Etirinotecan pegol is a topoisomerase-I inhibitor designed to provide prolonged tumor cell exposure to the active metabolite of irinotecan. In a phase II study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Ahmad Awada, MD, of Jules Bordet Institute, Université Libre de Bruxelles, and colleagues examined...
Patients with bladder cancer are two times more likely to have complications after a radical cystectomy procedure if they have a biomarker for poor nutritional status before the operation, according to study findings presented at the 2013 Clinical Congress of the American College of Surgeons....
There is an absence of biomarkers to indicate which patients with stage I non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) would best benefit from adjuvant chemotherapy. In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Juan Sandoval, PhD, of the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute in...
In a phase III trial (GRANITE-1 study) reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology by Atsushi Ohtsu, MD, PhD, of the National Cancer Center Hospital East in Kashiwa, Japan, and colleagues, everolimus (Afinitor) plus best supportive care did not prolong overall survival compared with placebo plus best...
Although nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin have been shown to be protective against colorectal cancer and are associated with reduced disease recurrence and improved outcome, they are also associated with toxicities that limit their use in therapy. Recent data suggest that the...
Patients with cutaneous malignant melanoma “do not maintain the cautious sun behavior they exhibit just after … diagnosis,” even though they are at increased risk for developing a second primary melanoma, data from a Danish study suggested. Based on measurements...
Etirinotecan pegol is a topoisomerase-I inhibitor that prolongs systemic exposure to the active metabolite of irinotecan. In a phase II trial reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Ignace B. Vergote, MD, PhD, of University Hospital Leuven in Belgium, and colleagues found that the agent produced...
In an open-label phase III superiority/noninferiority trial reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology by Ann-Lii Cheng, MD, of National Taiwan University Hospital in Taipei, sunitinib (Sutent) was associated with significantly poorer overall survival compared with sorafenib (Nexavar) in a population ...
Short telomere length in peripheral blood mononuclear cells is associated with aging and such age-related diseases as cancer, stroke, vascular dementia, cardiovascular disease, obesity, osteoporosis, and diabetes. Telomere attrition is considered a potential mechanism in triggering the chromosomal...
Older patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) have a high relapse rate after standard chemotherapy. In a study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Sylvie D. Freeman, MD, PhD, of University Hospitals Birmingham National Health Service Trust, and colleagues investigated whether assessing...
Some data suggest that BRCA1 mutations are associated with occult primary ovarian insufficiency and that BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers have earlier natural menopause than noncarrier relatives. A study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology by Ian M. Collins, MD, of Peter MacCallum Cancer...
A large epidemiology study of postmenopausal women by researchers at the American Cancer Society (ACS) has found that women who participated in at least 1 hour of vigorous physical activity every day had a 25% lower risk of breast cancer, and those who walked for at least 7 hours per week had a 14% ...
The anti-cytomegalovirus agent CMX001 is an oral lipid acyclic nucleoside phosphonate that is absorbed in the small intestine and transported throughout the body as a phospholipid. It is converted intracellularly to cidofovir diphosphate, but unlike cidofovir, is not a substrate of organic ion...
In a retrospective analysis of German High-Grade Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Study Group trials reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Gerhard Held, MD, of Saarland University Medical School in Homburg, and colleagues assessed the impact of rituximab (Rituxan) and radiotherapy on outcome in patients...
The 5-year results of the UK Standardisation of Breast Radiotherapy (START) trials suggested that lower total doses of radiotherapy delivered in fewer, larger doses were at least as safe and effective as the historical standard regimen of 50 Gy in 25 fractions as adjuvant therapy for early breast...
Results of the phase III TH3RESA trial show that the antibody-conjugate ado-trastuzumab (Kadcyla, previously known as T-DM1) extends progression-free survival in women with advanced HER2-positive breast cancer that progressed on two or more previous HER2-directed therapies including trastuzumab...
For the first time, an immunotherapy shows promise in smokers with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The engineered monoclonal antibody MPDL3280A achieved encouraging and durable responses in a phase I study in metastatic NSCLC in smokers and nonsmokers, and with squamous and adenocarcinoma ...
