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In this Phase 2, single-arm, multicenter clinical trial conducted in the Netherlands, 50 patients with metastatic rectal cancer were treated with 5 days of 5 Gy RT followed by six cycles of intravenous bevacizumab (7.5 mg/kg) and oxaliplatin (130 mg/m2) on D1 and capecitabine (1000 mg/m2) orally on D1-D14.
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Women undergoing pediatric cancer care are significantly more likely than their siblings to have clinical infertility (≥ 12 months of non-conception despite desired attempts) and total infertility (clinically infertile women who also reported ovarian failure defined as never initiating menstruation or no periods 5 years before baseline questionnaire).
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Imatinib therapy was discontinued in 40 patients who had sustained undetectable BCR-ABL transcripts for 2 or more years, and close follow-up revealed approximately 50% remained with undetectable disease off treatment at 24 months.
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In a prospective analysis, healthy women known to be carriers of BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations chose either bilateral mastectomy or active surveillance. Ascribing to careful methodological detail, the investigators found that those who chose surgery had lower risk for breast cancer occurrence and better survival. Nonetheless, the authors note that longer follow-up and a larger sample size are needed to confirm statistical significance of their observations.
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Evidence-based updates in primary care medicine By Louis Kuritzky, MD
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In a single institutional study (M.D. Anderson), 60 older patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia were treated with lenalidomide. Thirty-five of the 60 patients had a response lasting > 36 months, and compared with those who did not have such a durable response, those who did had lower pretreatment ß-2 microglobulin levels and were more likely to have favorable cytogenetics. Lenalidomide treatment was associated with improvement in circulating immunoglobulin levels and T-lymphocyte numbers.
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LAP2 was a randomized, Phase 3 trial to evaluate and compare the modality of surgical staging (laparoscopy vs laparotomy) in endometrial cancer.
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Early pivotal trials demonstrating the efficacy of sorafenib for patients with advanced hepatocellular cancer included primarily those with minimal liver dysfunction (Child-Pugh [CP] class A).
