In a study of women with high-grade endometrial cancer, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center found sentinel lymph node mapping accurately identified all women with node-positive, high-risk endometrial cancer, when prospectively compared to a complete pelvic and...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Rhodes et al found that only about half of screening-age women had awareness of breast density and adequate knowledge of its impact on breast cancer detection and risk. Breast density is an important factor contributing to false-negative...
Current smokers, and those who have quit smoking less than 10 years previously, have twice the risk of a recurrence of prostate cancer after surgery, according to new research by Rieken et al presented at the European Association of Urology (EAU) 2015 Congress in Madrid (Abstract 508). In 2012,...
In a phase III trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Stone et al found that the combination of cytarabine and amonafide L-malate, a DNA intercalator and non–ATP-dependent topoisomerase II inhibitor, did not improve complete remission rate compared with cytarabine plus...
Patients with colorectal cancer experience significantly higher rates of numbness/tingling but comparable neuropathic pain relative to patients with other cancers, according to a study by Lewis et al in the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management. In addition, numbness/tingling was more likely to be ...
Scientists from the Broad Institute and the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT used CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing technology to “knock out,” or turn off, all genes across the genome systematically in a mouse model of non–small cell lung cancer cells and then tested...
A surgical algorithm developed and implemented by ovarian cancer specialists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center dramatically increases the frequency of complete removal of all visible tumor—a milestone strongly tied to improved chances of survival. The researchers describe...
According to a prospective study led by researchers at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, measuring the concentration of leukemia cells in patient bone marrow during the first 46 days of chemotherapy may help boost survival of young leukemia patients by better matching patients with the right...
Working with cells taken from children with a very rare but aggressive form of brain cancer, Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists have identified a genetic pathway that acts as a master regulator of thousands of genes, and may spur cancer cell growth and resistance to anticancer treatment. ...
Despite sharp increases in spending on cancer treatment, cancer mortality rates in the United States have decreased only modestly since 1970. Researchers led by Samir Soneji, PhD, of Dartmouth's Norris Cotton Cancer Center and The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice...
The International Lymphoma Radiation Oncology Group (ILROG) has issued a guideline outlining the use of three-dimensional (3D) computed tomography (CT)–based radiation therapy planning and volumetric image guidance, specifically to more effectively treat pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma. The...
In a basket trial (CUSTOM) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Lopez-Chavez et al performed molecular profiling of tumors in patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), small cell lung cancer, or thymic malignancies and assigned those in any of five actionable...
The U.S. cancer care system faces tremendous turbulence while dealing with growing numbers of cancer patients and survivors, mounting pressures to control rising health-care costs, and widespread oncology practice transformation, reports a new study by the American Society of Clinical Oncology...
Tobacco-related diseases are the most preventable cause of death worldwide; smoking cessation leads to improvement in cancer treatment outcomes, as well as decreased tumor recurrence. According to the American Cancer Society, in 2015, nearly 171,000 of the estimated 589,430 cancer deaths in the...
A higher intake by postmenopausal women of lycopene, an antioxidant found in foods like tomatoes, watermelon, and papaya, may lower the risk of renal cell carcinoma, a type of kidney cancer. A study describing these findings was published by Ho et al in Cancer. In 2014, 63,920 estimated new cases...
In an advance that could lead to better identification of malignant pediatric adrenocortical tumors, and ultimately to better treatment, researchers have mapped the genomic landscape of these rare childhood tumors. Their genomic mapping has revealed unprecedented details, not only of the aberrant...
In a phase III trial (ELM-PC 5) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Fizazi et al found that the addition of the 17,20-lyase inhibitor orteronel to prednisone in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer progressing after docetaxel therapy resulted in an overall...
The European Randomized Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer (ERSPC) trial showed a significant 29% prostate cancer mortality reduction with prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening but a marked negative impact on quality-adjusted life-years gained due to the effect of overdiagnosis on quality...
The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) today announced the election of Nancy E. Davidson, MD, Director of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute and UPMC CancerCenter in Pittsburgh, as its President-Elect for 2015–2016. Dr. Davidson will officially become President-Elect...
Patients with larger malignant tumors of the breast who undergo chemotherapy before a breast cancer operation are more likely to undergo a lumpectomy than a mastectomy, according to a study published by Killelea et al in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. Study investigators from...
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital scientists have identified the first genetic variation that is associated with an increased risk and severity of peripheral neuropathy following treatment with a widely used anticancer drug. Investigators also found evidence of how it may be possible to...
Family members often play an important role in providing care for patients with cancer, but which patients are more or less likely to involve family members in decisions regarding their care is not well known. A new study published by Hobbs et al in Cancer provides some insights and may help...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today approved filgrastim-sndz (Zarxio), the first biosimilar product approved in the United States. A biosimilar product is a biologic product that is approved based on a showing that it is highly similar to an already-approved biologic. The biosimilar...
Immune cells engineered to seek out and attack a type of deadly brain cancer were found to be safe and effective at controlling tumor growth in mice that were treated with these modified cells, according a team from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the Novartis...
Harold Varmus, MD, who has led the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for nearly 5 years, has announced that he will step down from his post, effective March 31, 2015. Dr. Varmus will be joining Weill Cornell Medical College's faculty as the Lewis Thomas...
A recent analysis of 55 Internet websites marketing a broad range of tests and services that promise the ability to personalize cancer treatment has found that the websites often overemphasize their purported benefits and downplay their limitations. In addition, the study results show that the...
