Trial Results: ECOG-ACRIN research round-up – Summer 2026

Some cancer research findings have the potential to make a difference for patients right away. They can help patients make decisions about what cancer treatment to receive, manage side effects, or feel better during and after treatment. In this article, we highlight results from recent studies by the ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group that matter to patients now.

Below are seven trials that are helping answer important questions for patients and their doctors, such as whether a treatment works or how long it is needed. Others are aimed at supporting patients, like helping people quit smoking and helping women make decisions about having children during and after cancer treatment.  

Making better treatment decisions

Breast Cancer – Earlier answers for patients when cancer spreads to bones

The FEATURE (EA1183) trial results are helping doctors assess how well treatments are working for breast cancer that has spread mostly—or only—to the bones. Normally, doctors use CT scans and MRIs to detect cancer spread, but these scans can't tell much about how cancer in the bones is responding to treatment. In 2025, this trial found that a different scanning technology called FDG-PET/CT can measure cancer activity in the bones and help show whether treatment is working. Scans after 12 weeks of treatment could show which patients were likely to go longer without their cancer getting worse.

Recently, the research team reported at a major medical meeting that FDG-PET/CT scans taken after just 4 weeks can provide similar information to the 12-week scans. This could help patients and their doctors make treatment decisions even sooner.

Lung Cancer – Avoiding treatment that does not help

After surgery for non-small cell lung cancer, some patients receive chemotherapy to help keep the cancer from coming back. The ALCHEMIST (EA5142) trial asked whether adding a year of the immunotherapy drug nivolumab after patients finished standard treatment would help even more. The published results show that nivolumab did not help patients go longer without their cancer returning, even among patients who were thought to be more likely to benefit from immunotherapy. The findings can help doctors and patients avoid adding a treatment that does not provide a clear benefit and can cause serious side effects.

Myeloma – More treatment isn't always better

Multiple myeloma is a type of blood cancer. After their first treatment, many patients take a medicine called lenalidomide to help keep the cancer under control. Until now, doctors have generally continued this treatment until the cancer gets worse. The ENDURANCE (E1A11) trial, whose results are published in the New England Journal of Medicine, shows that patients with standard-risk multiple myeloma who did not have a stem cell transplant and who stopped lenalidomide after 2 years lived just as long as those who continued taking it. Patients who stopped also had fewer serious side effects. These results show that, for these patients, taking lenalidomide for longer than 2 years does not help them live longer and may cause unnecessary side effects.

Managing treatment side effects

Neuropathy – What patients say about chemotherapy side effects matters

Neuropathy is a side effect of taxane chemotherapy. It can make parts of the body tingle, feel numb, or burn with pain, usually starting in the hands and feet. Based on evidence that Black patients are at higher risk for neuropathy from taxane chemotherapy, the EAZ171 trial was conducted to study neuropathy in Black patients with early-stage breast cancer. In 2024, published results showed that docetaxel chemotherapy every 3 weeks led to fewer problems with neuropathy compared to paclitaxel chemotherapy every week.  

New published information from the trial tells us more about how patients felt during and after their treatment. There were three main findings:

1. If patients reported feeling numb and tingly during treatment, it was a strong sign that their chemotherapy dose might need to be reduced
2. Having neuropathy during treatment didn’t always mean they would have a worse quality of life or feel less able to do things a year later
3. But if neuropathy lasted for a whole year, those patients were more likely to have a worse quality of life or not be able to do as much

Overall, EAZ171 shows the value of designing cancer research around the needs of the patients who are most affected by the health problem being studied. Black patients were essential partners in making this research possible. 

High Blood Pressure – Better control during cancer treatment

Some medicines used to treat cancer can cause high blood pressure. If blood pressure gets too high, doctors may need to adjust the cancer treatment. The CARISMA (EAQ191) trial tested whether doctors could safely lower patients’ blood pressure more than they usually do while they were receiving these cancer medicines. The study included patients with kidney or thyroid cancer. The published results show that this approach lowered blood pressure without causing more side effects or making patients feel worse. The results could help doctors better manage patients’ high blood pressure during their cancer treatment.

Supporting patients during cancer care

Pregnancy and Family Planning – Helping women set goals and make decisions

Cancer treatment can affect a woman's ability to have children, which may raise questions and concerns about pregnancy, birth control, and having children. But these needs are not always discussed when a woman is diagnosed with cancer. The EROS (E1Q11) trial tested a program designed to make these needs and decisions a regular part of cancer care. The study included hundreds of women between the ages of 15 and  55 who were newly diagnosed with cancer and being treated at community cancer centers. The published results show that women treated at centers that used the EROS program were twice as likely to receive care that addressed their needs and goals as those who received usual cancer care. The results show that including reproductive health in cancer care can help more women get the care that is important to them.

Smoking Cessation – Better support helps patients quit smoking during cancer treatment

Continuing to smoke during cancer treatment can make treatment less effective, increase side effects, and raise the risk that cancer will return. Yet although medical guidelines advise doctors to include tobacco cessation treatment as part of cancer care, most cancer patients are only briefly advised to quit (“you need to quit”) and are rarely given help to do it. The Smoke Free Support Study 2.0 (EAQ171CD) published results show a better way to help patients quit: 6 months of counseling via telehealth, along with free nicotine replacement therapy during the same time that they were receiving cancer treatment. Patients in the program were nearly twice as likely to quit smoking as those referred to a Quitline—28% compared with 15%.

Because the counseling was virtual, patients did not need to make extra trips to their cancer center. 81% of patients offered virtual counseling participated, compared with only 5% of patients referred to the Quitline who completed even one counseling session. About 90% of those in the program said they received the help they wanted to quit smoking. The program didn't just double quit rates—it was something patients actually used and felt met their needs.