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Showing 11201 - 11250Perspective on the Politics of Tobacco
The tobacco industry has always been a major player in congressional races, especially in Southern tobacco-growing states. Moreover, the industry is notoriously bipartisan in their political donations, and members of both parties have returned the favor by voting for tobacco interests. “The 2014...
The Surgeon General’s Report on Tobacco Turns 50: Much Success, Much Work Ahead
On January 11, 2014, the nation commemorated the 50th anniversary of a document that transformed our public health landscape and has saved millions of lives: Smoking and Health: Report of the Advisory Committee to the Surgeon General of the Public Health Service. This groundbreaking report, which...
President’s Cancer Panel Issues Urgent Call to Action for HPV Vaccination
Achieving widespread human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination is one of the most profound opportunities for cancer prevention, according to a report recently released by the President’s Cancer Panel. The Panel’s report, Accelerating HPV Vaccine Uptake: Urgency for Action to Prevent Cancer, issues an ...
Cancer Pain: The Humbling Reality
As a medical oncologist and palliative care physician, I’ve had the privilege of caring for cancer patients and delivering primary palliative care and symptom control, as well as the chance to care for patients especially referred for complex pain and symptom problems (in secondary and even...
Overdiagnosis of Breast Cancer: New Research Directions
Currently, one of the most challenging problems in oncology is to accurately predict whether neoplastic lesions detected by screening tests will progress. The focus on developing ever-more sensitive cancer screening tests has produced the clinical dilemma of overdiagnosis. Overdiagnosis occurs when ...
The Canadian National Breast Screening Trial Had So Many Flaws That Its Results Should Not Be Used to Guide Screening Recommendations
If a randomized, controlled trial of therapy for breast cancer was submitted for publication in which 1. The drug being tested was old and ineffective, and 2. prior to randomization, the women underwent a clinical breast examination and the study coordinators knew who had the largest cancers, and...
Leaders of ASCO, ASH, ASTRO, and NCCN Embrace Collaboration With Advanced Practitioners
Nearly 250 advanced practitioners assembled at the first annual JADPRO Live educational symposium in St. Petersburg, Florida, hosted by the Journal of the Advanced Practitioner in Oncology (JADPRO). Leaders from four prominent oncology organizations championed collaborative practice as not only...
First-Line Obinutuzumab/Chlorambucil Improves Outcomes Over Rituximab/Chlorambucil in Older CLL Patients With Comorbidities
Obinutuzumab (Gazyva) plus chloramubucil outperformed rituximab (Rituxan) plus chlorambucil (Leukeran) as first-line therapy in older patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and comorbidities in the large CLL 11 trial. Final results showed that obinutuzumab/chloramubucil improved overall...
Expert Point of View: Jeffrey Miller, MD
Jeffrey Miller, MD, Professor of Medicine at the University of Minnesota and Deputy Director of the Masonic Cancer Clinic in Minneapolis, commented on the haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation studies presented at the American Society of Hematology meeting for The ASCO Post “The...
Haploidentical Stem Cell Transplantation Producing Good Outcomes, Expanding Transplant Pool
HLA-haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation can be performed safely, yield good outcomes, and greatly expand the number of patients with hematologic malignancies who can be treated with stem cell transplant, studies presented at the 2013 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual...
In Stage IV Breast Cancer, the Primary May Not Need to Be Removed
Mastectomy is unnecessary in many women with stage IV breast cancer, according to a study from Indian investigators, reported at the 2013 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.1 The study randomly assigned 350 patients with metastatic breast cancer to mastectomy, complete axillary dissection, plus...
Updated Information on Clinical Trials
Your patients can learn about clinical trials in a variety of ways at www.cancer.net/clinicaltrials. The articles available explain what clinical trials are, how they are used to learn more about cancer care, and how they are conducted. In addition, your patients can read a new article explaining...
