Articles
It may become easier for cancer patients to understand and feel comfortable enrolling in cancer clinical trials thanks to a newly created Internet-based multimedia informed consent tool, according to a recent study. The resource has the potential to increase the low percentage of adult cancer patients who participate in clinical trials (2%-4% nationwide), says the research group from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania who conducted the survey.
Inadequate levels of vitamin D (25-hydroxy-vitamin D) are found in more than three-quarters of cancer patients, and the lowest levels are linked to advanced cancers, according to a study presented at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).
A new Web site promises to assist patients with cancer when searching for the peers, resources, and information they need.
WhatNext uses unique technology to match individuals with similar diagnosis, treatment, and other factors. The site provides an online location where users can share details of their cancer experience, and it allows them to ask and answer questions. WhatNext also points users not only to American Cancer Society cancer information but also to local resources evaluated by the Society.
A platinum-based anticancer drug, oxaliplatin, has made great strides in recent years against colorectal cancer. Yet, it now appears that the drug causes possible permanent nerve damage that has the potential to worsen even months after treatment ends. The chemotherapy side effect was discovered by Johns Hopkins researchers in what may be the first attempt to trace oxaliplatin-based nerve damage through relatively inexpensive and simple punch skin biopsies, according to an article published in the September issue of Neurology.
Treating postmenopausal women with advanced breast cancer resistant to hormonal therapy with a combination of 2 existing cancer drugs significantly improves outcome, according to results from a phase 3 clinical trial. Researchers reported at the 2011 European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress* that women had a progression-free survival of nearly 7 months when treated with a combination of everolimus and exemestane compared to women who received only exemestane.
In the longest-running trial comparing tamoxifen with the aromatase inhibitor letrozole, results reveal that letrozole continues to prevent breast cancer recurrences and lower the risk of death in postmenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer.
Men with hormone therapy resistant metastatic prostate cancer endure less fatigue when treated with a combination of abiraterone acetate and prednisone, according to results from an international phase 3 clinical trial.
In response to the increasing costs facing cancer patients, a study recently identified areas for improvement in both the cost and quality of cancer care. The new study. Benchmarks for Value in Cancer Care: An Analysis of a Large Commercial Population, was reported by one of the nation’s largest networks of community-based oncologists dedicated to advancing cancer care in America, the US Oncology Network. The study was published in the State of Oncology supplement of the peer-reviewed Journal of Oncology Practice.
Controlling the pain related to bone metastases in patients with prostate cancer can be difficult. Researchers have now discovered a single dose of a bisphosphonate drug is as effective for pain relief as single-dose radiotherapy, the standard treatment for bone metastases, according to a large randomized phase 3 trial presented at the 2011 European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress.*
Postmenopausal women with breast cancer benefit significantly from using zoledronic acid as an aid to chemotherapy, according to trial results presented at the 2011 European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress* and published in the New England Journal of Medicine.1 Could this be the key to unlocking the breast cancer recurrence process as well as advancements toward new breast cancer therapy options? Researchers believe so.