October 25, 2016 (View All Issues)
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Combination of Ribociclib and Letrozole Improved Progression-Free Survival in Hormone Receptor–Positive Advanced Breast Cancer
The combination of the selective CDK4/6 inhibitor ribociclib plus letrozole significantly improved progression-free survival in hormone receptor–positive advanced breast cancer. When ribociclib was added to letrozole, progression-free survival improved by 44% compared with letrozole...
Study Shows Strong Evidence Supporting Radiation Boost to Tumor Bed in Ductal Carcinoma in Situ
A radiation boost to the local tumor bed following treatment with breast-conserving therapy (ie, local excision followed by whole-breast radiation therapy) improves local control for patients with ductal carcinoma in situ, according to a study of pooled data from 10 academic centers,1 presented at...
‘Dear Presidential Candidates’: A Letter From an Oncologist
Dear Presidential Candidates:
Wouldn’t it be great if history’s Alexander the Great was actually Dr. Alexander Fleming, the doctor-scientist who saved millions of lives by discovering penicillin, rather than the other Alexander, who conquered and killed thousands of innocent people? Wouldn’t it be ...
Retrospective Studies Confirm Survival Benefit of Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy in Early-Stage NSCLC
Stereotactic body radiation therapy is becoming more widely adopted for the treatment of early-stage non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Along with its increasing uptake, survival has significantly increased over the past decade, according to two large retrospective studies presented at the 58th...
Safety of Extreme Hypofractionation Reassuring in Intermediate-Risk Prostate Cancer
Giving patients larger fractions of radiation over shorter periods (ie, hypofractionation) is gaining ground in several types of cancers. This approach is attractive for patients’ convenience, shortening treatment and travel times, and also for resource utilization.
Several studies...
Stereotactic Radiosurgery Achieves Better Quality of Life and Improved Cognition Than Whole-Brain Radiotherapy
Two separate randomized trials presented at the 58th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) affirmed the value of stereotactic radiosurgery as an option for postoperative treatment of the surgical cavity of resected brain metastases, potentially avoiding the cognitive...
Yanis Boumber, MD, PhD, Returns to Fox Chase, Department of Thoracic Oncology and Molecular Therapeutics Program
Yanis Boumber, MD, PhD, has joined the Department of Thoracic Medical Oncology and the Molecular Therapeutics Program at Fox Chase Cancer Center.
Dr. Boumber first joined Fox Chase’s Department of Medical Oncology in 2013 and now returns to Fox Chase from the University of New Mexico...
Nancy E. Davidson, MD, to Lead Fred Hutchinson/University of Washington Cancer Consortium
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center announced that Nancy E. Davidson, MD, Director of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, has accepted the position of Executive Director of the Fred Hutchinson/University of Washington Cancer Consortium—1 of the 47 National Cancer...
Prognostic and Predictive Molecular Subtypes of Prostate Cancer Identified
Members of the oncology community have long complained that prostate cancer lags behind breast cancer regarding biomarkers for prognosis and treatment, but the good news is that this gap is narrowing. In the largest study of its kind to date, presented at the 58th Annual Meeting of the American...
NCCN Issues New Clinical Practice Guidelines for Myeloproliferative Neoplasms
Myeloproliferative neoplasms are a group of blood cancers characterized by significant symptoms and a high risk of transformation into acute leukemia. These cancers—myelofibrosis, essential thrombocythemia, and polycythemia vera—affect approximately 13,000; 134,000; and 148,000 patients ...
Breast Cancer Study Finds Higher Mortality Rate in Black Women Than White Women, and the Disparity Is Growing
The Avon Foundation for Women recently released a new study on the racial disparities in breast cancer mortality in the 50 largest cities in the United States between 2005 and 2014. Published in Cancer Epidemiology,1 the study was conducted by Sinai Urban Health Institute in collaboration with the...
Consensus on Defining and Measuring Lymphedema Is Needed to Advance Efforts to Intervene Early and Prevent Progression
“Early intervention might prevent lymphedema progression,” Alphonse Taghian, MD, PhD, said at the 18th Annual Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Symposium in Chicago, but the lack of a universal definition of lymphedema and agreement on how to optimally measure it impedes phase III studies to test ...
