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Starting Palliative Care Early Can Improve QoL in Family Caregivers of Cancer PatientsIn this video we discuss how palliative care early on in the process of treating patients with cancer led to an improvement in depressive symptoms and quality of life among family caregivers.
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First-Cycle CSF Use in Breast Cancer and NHL: Guidelines and RecommendationsGrade 3 and 4 neutropenia as well as febrile neutropenia have been demonstrated to occur in all tumor types and are clearly associated with major morbidity and significant mortality; this is particularly true when myelosuppressive regimens are used with curative intent as is the case in most breast cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma regimens. Myeloid colony-stimulating factors (CSFs) substantially decrease the risk of severe and febrile neutropenia. Although the white cell growth factors might not be cost-effective at lower risks of febrile neutropenia, they clearly benefit other outcomes such as the incidence of severe neutropenia and febrile neutropenia, hospitalization, and mortality. Updated guidelines from the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, and the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer now recommend primary prophylaxis or first-cycle use of white cell growth factors with regimens where the occurrence of febrile neutropenia is approximately 20% (as well as when other risk factors are present). This article briefly describes the rationale for the development of several of the guideline changes as well as highlights some of the ongoing issues related to the use of CSFs.
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Splenic Lymphomas Presenting as SplenomegalySeveral lymphoma subtypes may present with isolated splenomegaly. Establishing a correct histologic diagnosis is critical, since patient management is largely determined by histology.
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Immunotherapy: New Strategies for the Treatment of Gynecologic MalignanciesIn this review, we will summarize clinical trials that have used various immunotherapeutic strategies, with a particular focus on recently emerging data for new agents and combinations.
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Management of Advanced/Metastatic Prostate Cancer: 2000 UpdateOver the past several years, the clinical presentation of prostate cancer has evolved so that more patients than ever before are presenting with clinically localized disease. However, a significant number of men continue to
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Diagnostic Dilemma: GI DiseaseA 68-year-old man with a history of small-cell lung cancer with bony metastases was admitted with diarrhea. The patient had completed chemotherapy one week earlier with cisplatin and etoposide, along with radiation therapy, and irinotecan (Camptosar). The patient was found to be neutropenic.
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Diagnostic Dilemma: GI DiseaseAn 85-year-old woman presented to the emergency department with epigastric pain and nausea for 2 days. She denied vomiting, fever, or early satiety. The patient stated she had lost 10 pounds over the past 3 months. A CT scan of the abdomen revealed a 1 cm low attenuation lesion in the second portion of the duodenum.
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SBRS to Manage Painful Bone Metastases: The Challenges AheadThe authors have provided a concise review of stereotactic body radiosurgery (SBRS) in the treatment of mainly spinal/paraspinal metastases. This technique was primarily developed to treat spinal metastases in the reirradiation scenario given that treatment alternatives are limited for these patients and that-in the setting of advanced metastatic disease-surgical decompression is often not a suitable option.
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Recent Clinical Trials Explore Immunotherapies for Urothelial CarcinomaDr. Balar highlights promising evidence on the potential benefits of the use of immunotherapy in the advanced bladder cancer setting.
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Management of Resistance to EGFR TKI–Targeted Therapy of Lung Cancer: Lessons in Monitoring Cancer EvolutionCancer cells undergo accelerated evolutionary changes; thus, under the pressure of novel generations of EGFR TKIs, we should expect to see new mechanisms of resistance.
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New Directions in the Systemic Treatment of Metastatic Thyroid CancerAbout 30,000 new cases of thyroid cancer are diagnosed annually in the United States.[1] The incidence among men has risen more dramatically than any other malignancy in recent years (2.4% annual increase).[2] Thyroid cancers arise from one of two cell types, namely follicular and parafollicular cells.
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A 40-Year-Old Woman With a New Triple-Negative Breast Mass, Shown on Biopsy to Be Metaplastic CarcinomaA 40-year-old woman noted a large mass in her right breast. A diagnostic mammogram and ultrasound confirmed a 3.4-cm mass with associated microcalcifications.
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The Pathway Ahead in Melanoma TrialsReviewing treatment modalities for melanoma provides many sobering reminders that advances in our scientific understanding have not yet translated into meaningful clinical benefit. As clearly delineated by the authors, the “standard” treatment of dacarbazine chemotherapy has a poor response rate and lacks durability.
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Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy and Surgical Management of the Axilla in Breast Cancer: A Review of Current DataThis review will discuss the current status of surgical management of the axilla for patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy.
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Management of Primary and Metastatic Tumors to the LiverPrimary and metastatic liver tumors continue to be a significant health problem in the United States. Hepatic resection or, in selected cases, transplantation are the only curative therapies for patients with resectable
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POEMS Syndrome: Still an Enigma?Because of challenges in making the correct diagnosis and the physician’s reluctance to administer chemotherapy for a disease characterized by such a low tumoral mass, patients may experience a delay in the initiation of appropriate treatment.
