Authors


Omid Hamid, MD

Latest:

Identifying and Managing Toxicities From Pembrolizumab Combinations

When pembrolizumab is combined with immunotherapies, the incidence of grade 3 to 5 toxicities increases, especially with anti–CTLA-4 combinations.


ONCOLOGY's Editorial Board

Latest:

Making the Most of the ASCO Annual Meeting

We present some tips and advice from the editorial board of ONCOLOGY on how to make the most at the 2015 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, including places to go in Chicago, nice spots at McCormick Place, and some recommended presentations and sessions.


Oren J. Becher, MD

Latest:

Pediatric Neuro-Oncology: Time to Go Molecular

One recurring theme from genomic studies of pediatric CNS tumors (and almost all cancers, for that matter) is that tumors that historically appeared to be a single entity based on examination under the microscope and routine immunohistochemical staining actually harbor molecularly distinct subgroups when analyzed by genomic sequencing techniques.


Orit Kaidar-Person, MD

Latest:

Multidisciplinary Management of Breast Cancer Brain Metastases

This review summarizes the most up-to-date approach to the multidisciplinary management of patients with breast cancer brain metastases.


Oscar B. Goodman, Jr, MD, PhD

Latest:

Is There a Role for LHRH Antagonists in Prostate Cancer?

The recent US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of degarelix, a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) antagonist, has renewed interest in this class of drugs as a prostate cancer therapy. Approval was based on a prospective phase III trial of 610 patients randomized to one of two dosing schedules of degarelix, or standard-of-care monthly leuprolide acetate monotherapy, with initial antiandrogen therapy allowed at the treating physician’s discretion for prevention of clinical flare.[1]


Oscar Ballester, MD

Latest:

Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in the Elderly

Hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation may improve outcomes of patients with hematologic malignancies not curable with conventional therapies. In some clinical settings, transplantation represents the only curative option. The feasibility and efficacy of this approach in older patients are undefined, since this population has been excluded from nearly all clinical trials. Advances in supportive care, HSC harvesting, and safer conditioning regimens have made this therapy available to patients well into their 6th and 7th decades of life. Recent evidence suggests that elderly patients with good performance status and no comorbidities could, in fact, not only survive the transplant with reasonable risk, but also benefit in the same measure as younger patients.


Otis W. Brawley, MD

Latest:

Health-Care Disparities, Civil Rights, and Human Rights

With regard to cancer management, minority populations do not fare as well as the majority in the US health-care system. There is clear evidence of an increased incidence of cancer in minority populations, in many cases accompanied by reduced survival. Several factors appear to contribute to these differences, and the biomedical community has begun to focus on definining the scope of the problem and possible solutions. This review will address specific areas of disparity in cancer care, including prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes, and will consider steps toward resolving these issues.


Otis W. Brawley, MD, FACP

Latest:

Low-Dose Spiral CT Screening and Evaluation of the Solitary Pulmonary Nodule

The number of lesions detected with low-dose CT, only some of which are early cancers, is so great that algorithms are being developed for more efficient evaluation and management of solitary pulmonary nodules. This article will discuss current tools, approaches, and concerns regarding patient care in this setting.


Otto Metzger-filho, MD

Latest:

The Natural History of Hormone Receptor–Positive Breast Cancer

In this article, we describe the long natural history of HR+ breast cancer and review current research and clinical strategies to address this clinical challenge.


Oukseub Lee, PhD

Latest:

A Fitting Prescription for All:Whole Soyfoods as Part of aVaried Plant-Based Diet

Until better evidence is available for the effects of soy on women from non–soy-consuming countries, it seems reasonable to limit consumption to soyfoods, and to avoid high-dose supplements of processed soy components.


Owen A. O’connor, MD, PhD

Latest:

Resolving Confusion: The New Realities of Mantle Cell Lymphoma

In their Areas of Confusion article, “Management of Relapsed Mantle Cell Lymphoma: Still a Treatment Challenge,” Ruan et al attempt to make the case that the relative merits of different upfront approaches for mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) are difficult to appreciate due to the differences in eligible patient populations and limited randomized data.


