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breast cancer
solid tumors
issues in oncology

Racial Disparities in Early Supportive Medication Use and End-of-Life Care Among Medicare Patients With Stage IV Breast Cancer

In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Check et al identified disparities in supportive medication use and end-of-life care between black and white Medicare patients with stage IV breast cancer. Study Details The study involved SEER (Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End...

Breast Cancer

Is Male Breast Cancer Overlooked in Clinical Trials?

Three and a half years ago, Oliver Bogler, PhD, a cancer biologist and Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, saw his personal and professional worlds collide. He received a cancer diagnosis—one that mirrored his wife’s. “Some might say that ...

Breast Cancer

Dr. Susan Love: Time to Address ‘Collateral Damage’ of Breast Cancer Treatment

The “collateral damage” of cancer treatment is a topic that is familiar to Susan Love, MD, MBA. As a breast cancer surgeon and chief visionary officer of Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation, she has learned much about the consequences of cancer treatment. But she came by an important aspect of her...

Breast Cancer

Young Women Require Formal Assessment to Identify Breast Cancer Risk

Half of the young women presenting to an academic surgical breast practice would qualify for mammography screening starting at age 40. According to the newly updated guidelines, these young at-risk women may be missed, researchers reported at the 2016 American Society of Breast Surgeons (ASBS)...

Breast Cancer
Prostate Cancer
Hematologic Malignancies

Highlights From the 2016 AACR Annual Meeting

This year’s Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) featured outstanding research in the field of cancer, as well as an inspiring talk by Vice President Joe Biden (see the May 10 issue of The ASCO Post). Here are some summaries of studies that warrant attention; they...

Breast Cancer

Breast Cancer Research Foundation: Revitalizing Academic Research in Breast Cancer Through Drug Research Collaborative

When Evelyn H. Lauder was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1989, she became a vocal spokesperson for women’s health, and in 1993, along with Larry Norton, MD, now Deputy Physician-in-Chief for Breast Cancer Programs and Medical Director of the Evelyn H. Lauder Breast Center at Memorial Sloan...

Gynecologic Cancers
Multiple Myeloma
Skin Cancer
Pancreatic Cancer
Lung Cancer
Prostate Cancer
Breast Cancer
Survivorship

NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines®): 2016 Guidelines

In 1996, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN®) published its first set of Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology® (NCCN Guidelines®), covering eight tumor types. The NCCN Guidelines® are now published for more than 60 tumor types and topics. Some of the key updates for 2016 were...

Breast Cancer

Meta-analysis of Breast Cancer Studies Demonstrates Value of Pathologic Complete Response

In a meta-analysis of neoadjuvant studies totaling over 18,000 patients, achievement of pathologic complete response was associated with significantly reduced disease recurrence and mortality across the various breast cancer subtypes. Laura Spring, MD, a senior medical oncology fellow at...

breast cancer

Long-Term Survival Benefit With Adjuvant Tamoxifen in Premenopausal Women With Estrogen Receptor–Positive Breast Cancer

As reported by Ekholm et al in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, 25-year follow-up of a Swedish phase III trial suggests a survival benefit with 2 years of adjuvant tamoxifen vs no systemic treatment in premenopausal women with estrogen receptor–positive stage II primary breast cancer. Study ...

breast cancer
solid tumors

Study Finds No Benefit of Adding Pictilisib to Fulvestrant in Aromatase Inhibitor–Resistant Breast Cancer

Adding the PI3K inhibitor pictilisib to fulvestrant (Faslodex) did not improve progression-free survival in women with estrogen receptor–positive, HER2-negative, aromatase inhibitor–resistant advanced breast cancer, according to the phase II FERGI trial reported in The Lancet Oncology...

breast cancer
solid tumors

Physician Recommendation May Influence Racial Disparity in BRCA1/2 Testing in Women With Breast Cancer

A disparity in BRCA1/2 testing between white and black women was influenced by patient-reported physician recommendation, in a population-based study reported by McCarthy et al in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Study Details The study involved data from 3,016 women (69% white, 31% black) in...

breast cancer

Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine Affects Breast Cancer Chemotherapy Initiation

Women with early-stage breast cancer for whom chemotherapy was indicated and who used dietary supplements and multiple types of complementary and alternative medicine were less likely to start chemotherapy than nonusers of alternative therapies, according to research led by Heather Greenlee, ND,...

breast cancer
solid tumors

Adding Bevacizumab to Letrozole Improves Progression-Free Survival but Increases Toxicity in Metastatic Breast Cancer

