Combo boosts survival in advanced prostate cancer

28/08/2025 0 Comments read Cancer, Health & Science

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 28.08.2025 (Oncology Republic): Overall survival benefit is compelling enough to consider talazoparib and enzalutamide combination as standard first line therapy in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer and mutations in the homologous recombination repair genes, particularly those with BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations, researchers say.

Their findings from the final analysis from the TALAPRO-2 trial have been recently published in The Lancet. Talazoparib plus enzalutamide combination significantly improved OS compared with enzalutamide plus placebo (HR 0·62 [95% CI 0·48–0·81, p=0.0005) in patients with HRR-deficient mCRPC. The median OS was 45.1 months with the combination versus 31.1 months with enzalutamide alone.

Professor Arun Azad, co-author of the study, and medical oncologist at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre said the findings were important. “The data from this trial shows that there’s a statistically significant and also clinically meaningful improvement in survival and quality of life for patients using this combination, as opposed to enzalutamide alone, which is the standard of care,” he said.

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The promise of real-world data: what are we missing?

14/08/2025 0 Comments read Health & Science

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 14.08.2025 (Oncology Republic): The real-world data space is increasingly recognising the value of qualitative data that captures patient-specific values and experiences. It can help researchers and policy makers develop better ways for disease prevention and cure, and enhance quality of care, but to harness its value, there is a need for stronger infrastructure, governance, and interoperability frameworks.

A recent New England Journal of Medicine Perspective by former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb and colleagues highlights the growing significance of real-world data (RWD) in clinical research, regulatory decisions, and health system improvement. Despite its promise, major barriers, including fragmented data systems, variable quality, and limited linkage between real-world evidence (RWE) and clinical decision-making, restrict its full potential, they say.

Sallie Pearson, Professor of Health Systems and director of NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Medicines Intelligence at UNSW said RWD had the potential to be a reliable complement to randomised controlled trials.

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Rethinking radiotherapy after nodal clearance in breast cancer

14/08/2025 0 Comments read Cancer, Health & Science

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 14.08.2025 (Oncology Republic): Is regional nodal irradiation beneficial for women with initially node-positive breast cancer who achieve pathologic nodal clearance (ypN0) after neoadjuvant chemotherapy? The jury is still out.

A landmark phase III study (NRG-NSABP B-51/RTOG 1304) published in the New England Journal of Medicine addressed whether adding RNI benefits women with initially node-positive breast cancer who achieve ypN0 after neoadjuvant chemotherapy.

After a median follow-up of 59.5 months, the addition of RNI did not significantly improve invasive recurrence-free survival or any secondary outcomes (HR 0.88; 95% CI 0.60–1.28; P = 0.51), and both arms had excellent IBCRFI (92.7% with RNI v/s 91.8% without RNI). Dr David Blakey, radiation oncologist at the ICON Cancer Centre in Mornington, said the results of the study had the potential to significantly alter radiotherapy recommendations after neoadjuvant systemic therapy for women achieving a complete response in the axillary nodes.

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