In the SAFIR01/UNICANCER study reported in The Lancet Oncology, André et al used comparative genomic hybridization and Sanger sequencing on metastatic breast cancer biopsy samples to determine the proportion of cases in which targeted therapy could be offered. They found that screening...
Among the four major molecular subgroups of medulloblastoma, WNT tumors are associated with excellent prognosis, whereas SHH and Group 4 tumors are associated with intermediate and Group 3 tumors with poor prognosis. In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Shih et al identified a...
In the BRIM-3 trial, vemurafenib (Zelboraf) was associated with improved progression-free and overall survival vs dacarbazine in patients with advanced BRAF V600 mutation–positive melanoma. In an extended follow-up reported in The Lancet Oncology, McArthur et al found that superior survival...
Researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine have discovered a highly accurate, noninvasive test to identify benign pancreatic cysts, which could spare patients the cost and risk of surveillance or potentially dangerous surgical intervention. The findings are reported in the Journal of...
In an analysis reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Held et al studied elderly patients with aggressive B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma and bulky disease in the most effective treatment arm of the RICOVER-60 trial, which included radiotherapy. The investigators compared outcomes ...
Using data from the whole-genome sequencing of a pair of 3-year-old female monozygotic twins, one healthy and one with the multilineage form of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a team of scientists from China and the United States have identified a novel molecular target that could offer a new...
Oral ascorbate, or vitamin C, has been shown to be ineffective in cancer clinical trials. However, recent studies have indicated that millimolar concentrations of ascorbate achieved in blood and tissue with intravenous dosing is associated with cancer cell killing without harm to normal tissue. In...
In a brief communication in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Passerini et al described compassionate use experience with the ALK inhibitor crizotinib (Xalkori) in a group of patients with chemoresistant advanced ALK-positive lymphoma. Response was observed in 10 of 11 patients, and...
In a study reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Cunha et al found that receipt of a stem cell transplant from donors with a homozygous haplotype (h2/h2, G-A/G-A) in PTX3, the gene encoding the soluble pattern-recognition receptor pentraxin 3 (PTX3), is associated with significantly...
Cancer experts from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Weill Cornell Medical College are collaborating to understand the link between obesity and cancer. Most recently, their research has yielded an interesting association: Obesity prior to diagnosis is associated with a fivefold increase...
Studies of complications of surgery or radiotherapy for prostate cancer generally focus on incontinence and erectile dysfunction. In a population-based cohort study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Nam et al assessed the frequency of other complications associated with such treatment and found high ...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Wang et al in the Children’s Oncology Group identified a common single nucleotide polymorphism, rs2232228, in the hyaluronan synthase 3 (HAS3) gene that is associated with anthracycline dose–related risk of cardiomyopathy in...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kiecolt-Glaser et al found that yoga reduced levels of inflammatory cytokines and fatigue and increased vitality in breast cancer survivors. Study Details In the study, 200 women with stage 0 to IIIA breast cancer who had completed...
A simple tool called “phi” appears to be able to identify which patients assigned to active surveillance for prostate cancer are more likely to require treatment. Phi, or the prostate health index, is calculated from three serum measurements: PSA, free/total PSA, and a new measurement,...
In the randomized, phase III CA184-043 trial, ipilimumab (Yervoy) improved progression-free survival and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) response compared with placebo, but failed to improve overall survival significantly in postdocetaxel metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer....
In an updated analysis of an Italian phase III trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Palumbo et al found that induction with bortezomib (Velcade), melphalan, prednisone, and thalidomide (Thalomid) followed by bortezomib plus thalidomide maintenance (VMPT-VT) significantly improved...
Enzalutamide (Xtandi) improved survival by 29% in men with chemotherapy-naive metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer and reduced the risk of radiographic progression by 81%, according to complete results of the randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multinational, phase III PREVAIL...
As genomic testing becomes more common, genetic counseling is increasingly performed via telephone. BRCA1/2 mutation carries increased risk for breast and ovarian cancer. In a noninferiority study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Schwartz et al compared genetic counseling for BRCA1/2...
Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-delta mediates B-cell receptor signaling and microenvironment support signals that promote the growth and survival of malignant B lymphocytes. In a phase II study reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Gopal et al found that the PI3K-delta inhibitor...
Use of standard chemotherapy is difficult in patients with relapsed chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who have significant coexisting medical conditions. In a phase III trial reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Furman et al found that the combination of idelalisib, an oral inhibitor...
In a study (FACS trial) reported in JAMA, Primrose et al compared outcomes with intensive follow-up with carcinoembryonic antigen measurement (CEA), computed tomography (CT), both, or minimum follow-up after curative surgery for primary colorectal cancer. Intensive strategies resulted in a...
As reported in The Lancet Oncology by Bosset et al, long-term results of the European Organisaton for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) trial 22921 indicate that adjuvant fluorouracil (5-FU)-based chemotherapy after preoperative radiotherapy with or without chemotherapy does not affect...
In a case series reported in JAMA Dermatology, Chernoff et al found that dermoscopic identification of vascular structures in cutaneous nodules in patients with known cancer diagnosis should raise suspicion for cutaneous metastasis. Study Details In the study, high-quality dermoscopic images of...
A large-scale genetic analysis of women with ovarian cancer with no known family histories of breast or ovarian cancer has found that one-fifth of them had inherited alterations in genes known to be associated with these cancers. The findings could lead to the development of better screening...
In a study reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Liu et al performed global proteomic profiling in samples from patients with triple-negative breast cancer in an attempt to identify a risk signature. They identified a novel 11-protein signature that independently predicts...
