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Showing 14901 - 14950Cabozantinib Shows Encouraging Activity in Metastatic Castrate‑resistant Prostate Cancer
Cabozantinib, a dual inhibitor of MET kinase and the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) receptor, exhibits high, early single-agent activity in men with metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer, according to Maha Hussain, MD, FACP, who presented these findings at the 2011 ASCO Annual...
Is Subspecialization an Option or a Necessity in Community Practices?
Should oncologists in community practices subspecialize? What would that mean for them and for their patients? These are some of the issues tackled in a Journal of Oncology Practice (JOP) Strategies for Career Success article entitled “Subspecialization in Community Oncology: Option or Necessity?”...
FDA Issues Updated Safety Data on Silicone Gel–filled Breast Implants
The FDA has released a report updating the clinical and scientific information for silicone gel–filled breast implants, including preliminary safety data from studies conducted by the manufacturers (Allergan and Mentor) as a condition of their November 2006 approval. While the report confirms...
First Fentanyl Nasal Spray Approved for Cancer Breakthrough Pain
The FDA has approved fentanyl nasal spray (Lazanda) for the management of breakthrough pain in cancer patients 18 years of age and older who are already receiving and who are tolerant to opioid therapy for their underlying persistent cancer pain. This marks the first FDA product approval for...
A Prominent Oncologist Retraces Her Steps from Baghdad
Maha Hussain, MD, FACP, Professor of Medicine and Urology, is the Associate Director for Clinical Research at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center (UMCCC) and Co-leader of its Prostate Cancer/GU Oncology program. Dr. Hussain recently spoke with The ASCO Post about becoming a...
Studies Explore Potential Benefits of Sunitinib before Nephrectomy in Metastatic Clear Cell Renal Cancer
The multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor sunitinib (Sutent) is established as first-line therapy in metastatic clear cell renal cancer. Data supporting use of cytoreductive nephrectomy in metastatic clear cell renal cancer come from the pre–targeted therapy era, when less-effective immune...
Intergroup Study Evaluates Outcomes of Elderly vs Younger Patients Treated for Advanced Hodgkin Lymphoma
The 11th International Conference on Malignant Lymphoma was held June 15–18 in Lugano, Switzerland. Topics of discussion included lymphoma staging in the new millennium, lymphoma and its microenvironment, and lymphoma cure vs control. The ASCO Post summarized several key presentations in the July...
Special Award Recipients Honored at 2011 ASCO Annual Meeting
Each year, as a way to recognize enhancements in cancer care, ASCO honors individuals who have made significant contributions to the Society, the practice of oncology, and patients with cancer. At this year’s Annual Meeting, ASCO was pleased to recognize the 2011 Special Award recipients: Kenneth...
NCI Clinical Investigator Team Leadership Awards: Conversations in Gynecologic Oncology
The National Cancer Institute recognized Cheryl Saenz, MD, and Linda R. Duska, MD, among others, late last year with a Cancer Clinical Investigator Team Leadership Award. The 2-year award includes $50,000 in funding for cancer research programs at NCI-designated cancer centers. The ASCO Post...
Breast Cancer Studies Focus on Tailoring Therapy for Patient Subsets
As part of our ongoing coverage of the 2011 ASCO Annual Meeting, The ASCO Post has provided substantive reports on key breast cancer trials, but others deserve attention. Lapatinib/Capecitabine Controls Brain Metastases Results of the French phase II LANDSCAPE trial found lapatinib (Tykerb) plus...
SIDEBAR: Early Clinical Findings with JAK2 Inhibition
Two small preliminary studies of JAK2 inhibitors CYT387 and SB1518 had encouraging results in patients with myelofibrosis, and these studies were reported in poster presentations at the Annual Meeting.1,2 Both drugs reduced splenomegaly and achieved improvement in constitutional symptoms. SB1518...
Expert Point of View: Maintenance Therapy Prolongs Progression-free Survival in Advanced NSCLC but Produces No Overall Survival Benefit
Maintenance therapy in NSCLC is an ever-contentious issue,” stated formal discussant of these trials, Martin Edelman, MD, University of Maryland Greenebaum Cancer Center, Baltimore, at the ASCO Annual Meeting. “The maintenance approach is based on two observations: limited benefit from more than...
