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A 78-year-old man was referred for evaluation and treatment of recently discovered glioblastoma. While dining with his children he collapsed from his chair and was observed to have a grand mal seizure. He had transiently lost consciousness and when he awoke he had weakness in both upper and lower extremities on the right side.
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In a review of nine Phase 3 trials enrolling 6,284 patients, data from 793 who were younger than 50 years old were compared to the remainder who were older than 50 years, with attention given to progression-free survival, response rates, and overall survival.
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The use of sunlamps or sunbeds for tanning purposes has grown in popularity, such that their use is very common among teenagers and young adults. In a well-conducted Australian multicenter, case-controlled study, it is clear that such use among teenagers is associated with a significantly higher risk of cutaneous melanoma. In fact, the risk is higher than it is for middle-aged sunbed users.
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FDA issues multiple drug safety alerts; ARBs and cancer risk; and FDA actions.
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In a trial of two platinum-based chemotherapy regimens for non-small-cell lung cancer in older patients, pretreatment assessment of physical function and quality of life predicted certain different adverse outcomes but neither treatment assignment was superior to the other with regard to improved "global" quality of life.
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ACEI/ARB therapy for AS; safety alert issued for dronedarone; statins and cancer risk; nesiritide and heart failure; and FDA actions.
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In a multicenter randomized (not blinded) Phase 3 study of erlotinib vs chemotherapy for EGFR-mutation positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), progression-free survival was both significantly greater and toxicity less for patients treated with erlotinib. The findings suggest that erlotinib should be considered first-line therapy for patients with advanced EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC.
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In a case-control study, patients with prostate cancer and matched controls were asked to recall whether they experienced male-pattern baldness by 20, 30, or 40 years of age. Prostate cancer patients were twice as likely to have alopecia at age 20 than controls. Early-age alopecia was not associated with early diagnosis of prostate cancer or with markers of disease aggressiveness. Thus, men with male-pattern baldness at age 20 may be at higher risk for the development of prostate cancer and perhaps more aggressive screening or other disease preventing interventions might prove beneficial for this population.
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