News

An international group of cancer clinical research experts reported new recommendations that receiving a COVID-19 vaccination should not preclude a cancer patient from participating on a clinical trial. Huntsman Cancer Institute physician-scientist and professor of internal medicine at the University of Utah, Neeraj Agarwal, MD, was part of this newly formed group who reviewed the data and provided recommendations to patients, doctors, research centers, and the pharmaceutical research industry on this critical, emerging issue.

The first patient in the world to be enrolled on a clinical trial of a new investigational drug, AN0025, was treated at Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah earlier this year. The drug is being studied for use in patients with non-small cell lung cancer and other solid tumors who have previously been treated with immunotherapy and whose cancers later developed ways to resist immunotherapy.

When Scott Vance went in for a COVID-19 test, he never expected it would lead to a diagnosis of stage IV lung cancer. Scott’s doctors learned a specific mutation was causing the cancer, and he began a new mutation-targeting drug approved by the FDA just two years earlier. Scott says his remarkable response to the drug has him feeling grateful clinical trials can bring these cutting-edge treatments to people like him.

Researchers at Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah presented the first outcomes evaluation of an adult oncology hospital-at-home program today at the 2020 American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting. The study evaluated patients participating in HCI’s Huntsman at HomeTM. The data demonstrate strong evidence for this care model, showing improved patient outcomes, including reduced hospitalizations and decreased visits to the emergency department.

Las pruebas clínicas en Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI por sus siglas en inglés) ayudan a encontrar mejores formas de prevenir, diagnosticar y tratar el cáncer, al poner a prueba la seguridad y efectividad de nuevos fármacos y tratamientos. En promedio, existen 150-200 ensayos clínicos abiertos a pacientes de HCI en cualquier momento dado.

Clinical trials at Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) help find better ways to prevent, diagnose, and treat cancer by testing the safety and effectiveness of new drugs and treatments. On average, there are between 150–200 clinical trials open to HCI patients at any given time.

Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) has established The Society of Huntsman Translational Scholars, an initiative that recognizes excellence in the discipline of translational science. Translational researchers extend basic discoveries made in the laboratory and apply them to solve clinical problems and benefit patients through new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.

Compared to other cancers, pancreatic cancer is relatively rare. But it is the third leading cause of cancer death in the United States. Only about 8.5% of patients with pancreatic cancer are alive five years after their diagnosis. This one of the lowest survival rates for any kind of cancer. What makes pancreatic cancer so deadly?