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Showing 4351 - 4400Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation Introduces Centers of Excellence Program to Further Childhood Cancer Research
Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF), a registered 501(c)(3) charity, is furthering its commitment to finding cures for all children with cancer by introducing the ALSF Centers of Excellence program. The Centers of Excellence program aims to fund the research of leading childhood cancer...
Focus on the Louisiana Oncology Society
Founded on September 1, 1992, by John M. Rainey, MD, the Louisiana Oncology Society has had numerous legislative successes (see sidebar) since that time, including leading the effort to support Louisiana’s Oral Chemotherapy Parity Law, which was passed in 2012 and is now in effect throughout the...
Radiation, Still Misunderstood after All These Years
Over the past few decades, radiation therapies have rapidly advanced, due, in large part, to an increasing technologic armamentarium. Among modern science’s most impressive machines, for example, 220-ton particle accelerators can generate near-light-speed beams of protons, with sniper-like...
Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy Gives Ovarian Cancer Patients Better Chance of Survival
Patients with advanced ovarian cancer who undergo intensive treatment with chemotherapy that bathes the abdomen are significantly more likely to live longer than those who receive standard intravenous (IV) chemotherapy, according to a study that analyzed long-term follow-up from two landmark...
Mixed-lineage Kinase 4 Interacts with Activated RAS Signaling in Colorectal Cancer
Colorectal cancer that is microsatellite stable but chromosomally unstable is characterized by poor prognosis and remains largely intractable at the metastatic stage. Mutational analysis has shown that the mixed lineage kinase 4 (MLK4) protein kinase is frequently mutated in microsatellite-stable...
City of Hope Investigators Find Young Breast Cancer Survivors Understudied and Underserved
Researchers at City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, California, have been studying the effects of breast cancer on young women, particularly ethnic minorities and lower socioeconomic populations. They have found that young women are increasingly being diagnosed with breast cancer, yet...
Highlights of ACCC Annual Meeting Include Discussion of Trends Shaping the Future of Health Care
The 39th Annual National Meeting of the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC) was held in Washington, DC, in March. With a focus on business, economics, and policy, the program included the inauguration of a new ACCC President (see page 102), a keynote speech on the future of health care,...
C. Everett Koop, MD, Surgeon General Under Ronald Reagan, Dies at 96
Appointed by the President and called “America’s Doctor,” the Surgeon General’s chief task is to protect and advance the health of the nation. Most of our Surgeon Generals have tiptoed around hot-button public health issues that might bruise political sensibilities and their own careers. C....
Conquer Cancer Foundation Arms Patients with Knowledge through patientACCESS
Receiving a cancer diagnosis can be a frightening and overwhelming experience, and the first thing many people do upon receiving the news is seek out information, hoping to be empowered through knowledge. At the Conquer Cancer Foundation, we are working to ensure that vital information—focusing on...
ASCO Leadership Development Program Participants 'Give Back' by Supporting the Conquer Cancer Foundation
In the fast-paced world of oncology, where the science of patient care is constantly evolving, it is critical for practitioners—and, by extension, their Society—to consistently be one step ahead. For ASCO and the Conquer Cancer Foundation, that means maintaining a strong focus not only on the...
NCCN Adds Two New Member Institutions
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) recently announced the addition of two new NCCN Member Institutions: UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center in La Jolla, California, and the University of Colorado Cancer Center in Aurora, Colorado. “We are extremely pleased that UC San Diego Moores...
Genomic Analysis of Squamous Cell Lung Cancer Tumors May Lead to More Targeted Therapies
Last fall, a consortium of more than 300 researchers from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Research Network published the results of their large-scale genetic analysis of squamous cell lung cancer in the journal Nature.1 The study, the first of its kind, compared the tumor cells from 178 untreated...
Does All DCIS Need Treatment? Debaters Take Sides at Surgical Oncology Meeting
There are a few things about ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) on which everyone agrees: Incidence increased dramatically with the advent of mammography screening, not all cases detected will go on to cause symptoms in the patient’s lifetime, and there’s no proven way to tell which cases will...
