In a study reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Jaiswal et al found somatic mutations associated with hematologic cancers at increasing frequency with increasing age, with presence of the mutations being associated with increased risk of hematologic cancers, all-cause mortality,...
A population-based study of women who had undergone surgery for breast cancer has found that many lacked understanding of the basic characteristics of their disease, including stage, grade, and tumor characteristics. Minority patients were less likely than white patients to have the correct...
A new analysis opens the door to the discovery of thousands of potential new cancer biomarkers, according to a recent study by Iyer et al published in Nature Genetics. Long Noncoding RNA Researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center analyzed the global landscape of long...
A new breast imaging technique developed at Mayo Clinic nearly quadruples detection rates of invasive breast cancers in women with dense breast tissue, according to the results of a study published by Rhodes et al in the American Journal of Roentgenology. What Is MBI? Molecular breast imaging...
In a Chinese study reported in JAMA, Huang et al found that treatment with entecavir (guanosine analog reverse transcriptase inhibitor) reduced hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatitis and HBV reactivation compared with lamivudine (cytidine analog reverse transcriptase inhibitor) in HBV-positive...
Taking a hormonal contraceptive for at least 5 years is associated with a possible increase in women’s risk of developing a glioma, according to a study by Andersen et al published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. Study Details While little is known about the causes of...
A genomic study of cancer patients previously treated with chemotherapy or radiation therapy found that TP53 mutations may play a role in the development of treatment-related acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndrome, according to a report by Wong et al in Nature. However, the...
In a study in the Childhood Cancer Survivor Cohort reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Hudson et al found that poor health status was more common in survivors than in siblings, with an age-related increase in prevalence particularly evident in female survivors. In the study, 22,568...
A somatic mutation in the ATRX gene has recently been identified as a potential molecular marker for gliomas, neuroblastomas, and pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors. Now, researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have found that the same mutated gene may serve...
A new study from researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center characterizes the genetic underpinnings of phyllodes tumors, a rare type of breast tumor. The study offers the first comprehensive analysis of the molecular alterations at work in these tumors, according to Cani...
The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) announced today that it will use SAP HANA®, a data management and application platform, in the development of CancerLinQ, the Society’s health information technology platform that will harness Big Data to deliver high-quality care to...
In the phase II SN FNAC (Sentinel Node Biopsy Following Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy) trial, reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Boileau et al found a sentinel node biopsy false-negative rate of 8.4% with mandatory use of immunohistochemistry and a sentinel node biopsy identification rate of...
A meta-analysis of published studies evaluating sedentary behavior in adults and health outcomes independent of physical activity has found that sedentary activities, such as prolonged sitting watching television or using a computer, is positively associated with an increased risk for all-cause...
A simple change to a two-drug therapy for metastatic pancreatic cancer provides similar cancer control while significantly improving quality of life and reducing the cost of care, according to data reported by researchers at the The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur...
Patients with early-stage breast cancer still undergo imaging for distant metastases despite evidence-based local, national, and international guidelines, and a recommendation from ASCO to avoid such imaging, according to a retrospective review of staging imaging for distant metastases in patients...
In a study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Roscoe et al found that cognitive behavioral therapy combined with placebo or the wakefulness-promoting agent armodafinil (Nuvigil) had similar beneficial effects on insomnia and sleep quality in cancer survivors. Study Details In the study, 96 ...
Although scientists know that all cancers contain a mixture of both rapidly and slowly proliferating cancer cells, which complicates the detection and treatment of patients with cancer and may cause disease relapse long after apparently curative treatment, the circumstances and molecular details of ...
Updated results from TRIBE, an Italian phase III study of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer, indicate that FOLFOXIRI (leucovorin, fluorouracil [5-FU], oxaliplatin, irinotecan) chemotherapy in combination with bevacizumab (Avastin) is superior to the standard FOLFIRI (leucovorin, 5-FU,...
A recent study on the use of minimally invasive surgery for colorectal cancer at National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) centers has found that although laparoscopic colectomy results in equivalent oncologic outcomes compared to open colectomy, its adoption nationally has been slow. An...
A prospective analysis of data from a phase III study of patients newly diagnosed with metastatic colorectal cancer indicates that patients with higher vitamin D levels have better outcomes after treatment with chemotherapy and targeted therapy. The median overall survival for patients with the...
Patients with metastatic colorectal cancer showed a continued and persistent improvement over time in overall survival when they received ziv-aflibercept (Zaltrap) in addition to FOLFIRI (irinotecan, fluorouracil, leucovorin), reported by Ruff et al in the European Journal of Cancer. Survival was...
Patients with locally advanced rectal cancer who receive neoadjuvant radiation therapy with either irinotecan plus capecitabine or oxaliplatin plus capecitabine have a 4-year overall survival rate of 85% and 75%, respectively, according to a study reported by Wong et al in the International Journal ...
In a phase III trial reported in The Lancet, Slotman et al found that while thoracic radiotherapy vs no thoracic radiotherapy was not associated with a significant improvement in 1-year overall survival, the primary endpoint of the study, it significantly improved 2-year overall survival and...
Approximately 5% to 6% of cases of colorectal cancer are associated with germline mutations conferring an inherited predisposition for disease. As reported by Stoffel et al in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, ASCO has endorsed, with qualifying statements, the European Society for Medical Oncology...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Palmer et al found that Asian cancer survivors reported poorer care communication and care quality compared with white patients. Study Details The study involved 1,196 survivors of breast, prostate, colorectal, ovarian, and endometrial...
