadjuvant therapy S-1, an oral fluoropyrimidine agent containing tegafur, gimeracil, and oteracil potassium, yields promising survival outcomes in high-risk patients with resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, a recent study has found.

Long-term PPI tied to pneumonia in older adults

PPIs raise death risk in advanced NSCLC patients on antitumour therapy

Yesterday

Treatment with proton pump inhibitors (PPI) appears to increase the risk of mortality among patients with advanced nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) undergoing systemic antitumour therapy, reveals a recent study.

KangDuo Surgical Robot-01 system feasible for robot-assisted radical prostatectomy

Stephen Padilla, 2 days ago

Use of the KangDuo Surgical Robot-01 (KD-SR-01) system for the management of localized prostate cancer is safe and effective, according to the initial results of a prospective, single-centre study.

Colorectal cancer alters gut microbiome

Tristan Manalac, 2 days ago

Patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) have a substantially altered gut microbiome, characterized by changes in bacterial composition, according to a recent Singapore study. Of note, these alterations persist even after surgery.

Handheld device can spot skin cancers without requiring biopsy

Jairia Dela Cruz, 3 days ago

A compact device that incorporates high-resolution millimetre-wave imaging (HR-MMWI) can diagnose malignant skin lesions as accurately as clinical examination and other detection techniques, potentially cutting the number of unnecessary biopsies in half, as reported in a study.

Improving survival outcomes with systemic therapy in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

02 Apr 2021

At the 3rd Bayer Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) Masterclass, three distinguished speakers shared their insights into the management of intermediate and advanced HCC in Malaysia. Topics discussed include current treatment landscape and updates in disease management, as well as two case studies that highlighted the role of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in improving the overall survival (OS) of patients with advanced HCC.

New treatment option now available for patients with HR+/HER2- aBC/MBC, PIK3CA mutations

31 Mar 2021

At the recent webinar entitled Pik Me Up: Mutation Matters, Consultant Medical Oncologist Dr Senthil Rajappa discussed the role of PI3Kα-specific inhibitor alpelisib (TREZILENT^®, Novartis) in managing patients with HR+/HER2- aBC/MBC and PIK3CA mutations while Senior Consultant Pathologist Professor Dr Pathmanathan Rajadurai explained the process of detecting PIK3CA mutations in patients.

Management of MDROs in the ICU and the role of newer antimicrobial agents

Prof. David Paterson, 30 Mar 2021

Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are at risk of developing serious infections with multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs), which require appropriate and adequate antibiotic coverage. Early empirical coverage is pivotal in saving patients’ lives. At a recent webinar co-organized by the Society of Infectious Disease (Singapore) and Pfizer, renowned Professor David Paterson, Professor of Medicine and Director, The University of Queensland Centre for Clinical Research, and Consultant Infectious Diseases Physician, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, Brisbane, Australia, discussed the role of newer antimicrobial agents, including ceftazidime-avibactam (Zavicefta) in the management of MDROs in the ICU. Dr Wong Sin Yew, Infectious Disease Physician at Gleneagles Medical Centre and Mount Elizabeth Novena Specialist Centre, Singapore, chaired the event.

The changing treatment landscape for premenopausal women with advanced breast cancer: Focus on ribociclib

Dr. Wong Seng Weng, Dr. Lee Guek Eng, 19 Mar 2021

In Singapore, advanced breast cancer (aBC) is the leading cause of cancer death in women 30–49 years of age. For premenopausal women diagnosed with hormone receptor (HR)-positive, HER2-negative BC, cyclin-dependent kinase 4 and 6 (CDK4/6) inhibitors provide new hope. Currently, ribociclib is the only CDK4/6 inhibitor studied in the first-line setting for premenopausal women with HR+/HER2- aBC, in the phase III MONALEESA-7 trial. Two experts, Dr Wong Seng Weng, Medical Director & Consultant Medical Oncologist at The Cancer Centre, Paragon Medical & Mount Elizabeth Novena Specialist Centre, and Dr Lee Guek Eng, Senior Consultant & Specialist in Medical Oncology at Icon Cancer Centre and Program Director of the Young Women Cancer Program, weigh in with their views on managing premenopausal women with aBC.