German Society Salutes ‘Big Four’ for Pioneering Work in Women’s Health Care
Diethelm Wallwiener, MD, President of the German Society for Gynaecology and Obstetrics, announced “The Big Four of the Millennium” at the 61st Congress of the Society, held recently in Stuttgart, Germany. The award recognizes individuals’ whose work in the 20th century created the standards of...
NIH Expands National Precision Medicine Initiative Cohort Program
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced awards to add four regional medical center groups to the national network of health-care provider organizations that will implement the Precision Medicine Initiative Cohort Program. Combined, the new health-care provider organizations will...
With Changing Strategies for Laryngeal Cancer, Multidisciplinary Team Approach Is Key
The treatment of cancer of the larynx has changed dramatically in recent years. With organ preservation now possible in many cases, it is more important than ever for patients to receive guidance from every corner of the field. In a recent article in the Journal of Oncology Practice...
Huntsman Cancer Institute Names Ben Tanner Executive Director
University of Utah Health Care (UUHC) has named Ben Tanner, Huntsman Cancer Institute’s current Director of Clinical Operations and Chief Operating Officer (COO), as the Institute’s Executive Director, replacing Ray Lynch, who is retiring after 13 years of service.
Mr. Tanner has been COO of...
UPMC Honors Stanley M. Marks, MD, With Endowed Chair in Hematology/Oncology Leadership
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) announced that Stanley M. Marks, MD, oncologist and advocate for cancer patients throughout the western Pennsylvania region, is being honored by the UPMC and his medical partners at Oncology Hematology Association (OHA) through the establishment...
Mount Sinai and Thomas Jefferson University Researchers Receive Falk Foundation Grant to Study Uveal Melanoma
Uveal melanoma is the second most common type of skin cancer. Approximately 50% of patients with uveal melanoma will develop metastasis, most commonly to the liver. The disease can appear more than 10 years after the primary lesion has been removed, lying dormant for long periods. There are...
Quality Science at ESMO 2016
Andrés Cervantes, MD, PhD, Scientific Chair of the 2016 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress, concluded the meeting earlier this month by recognizing a number of important take-home messages. At a closing press conference, Dr. Cervantes noted that the “ESMO 2016 Congress has...
Adjuvant Ipilimumab Improves Survival in High-Risk Melanoma
Patients with stage III melanoma who were considered to be at high risk for recurrence derived an overall survival benefit from adjuvant treatment with ipilimumab (Yervoy), although it came at the price of considerable toxicity, according to updated survival results from the phase III...
SGO and ASCO Clinical Practice Guideline on Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Newly Diagnosed Advanced Ovarian Cancer
As reported by Alexi A. Wright, MD, MPH, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and colleagues in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, ASCO and the Society of Gynecologic Oncology (SGO) have released a clinical practice guideline on neoadjuvant therapy for patients with newly diagnosed stage IIIC or IV...
What We Know and What We Need to Know About Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Advanced Ovarian Cancer
Ever since the landmark studies of Griffiths and colleagues in the 1970s,1 primary cytoreductive surgery followed by chemotherapy with the objective of achieving minimal residual disease has been the standard approach for women with advanced-stage epithelial ovarian cancer. However,...
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Sanger Institute, UK Agree to Full Exchange of Cancer Data
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, UK, have agreed to a full exchange of cancer mutation data to support the discovery and understanding of genetic mutations causing cancers. The agreement will provide regular updates and exchanges of data between both...
Margins for Breast-Conserving Surgery With Whole-Breast Irradiation in Ductal Carcinoma in Situ
A clinical practice guideline on margins for breast-conserving surgery with whole-breast irradiation in ductal carcinoma in situ has been jointly developed by the Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO), the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), and ASCO.1-3 The recommendations were...
New SSO-ASTRO-ASCO Clinical Practice Guideline Clarifies the Question of Margins for Breast-Conserving Surgery in Ductal Carcinoma in Situ
In 2014, the Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO) and the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) published a “Consensus Guideline on Margins for Breast-Conserving Surgery With Whole-Breast Irradiation in Stages I and II Invasive Breast Cancer.”1 A multidisciplinary expert guideline used a...
Modification of Dosage Regimen for Nivolumab in Renal Cell Carcinoma, Melanoma, and NSCLC
In the Clinic provides overviews of novel oncology agents, addressing indications, mechanisms, administration recommendations, safety profiles, and other essential information needed for the appropriate clinical use of these drugs.
On September 13, 2016, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration...