Oral infection with human papillomavirus 16 (HPV16), which is the type of HPV most frequently linked to HPV-driven head and neck cancers, was more likely to persist 12 or more months in men older than 45 than in those younger than 45, according to a study reported by Pierce Campbell et al in...
In a population-based study of patients with thyroid cancer, 12.3% of patients with small papillary thyroid tumors experienced thyroid cancer–related deaths despite undergoing thyroidectomy, according to a report by Nilubol and Kebebew in the journal Cancer. From the results of this study,...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Klotz et al found that 1.5% of prostate cancer patients in a Canadian active surveillance cohort died from the disease during up to 16 years of follow-up. Study Details The study involved 993 men with favorable-risk prostate cancer who were ...
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, Stearns et al found no...
After performing whole-genome sequencing on patients found to have BRCA1or BRCA2 mutations as well as on those that were not carriers of either mutation, researchers found cancer risk–related potentially pathogenic variants in those without BRCA mutations. While the results highlight the ...
In a meta-analysis of patients with breast cancer–related lymphedema, low-level laser therapy was associated with reduced limb volume and pain levels, according to a report by Smoot et al in the Journal of Cancer Survivorship. However, the investigators noted that regarding pain management,...
In a phase II study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Topp et al found that the bispecific CD19-directed CD3 T-cell engager (BiTE) blinatumomab (Blincyto) was highly active in adults with relapsed or refractory B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Blinatumomab binds to CD19 expressed ...
In a Canadian study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Cossetti and colleagues found that temporal patterns of breast cancer relapse according to estrogen receptor and HER2 status in the period 2004–2008 were similar to those in 1986–1992 but at markedly reduced relapse rates....
In a study reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Gerber et al found that patients with prior cancer were excluded from most clinical trials in lung cancer, including nearly all with overall survival as a primary endpoint. The study involved review of data from 51 lung cancer...
The molecular determinants of benefit from immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment have not been characterized. In a study reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Snyder et al found that benefit of the anti–cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen 4 (CTLA-4) antibodies ipilimumab (Yervoy) and...
The American Cancer Society’s annual cancer statistics report found that a 22% drop in cancer mortality over 2 decades led to the avoidance of more than 1.5 million cancer deaths that would have occurred if peak rates had persisted. And while cancer death rates have declined in every state,...
In a study in the Multiethnic Cohort (composed of men and women from California and Hawaii) reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Setiawan et al found that diabetes was associated with increased risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in all racial/ethnic groups, with risk being...
After initiating several biophysical computational studies, researchers have identified mutations that destabilize a DNA structure that turns a gene “off.” They found that these mutations occur at four specific sites in the human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) promoter in over ...
In a phase III trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Cainap et al found that treatment with linifanib, an ATP-competitive inhibitor of VEGF and PDGF receptor tyrosine kinases, did not improve overall survival compared with sorafenib (Nexavar) treatment in patients with advanced...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Lepore et al found that patients assigned a helper role in a breast cancer Internet support group had worse anxiety/depression symptoms after completion of the intervention than those not assigned a helper role. Study Details In the study,...
In an analysis reported in The Lancet Oncology, Schmoll et al found no difference in survival outcomes with adjuvant capecitabine vs fluorouracil (5-FU)/leucovorin with or without oxaliplatin in patients with stage III colon cancer and no adverse impact of adjuvant oxaliplatin on post-relapse...
Today’s approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of olaparib (Lynparza) occurred concurrently with that of a companion diagnostic, BRACAnalysis CDx. This genetic test is designed to detect the presence of mutations in the BRCA genes in blood samples from patients with ovarian...
Anti–PD-1 antibodies have been shown to be effective in solid tumors. There is evidence that the malignant Reed-Sternberg cells in Hodgkin lymphomas use the PD-1 pathway to evade immune detection, with alterations in chromosome 9p24.1 increasing levels of PD-L1 and PD-L2 and promoting...
In a retrospective study of patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) of the superior sulcus, induction chemoradiotherapy followed by resection provided complete or partial response in over 50% of subjects, according to a report by Truntzer et al in Radiation Therapy. However, the...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Eskander et al found that rates of 30-day hospital readmission after surgery for advanced ovarian cancer are high and have increased significantly in recent years. In the study, the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-Medicare ...
In a phase III PROFILE 1014 trial reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Solomon et al found that the ALK inhibitor crizotinib (Xalkori) improved progression-free survival vs standard chemotherapy in first-line treatment of advanced ALK-positive non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)....
A new study led by researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) describes a novel marker that might help doctors choose the least toxic, most effective treatment for many...
Men with localized prostate cancer who walked or cycled for 20 minutes or more a day had a 30% decreased overall mortality and a 39% decreased prostate cancer–specific mortality compared with men who spent less time engaging in those activities, a large Swedish study has found. The study...
In a study reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Di Narzo et al found that individual colon cancer gene-expression risk scores contributed little to the prognostic ability of traditional risk factors. Study Details The study involved evaluation of four gene-expression risk...
In an analysis of patients with T1 node-positive colon cancer who had previous surgery, adjuvant chemotherapy provided a significant survival advantage, according to a study by Ganapathi et al in Diseases of the Colon and Rectum. However, the investigators noted that a significant minority of this...