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Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy in the Management of Painful Bone MetastasesBone metastases are a common feature of many solid cancers, especially those originating from the prostate, breast, lung, kidney, melanoma, and other sites. Up to 80% of patients with these cancers will develop painful bony disease during the course of their disease.
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High-Dose Therapy for Follicular LymphomaMost patients with advanced-stage follicular non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) are not cured with conventional therapy. The use of high-dose therapy and autologous stem-cell transplantation in patients with relapsed follicular
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Helping Patients Access Protections of the ADAWhen she learned that she had breast cancer, Patricia Garrett did what many people with cancer do: she continued working.
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Commentary (Melman): Morbidity of Contemporary Radical Retropubic Prostatectomy for Localized Prostate CancerThis article compares the results of radical retropubic prostatic surgery done by a group of urologists at the Mayo Clinic during a recent 3-year period with results obtained in a similar group of patients operated on prior to 1987. The authors show that when a surgical procedure is done often, with modern techniques and attention paid to surgical and anatomic detail, very good results can be achieved.
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Adjuvant Endocrine Therapy in Premenopausal Women With Operable Breast Cancer: Understanding the IssuesResearch and development of adjuvant therapies for premenopausal women with endocrine-responsive breast cancer is unfortunately lacking.
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Carcinoma of the Uterine CervixOver the past four decades, the incidence and mortality rates for uterine cervical carcinoma have decreased in the United States by as much as 70% to 75% [1]. This improvement is among the largest seen for any cancer site and has been attributed to the use of cervical cytologic screening [2].
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Medical Ethicist Arthur Caplan Explains Why He Opposes ‘Right-to-Try’ LawsIn this Q&A we examine Right-to-Try drug laws and discuss tips for clinicians with terminally ill patients who have exhausted all their therapy options.
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The Prostate Cancer Intervention Versus Observation Trial (PIVOT)The Prostate Cancer Intervention Versus Observation Trial (PIVOT) is a randomized trial designed to determine whether radical prostatectomy or expectant management provides superior length and quality of life for men with clinically localized prostate cancer. Conducted at Department of Veterans Affairs and National Cancer Institute medical centers, PIVOT will enroll over 1,000 individuals less than 75 years of age. The primary study end point is all-cause mortality. Secondary outcomes include prostate cancer- and treatment-specific morbidity and mortality, health status, predictors of disease-specific outcomes, and cost-effectiveness. Within the first 3 years of enrollment, over 400 men have been randomized. Early analysis of participants' baseline characteristics indicate that enrollees are representative of men diagnosed with clinically localized prostate cancer throughout the United States. Therefore, results of PIVOT will be generalizable. These results are necessary in order to determine the preferred therapy for clinically localized prostate cancer. [ONCOLOGY 11(8):1133-1143, 1997]
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Distant Effects of Cancer on the Nervous SystemApproximately 30 years passed between the first description of a paraneoplastic neurologic disorder[1] and the demonstration of an immunologic pathogenesis for one of these syndromes.[2] In the almost 4 decades since, the paraneoplastic neurologic disorders have been subjected to study far out of proportion to their clinical prevalence. These disorders stimulate clinical research because (1) paraneoplastic neurologic syndromes are frequently the presentation of a malignancy, (2) they may bode well for a more favorable tumor prognosis,[3,4] and most importantly, (3) they yield insight into the workings of malignancy and the pathogenesis of neurologic disorders, particularly neurologic degenerations.
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Commentary (Neel/Sober)-Mohs Micrographic Surgery: Established Uses and Emerging TrendsPennington and Leffell have reviewedthe literature with regardto the relative efficacy ofthe Mohs technique vs conventionalsurgery in the treatment of commonand uncommon cutaneous neoplasms.The reason for the success of Mohssurgery can be summarized simply: TheMohs surgeon examines the entire microscopicsurgical margin for tumor,whereas the pathologist working with aconventional surgeon does not.
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QOL and Outcomes Research in Prostate Cancer Patients With Low Socioeconomic StatusThe VA Cancer of the Prostate Outcomes Study (VA CaPOS) is collecting quality-of-life (QOL) information from prostate cancer patients, spouses, and physicians at six VA medical centers. Currently, 601 men with prostate
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Painful Osteoblastic Metastases: The Role of Nuclear MedicineAlthough bone pain from osteoblastic metastases can be ameliorated 50% to 80% of the time by use of intravenously or orally administered radiopharmaceuticals, we cannot accurately predict who will or will not
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Why Haven’t Older Adults Been Included in More Oncology Clinical Trials?In this video, Dr. Arti Hurria discusses resources addressing the disconnect between cancer as a growing problem in the elderly and the fact that clinical trials mostly enroll younger patients.
