Articles

High Insulin, Low Adiponectin Levels Adversely Affect Survival in Breast Cancer Patients

Women with breast cancer who have elevated levels of C-peptide (a marker of insulin secretion) have significantly higher mortality rates than their peers with lower levels, results of the Health, Eating, Activity, and Lifestyle (HEAL) study indicate.

Conference Correspondent

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Oral rivaroxaban’s efficacy at reducing the risk of recurrent venous thromboembolism (VTE) was confirmed in two trials presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology. The agent was studied for treatment of deep-vein thrombosis (DVT) as well as for continued therapy after initial anticoagulation treatment for DVT or pulmonary embolism.

Colorectal Cancer

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For patients with a past history or family history of colorectal cancer, annual fecal immunochemical tests (FITs) detect neoplasias sooner than scheduled 10-year colonoscopies, according to a new study published in the December issue of Gastroenterology. For patients with FIT-positive results, diagnosis was made sooner by 25 months for cancer and by 24 months for advanced adenomas.

Hematologic Cancers

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A new web-based application predicts the probability for complete remission (CR) or early death (ED) after chemotherapy in patients aged 60 years and older with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The tool, developed by the German Acute Myeloid Leukaemia Cooperative Group and the Study Alliance Leukemia Investigators, can help clinicians weigh the option of intensive induction chemotherapy for older, otherwise healthy patients. In addition, the tool requires only standard clinical data and laboratory variables to calculate the risk scores.

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Researchers have confirmed the long-term benefits of adjuvant anastrozole to help stop recurrence of breast cancer in postmenopausal women with hormone-sensitive early breast cancer, according to a 10-year analysis of the Arimidex, Tamoxifen, Alone or in Combination (ATAC) trial published in The Lancet Oncology (Nov 16, 2010. Epub ahead of print).

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An adjuvant regimen of docetaxel, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide (TAC) is effective for women with high-risk, node-negative as well as node-positive breast cancer, according to a study by the Spanish Breast Cancer Research Group.

The taxane-based regimen has proved superior to fluorouracil, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide (FAC) in women with node-positive breast cancer, but its value in node-negative disease had not been determined.

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Exercise programs should be initiated more widely among established androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) users, argue the results of a new study by researchers at the University of Toronto. In addition, their study highlights the importance of further investigation into whether initiating exercise at the same time as that of ADT can reverse or prevent the negative physical outcomes often associated with ADT.

By Dawn Lagrosa

December 2010, Vol 3, No 8

This past April, Geisinger Medical Center’s (GMC) Cancer Institute became one of 14 sites added to the National Cancer Institute Community Cancer Centers Program (NCCCP). Joining this national network of community cancer centers offers GMC the opportunity to expand its state-of-the-art cancer care and research in northeast Pennsylvania.

By Eric G. Poon, MD, MPh

December 2010, Vol 3, No 8

Medication safety is an ongoing challenge for hospitals, healthcare providers, and healthcare delivery systems. Medication errors in hospitals are common^1,2 and can lead to patient harm. A study by Leape and colleagues found that serious medication errors occurred most often in physician ordering (39%) and nurse administration (38%). The remaining 23% occurred during transcription (12%) and pharmacy dispensing (11%).³

By Laird Harrison

December 2010, Vol 3, No 8

SAN FRANCISCO—America must take a more logical approach to healthcare, or the whole system for providing it will collapse, warned Otis W. Brawley, MD, chief medicine and science officer at the American Cancer Society.

“I spend a lot of time talking about the rational use of healthcare, not the rationing,” said Brawley, who also serves as an Emory University professor of oncology, hematology, and medicine.

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