Articles
CHICAGO—“Dasatinib 100 mg once daily should become frontline therapy in newly diagnosed chronic-phase chronic myelogenous leukemia,” said DASISION (Dasatinib versus Imatinib Study in Treatment-Naïve CML Patients; CA180-056) lead investigator Hagop M. Kantarjian, MD, The University of Texas, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston. Kantarjian’s statement was based on findings from the DASISION comparison of firstline dasatinib with first-line imatinib in patients with chronic-phase chronic myelogenous leukemia (CP-CML).
CHICAGO—Four-year follow-up of patients with chronic-phase chronic myelogenous leukemia (CP-CML) who have been resistant, suboptimally re - sponsive, or intolerant to prior imatinib therapy showed that dasatinib 100 mg once daily has the most favorable risk–benefit profile, with 66% progression- free survival (PFS) and 82% overall survival (OS).
CHICAGO—Routine screening for hepatitis B virus (HBV) in all patients being started on immunosuppressive therapy uncovers a significant percentage with HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) and HBV core antibody (HBcAb), said Emmy Ludwig, MD, at the 2010 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
As such, she recommends a universal screening program for HBV at all cancer centers. Chemotherapy and immuno suppressive drugs can cause reactivation of HBV in persons who have the virus, with morbid and potentially fatal consequences.
CHICAGO—Implementation of a roving pharmacist/nurse model for supportive care at the North Carolina Cancer Hospital resulted in a significant improvement in patient symptoms, researchers reported at a poster session at the 2010 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. The multidisciplinary Oncology Supportive Care Consult Service was started at the hospital in 2008. Members of the team include a medical oncologist, a clinical pharmacist practitioner, and a clinical nurse specialist.
CHICAGO—The benefit of bevacizumab in metastatic breast cancer was made clear in a meta-analysis of key trials presented by Joyce O’Shaughnessy, MD, of Baylor-Sammons Cancer Center and US On cology, during the 2010 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
Healthcare is more than medicine and patient care. Physicians, pharmacists, nurses, and hospital administrators are realizing that healthcare is also a business. As a result, healthcare professionals are looking for ways to improve quality of care while lowering costs. College and universities are answering the call with business management courses geared toward medical professionals.
Scott A. Soefje, PharmD, BCOP, has more than 20 years of pharmacy experience. He started as a hospital staff pharmacist, has held several positions in academia, and worked briefly in industry. Currently, he is director of pharmacy operations and director of the oncology residency program at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Just this past summer, however, he em barked on a new venture—a master of business administration (MBA) program at George Washington University.
NATIONAL HARBOR, MD—Preliminary results of an ongoing trial suggest that a combination of trastuzumab, bevacizumab, and docetaxel is safe and effective as first-line therapy in women with metastatic breast cancer (MBC).
Fourteen of the 18 patients treated to date had a partial response or stable disease, a clinical benefit rate of 77.7, the investigators reported.
Aresearch-based educational program aimed at enhancing communication between non- Hodgkin lymphoma patients and their healthcare providers has just been launched and is available for healthcare providers.
Framing Life With Lymphoma was developed by the Cancer Support Community, which unites The Wellness Community and Gilda’s Club World wide, and was supported by a grant from Cephalon.
Positive findings in treatment of metastatic melanoma were among the highlights of June’s 2010 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). For ipi - limumab, there was the remarkable achievement of being the first to show a survival advantage in a randomized clinical trial. But whereas ipilimumab is an investigational human monoclonal antibody and a product of the most sophisticated of modern medical technologies, the agent in the second successful metastatic melanoma trial, Rose Bengal, has a more humble pedigree.