The St. Jude Children's Research Hospital–Washington University Pediatric Cancer Genome Project reports that a highly aggressive form of leukemia in infants has surprisingly few mutations beyond the chromosomal rearrangement that affects the MLL gene. The findings, reported by Andersson et al ...
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...
Patients treated with definitive concurrent chemotherapy and radiation therapy for stage III non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have longer overall survival when treated by highly experienced facilities, whether or not they are academic or community cancer centers. Researchers from the Yale...
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...
New clinical trial findings provide further evidence that combining chemotherapy with radiation therapy is the best treatment for people with a low-grade form of brain cancer. The findings come from a phase II study co-led by a researcher at Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer...
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...
Breast cancer survivors are at increased risk of developing thyroid cancer, especially within 5 years of their breast cancer diagnosis, according to a new analysis of a large national database. The study results were presented at the Endocrine Society's 97th Annual Meeting. “Recognition of...
Cancer cells can cloak themselves within tumors by hiding behind a dense layer of cellular stroma. According to a new study by the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), drugs that target and strip away the stroma would pave the way for other drugs to reach the cancerous cells within the ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved dinutuximab (Unituxin) as part of first-line therapy for pediatric patients with high-risk neuroblastoma. Dinutuximab, a chimeric monoclonal antibody that binds to the surface of neuroblastoma cells, is being approved for use as part of a...
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...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today approved the PD-1 inhibitor nivolumab (Opdivo) for the treatment of patients with metastatic squamous non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have progressed on or after platinum-based chemotherapy. Nivolumab is a monoclonal antibody that binds ...
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...
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....
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug designation for Oncolytics Biotech’s proprietary formulation of the human reovirus (Reolysin) for the treatment of fallopian tube cancer. The designation was granted on the basis of the company's December 2014 application for ...
Patients who received chemotherapy after bladder cancer surgery demonstrated an approximately 30% lower risk of death than those who underwent surgery alone, according to an analysis presented by researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai at the 2015 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium, ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Breakthrough Therapy designation to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Atara Biotherapeutics’ optioned cytotoxic T lymphocytes activated against Epstein-Barr virus (EBV-CTL) in the treatment of patients with rituximab...
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 ...
In a new study reported by Shoshan et al in Nature Cell Biology, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center established a link between melanoma and lack of RNA editing, which leads to tumor growth and progression through manipulation of proteins. Study Findings Study lead...
An analysis of data on 945 patients with prostate cancer that is managed with active surveillance shows differences in outcomes depending on whether the patient was low or intermediate risk at diagnosis. Compared to patients with low-risk disease, those with intermediate-risk cancer (PSA > 10...
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 ...
Findings from a small prospective study suggest that androgen receptor V7 (or AR-V7) status does not significantly affect response to taxane chemotherapy in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. Treatment outcomes were largely similar for the 17 patients with...
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...
Certain rare epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations are associated with tobacco smoking, worse prognosis, and poor response to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy, compared with more common, classic EGFR mutations. However, as not all rare mutations are the same, testing and therapy...
Sensor technology has the potential to significantly improve the teaching of proper technique for clinical breast exams, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. The results of the study were published in a correspondence in The...
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 ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted and granted Priority Review for Genentech’s New Drug Application (NDA) for cobimetinib in combination with vemurafenib (Zelboraf) for the treatment of people with BRAF V600 mutation–positive advanced melanoma. The FDA will make a...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has expanded the existing indication for lenalidomide (Revlimid) in combination with dexamethasone to include patients newly diagnosed with multiple myeloma. Lenalidomide plus dexamethasone was previously approved in June 2006 for use in multiple myeloma...
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 ...
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...
Women who drank about four cups of coffee per day appeared to have decreased endometrial cancer risk compared with those who drank less than a cup each day, according to a study published by Merritt et al in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. A New Approach “We used a...
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...
Oncolytics Biotech, Inc, a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development of oncolytic viruses as potential cancer therapeutics, has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug designation for its proprietary formulation of the human reovirus...
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....
The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has issued an endorsement of the American Cancer Society's (ACS) Prostate Cancer Survivorship Care Guidelines. These guidelines provide recommendations to primary care physicians on best practices in follow-up care for men after prostate cancer...
A new, multidisciplinary approach to managing patients undergoing a colorectal operation results in shorter hospital stays, fewer complications, and lower medical costs, according a study published by Thiele et al in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. Currently, patients undergoing...
Individuals previously infected with the hepatitis B virus (HBV) that receive chemotherapy or immunosuppressive treatment may be at risk of reactivating the virus, according to a report published by Di Bisceglie et al in Hepatology. Reactivation of HBV can be fatal, and researchers suggest routine...
Multiplexed genetic screening for epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene rearrangements, and subsequent biomarker-guided treatment, is cost-effective compared with standard chemotherapy treatment without any molecular testing in the metastatic...
Today the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final national coverage determination that provides for Medicare coverage of screening for lung cancer with low-dose computed tomography (CT). The coverage is effective immediately. “This is the first time that Medicare...
Prostate cancer patients with detectable prostate-specific antigen (PSA) following radical prostatectomy should receive earlier, more aggressive radiotherapy, according to a study published by Wiegel et al in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology • Biology • Physics. German ARO ...
Researchers at Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) have uncovered new information that may begin to explain why many African American women are more likely to be diagnosed with aggressive, often deadly forms of breast cancer. Their findings also strengthen evidence that increased dietary folate...