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Showing 15001 - 15050I Refuse to Capitulate to Cancer
Editor’s note: We regret to announce that Paul Kalanithi, MD, passed away on March 9, 2015. Dr. Kalanithi was Chief Resident in Neurological Surgery at Stanford University when he shared his story, reprinted here, with The ASCO Post just over 1 year ago, in March 2014. We extend our deepest...
Don’t Disregard Questions About Possible Symptoms of Colorectal Cancer Just Because the Patient Is ‘Too Young’
While colorectal cancer predominantly occurs in people over 50 years old, rates are increasing among younger patients. It is important for physicians not to ignore symptoms in patients who are young, “simply because they are young,” Jason A. Zell, DO, MPH, told The ASCO Post. Dr. Zell is the...
Colorectal Cancer Is Significantly Increasing Among Younger Adults and Being Diagnosed at Later Stages
A growing body of literature indicates that the incidence of colorectal cancer is rising among people under age 50, according to Jason A. Zell, DO, MPH. Dr. Zell is the corresponding author of one of the two recent studies finding significant increases in colorectal cancer among adults aged 20 to...
Shining a Spotlight on Epithelioid Hemangioendothelioma
In the winter of 2013, my son, Dmitriy, now 26, had a cough that wouldn’t go away. After several rounds of antibiotics failed to halt the persistent problem, a pulmonologist we consulted ordered a chest x-ray, which showed a large tumor lodged between Dmitriy’s lungs. Although the doctor said the...
2015 Oncology Meetings
APRIL Melanoma and Cutaneous Malignancies MeetingApril 10-11 • New York, New York For more information: www.healio.com/meeting/hemonctodaymelanoma/home?promocode689-8045 Hematologic Malignancies: New Therapies and the Evolving Role of TransplantApril 10-11 • Chicago, Illinois For more information: ...
Refining the ‘Right Patient, Right Drug’ Pairing in Cancer Care: RAS Profiling in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer
In an important post hoc analysis (reviewed in this issue of The ASCO Post), Van Cutsem and colleagues have further refined our knowledge of who are the “right” patients with metastatic colorectal cancer to receive treatment with cetuximab (Erbitux).1 This refinement was accomplished through the...
Why Just Having ‘Good’ Communication Skills Is Not Enough for Talking With Seriously Ill Patients
In the Institute of Medicine’s 2014 report Dying in America,1 the report’s authors found that while frequent clinician-patient conversations about end-of-life care, goals, and preferences are necessary to avoid unwanted treatment, most patients do not have those conversations with their physicians. ...
The ASPIRE Trial of Carfilzomib in Relapsed Myeloma: A Major Step Forward
Currently in myeloma, there are at least five new agents that are either approved or in the late-stage of development with impending approval. Major questions in the field relate to how we, as clinicians, will use these new agents and where they will fit in the overall treatment schema. The phase...
The Emerging Role of Radiation Therapy in Gastrointestinal Cancers
The use of radiation therapy in the treatment of gastrointestinal cancer has evolved over the past several decades, in a gradual, stepwise fashion. Since most gastrointestinal cancers are diagnosed at a locally advanced stage, coupled with the inherent sensitivity of most parts of the...
Researchers and Scientists Honored for Improving Cancer Prevention, Treatment, and Patient Care
The ASCO Special Awards recognize the dedication and significant contributions of researchers, patient advocates, and leaders of the global oncology community to enhancing cancer prevention, treatment, and patient care. Among this year’s awardees are an international leader in geriatric oncology...
Researcher Spotlight: Conquering Cancer With Emily Ko, MD, MSCR
One of the best ways to prevent cancer is by finding new, better treatments for conditions that are considered risk factors. That is why Emily Ko, MD, MSCR, Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, is investigating a new method for...
Current Progress Against Cancer and What Lies Ahead in the Next Decade
In January, ASCO released its report, Clinical Cancer Advances 2015: An Annual Report on Progress Against Cancer,1 which details research advances over the past decade that have led to longer survival and better quality of life for the more than half-a-million people diagnosed with cancer each...
