A retrospective analysis of patients with oropharyngeal cancer with recurrence of disease after primary therapy in the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) studies 0129 and 0522 found that human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive patients had a higher overall survival rate than HPV-negative patients, ...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Bulian et al found that CD49d-positive chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) patients have significantly poorer overall survival and treatment-free survival and that CD49d status is the strongest flow cytometry–based predictor of overall...
New research from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center and Georgia Regents University has found that a protein that regulates an inflammatory pathway does not turn off in breast cancer, resulting in an increase in cancer stem cells. This finding may provide a potential target for...
Using whole-genome mRNA-expression profiling, researchers have identified three molecular subtypes of muscle-invasive bladder cancers that shared molecular features with basal and luminal breast cancers. The findings have important implications for prognostication, the future clinical development...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Pasquali et al assessed the prognostic utility of nonsentinel lymph node status in patients with cutaneous melanoma. They found that nonsentinel lymph node status was a significant independent predictor of melanoma-specific survival in...
Researchers have identified a microRNA, miR-146a, that accelerates in the presence of BRAF and NRAS genetic mutations—which occur in 70% of melanoma cases—by activating the Notch signaling pathway. The finding could provide a new drug development target for patients with melanoma. The...
In response to FDA's approval earlier this week of ibrutinib (Imbruvica) to treat patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who had received at least one prior therapy, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) issued the following statement: "After the FDA designated ibrutinib as a...
While new and better treatments have improved the odds of survival for patients diagnosed with late-stage colorectal cancer, that progress has been largely confined to non-Hispanic whites and Asians and those under age 65, according to a new study published in Cancer Causes and Control. Sineshaw et ...
Researchers have discovered a preleukemic stem cell that may be the first step in initiating disease and also the culprit that evades therapy and triggers relapse in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The research, published online in Nature, is a significant step forward in...
As reported in BMJ by Miller et al, the 25-year follow-up of the Canadian National Breast Screening Study has shown no mortality benefit of annual mammography screening for breast cancer compared with physical examination or usual care. Mammography screening was associated with...
Findings from a study by Puissant et al suggest that the wild-type form of enzyme SYK pairs with FLT3, the most commonly mutated enzyme found in acute myeloid leukemia (AML), to promote progression of the cancer. The molecular partnership also promotes AML cells’ resistance to treatment with...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today expanded the approved use of ibrutinib (Imbruvica) for the treatment of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who have received at least one previous therapy. Ibrutinib, an oral Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitor, was previously...
Scientists from the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) have uncovered the possible genetic origins of breast cancers that metastasize to the brain. The compendium of new genetic targets may be be used to identify potential methods of diagnosis and novel therapeutics for patients with...
The Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO) and American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) formed a multidisciplinary expert panel in 2013 to examine the relationship between surgical margin width and ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence and develop guidelines on margins for breast-conserving...
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 ...
In patients with late-stage epithelial ovarian cancer, high levels of microRNA-181a may be predictive of chemotherapy resistance and disease progression, according to the results of a study reported by Parikh et al in Nature Communications. Thus, microRNA-181a may serve as a biomarker for prognosis ...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, van Ryn et al assessed patient-reported quality of care among patients with colorectal cancer in the Veterans Affairs health-care system. The investigators found significant gaps in patient-centered quality of supportive care, but also found...
When comparing treatments designed to enable long-term breast preservation for older women with invasive breast cancer, researchers found those treated with brachytherapy were at higher risk for a later mastectomy, compared to women treated with standard radiation therapy. The findings, published...
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...
The pan-Canadian Prostate Cancer Risk Stratification database was created to report on the patient, tumor, and treatment factors that were predictive of biochemical and clinical outcomes in patients who underwent radiotherapy for prostate cancer. Risk stratification in the management of those with...
In a meta-analysis reported in The Lancet Oncology, Flaherty et al found that progression-free survival is a reliable surrogate for overall survival in clinical trials in metastatic melanoma that include dacarbazine as control treatment. Study Details In the analysis, 1,649 reports and meeting...
An altered radiation treatment schedule for glioblastoma, the most common and lethal form of brain cancer, extended the survival period of mice with the disease, according to a new study published in Cell. Because the research involved mice, the study does not recommend a specific new schedule for...
In a trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Milbury et al compared cancer symptoms, physical and mental function, depressive symptoms, fatigue, and sleep outcomes after sessions of expressive writing about cancer vs writing about neutral topics in patients with renal cell carcinoma....
