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Showing 10151 - 10200Defining and Recognizing the Causes of Imatinib Resistance and the Importance of Adherence
Imatinib (Gleevec) is a highly effective therapy for the majority of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). In the IRIS study, only 30% of patients could be considered to have failed imatinib treatment after 6 years.1 However, these 30% of patients are a substantial minority. John Goldman,...
Beyond Molecular Monitoring: Cytogenetic Testing and Mutational Analysis in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia
Cytogenetic analysis remains an important component of patient monitoring until a complete cytogenetic response is achieved. In addition, the ability of conventional cytogenetics to identify additional chromosomal abnormalities not detected by fluorescence in situ hybridization is noteworthy. Jorge ...
Treatment Goals, Molecular Monitoring, and the Role and Use of Guideline Recommendations
The importance of achieving a certain level of response with imatinib (Gleevec) by 3 months in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) had previously been established in the IRIS (International Randomized Study of Interferon and STI571) trial.1 Analysis of data from this trial showed that...
CE Activity Instructions
*Corresponding author, MediCom Worldwide, Inc, 101 Washington Street, Morrisville, PA 19067, e-mail: gtombler@medicaled.com Activity Release Date: November 15, 2012Period of Validity: November 15, 2013 Program Overview This activity presents highlights from a satellite symposium held in...
Past ASCO President, John Ridgway Durant, MD, Dies at 82
John Ridgway Durant, MD, ASCO’s 20th President, was born on July 29th, 1930, and died on October 28th, 2012. Dates that mark a person’s birth and passing are made all the more significant by how that person filled the days that link the two milestones. Dr. Durant will be remembered fondly as a man...
Lower Risk of Recurrence in Patients with HBV-related Liver Cancer Receiving Nucleoside Analogs
Patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma who received nucleoside analogs after curative liver resection had an associated lower risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in a nationwide cohort study using data from the Taiwan National Health Research Data Base. The study was...
SIDEBAR: Expect Questions and Respond with Reasoned Explanations
“Soaring spending has presented the medical community with a new obligation. When choosing treatments for a patient, we have to consider the financial strains they may cause alongside the benefits they might deliver,” three physicians from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York...
MSKCC’s Decision Not to Purchase New Cancer Drug Sparks Editorial and Unprecedented Actions
“At Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, we recently made a decision that should have been a no-brainer: we are not going to give a phenomenally expensive new cancer drug to our patients.” That was the opening sentence of a New York Times op-ed piece written by three physicians from Memorial...
I Am Not a Victim
Six years ago, at age 62, I was feeling in great shape. The year before, I had taken over custody of my 2- and 3-year-old great-grandchildren and decided to change the course of my career from motivational speaker to motivational coach to be home more often with the kids. It was during one of our...
Dr. Jimmie C. Holland’s Research Has Long Underscored the Importance of Caring for the Whole Patient
Although internationally recognized today as the founder of the subspeciality of psycho-oncology, the field of psychiatry held no interest for Jimmie C. Holland, MD, when she entered Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, in the mid-1940s. Born in 1928 at the dawn of the Great Depression,...
Acupuncture: Does It Alleviate Symptoms Associated with Cancer Care?
A therapeutic modality of traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture has been extensively investigated in Western medical settings. Its clinical use is increasingly common for the management of pain and other conditions. In the oncology setting, research demonstrates that acupuncture can...
Health-care Crisis Reconsidered
As an oncologist in private practice, I usually read with great interest the many articles in The ASCO Post on issues regarding the politics of oncology practice. These articles deal with the major topics of the day, ranging from the high cost of oncologic care to shortages of generic drugs, to...
American Cancer Society Honors Waun Ki Hong, MD, for Outstanding Clinical Research
Distinguished physician, scientist, mentor, and leader Waun Ki Hong, MD, recently accepted the American Cancer Society 2012 Medal of Honor Award in recognition of his novel, high-impact clinical research that has extended the frontiers of cancer treatment and prevention. Dr. Hong is Vice Provost...
Ambitious Call to Arms Seeks a Shift in Priorities to Eradicate Cancer
It has been more than 4 decades since our nation loaded its medical cannons and declared war on cancer, self-assured that money and American scientific resolve would lead to victory. But cancer has proved to be a humbling enemy. The war is now fought in targeted skirmishes; the weaponry is a...
The Practice of More than One Art
The positive healing effects of music can be traced as far back as ancient Greece and the belief that Apollo was God of medicine and music. In his book De Anima, Aristotle wrote that flute music could purify the soul. By the end of the 19th century, researchers were showing a correlation between...
Expert Point of View: George Demetri, MD
Invited discussant of the abstract, George Demetri, MD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, Boston, noted that metastatic soft-tissue sarcomas present with variable clinical behaviors but are nearly always incurable with any approach. “Therefore, our intent is to palliate...
Expert Point of View: Colleen Lawton, MD
“These were two nice presentations evaluating the ability of SBRT to control disease as well as toxicity. This is cutting-edge research. It is very exciting that we could treat prostate cancer patients with radiation inside of 2 to 2.5 weeks, and it is clearly cost-saving. We need longer follow-up...
Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy Produces Impressive Results in Organ-confined Prostate Cancer
Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) delivered via the CyberKnife can achieve excellent outcomes with minimal toxicity in patients with prostate cancer. Importantly, this technique delivers therapeutic doses of radiation in four to five fractions, which reduces the number of clinic visits...
Expert Point of View: Thomas Pisansky, MD
Commenting on this paper, Thomas Pisansky, MD, the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, reminded listeners that about 50% of patients treated with external-beam radiation therapy and about 33% of those treated with brachytherapy already have erectile dysfunction prior to treatment. After radiation...
Sildenafil Improves Overall Sexual Function in Men with Prostate Cancer Treated with Radiation
For the first time, a randomized controlled trial reported improved sexual function with 6 months of prophylactic sildenafil citrate before, during, and after radiation therapy in patients with prostate cancer.1 The paper was presented at the Plenary Session during the 54th Annual Meeting of the...
SIDEBAR: How Other Countries Are Controlling Oncology Costs
The refrain is familiar: The United States spends more on health care than any other industrialized country, but the investment does not correspond to superior care. A recent study by The Commonwealth Fund, a health-care policy research foundation, shows just how stark the contrast is. Instructive ...
The Ethics of Rationing Cancer Care
Should cost be a consideration when deciding on treatment for patients with cancer, and if so, what kind of ethical dilemma does that pose for oncologists? With U.S. spending on oncology drugs expected to climb more than 20% annually over the next decade—reaching $173 billion by 2020, according to...
The Latest News on Quality Cancer Care: What It Means for Patients
Direct your patients to www.cancer.net/qualitysymposium to learn about the research highlighted at the 2012 Quality Care Symposium in the special online newsletter Cancer Advances: News for Patients from the 2012 Quality Care Symposium. Also, your patients can listen to a podcast of highlights from ...
Research of Three Conquer Cancer Foundation Grantees Featured among Top Cancer Advances of the Year
Every year, the Conquer Cancer Foundation of the American Society of Clinical Oncology funds research grants that provide critical start-up funding for young physician-scientists, with the goal of enabling them to develop successful careers in cancer research so that they can bring new treatments...
Clinical Cancer Advances 2012: ASCO’s Annual Report on Progress Against Cancer
Clinical research is continuously delivering new treatments that lengthen and improve the lives of patients with cancer. The abundance of advances reported in the past year illustrates our steady progress in cancer treatment and care. Clinical Cancer Advances 2012: ASCO’s Annual Report on Progress...
Finding Lynch Syndrome among Patients with Colorectal Cancer: Routine Tumor Testing Looks Best
Oncologists generally agree that screening patients with colorectal cancer for Lynch syndrome is a good thing. Patients who turn out to have the hereditary syndrome can inform their first-degree relatives, who in turn can undergo genetic testing. Those who have the characteristic mutations can take ...
Genetic Variation in Vitamin D Pathway Is Tied to Colorectal Cancer Risk among African Americans
African Americans’ risk of colorectal cancer varies according to whether they have certain genetic variants that affect vitamin D metabolism, according to a study presented at the Fifth American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Conference on The Science of Cancer Health Disparities, held...
Oral Rinse Doxepin Relieves Painful Mucositis in Head and Neck Cancer
Doxepin oral rinse significantly improved oral mucositis in patients treated with radiation therapy for head and neck cancer according to results of a phase III trial presented at the 54th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) in Boston. However, the improvement was...
Molecular Breast Imaging an Option for Early Detection in High-risk Women
Molecular breast imaging, also known as breast-specific gamma imaging, was a key topic of discussion at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Annual Meeting, held recently in Chicago. Molecular breast imaging can detect breast cancer missed by mammography, according to clinical data...
How Sequestration May Affect Cancer Research
Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) began his political career in 1974 as a state representative in Ohio. He served as Ohio’s Secretary of State between 1983 and 1991, went on to serve in the U.S. Congress from 1993 to 2006, and was elected to the Senate in 2006. A supporter of biomedical and cancer...
Fox Chase Researchers Find Most Medicare Patients Wait Weeks before Breast Cancer Surgery
Although patients may feel anxious waiting weeks from the time of their first doctor visit to evaluate their breast until they have breast cancer surgery, new findings from Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia show that these waits are typical in the United States. Results were published...
Plenary Session Included Findings on Partial- vs Whole-breast Techniques and Patient Beliefs about Radiotherapy
When the dates were picked for the 54th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), no one could have anticipated that the meeting would coincide with Hurricane Sandy’s devastation of parts of the northeast. As the storm approached on Monday and Boston shut down its...
Surgical Resection for Colorectal Cancer Liver Metastases: Who, When, How?
Many patients with colorectal liver metastases can undergo surgical resection with curative intent. Who are these patients and how are they best managed? In an interview with The ASCO Post, Steven A. Curley, MD, Professor of Surgical Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center,...
