Residual masses are often detected on post-therapy computed tomography (CT) scans in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and the potential role of consolidative radiation therapy in such cases remains undefined. An analysis of the use of PET-guided radiation therapy presented by Laurie H....
The 17p deletion in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is associated with worse outcome in patients receiving standard chemotherapy. The Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor ibrutinib has shown durable antitumor activity in high-risk CLL. Adrian Wiestner, MD, PhD, of the National...
Postmenopausal women who follow at least five Recommendations for Cancer Prevention from the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) cut their risk of developing breast cancer by more than half, compared to those who meet none, suggests a new study that adds to previous research showing...
In a study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Floortje Mols, PhD, of the Center of Research on Psychology in Somatic Diseases, Tilburg University, and colleagues assessed the prevalence and severity of chemotherapy-induced neuropathy and its affect on health-related quality of life in...
Ibrutinib is a first-in-class oral covalent inhibitor of Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK), a mediator of the B-cell receptor signaling pathway implicated in the pathogenesis of B-cell cancers. As reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Michael L. Wang, MD, of The University...
Members of Congress are considering two bills that could advance cures for breast cancer and provide better education for women grappling with decisions about their treatment options. Accelerating the End of Breast Cancer Act Accelerating the End of Breast Cancer Act of 2013 (S. 865/H.R. 1830)...
Durable remissions are uncommon with current treatments for relapsed chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) is an essential component of B-cell receptor signaling that mediates interactions with the tumor microenvironment and promotes survival and proliferation of...
Researchers have discovered and mapped the signaling network between two previously unconnected proteins, exposing a link that, if broken, could cut off cancer cell growth at its starting point. A team led by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reported the tie between...
Researchers have found that antibodies against the human papillomavirus (HPV) may help identify individuals who are at greatly increased risk of HPV-related cancer of the oropharynx, In their study, at least one in three individuals with oropharyngeal cancer had antibodies to HPV, compared to...
A study by the Spanish Myeloma Group comparing the prognostic value of traditional response criteria and minimal residual disease measurement in patients with multiple myeloma found that a sequencing-based method called LymphoSIGHT and multiparameter flow cytometry analysis both accurately...
It has been shown that CD4 and CD8 tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes in follicular lymphoma have impaired function and suppressed recruitment of critical signaling proteins to the immunologic synapse, and a number of studies have indicated the prognostic importance of the immune microenvironment in...
A new government study investigating the prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) infections in females aged 14 to 59 before and after the introduction in 2006 of the HPV vaccine found that the rate of the HPV infection dropped by 56%, decreasing from 11.5% in 2006 to 5.1% in 2010 among female...
A combination of the myxoma virus and the immune suppressant rapamycin can kill glioblastoma multiforme, the most common and deadliest malignant brain tumor, according to new research published in Neuro-Oncology. Study lead author Peter A. Forsyth, MD, Chair of the Neuro-oncology Program at Moffitt ...
A significant proportion of patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have poor performance status, and optimal clinical management of these patients has not been established. In an attempt to help define optimal chemotherapy in such patients, Mauro Zukin, MD, of Instituto...
Patients with colon cancer identified on screening colonoscopy appear to have lower-stage disease on presentation and better outcomes independent of their staging, according to a report published online today in JAMA Surgery. Since their introduction in 2000, National Institutes of Health...
Although overall mortality rates due to single primary melanomas and multiple primary melanomas appear to be similar, relative mortality for thicker single primary melanomas appears to be greater than that for thicker multiple primary melanomas, according to a study by Anne Kricker, PhD, of the...
Many men with low-risk, localized prostate cancers can safely choose active surveillance or watchful waiting instead of undergoing immediate treatment and have better quality of life while reducing health-care costs, according to a study by researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and...
Investigators from Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto and the University of California, Los Angeles, have submitted an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for CFI-400945, a novel drug candidate targeting the enzyme PLK4, which plays a crucial role in cell division. The news was...
Mutations and amplifications in the KIT oncogene have been identified in mucosal and acral melanomas and in melanomas arising on chronically sun-damaged skin. In a multicenter phase II study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, F. Stephen Hodi, MD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and...
Crizotinib (Xalkori), a multitargeted receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor, is the only agent currently available for treating ALK-rearranged non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). CH5424802 is a novel selective oral ALK inhibitor with activity in tumor cell lines harboring ALK alterations,...
This month, an international group of over 70 research and health-care organizations, academic centers, and medical societies, including ASCO, signed a letter of intent to form a global alliance to make medicine more effective by consolidating the world’s databases of genomic information. The ...
The phase III open-label PHARE trial, conducted in 156 centers in France, examined whether 6 months of adjuvant trastuzumab (Herceptin) was noninferior to 12 months of treatment in women with early HER2-positive breast cancer. As reported by Xavier Pivot, MD, of University Hospital Jean-Minjoz,...
Available data suggest that patients with stage II/III colon cancer receive similar benefit from intravenous fluorouracil (5-FU) adjuvant therapy regardless of age. Combination regimens and oral fluoropyrimidine therapy are now standard treatments in this setting. Nadine J. McCleary, MD, MPH, and...
Various studies have suggested that acetyl-L-carnitine, a natural compound involved in neuronal protection, may be effective in preventing and treating sensory neuropathy. Dawn L. Hershman, MD, MS, of Columbia University Medical Center, and colleagues recently assessed whether daily...
The promotion of accountable care organizations, a crucial element in the Affordable Care Act, may result in liability risks, asserted authors H. Benjamin Harvey, MD, JD, a radiologist in the Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital, and I. Glenn Cohen, JD, Assistant Professor of...