Anomalies in the cytoplasmic expression of estrogen receptor beta 2 appear to be associated with poorer outcomes in patients with advanced serous ovarian cancer, according to the results of a study reported by Ciucci et al in Gynecologic Oncology. This isoform may represent an independent...
Isolated locoregional recurrence of breast cancer is associated with high risk of distant metastasis and death. In the CALOR trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Aebi et al found that adjuvant chemotherapy after complete resection improves disease-free survival in patients with isolated...
Among patients with advanced melanoma, presence of higher levels of the protein vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in blood was associated with poor response to treatment with the immunotherapy ipilimumab (Yervoy), according to a study by Yuan et al published in Cancer Immunology Research....
In patients with sporadic vestibular schwannoma, aspirin may be of benefit in minimizing tumor growth, according to the results of a retrospective study presented by Kandathil et al in Otology and Neurotology. This finding may eliminate the need for invasive therapy and may complement existing...
When oncologists see a new patient, they should emphasize careful documentation of first- and second-degree cancer family history, according to new recommendations published by the American Society of Clinical Oncology. The recommendations are the first to focus on family history-taking...
Prior to the advent of targeted therapy, cytoreductive nephrectomy was associated with a 6-month improvement in overall survival in metastatic renal cell carcinoma. With the development of new and better targeted therapies for metastatic renal cell carcinoma, the appropriate use of cytoreductive...
The finding that the BRAF V600E mutation is present in nearly all cases of hairy cell leukemia has resulted in the use of BRAF inhibitors to treat chemotherapy-resistant disease, with good responses to vemurafenib (Zelboraf) being observed. BRAF inhibition has been thought to result in...
Bladder-sparing approaches are typically reserved for patients with bladder cancer who have a complete response to combined modality induction therapy (radiation plus chemotherapy). A new phase II study suggests that patients with near-complete response should also be considered for bladder-sparing ...
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,...
Although androgen deprivation therapy extends survival in men with prostate cancer, its use is associated with unwanted side effects. In addition to the well-known side effects of impaired sexual function and hot flashes, prolonged exposure to androgen deprivation therapy can also lead to diabetes...
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....
Investigators with The Cancer Genome Atlas Research Network have identified new potential therapeutic targets for urothelial carcinoma of the bladder, a common cancer that causes about 150,000 deaths worldwide each year. The researchers also found molecular similarities to some subtypes of breast,...
The Advanced Practitioner Society for Hematology and Oncology (APSHO) announced its launch as a new organization focused on meeting the unique educational and professional needs of the advanced practitioner in hematology and oncology. The formation of the Society was made public January 26, 2014,...
Although controversial, reducing mammography screening frequency from annually to biennially for women aged 50 to 74 could save the health-care system billions of dollars annually and screen 15% more women compared with the current practice, according to a cost analysis by O’Donoghue et al....
A long-term follow-up study by Hartmann et al of patients with two types of breast tissue abnormalities—atypical ductal hyperplasia and atypical lobular hyperplasia—suggests that both abnormalities have the same potential to advance to breast cancer. The findings could help improve...
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...
The most common genetic subtype of lung cancer, which has long defied treatment with targeted therapies, has had its growth halted by a combination of two already-in-use drugs in laboratory and animal studies, setting the stage for clinical trials of the drugs in patients. The study, published in...
An analysis of 7,776 adult cancer clinical trials registered on Clinicaltrials.gov showed that approximately 20% of trials failed to be completed for reasons unrelated to the efficacy or side effects of the intervention. In 2010, a report from the Institute of Medicine entitled “A National...
According to a retrospective study, the use of angiotensin system inhibitors, such as lisinopril, captopril, and losartan, improved the survival of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma by 9 months, compared with patients who were not receiving these types of agents. Survival was even...
The addition of radiation to lifelong hormone therapy with oral antiandrogens vs antiandrogens alone reduced the prostate cancer–specific death rate by more than 50% at 10 and 15 years in men with locally advanced prostate cancer, according to an updated analysis of the Scandinavian Prostate...
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...
An early-stage study shows melatonin may have the potential to help slow the growth of certain breast cancer tumors, according to researchers from Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit and Foundation for Research Support of the State of São Paulo. The study, published online in the journal PLoS...
A study by Almendro et al analyzed breast cancer tumors before and after treatment for important characteristics, including chromosome copy number, the presence or absence of certain protein markers, and their proliferative capacity. The scientists then used the data to develop computational models ...
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...