EMPEROR Science Award Program
Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) and PBS LearningMedia announced The EMPEROR Science Award Program. This initiative will encourage students from disadvantaged high schools to pursue careers in science, with a particular emphasis on cancer research, through a year of mentorship with a scientist from a...
Breast Cancer Management in Review
Anyone who has attended the major oncology meetings knows that research from clinical trials in breast cancer often dominates the stage, with countless abstracts featuring new and updated results. To help the readers of The ASCO Post stay up to date with the latest discoveries and findings...
FDA Approves First Biosimilar Product Filgrastim-Sndz
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has 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...
Results of RTOG 0617 Reconsidered
Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) 0617 was a study initially designed to address an important issue in radiation oncology regarding the treatment of stage III non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC): Are outcomes improved with high-dose as opposed to standard-dose thoracic radiation therapy? The...
Calculating H-Score
Immunohistochemistry results can be further evaluated by a semiquantitative approach used to assign an H-score (or “histo” score) to tumor samples.1,2 First, membrane staining intensity (0, 1+, 2+, or 3+) is determined for each cell in a fixed field. The H-score may simply be based on a predominant ...
No Benefit of High- vs Standard-Dose Radiotherapy or Addition of Cetuximab to Chemoradiation in Stage IIIA/IIIB NSCLC
As reported in The Lancet Oncology by Jeffrey D. Bradley, MD, of Washington University, and colleagues, the phase III Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 0617 trial showed no survival benefit of high- vs standard-dose radiotherapy or addition of cetuximab (Erbitux) to concurrent...
Expert Point of View: Eric J. Small, MD
Eric J. Small, MD, of the University of California at San Francisco, discussed what he thought went wrong for cabozantinib (Cometriq) in the COMET-1 trial, yet another example of a phase III trial that failed to deliver on the promise of phase II results. “Although this was a negative study,...
Expert Point of View: Howard Scher, MD
AR-V7 is only one of the many prostate cancer predictive biomarker candidates currently under investigation,” said Howard Scher, MD, Chief of the Genitourinary Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. While preliminary data are promising, further development of AR-V7 will...
Evidence Mounts for Clinical Utility of AR-V7 in Treatment Selection for Advanced Prostate Cancer
The search is on in prostate cancer to identify predictive and prognostic biologic and genomic markers that go beyond traditional ones. Several groups are working in this area. One marker that has received much attention is a splice abnormality in the androgen receptor (AR) called AR-V7. Two...
Expert Point of View: D. Andrew Loblaw, MD
"I believe the study by Nabid and colleagues will help inform practice,” said formal discussant D. Andrew Loblaw, MD, radiation oncologist at Odette Cancer Institute, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Canada. “At a median follow up of 6.3 years, short-term androgen-deprivation therapy...
Too Early to Use Genome Sequencing for Breast Cancers in the Clinic
The role of next-generation sequencing (high-throughput technologies that allow DNA and RNA to be analyzed more quickly and inexpensively than earlier techniques) in breast cancer remains unclear and at present is primarily a research tool. Therefore, clinicians should be cautious in using genetic...
Should Oncologists Be Ordering Breast Cancer Gene Panels?
Two oncologic surgeons squared off at the 32nd Miami Breast Cancer Conference to debate whether breast cancer genetic susceptibility panel testing is ready for routine use in the clinic. J. Michael Dixon, MD, Professor of Surgery and Consultant Surgeon at the Edinburgh Breast Unit in the United...
Understanding the Role of Immune Function in the Treatment of HER2-Positive Breast Cancer
The addition of trastuzumab (Herceptin) to adjuvant chemotherapy undoubtedly transformed HER2-positive breast cancer from one of the most deadly subtypes to a highly treatable disease. Randomized phase III trials established adjuvant trastuzumab as standard of care in HER2-positive breast...
