ASCO 2024: Advances and Innovations in Oncology Revealed

What you’ll learn:

ASCO’s updated guidelines now recommend integrating palliative care services into the standard of care for all cancer patients, emphasizing a significant shift towards patient-centric innovation.

Major advancements were showcased in immunotherapy and antibody-drug conjugates with promising developments in cancer vaccines, CAR T-cell, and CRISPR technologies, offering new personalized medicine approaches. Big pharma companies had a significant presence, sharing immersive and visually appealing information, while health equity, diversity, and inclusion were emphasized through efforts to improve clinical trial diversity and address barriers to care.

This year’s American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago broke records, hosting over 44,000 attendees, including 36,000 oncologists. “People are finally showing up like in the old days,” said Eliav Barr, MD of Merck & Co. Described by one marketer as “The Superbowl of Oncology,” ASCO’s in-person attendance has not slowed since 2022.

This year’s theme, “The Art and Science of Cancer Care: From Comfort to Cure,” offered a fresh perspective in cancer care by both celebrating significant “wins” made to date, including potential cures and stressing the importance of providing consistent comfort, even when faced with adverse outcomes.

As usual, Klick’s oncology leaders attended ASCO this year and observed an ongoing and significant shift towards patient-centric innovation as in recent years. This was evident, among other trends, in the updated ASCO guidelines, which now recommend integrating palliative care services into the standard of care for all cancer patients, including those with hematologic malignancies and Phase I trial participants.

Innovation is tackling multiple fronts across the cancer-care continuum

Immunotherapy and ADCs expanding frontiers in oncology

ASCO showcased the progress of three key drug classes, including immunotherapy, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), and radiopharmaceuticals. Immunotherapy advancements across various tumor types highlighted a focus on combination therapies and long-term follow-up data. Over 30 different ADCs were on display at ASCO, manifesting the recent buying spree for ADCs across big pharma as they continue to transform cancer treatment. Initially aimed at replacing chemotherapy, ADCs are now also being assessed as a synergistic partner to targeted therapies and immunotherapy, suggesting a promising future. Radiopharmaceuticals are an emerging class, but only a few abstracts were presented at ASCO, signaling that they are still in the early stages of development.

As many ADCs and radiopharmaceuticals are at an earlier stage in their life cycle, valuable lessons can be drawn from immunotherapies. For ADC/radiopharma brands, it will be vital to clearly convey the most appropriate patient types, toxicity management, and long-term management. Meanwhile, immunotherapies and “older” technologies will need to strive to stay relevant in this rapidly evolving treatment landscape, which is seeking to understand synergistic effects among novel combinations with these new classes.

Progress in cancer vaccines, CAR T-cell, and CRISPR

Although it feels like we are still in the early stages, the combination of Moderna’s mRNA vaccine (mRNA-4157) and pembrolizumab presented an impressive reduction in the risk of recurrence or death. Similarly, among CAR T-cell and CRISPR technology, COBALT-RCC was a promising proof-of-concept study in patients with advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma, and the ANTLER study showed interesting results in non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

With a shift in focus toward patient-centricity, mRNA vaccines, CRISPR, and CAR T-cell technologies will offer new options and combinatory potential, fueling the feasibility of a personalized medicine approach. HCPs will increasingly assess the toxicity burden of therapies against the burden of disease or recurrence risk, particularly in patients who have already gone through multiple lines of treatment, so new brands—especially in later lines of treatment—will need to effectively communicate the benefits versus costs, both economically and clinically.

Spotlight on lung cancer: practice-changing studies

Lung cancer remains the second most common cancer in the United States and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, highlighting a significant unmet need for these patients. Therefore, three groundbreaking studies presented this year—LAURA, ADRIATIC, and CROWN—are especially noteworthy.

"Rare we get to offer patients a curative treatment in SCLC setting" - Eric Kumar Singhi, MD, MD Anderson Cancer Center

As outcomes in lung cancer continue to improve and more strides are being made toward a cure, the focus of care has shifted to quality of life and addressing disparities. With more emerging treatments on the horizon, marketers will need to find ways to distinguish their brands in an increasingly crowded marketplace by leveraging years of marketplace brand experience and reliable and clinically meaningful support provided to HCPs and patients.

Addressing racial disparities in cancer care

Health equity and clinical trial diversity and inclusion (DE&I) were key messages at nearly every booth​. Importantly, even medical affairs booths focused on clinical trial enrollment and addressing barriers to care with activations. Companies displayed different “levels of effort” with respect to DE&I, but Abbvie, Gilead, and Pfizer led the pack with, although scarce, yet strong, prominent patient imagery nearly always reflecting diversity in clinical trial representation​, illustrating their commitment to DE&I from a corporate brand perspective​. Genentech’s displays had a QR code linking to specific initiatives (e.g., case study: improving cancer screening in Black and Latina women).

ASCO established a new baseline for the importance and impact of DE&I not only in trials but also in clinical practice and healthcare communications with relevant and relatable visuals and branding. This also illuminates areas of opportunity and white space to further help educate and support patients and improve access and screening, HCP education, and the integration of medical affairs communications within omnichannel efforts.

Large commercial presence seeking positive impressions and engagement

In recent years, clinical advancements have largely come from big pharma, overshadowing smaller biotech firms, and this year was no different. There was no major breakthrough, like Gleevec or PD-1 inhibitors in melanoma from past years; however, the number of studies with practice-changing potential is significant, and AstraZeneca was one of the big presenters, advancing its ambition to “redefine cancer care.” AZ featured six consecutive plenary talks and over 100 abstracts, with 25 highlighting approved and pipeline medicines across their oncology portfolio. AZ’s booth, buzzing with attendees, showcased their entire oncology portfolio in a large, open space free of sales reps.

Sharing information at ASCO has become more immersive but also more passive. This relaxed approach may be particularly effective and convenient for attendees who wander around booths to have break from data-heavy talks and use them as a place to socialize, rest, and grab a coffee or a snack. Highly visual effects worked this year; for future ASCOs, marketers may want to dial up the entertainment level and tailor the experience for different audiences. An ASCO lecturer told us, “I don’t go to the booths to learn about new data/information, I learn that elsewhere—I go because I’m curious about what I might find and because it looks beautiful.”

Summary

ASCO is a showcase of the rapid change occurring in cancer care with innovations, trial updates, and even a new lexicon. In the midst of keeping pace with this, one can’t lose sight of the fact that patients are at the center of everything we do. ASCO 2024 was a reminder that there will be more breakthroughs, more tools, and more cures in the years to come. True to its theme, “The Art and Science of Cancer Care: From Comfort to Cure,” innovation is driving groundbreaking changes/results in nearly all areas of cancer care while remaining oriented to the well-being of patients.

Klick Health is serious and passionate about oncology. We encourage anyone with questions or comments on any of these topics to reach out to Dane (dlund@klick.com), Maria (moraczewski@klick.com), or Jorge (jdurand@klick.com).