EPISODE 35 - NEN Treatments: Focus on Chemotherapy

The LACNETS Podcast - Top 10 FAQs with neuroendocrine tumor (NET) experts

What is chemotherapy? When are they used for neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs)? Dr. Pamela Kunz from Yale Medicine discusses the benefits, potential side effects and latest advances in chemotherapy for NENs. She explains how it differs from other treatments for NENs and how she counsels patients as they consider chemotherapy.

TOP TEN QUESTIONS ABOUT CHEMOTHERAPY FOR NENS:

1. What is chemotherapy? How does it work?
2. What are the chemotherapy drugs used for neuroendocrine cancer? When are they used? Which neuroendocrine cancers are they used for?
3. How does chemotherapy differ from other treatments such as SSAs or targeted therapies (everolimus, sunitinib, cabozantinib)?
4. What side effects might someone have when taking chemotherapy? Will my hair fall out? How might it affect my day-to-day ability to work and function? Can I live a “normal life” while taking this medication? Do any of these side effects have long-lasting effects?
5. Would taking chemotherapy cause someone to be immunocompromised?
6. When in one’s neuroendocrine journey might you recommend chemotherapy? Where does it fall in sequencing?
7. How do you decide which chemotherapy medication to recommend? Can they be stopped and restarted? Can they be repeated?
8. Can you take more than one drug in the category? Can they be taken in combination with another drug?
9. Does taking chemotherapy preclude someone from getting another treatment in the future such as Lutathera PRRT or a clinical trial of alpha PRRT?
10. What do you see as the future of chemotherapy in neuroendocrine cancer treatment?

MEET PAMELA L. KUNZ, MD

Dr. Pamela Kunz is an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Oncology at Yale School of Medicine where she also serves as the Director of the Center for GI Cancers and Division Chief of GI Medical Oncology at Yale Cancer Center and Smilow Cancer Hospital. She received her medical degree from the Dartmouth Geisel School of Medicine. Her postgraduate training included a medical residency, chief residency, and oncology fellowship at Stanford University School of Medicine.

Dr. Kunz is an international leader in the treatment and clinical research of patients with GI malignancies and neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). She holds several key leadership positions in the field including President Emeritus of the North American Neuroendocrine Tumor Society, recent past Chair of the Neuroendocrine Tumor Taskforce of the NCI and standing member of FDA’s Oncology Drug Advisory Committee. She was recently appointed Editor-in-Chief of JCO Oncology Advances. In addition to her focus on NETs, she is a leading voice for promoting diversity, equity and inclusion in medicine. She served as the Vice Chief of DEI for the Section of Medical Oncology at Yale School of Medicine and in 2021, she was awarded ‘Woman Oncologist of the Year’ by Women Leaders in Oncology for her work in promoting gender equity.

For more information, visit LACNETS.org.