Immune Gene Profile Strongly Associated With Benefit of Adjuvant Trastuzumab in HER2-Positive Breast Cancer
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Edith A. Perez, MD, of the Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, and colleagues found that an immune function gene profile was associated with significantly improved relapse-free survival among patients with early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer who...
Clinical Trial Participation: ‘Is It All Worth It?’
Clinical trials have become increasingly complex over the past several years, and unfortunately, this has resulted in the typical scenario described below. We are fortunate that there are so many promising agents available for patients, and we want to encourage their participation in clinical...
Risk Assessment for Hodgkin Lymphoma Evolving and Promises Greater Precision and Specific Clinical Relevance
“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 University...
Widespread Use of Docetaxel Preceded Phase III Evidence of Usefulness in Patients With Metastatic Prostate Cancer
Docetaxel was being widely used by patients with metastatic prostate cancer before phase III evidence that it was more effective than the 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...
Expect Questions About Cold Caps to Spare Hair During Chemotherapy
For patients who have confronted a diagnosis of cancer, then endured weeks of chemotherapy, it would seem that losing their hair would not be a big concern. But for many patients, it can be. “You have to spend a year either putting on wigs or announcing to the world that you’ve had chemotherapy,”...
Scalp Cooling Caps Offer Option to Prevent Hair Loss During Chemotherapy
Hair loss remains one of the most dreaded side effects of chemotherapy, particularly for women. Scalp cooling caps worn by patients during chemotherapy infusion and for brief periods of time before and after offer these patients an option to preserve 50% or more of the hair on their heads. Although ...
2015 Oncology Meetings
MAY International Society of Geriatric Oncology (SIOG): Cancer Care of the Older Adult Across the Cancer ContinuumMay 1 • New York, New York For more information: www.siog.org 1st Annual New Treatments in Oncology Conference (ANTO)May 1-2 • Scottsdale, Arizona For more information:...
Patient Guides Available Through ASCO University Bookstore
ASCO Answers: Managing the Cost of Cancer Care explains the various costs associated with cancer treatment, including health-care coverage through the Affordable Care Act. It also provides a list of financial resources available to help offset expenses related to care and tips for organizing...
Staff Support Sessions in an Oncology Setting
Work-related issues such as coping skills, stress management, burnout, and compassion fatigue are among the challenges faced by clinical and other staff in cancer treatment centers. Given the emotional consequences of professional caregiving, staff support group meetings are valuable resources for...
Researcher Spotlight on Conquer Cancer Foundation International Innovation Grant Recipient Mya Thida, MBBS
In 2014, Mya Thida, MBBS, of Myanmar, was awarded one of the first-ever Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO International Innovation Grants. This grant was created to fund novel research projects that may significantly improve cancer control in low- and middle-income countries. One year later, Dr....
Preparing for the ‘Silver Tsunami’ and the Impact of an Aging Population on Cancer Care
“Older adults constitute the only increasing natural resource in the entire world.” —Linda Fried, PhD, Columbia School of Public Health The good and bad news about our changing demographic world is that the population of older adults is increasing in the United States and worldwide. While it is...
In Search of ‘Just’ Prices: Questioning the High Cost of New Cancer Drugs
As the oncology community begins the slow and often difficult-to-define transition from volume to value in the delivery of cancer care, the relationship between the price and value of certain high-priced cancer drugs is getting more scrutiny. We generally correlate the efficacy of a new drug and...
Aspirin as Adjuvant Therapy for Colon Cancer: Is the Time Right?
Aspirin has long proved to be a multipotent drug, with efficacy as a pain reliever, anti-inflammatory agent, antiplatelet agent, and cardioprotective agent. In the cancer world, a large literature has accumulated demonstrating its ability to prevent various epithelial malignancies, most notably...
