The HCPLive conference coverage page features articles, videos, and expert-led live coverage from major medical meetings throughout the year.
QOL and Q-TWIST Measures with Lapatinib in HER2-Positive MBC
October 9th 2009Quality of life (QOL) is an important consideration for clinicians when treating patients. Treatments that diminish QOL can result in the patient discontinuing therapy or switching to another drug. Either can thwart efforts to control tumor growth. Beth Sherrill, MS, Global Head, Biometrics, RTI Health Solutions, Research Triangle Park in North Carolina, and associates sought to determine the effects on QOL of adding lapatinib (Tykerb) to letrozole (Femara) in women with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer (MBC).
Trastuzumab Reduces Recurrence in Low-Risk HER2 Breast Cancer
October 9th 2009HER2-positive breast cancer has long been recognized as an aggressive disease, but women with small node-negative tumors are considered low risk for recurrence and do not always receive adjuvant therapy. Data presented by Heather L. McArthur, MD, MPH, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, and colleagues in a poster session at this week’s Breast Cancer Symposium in San Francisco suggests perhaps they should. In comparing outcomes between women who received adjuvant trastuzumab for low-risk HER2-positive tumors and those treated before trastuzumab was available, they concluded adjuvant trastuzumab (Herceptin) reduces recurrence rates and mortality.
Most Breast Cancer Deaths Occur in Women Not Receiving Regular Mammograms
October 8th 2009The results of a large, randomized, population-based study presented at the 2009 ASCO Breast Cancer Symposium indicate that the rate of death from breast cancer is 56% for women not participating in mammogram screening programs versus 4.7% for those on the recommended screening schedule.
PRIME Trial Offers More Good News for Panitumumab in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer
September 24th 2009Preliminary data from a phase 3 study show that panitumumab (Vectibix) added to standard FOLFOX chemotherapy as a first-line treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer significantly improves PFS in patients with wild-type KRAS.
Studies Demonstrate Effectiveness of Exemestane in Early Stage Breast Cancer
September 24th 2009Updated data from IES (Intergroup Exemestane Study) showed that sequencing therapy with tamoxifen followed by exemestane (Aromasin) prolonged disease-free survival and overall survival in postmenopausal women with early stage breast cancer.
Novel TAK-1 Inhibitor Reduces Resistance of Pancreatic Cancer Cells to Chemotherapy
September 24th 2009Dr David Melisi, National Cancer Institute, Naples, Italy, and colleagues presented data at ECCO 15-ESMO 34 today identifying the transforming growth factor (TGF) beta-activated kinase-1 enzyme, known as TAK-1, as a possible target in pancreatic cancer.
ABCSG-24 Finds Neoadjuvant Capecitabine Improves Complete Response in Early Stage Breast Cancer
September 24th 2009The Austrian Breast and Colorectal Cancer Study Group (ABCSG) presented new data from the ABCSG-24 trial, which has been investigating adjuvant treatment with capecitabine (Xeloda) plus a standard chemotherapy regimen of epirubicin and docetaxel (Taxotere) in women with early stage breast cancer.
On the Road to Personalizing Radiation Therapy
September 24th 2009Developing targeted pharmacotherapies to personalize cancer care has become the mantra in oncology, and now a team of scientists from The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and Canada has taken the first step toward targeting radiotherapy dosages to individual patients by assessing the genetic characteristics of individuals with hypersensitivity to radiation therapy.
Progression-free Survival Significantly Improved in Breast Cancer Patients on Sorafenib
September 24th 2009Sorafenib (Nexavar) significantly improved progression-free survival in patients with breast cancer, according to the results of the SOLTI-0701 study presented at the ECCO 15 – ESMO 34 Joint Congress by José Baselga, MD, ESMO president and a member of the ECCO executive committee, and head of oncology, Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.
Questioning Cancer Research Priorities
September 24th 2009Approximately three quarters of funding for cancer research goes to biology research and drug development in Europe, and this concerns Professor Richard Sullivan, King’s Health Partners Integrated Cancer Centre in London and chairman of the European Cancer Research Managers Forum.
Can HPV Vaccination Eradicate Cervical Cancer?
September 24th 2009Prof Cuzick told an attentive audience at the ECCO 15-ESMO 34 Joint Congress that he believes new HPV vaccines on the horizon, which are effective against 9 strains of HPV, coupled with a shift to molecular HPV screening, could allow countries to eradicate cervical cancer within their borders.
Targeting Soft-Tissue Sarcoma with Heat During Chemotherapy Improves Outcomes
September 24th 2009Heating soft-tissue sarcomas during chemotherapy was associated with a significant reduction in the risk of recurrence and death, according to data presented by Professor Rolf Issels, professor of medical oncology, Klinikum Grosshadern Medical Center, University of Munich in Germany.
Researchers Propose Standard of Care for Patients with Partially Platinum-Sensitive Ovarian Cancer
September 24th 2009Many clinicians continue to puzzle over the best way to treat patients with ovarian cancer who relapse 6 to 12 months after treatment with a platinum-based chemotherapy regimen. These women are typically categorized as “partially” platinum-sensitive.
BRAF Mutation Analysis has Clinical Value in Stage III Colon Carcinoma
September 23rd 2009In a poster presented at the ECCO 15 - ESMO 34 Joint Congress, Arantza Fariña, MD, and colleagues from the PAMM Laboratory for Pathology and Catharina Hospital Eindhoven, the Netherlands, noted that stage III colon carcinoma patients with the BRAF V600E mutation had a significantly worse prognosis.
Pain Increases Risk for Malnutrition and Poor Performance Status in Cancer Patients
September 23rd 2009In a poster presented at the ECCO 15 – ESMO 34 Joint Congress, KM Mallath and colleagues from the Department of Digestive Diseases and Clinical Nutrition, Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai, India, noted that cancer pain is an important independent risk factor for poor performance status in newly diagnosed patients and significantly associated with malnutrition.