P. Bardos

Latest:

Therapeutic Activity of Humanized Anti-CD20 Monoclonal Antibody and Polymorphism in IgG FcReceptor FcgRIIIa Gene

Rituximab (Rituxan) is a chimeric IgG1 anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody increasingly used in the treatment of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL). Previous in vitro studies have suggested the role of antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) and FcgR-positive effector cells (natural killer and macrophage) in the antitumor effects of anti-CD20 antibodies, but the actual mechanism of rituximab action in vivo remains largely unknown. The FCGR3A gene coding for the FcgRIIIa receptor displays a functional dimorphism with either a phenylalanine (FCGR3A-158F) or a valine (FCGR3A-158V) at amino acid 158, with a higher affinity of human IgG1 and increased ADCC for the latter. The aim of this study was thus to determine the influence of this FCGR3A polymorphism on clinical and molecular responses to rituximab.



P. Colombat

Latest:

Therapeutic Activity of Humanized Anti-CD20 Monoclonal Antibody and Polymorphism in IgG FcReceptor FcgRIIIa Gene

Rituximab (Rituxan) is a chimeric IgG1 anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody increasingly used in the treatment of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL). Previous in vitro studies have suggested the role of antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) and FcgR-positive effector cells (natural killer and macrophage) in the antitumor effects of anti-CD20 antibodies, but the actual mechanism of rituximab action in vivo remains largely unknown. The FCGR3A gene coding for the FcgRIIIa receptor displays a functional dimorphism with either a phenylalanine (FCGR3A-158F) or a valine (FCGR3A-158V) at amino acid 158, with a higher affinity of human IgG1 and increased ADCC for the latter. The aim of this study was thus to determine the influence of this FCGR3A polymorphism on clinical and molecular responses to rituximab.


P. D. Boasberg

Latest:

Thalidomide-Induced Cessation of Weight Loss and Improved Sleep in Advanced Cancer Patients With Cachexia

The cachexia of malignancy is considered mediated through excess production of tumor necrosis factor–alpha and other cytokines. Thalidomide (Thalomid), a sedative/hypnotic, has been shown to inhibit tumor necrosis factor–alpha production.


P. Gage Gwyn, PhD, ARNP-BC, CNS, OCN, FCN

Latest:

Nurse Practitioners Communicating Bad News to Cancer Patients

In this video from the 2015 ONS meeting, Dr. Gwyn talks about nurse practitioners delivering bad news to patients by utilizing the SPIKES protocol.


P. Gaulard

Latest:

Efficiency of In Vivo Purging With Rituximab Followed by High-Dose Therapy With Autologous Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation in B-Cell Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphomas: A Single-Institution Study

High-dose therapy (HDT) with peripheral blood stem cell transplantation is a treatment option for patients with advanced follicular, marginal, and mantle cell lymphoma. In this setting, frequent contamination of peripheral blood stem cell harvests by


P. Giraldo

Latest:

Relapsed Follicular Lymphoma: Response to a Fludarabine/Mitoxantrone Regimen and the Monoclonal Anti-CD20 Antibody Rituximab

Our objective was to determine the efficacy of a fludarabine (Fludara)/mitoxantrone (Novantrone) regimen combined with the monoclonal anti-CD20 antibody rituximab (Rituxan) to induce clinical and molecular remissions in patients with relapsed


P. J. Hoskin, MD

Latest:

Commentary (Hoskin): Evaluation and Definitive Management of Medically Inoperable Early Stage Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer

Lung cancer is estimated to be the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in both men and women in 2006, and the leading cause of cancer mortality. Non-small-cell lung cancer represents the majority of such cases. Most of these patients have locally advanced disease at presentation and are not eligible for curative resection. For the minority of patients who are technically resectable at presentation, lobectomy or pneumonectomy and pathologic mediastinal nodal staging offer the best overall survival. The high rate of comorbid medical illness and poor baseline pulmonary function in this population, however, make many such early-stage patients medically inoperable. For these patients, conventional single-modality radiotherapy has been the primary definitive treatment option, as discussed in part 1 of this article, which appeared in last month's issue. Numerous retrospective reports demonstrate long-term disease-free and overall survival data that are modestly superior to that expected after observation, but both local and distant failure continue to be significant risks. Investigation of radiotherapy dose escalation is ongoing, in an effort to improve local control while maintaining minimal toxicity. Additionally, emerging evidence suggests that new modalities, such as stereotactic radiosurgery and radiofrequency ablation, may also be potentially curative treatment alternatives. These modalities are addressed in part 2.


P. Jerome Seidenfeld, PhD

Latest:

Systematic Review of Controlled Trials on Erythropoietin to Support Evidence-Based Guidelines

To support evidence-based clinical guidelines on erythropoietin use for anemia in oncology, we conducted systematic reviews of controlled trials on four patient groups. These were patients with treatment-related anemia; patients with disease-related anemia; patients transplanted with allogeneic hematopoietic stem cells; and those transplanted with autologous hematopoietic stem cells.