COA Releases 2016 Community Oncology Practice Impact Report
On October 4, the Community Oncology Alliance (COA) released the 2016 Community Oncology Practice Impact Report, which tracks the changing landscape of cancer care in the United States. It documents a 121% increase in community cancer clinic closings and a 172% increase in consolidation into...
Precision Promise Clinical Trial Focuses on Precision Medicine, Collaboration, and Data-Sharing in Pancreatic Cancer
The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network recently announced Precision Promise, the first large-scale precision medicine trial designed to transform outcomes for patients with pancreatic cancer. The organization also announced the 12 initial Precision Promise Clinical Trial Consortium sites selected to...
Free PQRS Reporting Now Available Through QOPI®; No Additional Reporting Required
ASCO is pleased to announce that oncology practices can now complete all of their Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS)1 requirements through the Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI®) platform. All users will be able to use the QOPI system to fulfill the Oncology Measures Group set of 7...
ASCO Presents First-Ever ASCO Congressional Leadership Award to Representative Michael Burgess, MD
ASCO presented Representative Michael Burgess, MD (TX-26) with the Society’s first-ever ASCO Congressional Leadership Award to recognize his steadfast work to advance policies that support cancer research and treatment. This new, annual award honors a Member of Congress who is a dedicated...
New Member Categories Provide Specialized Support to Cancer Care Team Members
As part of ASCO’s ongoing effort to fully support all members of the cancer care team, it recently created three new member categories: Advanced Practice Providers, Practice Administrators, and Patient Advocates (see sidebar). Originally part of the Affiliated Health Professionals member...
Arti Hurria, MD: From Leadership Development Program to Board of Directors
Arti Hurria, MD, a geriatric oncologist at City of Hope in Duarte, California, is the first graduate of ASCO’s Leadership Development Program to be elected to ASCO’s Board of Directors. Within 5 years of completing the program, Dr. Hurria went from learning leadership skills to applying them to...
Leave a Legacy of Hope
By including a planned gift to the Conquer Cancer Foundation in your estate plans, you can help make a dramatic difference for cancer patients years—even decades—into the future.
With just one small change to your will or trust, your planned gift of any size will deliver a big impact, and:
ASCO Answers Palliative Care: A Resource for Patients
ASCO Answers Palliative Care is an informative booklet that shows how palliative care is used to manage symptoms and side effects; help with practical concerns; address spiritual questions; and support family, friends, and caregivers at any stage of cancer. It also gives practical advice about...
When Breath Becomes Air: Dr. Lucy Kalanithi Reflects on Dr. Paul Kalanithi’s Life and Writing
Perhaps more than any other book in recent memory, When Breath Becomes Air has struck a chord among readers, both inside the medical community and among the public, desiring an honest and philosophical consideration of death.
The autobiographical account of Paul Kalanithi, MD, a physician...
Personalized Vaccines May Protect Patients With High-Risk Melanoma
The field of cancer vaccines may be reinvigorated by a new understanding, and the therapeutic leveraging, of neoantigens. Researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston are exploring this novel approach as a means of protecting patients with high-risk melanoma from recurrence....
Barriers and Opportunities Reported in the Study of Human Papillomavirus Education and Immunization Efforts
Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rates remain low across the United States, with fewer than 40% of girls and just over 21% of boys receiving the recommended vaccine series. Research from Roswell Park Cancer Institute has identified barriers that need to be overcome to improve vaccination...
Rise in Oropharyngeal Cancer Incidence in the UK Not Solely Driven by HPV
The rise in the incidence of oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma in the United Kingdom from 2002 to 2011 was not solely attributable to a rise in the incidence of human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive disease, according to a study published in Cancer Research,1 which reported that the proportion of ...
Sanford Research in South Dakota Receives NIH Grant in Head and Neck, Pediatric Cancers
The Cancer Biology Research Center at Sanford Research in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is the recipient of a 5-year, nearly $11.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to translate laboratory research into clinical trials for head and neck and pediatric cancers.
The grant was...
Using Pharmacogenetics to Predict Cancer Prognosis, Response to Treatment, and Toxicity
Although clinical trials are helpful in determining the effectiveness of a specific drug across a patient population, they are not as reliable at pinpointing how well a particular patient will respond to the drug or dosing regimen or how the drug may impact the patient’s quality of life from...
