(Alexandria, VA, Tuesday, February 2, 2021) – The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) is releasing its annual report on progress against cancer, Clinical Cancer Advances 2021, on Tuesday, February 2, 2021, in advance of World Cancer day on February 4, 2021.
This year the report highlights the importance of, barriers to, and strategies to improve equity in cancer research. Overall cancer mortality has decreased in the United States thanks to tremendous progress in cancer prevention, early detection, and treatment. Unfortunately, not all individuals with cancer have benefited equitably from this success, as Black patients, patients living in rural areas, populations with lower income and education levels, and others continue to experience lower survival and higher mortality rates for many cancers.
Also in the report, ASCO names molecular profiling driving gastrointestinal (GI) cancer advance as the “Advance of the Year.” GI cancers account for 26% of the global cancer incidence and 35% of all cancer-related deaths. Surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy have been the mainstay of treatment for gastrointestinal (GI) cancers but have limited effect and can take a heavy toll on quality of life. The ability to molecularly profile a GI tumor has expanded the treatment options for individual patients with GI cancers—extending survival—while minimizing adverse effects.
Other significant areas of progress featured in the report include combinations of different types of therapies that extend survival in cancer patients without increasing toxicity and targeted therapies and biomarker-driven treatment approaches that offer more personalized care for lung, breast, and prostate cancers, among others.
ASCO has issued its annual list of Research Priorities to Accelerate Progress Against Cancer. The Priorities are intended to identify areas on which future research efforts should be focused to help accelerate progress against cancer. The Priorities range from increasing the role of precision medicine to treat certain types of cancers, to improving access to clinical trials for all patients, to reducing the impact of obesity on incidence and outcomes. This year’s list includes a newly added priority on artificial intelligence.
Dr. Lori Pierce helps listeners understand how the nation’s investment in cancer research has led to progress in cancer prevention, early detection, and treatment as well as:
Strategies to improve equity in cancer research;
Priority areas of research that have the potential to transform cancer care for patients, including important questions about cancer prevention; and
Why federal funding is so important and how it helps make cancer research advances possible, and how the COVID-19 public health emergency threatens to reverse years of momentum.