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Showing 14751 - 14800ASCO Supports Reinforcing FDA Capacity to Monitor Nation’s Drug Supply
“The GAO report identifies production lapses due to quality problems and constrained manufacturing capacity as being the central causes of the widespread incidence and persistence of drug shortages. “The report also emphasizes that the FDA has made significant progress in preventing shortages by ...
U.S. Government Accountability Office Issues Report on Drug Shortages
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently issued a report evaluating drug shortages and the associated public health threats, including prolonged duration of a disease, permanent injury, and death.1 This report follows a recommendation by GAO in 2011 that the U.S. Food and Drug...
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: Melanie B. Thomas, MD
Melanie B. Thomas, MD, Associate Director of Clinical Investigations and the Grace E. DeWolff Chair of Medical Oncology at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, commented on the findings by Martin et al for The ASCO Post. “I think this study is exciting,” she said. “They were...
Irinotecan Drug-Eluting Beads Improve Outcomes in Colorectal Cancer Patients With Liver Metastases
Irinotecan drug-eluting beads (DEBIRI) given simultaneously with FOLFOX (leucovorin, fluorouracil, oxaliplatin) and bevacizumab (Avastin) in patients with unresectable colorectal liver metastasis improved response rates, increased resectability, and prolonged hepatic progression–free survival in a...
Congress Agrees on Repeal of Sustainable Growth Rate
The U.S. Congress recently did something rarely seen on Capitol Hill: Leaders from both sides of the aisle agreed on a piece of legislation. On February 6, 2014, the House Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means Committees and the Senate Finance Committee announced its agreement on a bill—the SGR...
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),...
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...
‘Epidemic of Diagnosis’ of Thyroid Cancer Is Most Acute for Women
The epidemiology of the increased incidence of thyroid cancer, which has nearly tripled since 1975, “suggests that it is not an epidemic of disease but rather an epidemic of diagnosis,” Louise Davies, MD, MS, and H. Gilbert Welch, MD, MPH, concluded after analyzing trends in patients diagnosed with ...
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...
Focus on the Virginia Association of Hematologists and Oncologists
The state of Virginia encompasses a vast area of 40,000 square miles and is divided into five regions: the Atlantic Coastal Plain, the Piedmont, the Blue Ridge, the Appalachian Ridge and Valley Region, and the Appalachian Plateau. The diverse geography of the state creates unique challenges for...
2014 Oncology Meetings
MARCH Society of Surgical Oncology Annual Cancer Symposium March 13 - 16 • Phoenix, ArizonaFor more information: www.surgonc.org 24th Annual Interdisciplinary Breast Cancer ConferenceMarch 15-19 • Las Vegas, NevadaFor more information: www.breastcare.org/ 9th European Breast Cancer ConferenceMarch ...
Major Cancer Milestones in History, From ASCO’s CancerProgress.Net
To help tell the story of progress against cancer, ASCO launched CancerProgress.Net in 2011. The site is intended as a resource for media, policymakers, oncologists, advocates, and the public. One central feature of the site is an interactive timeline of major milestones in cancer treatment,...
Music Therapy Yields Positive Effects on Coping Skills, Social Integration, and Family Environment for Young Patients With Cancer
A collaborative multisite study has found that teens and young adults undergoing stem cell transplantation as part of cancer treatment gain coping skills and resilience-related outcomes when participating with a board-certified music therapist in a therapeutic music protocol that includes writing...
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...
Radiopharmaceutical Receives Orphan Drug Designation
The radiopharmaceutical gallium-68 dotatate has been given orphan drug designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency for use as a diagnostic agent for the management of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs). Gallium-68 dotatate is owned by...
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 ...
SSO/ASTRO Release Consensus Guideline on Breast Cancer Treatment
The Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO) has announced the availability of a comprehensive consensus guideline for physicians treating breast cancer developed to help reduce health-care costs and improve the course of treatment. Developed in conjunction with the American Society of Radiation Oncology ...
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...
President Obama’s FY 2015 Budget Proposal
[On March 4, 2014], President Obama released his proposed budget for fiscal year 2015. Among several cost-cutting measures designed to preserve Medicare solvency is a proposal to reduce reimbursement for life-sustaining cancer drugs. Currently, reimbursement to physicians for “Part B” drugs is...
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...
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...
National Program to Screen Ashkenazi Women in Israel for BRCA Mutations Is Being Explored
Citing a World Health Organization report that lists Israel as having one of the highest rates of breast cancer in the world, The New York Times reported on a proposed screening program to identify women with BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations.1 “A number of influential geneticists and cancer doctors from...
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...
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...
FDA Grants Orphan Drug Status to Pracinostat for the Treatment of Acute Myeloid Leukemia
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug designation to the investigational drug pracinostat for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The FDA’s Orphan Drug Designation program provides orphan status to drugs defined as those intended for the safe and effective...
SIDEBAR: Oncology Drug Approvals in 2014
February 12, 2014: Ibrutinib (Imbruvica) receives accelerated approval for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia who have received at least one prior therapy. January 10, 2014: Trametinib (Mekinist) and dabrafenib (Tafinlar) receive approval for use in combination in the treatment of...
