1-877-936-8422

Andreana Holowatyj named ‘40 Under 40 In Cancer’ winner

Submitted by vicc_news on
Andreana Holowatyj, PhD, MSCI

Andreana Holowatyj, PhD, MSCI, assistant professor of Medicine, has been named to the 40 Under 40 In Cancer Class of 2025 by the Association for Value-Based Cancer Care.

This year’s class was selected from more than 3,000 nominations. The awards initiative identifies and recognizes contributions across the field of cancer by rising stars and emerging leaders under the age of 40. 

Holowatyj’s research is focused on early-onset cancers, including colorectal and appendiceal cancers. She has received the National Cancer Institute’s Method to Extend Research in Time (MERIT) Award to support her ongoing investigation into how early-onset colorectal cancer and its treatments impact reproductive health. MERIT Awards provide longer-term funding than is typical for most grants to early-stage investigators whose research competence and productivity are distinctly superior and who are highly likely to continue to perform in an outstanding manner. As part of this Award, Holowatyj established and leads the Preserving Fertility After Colorectal Cancer (PREFACE) clinical study, which is currently recruiting patients.  

She is focused on providing evidence-based guidance that will ultimately improve clinical care and outcomes for individuals ages 18 to 49 when diagnosed with cancer. Holowatyj and her team discovered that 1 in 2 young cancer patients report that a health care provider involved in their cancer care did not discuss options to preserve fertility prior to starting cancer treatment. 

Her research has been published in high-impact medical research journals and has led to clinical practice changes and revisions to consensus guidelines. She has also been invited to serve on several international committees, including the American Joint Committee on Cancer Lower Gastrointestinal Tract Expert Panel that updates clinical cancer staging systems, the Fight Colorectal Cancer Global Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer Think Tank, and as the inaugural chair of the Scientific Advisory Board for the Appendix Cancer Pseudomyxoma Peritonei (ACPMP) Research Foundation. This year, with the support of the ACPMP Research Foundation, she led an expert recommendation report in the journal Nature Reviews Cancer that identified six key research priority areas to deliver a fundamental understanding of appendiceal tumors and to improve treatments and outcomes for patients with this rare cancer.

The post Andreana Holowatyj named ‘40 Under 40 In Cancer’ winner appeared first on VUMC News.

This is a Phase 1/2, open-label, multicenter, study of the safety, tolerability, PK, PD, and anti-tumor activity of MRTX1719 patients with advanced, unresectable or metastatic solid tumor malignancy with homozygous deletion of the MTAP gene.
This open-label research study is studying (Z)-endoxifen as a possible treatment for pre-menopausal (still having periods) women with ER+/HER2- breast cancer. (Z)-endoxifen is a selective estrogen receptor modulator or "SERM." SERMs work to treat cancer by blocking the body's natural estrogen from binding to cancer cells. This study includes a pharmacokinetic part (PK, how the drug works in your body) and a treatment part. The primary purpose of the study is to see how (Z)-endoxifen works on tumor cell growth by monitoring a cancer marker called Ki-67. Ki-67 will be measured by biopsy of the breast after about 4 weeks of treatment. If your cancer is responding to treatment based on the Ki-67 results, you may continue treatment up to 24 weeks or until surgery. The PK part of the study will be enrolled first, enrolling about 18 study participants who will all receive oral once daily (Z)-endoxifen treatment. 12 of these participants will be randomly assigned to treatment with an equal (50/50) chance to be assigned to (Z)-endoxifen or (Z)-endoxifen + goserelin (a medication given to block the ovaries from making estrogen and is also called ovarian suppression). This part of the study will help select the dose of (Z)-endoxifen to use in the treatment part by measuring the levels of (Z)-endoxifen in the blood stream and determine how long it takes for the body to remove it. About 160 study participants will be enrolled in the treatment part. The treatment part will help to determine how oral once daily (Z)-endoxifen, when taken by itself, compares to oral once daily exemestane (a medication that decreases the amount of estrogen in the body, also known as an aromatase inhibitor) and monthly injections of goserelin. Exemestane and goserelin taken together is a standard treatment regimen for premenopausal patients with ER+/HER2- breast cancer. Study participants are randomly assigned to treatment with an equal (50/50) chance to be assigned to (Z)-endoxifen or standard treatment. Study participation is up to 24 weeks of treatment followed by surgery.

