2026 ASCO Breast Cancer Highlights: Food Access, Poverty, and MBC

Harold Burstein, MD, PhD, and Rachel Freedman, MD, MPH discuss the results of a new study looking at the impact of food access and poverty on patients with metastatic breast cancer. They also discuss the new Dana-Farber food pantry and patient navigators who help coordinate care.

October 15, 2026

Dana-Farber

Overview

Harold Burstein, MD, PhD, and Rachel Freedman, MD, MPH, discuss a study examining food access, poverty, tumor genomic profiles, and clinical outcomes in metastatic breast cancer (MBC). The discussion also covers the Dana-Farber food pantry and patient navigators who help coordinate care. The supplied study context reports associations between neighborhood deprivation, tumor profiles, targeted treatment use, and survival.

Background

MBC treatment strategies are guided by tumor biology and clinical factors, while NCCN guidance also emphasizes supportive care, quality of life, and minimizing toxicity. Social needs such as food access and poverty are relevant to oncology care: the 2026 ASCO Patient-Clinician Communication guideline update recommends screening for health-related social needs and linking patients to appropriate supports. The featured study examines whether food access and poverty are associated with somatic genomic profiles and clinical outcomes in MBC. The video context describes a food pantry and patient navigators as supports at Dana-Farber.

Data Highlights

Evidence	Reported finding
2026 MBC study, as summarized in the supplied web research context	Patients living in neighborhoods with higher area deprivation had different tumor genomic profiles, including more frequent TP53 mutations; they were less likely to receive targeted agents such as PI3K inhibitors and had shorter overall survival than patients from less-deprived areas.
National analysis of cancer survivors with medical financial hardship (2026)	The supplied context reports higher adjusted odds of food insecurity, housing insecurity, and transportation barriers among survivors experiencing medical financial hardship; numerical estimates were not provided.

Key Findings

The featured ASCO discussion concerns the impact of food access and poverty on patients with MBC.
The related 2026 study is titled “Impact of food access and poverty on somatic genomic profiles and clinical outcomes in metastatic breast cancer.”
As summarized in the supplied research context, higher neighborhood deprivation was associated with different tumor genomic profiles, including more frequent TP53 mutations.
Patients from more-deprived neighborhoods were reported to be less likely to receive targeted agents such as PI3K inhibitors and to have shorter overall survival than those from less-deprived neighborhoods.
The video context identifies a Dana-Farber food pantry and patient navigators who help coordinate care.
The supplied description of the 2026 ASCO communication guideline says it recommends screening for health-related social needs and connecting patients with appropriate supports.

Clinical Implications

The supplied ASCO guideline context supports screening for health-related social needs and linking patients to appropriate supports to address treatment barriers. The video describes the Dana-Farber food pantry and patient navigators as local resources; the supplied material does not specify eligibility criteria or evaluate their outcomes.

Conclusion

The ASCO discussion and related study place food access and poverty alongside genomic profiles, targeted treatment use, and outcomes in MBC. The supplied context also describes food assistance and navigation resources and guideline support for identifying and addressing social needs.