New NCCN Patient Resources Assist Decision-Making for Patients With Stomach Cancer
According to the American Cancer Society, it is estimated that more than 26,000 people will be diagnosed with stomach cancer in the United States this year, with nearly 1 million new cases diagnosed worldwide each year, according to the World Health Organization. Because there are no early symptoms ...
Bromelain
Scientific Names: Sulfydryl proteolytic enzyme, cysteine proteinase
Common Names: Ananase, Dayto Anase, Traumanase
Overview
Derived from the fruits and stems of pineapples, bromelain is a proteolytic enzyme that is used to treat burns and skin conditions, and as an anti-inflammatory agent....
Donor Selection for HLA-Matched Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation
Case Study
A 33-year-old white male is diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with complex cytogenetics. A decision is made in favor of performing allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation in first complete remission. The patient has a 35-year-old brother who is healthy and motivated to ...
Donor Selection for HLA-Matched Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation
Question 1: Which statement about donor selection for allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant is correct?
Correct Answer: C. If a donor is available, the genotypic identity between the patient and his brother should be established by typing the patient’s parents; if this is not possible, the...
Palliative Care Still in Its Infancy in Hematologic Malignancies
Palliative care is slowly but surely being integrated into the treatment of patients with solid tumors, but its role in the hematopoietic stem cell transplant setting is still lagging, speakers said at the 2016 Palliative Care in Oncology Symposium.
“There is a huge symptom burden...
Dexamethasone Mouth Rinse Should Be Routine Part of Everolimus Treatment
Dexamethasone mouth rinse should be given prophylactically to prevent stomatitis associated with everolimus (Afinitor)/exemestane in metastatic breast cancer, according to Hope S. Rugo, MD, principal investigator of the SWISH trial and Director of Breast Oncology and Clinical Trials...
Food as Medicine: Study Sets Out to Prove Its Effectiveness
Could the quality of life of patients with advanced-stage cancer be improved by personal delivery of nutritious, medically tailored meals? Researchers at the New York University School of Medicine Perlmutter Cancer Center think so, and they have set out to prove it in a randomized clinical trial.
...
Quality Improvement Project Results in Timelier Hospice Referrals
A quality improvement project conducted within the OhioHealth system showed that oncologists can change their behavior and refer patients earlier to hospice care. After a relatively minor intervention, 18 medical oncologists in private practice doubled the mean length of stay in hospice ...
Cedars-Sinai Appoints Robert A. Figlin, MD, to Lead New Initiative to Integrate Cancer Care Across Health System
Cedars-Sinai recently announced it has appointed Robert A. Figlin, MD, to integrate research and clinical strategies across the organization in an effort to standardize cancer care and ensure optimal treatment of patients. Dr. Figlin will serve as Deputy Director of the Integrated Oncology...
The Medicinal Power of Minerals
In September, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History, opened the Minerals in Medicine exhibition at the NIH Clinical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. The exhibition, which includes more than 40 minerals and metals...
A Cancer Diagnosis Brings Two Sisters Back Together
Elizabeth Lesser is an award-winning writer and co-founder of the Omega Institute, the largest adult education center in the United States focusing on health, wellness, spirituality, and creativity. She is the author of several acclaimed books including Broken Open: How Difficult Times Can Help ...
Lombardi’s Ruesch Center Policy Briefing Features Strategies to Reduce Costs
Two major developments in oncology—the dramatic success of some immunotherapies and targeted drugs and an equally dramatic rise in the cost of care—have created policy issues, more serious than ever, regarding access to care.
It is a time “of extraordinary opportunities combined with inequities...
New American Cancer Society Report Reveals Gaps, Identifies Unique Barriers in Pediatric Cancer Research
A first-of-its-kind joint report from the American Cancer Society and the Alliance for Childhood Cancer has compiled the latest information related to pediatric cancer, including statistics and trends; a current list of drugs used to treat pediatric cancers; ongoing pediatric cancer...
Clinical Trials Actively Recruiting Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer
Pilot
Study Title: Pilot Study of 18F-FLT-PET Imaging of the Brain in Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer to the Brain Treated With Whole-Brain Radiation Therapy With or Without Sorafenib: Comparison With MR Imaging of the Brain
Study Type: Pilot/interventional/parallel assignment
Study...
2016-2017 Oncology Meetings
OCTOBER
16th Biennial Meeting of the International Gynecologic Cancer Society
October 29-31 • Lisbon, Portugal
For more information:
http://igcs2016.com
NOVEMBER
2016 Oncofertility Conference: Expanding Access to Emerging and Existing Oncofertility Services
November 1-3 • Chicago, Illinois
For more...
