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Showing 601 - 650Psychological Impact of Genetic Testing to Be Explored in Subset of NCI-MATCH Trial Patients
The ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group has received federal approval to add a quality-of-life research study, COMmunication and Education in Tumor Profiling, or COMET (EAQ152), to the NCI-MATCH (EAY131) trial already underway. Using feedback surveys before and after a patient undergoes tumor gene...
Immune Analysis of On-Treatment Longitudinal Biopsies Predicts Response to Melanoma Immunotherapy
Immune response measured in tumor biopsies during the course of early treatment predicts which melanoma patients will benefit from specific immune checkpoint blockade drugs, according to researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Chen et al reported their findings in...
Insurance Status Impacts Survival, According to Two New Studies
Men with testicular cancer who were uninsured or on Medicaid had a higher risk of death from what is normally a curable disease than insured patients, a new study found. The findings, published by Markt et al in Cancer, add to growing evidence that differences in health insurance status can affect...
An Epic Medical Story by an Old-Style Doctor on the Front Lines of Care
The U.S. health-care system is a $3 trillion behemoth of dizzying complexity. Government oversight, ever-changing regulations, mountains of paperwork, electronic health records, initiative after initiative, and so forth, all of which has reshaped the delivery of care, for the good and bad. But...
ASCO Outlines Opposition to Medicare Part B Demo for Senate Finance Hearing
ASCO voiced its strong opposition to the proposed Medicare Part B demonstration project in comments submitted on June 28 for the U.S. Senate Finance Committee hearing, “Examining the Proposed Medicare Part B Drug Demonstration.” ASCO underscored the urgent need to advance a fairer and more...
Using Social Media to Accelerate Genomic Research
The success of using social media to push forward causes for social good was a driving factor in the launch this past October of the Metastatic Breast Cancer Project (MBC project), which aims to accelerate the understanding of what makes patients with metastatic breast cancer genetically unique....
CMS Proposal for Part B Drug Payment: A Poorly Conceived Experiment
On March 11, 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule in the Federal Register to test a change in reimbursement for Part B drugs.1 The first phase involves changing the 6% add-on to the average sales price (ASP) used to make drug payments under Part B to...
ASCO Outlines Opposition to Medicare Part B Demo for Senate Finance Hearing
ASCO voiced its strong opposition to the proposed Medicare Part B demonstration project in comments submitted on June 28 for the U.S. Senate Finance Committee hearing, “Examining the Proposed Medicare Part B Drug Demonstration.” ASCO underscored the urgent need to advance a fairer...
Tackling the Symptoms of Long-Term Fatigue and Insomnia in Cancer Survivors
Fatigue and sleep disruption are common occurrences for most patients diagnosed with cancer. Simply having a serious physical illness like cancer along with its associated pain, hospitalization, and treatment, as well as the attendant psychological impact, all contribute to the onset of fatigue...
Chemotherapy After Radical Prostatectomy May Benefit African Americans and High-Risk Patients
A new U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) study suggests that African American men and men with a higher tumor stage may benefit from adjuvant chemotherapy following radical prostatectomy.1 According to prespecified analysis of these two “high–risk” subgroups, patients with ≥ T3b disease had a ...
Moving the Needle on HPV Vaccination
In 2012–2013, members of the President’s Cancer Panel (prescancerpanel.cancer.gov) focused their efforts on accelerating widespread acceptance of and use of approved human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines to prevent cancer. The topic is important, because HPVs cause most cases of cervical cancer and...
ASCO 2016: Study Finds Use of Mobile Web App Associated With Improved Outcomes in Lung Cancer
A Web-mediated follow-up application (app; Moovcare™) improved advanced lung cancer survival, according to a French multicenter randomized phase III study. Researchers analyzed the association and evolution of self-reported clinical symptoms over time. The median overall survival of patients...
ASCO 2016: Adding Capecitabine Chemotherapy to Gemcitabine Extends Survival After Pancreatic Cancer Surgery
For a more in-depth look at these data, as well as commentary, click here. A European phase III trial, one of the largest ever conducted in pancreatic cancer, showed that adding the oral drug capecitabine chemotherapy to gemcitabine prolongs survival without increased toxicity. Adjuvant...
