Ahead of the 2024 ASCO Genitourinary Cancers Symposium, taking place January 25 to 27 in San Francisco, California, and online, members of the Cancer.Net Editorial Board review research in genitourinary (GU) cancers from the last year. Genitourinary cancers affect the urinary tract and the male reproductive system.
In this podcast episode, Dr. Petros Grivas, the 2024 Cancer.Net Associate Editor for Genitourinary Cancer, leads a discussion of the latest discoveries in GU cancers, many of which were presented at the 2023 European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress. Dr. Grivas and 4 fellow members of the Cancer.Net Genitourinary Cancers Panel summarize recent clinical trials in prostate cancer, bladder cancer, kidney cancer, and testicular cancer and share what the results could mean for people with these cancers.
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Progress in treating advanced prostate cancer
Dr. Neeraj Agarwal, the 2024 Cancer.Net Specialty Editor for Prostate Cancer, opens the discussion with recent updates in treating prostate cancer. He covers:
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Guidelines for genetic testing in people whose prostate cancer is advanced or has spread to other parts of the body, as well as for their family members. Dr. Agarwal touches on both germline testing, which tests the DNA we are born with to determine hereditary cancer risk, and somatic genomic testing, which looks for changes in the genes of cancer cells to inform cancer treatment. [04:17]
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Indications for a class of medication called PARP inhibitors, either alone or as part of combination therapy to treat prostate cancer. Approved uses for PARP inhibitors differ in the United States and the European Union. [06:53]
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The phase 3 PSMAfore clinical trial, which studied whether using the targeted therapy lutetium-177 (Pluvicto) before chemotherapy could delay the progression of advanced prostate cancer, compared with switching to another novel hormonal therapy. [10:38]
Emerging first-line treatments for bladder cancer
Dr. Shilpa Gupta, the 2024 Cancer.Net Specialty Editor for Bladder Cancer, then covers new advancements in treating urothelial carcinoma, which accounts for about 90% of all bladder cancers. Her discussion includes:
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New data from the phase 3 EV-302 clinical trial, which is studying whether combining the immunotherapy pembrolizumab (Keytruda) with a new treatment called enfortumab vedotin (Padcev) could help people with previously untreated, advanced urothelial carcinoma live longer, compared with platinum-based chemotherapy. [14:41]
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Another phase 3 clinical trial, CheckMate 901, which tested whether adding the immunotherapy nivolumab (Opdivo) to the standard of care could help people live longer with metastatic urothelial carcinoma. [17:17]
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The value of genetic testing in choosing bladder cancer treatment. Dr. Gupta briefly describes the research evidence supporting the effectiveness of erdafitinib (Balversa), the first targeted therapy to be approved for people with urothelial carcinoma with a specific FGFR mutation who have previously received chemotherapy and immunotherapy. [19:09]
New research in treating kidney cancer
Dr. Tian Zhang, the 2024 Cancer.Net Specialty Editor for Kidney Cancer, then covers new research on kidney cancer. She speaks about:
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The phase 3 LITESPARK-005 clinical trial, which evaluated the effectiveness of the targeted therapy belzutifan (Welireg) in delaying cancer growth in people with previously treated clear cell kidney cancer. [24:24]
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The phase 3 RENOTORCH clinical trial, which studied whether the monoclonal antibody toripalimab (Loqtorzi) combined with axitinib (Inlyta) could delay cancer growth for people with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) who did not receive surgery. This is the first such study of people in China and could be crucial for helping this underserved population gain access to new first-line treatment options. [29:10]
Advances in treating testicular cancer
Dr. Timothy Gilligan, 2024 Cancer.Net Specialty Editor for Testicular Cancer, concludes the podcast with the latest in treating testicular cancer. He shares:
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A biomarker called microRNA 371, which can help predict the likelihood that stage 1 testicular cancer will return after an orchiectomy (surgery to remove the testicles). More study is needed, but men who test positive for this characteristic could potentially benefit from immediate chemotherapy rather than a monitoring approach. [33:10]
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The benefits and risks of using surgery to treat testicular cancer rather than chemotherapy to reduce the risk of long-term side effects. [37:00]
Disclosure information for this podcast’s speakers can be found in their individual biographies linked to above.
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