Project Oncology®

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, otherwise known as PDAC, is a lethal disease which is usually diagnosed at an advanced stage and has an extremely poor prognosis. Advancements in treatment regimens have improved survival rates, but early diagnosis is crucial for improving outcomes and awareness of risk factors is vital for early diagnosis. Cytotoxic chemotherapy is the cornerstone of treatment for advanced or metastatic cases, although molecularly targeted therapies and immunotherapies may benefit select patients. Treatment selection depends on several factors, including patients' performance status and co-morbidities and these should be considered alongside the efficacy and safety profiles of the different chemotherapy regimens.

This 2-part microlearning provides an overview of the risk factors, diagnostic tools and treatment options available to date for different patient groups.

Complete both modules, answer pre- and post-test questions and start earning CME credits.

This programme is also featured on the COR2ED website, here: Metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC): from diagnosis to treatment

When treating relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma (R/R LBCL) with CAR T-cell therapy, the risk of adverse events is a key consideration. Models such as PhasED-Seq and CAR-HEMATOTOX can help clinicians assess the patient’s risk and personalize care plans regarding treatment selection and location, prophylactic regimen, and early intervention strategies. Tune in to hear Dr. Charles Turck and Dr. Matthew Matasar discuss the importance of these models in identifying individual factors, which can maximize the benefits of CAR T-cell therapy and reduce toxicities. Dr. Matasar is the Chief of the Division of Blood Disorders at Rutgers Cancer Institute and a Professor of Medicine at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

The side effects associated with CAR T-cell therapy are very different than those seen with other cancer therapies and include cytokine-release syndrome (CRS) and neurotoxicity. It’s important to know how to recognize the signs of these adverse events and treat patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma early to avoid drastic quality-of-life impacts. To help improve patient safety and decrease hospital utilization, Dr. Charles Turck speaks with Drs. Caron Jacobson and Sairah Ahmed about the proper identification and management of these side effects in patients receiving CAR T-cell therapy. Dr. Jacobson is the Medical Director of the Immune Effector Cell Therapy Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, and Dr. Ahmed is an Associate Professor in the Department of Lymphoma and Myeloma Division of Cancer Medicine at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Sacituzumab govitecan is a TROP-2 antibody drug conjugate approved for patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (mTNBC) based on findings from the ASCENT study. But how is this treatment approach performing in the real world? Joining Dr. Charles Turck to share a study’s findings on the real-world efficacy and safety of sacituzumab govitecan is Dr. Paolo Tarantino, medical oncologist and advanced research fellow in the Breast Oncology Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School.

While CAR T-cell therapy is an effective option for patients with certain blood cancers like lymphoma and myeloma, it’s associated with two common adverse events: cytokine release syndrome and neurotoxicity. Given those risks, safety protocols have evolved over time to include strategies like aggressive hydration, prophylactic use of corticosteroids, early intervention with tocilizumab, and multidisciplinary care. Joining Dr. Charles Turck to share her insights into how we can lower the risks of CAR T-cell therapy is Dr. Tara Graff, a medical oncologist who leads a community-based clinical trial program at Mission Cancer and Blood in Des Moines, Iowa.

In non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), a small percentage of patients will have activating HER2 mutations. For these patients, the standard second-line therapy is docetaxel, but this can have poor response rates. That’s why the DESTINY-Lung03 trial examined the safety and efficacy of trastuzumab deruxtecan in patients with pretreated HER2-overexpressing non-squamous NSCLC. Here with Dr. Jacob Sands to share the findings from part 1 of this trial is thoracic medical oncologist Dr. Julia Rotow.

The recent approval of antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) has the potential to address unmet needs associated with second-line treatment options for non-small cell lung cancer, like limited benefits and substantial toxicity. But given the complex structure of ADCs, it’s important to identify biomarkers that can predict a patient’s response to therapy. That’s why the phase 1b TROPION-LUNG02 trial examined the effectiveness of Dato-DXd and HER3-DXd in the presence of predictive biomarkers. Joining Dr. Charles Turck to discuss the trial’s findings and implications is Dr. Laura Alder, Assistant Professor of Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina.

Docetaxel alone or in combination with ramucirumab is the current standard of care for the second-line treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but there are several limitations of docetaxel-containing regimens. That’s why there’s interest in identifying new therapies like datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd), which was found to improve overall survival based on an interim analysis. But what are the latest findings? Here to share the final overall survival data on Dato-DXd from the TROPION-Lung01 trial are Drs. Jacob Sands and Aaron Lisberg, who worked together on this research that was presented at the 2024 World Conference on Lung Cancer.

Unfortunately, brain metastases are very common in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). That’s why the phase 3 TROPION-Lung01 trial examined the efficacy and safety of datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd) for advanced non-squamous NSCLC with brain metastases. Joining Dr. Jacob Sands to share the results presented at the 2024 ESMO Congress is thoracic medical oncologist Dr. Aaron Lisberg.

Valemetostat is a novel therapy that’s demonstrated clinical efficacy and safety across multiple hematologic malignancies, but what role might it have in treating patients with advanced, unresectable, or metastatic non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)? To find out, an upcoming trial is examining the efficacy and safety of combining valemetostat and datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd). Here with Dr. Jacob Sands to talk about the study’s design and next steps is Dr. Alex Spira, Director of the Thoracic and Phase I Program at Virginia Cancer Specialists Research Institute and a Clinical Assistant Professor at Johns Hopkins.