In a new study reported by de Leeuw et al in Clinical Cancer Research, researchers found that the novel taxane cabazitaxel (Jevtana) has properties that could make it more effective than docetaxel in some patients with advanced prostate cancer. This hypothesis is currently being tested in a phase...
In a study reported in The Lancet, the Collaborative Group on Epidemiological Studies of Ovarian Cancer found that use of menopausal hormone therapy was associated with an increased risk of ovarian cancer, with the risk being highest among current users. The study consisted of meta-analyses of...
Cancer patients with limited brain metastases (one to four tumors) who are 50 years old and younger should receive stereotactic radiosurgery without whole-brain radiotherapy, according to a study by Saghal et al in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology • Biology • Physics....
Preliminary results from the phase II STAND trial have demonstrated a robust immune response with sipuleucel-T (Provenge) that continues 2 years after completing treatment in men with biochemically recurrent prostate cancer. The findings, along with data from an ongoing phase IV registry related to ...
Findings from a federally funded study suggest that patients with locally advanced kidney cancer should not be treated with either adjuvant sorafenib (Nexavar) or sunitinib (Sutent). The average period to disease recurrence was similar between those who received sorafenib or sunitinib after surgery ...
A case-control study of close to 180,000 men suggests that the incidence of prostate cancer is higher among men with a history of testicular cancer (12.6%) than among those without a history of testicular cancer (2.8%). Men who have had testicular cancer were also more likely to develop...
An analysis of data on roughly 87,500 men treated for prostate cancer since 2005 found a notable increase in higher-risk cases of the disease between 2011 and 2013. The retrospective analysis of patient data found the proportion of men diagnosed with intermediate- and high-risk disease increased by ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today approved panobinostat (Farydak) in combination with bortezomib (Velcade) and dexamethasone for the treatment of patients with multiple myeloma. Panobinostat is the first histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor approved to treat multiple myeloma. It is...
In the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group Z1071 trial, sentinel lymph node surgery after neoadjuvant chemotherapy was associated with a 12.6% false-negative rate in breast cancer patients with cN1 disease. In an analysis of axillary ultrasound findings in the trial, a secondary endpoint,...
Cancer researchers at University College London (UCL) have found that a cancer false alarm could discourage patients from checking out cancer symptoms they develop in the future. More than 80% of patients with potential cancer symptoms are given the all-clear after investigations. But according to ...
Decades after undergoing cranial irradiation for childhood cancer, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators found that adult survivors of pediatric cancer remain at risk for pituitary hormone deficiencies, which may diminish their health and quality of life. Chemaitilly et al published...
Common surgical procedures used to diagnose and treat precancerous cervical lesions do not decrease women's chances of becoming pregnant, according to a study conducted by Kaiser Permanente Northwest, which followed nearly 100,000 women for up to 12 years. In fact, researchers found that women ...
Last December, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved olaparib (Lynparza) in the treatment of advanced ovarian cancer in women with BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations. Now, a laboratory study by Ceccaldi et al has found that the drug may also be effective in breast and ovarian tumors that...
A frailty score predicts mortality and the risk of toxicity in elderly patients with multiple myeloma and can be used to determine more suitable therapies for these patients, the International Myeloma Working Group reported in Blood. “Chronologic age, performance status, and physician's...
Results of clinical trials evaluating chemotherapy regimens for advanced pancreatic cancer and lung cancers “tended to correctly estimate survival for Medicare patients aged 65 to 74 years, but to overestimate survival for older Medicare patients by 6 to 8 weeks,” Lamont et al reported...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today granted approval to lenvatinib (Lenvima) to treat patients with progressive, differentiated thyroid cancer whose disease progressed despite receiving radioactive iodine therapy. Lenvatinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor that binds to multiple sites...
In a phase III study led by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, the oral antiangiogenic therapy lenvatinib has shown dramatic improvement in progression-free survival in patients with advanced radioiodine-refractory thyroid cancer. Their findings are published by...
“Risk assessment in Hodgkin lymphoma is continuously evolving and promises even greater precision and specific clinical relevance in the future,” Joseph M. Connors, MD, stated in Blood. Dr. Connors is Clinical Professor, British Columbia Cancer Agency Centre for Lymphoid Cancer and the...
In a study of women with stage III/IV epithelial ovarian cancer, the addition of sorafenib (Nexavar) to traditional paclitaxel/carboplatin therapy resulted in no greater efficacy and increased toxicity, according to a report by Hainsworth et al in Cancer Medicine. The investigators suggested that...
Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have identified eight highly specific physical and cognitive signs associated with imminent death in cancer patients. The findings, published by Hui et al in Cancer, could offer clinicians the ability to better communicate with...
In a preplanned interim analysis of the phase III GADOLIN trial, obinutuzumab (Gazyva) plus bendamustine (Trenada) followed by obinutuzumab alone was found to significantly improve progression-free survival compared to bendamustine alone in patients with indolent, refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma....
In a study reported in a research letter in JAMA Surgery, Shapiro et al found that use of radiotherapy in unresectable pancreas cancer has decreased over time and that disparities in use can be identified. Decreasing Use The study involved Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data...
Docetaxel was being widely used by patients with metastatic prostate cancer before phase III evidence that it was more effective than standard-of-care for patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer, according to an analysis of Medicare claims from before and after the trial results and...
In women who have undergone mastectomy, those who underwent delayed breast reconstruction experienced greater cancer-related distress over the long term compared with women who underwent mastectomy alone, according to a prospective study by Metcalfe et al in the Journal of Surgical Oncology. For...