The combination of continuous daily-dosed sunitinib (Sutent) and hypofractionated stereotactic radiation therapy produced acceptable toxicity and “encouraging” 6-month progression-free survival in previously irradiated patients with recurrent high-grade glioma, according to the results...
In the phase III PANORAMA1 trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, San-Miguel and colleagues found that adding the pan-deacetylase inhibitor panobinostat to bortezomib (Velcade) and dexamethasone improved progression-free survival in patients with relapsed or relapsed and refractory multiple...
A laboratory study of the investigational drug CX-5461, which blocks the inhibition of RNA polymerase I transcription, has found that it prolonged survival in mouse models of highly aggressive acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and multiple myeloma refractory to standard therapy. In addition, the...
Using genomic profiling and next-generation sequencing of patients with BCR-ABL1-like B-progenitor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-cell ALL) and Philadelphia chromosome–like ALL, researchers recently identified alterations targeting 18 kinase or cytokine receptor genes. They then determined...
In the SMaRT Oncology-3 study reported in The Lancet Oncology, Walker et al found that an integrated collaborative treatment program for depression (‘depression care for people with cancer’) was associated with significantly reduced severity of depression compared with usual care in...
In a study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Vo et al in the International Neuroblastoma Risk Group Project found significant differences in clinical and biologic features of neuroblastoma according to primary tumor site, including poorer survival for adrenal sites of primary disease and...
A large, international analysis of patients with stage IV non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) indicates that a patient’s overall survival rate can be related to factors including the timing of when metastases develop and lymph node involvement, and that aggressive treatment for low-risk...
Patients with inoperable, early-stage lung cancer who receive stereotactic body radiation therapy have a 5-year survival rate of 40%, according to long-term results presented at the American Society for Radiation Oncology’s (ASTRO) 56th Annual Meeting (Abstract 56). Such a positive survival...
Prostate cancer patients who receive high-dose radiation therapy followed by a longer period of androgen-deprivation therapy have higher 5-year biochemical disease–free survival and overall survival rates compared to patients who receive high-dose radiation therapy and a shorter duration of...
A secondary analysis of the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project B-32 trial indicates that radiation therapy does not increase the incidence of lymphedema in patients with node-negative breast cancer, according to research presented at the American Society for Radiation...
The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) released its 2014 Cancer Progress Report today, which highlights the quickening pace of drug development and approval, especially in molecularly targeted agents that are leading to increased numbers of cancer survivors. However, the report also...
Serum levels of VEGF-A and TGF-β1 may be helpful in tailoring neoadjuvant treatment regimens for patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, according to research presented at the American Society for Radiation Oncology’s (ASTRO) 56th Annual Meeting (Abstract 10). Results of...
Radiation therapy alone is as effective in decreasing swallowing complications experienced by advanced esophageal cancer patients as radiation therapy combined with chemotherapy, thus allowing patients to forgo chemotherapy, according to research presented at the American Society for Radiation...
Patients with high-risk prostate cancer who received radiation therapy and an 18-month course of androgen-deprivation therapy recovered a normal testosterone level in a shorter amount of time compared to those who received a 36-month course of androgen-deprivation therapy. The shorter course of...
More than one-quarter of young adults with the most common form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia have a high-risk subtype with a poor prognosis and may benefit from drugs widely used to treat other types of leukemia that are more common in adults, according to multi-institutional research led by St. ...
Use of cisplatin or cetuximab (Erbitux) with radiotherapy improves overall survival in stage III or IV head and neck carcinoma, and adding cetuximab to platinum therapy improves overall survival in metastatic disease. In the phase III Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) 0522 trial reported in...
Radiation therapy with concurrent paclitaxel chemotherapy following surgery is an effective treatment for high-risk endometrial cancer, according to a study reported by Cho et al in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology • Biology • Physics Endometrial...
Maintenance rituximab (Rituxan) has been shown to improve progression-free survival vs observation in low-tumor-burden follicular lymphoma. In the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) E4402 Trial (RESORT), reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kahl et al found no significant difference ...
When factoring in what is now known about breast cancer biology and heterogeneity, breast-conserving therapy may offer a greater survival benefit over mastectomy to women with early-stage, hormone receptor–positive disease, according to research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer ...
Despite its acceptance as standard of care for early-stage breast cancer almost 25 years ago, barriers still exist that preclude patients from receiving breast-conserving therapy, with some still opting for a mastectomy, according to research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center....
A new breast cancer vaccine candidate, GP2, provides further evidence of the potential of immunotherapy in preventing disease recurrence. This is especially the case for high-risk patients when it is combined with a powerful immunotherapy drug. These findings were presented at the 2014 Breast...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today granted accelerated approval to the anti–PD-1 antibody pembrolizumab (Keytruda) for the treatment of patients with advanced or unresectable melanoma who are no longer responding to other drugs. Pembrolizumab is intended for use following...
Despite conjecture in the lay media that wearing a bra may be a risk factor for breast cancer based on the potential for bras to interfere with lymph circulation and drainage, hampering the removal of waste and toxins, there were few scientific studies investigating the issue. Now, a new study by...
A survey of 150 women newly diagnosed with breast cancer provides new insight into factors that influence women’s decisions to undergo contralateral prophylactic mastectomy. This is one of the first studies to look at women’s breast surgery preferences prospectively, before they undergo ...
Results from a large population-based study of 189,734 women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer in California show the percentage opting for a bilateral mastectomy has increased substantially over the past decade even though the procedure was not associated with a lower risk of death than...