Omacetaxine Mepesuccinate Receives Full FDA Approval for CML
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted full approval to omacetaxine mepesuccinate (Synribo) for injection. The full approval was based on the final analysis of two phase II trials that evaluated the efficacy and tolerability data of omacetaxine. The agent received an accelerated...
Expert Point of View: Anas Younes, MD
Anas Younes, MD, Chief of the Lymphoma Service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, told The ASCO Post, “Of the 800 or so ALK-positive anaplastic large-cell lymphoma patients in the United States, 70% to 80% are cured by CHOP [cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine,...
For Progressive Neuroendocrine Tumors, Clinical Benefit Is High With Capecitabine Plus Temozolomide
In an interim analysis of a phase II trial, 97% of patients with progressive metastatic neuroendocrine tumors achieved clinical benefit with the combination of capecitabine and temozolomide (CAPTEM). The results were reported at the 2014 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium by Robert L. Fine, MD,...
Colorectal Cancer Screening: Quality Measures Should Focus on Patient Benefit Over Age Alone, Study Reports
Screening for colorectal cancer based on age alone may contribute to both underuse and overuse of colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy, and fecal occult blood testing among older people, according to a study by investigators at the University of Michigan and the Veterans Affairs Center for Clinical...
Five Key Studies in Prostate Cancer and Renal Cell Carcinoma
The 10th Genitourinary Cancers Symposium, sponsored by ASCO, the American Society for Radiation Oncology, and the Society of Urologic Oncology, was held January 29–February 1, 2014, in San Francisco. The more than 630 abstracts presented addressed essential research in genitourinary malignancies,...
State-of-the-Art Update on Prostate Cancer
The 2014 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium, held in San Francisco from January 29 to February 1, brought together more than 3,100 participants from around the world involved in the care of patients with genitourinary malignancies. The abstract presentations and plenary discussions offered the latest...
Transition From Busy Oncologist to Retiree: Challenges and Opportunities
Oncology is a demanding field that requires special qualities to care for very sick patients, many of whom will die prematurely of their disease. Research indicates that years of facing life-and-death decisions in the clinic can be associated with oncology burnout syndrome, which effects physician...
City of Hope Names Yuman Fong, MD, Chair, Department of Surgery
City of Hope recently announced the appointment of two new chairs in the Department of Surgery and for the Board of Directors. Yuman Fong, MD, has been named Chair of the Department of Surgery at City of Hope. Dr. Fong comes to City of Hope from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York,...
USPSTF Appoints New Chair and Co-Vice Chair
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recently announced the appointments of Michael L. LeFevre, MD, MSPH, as Chair of the Task Force and Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, PhD, MD, as Co-Vice Chair. Albert L. Siu, MD, MSPH, current Co-Vice Chair, will remain in his position. Dr. LeFevre and Dr....
American Association for Cancer Research Welcomes New Board of Directors, Nominating Committee Members
The members of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) have elected five members to serve on the AACR Board of Directors for the 2014–2017 term and four members to serve on the Nominating Committee for the 2014–2016 term. They assumed their roles at the AACR Annual Meeting 2014, held in ...
Expect Questions From Patients
Results from the Scandinavian Prostate Cancer Group Study Number 4 (SPCG-4), showing that men with early-stage prostate cancer, particularly men under 65 years old, treated with radical prostatectomy had increased survival compared to those assigned to watchful waiting, has raised concerns among...
Prostate Cancer Study Showing Increased Survival for Younger Men Undergoing Prostatectomy Not Expected to Increase Surgeries
Extended follow-up in the Scandinavian Prostate Cancer Group Study Number 4 (SPCG4), reported recently in The New England Journal of Medicine,1 found that men with early-stage prostate cancer, particularly those under 65 years old, who were treated with radical prostatectomy had increased survival...
Survivorship: Living Well During and After Cancer
Barrie Cassileth, PhD, Laurance S. Rockefeller Chair in Integrative Medicine and Chief, Integrative Medicine Service, at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York has published a new book called Survivorship: Living Well During and After Cancer. Dr. Cassileth provides readers with...
MD Anderson Honors Two Champions for Women in Medicine and Research
Two champions of gender equality in medicine and research were recently honored by The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Laurie Glimcher, MD, the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean of Weill Cornell Medical College and Provost for Medical Affairs of Cornell University since 2012, received...
Join the 21st Annual Cancer Survivors’ Celebration Walk & 5K
Nearly 4,000 attendees, including more than 700 cancer survivors along with friends and family members, will gather in Chicago’s Grant Park for the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University’s Annual Cancer Survivors’ Celebration Walk & 5K Run. This year’s event will ...
Two Behavioral Interventions Help Cancer Patients Struggling With Sleep Issues, Penn Medicine Study Finds
Patients with cancer who are struggling with sleep troubles, due in part to pain or side effects of treatment, can count on two behavioral interventions for relief—cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia and mindfulness-based stress reduction—Penn Medicine researchers reported in a recent study...
