Randomized Phase II Trial of Ficlatuzumab With or Without Cetuximab in Pan-Refractory, Recurrent/Metastatic Head and Neck Cancer.

Purpose: Primary or acquired resistance to cetuximab, an antiepidermal growth factor receptor monoclonal antibody (mAb), minimizes its utility in recurrent/metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Aberrant hepatocyte growth factor/cMet pathway activation is an established resistance mechanism. Dual pathway targeting may overcome resistance.

Outcomes of patients with limited-stage plasmablastic lymphoma: A multi-institutional retrospective study.

Plasmablastic lymphoma (PBL) is a rare entity, commonly associated with immunosuppressed states such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection or solid organ transplant. The clinical course is characterized by high relapse rates and a poor prognosis, leading some clinicians to recommend aggressive frontline therapy. However, a specific review of limited stage (LS) PBL patients is not available to evaluate outcomes and justify treatment recommendations.

Pembrolizumab as monotherapy in locally advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.

Introduction: Outcomes for patients with advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) are poor, however recent approvals in programmed death-1 (PD-1) checkpoint inhibition have shown promise. Prior systemic treatments in this patient population included chemotherapy and anti-EGFR directed therapies, with limited long-term benefit. Studies investigating cemiplimab and pembrolizumab have recently revealed significant responses with many cases of sustained benefit in both locally advanced and recurrent and/or metastatic disease.

Prognostic significance of human papillomavirus status and treatment modality in hypopharyngeal cancer.

Background: Management of hypopharynx cancer is often extrapolated from larynx cancer. This report analyses treatment patterns and survival limited to hypopharynx cancer using the National Cancer Database (NCDB).

Methods: There are 9314 patients diagnosed with hypopharynx cancer between 2004 and 2016.

Pembrolizumab-induced Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis: an immunotherapeutic challenge.

Background: As the number of indicated malignancies for which immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy such as pembrolizumab grows the descriptions of associated immune-related adverse events (irAEs) increases as well. On rare occasions immunotherapy can lead to development of Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) which is a potentially lethal inflammatory disorder characterized by histiocyte activation and cytokine storm. At this time no cases of HLH developing in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients receiving pembrolizumab have been reported.

Outcomes of patients with limited-stage aggressive large B-cell lymphoma with high-risk cytogenetics.

There is a paucity of data regarding outcomes and response to standard therapy in patients with limited-stage (LS) agressive B-cell lymphoma (LS-ABCL) who harbor MYC rearrangement (MYC-R) with or without BCL2 and/or BCL6 rearrangements. We conducted a multicenter retrospective study of MYC-R LS-ABCL patients who received either rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone (R-CHOP), or more intensive immunochemotherapy (IIC) plus or minus consolidative involved-field radiation therapy (IFRT). One hundred four patients from 15 academic centers were included.

Clinical Trials Investigating Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer.

Introduction: Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) is an aggressive malignancy with poor overall survival that accounts for up to 85% of lung cancer diagnoses. The use of immunotherapy in the form of checkpoint inhibition, to enhance the immune system's ability to attack malignant cells, has been a promising addition to treatment options in advanced NSCLC.

Results: Such therapeutic agents aimed at the Programmed Death 1 (PD-1) receptor or Programmed Death Ligand 1 (PD-L1) have revealed promising results against many types of cancer including NSCLC.

New Oral Anticoagulants and Their Reversal.

The advent of new oral anticoagulants (NOAC) has increased the armamentarium against thromboembolic diseases but has given rise to a conundrum on their reversal. NOAC's have comparable efficacy to traditional vitamin K antagonists with similar rates of major bleeding. However there is no standardized method for reversal of these agents and no specific antidote.

Small-molecule inhibitors of Bcl-2 family proteins as therapeutic agents in cancer.

This review focuses on the recent patents and use of small-molecule inhibitors (SMIs) of Bcl-2 family proteins as therapeutic agents against cancer. Bcl-2 members are crucial regulators of apoptotic cell death. Apoptosis is an evolutionarily conserved process of programmed cell death that plays an essential role in organism development and tissue homeostasis.