BRAF Mutations in Colorectal Cancer: The Next Frontier
Some 5% to 10% of patients with colorectal cancer harbor the BRAF mutation, placing them at risk for poor treatment response and worse outcomes. The ASCO Post interviewed S. Gail Eckhardt, MD, an expert in this area who is Professor and Head of the Division of Medical Oncology at the University of...
Society of Surgical Oncology Fellow Receives Colorectal Cancer Research Scholar Award
The Colon Cancer Challenge Foundation (CCCF) and the Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO) named Karen Lo, MD, a surgical resident at the University of Colorado, as recipient of third annual Colorectal Cancer Research Scholar Award. The award was presented at the SSO Annual Cancer Symposium held...
Important Data and Treatment Advances Reported in GIST and in Pancreatic and Liver Cancers
The 10th annual Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium, held recently in San Francisco, was jointly sponsored by ASCO, the AGA (American Gastroenterological Association), ASTRO (American Society for Radiation Oncology), and the SSO (Society of Surgical Oncology). “We seek to present the newest...
Sexual Health after Cancer: Communicating with Your Patients
Studies show virtually all cancer survivors will experience some form of sexual dysfunction following a cancer diagnosis and treatment. Yet few cancer survivors seek help for physical problems they may be experiencing, such as vaginal dryness, dyspareunia, chemically induced menopause, reduced...
Is Aspirin Protective against Colorectal Cancer?
A growing body of evidence provides biologic and clinical evidence that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents are protective against colorectal cancer. “It is fascinating for me as a medical oncologist and epidemiologist to see how the worlds of colorectal cancer treatment and epidemiology are...
Neurosurgeon Eric Holland, MD, PhD, joins Fred Hutchinson and University of Washington Medicine; Plans to Develop Brain Cancer Program
Neurosurgeon and brain cancer researcher Eric Holland, MD, PhD, will be joining Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of Washington in summer 2013. Dr. Holland will be Senior Vice President and Director of the Human Biology Division at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center,...
Spotlight on Patient Advocacy Pavilion at the ASCO Annual Meeting
The ASCO-sponsored Patient Advocacy Booth, located near the entrance of the Oncology Professionals Hall at the ASCO Annual Meeting, is designed to give 26 nonprofit patient advocacy organizations an opportunity to promote their programs, services, and resources to the professional oncology...
AACR Elects Carlos L. Arteaga, MD, as President-elect 2013-2014
The members of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) have elected Carlos L. Arteaga, MD, as their President-elect for 2013-2014. Dr. Arteaga is Professor of Medicine and Cancer Biology at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine where he holds the Donna S. Hall Chair in Breast Cancer...
SIDEBAR: Three Breakthrough Therapy Designations for Ibrutinib from the FDA
In February 2013, FDA granted Breakthrough Therapy Designations for ibrutinib as a monotherapy for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory mantle cell lymphoma and as a monotherapy for the treatment of patients with Waldenström’s macroglobulinemia, both of which are also B-cell...
Access to Care: Who Gets Referred to a Medical Oncologist and/or Another Cancer Specialist and Who Receives Treatment for Advanced Cancer?
What factors determine who is referred to a medical oncologist and receives treatment for advanced cancers? Several articles in the Journal of Oncology Practice suggest that factors influencing referral and treatment go beyond the patient’s medical condition and preference and include such details...
CancerLinQ Prototype Demonstrates Use of Big Data in Clinical Care
ASCO has unveiled the prototype of a computer system that will allow oncologists, from their desks, to leverage “big data” to measure the quality of care that their practices provide. The prototype is a major step in the development of CancerLinQ, a system that will eventually allow millions of...
Ibrutinib CLL Trial: Where Is the Equipoise?
