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Showing 11951 - 12000Expert Point of View: Ann Partridge, MD
This study showed that 10 years of adjuvant tamoxifen reduced the risk of late recurrence in hormone receptor-positive breast cancer, which is a major problem. The study also showed that ‘patience is a virtue’,” stated formal discussant Ann Partridge, MD, Director of the Adult Survivorship Program...
Expert Point of View: Lynn Mara Schuchter, MD and Michael A. Davies, MD, PhD
Lynn Mara Schuchter, MD, the C. Willard Robinson Professor of Hematology-Oncology and Program Leader of the Melanoma Program at Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, commented at a press briefing that the study “will ultimately be practice-changing.” She noted,...
MEK Inhibitor Improves Outcomes in Metastatic Uveal Melanoma
For the first time, a drug has proven effective in the treatment of uveal (ocular) melanoma that has metastasized, according to a randomized multicenter phase II study presented at the 2013 ASCO Annual Meeting.1 “This study is the first to demonstrate an improved clinical outcome with any systemic...
ASCO President Clifford Hudis, MD, on the 2013 ASCO Annual Meeting
This year’s ASCO Annual Meeting was really exciting in two specific ways. First, we saw the development of high-tech novel therapies and combinations that effectively manipulate the immune system and extend survival in historically difficult-to-treat diseases, like metastatic melanoma (eg,...
Sorafenib Halts Disease Progression in Metastatic Differentiated Thyroid Cancer
For the first time in decades, a drug has halted disease progression in treatment-resistant differentiated thyroid cancer, according to the results of a phase III study presented at the 2013 ASCO Annual Meeting.1 No new drugs have been approved for differentiated thyroid cancer in 40 years, but...
Expert Point of View: Electra D. Paskett, PhD
Formal discussant Electra D. Paskett, PhD, Professor of Medicine at The Ohio State University, was enthusiastic about these trial results and the potential of visual inspection with acetic acid screening, as well as low-cost human papillomavirus (HPV) screening to save lives in the developing...
Simple Rapid Vinegar Test Cuts Cervical Cancer Death Rates by One-third in Rural India
In the era of personalized medicine for cancer care, it was both surprising and encouraging to hear about a simple low-tech intervention delivered by women in the community that cut the rate of death from cervical cancer in India by about one-third. The intervention, a simple visual inspection...
Expert Point of View: Gottfried Konecny, MD
Formal discussant Gottfried Konecny, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, also viewed the study as a game changer. He cited the strengths of the study, including its design, randomization with stratification, P values adjusted for multiple testing, and the...
It’s Déjà Vu All Over Again
Yogi Berra offered the comment “It’s déjà vu all over again” when he witnessed Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris repeatedly hitting back-to-back home runs in the early 1960s. His pithy remark neatly summarizes my reaction when I read the article, “Dose-Adjusted EPOCH-Rituximab Therapy in Primary...
Financial Revamping of Medical Education
The American medical education system was in a state of crisis in 1910 when Abraham Flexner published his treatise, Report on Medical Education in the United States and Canada (Carnegie Foundation Bulletin Number Four).1 A century later, we face another crisis in medical education—not in terms of...
Replacing Animal Fat with Vegetable Fat May Reduce Mortality Risk in Men with Nonmetastatic Disease
“Among men with nonmetastatic prostate cancer, replacing carbohydrates and animal fat with vegetable fat may reduce the risk of all-cause mortality,” according to a prospective study of 4,577 men with nonmetastatic prostate cancer in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. Vegetable fat intake...
Survival Benefits of DCIS Management Strategies Compared
Overall survival benefits of six management strategies for ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) are within 1 year of each other, according to a disease simulation model integrating empirical data from published literature and quantifying the tradeoffs among the different management strategies with...
Shiitake Mushroom
The use of dietary supplements by patients with cancer has increased 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...
Driven by the Past
When I was 9 years old, a bout of nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain sent me to the emergency room. The physicians diagnosed appendicitis and rushed me to the operating room. But what the surgeon found instead was a 10-cm-wide, grade 2, immature teratoma. In 1968, treatment for malignant ovarian...
SIDEBAR: Expect Questions about Programmed Death Receptors
In today’s high-tech, sci-fi–loving culture, “programmed death receptor” seems like a term apt to stir up public interest, particularly when those receptors are being “targeted” by “agents.” In this case, however, the agents are antibodies that target programmed death 1 (PD-1) receptor and disable...
'Spectacular' Results with Immunotherapies in Melanoma Galvanize the Oncology Community
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. Much of the news about immunotherapy ...
Focus on the Society of Rhode Island Clinical Oncologists
Founded in 1994, just 1 year after ASCO launched the State/Regional Affiliate Program, the Society of Rhode Island Clinical Oncologists is one of ASCO’s oldest state affiliates. Like many other ASCO affiliates, the Providence-based group is facing a myriad of challenges, including ensuring...