Genomic heterogeneity within tumors and among lesions varies widely, and “discordance among lesions could lead to the selection of the ‘incorrect’ targeted inhibitor,” according to David B. Solit, MD, of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, who spoke at the ASCO/American...
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has announced that it will no longer accept investigator-initiated R01 and P01 applications that propose phase III clinical trials for cancer-related medical interventions or cancer imaging modalities. The policy change takes effect starting with the due date of...
The FDA recently approved the MemoryShape Breast Implant for breast augmentation in women at least 22 years old and for breast reconstruction in women of any age. The MemoryShape Breast Implants are manufactured by Mentor Worldwide LLC. The FDA’s approval is based on 6 years of data from 955 ...
A new molecular pathway involving the gene ZNF365 has been identified, and abnormalities in that pathway may predict worse outcomes for patients with breast cancer, according to data published in Cancer Discovery, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. “Genomic...
A drug approved in Europe to treat osteoporosis has now been shown to stop the growth of breast cancer cells, even in cancers that have become resistant to current targeted therapies, according to a study presented at the Endocrine Society’s 95th Annual Meeting in San Francisco. The findings ...
A 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) has identified an abnormal metabolic pathway that drives cancer cell growth in a particular glioblastoma...
A protein used by embryo cells during early development, and recently found in many different types of cancer, may serve as a switch regulating metastasis, according to researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center. The findings were ...
In a phase III trial, treatment with the investigational agent trebananib plus paclitaxel resulted in a statistically significant improvement in progression-free survival in patients with recurrent ovarian cancer, according to Amgen. Trebananib is an investigational peptibody designed to inhibit...
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Thursday that isolated human genes may not be patented. However, the creation of synthetic forms of DNA, known as complementary DNA (cDNA), is eligible for patent protection. The decision resolves the question brought before the Supreme Court justices in...
Available data suggest that younger age is an independent risk factor for disease recurrence and death in women with breast cancer. However, there has not been adequate study of the interaction of age with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) status or anti-HER2 treatment. In an analysis ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today expanded the approved use of denosumab (Xgeva) to treat adults and some adolescents with giant cell tumor of the bone, a rare and usually noncancerous tumor. Denosumab, which was granted orphan product designation, was reviewed under the FDA’s ...
Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in or near the genes ZNF423 and CTSO were associated with breast cancer risk among women who underwent prevention therapy with tamoxifen and raloxifene, according to data published in Cancer Discovery, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. ...
A clinical trial has shown that patients and their physicians are eager to jump into the next generation of cancer care: analysis of an individual’s tumor to find and target genetic mutations that drive the cancer. Results of the study, CUSTOM, were presented at the 2013 ASCO Annual Meeting...
A study from the University of Colorado Cancer Center shows that the ALK and ROS1 gene rearrangements known to drive subsets of lung cancer are also present in some colorectal cancers. Results imply that drugs used to target ALK and ROS1 in lung cancer may also have applications in this subset of...
An Indiana University cancer researcher and his Canadian collaborator have discovered how normal breast precursor cells may be genetically vulnerable to developing into cancer. David Gilley, PhD, Associate Professor of Medical and Molecular Genetics at the IU School of Medicine and a researcher at ...
A large prospective multicenter cohort study in France and Belgium, reported by the Groupe de Recherche Respiratoire en Réanimation Onco-Hématologique, has shown that critically ill patients with hematologic malignancies admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) have good survival,...
A workforce shortage of geriatricians and other health professionals trained and certified in caring for older patients with cancer is colliding with the aging of the population and the increasing number of older Americans with cancer. After describing factors contributing to these dual challenges, ...
According to a June 3 letter from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), there will be no reprieve in the 2% ($11.08 billion) reduction to Medicare providers and hospitals mandated by the federal budget sequestration. The letter by CMS Acting Administrator Marilyn Tavenner was in...
A new patient protocol for aggressive and recurrent lymphoma that combines intensive chemotherapy and radioimmunotherapy showed encouraging overall survival rates in some patients preparing for autologous bone marrow transplant, reported researchers at the 2013 Annual Meeting of the Society of...
A new study from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute may help clinicians and drug researchers choose the most promising genetic targets to attack in a common type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The report, published in the June 10 issue of Cancer Cellprovides a new, “big picture” view of an...
For patients with advanced breast cancer, positron-emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can improve quality of life and survival by providing physicians with information on the effectiveness of chemotherapy prior to surgery, according to researchers presenting at the 2013...
A study examining trends in x-ray computed tomography (CT) use in children in the United States has found that reducing unnecessary scans and lowering the doses for the highest-dose scans could lower the overall lifetime risk of future imaging-related cancers by 62%. The research was published...
Earlier this month, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) released its updated projections of reductions in programs due to the deficit-budget mechanism known as sequestration, which took effect on March 1, 2013. The sequestration law requires NIH to cut 5%, or $1.55 billion, of its fiscal year...
Surveillance appears to be sufficient for men with stage I seminoma treated with orchiectomy, sparing patients from side effects of adjuvant radiation or chemotherapy. In a long-term study presented at the 2013 ASCO Annual Meeting (Abstract 4502), 99.5% of men followed by surveillance alone...
Results from a multicenter phase II study of patients with locally advanced HER2-positive breast cancer who receive targeted therapy with trastuzumab (Herceptin) and lapatinib (Tykerb) “support the hypothesis that selected patients with HER2-positive tumors may not need...