ASCO 2016: Biosimilar Shows Comparable Efficacy and Safety to Trastuzumab in HER2-Positive Metastatic Breast Cancer
A biosimilar trastuzumab antibody (MYL-1401O) is comparable in efficacy and safety to trastuzumab (Herceptin) in women with HER2-positive advanced breast cancer, according to a randomized phase III study. The response rates were comparable among women who received trastuzumab and among...
FDA Grants Selumetinib Orphan Drug Designation for Adjuvant Treatment of Differentiated Thyroid Cancer
Earlier this month, AstraZeneca announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug designation for the investigational MEK1/2 inhibitor selumetinib for adjuvant treatment of patients with stage III or IV differentiated thyroid cancer. Selumetinib inhibits the MEK...
Site of Tumor Impacts Survival and Choice of Treatment in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer
In metastatic colorectal cancer, the anatomic location of the tumor within the colon appears to make a difference in overall survival as well as response to pivotal treatments, according to a retrospective analysis of the pivotal CALGB/SWOG 80405 (Alliance) trial.1 “While previous studies had...
FDA Grants Selumetinib Orphan Drug Designation for Adjuvant Treatment of Differentiated Thyroid Cancer
AstraZeneca announced on May 12 that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug designation for the investigational MEK 1/2 inhibitor selumetinib (AZD6244, ARRY-142886) for adjuvant treatment of patients with stage III or IV differentiated thyroid cancer. Differentiated...
Using Telemedicine to Reduce Wait Times for Veterans
John Farrow, a 67-year-old Vietnam veteran, had not been able to sleep for days. A week ago, his primary care doctor at his local outpatient Veterans Administration (VA) clinic told him that his prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood level was rapidly increasing, and his prostate was abnormal on...
Phase Ib/II Study Reports High Response Rates Seen With Addition of Cisplatin to Regimen for Advanced Pancreatic Cancer
The oncology research team at HonorHealth Research Institute in Scottsdale, Arizona, is spearheading a phase Ib/II trial that is demonstrating promising results with a novel regimen in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. “The patients we are treating have advanced adenocarcinoma of the...
DigniCap Scalp Cooling System Now Available for Women With Breast Cancer at 10 U.S. Cancer Treatment Centers
Dignitana Inc. announced today that the DigniCap scalp cooling system, which was cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in December 2015 to effectively reduce the likelihood of chemotherapy-induced hair loss in women with breast cancer, is now available at 10 cancer treatment...
‘Red-Flag’ Symptoms That Could Signal Colorectal Cancer in Patients Under 50 Years Old Should Be Taken Seriously
In clinical practice, Samantha Hendren, MD, MPH, has been “shocked by what a large proportion of patients we are seeing who are under 50 and presenting with colorectal cancer,” often with advanced disease due to delayed diagnosis. “And that is because patients and physicians don’t even think of...
2016 Head and Neck Cancer Symposium: Study Maps Distinct Molecular Signatures of HPV-Positive Throat Cancer by Smoking Status
Patients with throat cancer exposed to both human papillomavirus (HPV) and tobacco smoke demonstrate a pattern of mutations along several key cancer genes, according to research presented by Zevallos et al at the 2016 Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium (Abstract 1). These distinct...
Similar Low Incidence of Bowel Symptoms With Hypofractionated vs Conventionally Fractionated Radiotherapy in Localized Prostate Cancer
As reported by Wilkins et al in The Lancet Oncology, 2-year patient-reported outcomes in a UK phase III trial (CHHiP) substudy have shown a similar low incidence of bowel problems among patients with intermediate-risk localized prostate cancer receiving hypofractionated vs conventionally...
The New Frontiers of Breast Cancer
A seismic shift is underway in screening and treatment approaches for breast cancer. These changes are being fueled by studies showing that mammography in younger women may do more harm than good and that advances in genomic testing and a better understanding of the biology of breast cancers may...