Accountable Care Organizations May Be at Risk for New Medical Liabilities
The promotion of accountable care organizations, a crucial element in the Affordable Care Act, may result in liability risks, said H. Benjamin Harvey, MD, JD, a radiologist in the Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital, and I. Glenn Cohen, JD, Assistant Professor of Law at...
Gary L. Dillehay, MD, Is New President, Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
The Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) recently announced the appointment of Gary L. Dillehay, MD, FACNM, FACR, to 2013-2014 President, SNMMI, during the Society’s Annual Meeting in Vancouver. Dr. Dillehay is Professor of Radiology at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in...
Molecular Imaging Improves Care in Pediatric Glioma
The amino acid imaging agent, O-(2-[18F]-fluoroethyl)-L-tyrosine (F-18 FET), may improve upon standard magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and its diagnostic benefit for imaging pediatric gliomas when conventional MRI is not sufficient, said researchers at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular ...
Results of AXIS Trial Indicate a Significant Improvement over Historical Survival Data in Renal Cell Carcinoma
The phase III open-label AXIS trial comparing axitinib (Inlyta) vs sorafenib (Nexavar) as second-line treatment for metastatic renal cell carcinoma has shown a significant difference in median progression-free survival (8.3 months in the axitinib group vs 5.7 months in the sorafenib group; hazard...
SEER Analysis Shows Increased Survival with Surgery and Radiation Therapy in Metastatic Gastric Cancer
A Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database analysis reported by Ravi Shridhar, MD, PhD, and colleagues in Cancer indicates that patients receiving surgery and radiation therapy for metastatic gastric cancer have prolonged survival compared with those receiving either alone or...
Learning to Negotiate the Genomic Complexities of Cancer
The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Research Network recently reported the results of an integrated analysis of the genomic features of 373 endometrial carcinomas.1 This report joins previously published results of similar analyses in ovarian, breast, and colorectal cancers, squamous cell carcinoma of...
Erlotinib in First-line Treatment of Metastatic NSCLC with EGFR Exon 19 Deletion or Exon 21 (L858R) Substitution
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. Indication On May 14, 2013, erlotinib (Tarceva) was approved for...
FDA Approves Denosumab to Treat Giant Cell Tumor of the Bone
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has expanded the approved use of denosumab (Xgeva) to treat adults and some adolescents with giant cell tumor of the bone, a rare and usually noncancerous tumor. Denosumab, which was granted orphan product designation, was reviewed under the FDA’s...
SIDEBAR: Notes from the Lead Investigator
We conducted this study to clarify a hypothesis that had been generated from preclinical work and small clinical datasets. One additional background point that should be made is that although not all previously reported small datasets had demonstrated a relationship between PTEN expression and...
Outcomes with Adjuvant Trastuzumab in HER2-positive Breast Cancer Not Affected by PTEN Status
PTEN is a negative regulator of PI3K/AKT signaling. PI3K/AKT signaling can be activated by HER2, and it has been hypothesized that alteration in this pathway may affect sensitivity to trastuzumab (Herceptin). Preclinical data and some of the limited available clinical data suggest that loss or...
Immunohistochemistry Effectively Detects ALK Rearrangement in Non-small Cell Lung Cancer Study
ALK rearrangement has been demonstrated to be a potent oncogenic driver and a promising therapeutic target in non-small cell lung cancer. It defines a distinct molecular subset of NSCLC, in particular adenocarcinoma that can benefit by the treatment of ALK-inhibitors. Development of robust and...
Melanomas Induced by BRAF Inhibitors
Dermatologic Events in Oncology is guest edited by Mario E. Lacouture, MD, an Associate Member in the Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York. He is a board-certified dermatologist with a special interest in dermatologic conditions that...
New International Innovation Grant Directly Supports Research Projects in Developing Countries
The Conquer Cancer Foundation and ASCO International have just launched a new research funding opportunity, the Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO International Innovation Grant, which directly supports research being conducted by investigators in low- and middle-income countries. Advancing Cancer...
2013 Breast Cancer Symposium to Offer Expanded Meet the Professor Sessions and New Fellows, Residents, and Junior Faculty Track
As a cancer care specialist, it can be easy to become hyperfocused on your area of expertise within your subspecialty. But that’s exactly what ASCO wants its members—in all specialties—to avoid. The theme of this year’s Breast Cancer Symposium—Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Clinical...
Radium-223 Dichloride for Castration-resistant Prostate Cancer with Symptomatic Bone Metastases
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. Indication On May 15, 2013, radium Ra 223 dichloride (Xofigo) was...
Molecular Landscaping of Acute Myeloid Leukemia: Are We Relearning the Past or Informing the Future?
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a clinically and molecularly heterogeneous disease.1 This concept has been supported by more than 4 decades of studies showing distinct outcomes of subsets of patients that differ in age, disease type (primary vs secondary vs therapy-related), and cytogenetic and...
Genomic and Epigenomic Characterization of Acute Myeloid Leukemia
In a study by the Cancer Genome Atlas Research Network reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, genomes of 200 adult cases of de novo acute myeloid leukemia (AML) were analyzed by whole-genome sequencing (n = 50) or whole-exome sequencing (n = 150) to identify mutations and relationships...
