Pashtoon M. Kasi, MD, MBBS, MS

Pashtoon M. Kasi, MD, MBBS, MS, assistant professor of oncology and senior associate consultant in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at Mayo Clinic, discusses how genetic testing is underutilized in colorectal cancer (CRC), despite its ability to guide treatment dosing and adjustment based on the mutations or variations within a patient.

In CRC, specific genes are known to metabolize 5-fluorouracil, capecitabine, or irinotecan. Historical analyses have also shown that patients do much worse in regard to toxicities when given chemotherapy if they harbor a gene abberration, but Kasi says the frequency in which this aberration appears is underestimated.

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Pashtoon M. Kasi, MD, MBBS, MS, discusses how genetic testing is underutilized in colorectal cancer, despite its ability to guide treatment dosing and adjustment based on the mutations or variations within a patient.

The Emerging Role of Genetic Testing in Colorectal Cancer

Pashtoon M. Kasi, MD, MBBS, MS, an assistant professor of oncology and senior associate consultant in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at the Mayo Clinic, discusses the populations of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) that are likely to benefit from immunotherapy treatment.

Previously, immunotherapy was not an option for patients with CRC, but now subsets of patients has been identified that respond to this type of treatment, Kasi says. Patients who can benefit from immunotherapy include patients with mismatch repair deficient, microsatellite instability-high, or Lynch syndrome-associated CRC.

Pashtoon M. Kasi, MD, MBBS, MS, discusses the patient populations with colorectal cancer that are likely to benefit from immunotherapy treatment.

Benefitting From Immunotherapy in CRC

Pashtoon M. Kasi, MD, MBBS, MS, an assistant professor of oncology and senior associate consultant in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at the Mayo Clinic, discusses how the triplet regimen of the BRAF inhibitor encorafenib (Braftovi), the MEK inhibitor binimetinib (Mektovi), and the EGFR inhibitor cetuximab (Erbitux), will impact the treatment landscape for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).

Kasi believes this is another treatment option for this patient population. Historically, there has not been just 1 wonder drug that led to improvement in survival. Rather, the use of 1 drug or combination after another improves survival in this patient population.

This regimen will be moved to earlier lines of therapy for subsets of patients who only received 1 line of chemotherapy, Kasi says. Responses and durability have already been seen in this subset, so studies are now looking at moving this regimen to earlier lines.

Based on the findings from the BEACON CRC trial, this regimen was granted

a breakthrough designation from the FDA in August 2018

Pashtoon M. Kasi, MD, MBBS, MS, discusses how the triplet regimen of the BRAF inhibitor encorafenib, the MEK inhibitor binimetinib, and the EGFR inhibitor cetuximab, will impact the treatment landscape for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer.

Pashtoon M. Kasi, MD, MBBS, MS | Authors

Articles

The Emerging Role of Genetic Testing in Colorectal Cancer

Benefitting From Immunotherapy in CRC

Next Steps After Phase III BEACON CRC Trial in mCRC