Expert Point of View: Sagar Lonial, MD
Responding to the assertion that bortezomib (Velcade)/lenalidomide (Revlimid)/low-dose dexamethasone induction followed by continuous lenalidomide/dexamethasone is potentially a new standard of care in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma, Sagar Lonial, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Winship Cancer...
Expert Point of View: Ian E. Krop, MD, PhD
Ian E. Krop, MD, PhD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, commented on the findings by Ma et al in an interview with The ASCO Post, calling the study “very elegantly designed.” “The study provides three important pieces of information. One, it suggests that palbociclib can add to the benefit...
Multiple Myeloma in 2015: A Year for the Record Books
Few malignancies have received as much attention, in the way of newly approved drugs, as multiple myeloma did in 2015. In November alone, 3 new agents were approved, bringing the total to 4 for the year as part of a record 7 approvals and to 16 regulatory approvals over the past 12 years. Speakers...
Expert Point of View: Genes May Predict Taxane-related Peripheral Neuropathy
As an oncologist who frequently avoids taxanes, largely due to concerns about neuropathy, Steven Vogl, MD, of the Bronx, New York, was asked to comment on the study. He observed that while the Indiana University study has no immediate applicability, it is “a good first look.” “I typically don’t...
Cervical Cancer Screening Study Should Reassure Physicians and Patients that a 3-Year Screening Interval Is Safe and Effective
Results of a large-scale cervical cancer screening study using concurrent human papillomavirus (HPV) and Pap testing should “reassure” women over 30 who test negative for HPV and have normal Pap tests that “it is extremely safe to go 3 years” before being tested again, Barnett S. Kramer, MD, MPH,...
A Conversation with David Henry, MD
Given the intricate nature of oncology workflow, terminology, cancer staging, and the high risk associated with chemotherapy administration, an oncology electronic medical record (EMR) system needs to be much more than a storehouse of patient information. According to David Henry, MD, Clinical...
Emerging Targeted Therapies Offer Glimmer of Hope for NSCLC but Biomarkers for Response Needed
Among the newer approaches to treatment of non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are heat-shock protein 90 (Hsp90) inhibitors, toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) agonists, and vascular-disrupting agents. So far, none appears to be a “home run,” but Hsp90 inhibition may be the most promising of the three...
ASCO’s Oncology Slide Library Functions as a Share‑and‑Exchange Forum
ASCO’s Oncology Slide Library—which allows ASCO meeting attendees to upload and share their ASCO meeting presentation slides with slide-library subscribers—may only be a year old, but participation is already very high. This year’s Annual Meeting in June marked the first time ASCO gave each speaker ...
Expert Point of View: Patients with Early Breast Cancer Benefit from Regional Nodal Irradiation
Thomas Buchholz, MD, of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, commented that the “well conducted and analyzed” MA.20 study addressed a “simple clinically relevant question,” and the findings “add to the conclusive evidence that radiation eradication of local-regional...
No Value for Axillary Dissection in Patients with Breast Cancer and Occult Nodal Metastases
In a subanalysis of the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP) B-32 study, nearly 16% of clinically node-negative patients were found to have occult metastases upon more detailed assessment of the sentinel lymph nodes. While a slight difference in outcomes was found among this...
SIDEBAR: A Snapshot of I-SPY 2
With principal investigator Laura Esserman, MD, MBA, of the University of California, San Francisco, and co–principal investigator Donald Berry, PhD, of MD Anderson Cancer Center, I-SPY 2 will screen up to 12 different drugs in neoadjuvant therapy for breast cancer over the course of the trial. In...
Novel Approaches and Agents Making Headway against Sarcoma
Novel approaches and agents reported at the ASCO 2011 Annual Meeting are improving outcomes in sarcoma, a heterogeneous disease with historically poor outcomes, according to William D. Tap, MD, Section Chief of Sarcoma Oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. Dr. Tap...