Maintenance Therapy Prolongs Progression-free Survival in Advanced NSCLC but Produces No Overall Survival Benefit
Maintenance therapy with either pemetrexed (Alimta) or gefitinib (Iressa) achieved modest improvements in progression-free survival in patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The magnitude of improved progression-free survival was 1.3 months and 2.2 months, respectively, in the...
Emerging Targeted Therapies Offer Glimmer of Hope for NSCLC but Biomarkers for Response Needed
Among the newer approaches to treatment of non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are heat-shock protein 90 (Hsp90) inhibitors, toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) agonists, and vascular-disrupting agents. So far, none appears to be a “home run,” but Hsp90 inhibition may be the most promising of the three...
Axitinib Improves Progression-free Survival over Sorafenib in Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma
A randomized comparative effectiveness phase III trial demonstrated significantly superior efficacy for the tyrosine kinase inhibitor axitinib compared to sorafenib (Nexavar) in patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC). These data suggest that axitinib may become a new standard of care for ...
Conflicts of Interest in Health-care Reform?
Last year’s health-care reform legislation, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, was designed to incrementally roll out major new bureaucratic entities, oversight, and mandates for the practice of medicine between its enactment and 2013, after the next presidential election. A new...
Exemestane Prevents Invasive and Preinvasive Breast Cancers in MAP.3 Trial
The aromatase inhibitor exemestane, taken for 5 years, significantly reduced invasive and preinvasive breast cancers in postmenopausal women at increased risk for the disease, in the large Canadian NCIC CTG MAP.3 randomized trial. Results of the trial were presented at the recent ASCO Annual...
Higher Risk of Recurrence for Triple-negative Breast Cancer after Modified Radical Mastectomy without Radiation
“The paucity of therapeutic options” for women with triple-negative breast cancer “emphasizes the urgent need to optimize the current locoregional management of patients with [triple-negative breast cancer] and reduce their risk of locoregional recurrence,” noted the authors of a Canadian study...
Endoscopic Excision May Be Viable Alternative to Surgical Resection of Large Colorectal Polyps
A retrospective review of 104 consecutive patients with large colorectal lesions, including 39 with carcinoma, found that “endoscopic excision of large colorectal polyps is a viable alternative to surgical resection in a select group of patients and can be performed safely with a good success...
Venous Thromboembolism More Frequent after Open Colorectal Surgery than Post-laparoscopy
The risk of developing venous thromboembolism (VTE) may be nearly twice as high for patients undergoing open colorectal procedures as for those undergoing laparoscopic colorectal resections, according to a report in the Archives of Surgery. The authors also “identified malignancy, obesity, and...
Despite Advances, Little Overall Improvement Seen in Treatment of Older Adults with AML
The outcome of treatment of older adults with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains unsatisfactory, although certainly not a totally futile exercise. Patients satisfying the entry criteria for cooperative group clinical trials can be expected to have complete remission rates of 50% to 55%, with...
SIDEBAR: Making Evidence-based Integrative Medicine Part of Mainstream Cancer Care
During the 1960s and 1970s, the concept of a holistic approach to treating disease that took into account the body, mind, and spirit grew in patient popularity and morphed into two basic categories: alternative and complementary, which later became known by its acronym CAM (complementary and...
A Conversation with Barrie R. Cassileth, PhD
Barrie R. Cassileth, PhD, Chief, Integrative Medicine Service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York, recently spoke with The ASCO Post about her quest to stamp out the illegitimate use of alternative medicine in cancer care and the results from her latest research. A...
SIDEBAR: Expect Questions from Your Patients
Drugs for the treatment of prostate cancer have been in the news because of recent approvals by the FDA, the costs connected with their use, and associated improvements in survival.1 More recently reported was the decision to allow Medicare coverage of sipuleucel-T treatment for men who met the FDA ...
