Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers presented important research studies during the 2022 ASCO Genitourinary (GU) Cancers Symposium, that took place from February 17-19, both virtually and in-person in San Francisco. The ASCO GU Symposium is the leading specialized event for global GU cancer care. The Dana-Farber led research exemplifies innovative and multidisciplinary expertise in prostate, kidney, and bladder cancers, and includes studies examining quality of life and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic specifically on GU malignancies.
Notable presentations by Dana-Farber experts include:
Additional six-month follow-up shows continued advantage of post-operative pembrolizumab for patients with high-risk renal cell carcinoma
For patients with high-risk renal cell carcinoma, the benefits of treatment with the immunotherapy agent pembrolizumab after kidney-removal surgery continue at least 30 months after the start of treatment, updated results from the KEYNOTE-564 study indicate. Researchers led by Toni K. Choueiri, MD, of Dana-Farber found that at the 30-month mark, patients who received pembrolizumab for one year were significantly more likely to be alive and free of renal cell carcinoma than those who received a placebo. In addition, there were no new safety signals. The results provide a six-month update of previously announced findings of the study, which included 994 patients with renal cell carcinoma at high risk of recurrence – half of whom were treated with pembrolizumab and half of whom received a placebo.
Abstract: 290
Presenter: Toni K. Choueiri, MD
Session: Oral Abstract Session C: Renal Cell Cancer and Rare Tumors
Watch Video: Kidney Cancer Research: Immunotherapy after surgery | Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Early pandemic decline in screening, diagnosis, and treatment of genitourinary cancers has largely rebounded in major Northeast healthcare system, study shows
After a sharp drop in screening, diagnosis, and treatment of common genitourinary cancers at the Northeast’s largest healthcare system during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the numbers had largely rebounded by early 2021, a study by Dana-Farber researchers shows. Chris Labaki, MD, Quoc-Dien Trinh, MD,Toni K. Choueiri, MD, and their colleagues found that during the first peak of the pandemic, from March to June 2020, screenings, new diagnoses, and treatment interventions for prostate cancer, urothelial carcinoma (cancer of the lining of the bladder and other parts of the urinary tract system), and renal cell carcinoma (kidney cancer) declined between -15.7% and -64.8%, as compared to pre-pandemic times. By Dec. 2020-March 2021, use of these modalities had progressively risen to near-normal or above-normal levels. Although 725 diagnoses were “missed” at the start of the pandemic compared to the previous 12 months, 971 diagnoses were “recovered” between June 2020 and March 2021.
Abstract: 281
Presenter: Chris Labaki, MD
Session: Poster Session A: Prostate Cancer
Watch Video: COVID-19 and Genitourinary Cancer: Pandemic's impact | Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Study finds differences in prostate cancer screening and treatment in U.S., U.K., and Germany
A survey of nearly 16,000 patients treated for prostate cancer in the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany found notable differences in both screening and treatment patterns in the three countries. In the U.S. and Germany, 77% of respondents with non-metastatic prostate cancer were diagnosed by healthcare screenings, compared to 42% in the U.K. Treatment practices differed as well, with radiation therapy slightly more frequent than prostate-removal surgery in the U.K., and active surveillance was more common than in the U.S. and Germany. One constant was that patients in all three countries were generally satisfied with the treatment they received, said Alicia K. Morgans, MD, MPH, of Dana-Farber, one of the study’s leaders.
Abstract: 16
Presenter: Alicia K. Morgans, MD, MPH
Session: Rapid Abstract Session A: Prostate Cancer
Watch Video:Prostate Cancer Research: Mapping the patient journey | Dana-Farber Cancer Institute