There is no longer any doubt that for the treatment of metastatic or locally advanced melanoma, ipilimumab (Yervoy) conveys long-term survival benefits, according to studies presented at the European Cancer Congress 2013. In the largest survival analysis of the CTLA-4 monoclonal antibody to date...
In a phase III study (VANTAGE 088 trial) reported in The Lancet Oncology, Meletios Dimopolous, MD, of the University of Athens, and colleagues assessed the addition of the oral HDAC inhibitor vorinostat (Zolinza) to bortezomib (Velcade) in patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma. The...
Interim results of the Cambridge Breast Intensity-Modulated Radiotherapy trial indicated that intensity-modulated radiotherapy was associated with significantly reduced skin telangiectasia compared with standard radiotherapy at 2 years in patients with early breast cancer. The trial included a...
Lymphoma is the fourth most frequent cancer to occur during pregnancy. In a multicenter retrospective analysis reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Andrew M. Evens, DO, MSc, of Tufts University Medical School, and colleagues examined treatment, complications, and outcomes for Hodgkin lymphoma...
Aurora A kinase is overexpressed in aggressive lymphomas and may correlate with more histologically aggressive forms of disease. In a phase II study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Jonathan W. Friedberg, MD, of University of Rochester Wilmot Cancer Center, and colleagues assessed the...
When used to treat pediatric patients with intracranial malignant tumors, proton therapy may limit the toxicity of radiation therapy while preserving tumor control, according to research presented on Sunday, September 22, at the American Society for Radiation Oncology’s 55th Annual Meeting...
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released today its final recommendation statement on medications to reduce the risk of primary breast cancer in women. Clinicians are recommended to prescribe risk-reducing medications, such as tamoxifen or raloxifene, for women who are at increased...
As reported in The Lancet by Aron Goldhirsch, MD, of the European Institute of Oncology in Milan, and colleagues, 2 years of trastuzumab (Herceptin) showed no advantage over 1 year of trastuzumab treatment in patients with HER2-positive early breast cancer in the phase III HERA trial. An update of...
Adding the chemotherapy drug cisplatin to a treatment plan of radiation therapy and high–dose rate brachytherapy for stage IIIB cervical cancer is beneficial, according to research presented on September 22, 2013, at the American Society for Radiation Oncology’s 55th Annual Meeting...
Interim positron emission tomography (PET) scan is being used to guide risk-adapted therapy in patients with early-stage and advanced-stage Hodgkin lymphoma for clinical research at academic centers, and experts predict that this will become standard of care in clinical practice. At the NCCN 8th...
Mindfulness-based cancer recovery was shown in to be superior to supportive-expressive group therapy decreasing symptoms of stress and improving overall quality of life and social support among survivors of stage I to III breast cancer who were distressed, according to a study reported in Journal...
The second-generation immunomodulatory drug pomalidomide (Pomalyst) “has shown impressive results in patients with multiple myeloma who are refractory to lenalidomide and bortezomib,” according to a review of clinical data leading to the drug’s approval by the U.S. Food and Drug...
A meta-analysis reported in The Lancet Oncologyby Wei-Chih Liao, MD, of National Taiwan University Hospital and colleagues indicates that fluorouracil (5-FU) or gemcitabine is optimal adjuvant therapy for pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Chemoradiation was associated with poorer survival and...
Patients with metastatic colorectal cancer that harbors KRAS mutations in exon 2 do not benefit from anti-EGFR therapy. However, other activating RAS mutations may predict poorer outcome with anti-EGFR therapy. In an analysis reported in The New England Journal of Medicine by Jean-Yves Douillard,...
Elderly patients are often underrepresented in clinical trials of metastatic colorectal cancer. In a phase III study (AVEX trial) reported in The Lancet Oncology, David Cunningham, MD, of Royal Marsden Hospital in London and colleagues assessed the addition of bevacizumab (Avastin) to capecitabine...