Breast Cancer Management in Review
With the field of breast oncology as complex as ever, a brief update of the latest findings impacting breast cancer treatment seems timely. To that end, I have assembled highlights from a collection of newsworthy studies featured over the past year and into early 2015. Part 1 of this review, which...
Overweight Girls Face Increased Risk of Colorectal Cancer Later in Life
Girls who are overweight as young children and teens may face increased risk for colorectal cancer decades later, regardless of what they weigh as adults, suggests a new study published by Xuehong Zhang, MD, ScD, Instructor at Harvard Medical School, and colleagues in Cancer Epidemiology,...
Opioid-Reduction Strategy for Postoperative Pain After Breast Cancer Surgery
One persistent and potentially debilitating problem breast cancer patients suffer with is postoperative pain. Studies show that proper pain management is an essential component in the healing process, but undertreatment of pain symptoms remains an ongoing issue in the oncology community. Opioids,...
Analysis Shows No Link Between Aromatase Inhibitor–Related Musculoskeletal/Vasomotor Symptoms and Relapse-Free Survival
Retrospective analyses of the ATAC, TEAM, and BIG 1-98 adjuvant endocrine therapy trials in breast cancer have suggested that treatment-emergent endocrine symptoms may be associated with superior survival outcomes. In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Vered Stearns, MD,...
20 Years of NCCN: The Best Is Yet to Come
As the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) celebrates its 20th year, The ASCO Post asked its Chief Executive Officer, Robert W. Carlson, MD, to reflect on the organization’s accomplishments, mission, and future and on the role he may have played in its success. The Early Years You became...
Heal Thy Patient … Reflections on the Human Side of Medicine
Dr. Are extended to me the opportunity to make additional comments about his article. I am the husband of the most wonderful Mrs. X he discusses. As always, Dr. Are’s comments are very kind and generous. Three Roles Based on my experience and observations, I would like to mention three roles a...
Heal Thy Patient … Reflections on the Human Side of Medicine
The first time I met Mrs. X and her husband was to discuss the surgical treatment options for pancreatic cancer. She had just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer at her local hospital and was being referred to a tertiary care center for operative management. Mrs. X and her husband were no...
PRIME II and the Omission of Radiation Therapy in Low-Risk, Elderly Patients Undergoing Breast Conservation: The Time Has Come
Despite the high prevalence of breast cancer worldwide, it is important to recognize that > 40% of all cases occur in women aged 65 years or older in both the United States and the United Kingdom.1,2 Breast cancers in older patients are more often associated with indolent features and with...
Radiotherapy or Not in Older Women Receiving Breast-Conserving Surgery and Endocrine Treatment?
In the phase III PRIME II trial, designed to assess whether whole-breast irradiation could be omitted in women aged ≥ 65 years with early-stage breast cancer undergoing breast-conserving surgery and receiving adjuvant endocrine treatment, Ian H. Kunkler, MB BChir, FRCR, of Western General Hospital, ...
Mammographic Density After Tamoxifen Initiation Linked to Improved Prognosis for Pre- and Postmenopausal Women With ER-Positive Breast Cancer
An improved prognosis for women with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer who experience a large reduction in mammographic density following the initiation of tamoxifen treatment extends to premenopausal as well as postmenopausal women, researchers reported in the Journal of the National...
Lower 30-Day Mortality, Increased Likelihood of Adjuvant Chemotherapy With Laparoscopic vs Open Colectomy for Stage III Colon Cancer
“In routine clinical practice, laparoscopic colectomy is associated with a lower 30-day mortality, shorter length of stay, and greater likelihood of adjuvant chemotherapy initiation among stage III colon cancer patients when compared with open colectomy,” according to an analysis of data from the...
Escalation of Oncology Services at End of Life May Be Moderated by Coordinated Care
“Use of oncology-related services is increasingly scrutinized, yet precisely which services are actually rendered to patients, particularly at the end of life, is unknown,” noted an article in the Journal of Oncology Practice. To address this knowledge gap, Eijean Wu, MD, of the Los Angeles County...
