The Society has recently published Clinical Cancer Advances 2012: ASCO's Annual Report on Progress Against Cancer, an independent, comprehensive review of the state of clinical cancer research in 2012. The report highlights advances across the entire continuum of cancer care from prevention to treatment and survivorship. The report also covers a full range of clinical research disciplines, providing expert perspectives on the impact of specificresearch findings on patient care.

"This report shows marked achievements in precision medicine and overcoming treatment resistance," said Bruce J. Roth, MD, Co-Executive Editor of the report. "But tragically, cancer kills more than half a million people each year in the United States alone, and its global burden is rising. Despite difficult economic times, it is absolutely necessary to preserve our nation's investment in cancer research to maintain the pace of discovery that improves outcomes for all people with cancer."

Clinical Cancer Advances, now in its eighth year, has served as an educational resource for residents and fellows, placing research in the context of clinical need and drawing attention to open questions where more investigation is needed. Busy practicing oncologists may also look to the document to catch up on the most promising developments and trends outside of their area of expertise. In addition, the report may be used as a quick resource on FDA approvals and clinical practice guidelines for the past year.

Many of the top clinical research advances of 2012 involve therapeutic approaches that stem from the oncology community's growing understanding of the complex biology of cancer, which enables development of targeted drugs and treatments tailored to molecular characteristics of individual patients and their tumors. This research has led to seven new FDA approvals for anticancer agents in 2012, some of which will help patients with treatmentresistant forms of cancer.

The top advances include:

• New targeted drugs for patients with advanced colorectal and prostate cancers, skin cancer, and treatmentresistant forms of thyroid cancer and soft tissue sarcoma
• New combination therapies for patients with breast cancer, chemotherapy-resistant ovarian cancer, esophageal and gastroesophageal junction cancers, and advanced lung cancer
• A maintenance therapy to delay multiple myeloma relapse
• A potential new screening modality for colorectal cancer
• Promising treatments for chemotherapy-induced nausea and pain
• A predictive model for assessing chemotherapy risks in elderly patients

This year's report was compiled and edited under the guidance of 21 renowned experts in specific fields of cancer research. The editors reviewed research published in peer-reviewed scientific or medical journals and presented at major scientific meetings over a one-year period (October 2011-September 2012).

Policy developments

"The Policy Environment: ASCO in Action in 2012" is a section of the report that outlines important policy developments that have affected oncology over the past year and highlights related ASCO initiatives aimed at creating an environment where faster progress can be made against cancer. Topics covered in this section include:

• Threats to federal funding of cancer research
• ASCO's initiative to build a rapid learning system for oncology (CancerLinQ™)
• ASCO's recommendations to tackle drug shortages
• Recommendations for improving quality and value in cancer care (Choosing Wisely^® campaign and ASCO's Top Five list)

The report was published online in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (jco.ascopubs.org) on December 3, 2012. The illustrated version of the report with additional resources is available at cancerprogress.net/cca.