Expert Point of View: Meena S. Moran, MD
“Breast cancer in the geriatric population is a major health issue. Of the more than 230,000 new cases diagnosed annually, somewhere between 40% and 50% will occur in women 65 and over. Furthermore, the elderly population has been and will continue to increase exponentially over time,” stated Meena ...
Radiation Therapy Extends Survival in Elderly Women with Early Breast Cancer
Chronologic age alone should not preclude use of radiation in elderly women with early breast cancer, suggest two studies presented at the 54th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). Both studies showed a survival improvement in elderly women with early breast cancer ...
Expert Point of View: Vinai Gondi, MD
This memantine study is a critical first step in understanding and delaying cognitive deterioration in brain metastasis patients, noted formal discussant Vinai Gondi, MD, Associate Director of Research at the CDH Proton Center in Warrenville, Illinois, and Clinical Associate Professor at the...
Gene-expression Profiles of Triple-negative Breast Cancers Differ between African American and Native African Women
Triple-negative breast cancers in African-American women and native African women have differing gene-expression profiles that may have implications for treatment, according to the first study to directly compare tumor gene expression between these populations. Results were reported at the Fifth...
Current Perspectives on Triple-negative Breast Cancers
Triple-negative breast cancer—which lacks expression of the estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and HER2 oncogene—is a challenge for oncologists. The emergence of data showing strong heterogeneity for this subtype of breast cancer creates even more confusion regarding prognosis and...
Screening for Ovarian Cancer: A Gynecologic Oncologist’s Perspective
The recent U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) Reaffirmation Recommendation Statement concluded that in the population of asymptomatic women without known genetic mutations that increase risk for ovarian cancer, clinicians should not screen for ovarian cancer using transvaginal ultrasound...
Recognizing and Managing Physician Burnout in Oncology
Although job burnout occurs in all professions, it is more common among physicians, according to a study published recently in Archives of Internal Medicine.1 Physicians on the front line of care, such as those working in emergency rooms or in family medicine, experience the highest rates of...
Expert Point of View: Frederick R. Appelbaum, MD
Commenting on the trial of bone marrow vs peripheral blood stem cell transplants, Frederick R. Appelbaum, MD, at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, wrote that the results should change practice. But he added in his editorial, “it will be interesting to see whether it really does.”1...
Volume-doubling Time May Help Distinguish Aggressive Cancer from Slow-growing Tumors
Changes in the size of lung tumors over time, as measured by volume-doubling times on low-dose computed tomography, can be used to distinguish aggressive lung cancer from slow-growing or indolent tumors and reduce overdiagnosis that could result in overtreatment and unnecessary morbidity. Results...
Analysis Suggests Screening Mammography Results in Substantial Overdiagnosis with Small Effect on Mortality
An analysis of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data from 1976 through 2008 “suggests that whatever the mortality benefit, breast-cancer screening involved a substantial harm of excess detection of additional early-stage cancers that was not matched by a reduction in late-stage...
SIDEBAR: Expect Questions from Patients
A study finding that a diet high in total carbohydrates can increase the risk of cancer recurrence and mortality doesn’t mean that patients need to totally avoid carbohydrates, any more than previous findings about increased risk from a Western pattern diet means patients can’t eat any red meat....
Patients Treated for Colon Cancer Can Reduce Risk of Recurrence with Balanced Diet and Lower Carbohydrate Intake
In the News focuses on media reports that your patients may have questions about at their next visit. This continuing column will provide summaries of articles in the popular press that may prompt such questions, as well as comments from colleagues in the field. Patients who have received standard...
Green Tea
The use of dietary supplements by cancer patients has risen significantly over the past 2 decades despite insufficient evidence of safety and effectiveness. Finding reliable sources of information about dietary supplements can be daunting. Patients typically rely on family, friends, and the...
ASCO CEO Discusses the Society’s Initiatives
Created in 1964,a the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has become the world’s preeminent professional cancer organization, with more than 30,000 members in the United States and abroad, unified by its founders’ “common concern for the patient with cancer.” The ASCO Post recently spoke...
The Rise of the Vintage Readers Book Club
Providing care beyond medical treatment, the multidisciplinary field of psychosocial oncology addresses the psychological, social, and emotional health of the patient with cancer. On an occasional basis, The ASCO Post will explore the realm of psychosocial oncology with a column guest edited by...
Physician-Scientist Judah Folkman, MD, Faced Years of Skepticism Before His Theory of Angiogenesis Was Proven
That Moses Judah Folkman would buck tradition, breaking his family’s long line of rabbinical succession and pursuing a career in science and medicine instead, was evident from the time he was a young child. Born in Cleveland on February 24, 1933, the first child of Rabbi Jerome and Bessie Folkman,...
NCI Director Assesses Barriers to Faster Progress in Cancer Research
At a National Press Club media event in Washington, DC, on September 25, 2012, National Cancer Institute (NCI) Director Harold E. Varmus, MD, addressed a group of 75 reporters and officials. His discussion focused on impediments—biologic, economic, institutional, and cultural—to faster cancer...
