Cedars-Sinai study shows family history shapes breast cancer risk for women who undergo BRCA testing—whether or not they test positive for mutations.

About the Study: This cross-sectional study examines trends in cancer medicine approvals by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for adult solid tumors between 2006 and 2025, including both original and supplemental indication approvals.

About the Study: Liquid biopsy targeting viral ctDNA is a promising biomarker in the diagnostic and surveillance settings across head and neck cancer types. Ongoing clinical trials will help elucidate how ctDNA can be implemented to monitor treatment response, assess MRD, and frame treatment decisions to adapt treatment via a precision oncology approach.

About the Study: Is combined inhibition of programmed cell death 1 protein (PD-1) and lymphocyte activation gene 3 (LAG-3) added to standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) safe and effective in (formerly HER2)-negative early-stage breast cancer at high risk of recurrence? This phase 2 randomized clinical trial including 78 participants with -negative breast cancer found that combining cemiplimab and fianlimab with paclitaxel-based NAC improved rates of pathologic complete response in all participants, including those with triple-negative and hormone receptor−positive subtypes. Patients positive for the ImPrint immune signature were highly sensitive to the combination, providing a potential biomarker of treatment response. These results indicate that combined PD-1 and LAG-3 inhibition warrants further investigation in -negative breast cancer.

A combination of two immunotherapy drugs showed encouraging activity when added to standard chemotherapy given prior to surgery for patients with high-risk, early-stage HER2-negative breast cancer, according to phase 2 clinical trial results from the ongoing I-SPY2 clinical trial platform. This exact treatment regimen will not advance for further study in other patients, as researchers found excess toxicities when combining the two immunotherapies. However, the outcome demonstrates the promise of improved outcomes with novel immunotherapy combinations.

Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) individuals experience significant healthcare disparities across the oncology spectrum of care. Systemic barriers, past harmful healthcare experiences and sociopolitical climate, and other impediments to accessing health care among others, combine to influence these disparities. TGD individuals undergoing gender-affirming mastectomy (‘top surgery’) face unique challenges related to breast cancer risk assessment and screening. Currently, a patient can undergo top surgery without understanding how that procedure will affect their lifelong breast and chest cancer risk – and critically, without knowing if they carry predispositions that could fundamentally reshape their surgical decisions.

 

A new study by researchers at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine has identified critical barriers that influence healthcare professionals' integration of cancer risk evaluation, within the context of gender-affirming mastectomy and pre-surgical planning. They include clear institutional accountability, harmonized evidence-based guidelines, standardized care pathways and embedded genetic counseling in multidisciplinary gender-affirming care teams. These findings mirror what patients reported in a previous companion study – that they lack clear information before and after surgery.