Optimizing Treatment for Advanced Prostate Cancer Requires Shifting Focus from Individual Drugs to Integrated Therapies
Newer drugs, including sipuleucel-T (Provenge), cabazitaxel (Jevtana), and abiraterone (Zytiga), can extend survival modestly and ease symptoms for men with advanced prostate cancer. Maximizing the benefit to patients will require shifting the focus from developing individual drugs to developing...
Evaluating Risk for Suicide in People Diagnosed or Living with Cancer
The challenges of life-threatening physical illness can sometimes lead to suicide. In fact, given the critical stressors that a person with cancer faces, we might expect suicide to be a more common reaction. Patients with cancer are at increased risk of completed suicide, though the prevalence of...
ASCO’s Oncology Slide Library Functions as a Share‑and‑Exchange Forum
ASCO’s Oncology Slide Library—which allows ASCO meeting attendees to upload and share their ASCO meeting presentation slides with slide-library subscribers—may only be a year old, but participation is already very high. This year’s Annual Meeting in June marked the first time ASCO gave each speaker ...
ASCO’s International Cancer Corps Launches Initiatives in Ethiopia and Vietnam
Imagine just four oncologists attempting to provide care for a population of 82 million people living in a country covering twice the territory of Texas. That’s the state of cancer care in Ethiopia. And imagine a country of more than 90 million people—more than twice the population of...
ODAC Recommends Accelerated Approval for Brentuximab
Seattle Genetics, Inc, announced that the FDA’s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) voted 10-0 to recommend that the agency grant accelerated approval of brentuximab vedotin (ADCETRIS) for the treatment of patients with Hodgkin lymphoma who relapse after autologous stem cell transplant...
Sorafenib Acceptable in Child-Pugh B Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and moderate liver dysfunction can derive benefit from, and be treated safely with, sorafenib (Nexavar), according to the second interim analysis of the GIDEON trial, presented at the 2011 ASCO Annual Meeting by Jorge A. Marrero, MD, of the University of...
Intermittent or Continuous Androgen Suppression Produces Comparable Survival after Radical Therapy in Prostate Cancer
Men with prostate cancer who receive intermittent courses of androgen-suppressing therapy can live as long as those who are treated with continuous therapy, according to results of a recently concluded study. Until now, standard treatment has consisted of continuous therapy, but this is expected to ...
Bevacizumab Makes Inroads against Ovarian Cancer
Bevacizumab (Avastin) administered with chemotherapy and continued after chemotherapy improves outcomes in ovarian cancer, according to two multicenter, randomized, double-blind phase III investigations presented at the 2011 ASCO Annual Meeting. The first study, ICON7, incorporated bevacizumab as...
Expert Point of View: Second Primary Malignancies Explored in Multiple Myeloma
Formal discussant Ola Landgren, MD, PhD, Chief of the Multiple Myeloma Section at NCI, had some additional comments about the 2011 ASCO presentations on second primary malignancies in lenalidomide-treated patients.1 He said that the reporting of second primaries has several limitations that...
Second Primary Malignancies Explored in Multiple Myeloma
Three randomized controlled trials presented at the 2010 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) suggested that treating multiple myeloma with lenalidomide (Revlimid) increased the risk of second primary malignancies; of particular concern is transformation to acute myeloid...
Patients with Early Breast Cancer Benefit from Regional Nodal Irradiation
Findings from a Canadian study presented at the 2011 ASCO Annual Meeting may expand the pool of patients with lymph node–positive breast cancer offered extended-field irradiation.1 “Results from MA.20 suggest that all women with node-positive disease following breast-conserving surgery be offered...
Acting on Fear
When I was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1979 there was no global movement to raise awareness of the disease, there were no pink ribbon pins to show support, and there was no Internet with which to search for information. My doctor gave me the news on a Friday night, and the following...
A Landmark Lung Screening Trial: What Does It Mean for Clinicians and Their Patients?
The NCI-funded National Lung Screening Trial (NLST), published recently in The New England Journal of Medicine,1 was heralded as a landmark study in lung cancer detection. This study is the first comprehensive clinical trial to find that screening high-risk individuals with low-dose CT reduces lung ...