Cancer.Net Expands Its Social Media Presence With Launch of Blog
In an effort to continue to bring patients and those who care about and for them the most timely, comprehensive cancer information, ASCO’s patient education website, Cancer.Net, has added a new interactive resource—the Cancer.Net Blog (www.cancer.net/blog). “We decided that a blog made sense for...
ASCO to Release Report on the State of Cancer Care in America
ASCO is committed to ensuring that Americans have access to high-quality, high-value cancer prevention and treatment services—and that all patients benefit fully from our nation’s investments in cancer research. In mid-March, the Society will be releasing The State of Cancer Care in America: 2014,...
Connecting to Conquer Cancer
Do you share our passion to conquer cancer? Connect with the Conquer Cancer Foundation online to receive up-to-the-minute news and events, researcher spotlights, videos, and updates on progress against cancer worldwide. Visit our website to learn more about our mission and the programs we support:...
Amplifying the Signal: Foundation Donor Takes His Advocacy Into the Twittersphere
Michael A. Thompson, MD, PhD, a Medical Oncologist for Aurora Cancer Care and the Medical Director of Early Cancer Research at Aurora Health Care in Wisconsin, has become something of an expert on the Conquer Cancer Foundation. It began in 2006, when he received a Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO...
Exercise Program Reduces Aromatase Inhibitor–Associated Joint Pain
Amid studies of novel targeted therapies, genetic analyses of tumors, and new ways to approach the treatment of breast cancer, a low-tech study presented at the 2013 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium found that a yearlong exercise program reduced joint pain associated with aromatase inhibitors in ...
Innovative I-SPY 2 Trial Yields First Results in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
An innovative approach to streamlining the testing of novel agents in breast cancer has yielded some of its first results, which were reported at the 2013 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.1 Adaptive Trial Design The veliparib/carboplatin plus standard neoadjuvant therapy regimen is currently...
HER2-Positive Breast Cancer Patients With Small Tumors Benefit From Low-Toxicity Regimen
There may be a benefit for treating small HER2-positive tumors—a breast cancer subset for whom treatment recommendations have not been established but for whom there is still risk of recurrence—and this can be done with little toxicity, according to a multicenter study presented at the 2013 San...
GI Symposium Presentations Include Important Updates in Treatment and Prognosis of Pancreatic and Colorectal Cancers
More than 650 studies were presented at the 2014 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium, which attracted a multidisciplinary group of more than 3,500 medical, surgical, and radiation oncologists and gastroenterologists. The following briefs highlight a handful of noteworthy studies from the meeting....
Capecitabine Acceptable in Neoadjuvant Rectal Cancer Setting
As neoadjuvant therapy for rectal cancer, infusional fluorouracil (5-FU) and oral capecitabine achieve similar outcomes, and the addition of oxaliplatin confers no additional benefit, according to the mature results of the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP) R-04 trial,...
Expert Point of View: Josep M. Llovet, MD
Josep M. Llovet, MD, Professor of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, commented on the findings reported by Faivre et al for The ASCO Post. “This is the first time a TGF-β inhibitor has been clinically tested in hepatocellular carcinoma, and the drug has a good safety profile. But this is a ...
Expert Point of View: Daniel J. Canter, MD
“Cytoreductive nephrectomy is routinely used in metastatic renal cell carcinoma, but its use is not as firmly established in the targeted therapy era. And its use is not without risk,” said formal discussant of the International Metastatatic Renal Cell Carcinoma Database Consortium (IMDC) trial,...
Cytoreductive Nephrectomy Improves Survival in Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma Patients With Longer Life Expectancy
Prior to the advent of targeted therapy, cytoreductive nephrectomy was associated with a 6-month improvement in overall survival in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma. With new and better targeted therapies for the disease, the appropriate use of cytoreductive nephrectomy has been...
