With the rapid acceleration of the spread of the COVID-19 virus in the United States in March 2020, telemedicine visits became more common for cancer care. However, in an evaluation of telemedicine inequities in 21 common cancers, there were distinctly lower levels of telemedicine use by Black patients and those who were uninsured, lived in suburban or rural areas, and resided in a neighborhood with low socioeconomic status. The research will be presented at the 2022 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting.

States that increased investments in social services spending by 10% compared to those that did not increase spending – including Medicaid and other social services for socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals – showed improved five-year overall survival for non-Hispanic Black adults with cancer, according to new research. There was also a decrease in racial disparities in survival between non-Hispanic Black and white patients for many different types of cancers. The study will be presented at the 2022 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting.

Oncology professionals from around the world will convene in Chicago to discuss the latest clinical cancer research impacting patient care at the 2022 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting. Advances in therapies for rare and pediatric cancers, findings on disparities among patients with cancer, and new treatment options for patients with advanced breast, colorectal, and pancreatic cancers are among the topics that will be highlighted in the meeting’s official Press Program.  

In patients with previously untreated metastatic or unresectable melanoma, the combination of nivolumab and relatlimab continued to demonstrate a progression-free survival benefit compared to nivolumab alone. The combination also demonstrated for the first time a higher overall response rate according to follow-up data from the RELATIVITY-047 trial. These data will be presented during an ASCO Plenary Series session taking place March 15, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. ET.

Pancreatic cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths; however, despite decades of research, limited progress has been made to improve survival. There are currently no FDA-approved treatment options for patients with pancreatic cancer that has progressed on first- and second-line chemotherapy. Sotorasib is active and well tolerated in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer with a KRAS^G12C mutation, according to research being presented in the February 15, 2022, ASCO Plenary Series session.

Findings on a scoring algorithm for predicting the risk of developing metastatic or fatal prostate cancer will be highlighted in the 2022 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Genitourinary Cancers Symposium’s official Press Program. Studies featured in the Press Program are among the nearly 600 abstracts that will be presented at the Symposium.