-
Ten years of adjuvant tamoxifen is significantly better than the standard 5 years of treatment. Continuing adjuvant tamoxifen for 10 years substantially reduces rates of both recurrence and breast cancer-specific mortality in women with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer.
-
The experience from Harbin, China, in the treatment of de novo acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) in patients 60 years and older demonstrates the efficacy and safety of single agent arsenic trioxide. This agent with or without all trans retinoic acid may ultimately prove optimal for induction and maintenance APL treatment in older adults.
-
In examining the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Colorectal Database, reasons for not completing the recommended postsurgical chemotherapy were examined. Although only 17% of patients for whom adjuvant therapy was recommended failed to receive treatment, the decision to not proceed was based on a number of factors, most notably the existence of comorbidities. In comparison to this cohort of patients treated at academic centers, the percent of patients not treated with adjuvant chemotherapy is likely to be greater in the community setting.
-
Apixaban approval; new dental clinical practice guideline; apixaban for VTE; aspirin resistance; tamoxifen treatment; and FDA actions.
-
-
Metformin use was associated with better disease-specific survival in women who developed ovarian cancer. The data support (preclinical observations of) the anticancer activity of metformin in several solid tumors and provide rationale for planned and ongoing clinical trials.
-
Relative to the general population, the risk of anal cancer in HIV-infected patients remains very high. Unlike other malignancies associated with AIDS, effective antiretroviral treatment appears to have no preventive effect on anal cancer, particularly among men who have sex with men.
-
Two recent reports provide supportive evidence for current strategies in the management of prostate cancer. The first, from Finland, is a report of the marginal value of PSA screening in terms of long-term prostate cancer survival. And, from a cooperative observational cohort in the United States, there is suggestive evidence that radical prostatectomy provides a somewhat more favorable survival outcome when compared to external beam radiotherapy.
-
Ninety-six women with breast cancer undergoing radiotherapy during a 5- to 6-week interval were randomized to either a qigong group or a wait-list control group. The results indicate that the women in the qigong group had clinically significantly less depressive symptoms and better quality of life than the control group.
-
In a single-arm, multicenter, Phase 2 trial, bevacizumab in combination with docetaxel and carboplatin achieved a pathological complete response in 19 of 45 patients with stage II/III triple-negative breast cancer. Forty-four of the 45 patients completed the planned six cycles and toxicity was manageable. One patient had delayed wound healing as a subsequent surgical complication. Thus, bevacizumab may provide significant improvement in neoadjuvant strategies for triple-negative breast cancer and further investigation is warranted.