Afatinib (Gilotrif) improves progression-free survival compared with pemetrexed (Alimta)/cisplatin in first-line treatment of patients with EGFR mutation–positive advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In the phase III LUX-Lung 6 trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Wu ...
Preclinical data suggest a role of angiotensin II in colorectal cancer. In a study reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Makar et al assessed whether use of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) treatment for hypertension was...
In a phase III trial (LUME-Lung 1) reported in The Lancet Oncology, Reck et al assessed the addition of nintedanib to docetaxel in second-line treatment of non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The combination significantly improved progression-free survival in all patients and improved overall ...
In a prospective study reported as a research letter in JAMA, Meretoja et al found that 50% of patients had mild pain and 16% moderate or severe pain at 12 months after surgery for breast cancer. Factors predictive of pain were chronic preoperative pain, preoperative pain in the area of surgery,...
The reported prevalence of platinum-associated ototoxicity in children with high-risk neuroblastoma varies widely due to small patient samples and use of disparate grading scales. In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Landier et al in the Children’s Oncology Group assessed...
According to the final results of the phase III CAIRO3 trial by the Dutch Colorectal Cancer Group, maintenance treatment with capecitabine plus bevacizumab (Avastin) significantly delayed progression compared to observation in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer, and in a subset of patients, ...
The addition of PCV (procarbazine [Matulane], lomustine [CeeNu], vincristine) chemotherapy to radiotherapy improves progression-free survival in patients with grade 2 glioma, but the potential effect of treatment intensification on cognitive function is a concern in this group of patients with good ...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Marcucci et al assessed whether including epigenetic changes—ie, DNA methylation—as molecular risk factors could improve risk stratification in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). They found that a seven-gene score integrating DNA...
In a study reported in JAMA Surgery, Agarwal et al compared breast cancer–specific survival rates of patients with early-stage invasive ductal carcinoma undergoing breast-conservation therapy (lumpectomy followed by radiation), mastectomy alone, or mastectomy with radiation using the SEER...
Although recent data indicate that low-dose computed tomography (CT) reduces lung cancer mortality in high-risk patients, high false-positive rates, costs, and the potential for harm point out the need for biomarkers that can improve risk assessment. In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical...
Irinotecan drug-eluting beads given simultaneously with FOLFOX (leucovorin, fluorouracil, oxaliplatin) and bevacizumab (Avastin) in patients with unresectable liver metastasis from colorectal cancer improved response rates, increased resectability and prolonged hepatic progression-free survival in...
Sentinel lymph node biopsy is standard of care for axillary staging in clinically node-negative breast cancer, and underuse of sentinel lymph node biopsy could be associated with unnecessary axillary lymph node dissection and lymphedema. In a study reported in JAMA Surgery, Yen et al assessed the...
In a noninferiority trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Garland et al compared the effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction vs cognitive-behavioral therapy for treatment of insomnia in patients with cancer. They found that both techniques improved insomnia, with...
Overall survival was improved in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer through an innovative immunotherapy strategy in a multicenter study to be reported at the 2014 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium (Abstract 177). The results were announced at a press briefing prior to the meeting....
In the global phase III RAINBOW trial of patients with metastatic gastric cancer, the investigational monoclonal antibody ramucirumab significantly improved both progression-free and overall survival when given as second-line therapy, investigators reported at a press briefing in advance of the...
New data from a phase III clinical trial shows that patients with metastatic colorectal cancer tumors that contain RAS mutations beyond KRAS exon 2 are unlikely to benefit from the addition of panitumumab (Vectibix) to second-line FOLFIRI (leucovorin, fluorouracil, irinotecan) chemotherapy....
New findings from a four-arm phase III clinical trial in patients with stage II or stage III rectal cancer indicate that combining preoperative radiation with either capecitabine or fluorouracil (5-FU) results in equivalent outcomes. This study provides strong clinical evidence that using either...
Triple-negative breast cancer may be considered a relative contraindication to breast-conserving surgery. In a study reported in JAMA Surgery, Gangi et al from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles assessed outcomes in a large cohort of women undergoing breast-conserving surgery at their...
Obinutuzumab (Gazyva) is a glycoengineered type 2 anti-CD20 antibody that appears to exhibit increased activity against chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells (CLL), with increased antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity and reduced complement-dependent cytotoxicity, compared with rituximab (Rituxan). ...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Mahmud et al evaluated the effectiveness of the quadrivalent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine against cervical dysplasia using population-based individual level data routinely collected in Manitoba. They found that a high proportion of...
Chemoimmunotherapy has produced improved response and survival in young patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), but its use in elderly patients has been limited by myelosuppression and infection. In a phase IB/II study reported in The Lancet Oncology, O’Brien et al assessed the use...
In an analysis reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Zhao et al assessed factors associated with pain severity changes in ambulatory patients with solid tumors in the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group E2Z02 (Symptom Outcomes and Practice Patterns) trial. They found that approximately...
In the ORBIT trial, reported in The Lancet, Andreyev et al compared outcomes with usual care, gastroenterologist-led algorithm-based management, and nurse-led algorithm-based management for patients with chronic gastrointestinal symptoms following pelvic radiotherapy for cancer. The findings...
In the ESRA-CII trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Berry et al, patient use of a Web-based self-care program featuring tailored education and communication coaching resulted in significantly reduced symptom distress compared with symptom/quality-of-life tracking alone in patients ...
In a Children’s Oncology Group study (AGCT0132) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Billmire et al found that overall survival can be preserved in patients with stage I pediatric malignant ovarian germ cell tumor with a strategy of initial surveillance after surgical resection....