A Phase 3, Multicenter, Double-blind, Randomized, Placebo-controlled Study of Ivosidenib in Participants >/=;18 Years of Age With Locally Advanced or Metastatic Conventional Chondrosarcoma With an IDH1 Mutation, Untreated or Previously Treated With 1 Systemic Treatment Regimen (CHONQUER study)

Window Trial of Fluorescently Labeled Panitumumab (Panitumumab-IRDye800) in Head and Neck Cancer

A Trial to Learn if Odronextamab is Safe and Well-tolerated and How Well it Works Compared to Rituximab Combined With Different Types of Chemotherapy for Participants With Follicular Lymphoma

This study is researching an experimental drug called odronextamab, referred to as study drug. The study is focused on participants with previously untreated follicular lymphoma (a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma or NHL). This study will be made up of two parts: Part 1 (non-randomized) and Part 2 (randomized - controlled). The aim of Part 1 of the study is to see how safe and tolerable the study drug is. The aim of Part 2 of the study is to see how the study drug works compared to rituximab and chemotherapy (the current standard of care for NHL). Standard of care means the usual medication expected and used when receiving treatment for a condition. The study is looking at several other research questions, including: - What side effects may happen from taking the study drug - How much study drug is in your blood at different times - Whether the body makes antibodies against the study drug (which could make the drug less effective or could lead to side effects) - The impact from the study drug on your quality of life and ability to complete routine daily activities.

An Open-label, Phase 1 Dose Escalation and Phase 2 Dose Expansion Study to Assess Safety, Tolerability, Pharmacokinetics, and Preliminary Antitumor Activity of SMP-3124LP in Adults with Advanced Solid Tumors

Study finds navigational bronchoscopy as effective and safer alternative to transthoracic biopsy for lung nodules  

Navigational bronchoscopy is as effective as the traditionally used transthoracic needle biopsy for diagnosing lung nodules, but with significantly fewer complications, per a new study published May 18 in the New England Journal of Medicine. This development may shift medical practice and reduce hospitalizations for patients undergoing lung nodule biopsies, said researchers.  

Each year, millions of lung nodules are detected during routine X-rays or CT scans. While most nodules are benign, some are cancerous and when found at this stage they are the earliest and most curable stage of lung cancer.   

Accurate biopsy of lung nodules is often required to tell benign nodules from malignant ones. To date, the most commonly used method, CT-guided transthoracic needle biopsy, carries a high complication rate — including pneumothorax, or partial lung collapse, affecting about 25% of patients. Treatment of the partially collapsed lung often requires a chest tube during a multiple day inpatient stay.  

Robert Lentz, MD
Robert Lentz, MD

This study is the first to directly compare these biopsy techniques and the results are compelling, said first author Robert Lentz, MD, associate professor of Medicine and Thoracic Surgery in the Division of Allergy, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. The study, conducted across seven centers in the United States, compared the two techniques in a multicenter, randomized trial involving 234 patients with lung nodules between 10-30 mm.  

Navigational bronchoscopy uses a sophisticated targeting system and 3D imaging to guide biopsy tools through small peripheral airways directly to a lung nodule.   

The comparison revealed a diagnostic accuracy of 79% using navigational technology, closely matching the 74% accuracy of transthoracic biopsy. More importantly, the risk of pneumothorax was significantly lower, occurring in only 3% of bronchoscopy patients compared to 35% in those undergoing transthoracic biopsy. Severe cases requiring hospital admission or chest tube insertion were less than 1% with bronchoscopy, as opposed to 14% with the traditional method.  

“With approximately 300,000 lung nodule biopsies performed annually in the U.S., shifting to navigational bronchoscopy could greatly reduce complications and hospital stays. This study confirms its diagnostic efficacy and superior safety profile, making it the preferred choice for lung nodule diagnosis,” said senior author Fabien Maldonado, MD, MSc, professor of Medicine and Thoracic Surgery and director of Interventional Pulmonology.  

The research team plans to continue exploring optimal biopsy techniques, comparing different navigational and robotic bronchoscopy systems, and studying novel biopsy tools, said Maldonado, Pierre Massion Director in Lung Cancer Research.  

They are also involved in research on bronchoscopic ablation of lung cancer, advancing the field of interventional pulmonology.  

“As a relatively new medical subspecialty, we are quite proud and excited to have matured our research infrastructure to the point of being able to produce high quality multicenter trials like this, and hope that publication of this trial will serve as an introduction of sorts for interventional pulmonology to the larger general medical audience,” said Lentz.   

The post Study finds navigational bronchoscopy as effective and safer alternative to transthoracic biopsy for lung nodules   appeared first on VUMC News.

A Dose Escalation Study of AV-380 in Metastatic Cancer Patients With Cachexia

This open label ascending dose study is designed to evaluate the safety, pharmacokinetics (PK), pharmacodynamics (PD), and immunogenicity of AV-380 in metastatic cancer patients with Cachexia. AV-380 is an immunoglobulin (Ig) G1 monoclonal antibody (mAb) intended to bind circulating human growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15), a cytokine involved in cancer-induced cachexia.
Subscribe to
NCI Designated Cancer Center
NCCN National Comprehensive Cancer Network
NCI National Clinical Trials Network