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...
In a Japanese study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kinoshita et al found that death at home vs palliative care units or hospitals was better for terminally ill cancer patients and was not associated with an increased caregiver burden. Study Details The study included two...
Analysis of data from 102,929 patients with stage IV lung cancer found that “prior cancer does not convey an adverse effect on clinical outcomes, regardless of prior cancer stage, type, or timing.” Based on these findings, investigators from the Harold C. Simmons Cancer Center,...
Improved prognosis for women with estrogen receptor–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...
Emergency room visits and hospitalizations are common among patients with early breast cancer receiving chemotherapy, particularly among those receiving a regimen containing docetaxel, according to a report by Enright et al in the Journal of Oncology Practice. “In this population-based cohort ...
In a Spanish-German phase III LEA trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Martín et al found that adding bevacizumab (Avastin) to endocrine therapy with letrozole or fulvestrant (Faslodex) in the first-line treatment of postmenopausal women with advanced breast cancer did not...
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...
In the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group Z1071 trial, sentinel lymph node surgery after neoadjuvant chemotherapy was associated with a 12.6% false-negative rate in breast cancer patients with cN1 disease. In an analysis of axillary ultrasound findings in the trial, a secondary endpoint,...
Increases in medical costs are often attributed to ‘demanding’ patients. In a study reported in JAMA Oncology, Gogineni et al found that approximately 9% of patient encounters in outpatient oncology clinics included patient demands or requests for tests or treatment, that the majority...
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 ...
In a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) analysis of randomized trials in advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Blumenthal et al found a strong correlation between response rate and progression-free survival at the trial level and a...
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...
The phase III CRYSTAL trial showed that the addition of cetuximab (Erbitux) to first-line FOLFIRI (fluorouracil, leucovorin, and irinotecan) significantly improved overall survival, progression-free survival, and objective response rates in patients with KRAS codon 12/13 (exon 2) wild-type...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Den et al found that a 22-biomarker genomic classifier score was predictive of a greater risk of metastasis and benefit of adjuvant vs salvage radiotherapy after radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer. Metastasis Risk The study involved...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Wang et al, the incidence of late toxicity among patients with extremity soft-tissue sarcoma receiving preoperative image-guided radiotherapy to a reduced target volume in the phase II Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) 0630 trial was lower...
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 ...
Last December, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved olaparib (Lynparza) in the treatment of advanced ovarian cancer in women with BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations. Now, a laboratory study by Ceccaldi et al has found that the drug may also be effective in breast and ovarian tumors that...
In an analysis among patients in the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) E4402 trial (RESORT) reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Wagner et al found no difference in anxiety or health-related quality of life in patients with low–tumor burden non-Hodgkin lymphoma who received...
A frailty score predicts mortality and the risk of toxicity in elderly patients with multiple myeloma and can be used to determine more suitable therapies for these patients, the International Myeloma Working Group reported in Blood. “Chronologic age, performance status, and physician's...
On Thursday, February 12, 2015, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced its new Oncology Care Model, a multipayer payment and care delivery model meant to support better health-care coordination for patients with cancer. Although commending the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ...
In the Dutch phase III HYPRO trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Aluwini et al found that hypofractionated radiotherapy was not noninferior to standard fractionated radiotherapy in acute genitourinary and gastrointestinal toxicity in men with intermediate- or high-risk prostate cancer. Efficacy...
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...
In a randomized trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Breitbart et al found that meaning-centered group psychotherapy significantly improved psychological well-being compared with supportive group psychotherapy in patients with advanced or terminal cancer. Meaning-centered group...
“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...
In a study of women with stage III/IV epithelial ovarian cancer, the addition of sorafenib (Nexavar) to traditional paclitaxel/carboplatin therapy resulted in no greater efficacy and increased toxicity, according to a report by Hainsworth et al in Cancer Medicine. The investigators suggested that...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Yang et al found that current smoking was associated with increased colorectal cancer–specific and all-cause mortality among colorectal cancer patients in both the prediagnosis and postdiagnosis settings. Study Details The study...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Wolff et al found a low but higher-than-expected incidence of marrow neoplasms in patients receiving adjuvant radiation therapy or chemotherapy for breast cancer. The study used the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Breast Cancer...
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...
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...
In a study reported in a research letter in JAMA Surgery, Shapiro et al found that use of radiotherapy in unresectable pancreas cancer has decreased over time and that disparities in use can be identified. Decreasing Use The study involved Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data...
In an analysis of overall survival in the phase III LUX-Lung 3 and LUX-Lung 6 trials reported in The Lancet Oncology, Yang et al found no significant difference between afatinib (Gilotrif) vs pemetrexed (Alimta)-cisplatin (LUX-Lung 3) or vs gemcitabine-cisplatin (LUX-Lung 6) in previously...
In a Swedish study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Holm et al found that interval cancers in women with low mammographic density breasts were more aggressive vs screen-detected cancers in these women and vs interval cancers in women with dense breasts. Use of hormone replacement...
Docetaxel was being widely used by patients with metastatic prostate cancer before phase III evidence that it was more effective than 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...
In women who have undergone mastectomy, those who underwent delayed breast reconstruction experienced greater cancer-related distress over the long term compared with women who underwent mastectomy alone, according to a prospective study by Metcalfe et al in the Journal of Surgical Oncology. For...
The phase III Gynecologic Oncology Group (GOG) 240 trial showed that the addition of bevacizumab (Avastin) to chemotherapy prolonged survival in patients with advanced cervical cancer. An analysis reported in The Lancet Oncology by Penson et al showed no reduction in quality of life among patients...
In a phase III trial 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, Kunkler et al found increased risk of local recurrence in women not receiving...
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...
Interaction of the estrogen receptor and PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathways and the finding of resistance to hormonal therapy mediated by PI3K activation suggest a benefit of adding an mTOR inhibitor to hormonal treatment in endometrial carcinoma. In a phase II study reported in the Journal of Clinical...
In the phase II CONCERT-1 trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Mesía et al found that adding the EGFR inhibitor panitumumab (Vectibix) to standard cisplatin chemoradiation provided no benefit in previously untreated patients with unresected stage III to IVB head and neck squamous cell...
Inhibiting the action of a particular enzyme dramatically slows the growth of tumor cells tied to BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic mutations that are closely tied to breast and ovarian cancers, according to researchers at New York University (NYU) Langone Medical Center. Senior investigator Agnel Sfeir,...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Perez et al 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 had trastuzumab (Herceptin) added to adjuvant chemotherapy ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted accelerated approval to palbociclib (Ibrance) in combination with letrozole for the treatment of postmenopausal women with estrogen receptor–positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer who have not yet received an endocrine-based therapy. ...
A new study involving researchers at The University of Nottingham has revealed how children with an aggressive cancer predisposition syndrome experience a never-before- seen flood of mutations in their disease in very short periods of time. The findings were published by Shlien et al in Nature...
In patients with iodine-refractory papillary thyroid cancer, the addition of dabrafenib (Tafinlar) therapy was shown to stimulate radioiodine uptake in thyroid cancer cells, according to a report by Rothenberg et al in Clinical Cancer Research. This approach has the potential advantage of requiring ...