medwireNews : ASCO has released updated guidelines for the management of immune-related adverse events (irAEs) in people with cancer receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs).

Around 5% of non-small-cell lung cancer patients using osimertinib monotherapy may experience severe cardiac adverse events, suggests a study of Japanese patients.

The presence of some autoimmune antibodies prior to treatment with programmed cell death protein 1 inhibitors is associated with both clinical benefit and immune-related adverse events in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer, researchers report.

Hematologic immune-related adverse events are rare but potentially life-threatening complications of anti-PD-1 or anti-PD-L1 immunotherapy, according to a large observational study.

Two groups of expert nurses from the UK and US present a guide on how to recognize and manage the often serious adverse events arising from the immunotherapeutic agents that are increasingly being used in cancer clinics.

The adverse events (AEs) related to ALK inhibitors are fairly well known; notably, about 20% of patients receiving lorlatinib experienced cognitive effects and behavioral alterations in pivotal trials.

Women undergoing cancer treatment have a significantly higher risk for severe treatment-related adverse events than men, particularly if they are receiving immunotherapy, shows an analysis of data from more than 200 clinical trials.

There's a new home for news and congress coverage! Catch up on all the top stories and latest evidence in oncology research with our ESMO congress hub page.  Learn more »

A meta-analysis has shown that cutaneous immune-related adverse events are prognostic for improved survival among people with cancer receiving immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy.

The most common adverse event (AE) in the enzalutamide combination and leuprolide alone groups was hot flashes, occurring in 68.8% and 57.3% of participants, respectively, followed by fatigue in 42.8% and 32.8%.

Grade 1 events occurred in a respective 10.2% and 5.0% of patients, grade 2 events in 30.6% versus 16.0%, grade 3 events in 29.3% versus 13.0%, and grade 4 events in 10.9% versus 0.0%.

Findings from the TARGET-TP trial support a risk-directed approach to thromboprophylaxis in ambulatory patients with gastrointestinal or lung cancer receiving systemic anticancer treatment.

The investigators add that the addition of SBRT did not lead to “any meaningful” increase in the incidence of adverse events (AEs) and they therefore believe that “[p]hase III trials are warranted to test survival end points in larger cohorts.”

Desai et al highlight that “dose reductions and discontinuation of treatment resulting from divarasib-related adverse events were infrequent,” at rates of 14% and 3%, respectively.

In terms of the safety, adverse events (AEs) of grade 3–5 occurred in 59% of the TTFields therapy group and 56% of the control group, with serious AEs occurring in a respective 53% and 38%.

In terms of safety, 10 (15%) patients in the SABR plus nivolumab group experienced adverse events of grade 3 compared with none in the SABR alone group.

Any-cause adverse events led to discontinuation of pembrolizumab in 15% of patients, lenvatinib in 14%, and both drugs in 7%.

With regard to safety, the team highlights that “no new or unexpected adverse events were identified with atezolizumab in this poor-prognosis population.”