Optimizing metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer treatment in advanced prostate cancer

Assoc Prof. Darren Poon, Assoc Prof. Edmund Chiong, 14 Jan 2021

Metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (mHSPC) refers to the condition whereby patients have metastatic prostate cancer and no prior hormonal therapy or androgen deprivation therapy (ADT). Typically, patients with mHSPC have been treated with ADT alone, following which, the overwhelming majority develop castration resistance over time and head towards eventual mortality. In recent years, the publication of various landmark trials has prompted dramatic changes in the mHSPC treatment landscape, and had favourably impacted overall survival (OS) in these patients. At a recent webinar, A/Prof Darren Poon, Honorary Consultant in Clinical Oncology, Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital, and Honorary Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Clinical Oncology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, reviewed treatment options in mHSPC, while A/Prof Edmund Chiong, Head and Senior Consultant, Department of Urology, National University Hospital, Singapore, presented a case which was discussed by an esteemed panel of experts. This webinar was jointly organized by the Singapore Society of Oncology and the Singapore Urological Association, and supported by Astellas.

ALL treatment: Current settings, future goals

Roshini Claire Anthony, 08 Jan 2021

Significant advancements in the treatment of acute lymphocytic leukaemia (ALL) in children have improved their outcomes. However, ALL treatment and eradication remain a major challenge in adults. In a recent webinar, two specialists from the US discussed current ALL treatment strategies and goals of future regimens.

Dostarlimab in rectal cancer: are we inching towards a cure?

Audrey Abella, 22 Jun 2022

In what has been dubbed as ‘a small but mighty study’ at ASCO 2022, a phase II trial spearheaded by investigators from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, US heralded the remarkable efficacy and safety of the monoclonal antibody dostarlimab for the treatment of locally advanced mismatch repair-deficient (dMMR) rectal cancer.

Novel cellular therapy produces impressive responses in heavily pretreated CD30-positive lymphoma

Kanas Chan, 19 May 2022

A novel cellular therapy that links the bispecific antibody AFM13 with cord blood–derived natural killer cells (AFM13-NK), when used at recommended phase II dose (RP2D), produces a 100 percent overall response rate (ORR) in patients with refractory or relapsed CD30-positive Hodgkin or non-Hodgkin lymphomas (HL/NHL), according to results of the NCT04074746 trial presented at American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) 2022.

Stem cell–like epigenetic signature predicts resistance to CD19 CAR T-cell therapy in ALL

Sarah Cheung, 17 May 2022

A stem cell–like epigenetic signature is identified in pretreatment samples from young patients with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) who are resistant to CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, with potential utility for refining patient selection for appropriate treatment.

Sotorasib continues to impress at 2 years in KRAS G12C–mutant NSCLC

Elvira Manzano, 13 May 2022

Long-term findings from the pooled phase I/II CodeBreak 100 trial support the efficacy of sotorasib in certain patients with KRAS G12C–mutant non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Neoadjuvant nivolumab plus chemo: New SoC in resectable NSCLC

Christina Lau, 13 May 2022

In patients with resectable non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), neoadjuvant nivolumab in combination with platinum-based chemotherapy significantly improves event-free survival (EFS) and shows a trend towards better overall survival (OS) vs chemotherapy alone, without impeding the feasibility of surgery or increasing adverse events (AEs), according to results of the phase III CheckMate 816 trial.

SWOG S1616 suggests PFS benefit with ipi-nivo combo in metastatic/unresectable melanoma

Roshini Claire Anthony, 12 May 2022

The combination of ipilimumab and nivolumab may provide a progression-free survival (PFS) benefit in patients with metastatic or unresectable melanoma who did not respond to anti-PD-1/anti-PD-L1 therapy, according to a small study presented at AACR 2022.

Sotorasib demonstrates durable efficacy in KRASG12C-mutated NSCLC

Christina Lau, 11 May 2022

The KRAS^G12C inhibitor sotorasib has demonstrated durable efficacy in patients with locally advanced or metastatic KRAS^G12C-mutated non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), with 2-year overall survival (OS) reported in one-third of patients in the CodeBreaK 100 trial.