Surgical Site Infections after Colectomy More Likely in Obese Patients
Obese patients appear to have a significantly increased risk of developing a surgical site infection after segmental or total colectomy for colon cancer, diverticulitis, or inflammatory bowel disease, and the presence of infection increases the cost associated with the procedure, according to a...
Identifying Genetic Factors That Predict Response to Chemotherapy in NSCLC
A genetic variation in the chemokine-like receptor 1 (CMKLR1) gene was statistically significantly associated with poor overall survival in patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who were treated with platinum-based chemotherapy with or without radiation. The variation was identified by a ...
At 5 Years, Brachytherapy Shows Quality-of-life Advantages over Radical Prostatectomy for Favorable-risk Prostate Cancer
Five years after treatment for favorable-risk prostate cancer, men who either chose or were randomly assigned to receive brachytherapy reported quality-of-life advantages in urinary and sexual domains and in patient satisfaction compared to men who received radical prostatectomy, according to a...
Cancer Care in the UK: A Conversation with Chris Parker, MD
In the contentious debate over rising health-care spending, the cancer care policies of the British National Health Service (NHS) are often cited by U.S. policymakers as an example of how health-care rationing denies patients life-prolonging treatments based on costs. The ASCO Post recently spoke...
Circulating Tumor Cell Assay Shows Potential for Predicting Prognosis in Head and Neck Carcinoma
According to the NCI, an estimated 49,260 new cases of oral cavity, pharyngeal, and laryngeal cancers occurred in the United States in 2010, and approximately 11,480 deaths were attributed to these cases. It is estimated that 95% or more of these cases are squamous cell carcinomas. Currently, the...
ASCO Examines Impact of Health-care Reform on Cancer Care Disparities
In a new policy statement, ASCO outlines specific provisions of the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that have the potential to reduce cancer care disparities. ASCO’s statement makes recommendations to ensure that such provisions are carried out effectively, and urges additional...
ASCO Connection Adds New Columnists, Launches Group Creation Option
ASCO’s professional networking site, ASCOconnection.org, continues to build depth in areas of interest to the oncology community, adding as its newest commentator ASCO President Michael P. Link, MD, the Lydia J. Lee Professor in Pediatric Oncology at Stanford University School of Medicine, as well...
A Conversation with Constance M. Chen, MD, MPH
Although incidence data vary widely, breast cancer–related lymphedema may affect as many as 54% of the 2.3 million survivors of breast cancer in the United States. The condition is often disabling and can result in both long-term devastating physical consequences for survivors, including the loss...
Congressional Hearing Highlights Oncology Drug Shortages
Some oncology drugs are in such short supply that the situation is now critical, with almost 200 drugs affected—triple that of 2003. This was the background described by speakers at a July 2011 congressional briefing sponsored by the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC), ASCO, and other...
Adjuvant Immunotherapy Provides No Clinical Benefit in Patients with High‑risk Renal Cell Carcinoma
For renal cell carcinoma patients at high risk of relapse following nephrectomy, adjuvant therapy with the combination of interleukin-2 (Proleukin), interferon alfa, and fluorouracil (5-FU) provides no survival benefit over observation alone, according to a phase III trial conducted by the European ...
Genomic Researchers Identify Weak Points in Breast Cancer Cells
A large-scale project in genetic profiling has identified weak points in breast tumor cells that not only represent potentially new “druggable” targets but could lead to an entirely new classification of all cancers. The findings were recently reported in Cancer Discovery, a journal of the American ...
A Conversation with Samuel Silver, MD, PhD
Over the past 2 decades, significant therapeutic advances have led to greater survival rates and quality of life for patients with cancer. During the same period there has been a transformation in the way oncology services are both perceived and delivered. In a recent conversation with The ASCO...
Fixing the Drug Shortage: It’s About Time
I have spent the past 30 years trying to improve the results of treatment for advanced cancer. I had the privilege of working with Sir Michael Peckham when the late Professor Tim McElwain and he were evolving variants of the PVB (cisplatin, vinblastine, bleomycin) and PEB (cisplatin, etoposide,...
