GI CANCERS

Nivolumab (Opdivo) has been granted a priority review designation by the FDA for use as a treatment for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma following prior sorafenib (Nexavar).

Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) has been granted a priority review by the FDA for the treatment of patients who have undergone at least 2 courses of chemotherapy for recurrent or advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma.

Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) has been granted an accelerated approval by the FDA for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients with unresectable or metastatic, microsatellite instability-high or mismatch repair deficient solid tumors.

John L. Marshall, MD, chief, Division of Hematology and Oncology, Medstar Georgetown University Hospital, discusses a study exploring the molecular variances between rectal and left-sided colon cancers.

Results from a recent study showed patients with stage III colorectal cancer experienced a 42% lower chance of death and a trend toward reduced cancer recurrence if they maintained a healthy body weight, engaged in regular physical activity, and adopted other healthy lifestyle behaviors.

Chemotherapy for Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer

Eating tree nuts, like almonds, walnuts, and pecans can improve overall survival and reduce the risk of recurrence in patients with colon cancer, findings of a new prospective study suggest.

Overall survival was improved by 15 months for patients with macroscopically resected biliary tract cancer who were treated with adjuvant capecitabine compared with observation alone.

John Marshall, MD, of Georgetown Lombardi and MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, has been appointed chief medical officer of Caris Life Sciences.

Current guidelines recommend waiting 6 months before resecting a large hepatocellular adenoma to prevent a transformation to a malignant tumor; however, a recent study suggests that waiting longer could benefit some patients.

Tim F. Greten, MD, discusses the evolving role of immunotherapy in HCC.

Fahima Dossa, MD, and Nancy Baxter, MD, PhD, discuss the potential of using a watch-and-wait approach in the management of patients with rectal cancer.

Jonathan Strosberg, MD, discusses recent developments and emerging agents in the field of NETs.

Researchers at Vanderbilt University and the University of Leeds in England have successfully performed autonomous retroflexion of a robotic capsule during colonoscopy in a subject animal.

Manish A. Shah, MD, director of gastrointestinal oncology, Weill Cornell Medicine and New York-Presbyterian Hospital, discusses findings of how early-onset colorectal cancer is distinct from traditional colorectal cancer.

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center has named Luis A. Diaz, MD, as the head of the Division of Solid Tumor Oncology. He will be taking over the role as the former head of the department, David R. Spriggs, MD, steps down following nearly 13 years of service.

Nivolumab (Opdivo) demonstrated promise as a second-line therapy for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), according to results of the CheckMate-040 trial presented at the 2017 International Liver Congress.

Axel Grothey, MD, addresses the need for tailoring treatments for patients with mCRC in the first-line setting, the debate over tumor sidedness in mCRC, and what ongoing research in the field might reveal over the next year.

Rahmi Oklu, MD, PhD, sheds light on the various approaches physicians use to treat patients who have CRC with liver metastases.

Regorafenib has been approved by the FDA as a second-line treatment for patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma who have previously received sorafenib.

Bert O’Neil, MD, discusses the need for novel treatments for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer as well as why researchers need to develop a deeper understanding of tumor biology.

Amit Singal, MD, discusses the recent successes in the HCC treatment landscape and the challenges that still remain.