Dr. Jack West reviews emerging new information and controversial topics in health care in general, cancer treatment in particular.
New Target & Treatment in Advanced NSCLC: Dabrafenib/Trametinib for BRAF V600E Mutation-Positive NSCLC (BMIC-018)
Dr. Jack West reviews data on the FDA-approved combination of dabrafenib/trametinib for patients with BRAF V600E mutation-positive advanced NSCLC, as published by Planchard & colleagues in Lancet Oncology. (6:24)
Should Osimertinib Become First-Line Treatment of Choice for EGFR Mutation-Positive Advanced NSCLC, or Should it Be Saved for Later? (BMIC-017)
Dr. Jack West reviews the pros and cons of using osimertinib first line vs. “saving” it as a second line therapy, trying to determine the optimal sequence for EGFR-directed therapy in advanced EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC. (11:46)
Dacomitinib: Dark Horse EGFR TKI Charges into a Crowded First Line Setting for EGFR Mutation-Positive Advanced NSCLC (BMIC-016)
Dr. Jack West reviews the results of the ARCHER-1050 trial that showed superior efficacy with dacomitinib vs. gefitinib in EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC. Is it too little, too late for dacomitinib, or can it find a place in a crowded first line setting? (7:53)
Are the PD-1/PD-L1 Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors Completely Interchangeable in Lung Cancer Management? (BMIC-015)
Dr. Jack West addresses the question of whether the data with various PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitors in lung cancer management can be viewed as a class effect and whether these immune checkpoint inhibitors should be considered interchangeable. (5:52)
Will Immunotherapy Shift the Balance of Treatment for Borderline Resectable Stage III NSCLC Away from Surgery? (BMIC-014)
Dr. Jack West reviews the implications of the PACIFIC trial that establishes a role for durvalumab immunotherapy in stage III NSCLC, and which will likely lead to some patients shifting away from surgery in favor of chemoradiation followed by durvalumab. (7:01)
Research Question or Standard of Care: The Barriers to Broad Adoption in Cancer Care (BMIC-013)
Dr. Jack West reviews the key differences between findings that are worthy of clinical research and those that should be broadly adopted as a standard of care in cancer treatment, and differences in practice in academic vs. community practice. (10:03)
Hyper-Progressive Disease on Immunotherapy in Advanced NSCLC (BMIC-012)
Dr. Jack West reviews evidence that a subset of patients with advanced NSCLC demonstrate “hyper-progressing disease” (HPD), worsening cancer at a faster rate, on immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy, more commonly than seen in patients on chemotherapy. (7:22)
Tumor Mutational Burden in Small Cell Lung Cancer: A Valuable Biomarker for Immunotherapy? (BMIC-011)
Dr. Jack West reviews new findings highlighting the utility of using the biomarker tumor mutation burden (TMB) to predict which patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) will benefit from nivolumab or the combination of nivolumab with ipilimumab. (9:08)
How Should We Monitor Patients After Potentially Curative Surgery for Lung Cancer? Some Actual Evidence, at Long Last (BMIC-010)
Dr. Jack West reviews new evidence providing long-needed guidance on what patient surveillance after potentially curative surgery for early lung cancer makes a difference. The IFCT-0302 trial tests a minimal vs. maximal approach to answer that question. (7:20)