Tremelimumab is an anticytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen 4 (CTLA4) monoclonal antibody, a class of inhibitor that has shown activity in multiple tumor types. Ipilimumab (Yervoy), another agent in this class, was found to significantly prolong overall survival in metastatic melanoma despite a...
In an exploratory analysis of long-term survival data from the GeparTrio trial reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Gunter von Minckwitz, MD, of the German Breast Group in Neu-Isenburg, and colleagues found that response-guided neoadjuvant chemotherapy appears to improve disease-free survival...
In a phase II study (MCL-001, EMERGE) reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Andre Goy, MD, of Hackensack University Medical Center, and colleagues evaluated the use of single-agent lenalidomide (Revlimid) in bortezomib (Velcade)-treated patients who had relapsed/refractory mantle cell lymphoma. ...
A new plasma biomarker, isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1), has been shown to be more sensitive in detecting non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) than currently used biomarkers, including CEA, Cyfra21-1, and CA125, according to a study published in Clinical Cancer Research. The study by Jie He,...
Tivozanib is a selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 1 (VEGFR1), -2, and -3. In a phase III trial reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology by Robert J. Motzer, MD, of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) and colleagues, tivozanib was found to...
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, the manufacturer of ipilimumab (Yervoy), released results from its phase III randomized double-blind study investigating the drug in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. The study findings show that ipilimumab, a monoclonal antibody that blocks the ...
Today, as many as 23 million children and teens are obese or overweight, and it is estimated that more than one-third of U.S. adults (more than 72 million people) are obese, according to a statement released by ASCO to help raise awareness of National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month....
In a study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Gregory T. Armstrong, MD, of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, and colleagues assessed the frequency of major cardiac events and cardiovascular risk factors among adult survivors of childhood cancer and their siblings. They...
Available data suggest that docetaxel plus cyclophosphamide improves disease-free survival and overall survival compared with doxorubicin plus cyclophosphamide in early-stage breast cancer. Other findings suggest that amplification of TOP2A, the gene positioned next to HER2, is predictive of...
In a keynote lecture during the 2013 Breast Cancer Symposium breast cancer expert and ASCO Past President George Sledge, MD, offered five predictions for the future of the medical management of breast cancer. Dr. Sledge is now Chief of Oncology at Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto,...
Results of the two rounds of annual incidence screening with low-dose computed tomography (CT) vs radiography in the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) were recently reported by Denise R. Aberle, MD, of University of California at Los Angeles, and colleagues in The New England Journal of...
Pomalidomide (Pomalyst) alone has shown limited efficacy in relapsed multiple myeloma, but synergistic effects have been noted when it is combined with dexamethasone. In a phase III trial (MM-003) reported in The Lancet Oncology, Jesus San Miguel, MD, of Universidad de Salamanca, and colleagues...
Internal tandem duplications (ITDs) in the FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) juxtamembrane region are observed in 20% to 30% of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and point mutations in the FLT3 activation loop are observed in 5% to 10%. FLT3-ITD mutations are associated with early relapse ...
Cabozantinib (Cometriq) is an inhibitor of hepatocyte growth factor receptor (MET), VEGFR2, and rearranged during transfection (RET) tyrosine kinases. In a phase III trial reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Rosella Elisei, MD, of the University of Pisa, and colleagues found that cabozantinib ...
After neoadjuvant chemotherapy, 41% of early breast cancer patients experienced a change in status for the estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, or HER2 oncogene, researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reported at the 2013 Breast Cancer Symposium in San Francisco...
German investigators reported at the 2013 Breast Cancer Symposium in San Francisco that an abridged magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) protocol can accurately detect cancers among women whose mammographic screenings were negative (Abstract 1). MRI, therefore, may reveal the type of tumor that...
Although fewer Medicare patients with cancer died in the hospital in 2010 than in the years 2003–2007, aggressive treatment continues at the end of life, according to a new report from the Dartmouth Atlas Project. The findings also show that a significant number of patients were likely to...
In a study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Pamela J. Goodwin, MD, and Tina Hsu of University of Toronto and colleagues assessed changes in quality of life from time of breast cancer diagnosis to long-term survivorship and compared quality of life in long-term survivors to that of...