Analysis of free-floating cancer DNA from blood samples has yielded leads for new prostate cancer treatment targets. Using a commercially available “liquid biopsy” test in patients with advanced prostate cancer, researchers found a number of genetic changes in cell-free, circulating...
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine scientists and doctors are embarking on the first clinical trial to determine if a genetic test they pioneered could successfully spare patients with nonaggressive thyroid cancer from complete removal of their thyroid. Thyroid-preserving surgery minimizes ...
Patients with breast cancer with dense breast tissue have almost a twofold increased risk of developing disease in the contralateral breast, according to new research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The study, published by Brewster et al in the journal Cancer, is among the...
A new method has been found for identifying therapeutic targets in cancers lacking specific key tumor suppressor genes. The process, which located a genetic site for the most common form of prostate cancer, has potential for developing precision therapy for other cancers, such as breast, brain, and ...
In the largest study of its kind to date, researchers from Fox Chase Cancer Center and the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University confirmed that oral antibiotics combined with mechanical bowel preparation were more effective at preventing surgical site infections...
Researchers from the School of Health Sciences at the University of Surrey have completed the first-ever systematic review of cancer survivors’ experience of online and telephone telehealth interventions in cancer care, a new study by Cox et al in the Journal of Medical Internet...
New research suggests that young patients with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) and their parents are likely to report to their physician that they took more of their anticancer medication than they actually did. The study, published by Landier et al in Blood, found that 84% of patients with ALL...
A new, evidenced-based clinical practice guideline on molecular biomarker testing for patients with colorectal cancer identifies opportunities for improving patient outcomes. The American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP), the College of American Pathologists (CAP), the Association for...
Albert H. Owens, Jr, MD, a Johns Hopkins oncologist who played a leadership role in developing oncology as a scientific discipline and clinical specialty—and who also served as President of The Johns Hopkins Hospital—died January 13 at the age of 90. In the 1960s, oncology was not a word that...
Justin F. Klamerus, MD, MMM, has been appointed President of the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Hospital, the clinical operation of Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit. The appointment was effective as of January 2017. Dr. Klamerus will report directly to Gerold Bepler, MD, PhD, President and Chief...
Although alcohol consumption is associated with increasing the risk of many cancers, including liver, pancreatic, colon, rectal, and breast, the link between alcohol and higher risk of melanoma is equivocal. Now, a large prospective study by Andrew Rivera, MD, of Harvard Medical School, Boston, and ...
In the Translational Breast Cancer Research Consortium (TBCRC) 005 prospective biomarker study, reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Kala Visvanathan, MBBS, MHS, of Johns Hopkins University, and colleagues, a cumulative methylation index was found to be predictive of progression-free...
In an analysis of a French trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Balsat et al found that postinduction minimal residual disease was predictive of outcome and benefit from allogeneic stem cell transplantation (ASCT) in patients with NPM1-mutant acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Nicolas...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Platzbecker et al, the final results of the Italian-German phase III APL0406 trial indicate that the combination of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and arsenic trioxide (ATO [Trisenox]) is associated with better outcomes than standard ATRA plus...
Carolinas HealthCare System has announced a $2 million commitment from the Kerry and Simone Vickar Family Foundation in support of academic and research efforts at the Levine Cancer Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina. The funds will be designated to establish an endowed chair in their name: The ...
FEBRUARY ASCO-SITC Clinical Immuno-Oncology SymposiumFebruary 23-25 • Orlando, Florida For more information: http://immunosym.org FACTOR (Funding, Awareness, Collaboration, Trials, Osteosarcoma Research) Miami Conference 2017February 24-25 • Coral Gables, Florida For more information:...
Phase I Study Title: Qigong Mind-Body Exercise for Persistent Post-Surgical Pain in Breast Cancer Survivors: A Pilot Study Study Type: Phase I/interventional/single-group assignment Study Sponsor and Collaborators: Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Spaulding...
Richard M. Goldberg, MD, an expert in gastrointestinal cancer, has been named the new Director of the West Virginia University Cancer Institute. Dr. Goldberg will be coming to West Virginia University from The Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center, where he currently serves as Klotz Family ...
Cancer cells often delete genes that normally suppress tumor formation. These deletions also may extend to neighboring genes, an event known as “collateral lethality,” which may create new options for the development of therapies for several cancers. Scientists at The University of Texas MD...
The multihumoral manifestations of neuroendocrine tumors include diarrhea, cutaneous flushing, wheezing, and right-sided valvular heart disease.1 Serotonin, a biogenic amine and product of tryptophan metabolism,2 mediates several of these symptoms.3,4 Diarrhea is a cardinal and often disabling...
Technologic advances for detecting and analyzing cell-free circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) from peripheral blood offer a precision method for monitoring diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Although most patients with DLBCL are cured with initial therapy, those who are not cured have a poor...
Cervical cancer is a preventable disease if detected on time, but it remains one of the leading causes of cancer deaths among women in Latin America, particularly women of poor and indigenous communities. A new study by the University of Michigan published by Gottschlich et al in the Journal of...
Nearly half of women treated for early-stage breast cancer reported at least one side effect from their treatment that was severe or very severe, according to a new study published by Friese et al in Cancer. Although it might be expected for women undergoing chemotherapy, researchers found...
On February 3, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accepted for review two supplemental Biologics License Applications (sBLAs) for pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer. Specifically, the application for first-line use was accepted and...
