Olufunmilayo Falusi Olopade, MD, FACP, director of the Center for Clinical Cancer Genetics, director of the Center for Global Health, associate dean for Global Health, and the Walter L. Palmer Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine and Human Genetics at the University of Chicago Medicine, discusses the need to focus efforts in preventive oncology and genetics.

It was an honor to be recognized as a Giant of Cancer Care® for Prevention and Genetics, says Olopade, as she has dedicated the majority of her career to bringing genetics into clinical oncology care. The oncology community has come to embrace the fact that prevention oncology is an important area where efforts should be focused, Olapade adds.

Olopade accepted her award on behalf of her colleagues who inspired her to find ways to bring genetics to the average community oncology practice; this has helped to move the needle forward over the past 25 years, she concludes.

Videos

Olufunmilayo I. Olopade, MD, FACP, discusses the need to focus efforts in preventive oncology and genetics.

Dr. Olopade on Moving the Needle Forward in Preventive Oncology and Genetics

Oludamilola (Lola) A. Olajide, MD, adjunct professor and medical oncologist, Rex Cancer Center, UNC Health, discusses managing the risk of interstitial lung disease (ILD) with fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki (Enhertu) in breast cancer.

The FDA granted an accelerated approval to trastuzumab deruxtecan in December 2019 for the treatment of patients with unresectable or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer who have received ≥2 prior anti—HER2-based regimens in the metastatic setting. The approval was based on findings from the phase II DESTINY-Breast01 trial, in which trastuzumab deruxtecan elicited a 60.3% objective response rate.

Of note, 13.6% of the 184 patients treated experienced treatment-related ILD in the DESTINY-Breast01 trial, says Olajide. While subsequent trials suggest a 2% risk of developing ILD with the agent, the toxicity can be fatal.

As such, patient screening and careful monitoring is critical, says Olajide. Additionally, educating patients on the potential toxicity is important so they can inform on-call physicians in the emergency room.

Should ILD occur, treatment with trastuzumab deruxtecan should be stopped and steroids should be initiated, says Olajide. Importantly, pulmonologists should be consulted if patients do not respond to steroids.

Oludamilola (Lola) A. Olajide, MD, discusses managing the risk of interstitial lung disease with fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki in breast cancer.

Oludamilola (Lola) A. Olajide, MD

Articles

Dr. Olopade on Moving the Needle Forward in Preventive Oncology and Genetics

Dr. Olajide on Managing Risk of Interstitial Lung Disease With Trastuzumab Deruxtecan in Breast Cancer