A large study conducted through the BC Cancer Agency in British Columbia, Canada, reports that adding family physician–signed reminder letters to the standard schedule of postcard reminders substantially improves return rates for screening among women who are overdue for such screening. In a...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted and granted priority review to Ipsen’s supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for the somatostatin analog lanreotide (Somatuline Depot) 120 mg injection in the treatment of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors. The FDA...
An analysis of data from 12 large clinical trials found that the cancer’s pathologic response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy and tumor subtype are strong predictors of locoregional breast cancer recurrence. According to the researchers, the study showed that these two predictors may be more...
A retrospective review of records at an academic cancer center in Ontario, Canada, found that referrals for genetic counseling and the rates of genetic testing performed almost doubled over the 6-month period after Angelina Jolie announced she underwent a preventive double mastectomy because she...
Cytoreductive surgery with or without hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy extended survival over systemic therapy alone in well-selected candidates with peritoneal hepatocellular carcinoma, according to the results of a small retrospective trial reported by Tabrizian et al in the Journal of...
A subset of patients with stage III colon cancer had improved survival rates when treated with irinotecan-based therapy, according to a new study in Gastroenterology. When added to the standard chemotherapy treatment—fluorouracil [5-FU] and leucovorin—adjuvant irinotecan therapy...
A phase II study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Nowakowski et al indicates that the addition of lenalidomide (Revlimid) to R-CHOP (rituximab [Rituxan] plus cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone)—a regimen known as R2CHOP—overcomes the negative...
Sequencing RNA, not just DNA, could help doctors predict how prostate cancer tumors will respond to treatment, according to research published in the journal Genome Biology. Because a tumor’s RNA shows the real-time changes a treatment is causing, the authors believe that this could be a...
A team of researchers led by the University of Arizona Steele Children’s Research Center discovered that curcumin—the bioactive molecule derived from the spice turmeric—blocks the protein cortactin in colon cancer. Cortactin, a protein essential for cell movement, is frequently...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Tworoger et al found that inclusion of endogenous hormone levels in the Gail and Rosner-Colditz risk scores improved prediction of postmenopausal invasive breast cancer. Study Details The study involved 437 patients with breast cancer and...
An international, multi-institutional research group led by scientists at the Cancer and Blood Diseases Institute (CBDI) at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center has identified a novel molecular pathway that causes an aggressive form of medulloblastoma, The study, reported by He et al ...
In a retrospective study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kollmannsberger et al found that active surveillance for patients with clinical stage I testicular cancer is associated with very good outcomes. Most relapses occurred within 2 years of orchiectomy in patients with nonseminoma...
A study reported in The Lancet Oncology by Wallace et al evaluated the accuracy of criteria used for predicting ovarian insufficiency and offering ovarian tissue cryopreservation in young women with cancer at the Edinburgh Children’s Cancer Centre. Ovarian tissue cryopreservation with later...
In a study reported in JAMA Dermatology, Youlden et al found that the incidence of Merkel cell carcinoma in Queensland, Australia, a known high-risk area, increased by 2.6% annually between 1993 and 2010. Five-year relative survival was 41%, with significantly better survival found in patients aged ...
An international scientific collaboration led by Baylor College of Medicine as part of The Cancer Genome Atlas initiative has revealed clues about genetic alterations that may contribute to a rare form of kidney cancer. The study, which describes the landscape of somatic genomic alterations of...
Transrectal ultrasound guided biopsy is the standard for detecting prostate cancer, but international reports have suggested that the risks associated with the procedure are increasing. In a new nationwide population-based study reported in The Journal of Urology, Swedish researchers found that 6%...
In an analysis in the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study population reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Ford et al found that adult woman survivors of childhood cancer have poorer psychosexual function than their siblings without childhood cancer. Risk factors for poorer function included...
The 1964 Surgeon General’s Report on Smoking and Health started a culture change in the way Americans viewed tobacco and their health, and has saved countless million of lives. But the 1964 Report remained scientifically ambiguous on certain vital issues, such as the effect smoking had on the ...
Use of panitumumab (Vectibix) and cetuximab (Erbitux) in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer decreased significantly after the publication of clinical trial evidence that anti-EGFR antibodies should be restricted to wild-type KRAS tumors, subsequent ASCO guidelines recommending testing for...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Schleiermacher et al found ALK mutations at relapse of neuroblastoma that were not present at diagnosis. They also found that subclonal mutations may be present at diagnosis with clonal expansion observed at relapse. The study involved...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the antiangiogenic agent bevacizumab (Avastin) for the treatment of persistent, recurrent, or metastatic cervical cancer. The new indication is approved for use in combination with paclitaxel and cisplatin or paclitaxel and topotecan. The FDA ...
Researchers at the Children’s Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern (CRI) have identified a gene that contributes to the development of several childhood cancers, in a study conducted in mouse models. If the findings prove to be applicable to humans, the research could...
Healthy men participating in the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial who actively participate in all steps of the clinical trial are most likely to undergo a biopsy, according to a study by Gritz et al published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. The Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial, ...
The BRAF inhibitor vemurafenib (Zelboraf) is approved for treatment of BRAF-mutated metastatic melanoma. There are reports indicating that vemurafenib may be active in the treatment of intracranial neoplasms with BRAF mutations. As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Lee et al from...
A new analysis confirms that U.S. lung cancer rates are declining overall, but it also uncovers previously unrecognized trends related to cancer subtype, sex, race/ethnicity, and age. Published early online in Cancer, the findings provide a more accurate picture of the state of lung cancer in the...