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There is a known association of obesity and glucose intolerance with pancreatic cancer but whether this is due to the effect of high glucose itself, insulin resistance, or pancreatic ß-cell dysfunction is unknown. In an epidemiological, nested, case-control analysis drawn from five large prospective cohorts, measures of insulin resistance were independently associated with pancreatic cancer risk, but this was not true for measures of hyperglycemia or ß-cell dysfunction alone.
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High-risk, early breast cancer patients treated on a dose-intense chemotherapy protocol were randomized to receive thrice weekly epoetin alfa or not. As compared with controls, hemoglobin levels were maintained and fewer red cell transfusions were required. Furthermore, there did not appear to be any detriment in progression-free or overall survival. However, venous thrombotic events occurred more frequently. The use of erythropoiesis-stimulating agents in the adjuvant setting remains unsettled.
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A new technique of evaluating liquid-based Pap smears has been developed to identify confirmed disease-specific mutations in patients with uterine and ovarian cancers. The new technique identified most uterine and some ovarian cancers and importantly, produced no false positive screens among normal, noncancer controls.
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n a small, multicenter, randomized Phase 2 trial, the all-oral combination of cyclophosphamide and capecitabine demonstrated a trend toward an increasing response rate when compared to capecitabine alone in the treatment of locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer. The combination was well tolerated.
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Current strategies to prevent chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting frequently include a 3-day course of aprepitant. In a multicenter trial from Japan, administration of a single dose of the aprepitant prodrug fosaprepitant, when used in combination with granisetron and dexamethasone, was shown to provide significant improvement when compared to placebo plus granisetron/dexamethasone. Thus, single-dose fosaprepitant may offer a more convenient and less complicated approach in the regimen to prevent nausea and vomiting.
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Clinically significant disparities exist in the quality of ovarian cancer care delivered and in overall survival along both racial and socioeconomic status. These effects appear to persist despite adherence to National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines; however, deviation in guideline adherence is common and further impacts survivorship and represents key opportunities for further investigation and study.
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Beta-blockers and noncardiac surgery; prenatal medication exposure and risk of autism; reasons for statin discontinuations; and FDA actions.
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One-third of non-small cell lung cancer patients treated with adjuvant chemotherapy start it more than 10 weeks after surgery. Although the time interval between surgery and initiation of adjuvant chemotherapy impacts survival in colorectal and breast cancers, delaying adjuvant chemotherapy does not appear to be associated with inferior survival in non-small cell lung cancer.
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In a retrospective review of adjuvant chemotherapy for elderly (≥ 75 years) patients with stage III colon cancer, performance status and comorbidities were important treatment decision factors. Disease recurrence rates were not different for those who received adjuvant treatment vs those who did not, but 1-year and 5-year survival was significantly better for the treated group. The difference at 5 years remained apparent in multivariate analysis controlling for age, performance status, and comorbidities.
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In this study, the authors studied the prognostic value of plasma Epstein Barr virus (EBV) DNA levels at diagnosis and 6 months post-treatment in patients with advanced Hodgkin lymphoma treated on the North American Cooperative Intergroup Trial E2496.