P. K. Morrow, MD

Latest:

Bone Biology and the Role of the RANK Ligand Pathway

Bone renewal is essential for bone strength. During childhood and early adulthood, bone formation prevails over bone resorption, as bones increase in size and strength. Peak bone mass is achieved during the third decade in life, with a higher peak bone mass being protective against osteoporosis later in life.[1] Bone loss is most prominent in women at menopause due to the effects of a natural decline in estrogen levels. However, bone mass begins to decrease with age, and bone loss is most prominent in women at menopause due to the effects of a natural decline in estrogen levels.[2]


P. Kelly Marcom, MD

Latest:

HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Remaining Challenges

In their article, "Trastuzumab and Beyond: New Possibilities for the Treatment of HER2-Positive Breast Cancer," Drs. Morris and Carey provide an excellent summary of therapeutic progress in this disease, and also turn their attention to the challenge now facing us--that of understanding the heterogeneity of HER2-positive breast cancer and mechanisms of resistance to trastuzumab (Herceptin)-based therapy.



P. Meera Khan, MD, PhD

Latest:

Genetic Counseling in Hereditary Nonpolyposis Colorectal Cancer

Recent identification of gene mutations responsible for hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC) has made possible the presymptomatic diagnosis of at-risk family members. If DNA testing shows that a family member is a gene carrier, that individual's lifetime cancer risk is approximately 90%. If the test is negative, the family member's cancer risk drops to that of the general population.


P. N. Lara

Latest:

Consolidation Therapy

We previously reported the efficacy of concurrent cisplatin (Platinol)/etoposide (PE) and radiotherapy in stage IIIB non–small-cell lung cancer in which biopsy confirmation of T4 (noneffusion) or N3 status was required (S9019). In view of the activity of docetaxel (Taxotere) as second-line therapy and potential molecular mechanisms of action favoring taxane sequencing, we designed the present study to maintain a core of concurrent PE/radiotherapy, but to substitute docetaxel consolidation for the two additional cycles of PE.


P. O'Connor

Latest:

Rituximab May Overcome bcl-2–Associated Chemotherapy Resistance in Untreated Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphomas

The antiapoptotic protein bcl-2 is associated with chemotherapy failure in untreated large B-cell lymphomas, and with the recently described poor-prognosis large B-cell lymphoma subtype displaying an activated B-cell genotype (Nature 403:503, 2000).


P. O'Donnell

Latest:

mUC: Duration of Maintenance Avelumab and Treatment at Progression

Focused discussion on the duration of maintenance avelumab for metastatic urothelial carcinoma and considerations for switching therapy.


P. Perez Segura, MD

Latest:

Neoadjuvant Therapy With Cisplatin/Fluorouracil vs Cisplatin/UFT in Locally Advanced Squamous Cell Head and Neck Cancer

This study compared the activity and toxicity of fluorouracil (5-FU)/cisplatin with the combination tegafur and uracil (UFT)/cisplatin in the neoadjuvant treatment of locally advanced-stage III or IV (M0)-head and neck


P. Peter Rosen, MD

Latest:

HER2 Overexpression and Paclitaxel Sensitivity in Breast Cancer: Therapeutic Implications

Overexpression by the HER2 gene plays a significant role in breast cancer pathogenesis, and the phenomenon is commonly regarded as a predictor of a poor prognosis. HER2 overexpression has been linked to sensitivity and/or resistance to hormone therapy and chemotherapeutic regimens, including CMF (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, and fluoro-uracil) and anthracyclines. Studies of patients with advanced disease demonstrate that, despite the association of HER2 overexpression with poor prognosis, the odds of HER2-positive patients responding clinically to taxanes were greater than three times those of HER2-negative patients. Further studies in preclinical models used combination therapy for breast cancer cells that overexpress HER2, and the use of agents that interfere with HER2 function plus paclitaxel (Taxol) resulted in significant antitumor effects. [ONCOLOGY 11(Suppl):43-48, 1997]


P. Richardson

Latest:

In Vivo Purging With Rituximab Prior to Stem Cell Collection Is Associated With Persistent Molecular Evidence of t(14;18) That Often Disappears Post-Transplant in Patients With Follicular Lymphoma

We previously reported that “in vivo purging” with rituximab (Rituxan) during stem-cell collection is safe and does not adversely affect engraftment. We now report on our transplant experience with rituximab. From June 1998 to December