The addition of bevacizumab (Avastin) to first-line endocrine therapy with letrozole improved progression-free survival but increased toxicity among postmenopausal women with hormone receptor–positive metastatic breast cancer, according to the results of the phase III CALGB 40503/Alliance...

breast cancer

Same vs Different Order for Second Readings of Mammograms in Rates of Breast Cancer Detection

A new study has found there is no decline over time in the accuracy of medical staff who analyze mammogram scans for indications of breast cancer. Researchers at the University of Warwick investigated whether detection rates dropped toward the end of each batch of mammogram readings. The study...

breast cancer
gastrointestinal cancer

Pembrolizumab Active in PD-L1–Positive Advanced Gastric and Metastatic Triple-Negative Breast Cancers

As reported by Muro et al in The Lancet Oncology and Nanda et al in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, single-agent pembrolizumab (Keytruda) showed activity in programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1)–positive advanced gastric cancer and metastatic triple-negative breast cancer in the...

breast cancer

Women With Breast Cancer Who Are Knowledgeable About Their Tumor Characteristics Are More Likely to Receive Guideline-Recommended Treatment

Women with breast cancer who know the characteristics of their tumor are more likely to receive the treatment recommended for their type of cancer, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute investigators reported in a new study. The study, published by Freedman et al in the Journal of Oncology Practice, is...

breast cancer

No Progression-Free Survival Benefit for First-Line Neratinib/Paclitaxel vs Trastuzumab/Paclitaxel in Metastatic HER2-Positive Breast Cancer

In the phase III NEfERT-T trial reported in JAMA Oncology, Awada et al found no progression-free survival benefit of neratinib/paclitaxel vs trastuzumab (Herceptin)/paclitaxel in previously untreated inoperable recurrent or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer. A potential benefit of...

Breast Cancer

Hormone Combination Therapy May Increase Risk of Breast Cancer in African American Women

The use of combination therapy with estrogen plus progestin, previously shown to be associated with an increased incidence of estrogen receptor–positive breast cancer in postmenopausal women in studies based largely on white women, has been shown to increase estrogen receptor–positive breast cancer ...

Breast Cancer

Some Diagnostic Variability in Interpreting Breast Biopsy Slides

Pathologists disagree about 8% of the time when interpreting a single breast biopsy slide, with more overinterpretation than underinterpretation in discordant cases, according to an analysis combining results from the B-Path (Breast Pathology) study with data on the prevalence of breast cancer...

Breast Cancer

Improved Survival With Shorter Delays Between Diagnosis and Surgery and Before Initiating Adjuvant Chemotherapy

The survival benefits of reducing the time to surgery following a diagnosis of breast cancer and the time to initiation of adjuvant chemotherapy following surgery were outlined in two articles and an accompanying editorial in JAMA Oncology. Analyzing two independent population-based studies with a...

Breast Cancer

Recurrences Observed in More Than 50% of Inadequately Treated Patients With Ductal Carcinoma in Situ

A mid much debate about the potential for overly aggressive treatment of ductal carcinoma in situ comes a study that gives one pause. According to research presented at the 17th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Breast Surgeons, more than half of all women with ductal carcinoma in situ that ...

Breast Cancer

Sheldon M. Feldman, MD, Named President of ASBrS

Sheldon M. Feldman, MD, was named President of the American Society of Breast Surgeons (ASBrS) at the organization’s 2016 Annual Meeting in Dallas, Texas.  Dr. Feldman is the Chief of Breast Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center and the Vivian L. Milstein Associate...

Breast Cancer

Shedding Light on a Cornucopia of Breast Tumor Biomarker Assays

As our understanding of the complexities of breast cancer expands, so does our treatment armamentarium—and along with it the range of factors that must be included in our treatment decisions. Gone is the simple algorithm of adjuvant chemotherapy for almost every patient with a ≥ 2-cm tumor, except...

Breast Cancer

ASCO Guideline on Use of Biomarkers to Guide Decisions on Adjuvant Systemic Therapy in Early-Stage Invasive Breast Cancer

As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Lyndsay N. Harris, MD, and colleagues,1 ASCO has released a clinical practice guideline on the use of biomarkers in addition to estrogen receptor/progesterone receptor and HER2 status to guide decisions on adjuvant systemic therapy in women with...

Breast Cancer

First Results From MINDACT Confirm the Benefit of Genomic Profiling

The primary analysis of the MINDACT trial confirms the value of genomic profiling for patients with early breast cancer with zero to three positive lymph nodes, according to MINDACT investigators and breast cancer specialists who heard the results at the 2016 American Association of Cancer Research ...

