On May 18, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved atezolizumab (Tecentriq®) for the first-line treatment of adult patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors have high PD-L1 expression (PD-L1 stained ≥ 50% of tumor cells [TC ≥ 50%] or PD-L1 stained tumor-infiltrating immune cells [IC] covering ≥ 10% of the tumor area [IC ≥ 10%]), with no EGFR or ALK genomic tumor aberrations.
On the same day, the FDA also approved the VENTANA PD-L1 (SP142) Assay (Ventana Medical Systems, Inc.) as a companion diagnostic device for selecting patients with NSCLC for treatment with atezolizumab.
Read the full FDA announcement.
Posted 5/19/2020

From Ghana to Orlando, experts across the multidisciplinary care team share how they are expanding access to clinical trials and supportive care services and improving quality of life for their patients as a result in this Oncology Issues. Read on for a preview of this issue’s articles and dive deeper to learn from colleagues across the country and the globe.

On day 1 of the NCCN 2026 Annual Conference, attendees heard from experts on the unique issues young adults with cancer face during and post-treatment, advances in treating gastrointestinal cancers, evolving therapies in skin cancers, and novel approaches to treating blood cancers.

ACCCBuzz interviewed leadership from the National Association of Veterans’ Research and Education Foundations to better understand the current clinical and operational barriers Veterans face in accessing clinical trials and the progress being made to address them.

In an effort to improve outcomes and deliver the highest quality of care to patients with pancreatic cancer, Duke Cancer Institute launched a multidisciplinary Pancreatic Cancer Center that prioritizes thorough surveillance of high-risk patients, stays at the forefront of clinical trials, and considers the role of comorbidities.