The Future of Biomedical Research
In January, Congress approved a $1 trillion appropriations bill for the rest of fiscal year 2014. While the new bill includes $29.9 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH)—$1 billion above FY2013 levels after sequestration—including $4.9 billion for the National Cancer Institute (NCI),...
After Next-Generation Sequencing: Guiding Patients to the Right Treatment
In the near future, community oncologists will be tasked with helping patients interpret the results of next-generation sequencing of their tumors. Specifically, we will help patients choose an academic center with a phase I targeted therapy program that is a plausible fit for their disease....
Cancer Genes and Molecular Medicine: More Education Needed
I read with interest and concern the Perspective piece, “Cancer Genes, Promiscuity, and the National Debt,” which appeared on page 1 of the February 1st issue of The ASCO Post. The underlying premise of this wide-ranging and provocative article would appear to be that in a rush to implement...
Expect Questions About the Appropriate Use of Mohs Surgery
Mohs surgery can be an effective treatment option for nonmelanoma skin cancer, as well as for more rare but aggressive skin cancers. In addition, Mohs can be particularly helpful to treat patients with skin cancers that have recurred,” Brett M. Coldiron, MD, Clinical Associate Professor of...
Dermatologists Defend Mohs Surgery as Effective and Cost-Efficient With Low Rate of Recurrence
The headline, “Patients’ Costs Skyrocket, Specialists’ Incomes Soar,” aptly encapsulates the theme of a recent article in The New York Times,1 part of a series entitled, “Paying Till It Hurts.” “Oncologists benefit from the ability to mark up (and profit from) each dose of chemotherapy they...
National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month
March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is committed to boosting public awareness about the importance of screening and treatment for colorectal cancer. Colorectal cancer poses the greatest risk to adults over age 50, and the U.S. Preventive...
Cancer Has Allowed Me to Put My Goals First
Despite my family history of cancer—my father had colorectal cancer, his father had gallbladder cancer, and my father’s mother died of what was believed to be uterine cancer—when I complained to my gynecologist about postmenopausal bleeding in the spring of 2011, I was told not to worry about it....
How to Approach the Problem of CNS Metastasis in HER2-Positive Patients
Central nervous system (CNS) metastasis is a pervasive problem in the setting of HER2-positive breast cancer. While some patients can be managed easily, others are challenging, said Eric P. Winer, MD, Chief of the Division of Women’s Cancers and the Thompson Senior Investigator for Breast Cancer...
The Ketogenic Diet in Cancer Control
Ketogenic (or very-low-carbohydrate) diets have been employed since the 1920s as nonpharmacologic therapies for epilepsy and, in some instances, have obviated the need for medication for that disease. Since the 1960s, the ketogenic diet has become better known as a means of managing obesity. This...
Telemedicine: Efficiency in Cancer Screening and Outreach
As defined by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration teleheath is “the use of electronic information and telecommunications technologies to support long-distance clinical health care, patient and professional health-related education, public health, and health administration.” It has ...
Telephone Education and Counseling Effective in Programs Targeting Familial/Genetic Cancer Risk Screening
Two studies recently reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology indicate that telephone-based education or counseling initiatives can be successful in educating individuals at familial or genetic risk of cancer and in inducing these at-risk individuals to undergo recommended screening. In the...
How Decoding the Genomes of Exceptional Responders Is Leading to More Effective Treatment for All Patients With Cancer
In 2012, David B. Solit, MD, Geoffrey Beene Chair and Director of the Center for Molecular Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York, and his colleagues published the results of a phase II study1 of 45 patients with advanced bladder cancer. The purpose of the clinical...
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Committee Identifies Eight Palliative Care Priorities in Pediatric Oncology
About 2½ years ago, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis conducted a series of focus groups to better understand the palliative care priorities of bereaved parents. Their findings were never intended to be generalized, but rather to be used to formulate a strategic plan for an...