Breast Cancer

Ado-Trastuzumab Emtansine Plus Pertuzumab: Promising Neoadjuvant Results for HER2-Positive Breast Cancer From the I-SPY 2 Trial

The combination of ado-trastuzumab emtansine (Kadcyla) plus pertuzumab (Perjeta) is a worthy combination to pursue in phase III studies as neoadjuvant therapy for HER2-positive invasive breast cancer, according to findings in the I-SPY 2 trial presented at the 2016 Annual Meeting of the American...

breast cancer

ESTRO 2016: New Study Sheds Light on Mastectomy vs Breast-Conserving Therapy in Older vs Younger Patients With Early Breast Cancer

New research presented at the ESTRO 35 Conference on April 30 (Abstract OC-0052) has shown women aged younger than 45 years with early-stage breast cancer that had not spread to the lymph nodes and who opted for breast-conserving therapy with radiation therapy had a 13% higher risk of developing a...

breast cancer

Study Finds No Association Between Anthracycline-Based Chemotherapy and Cognitive Decline in Women With Breast Cancer

A new study by University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) researchers published by Van Dyk et al in JAMA Oncology found that commonly used chemotherapy drugs showed no association with cognitive decline following treatment in women with breast cancer. The report addresses recent concerns that the ...

breast cancer

Cancer Screening Using Digital Mammography Alone or With Tomosynthesis in Varying Breast Densities

In a study published by Rafferty et al in JAMA, Elizabeth A. Rafferty, MD, formerly of Massachusetts General Hospital, and colleagues evaluated the screening performance of digital mammography combined with tomosynthesis compared with digital mammography alone for women with varying levels of...

breast cancer

Poor Understandability of Dense Breast Notifications Sent to Women Following Screening Mammography

In a study published by Kressin et al in JAMA, Nancy R. Kressin, PhD, of the Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, Boston University School of Medicine, and colleagues examined the content, readability, and understandability of dense breast notifications sent to women following screening...

breast cancer

Canadian Study Suggests Increased Risk of Cardiac Dysfunction With Trastuzumab-Based Regimens for Breast Cancer

In a Canadian retrospective population-based cohort study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Thavendiranathan et al found that trastuzumab (Herceptin)-based regimens were associated with an increased risk of treatment-related cardiac dysfunction among women with breast cancer, with an...

breast cancer

ASCO Adapts CCO Guideline on Selection of Optimal Adjuvant Therapy for Breast Cancer

ASCO has adapted a Clinical Care Ontario (CCO) clinical practice guideline on the selection of optimal adjuvant chemotherapy for early breast cancer and adjuvant targeted therapy for HER2-positive breast cancer, as reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. The adaptation was based on review by...

breast cancer

Addition of Everolimus to Trastuzumab and Chemotherapy May Benefit Some Patients With Advanced HER2-Positive Breast Cancer

In an analysis of the phase III BOLERO trials reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, André et al found that the addition of everolimus (Afinitor) to trastuzumab (Herceptin) and chemotherapy was associated with a progression-free survival benefit in advanced HER2-positive breast cancer ...

breast cancer

AACR 2016: Neoadjuvant Trastuzumab Emtansine Plus Pertuzumab May Improve Outcomes for Women With HER2-Positive Breast Cancer

Results from the I-SPY 2 TRIAL show that a neoadjuvant therapy combination of the antibody-drug conjugate ado-trastuzumab emtansine (Kadcyla) and pertuzumab (Perjeta) was more beneficial than paclitaxel plus trastuzumab for women with HER2-positive invasive breast cancer, according to research...

Breast Cancer

Quality-of-Life Benefits of Contralateral Prophylactic Mastectomy May Be Too Small to Be Clinically Meaningful

Women diagnosed with breast cancer who chose contralateral prophylactic mastectomy reported improvement in psychosocial well-being and breast satisfaction, but “the magnitude of the effect may be too small to be clinically meaningful,” according to a study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.1...

Breast Cancer

Praise for the ACS/ASCO Breast Cancer Survivorship Care Guideline

The recent publication of the American Cancer Society (ACS)/ASCO breast cancer survivorship care guideline is a tremendous contribution to the literature and should provide a roadmap for providers who care for patients with a history of breast cancer for years to come.1,2 The guideline, reported by ...