The free video-based program, “PReparatory Education About Clinical Trials (PRE-ACT),” helps patients and their caregivers learn about clinical trials and address barriers to participation. Direct your patients to cancer.net/preact to learn more about this online resource. Also, visit...
Cancer takes away millions of lives every year, and in low- and middle-income countries, the high cancer mortality rate can often be attributed to scarce means and a shortage of trained professionals. Hoping to contribute my best in the fight against this disease, I chose to become an oncologist in ...
Moderator of the press conference on this study, Virginia Kaklamani, MD, of the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, agreed that an improvement in response is important. “If you are a patient with symptoms, such as a cough from lung metastases, and I give you a combination...
Melinda L. Telli, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine at Stanford University Medical Center, Palo Alto, commented on this topic for The ASCO Post. She said the results of the two studies reinforce what has been emerging about the prognostic impact of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes. “We have known...
Three clinical trials of the immunotherapy pembrolizumab (Keytruda) have shown that it is active against a rare subtype of skin cancer, mucosal melanoma. The findings were presented by Butler et al at the 2017 European Cancer Congress (ECCO) (Abstract 1142). Until now, mucosal melanoma has often...
On February 2, 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to nivolumab (Opdivo) for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma who have disease progression during or following platinum-containing chemotherapy or have...
On January 19, 2017, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Robert Califf, MD, issued the following statement: Today the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is establishing the Oncology Center of Excellence and appointing Richard Pazdur, MD, as its Director. This will make oncology...
Frank A. Sinicrope, MD, Professor of Medicine and Oncology at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, told The ASCO Post that the regimen of irinotecan/cetuximab (Erbitux)/vemurafenib (Zelboraf) could be an important approach to treating this challenging tumor subtype. “BRAF-mutated tumors have a...
On February 1, 2017, the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) issued the following statement: “According to its own public reports, in 2016 Phillip Morris manufactured 800 billion cigarettes. Thus, [IASLC] views with some skepticism Philip Morris’ recent...
By 2050, the death rates from malignant melanoma will have decreased from their current levels, but the numbers of people dying from the disease will have increased due to the aging of populations. However, if new treatments for the deadly skin cancer prove to be effective, the numbers of deaths...
A test that measures the levels of five chemicals in the breath has shown promising results for the detection of cancers of the esophagus and stomach in a large patient trial presented by Markar et al at the 2017 European Cancer Congress (Abstract 6LBA). Together, stomach and esophageal...
Today, the American Society of Hematology, the American Association for Cancer Research, the Association of American Cancer Institutes, the American Society for Radiation Oncology, the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, and the LUNGevity Foundation issued a statement on the...
A growing number of patients with cancer are benefiting from research advances in immunotherapy, leading ASCO to name immunotherapy as the Society's Advance of the Year for a second year in a row. Released today, Clinical Cancer Advances 2017: ASCO's Annual Report on Progress Against Cancer...
Arti Hurria, MD, of City of Hope, discusses the assessment of older patients with cancer.
Angela R. Bradbury, MD, of the University of Pennsylvania, discusses genetic testing, tumor profiling, and the identification of those at increased risk for second cancers.
Allison Harvey, MPH, CHES, of George Washington University, evaluates preliminary outcomes among primary care and oncology providers who took part in the Cancer Survivorship E-Learning Series (Abstract 78).
Shoshana M. Rosenberg, ScD, MPH, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, talks about ways to help young women move from active treatment to survivorship, based on findings from focus groups in which patients discussed their unexpected physical and psychological experiences after surgery (Abstract 180).
Lauren P. Wallner, PhD, MPH, of the University of Michigan, discusses her findings on the type of providers women prefer when it comes to handling survivorship care after breast cancer treatment and the need to clarify and discuss provider roles with patients (Abstract 99).
Sophia Kustas Smith, PhD, MSW, of Duke University, discusses study findings on an online, symptom self-management curriculum, known as www.reimagine.me, employed for breast cancer survivors with chronic pain (Abstract 182).
Electra D. Paskett, PhD, of The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses an intervention that increased knowledge of lymphedema in breast cancer, and the personal story that drove her research (Abstract 104).
Ann H. Partridge, MD, MPH, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, summarizes a session she co-chaired on the unique issues affecting adolescent and young adult patients, including their psychosocial needs and concerns that clinicians may overlook.
Dong Wook Shin, MD, DrPH, MBA, of Seoul National University Cancer Hospital, discusses the risk of coronary heart disease and ischemic stroke in patients with thyroid cancer taking levothyroxine (Abstract 105).
Mohammad Abu Zaid, MD, of Indiana University Simon Cancer Center, discusses findings from a multicenter study of North American testicular cancer survivors, their prevalence of hypertension, risk factors for metabolic syndrome, and the need for screening and treatment (Abstract 102).
Emily S. Tonorezos, MD, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses childhood cancer survivors and the protection from late-occurring anthracycline-related cardiotoxicity conferred by a RARG coding variant.
K. Holly Mead, PhD, of George Washington University, discusses specialized survivorship-specific programs, which are gaining prominence, with over 40% of cancer centers in her study providing this type of care (Abstract 1).
Shawna V. Hudson, PhD, of Rutgers University, discusses a survivorship program designed to improve the quality of life for Hispanic and Latino breast cancer survivors (Abstract 183).