Neuro-Oncology Community Convenes in Workshop to Advance Imaging-Related Endpoints in Clinical Trials
Leaders from key cross-sections of the neuro-oncology community came together at a recent Brain Tumor Clinical Trial Endpoints Workshop to confront a critical challenge in developing and testing treatments for glioblastoma multiforme. Participants were able to adjourn the workshop with the...
Affordable Care Act to Cover Chemoprevention for Women at High Risk for Breast Cancer
On January 9, 2014, Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, announced that under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, women at increased risk of breast cancer will be entitled to preventive medications without incurring out-of-pocket costs (with the...
Ibrutinib for Previously Treated Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
On February 12, 2014, ibrutinib (Imbruvica) was granted accelerated approval for the treatment of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who have received at least one prior therapy.1,2 Ibrutinib previously received accelerated approval for the treatment of patients with mantle cell...
Impact of Delayed Initiation of Adjuvant Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer Varies by Tumor Subtype
The optimal time interval between surgery and initiation of adjuvant chemotherapy for early-stage breast cancer is not well established. Although most physicians aim to initiate adjuvant chemotherapy within a few weeks of surgery, clinical factors may cause delay. The influence of delay on relapse...
CD137 Identifies and Enriches for Tumor-Reactive T Cells
In a study reported in Clinical Cancer Research, Ye and colleagues showed that CD137 can be used to identify tumor-reactive T cells and to enrich for tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and tumor-associated lymphocytes for use in adoptive immunotherapy. In the study, tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes from...
Protein Expression–Based Risk Model for Recurrence in Resected NSCLC
In a study reported in Clinical Cancer Research, Gold and colleagues developed a risk model for recurrence of resected non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) based on protein expression and clinical variables. The study involved analysis of samples from 370 patients with NSCLC resected between 2002 and ...
Support from 1999 Career Development Award Launched Dr. Kornelia Polyak’s Quest to Advance Understanding of DCIS of the Breast
In 1999, Kornelia Polyak, MD, PhD, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, received a Career Development Award from the Conquer Cancer Foundation for her project, “Isolation of Tumor Suppressor Genes Inactivated in DCIS of the Breast.” “The Career Development Award got me started,” she said. “When...
Charting the Successes: CancerProgress.Net Chronicles More Than 50 Years of ASCO and Progress Against Cancer
On this historic year, as ASCO proudly commemorates its 50th anniversary and decades of evolutionary change and growth, it also celebrates the significant progress that has been made against cancer throughout history. ASCO’s anniversary website, CancerProgress.Net, chronicles these achievements and ...
Staging of Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Neoplasms originating from skin keratinocytes are increasing in frequency in the United States and include a spectrum of diseases culminating in the development of invasive cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma. Although most cases of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma can be treated conservatively with ...
Who Pays for Noncompliance? The Hidden Costs of Our Current System
The development of novel targeted therapies that capitalize on our growing understanding of the molecular underpinnings and vulnerabilities of specific malignancies has to rank among the most important advances we have seen in the 50 years since the American Society of Clinical Oncology was...
Melanoma and Prostate Cancer: Two Sides of One Coin?
In a recent study, reviewed in this issue of The ASCO Post, Li et al present data from two long- term prospective studies—the Physicians Health Study (PHS, from 1982 to 1998), and the Health Professionals’ Follow-up Study (HPFS, from 1986 to 2010)—both of which suggest a strong association between...
Advanced Practitioners in Oncology: Diverse Experiences, Shared Challenges
The professional paths of advanced practitioners (APs) in oncology are as varied as the locations in which they work. The first annual JADPRO Live 2014 educational symposium was held in St. Petersburg, Florida, and hosted by JADPRO, the Journal of the Advanced Practitioner in Oncology. A...
FDA Orders Cessation of Sale, Distribution of Four Tobacco Products
FDA has issued orders to stop the further sale and distribution of four tobacco products currently on the market. The action marks the first time the FDA has used its authority under the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act to order a manufacturer of currently available tobacco...
