The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through the Health Resources and Services Administration, awarded more than $5 million in September 2022 to 11 HRSA-funded community health centers to help underserved populations access cancer screenings and early detection services in partnership with National Cancer Institute-designated cancer centers.

An altered HOXB13 gene may increase a patient’s risk for developing prostate cancer. The HOXB13 gene is expressed in the prostate beginning in early development and affects prostate cell proliferation and differentiation and androgen receptor regulation. When it acts as a tumor suppressor gene, HOXB13 codes for a protein that regulates cell division. However, altered copies of HOXB13 are inactivated, meaning that it does not function properly or does not produce the protein it codes for, resulting in uncontrolled cell division.

Under the Inflation Reduction Act, patients will pay lower premiums for the Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D prescription drug plans during the 2023 coverage year, the Biden-Harris administration announced in September 2022. People with Medicare prescription drug coverage will also receive better and more affordable benefits, including a $35 cost-sharing limit on covered insulin product and coverage for adult vaccines recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

The U.S. Senate confirmed the appointment of Arati Prabhakar, PhD, as director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and chief advisor to the president for science and technology in September 2022, making her the first woman and person of color confirmed to lead OSTP.

Few things carry more stigma in the United States than death and hospice. Death is familiar in oncology, yet providers may not discuss it with patients until their cancer has progressed to the point that medical intervention is no longer an option. With the American Cancer Society estimating more than 600,000 American deaths from cancer in 2022, it’s time to change our practice.

Patients with germline genetic variants that increase their risk of developing prostate cancer have a lower risk of developing lethal disease when following a healthy lifestyle, according to study findings that researchers reported in European Urology.

On November 18, 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a Monday-Wednesday-Friday dosing option for asparaginase erwinia chrysanthemi (recombinant)-rywn (Rylaze®). Under the alternative regimen, patients receive 25 mg/m² intramuscularly on Monday and Wednesday mornings and 50 mg/m² intramuscularly on Friday afternoons. It also is approved at a dose of 25 mg/m² intramuscularly every 48 hours.

The holiday season is an opportunity to unwind, practice well-being, give thanks, and—this month in particular—acknowledge your gratitude for people, circumstances, items, and other things you value and appreciate in your life. Whether you’re celebrating in person or virtually, coming together and spending time with your loved ones is both exciting and overwhelming. Indulge a little, but support and prioritize well-being for both yourself and your loved ones with healthy renditions of your favorite or traditional holiday side dishes.

When the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved tebentafusp-tebn (Kimmtrak®) in January 2022 as an orphan drug for unresectable or metastatic uveal melanoma in adults, it became the first—and only, at the time of this reference sheet’s publication—drug approved for the indication.

In her first report as National Cancer Institute director, Monica M. Bertagnolli, MD, laid out her eight core principles to guide the agency’s work in reformulating clinical trials and strengthening cancer research during the Clinical Trials Advisory Committee meeting in November 2022.