The RESONATE trial is randomly assigning patients with refractory or relapsed CLL to either ofatumumab (Arzerra) or the investigational oral agent ibrutinib. Ofatumumab is an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody like rituximab (Rituxan), but is more potent as a single agent. It was approved for refractory ...
Expert Point of View: Louis M. Weiner, MD
Commenting on both Dr. Baselga’s study in breast cancer and Dr. Liu’s study in ovarian cancer at the AACR press conference, Louis M. Weiner, MD, Director of the Georgetown University Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Washington, DC, said that antibody-drug conjugates “represent the fulfillment...
Emil 'Tom' Frei III, MD, Trailblazer in the Development of Combination Chemotherapy, Dies at 89
The pages of medical history are dog-eared with breakthroughs that have transformed medicine and saved lives. One of those dog-eared pages belongs to Emil Frei III, MD, known to his colleagues and friends as Tom. In the dawn of oncology, Dr. Frei, along with his associate, Emil Freireich, MD, did...
SIDEBAR: Going Public with Ovarian Cancer Outcomes
Commenting on the study finding that most women with ovarian cancer are not being treated with the recommended standard of care, a New York Times editorial noted, “One of the surest ways to improve performance would be to analyze and make public how well individual doctors and hospitals do in...
Most Women with Ovarian Cancer Do Not Get Guideline-specified Treatment Linked to Survival Benefits
Most women with ovarian cancer are not receiving adequate treatment, as specified in National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Guidelines,1 and as a result are being deprived of the survival benefits correlated with guideline-recommended treatment, according to a study presented at the Society...
HDAC Inhibition Circumvents EGFR Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor Resistance Due to BIM Polymorphism
Upregulation of BIM (BCL2L11), a proapoptotic member of the BCL2 protein family, is required for induction of apoptosis by EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors in EGFR-mutant forms of non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). A BIM deletion polymorphism occurs naturally in approximately 13% of East Asian...
The ASCO Post Up Close: Our Reporters and Contributors
About the Writers Charlotte Bath has been writing about cancer and related fields of medicine since serving as Public Information Director of the American Cancer Society, Long Island Division, from 1975 to 1979. She subsequently worked as a writer for Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and...
Dr. Bernard Fisher's Breast Cancer Research Left a Lasting Legacy of Improved Therapeutic Efficacy and Survival
Bernard Fisher, MD, is recognized today for his groundbreaking research in breast cancer, which ultimately ended the standard practice of performing the Halsted radical mastectomy, a treatment that had been in place for more than 75 years. His laboratory and clinical investigations led to more...
Focus on Alaska's Denali Oncology Group
Located in Anchorage, Alaska, the Denali Oncology Group faces the dual challenge of serving a diverse and large population of more than 731,000 spread across a vast state of 586,000 square miles, with just 20 medical oncologists and 5 radiation oncologists located mainly in Alaska’s two biggest...
Expert Point of View: Louis M. Weiner, MD
Commenting on this study, Louis M. Weiner, MD, Director of the Georgetown University Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center in Washington, DC, commended this study of a combinatorial immunologic approach. “Immunology matters when it comes to cancer research. Drugs designed to harness the power of the ...
AUA Releases New Clinical Guideline on Prostate Cancer Screening
Men ages 55 to 69 who are considering prostate cancer screening should talk with their doctors about the benefits and harms of testing and proceed based on their personal values and preferences, according to a new clinical practice guideline released by the American Urological Association (AUA)....
Novel Regimen Produces High Pathologic Complete Response Rates in Triple-negative Breast Cancer
Interim results from a small neoadjuvant study of patients with triple-negative breast cancer has found high rates of pathologic complete response with the combination of nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane), carboplatin, and bevacizumab (Avastin).1 The study was presented at the 18th Annual Conference of the ...
Automated Telephone Monitoring Reduces Chemotherapy-related Symptoms
The use of an automated computer-based telephone monitoring system to assess symptoms during outpatient chemotherapy—and provide intervention where appropriate by a nurse practitioner—substantially reduced the number of days with symptoms in a study reported at the 18th Annual Conference of the...
