Articles
A combination of fludarabine, pixantrone, dexamethasone, and rituximab (FPD-R) achieved major durable responses in patients with relapsed or refractory indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) in a single-arm phase 1 dose-escalation study. The study identified a dose of 120 mg/m2pixantrone as the recommended dose for this regimen. The overall response rate with this regimen was 89%, and the regimen was well tolerated with no grade 3/4 cardiovascular adverse events. Grade 3/4 lymphopenia occurred, however, in 89% of patients and leukopenia in 79%.
Concomitant chemotherapy with reirradiation offers a cure for select patients with recurrent head and neck cancer in a previously irradiated area. With the findings of 2-year survival in 25% of patients, the researchers noted the importance of choosing the correct patients for this therapy. Previous concurrent chemoradiotherapy was associated with poor survival outcomes. In addition, there was significant risk of sever toxicity, with 20% of patients experiencing treatment-related death.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Inform Dual ISH (Ventana Medical Systems), a genetic test that allows for measurement of the number of copies of the HER2 gene in tumor tissue. This method of identification of women with breast cancer who are HER2-positive pinpoints who is, and who is not, a candidate for Herceptin (trastuzumab).
Use of hormone therapy for menopause is associated with reduced risks for esophageal, gastric, and colorectal cancers, according to results of a prospective study that were then combined with published studies in a meta-analysis. In this British study of women aged 50 to 64 years, researchers found no significant differences in risk by type of hormone therapy, duration of use, or between past and current users. The reduction in risk, however, was small in comparison to the increased risk of breast cancer that has been attributed to hormone therapy in this population.
Patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) receive unnecessarily high-dose levels of chemotherapy, according to Dr Bob Löwenberg, professor of Hematology at the Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam, The Netherlands at the 16th Congress of the European Hematology Association.
Based on results of the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT) and the Reduction by Dutasteride of Prostate Cancer Events (REDUCE) trial, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has updated the Warnings and Precautions sections of the labels for the 5-alpha reductase inhibitor (5-ARI) drug class. These trials showed that daily use of finaseride and dutasteride reduced overall incidence of prostate cancer (mainly low-grade), but increased the incidence of high-grade prostate cancers.
CHICAGO—Women considered at risk for breast cancer developed fewer breast cancers and fewer precursor lesions by taking the aromatase inhibitor (AI) exemestane for 5 years, versus placebo, in a large Canadian study presented at the 2011 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
Oncology specialists from around the world gathered in Chicago to hear the latest research in cancer and how these new therapies and strategies will impact patient care. Interestingly, none of the plenary sessions this year focused on the major cancer types, such as breast and lung. Instead the abstracts were chosen because they have the greatest opportunity to change practice, including two presentations in melanoma, one in GIST, and two in pediatric oncology.
CHICAGO—Women considered at risk for breast cancer developed fewer breast cancers and fewer precursor lesions by taking the aromatase inhibitor (AI) exemestane for 5 years, versus placebo, in a large Canadian study presented at the 2011 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.