W. Lybaert MD

De-escalation of therapy in head and neck cancer: Where are we standing now, anno 2022?

SUMMARY

The annual winter meeting of the ‘Vlaamse Werkgroep Hoofd-Hals Tumoren’ on 11 December 2021 handled the different possible de-escalation strategies in the treatment of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck region (SCCHN) in anno 2022. Which surgical techniques can be used nowadays to diminish long-term morbidities in SCCHN? To which extent can we lower radiotherapy doses and regions in the treatment planning of SCCHN? Are the systemic treatment options of SCCHN always radical for each patient or more personalised? Is a comprehensive geriatric assessment feasible and already used in our head and neck oncology practice? Last but not least, how can we optimally sustain our patients with nutrition before, during and after treatment of head and neck cancer?

(BELG J MED ONCOL 2022;16(4):198–208)

Highlights of the Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium 2022

SUMMARY

One year after the virtual ASCO GI 2021 meeting, this year’s conference was organised in San Francisco from 20 till 22 January 2022, as a hybrid event in the background of a rising Omicron gulf in Europe and the United States. It was an excellent meeting with the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors in oesophageal and gastric cancer brought in a more critical perspective. Immunotherapy is also pushing forward in the first-line treatment of biliary tract cancer, and combination immunotherapy in the first phase 3 first-line study in hepatocellular carcinoma. Immunotherapy as a neoadjuvant approach in MSI-high local gastric/GEJ tumours and locally advanced rectal cancer seems to start up as a possible new paradigm in the near future. A lot of running studies are looking for the exact place of circulating tumour DNA as a tool in the management of colorectal cancer. Trastuzumab-deruxtecan is flying over from breast cancer in the field of digestive oncology as a very active new kid on the block. In this report, the most important headlines will be discussed, with comments on the clinical relevance of the different studies.

(BELG J MED ONCOL 2022;16(3):142–53)

Highlights in head and neck cancer

ESMO Congress 2021 was held from the 16^th till the 21^st of September, once again in a virtual format. During this congress, more immunotherapy data were shown in the neoadjuvant setting of resectable head and neck cancer, in the concomitant radiotherapy setting and first-line recurrent/metastatic disease. In addition, a nomogram was created for patients undergoing concomitant chemoradiotherapy that can be used as a web-based tool for our clinic. Other data underscore that treatment of elderly patients with a head and neck cancer nowadays require a comprehensive geriatric assessment. In this report, these and other important studies related to head-and-neck cancer will be discussed, together with some comments on the clinical relevance of these findings.

(BELG J MED ONCOL 2021;15(8):421–7)

Highlights of the Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium 2021

SUMMARY

The annual Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium was held from 15 till 17 January 2021 in a virtual format. During this meeting, evolving immunotherapy options were shown in the upper digestive tractus, already presented at ESMO 2020. Besides immunotherapy, also the total neoadjuvant treatment approach (TNT) in rectal cancer reached sufficient attention, changing our current standard of practice in 2021. Targeted therapies for different gastrointestinal (GI) tumour locations showed promising results, paving the way for more personalised medicine.

In this report, the most important headlines will be discussed, with comments on the clinical relevance of the different studies.

(BELG J MED ONCOL 2021;15(6):331-9)

Highlights in head and neck cancer

The ASCO Annual Meeting was held from 4 till 8 June 2021 in a virtual format. During this meeting, immunotherapy arrived in first-line recurrent/metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma, adjuvant capecitabine enters prudently the treatment algorithm of nasopharyngeal cancer, results of de-escalation studies in HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer are promising and forwarding to phase III studies, cabozantinib shows impressive results in later-line radioiodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer, and immunotherapy tries to find a place in recurrent/metastatic salivary gland tumours, a tumour type without a uniform standard of care anno 2021. In this report, the most important headlines will be discussed, with comments on the clinical relevance of the different studies.

(BELG J MED ONCOL 2021;15(5):226-33)

Highlights of the European Neuroendocrine Tumour Society (ENETS) Congress

The 17^th Annual European Neuroendocrine Tumour Society (ENETS) Congress took place as a virtual meeting from March 11^th until March 13^th, 2020. This article will provide you with the highlights discussed at the meeting.

Masterclass On Site Neuroendocrine Tumours 2020

SUMMARY

On January 30-31^st, 2020 the Masterclass on neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) took place in Antwerp, Belgium. This meeting was organised by NETwerk Antwerpen-Waasland (ENETS Centre of Excellence) with support from IPSEN. A broad plethora of presentations on molecular aspects, lung NETs, digestive NETs and neuroendocrine carcinomas (NECs), immunotherapy, Merkel cell carcinoma and patient-centred care were presented. This report will highlight the key messages of the symposium.

(BELG J MED ONCOL 2020;14(4):165–70)