Annamarie Kealy

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted traditional full approval to the CAR-T cell therapy Tecartus (brexucabtagene autoleucel) for adult patients with relapsed or refractory mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) to provide a definitive second-line treatment option. The decision, announced in a news release from Gilead, converts the previous accelerated approval from 2020 into a full approval for patients whose cancer has returned or has not responded to previous treatments.

Older patients with early-stage breast cancer may have a reliable new way to skip surgery while still safely managing their health, according to a study recently published in Clinical Cancer Research. The research, conducted by Natera, Inc. and the University of Pittsburgh, found that a specialized blood test called Signatera can accurately monitor patients who choose primary endocrine therapy instead of a surgical procedure, according to a news release from Natera, Inc.

A study led by researchers at a community hospital in Sapporo, Japan found that comprehensive genomic testing using a blood-based approach can be completed in about 27 hours, offering a faster path to treatment decisions for patients with cancer. The findings address a critical gap in cancer care. Despite the growth of precision medicine, only about one third of eligible patients receive genomic testing that could help match them to targeted therapies.