Debt and the Oncology Fellow
Despite today’s challenging economy, health care is one field that offers vast career opportunities. Oncology, with the impending workforce shortage, is especially eager for bright young doctors to join its ranks. But the rising costs of medical school can be a deterrent, leading the best and...
Cancer Treatment Pioneers to Share Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research
Peter C. Nowell, MD, Janet D. Rowley, MD, and Brian J. Druker, MD, have been named as the recipients of the 2013 Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research, to be officially awarded May 17. The $500,000 award, given to those who have altered the course of medical research, is...
Leading Investigators Honored for Outstanding Contributions to the Field of Oncology
Each year through its Special Awards Program, ASCO recognizes researchers, patient advocates, and leaders of the global oncology community who, through their work, have made significant contributions to enhancing cancer care. These recipients of ASCO’s highest, most prestigious awards collectively...
ASCO President’s Personal Philanthropy Honors Founder Jane C. Wright, MD
During her term as ASCO President, Sandra M. Swain, MD, FACP, of the Washington Cancer Institute has kept a solid focus on her presidential and 2013 ASCO Annual Meeting theme of “Building Bridges to Conquer Cancer.” These bridges take many forms, spanning challenges to be overcome in oncology...
Disparities in Cancer Care: How A Deep South Community Overcame Them
Racial inequities were a daily observation for Edward E. Partridge, MD, growing up in Alabama during the civil rights era. When he became a physician, he saw that these disparities extended into his own field, gynecologic oncology. He decided to do something about it. Dr. Partridge recently...
Managing Female Reproductive Complications after Cancer Treatment in Children and Young Adults
Follow-up care for female patients treated for cancer as children, adolescents, or young adults should include assessment and management of the late effects that therapy may have on reproductive health, as detailed in updated guidelines from the Children’s Oncology Group. “It is important for...
Prevention and Treatment of Acneiform Rash Caused by EGFR Inhibitors
Dermatologic Events in Oncology is guest edited by Mario E. Lacouture, MD, an Associate Member in the Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York. He is a board-certified dermatologist with a special interest in dermatologic conditions that...
Breakthroughs in Targeted Therapies for Breast Cancer Are Improving Patient Survival Rates
For more than 20 years, José Baselga, MD, PhD, has devoted his medical and scientific career to caring for breast cancer patients and the development of novel molecular targeted agents to treat the disease. From 1996 to 2010, he was Head of the Oncology Department of Vall d’Hebron University...
Tobacco Use in Cancer Patients: Often Overlooked but Critical to Address
One would hope that the importance of treatment for tobacco dependence would be well recognized as a cornerstone of standard care for cancer patients. However, a policy statement released by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) at its recent Annual Meeting revealed some surprising...
FDA Approves Antiemetic Drug for New Line of Prefilled Generic Injectables
BD Rx Inc, announced that the FDA has approved metoclopramide hydrochloride, an injectable antiemetic, as the second drug to be offered in the recently launched BD Simplist line of ready-to-administer prefilled generic injectables. BD Simplist prefilled injectables are designed to help improve...
Ibrutinib Receives Third Breakthrough Therapy Designation from the FDA
Pharmacyclics, Inc, announced that the FDA has granted an additional Breakthrough Therapy Designation for the investigational oral agent ibrutinib as monotherapy for the treatment of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or small lymphocytic lymphoma with deletion of the short arm of...
NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology: 2013 Updates
At the 18th Annual Conference of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), representatives of NCCN Guidelines panels presented two new sets of guidelines along with updates for several tumor types, summarized in this issue of The ASCO Post. New NCCN Guidelines for Survivorship “The...
On the Potential for Conflicts of Interest
In a recent issue of The ASCO Post, I counted 14 expert commentaries where the authority who wrote or was interviewed for the piece reported “no potential conflicts of interest.” I wondered how likely that was. We need to be clearer on the meaning of potential conflicts of interest. How often have...