Breast Cancer

ACS/ASCO Breast Cancer Survivorship Care Guideline

The American Cancer Society (ACS) and ASCO have issued a Breast Cancer Survivorship Care guideline, published jointly in the Journal of Clinical Oncology and CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.1,2 The guideline recommendations were formulated by a multidisciplinary expert work group and are based...

breast cancer
survivorship

AACR 2016: Genomic Variants May Influence Risk for Breast Cancer After Chest Radiotherapy to Treat Childhood Cancer

Among females who received radiotherapy to the chest as part of treatment for a childhood cancer, those who had either of two specific genetic variants were at significantly higher risk of developing breast cancer later in life, according to research presented by Morton et al at the 2016 AACR...

breast cancer

Adjuvant Trastuzumab May Be Insufficiently Used in Older Women With Breast Cancer

Reeder-Hayes et al found that adjuvant trastuzumab (Herceptin) may be underused in older women with early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer and reported their study results in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Adjuvant trastuzumab also was used less often in black women than in white women. Rates...

Breast Cancer

DigniCap Scalp-Cooling System Now Available for Women With Breast Cancer at 10 U.S. Cancer Treatment Centers

Dignitana Inc. recently announced that the DigniCap scalp cooling system, which was cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in December 2015 to effectively reduce the likelihood of chemotherapy-induced hair loss in women with breast cancer, is now available at 10 cancer treatment...

Breast Cancer

Neoadjuvant Endocrine Therapy Vastly Underutilized by U.S. Clinicians

Neoadjuvant endocrine therapy in the management of breast cancer is woefully underutilized by U.S. clinicians, according to advocates of this approach who made their case at the 2016 Miami Breast Cancer Conference.1 In postmenopausal women with estrogen receptor–rich tumors, neoadjuvant endocrine...

Breast Cancer

In Ductal Carcinoma in Situ, Benefit of Wider Margins Tied to Radiation Use

The relationship between margin width and risk of recurrence after breast-conserving surgery for ductal carcinoma in situ depends on the use of radiation, according to a surgical oncologist who sought to determine the optimal margin width in these patients.1 “Positive margins are associated with an ...

breast cancer

AACR 2016: Delays in Radiation Therapy Increase Chance of Breast Tumor Development in Women Treated for DCIS

Women who underwent treatment for ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) were at higher risk of developing malignant breast tumors if they did not receive timely radiation therapy as part of their treatment, according to a study presented by Liu et al at the 2016 AACR Annual Meeting (Abstract 2576). DCIS ...

Breast Cancer

Novel Strategies Emerging for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Compelling hypotheses are emerging about the mechanisms driving triple-negative breast cancer, and they are driving drug development in this area, according to Joyce O’Shaughnessy, MD, Celebrating Women Chair of Breast Cancer Research at Baylor Charles A. Sammons Cancer Center. She is also Medical...

breast cancer

AACR 2016: Palbociclib Shows Antiproliferative Activity in Early-Stage Breast Cancer

The molecularly targeted therapeutic palbociclib (Ibrance) was effective in slowing the multiplication of cancer cells in patients diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer who received no prior therapy, according to data from a phase II clinical trial presented by Arnedos et al at the 2016 AACR...

breast cancer

French Study Suggests No Apparent Benefit of Bevacizumab in Nonmetastatic HER2-Negative Inflammatory Breast Cancer

In a French single-arm phase II study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Bertucci et al found little evidence of benefit from the addition of bevacizumab (Avastin) to neoadjuvant and adjuvant therapies in women with nonmetastatic HER2-negative inflammatory breast cancer. Study Details In the study, ...

breast cancer

AACR 2016: MammaPrint Genetic Test Can Reduce Use of Adjuvant Chemotherapy Among Early-Stage Breast Cancer Patients

Among patients with early-stage breast cancer who were considered at high risk for disease recurrence based on clinical and biologic criteria, the MammaPrint genetic test identified a large group of patients for whom 5-year distant metastasis–free survival was equally good whether or not they ...

breast cancer

ASBS 2016: Fertility Counseling in Women of Childbearing Age After Breast Cancer

Despite recent advances in assisted reproductive technology for women with breast cancer, documented fertility counseling at diagnosis remains low, while 89% of those made aware of their options sought specialized consultation for reproductive preservation. Almost 50% of these women chose one of...

breast cancer

Greatest Benefit of Adjuvant Exemestane Seen in Premenopausal Women at Higher Risk of Breast Cancer Recurrence

In an analysis of the SOFT and TEXT trials reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Regan et al found that the greatest benefit of adjuvant exemestane in reducing breast cancer recurrence was among women with the highest risk of recurrence on the basis of clinicopathologic characteristics....

breast cancer

Use of 21-Gene Recurrence Score Assay in Early-Stage Breast Cancer

The 21-gene recurrence score (RS) assay score was strongly associated with recommendation for adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with early-stage breast cancer, reported Jasem et al in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Black women and patients treated in community facilities were more likely to...

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