The recommendation that a survivorship care plan be provided to patients and their primary care providers was first presented in the 2006 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, From Cancer Patient to Cancer Survivor: Lost in Transition. The IOM committee proposed that this document include two parts—a ...
Survivorship care plans, consisting of treatment summaries and follow-up plans, are intended to promote coordination of post-treatment cancer care, but little is known about how survivorship care plans are being used in routine oncology practice. In a study reported in the Journal of the National...
While acknowledging that the full potential of cancer immunotherapy remains unclear, the editors of the journal Science said that the approach of using the immune system to attack tumors marks a turning point in the treatment of cancer.1 The successes of cancer immunotherapy in clinical trials in...
In 2012, ASCO issued a provisional clinical opinion addressing the integration of palliative care services into standard oncology practice at the time a patient is diagnosed with metastatic or advanced cancer and for patients with uncontrolled symptoms.1 However, despite ASCO’s provisional clinical ...
Stress is ubiquitous in our society, especially for people diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. There is a common misconception that stress is derived from a particular negative event. However, the event itself (the stressors, such as cancer diagnoses and treatment) does not causes stress....
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has selected Susan Desmond-Hellmann, MD, MPH, as its next Chief Executive Officer. Currently the Chancellor of the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), Dr. Desmond-Hellmann will assume her role on May 1, 2014. “We chose Sue because of her...
Killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs) that regulate natural-killer cells are highly polymorphic, and some KIR2DL1 alleles (ie, KIR2DL1-R245) encode receptors characterized by stronger signaling function than others (ie, KIR2DL1-C245). In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical...
The threat of getting cancer began for me before I was born. In 1950, when my mother was pregnant with me, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and refused treatment until after she gave birth, so I have always felt that cancer was woven into my soul. For the first year of my life, I was raised by...
“The immune system holds tremendous potential for long-term sustained antitumor activity,” said James P. Allison, PhD, Immunology Chair, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, as he opened a panel discussion at a meeting cosponsored by the Friends of Cancer Research and the...
At a recent meeting in Washington, DC, Friends of Cancer Research and the Engelberg Center for Health Care Reform at the Brookings Institution officially announced activation of the Lung Cancer Master Protocol, a new research strategy that has the potential to hurdle or bypass known clinical trial...
Chronic graft-vs-host disease is a major cause of late, nonrelapse death following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. In addition, chronic graft-vs-host disease results in significant functional impairment and decreased quality of life for long-term survivors of stem cell...
In addition to the election of Julie M. Vose, MD, MBA, FASCO, as President of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) for a 1-year term beginning in June 2015 (see page 85), ASCO has announced four new members who were recently elected to the ASCO Board of Directors and two new members...
Despite optimal surgical resection and adjuvant chemotherapy with cisplatin-based doublets, the 5-year overall survival for patients with early-stage non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains suboptimal. In the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) staging project, the...
In 1979, Congress mandated that an epidemiologic study be launched to evaluate the frequency and type of adverse health conditions experienced by military personal as a result of their exposure to Agent Orange and other herbicides used during the Vietnam War. Called the Air Force Health Study...
“The American Cancer Society [recently] issued a report showing a 20% decline in cancer death rates between 1991 and 2010, and estimating that 1.3 million deaths have been averted as a result of the decline. “This is tremendous progress and a direct result of our nation’s commitment to cancer...
Clifford A. Hudis, MD, FACP, President of ASCO, commented recently on the Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, co-authored by the National Cancer Institute, the American Cancer Society, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the North American Association of Central...
Multiple myeloma patients derived a benefit from maintenance lenalidomide (Revlimid) treatment in terms of progression-free but not overall survival, according to a meta-analysis of four key trials presented at the 2013 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting.1 The study does little to...
While the last 15 years have brought unprecedented advances in oncology drug development, the next 10 years promise to usher in even greater opportunities to realize the goal of precision medicine in the treatment of cancer, providing patients with more effective care and better outcomes. Reaching...
In the Clinic provides overviews of novel oncology agents, addressing indications, mechanisms, administration recommendations, safety profiles, and other essential information needed for the appropriate clinical use of these drugs. New Indication On November 22, 2013, sorafenib (Nexavar) was...
Julie M. Vose, MD, MBA, FASCO, has been elected President of ASCO for a 1-year term beginning in June 2015. She will take office as President-Elect during the ASCO Annual Meeting in Chicago in June 2014. “ASCO is a very diverse and multifaceted organization with so much to offer its membership. The ...
The seminal study by Wang and colleagues reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute1 and reviewed in this issue of The ASCO Post suggests a potential new therapeutic option in the treatment of advanced prostate cancer. The authors draw attention to the reliance of cancer cells on...
L-type amino acid transporters (LATs) uptake neutral amino acids including L-leucine into cells, stimulating mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) signaling and protein synthesis. LAT1 and LAT3 are overexpressed at different stages of prostate cancer and are involved in increasing nutrients and stimulating cell...
While ASCO celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2014, the Conquer Cancer Foundation is also marking a milestone: its 15th anniversary and longtime dedication to improving the lives of people who have been touched by cancer. To accelerate progress against cancer, ASCO established the Foundation in...
The 2014 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium is taking place now. Direct your patients to www.cancer.net/gisymposium for summaries of the research being highlighted, including what the latest research means for their care. Your patients can also download or listen to a podcast with an ASCO expert...
During the second half of 2013, four new guides to cancer, known collectively as the ASCO Answers Guides to Cancer, were released on Cancer.Net, ASCO’s patient information website. The guides to breast, prostate, lung, and colorectal cancer were completely redesigned and reimagined to help newly...
