Welcome to The Oncology Journal Club Podcast Series 3! Proudly produced by The Oncology Network
Three respected oncologists dive deep into the most significant research presented at ASCO GI 2025, bringing you practice-changing insights amidst a backdrop of political uncertainty affecting medical research.
Professor Chris Karapetis joins hosts Professor Craig Underhill and Professor Christopher Jackson to unpack ground-breaking colorectal cancer studies that are reshaping treatment paradigms. The conversation explores how targeted therapies are dramatically improving survival rates, with the DEEPER study demonstrating cetuximab’s superiority over bevacizumab for left-sided RAS wild-type disease, achieving an impressive 50-month median survival when combined with chemotherapy.
The experts dissect the BREAKWATER trial, which shows promising benefits of combining encorafenib and cetuximab with chemotherapy for notoriously aggressive BRAF-mutant colorectal cancer. This combination achieved a 61% response rate versus 40% with standard care, with responses lasting significantly longer – representing a potential new standard of care for this difficult-to-treat subgroup.
Perhaps most surprisingly, our panel discusses how an inexpensive, familiar medication – aspirin – could reduce colorectal cancer recurrence by 40% in patients with PIK3CA mutations according to the ALASCCA study. This finding highlights how molecular profiling is becoming essential across treatment stages, not just for expensive targeted therapies but also for optimising use of accessible interventions.
The discussion extends to exciting developments in pancreatic cancer with a novel pan-RAS inhibitor showing meaningful activity, and advancements in immunotherapy for MSI-high colorectal cancer, confirming combination therapy’s superiority. For gastrointestinal oncologists navigating an increasingly complex treatment landscape, this episode offers crucial insights to optimise patient outcomes through precise, personalised approaches.
Our regular Hosting team with Dr. Kate Clarke will return in Episode 2 focussed on the Death of DEI in Medical Research.
The Oncology Podcast – An Australian Oncology Perspective
About The Oncology Journal Club:
We have taken an old concept and updated it with a new format. In each episode, a team of expert contributors will review topical journal papers and interview special guests who are leaders in their fields to help keep you informed of the latest developments on the go.
We hope you enjoy listening and find this a valuable and entertaining resource.
PAPERS:
1. Keynote Lecture by Dr. Pamela Kunz to Highlight Need for Inclusive Science in GI Cancers. ASCO Daily News, December 5 2024. Access online here.
2. Tsuji, A. et al. Final analysis of modified (m)-FOLFOXIRI plus cetuximab versus bevacizumab for RAS wild-type and left-sided metastatic colorectal cancer: The DEEPER trial (JACCRO CC-13). J Clin Oncol 43, 2025 (suppl 4; abstr 17). Access online here.
3. Kopetz, S., et al. BREAKWATER: Analysis of first-line encorafenib + cetuximab + chemotherapy in BRAF V600E-mutant metastatic colorectal cancer. J Clin Oncol 43, 2025 (suppl 4; abstr 16). DOI Access online here.
4. Garrido-Laguna, I, et al. Safety, efficacy, and on-treatment circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) changes from a phase 1 study of RMC-6236, a RAS(ON) multi-selective, tri-complex inhibitor, in patients with RAS mutant pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). J Clin Oncol 43, 2025 (suppl 4; abstr 722). Access online here.
5. Anna Martling et al. Low-dose aspirin to reduce recurrence rate in colorectal cancer patients with PI3K pathway alterations: 3-year results from a randomized placebo-controlled trial.. JCO 43, LBA125-LBA125(2025). Access online here.
6. Andre, T., et al. First results of nivolumab (NIVO) plus ipilimumab (IPI) vs NIVO monotherapy for microsatellite instability-high/mismatch repair-deficient (MSI-H/dMMR) metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) from CheckMate 8HW. J Clin Oncol 43, 2025 (suppl 4; abstr LBA143). Access online here.
7. Qvortrup, C., et al. Single-cycle neoadjuvant pembrolizumab in patients with stage I-III MMR-deficient colon cancer: Final analysis of the RESET-C study. J Clin Oncol 43, 2025 (suppl 4; abstr 19). Access online here.
Craig Underhill
Professor Craig Underhill
Professor Craig Underhill completed his Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery in 1987 at Melbourne University. He completed medical oncology training in Melbourne and worked as the Senior Clinical Research Registrar at Guy’s Hospital, London.
In 1998 arrived in Albury-Wodonga and established a medical oncology practice and clinical trials unit which has developed expertise and infrastructure to ensure the initiation of high quality trials. The research Unit lead by Dr Underhill has twice been awarded NSW Premier’s Award for Innovation in Cancer Clinical Trials, the inaugural award in 2009 and then again in 2012.
Dr Underhill is the VCCC Regional Oncology Lead and advocates for the increased access to clinical trials for regional Victorians and leads the VCCC teletrials program.
You can find Craig on X/Twitter here: @CraigUnderhill
Chris ‘CJ’ Jackson
Professor Christopher Jackson
Chris Jackson is Professor of Medical Oncology at the University of Otago, Dunedin, and a medical oncologist at Dunedin Hospital and Mercy Cancer Care. He specialises in GI cancers and melanoma, teaches medical students and specialists-in-training, and is heavily involved in both national and international cancer policy, leadership and research.
He was previously the medical director of the Cancer Society of NZ, and his advocacy led to the funding of new cancer drugs, to the development of a new national cancer plan, and to the birth of the national cancer agency Te Aho o Te Kahu. He currently chairs the agency’s clinical committee and serves on the advisory board. In addition, he is on the programme board of the International Cancer Benchmarking Project, and is a founding member of the Common Sense Oncology movement.
Chris is a self-confessed Radiohead tragic, and recent convert to Crossfit (even though you didn’t ask).
Connect with CJ on X/Twitter: @drkiwicj
GUEST:
Professor Chris Karapetis
Chris Karapetis
Professor Chris Karapetis is Network Director for Cancer Services in the Southern Area Local Health Network of Adelaide, and Head of the Department of Medical Oncology at the Flinders Medical Centre. He is also the Director of Clinical Research in Medical Oncology at the Flinders Medical Centre and the Flinders Centre for Innovation in Cancer, Flinders University. He practices as a senior consultant medical oncologist at the same institution where he was instrumental in the establishment of a Clinical Research Unit.
Professor Karapetis has been the principal investigator on over 160 clinical trials. His interest in clinical research developed following a research fellowship at Guy’s Hospital in London. He has established research interests in the areas of lung cancer, gastro-intestinal malignancy, molecular targeted therapies, predictive biomarkers, epidemiology and clinical research methodology.
He is an active contributor to clinical research conducted through the Australasian Gastrointestinal Trial Group (AGITG). He was the principal investigator for the AGITG for the CO.17 clinical trial and he led the K-ras biomarker research from this study. The findings from this study had a global impact on clinical practice in the management of colorectal cancer. The associated NEJM publication was nominated as one of the 5 key medical publications of 2008 by the Lancet. He continues to research the clinical impact of predictive biomarkers and is currently leading an international collaboration exploring the role of several molecular biomarkers in colorectal cancer.
PRODUCER:
Rachael Babin
Rachael Babin is Host of The Oncology Podcast, Editor-in-Chief of The Oncology Newsletter, and Publisher of Oncology News Australia and The Oncology Network.
With a background in oncology communications and academic publishing, Rachael is happiest sitting behind the mic chatting to interesting people about the impact their work makes in oncology.
Connect on Twitter: @OncologyNewsAus
