Circulating immune biomarkers correlating with response in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma on immunotherapy.

As multiple front-line immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI)-based combinations are approved for metastatic renal cell carcinoma, biomarkers predicting for ICI responses are needed past clinical prognostication scores and transcriptome gene expression profiling. Circulating markers represent opportunities to assess baseline and dynamic changes in immune cell frequency and cytokine levels while on treatment. We conducted an exploratory prospective correlative study of 33 patients with metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma undergoing treatment with ICIs and correlated changes in circulating immune cell subsets and cytokines with clinical responses to treatment.

Identifying Predictors of Spatiotemporal Variations in Residential Radon Concentrations across North Carolina Using Machine Learning Analytics.

Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas derived from the decay of uranium in the Earth's crust. Radon exposure is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers in the US. Radon infiltrates homes through soil and building foundations.

Disparities in Utilization of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy Among Older Patients With Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: A SEER-Medicare Analysis.

Purpose: In the United States, there are disparities in access to care for patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) on the basis of socioeconomic and racial/ethnic factors. This study investigates the association between race/ethnicity and the utilization of immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy among older patients with advanced NSCLC (aNSCLC).

Methods: This retrospective study used data from the SEER-Medicare-linked database.

Short-term Patient-Reported Outcomes Following Bilateral Risk-Reducing Mastectomy for Patients at a High Risk for Breast Cancer: A Systematic Review.

Background: Bilateral risk-reducing mastectomies (RRMs) have been proven to decrease the risk of breast cancer in patients at high risk owing to family history or having pathogenic genetic mutations. However, few resources with consolidated data have detailed the patient experience following surgery. This systematic review features patient-reported outcomes for patients with no breast cancer history in the year after their bilateral RRM.

Perspectives on Implementing a Communication Facilitator Intervention from a Critical Care Setting.

Context: Critically-ill patients and their families often experience communication challenges during their ICU stay and across transitions in care. An intervention using communication facilitators may help address these challenges.

Objectives: Using clinicians' perspectives, we identified facilitators and barriers to implementing a communication intervention.

Results of a patient-level pooled analysis of three studies of trastuzumab deruxtecan in HER2-positive breast cancer with active brain metastasis.

Background: Brain metastases (BMs) are common in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive advanced breast cancer, increasing morbidity and mortality. Systemic therapy for BMs can be effective, with the triple combination of trastuzumab, capecitabine, and tucatinib being a potential standard. More recently, intracranial activity of antibody-drug conjugates has been reported, but the size of individual studies has been small.

Complement factor H targeting antibody GT103 in refractory non-small cell lung cancer: a phase 1b dose escalation trial.

GT103 is a first-in-class, fully human, IgG3 monoclonal antibody targeting complement factor H that kills tumor cells and promotes anti-cancer immunity in preclinical models. We conducted a first-in-human phase 1b study dose escalation trial of GT103 in refractory non-small cell lung cancer to assess the safety of GT103 (NCT04314089). Dose escalation was performed using a "3 + 3" schema with primary objectives of determining safety, tolerability, PK profile and maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of GT103.

Design of an equilibrative nucleoside transporter subtype 1 inhibitor for pain relief.

The current opioid crisis urgently calls for developing non-addictive pain medications. Progress has been slow, highlighting the need to uncover targets with unique mechanisms of action. Extracellular adenosine alleviates pain by activating the adenosine A1 receptor (A1R).

Is increased mutation driving genetic diversity in dogs within the Chornobyl exclusion zone?

Environmental contamination can have lasting impacts on surrounding communities, though the long-term impacts can be difficult to ascertain. The disaster at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant in 1986 and subsequent remediation efforts resulted in contamination of the local environment with radioactive material, heavy metals, and additional environmental toxicants. Many of these are mutagenic in nature, and the full effect of these exposures on local flora and fauna has yet to be understood.

Combination checkpoint blockade and laser interstitial thermal therapy in radiographically progressive non-small cell lung cancer brain metastases.

Background: Laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) is a minimally invasive surgical treatment being employed frequently for radiographically progressive brain metastases. Considerable interest exists in combining LITT-mediated in situ vaccination to license immune checkpoint blockade (ICB). No studies have examined the clinical feasibility of this combination in brain metastases.

Web-based pain coping skills training (PCST) for managing aromatase inhibitor-associated arthralgia in breast cancer survivors: Randomized controlled trial protocol.

Background: Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) are a cornerstone of adjuvant systemic therapy for postmenopausal patients with hormone-receptor positive (HR+) breast cancer. Although AIs decrease cancer recurrence rates and improve survival rates, approximately 50 % of patients experience arthralgia-persistent pain related to worse patient outcomes and poor AI adherence. Current medical interventions for AI-associated arthralgia have limited efficacy and side effects that restrict their use among older patients.

Patient-Reported Distress in Individuals With Head and Neck Cancer.

Importance: Distress is common among patients with cancer, and evidence of disparities associated with distress has been mixed. Head and neck cancer (HNC) is one of the most emotionally distressing cancers and is also a highly disparate disease. However, it is unknown whether there are disparities associated with patient-reported distress in HNC.

Development and Usability of an Advance Care Planning Website (My Voice) to Empower Patients With Heart Failure and Their Caregivers: Mixed Methods Study.

Background: Web-based advance care planning (ACP) interventions offer a promising solution to improve ACP engagement, but none are specifically designed to meet the needs of patients with heart failure and their caregivers.

Objective: We aimed to develop and assess the usability and acceptability of a web-based ACP decision aid called "My Voice," which is tailored for patients with heart failure and their caregivers.

Methods: This study's team and advisory board codeveloped the content for both patient and caregiver modules in "My Voice.

Proteogenomic characterization of highly enriched viable leukemic blasts in acute myeloid leukemia: A SWOG report.

Introduction: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains one of the deadliest hematopoietic malignancies. A better understanding of the molecular biology governing AML may lead to improved risk stratification and facilitate the development of novel therapies. Proteins are responsible for much of the biology of cells.

Genetic/Familial High-Risk Assessment: Colorectal, Endometrial, and Gastric, Version 3.2024, NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines In Oncology.

Multigene panel testing has allowed for the detection of a growing number of inherited pathogenic/likely pathogenic variants in people at high risk of cancer, including endometrial cancer (EC). Hereditary syndromes associated with EC include Lynch syndrome, PTEN hamartoma tumor syndrome, and Peutz-Jeghers syndrome. This manuscript provides the latest recommendations from the NCCN Guidelines for Genetic/Familial High-Risk Assessment: Colorectal, Endometrial, and Gastric on the screening and management of EC in patients at high risk for these syndromes, as well as the advantages and limitations of multigene panel testing.

NCCN Guidelines® Insights: Survivorship, Version 2.2024.

The NCCN Guidelines for Survivorship include recommendations for screening, evaluation, and treatment of psychosocial and physical problems resulting from adult-onset cancer and its treatment. They also include recommendations to promote healthy behaviors and immunizations in survivors and provide a framework for care coordination. These NCCN Guidelines Insights summarize the panel's current recommendations regarding sexual health and fertility.

Multimorbidity and Its Impact in Older United States Veterans Newly Treated for Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Rationale: Older adults make up the majority of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and often carry multiple other comorbidities (multimorbidity) when initiating treatment. The nature and impact of multimorbidity remain largely unknown, given the limitations of standard count-based comorbidity indices in aging patients and their exclusion from clinical trials.

Objective: Our objective is to identify and define multimorbidity patterns in older U.