April 2nd 2025
"We must lobby to maintain our current funding levels and push for increased support to continue driving progress in cancer care," says Michael S. Cookson, MD, MMHC, FACS.
Perioperative outcomes support benefit of TAR-200 plus cetrelimab in MIBC
March 26th 2025"Provided that we will confirm the efficacy data long-term, there is an opportunity to spare, de-escalate a bit, the treatment in select patients, and to expose the patient with inferior risk of developing severe [adverse] effects," says Andrea Necchi, MD.
Cretostimogene grenadenorepvec continues to show favorable efficacy, safety in NMIBC
March 25th 2025"Now with the new translational data indicating that post-treatment close contact precautions are unnecessary, I am confident that cretostimogene will represent a breakthrough in bladder cancer treatment, if approved by the FDA," says Trinity J. Bivalacqua, MD, PhD.
Additional NIAGARA data reinforce benefit of perioperative durvalumab in MIBC
March 24th 2025“The addition of the durvalumab did not make treatment more morbid than chemotherapy alone, and it didn't change or increase the surgical complications you saw in the ward," says James W.F. Catto, MBChB, PhD, FRCS.
Gopa Iyer, MD, highlights SURF301 trial of TYRA-300 in mUC
March 5th 2025"The preliminary results of that study, which is a phase 1/2 dose escalation and dose expansion trial, were presented by Professor Ben Tran last year at the ENA meeting1 and showed a very favorable toxicity profile compared to erdafitinib," says Gopa Iyer, MD.
Laura Bukavina, MD, on microbiome-based biomarkers for treatment response
March 5th 2025“[We’re working on] being able to apply the same mechanism and testing and thought that we put into this into stool to give people a precision signature of how they're going to respond or experience toxicity from EV based on their stool microbiome,” says Laura Bukavina, MD, MPH.
Emerging Immunotherapies in NMIBC
February 19th 2025Panelists discuss how PD-L1 inhibitors such as durvalumab and sasanlimab represent a promising frontier in non–muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) treatment. These immunotherapies work by unleashing the body’s immune response against cancer cells, potentially offering new options for patients whose disease doesn’t respond to conventional therapies such as BCG. Their ongoing phase 3 trials could establish immunotherapy as a valuable addition to the NMIBC treatment landscape.
Other Emerging Intravesical Therapies in NMIBC
February 12th 2025Panelists discuss how both TAR-200 and UGN-102/103 represent innovative approaches to intravesical drug delivery for bladder conditions. TAR-200 uses a novel silicone-based system designed for controlled gemcitabine release, potentially offering extended drug exposure compared with conventional instillations. UGN-102 and UGN-103 employ a proprietary RTGel technology that transforms from liquid to gel form at body temperature, allowing for longer retention of mitomycin (UGN-102) and high-dose botulinum toxin (UGN-103), respectively, in the bladder.
BOND-003 Trial and Cretostimogene for Treatment of NMIBC
February 12th 2025Panelists discuss how cretostimogene grenadenorepvec is an intravesical oncolytic virus therapy targeting BCG-unresponsive bladder cancer through selective replication in tumor cells and immune stimulation via granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor expression.
Anktiva as a lymphocyte rescue molecule: Unlocking the power of NK cells and T cells
February 6th 2025"One way to think about how Anktiva works is it is the first molecule, based on the package insert, that increases and proliferates the NK cells, the T cells, and the CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, without up-regulating the suppressive T cells," says Patrick Soon-Shiong, MD.
Selecting Treatment for BCG-Unresponsive NMIBC
February 5th 2025Panelists discuss how for patients with BCG-unresponsive bladder cancer, treatment selection depends on key factors including tumor characteristics (carcinoma in situ vs papillary), patient fitness, and preferences. Standard options include radical cystectomy (the gold standard) or bladder-preserving approaches such as pembrolizumab, intravesical chemotherapy, or clinical trials. The decision requires careful individualization based on risk stratification, comorbidities, and shared decision-making.