Formerly called the ASCO Statesman Award, the Fellow of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (FASCO) distinction recognizes ASCO members for their extraordinary volunteer service, dedication, and commitment to ASCO. Their efforts benefit ASCO, the specialty of oncology, and, most importantly,...
ASCO has sent joint letters with both the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (CTFK) to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) urging that the agency establish regulations to eliminate menthol in cigarettes. The agency is currently considering...
Fifty years ago, cancer was viewed as a monolithic and largely untreatable disease, with only a handful of hard-to-tolerate and mostly ineffective therapies available. Stigma and silence left many patients with cancer with little support or information. Determined to change this, a group of seven...
This issue of The ASCO Post launches a Clinical Trials Resource Guide to increase awareness of NCI-funded phase I, II, and III clinical studies for your patients with advanced cancer. All of the studies are listed on the National Institutes of Health website at ClinicalTrials.gov. The clinical...
A new position statement from the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) reports that medical oncologists have a vital role to play in cancer care.1 According to the position statement, medical oncologists are specialist cancer physicians trained to provide treatment with drugs, spanning from ...
Numerous randomized trials have demonstrated that whole-breast irradiation plays an important role after breast-conserving surgery for invasive breast cancer. A recent meta-analysis of these trials indicated that whole-breast irradiation decreased the risk of total breast cancer relapse events and...
In the randomized noninferiority TARGIT-A trial reported in The Lancet, Jayant S. Vaidya, PhD, FRCS, and Michael Baum, MD, FRCS, of University College London, and colleagues compared risk-adapted radiotherapy using single-dose targeted intraoperative radiotherapy vs fractionated external-beam...
The American Lung Association issued the following statement on December 31, 2013, in response to the recommendation of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) to screen individuals at high risk of lung cancer. “The [USPSTF] made a recommendation that will save lives. The Task Force...
INSIDE THE BLACK BOX is an occasional column offering insight into the FDA and its policies and procedures. This installment addresses a changing paradigm in the treatment of lung cancer, exemplified by concurrent approval of a companion diagnostic with each of several new targeted agents or new...
The updated analysis of the Intergroupe Francophone du Myelome (IFM) 2005-02 trial in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients showed that lenalidomide (Revlimid) maintenance prolongs progression-free survival after stem cell transplantation, but does not improve overall survival, according to...
A new analysis of the multiple myeloma Intergroupe Francophone du Myelome (IFM) 2005-02 trial showed that lenalidomide (Revlimid) maintenance prolongs progression-free survival after stem cell transplantation, but does not improve overall survival.1 This is possibly attributed to the shorter...
Patients with metastatic colorectal cancer that harbors KRAS mutations in exon 2 and patients with other activating RAS mutations do not benefit from anti–epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) therapy and may in fact be harmed by it. In an analysis reported in The New England Journal of Medicine ...
It has been posited that aspirin treatment may reduce risk for colorectal cancer through inhibition of WNT/cadherin-associated protein β1 (CTNNB1, or β-catenin) signaling. In a study reported recently in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Nan et al investigated the potential role of the...
The investigational agent tivozanib is a selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR)-1, -2, and -3. In a phase III trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Robert J. Motzer, MD, of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), and...
Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, have identified an overactive gene that drives about one-third of high-grade serous ovarian tumors—the most common and malignant type of ovarian cancer. The gene, GAB2, isn’t mutated or abnormal, but triggers cancerous cell growth because the...
In a study reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Pan et al assessed factors associated with noncompliance with recommended radiation therapy following breast-conserving surgery for breast cancer.1 A primary factor in underuse of radiation therapy was younger patients having...
A more conservative approach that avoids radiation therapy seems to be a reasonable option for a subgroup of older women with hormone receptor–positive breast cancer at low risk of recurrence. Overall outcomes were similar with or without radiation in older women with hormone receptor–positive...
Debu Tripathy, MD, Professor of Medicine, Co-Leader of the Women’s Cancer Program, and the Priscilla and Art Ulene Chair in Women’s Cancer at the University of Southern California Norris Cancer Center, Los Angeles, commented on the APT study for The ASCO Post. “In treating early-stage...
There may be a benefit for treating small HER2-positive tumors—a breast cancer subset for whom treatment recommendations have not been established but for whom there is still risk of recurrence—and this can be done with little toxicity, according to a multicenter study presented at the 2013 San...
From December 10 to 14, the American Association for Cancer Research, the Cancer Therapy & Research Center at The University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio, and Baylor College of Medicine once again hosted the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS), presenting...
Royal Philips has announced that that it has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the Spectral Breast Density Management Application for its MicroDose SI full-field digital mammography system. The application is the first spectral breast density measurement ...
A study by Sosman et al has identified two novel BRAF fusions in melanomas previously considered to be negative for molecular targets. In addition, these “pan-negative” melanomas were found to be sensitive to MEK inhibitors. According to the study, BRAF fusions define a new molecular subset of...
We have an aging population, which is a good thing since people are living longer. [But] cancer is a disease that tends to occur most frequently in older people, so the combination of those two events will lead to many more older people with cancer, a larger cancer population in general, and a...
One of the key questions in geriatric oncology is: How can we use all of the work geriatricians have done over the years in general geriatrics and apply that to the field of oncology? One-quarter to one-third of us are going to develop cancer throughout our lifetime, and half of the time it is...
The annual meeting of the International Society of Geriatric Oncology (SIOG, www.siog.org) was held in Copenhagen from October 24 to 26. The theme of the meeting was the “Multidisciplinary Approach Towards Personalized Treatments.” The Society, which was founded in 2000, is a multidisciplinary...