Articles

Subsets of patients with colon cancer may benefit from increased surveillance for toxicities associated with adjuvant FOLFOX (leucovorin, fluorouracil, oxaliplatin) treatment, Canadian researchers suggest, based on their detailed analysis of the toxicity profile of this common regimen and their identification of factors that predict toxicity.

For patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) receiving chemotherapy, primary prophylaxis against febrile neutropenia (FN) can safely be administered on the same treatment day, if necessary, according to a review of patients from the Cleveland Clinic, presented at the 2013 American Society of Hematology annual meeting.

In postmenopausal women with early breast cancer, bisphosphonates in the adjuvant setting reduced the risk of recurrence in bone by 34% and breast cancer death by 17% according to a large meta-analysis conducted by the Early Breast Cancer Trialists’ Collaborative Group.

Treatment with 5 years of anastrozole reduced the risk of developing a first breast cancer by 53% and reduced the risk of developing estrogen-receptor positive (ER+) invasive cancer by 58% in women at high risk for developing the disease.

For the first-line treatment of HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer, the combination of eribulin mesylate and trastuzumab yields higher response rates, with manageable toxicity.

NEPA, a fixed-dose combination of netupitant and palonosetron, proved more effective than palonosetron alone in preventing chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) in a large multinational study of 1455 patients, according to data presented at the 2013 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

The optimal dosing of pomalidomide in the treatment of multiple myeloma has not been established. Yale University investigators compared continuous and intermittent dosing regimens, and while the intermittent schedule was associated with more toxicity, they concluded that it is preferable.

Continuous treatment with lenalidomide and low-dose dexamethasone (Rd) was superior to standard treatment with melphalan, prednisone, and thalidomide (MPT) for 72 weeks in newly diagnosed patients with multiple myeloma (MM) who were transplant ineligible.

Results of the German CLL11 randomized, controlled clinical trial promise to change the standard of care for first-line treatment of older, sicker patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

Hematologists should not use 5 tests and procedures routinely, according to Choosing Wisely recommendations presented at the 2013 American Society of Hematology (ASH) annual meeting.