Novel Management Strategies Assessed in Renal Cell and Prostate Cancers
At the Best of ASCO Miami meeting, William Oh, MD, of the Tisch Cancer Institute, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, described new trends and remaining questions in the management of renal cell and prostate cancers. Axitinib vs Sorafenib in Second-line RCC Axitinib, a potent and selective...
AACR Issues Landmark Report on Cancer Progress
At a recent press conference in Washington, DC, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) assembled luminaries from the cancer research and care communities to discuss the salient points of the association’s newly released progress report on the current and future state of cancer research ...
Optimizing HER2-directed Therapy in the Clinic
Seminal research in the treatment of HER2-positive breast cancer has been led by Edith A. Perez, MD, the Serene M. and Frances C. Durling Professor of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida. The ASCO Post asked Dr. Perez to share her approach to HER2-directed therapy. Testing...
A Conversation with Ezekiel J. Emanuel, MD, PhD
Last September, Ezekiel J. Emanuel, MD, PhD, a leading scholar in bioethics and health-care policy, was named the Diane v.S. Levy and Robert M. Levy University Professor and Vice Provost for Global Initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. His appointment will be shared between ...
MD Anderson Cancer Center’s New President Has a Bold Vision
On September 1, 2011, Ronald A. DePinho, MD, became only the fourth President in the 70-year history of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Dr. DePinho spent the previous 14 years as head of Dana-Farber’s Belfer Institute for Applied Cancer Science. In a recent interview...
Studies Reveal that Hormonal Factors Influence Lung Cancer Risk in Women
In an effort to understand lung cancer risk factors and develop prevention strategies for the disease, Christina S. Baik, MD, MPH, thoracic oncologist and staff scientist at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, has examined epidemiologic trends in lung...
Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy or Surgery First: Outcome Not Affected
Chemotherapy can be delivered before breast-conserving therapy or after surgery, without influencing long-term local-regional recurrence, a large study from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center confirmed. The data were presented at the 2011 Breast Cancer Symposium in San Francisco.1 “A ...
ASCO Launches FASCO Designation
ASCO has announced the designation of Fellow of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, otherwise known as FASCO. Formerly called the ASCO Statesman Award and launched in 2007, the distinction is designed to honor ASCO’s most active volunteer members. “The FASCO status represents recognition for ...
Estrogen for Vulvovaginal Atrophy in Breast Cancer: Debate Continues
Vulvovaginal atrophy is a concern for the majority of patients with breast cancer, not only because of its physical and psychosexual consequences, but because the optimal treatment—estrogen replacement—is controversial. Patients and physicians alike remain concerned that external estradiol may...
Challenges, Progress, and Future Directions in Head and Neck Cancer
Although head and neck cancer remains a major therapeutic challenge, significant advances have been made over the past few decades. The ASCO Post recently spoke with Marshall R. Posner, MD, Medical Director of the Head and Neck Oncology Program, Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York, about the...
A Visionary Call for the ‘Creative Destruction’ of Medicine
According to nationally regarded cardiologist and geneticist Eric Topol, MD, Chief Academic Officer of Scripps Health, the next frontier of the digital revolution can create exponentially better health care. Dr. Topol, who is also Director of the Scripps Translational Science Institute and...
Context May Affect Benefit of Adjuvant Clodronate in Breast Cancer
A benefit of the oral bisphosphonate clodronate when used as adjuvant therapy for early breast cancer may depend on factors such as the endpoint assessed and patient age, suggests the randomized B-34 trial conducted by the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP). The trial,...
Eating Problems and Pain Prevalent in Survivors of Head/Neck Cancer
“Eating problems due to poor oropharyngeal functioning and persistent pain are the most prevalent problems” faced by patients 5 years after being treated for head and neck cancer, according to a study published online by the Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery.1 More than 50% of...
2012 Annual Meeting to Highlight NCI’s ‘Provocative Questions’ and Offer First-ever Pre–Annual Meeting Seminars
As this year’s ASCO Annual Meeting was being planned, the NCI was developing and releasing its “Provocative Questions” project—an effort to stimulate the cancer community to ask itself 24 key questions in order to advance the treatment of cancer and provide better care. It quickly became clear to...