Face Mask for Radiation Therapy
By the 1930s, the dangers of radiation were well known. American Martyr’s to Science Through the Roentgen Rays, published in 1936, documented the dead heroes of American radiology, from Clarence Daly, Thomas Edison’s associate, to Elizabeth Fleischman, the only woman in the group, who was a U.S....
Affordable Care Act Increased Access to Cancer Care and Clinical Trial Participation Among Hispanics in California
Implementation of the Affordable Care Act may have led to a significant increase in the number of Hispanic breast cancer patients treated in California at a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated cancer center. Further, there was also an increase reported in the number of Hispanic women who...
Study Finds African American Cancer Survivors More Likely to Experience Lasting Debt Related to Cancer and Its Treatment
African American cancer survivors are more likely than whites to experience lasting debt or forgo necessary medical care as they struggle with the financial burden of cancer, whereas white cancer survivors are somewhat more likely to use existing assets to pay for their cancer care, according to a...
My Catch-22 Predicament
In the spring of 2011, I was feeling so fatigued I needed to rest after walking just a few steps to the kitchen and not doing anything more strenuous than making a cup of coffee. Fortunately, I have a wonderful primary care physician who takes me seriously when I have a complaint about...
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Selects Moffitt Cancer Center as One of Five Cell Therapies Processing Facilities
Moffitt Cancer Center has been selected as a Cell Therapies Processing Facility by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health.
Moffitt is one of five institutions that make up the NHLBI’s Production Assistance for Cellular Therapies group. The...
ASCO Issues Global Recommendations to Increase Cervical Cancer Screening
Earlier this month, ASCO issued a new global guideline on screening for cervical cancer.1 The guideline provides evidence-based recommendations for screening, follow-up of positive screening results, and treatment of women with cervical precancers in countries worldwide.
ASCO’s...
Key Guideline Recommendations
Human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing is recommended in all resource settings; visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) may be used in the basic setting as a “stepping stone” that helps build health service capacity until HPV testing becomes available. Although cotesting with HPV and Papanicolaou...
Genetic Characteristics of Recurrent and Metastatic Head and Neck Cancers
Next-generation sequencing of recurrent or metastatic head and neck tumors at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) has provided insight into the molecular characteristics of these tumors, which may aid in the implementation of precision treatment. Luc G. Morris, MD, MSc, of Memorial Sloan...
Pembrolizumab in Recurrent or Metastatic Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Laura Q. Chow, MD, of the University of Washington, and colleagues, a fixed-dose reduced-frequency pembrolizumab (Keytruda) regimen produced durable responses in the phase IB KEYNOTE-012 expansion cohort of patients with recurrent or metastatic...
Similar Functional Outcomes With Robot-Assisted Laparoscopic and Open Radical Retropubic Prostatectomy
Robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy and open radical retropubic prostatectomy yielded similar domain-specific quality-of-life or pathologic outcomes at 12 weeks in men with newly diagnosed, clinically localized prostate cancer, according to the results of a randomized phase III trial reported ...
Venetoclax Monotherapy Safe and Clinically Active in Acute Myelogenous Leukemia
A phase II study has found venetoclax (Venclexta) to be clinically active in patients with high-risk relapsed/refractory acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) or those unfit for intensive chemotherapy, with an overall response rate of 19% and a tolerable safety profile. The study results, which were...
Minimal Residual Disease Assessment and Prediction of Outcome in CLL Responders
Assessment of minimal residual disease was associated with improved prediction of outcome in responders, as well as complete responders, in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who respond to treatment. Kovacs et al reported these findings, which are based on an analysis of two phase...
Evaluating the FDA’s Approach to Cancer Clinical Trials
Since the announcement of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Oncology Center of Excellence (OCE) on June 29, 2016, as part of the White House’s Cancer Moonshot, we’ve been working to further the FDA’s efforts to get new oncology products into the hands of patients. We are...
ASCO Applauds MACRA’s Focus on High-Quality, Patient-Centered Care
Editor’s note: As The ASCO Post went to press, the Department of Health & Human Services finalized a landmark new payment system for Medicare clinicians. The system, known as MACRA, (Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015), replaces the flawed Sustainable Growth Rate and will...
