On August 19, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved lazertinib (Lazcluze^™) in combination with amivantamab-vmjw (Rybrevant^®) for first-line treatment of locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer with epidermal growth factor receptor exon 19 deletions or exon 21 L858R substitution variants, as detected by an FDA-approved test.

Among the taxanes currently approved for breast cancer treatment, docetaxel is the preferred agent for Black patients with breast cancer, researchers concluded in study findings presented at the 2024 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting. In a study that only enrolled Black patients with breast cancer, the researchers found that docetaxel was associated with the lowest risk for taxane-induced peripheral neuropathy, a dose-limiting adverse event that typically occurs more frequently in Black individuals.

In May 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it had granted accelerated approval for the first CD20 bispecific antibody drug, epcoritamab-bysp (Epkinly^™) for the treatment of relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). In June 2024, the FDA expanded the indication with accelerated approval for the treatment of relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma (FL) after two or more lines of systemic therapy.

Five ONS members have been inducted into the American Academy of Nursing’s (AAN’s) 2024 Class of Fellows, which this year recognizes 200 exemplary nurses who have engaged in significant activity and leadership in the profession.

Patients covered under Medicare Part D will pay up to 79% less for 10 prescription drugs for chronic conditions, including ibrutinib for chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma and other blood cancers, starting on January 1, 2026, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said. In August 2024, the agency released its final list of lowered drug prices for the 10 treatments selected under the price negotiation program.

On August 15, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved durvalumab (Imfinzi^®) with platinum-containing chemotherapy as neoadjuvant treatment, followed by single-agent durvalumab as adjuvant treatment after surgery, for adults with resectable (tumors that are 4 cm or larger or node positive) non-small cell lung cancer and no known epidermal growth factor receptor variants or anaplastic lymphoma kinase rearrangements.

On August 14, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved axatilimab-csfr (Niktimvo), a colony-stimulating factor–1 receptor-blocking antibody, for the treatment of chronic graft-versus-host disease after failure of at least two prior lines of systemic therapy in adult and pediatric patients weighing at least 40 kg.

“You will never know it all, but you can know where to look.” 

This is a phrase, or some iteration of it, that I find myself saying often to novice oncology nurses as I meet with them during orientation, especially during that week 4 one-on-one when the scope of information oncology has to offer feels like a daunting hurdle for them to conquer in 12 weeks. 

“The current body of research inadequately addresses the intersection of aging, health disparities, and cancer outcomes among older adults, highlighting the imperative for heightened attention, enhanced infrastructure, and collaborative efforts to fill this critical gap,” a team of expert investigators from across the United States reported in a scoping review published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

One potential positive from the COVID-19 pandemic was heightened awareness and use of personal protective equipment (PPE). However, protecting people from virus transmission does not automatically equate to protecting surfaces from hazardous drugs, researchers reported in the August 2024 issue of the Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing. Although surface contamination varied by agent and setting, overall, they found no significant change from pre- to post-pandemic.