Lung Cancer

The PD-1 agent nivolumab (Opdivo) was FDA approved October 9 for patients with non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose cancer progressed during or following platinum-based chemotherapy.

The antiemetic NK-1 antagonist aprepitant (Emend) was shown to significantly reduce cough in patients with lung cancer, according to findings of the first antitussive trial in patients with lung cancer using objective quantification of cough.

The PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab (Keytruda) was approved by the FDA today for patients with pretreated advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) across all histologies whose tumors express PD-L1.

A preliminary analysis of an ongoing study shows that most patients diagnosed with lung cancer before age 40 had an increased chance for a targeted genomic alteration, knowledge of which could lead to more effective, targeted treatment.

Fred R. Hirsch, MD, PhD, professor of medicine, professor in pathology, University of Colorado, CEO, IASLC, discusses unmet needs in the treatment of lung cancer.

Though immunotherapies can provide significant survival benefit for patients with lung cancer, using the agents in practice is still unchartered territory for many clinicians.

Suresh S. Ramalingam, MD, discusses important considerations for patients, caregivers, nurses and physicians when treatment with an immunotherapy begins.

Certain subgroups of patients with advanced non¬–small cell lung cancer have a new frontline treatment option following the FDA's approval July 13 of gefitinib (Iressa).

Jyoti Patel, MD, of Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, talks about the subject of delaying whole brain radiation for brain metastases.

In a phase III trial the immunotherapy nivolumab (Opdivo) improved overall survival and was less toxic than docetaxel in both nonsquamous and squamous non–small cell lung cancer.

Rebecca Lehto, PhD, RN, OCN, discusses patient use of complementary modalities during treatment for advanced lung cancer.

Statin use before or after a diagnosis of lung cancer may be linked to a reduced risk of death from the disease, according to findings of a recent study which found that patients who used statins in the year before a lung cancer diagnosis had a statistically significant 12% reduction in lung cancer-specific deaths.

E-cigarettes, championed by some as a smoking-cessation tool, may actually decrease the likelihood of quitting smoking, according to a recent population-based study of 1000 smokers published in The American Journal of Public Health.

A nurse navigator–led program aimed at improving awareness, access, and uptake of low-dose CT screening for individuals at high risk of lung cancer resulted in improved screening rates with the potential to improve patient outcomes by catching the disease at its earliest stages.

Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) had an overall response rate (ORR) of 45.2% among a cohort of patients with high PD-L1-expressing non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the phase I KEYNOTE-001 trial.

A new study has shown that men with a high fitness level in midlife are not only at a lower risk of developing lung and colorectal cancer, they're also at a lower risk of dying from cancer if they're diagnosed later in life.

Tracey L. Evans, MD, associate professor, clinical medicine, Abramson Cancer Center, University of Pennsylvania Health System, gives advice to oncology nurses on how to manage side effects in patients with lung cancer.

Common myths about lung cancer.

The FDA has approved nivolumab (Opdivo) for the treatment of patients with advanced squamous non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have progressed on or after platinum-based chemotherapy.

Results of a new study may help boost lung cancer clinical trial enrollment.

Tracey L. Evans, MD associate professor, clinical medicine, Abramson Cancer Center, University of Pennsylvania Health System, discusses the benefit of advanced lung cancer patients receiving palliative care early in their diagnosis.

Many patients choose not to call their providers, stating their fear of being labeled "drug seeking" or a "wimp," believing that since they were given no refills for their pain medication, the expectation must be that they should not need more when they run out.

The Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation (ALCF), in collaboration with Open Health Network (OHN), announced the launch of Lung Cancer Foundation, the first of its kind mobile application designed to empower lung cancer patients and their families.

Despite the proven benefits of SBRT for patients with inoperable stage I NSCLC, whether such patients are offered it depends on their race, insurance status, and the type of facility where they are being treated.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that the agency plans to cover lung cancer screening using low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) for certain former and current smokers, a decision that could affect an estimated 4 million people.

At the 2014 Multidisciplinary Symposium in Thoracic Oncology in Chicago, Jyoti D. Patel, MD, associate professor in Medicine-Hematology/Oncology at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University, led a breakout session on how to manage the toxicities associated with the molecular therapies used to treat patients with lung cancers.

As members of Tom Brokaw's "greatest generation," Andy's grandfathers took up smoking at an early age, but subsequently they heeded the Surgeon General's warning and quit. Cessation didn't spare either man a later diagnosis-in one case 25 years later-of terminal lung cancer.

Patients with certain lung and colorectal cancers whose physicians participated in weekly, treatment-focused tumor board meetings had improved survival and were 60% more likely to enroll in a clinical trial

Patients in one phase III trial gained 2.4 pounds of lean body mass during 12 weeks of treatment with anamorelin, and those in the second trial had an average increase in lean body mass of 1.65 pounds.

Lung cancer at any age is a catastrophic illness but it is particularly devastating when it affects young adults in the prime of their life.