Andrew D. Smith

Articles

Tumor-Treating Field Therapy Looks Beyond Brain Cancer

July 31st 2018

Tumor-treating field therapy, which uses low-intensity electrical fields to disrupt cancer cell division and promote cell death, has gained a frontline approval in glioblastoma. Several pivotal clinical trials have been launched to determine whether the technology can help patients with other solid tumors.

Reinventing Benchmarking for the Value Era

May 23rd 2018

Benchmarking has historically been difficult in oncology because of barriers to the flow of information and the complexities of care. However, such performance comparisons are now becoming a part of payment models, and practices realize they need comparative data to understand how well they perform.

Blueprint for Tackling Toxicities From Checkpoint Blockade Agents Is Introduced

May 14th 2018

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network has developed its first set of recommendations to help clinicians manage toxicities in the recognition of the variety of immune-related adverse events that patients receiving checkpoint blockade immunotherapy may experience.

It's Fast-Forward for Cancer Drugs

May 11th 2018

More than a third of the new indications for oncology drugs that became available for patient care during the past 25 years entered clinical practice as a result of the FDA’s accelerated approval program.

Oral Anticoagulants Make Welcome Addition to VTE Patient Care

May 10th 2018

The NCCN guideline committee has designated a direct oral anticoagulant as a preferred frontline treatment for most patients with cancer-associated venous thromboembolism.

Scarcity of Actionable Oncogenes Should Not Preclude Testing in Breast Cancer

March 21st 2018

Although much remains unknown about many mutations and test results rarely clarify the need for any particular response, panel testing has already demonstrated its cost value, which continues to increase every day.

Unlocking the Potential of Immunotherapy in Breast Cancer

March 21st 2018

A pair of trials that used checkpoint inhibitors as monotherapy reported lackluster overall response rates in breast cancer.

Operating With Scientific Rigor: How Brennan Changed Cancer Surgery

February 4th 2018

Sir Murray F. Brennan, MD, made his reputation—and saved many lives—by pioneering the use of rigorous empirical analysis to evaluate alternative strategies and optimize outcomes in surgical oncology.

Immunotherapy Tops CRISPR Agenda

February 1st 2018

The gene-editing tool known as CRISPR may eventually enable oncology investigators to create methods for killing tumors directly, but thus far, the focus is on enhancing forms of immunotherapy already in clinical practice.

New Criteria Needed to Evaluate Immunotherapy Responses

January 28th 2018

Most patients who appear to progress after they begin receiving anticancer immunotherapy will never exhibit a response to therapy.

Demand Builds for Access to Experimental Drugs

January 16th 2018

Right-to-try legislation, which allows dying patients to take investigational medications without approval from the FDA.

Faster Care for Low-Income Patients: New Lung Cancer Treatment Models Emerge

January 13th 2018

The effort to improve outcomes of disadvantaged patients involves every aspect of lung cancer care.

Plethora of New Drugs in AML Stirs Hope

December 27th 2017

After several decades without a new therapy, the approval of 4 treatments for acute myeloid leukemia over the span of just 4 months is either a total coincidence or an inevitable occurrence.

Canadian Research Leader Makes Worldwide Impact on Lung Cancer

November 15th 2017

Frances A. Shepherd, MD, has spent more than 3 decades demonstrating that medical oncology can help patients with lung cancer during all stages of their journey.

Mendelsohn's Antibody Research Reverberates Today

August 31st 2017

John Mendelsohn, MD, served as president of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center for a 15-year period that saw that institution’s size triple and its budget quadruple.

Nanotech Remains a Robust Research Focus

July 7th 2017

The nanotechnology sector has had its share of disappointments in the arena of oncology therapeutics. Nevertheless, the FDA is reviewing a new drug application for a novel compound and numerous investigational agents are in the pipeline.

Freireich's Fight: Making Progress Against All Odds

May 4th 2017

Emil J. Freireich, MD, DSc, was the originator of combination chemotherapy, the primary architect of the first cure for a systemic cancer, a major contributor to the cures for half a dozen other systemic cancers and, quite possibly, the man who did the most to transform MD Anderson from a minor facility to one of the world’s leading cancer centers.

Oncology Pipeline Bursting With Biosimilars

May 3rd 2017

After years of regulatory and legal wrangling, the development of biosimilars is starting to advance rapidly in the United States, particularly in the oncology sector where multiple versions of the most widely used cancer drugs are moving forward.

RCC Advances Shake Up Drug Choices

April 7th 2017

Axitinib was a promising newcomer in the renal cell carcinoma field when it was introduced as a second-line therapy 5 years ago. Now it is being displaced by newer therapies, a development that may serve as a harbinger for the evolution of treatment patterns in other tumor types with a bounty of novel agents.

Pivotal Year Looms for CAR T-Cell Therapies

March 1st 2017

Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapies have already produced clinical trial results that, even by the lofty standards set by emerging immunotherapies, have been stunning.