Attendees – both live and virtual – are still abuzz over the happenings at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting. The biggest yearly gathering of oncology professionals in the world saw more than 35,000 clinicians, researchers, and physicians make the trip to Chicago. The mood of this year’s conference was one of hope, optimism, and discovery.
What generated this sense of confidence and anticipation of the future? Presentations highlighting the promise of target-specific breast cancer therapies; revelations about ASCO’s new recommendations for PSA testing—an InCrowd exclusive; clinical data from an investigator-sponsored trial of cabozantinib in treating men with castration resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) with bone metastases; and the roaring buzz from GSK’s metastatic melanoma blockbuster studies touch on just a few of the significant ASCO moments.
Collaborating to Conquer Cancer—ASCO Goes Social
More than ever before, ASCO 2012 enjoyed enhanced participation due to the highly engaged and growing health care social media community. The theme, Collaborating to Conquer Cancer, proved prophetic as oncology professionals from more than 100 countries demonstrated unprecedented engagement via social media channels.
The daily buzz was not limited to those attendees who were physically at the conference. Collaborators from across the globe contributed digitally— sharing findings, impressions, and ideas with fellow members of the oncology community. Courtesy of @ASCO, here’s a snapshot of the ASCO Twitter activity for the twenty-four hour period between June 3rd and 4th:
Hashtag stats for #ASCO12:
- 1,500 tweets generated
- 4,317,582 impressions
- Reaching an audience of 1,489,474 individuals
The new Network Cafes and mobile device accommodations kept the social media buzz going strong. According to Dr. Kevin Pho, social media’s leading physician voice, “Doctors have a duty to engage in social media.” Pho has touted social media as a powerful and revolutionary tool in health care – one that will change the landscape of medicine, research, and patient-to-doctor communication – and the participation across all social media platforms during the ASCO Annual Meeting proves him right.
Physician and ASCO session chair, Anas Younes, MD, of University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center uses his Twitter handle, @DrAnasYounes, to build public awareness of clinical trials and promote participation. “I get contacted through social media or email almost on a daily basis with questions about clinical trials, thanks to my efforts online,” Younes told an ASCO reporter during their conversation on health care and social media.
Breast Cancer Vaccine – Well Tolerated, Minimal Toxicity
Generex Biotechnology presented results from an ongoing Phase II trial of a breast cancer vaccine, AE37. The vaccine uses li-Key technology and trial results, so far, indicate that it is both well tolerated and safe. Patients with lower levels of HER2 expression had a sharp reduction in relapse – 11 % relapse in vaccinated patients compared to 31% in control group, representing a significant risk reduction of 63%. This caused considerable buzz because these patients are not eligible for Herceptin therapy; thus representing a significant demographic of those with unmet treatment needs.
Antigen Express, a subsidiary of Generex developed the vaccine, which purportedly has potential to clear a major obstacle faced in cancer immunotherapy research: teaching the body’s immune system to destroy tumor cells as foreign invaders in the same way it does invading bacteria and viruses. The vaccine has a “search and destroy” mechanism targeting cancer cells while leaving helpful autoimmune cells intact.
According to Eric von Hofe, PhD and president of Antigen Express, the li-Key technology facilitates the identification of certain antigens (tumor-specific proteins) and delivers those antigens in a way that is recognizable by the immune system. “Results from several clinical trials of AE37 provide convincing data validating the underlying li-Key technology, as well as setting the stage for a phase III trial of AE37,” says Hofe. ASCO honored Generex by awarding them with the 2012 Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO Merit Award.
Efficacy & Tolerability of Cabozantinib at Lower Dose for mCRPC
On Monday, June 4th, during the genitourinary cancer session, investigators presented a poster discussion of their trial investigating the efficacy and tolerability of cabozantinib (cabo) at lower dose: A dose-finding study in men with CRPS and bone metastases. Patients received daily doses of either 20mg or 40 mg of cabo.
During the first 12 weeks of the study, none of the patients required reductions in dose or treatment interruptions. One patient from Cohort 1 experienced worsening levels of preexisting anorexia and fatigue and discontinued treatment in week two. Three patients in Cohort 2 experienced venous thromboembolic events, requiring that investigators discontinue their treatment.
Patients taking a daily dose of 40mg tolerated treatment better than in previous reports for daily treatments of 100 mg. With bone scan response (BSR) being the endpoint, the study indicated that 40mg dose of cabo achieved a higher BSR than 20mg. The high level of tumor regression and patient reports of lower bone pain and other indicators of efficacy support the use of these indicators as endpoints in ongoing trials, recently initiated by Exelixis, Inc.
GSK – Promising Results for Metastatic Melanoma Treatment
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) presented results of targeted drugs, dabrafenib (a BRAF inhibitor) and trametinib (an MEK inhibitor), clinical trials for treating metastatic melanoma. GSK presented results from two late stage trials comparing the efficacy of their developmental treatments in patients with metastatic melanoma and BRAF mutations with the standard treatments (i.e. chemotherapy).
Data showed that patients on dabrafenib went 5.1 months without their cancer worsening compared to those treated with chemo. Those on trametinib lived three times longer without their cancer advancing than patients on chemo.
Now, investigators are poised to compare the use of the drug combination with Roche Pharmaceutical’s approved BRAF inhibitor, Zelboraf®, in a new Phase III clinical trial. GSK officials claim that interest is so energized that enrollment for the new study is already very high.
Future Buzz — The Last Word from ASCO 2012
If ASCO 2012 proved one thing, it is that the future of cancer treatment has never looked brighter for patients and oncology practitioners alike. The paradigm-shifting presentations as well as the findings of clinicians at this year’s event send a clear message that malignancy is no longer an insurmountable diagnosis. Further, that preventative measures are becoming increasingly targeted and effective as the quality-of-life for those currently suffering from an array of cancers is improving exponentially. Hope, optimism, and discovery carried the day at ASCO 2012—that is good news for the many millions who are touched by this menace – a menace whose name was once uttered only in a whisper.