Study Reports 25% of Women Don't Complete Recommended Breast Cancer Treatment
One-quarter of women who should take hormone-blocking therapies as part of their breast cancer treatment either do not start or do not complete the 5-year course, according to a new study led by University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers. For many women with hormone...
Venous Thromboembolism in Patients with Cancer: Real-world Challenges for the Practicing Oncologist
The close association between cancer and thrombosis has been recognized now for more than 150 years.1 Not only is it now known that patients with cancer are at substantially increased risk of developing venous thromboembolism, even prior to the diagnosis of cancer, but the association between...
Updated ASCO Clinical Practice Guideline for Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis and Treatment
ASCO has released a new evidence-based clinical practice guideline for venous thromboembolism prophylaxis and treatment, updating the 2007 practice guideline.1 The update is based on a systematic review of literature published from December 2007 to December 2012. An Update Committee reviewed...
Expert Point of View: Richard Goldberg, MD
The FIRE-3 investigators did not report the use of salvage treatments, and this may be confounding the results, according to Richard Goldberg, MD, who discussed the paper at an ASCO press briefing. Dr. Goldberg is Professor of Medicine at The Ohio State University, Columbus. “The study shows a...
Best First-line Treatment for Advanced Colorectal Cancer Remains Unclear
In patients with advanced colorectal cancer, it remains unclear which biologic agent added to standard chemotherapy is best, even after a head-to-head comparison of two commonly used agents. In the phase III FIRE-3 trial, conducted by the German AIO CRC Study Group, the addition of cetuximab...
Expert Point of View: Prolaris
Scott Tomlins, MD, PhD, a pathologist at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, was cautiously optimistic about this new test. “Whenever you introduce a new biomarker, you need to demonstrate its ability to impact clinical decision-making, and it needs to improve on what we currently have,” he...
Expert Point of View: Oncotype DX
“Prostate cancer is a heterogeneous disease and has not yet benefitted from personalized medicine discoveries. Anything that gets us closer to personalized medicine [for prostate cancer] is a plus,” said Michael J. Morris, MD, a medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New...
Two New Genetic Tests Offer Progress in Personalized Medicine for Newly Diagnosed Prostate Cancer
At least 12 different genetic tests for prostate cancer are under development. The two tests currently available are Oncotype DX (Genomic Health, Redwood City, California) and Prolaris (Myriad Genetic Laboratories, Salt Lake City). Both tests can identify which low-risk patients are “truly” at low...
Expert Point of View: Priya Rastogi, MD
Priya Rastogi, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, discussed the findings at the session. She noted that previous studies have also shown higher pathologic complete response rates among HER2-enriched patients who were hormone receptor–negative, and...
Benefit for Dual HER2 Targeting in Neoadjuvant Breast Cancer Regimen Restricted to Subset of Patients
As a neoadjuvant regimen for HER2-positive early breast cancer, the use of two HER2-directed agents was no more effective than trastuzumab (Herceptin) alone in producing pathologic complete responses, although one subset of patients did benefit from this approach, according to the results of the...
Expert Point of View: Stephen R.D. Johnston, MA, MD, PhD
The results of the next-generation sequencing analysis of the BOLERO-2 samples showed that specific activating PIK3CA mutations are not in themselves predictive of clinical benefit from mTOR inhibitors, possibly because there are other ways to activate mTOR independently of PI3K. “It is probably...
ASCO Will Change with the Times
At the 2013 ASCO Annual Meeting, The ASCO Post caught up with new President Clifford A. Hudis, MD, Chief of the Breast Cancer Medicine Service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, for a glimpse of his plans for ASCO in the coming year, and his thoughts on being elected ASCO...
Expert Point of View: Kanti R. Rai, MD
“These three excellent, encouraging, tantalizing studies show that we really are making progress in the treatment of chronic CLL, whereas 10 to 12 years ago, we had no real progress to report,” stated Kanti R. Rai, MD, Chief, CLL Research Program, North Shore-LIJ Medical Center, New Hyde Park, NY. ...
Idelalisib, Obinutuzumab Show Encouraging Results in CLL Studies
A trio of presentations at the ASCO Annual Meeting focused on two promising investigational drugs for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). These two drugs—idelalisib and obinutuzumab—join a list of new approaches showing potential. Idelalisib Alone A phase I dose-ranging study of...
First Positive Trial of Heat Shock Protein 90 Inhibitor in Lung Cancer That Has Progressed after First-line Therapy
The investigational heat shock protein (Hsp)90 inhibitor ganetespib plus docetaxel extended overall survival compared with docetaxel alone as second-line therapy in patients with advanced non–small cell adenocarcinoma of the lung that had progressed on first-line therapy in the randomized phase II...
Expert Point of View: Christine M. Lovly, MD, PhD
“The definition of molecular subsets of lung cancer [in terms of] driver mutations has revolutionized the care of patients with non–small cell lung cancer [NSCLC],” said formal discussant Christine M. Lovly, MD, PhD, Instructor in Medicine at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, Nashville. ALK...
