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WASHINGTON-Eric S. Berger, vice president of planning and public policy, US Oncology, Inc., Houston, has a word of advice for cancer care providers seeking to influence legislators: “Speak from the heart.”

WASHINGTON-Four members of Congress received the Paul E. Tsongas Award from the Lymphoma Research Foundation of America during a Capitol Hill ceremony. The award is presented annually “to recognize outstanding legislative leadership and commitment in support of the health care issues that result in improving the quality of life for all Americans.”

WASHINGTON-In an effort to better understand and deal with the unequal burden of cancer among various subgroups of US residents, the National Cancer Institute has launched a program to engage members of these minority and underserved populations in community-based cancer control, prevention, research, and training projects.

FeRx Incorporated, a privately held development stage drug delivery company, recently reported encouraging data from its phase I/II clinical trial of doxorubicin adsorbed to magnetic targeted carriers (MTC-DOX), for the treatment of patients with

NEW ORLEANS- The “deprofessionalization” of medicine is the greatest challenge faced by physicians today, Glenn D. Steele, Jr., MD, PhD, said in his presidential address at the Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO) Cancer Symposium. He implored his colleagues to get back on the “high road of first principles” in order to tackle the problems generated by managed care and and other aspects of the current health care climate.

MIAMI, Florida-Two separate multicenter trials suggest that dose titration in patients with chronic, moderate to severe pain can be achieved as readily with controlled-release (CR) oral oxyco-done (OxyContin) given once every 12 hours as with an oral intermediate-release (IR) formulation given four times a day.

NEW YORK-Preliminary findings from a study of long-term cancer survivors suggest a linkage of cognitive deficits to standard-dose chemotherapy, Timothy Ahles, PhD, reported at the Pan American Congress of Psychosocial and Behavioral Oncology.

A relatively simple technique, pioneered by a North Carolina physician, can distinguish between patients who can metabolize docetaxel (Taxotere) normally and those who need to receive lower doses for safety, according to a recent study. Researchers

Pentostatin (Nipent) is a nucleoside analog that inhibits the activity of the enzyme adenosine deaminase. Inhibition of adenosine deaminase blocks the deamination of adenosine to inosine and deoxyadenosine to deoxyinosine in the purine

A new book, Me and My Marrow: A Kid’s Guide to Bone Marrow Transplants, helps guide children with cancer through the transplant procedure. The book was inspired by 13-year-old Christina Cuzzone, of Northbrook, Illinois, who was diagnosed with leukemia at age 9 and underwent a BMT. After recovering from the transplant, Christina recognized the need for a book to help other children.

WASHINGTON-Scientific studies provide insufficient evidence that consuming high doses of antioxidants in the diet and as supplements can prevent chronic diseases, according to a new report by the Institute of Medicine (IOM), a part of the National Academy of Sci-ences. Indeed, megadoses of some antioxidants may lead to ill health rather than benefits, the report warned.

NEW ORLEANS-Positive/negative purging of peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) grafts allows preparation of highly purified CD34+ fractions and up to 6 log of tumor cell depletion in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), according to a study conducted at the University of Kiel, Germany. Peter Dreger, MD, reported the results at the 41st annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH).

The perception is that it is normally Democrats who support price controls; that is why Sen. Slade Gorton (R-WA), who

ASCO-The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has embarked upon “one of the most important and far reaching initiatives ever undertaken by any medical specialty society-the National Initiative on Cancer Care Quality (NICCQ),” Joseph S. Bailes, MD, outgoing ASCO president, said at the Society’s 36th annual meeting held in New Orleans.

NEW ORLEANS-A nonmagnetic method of depleting B cells during purging before autologous peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) transplantation greatly decreases the nonspecific cell loss that can occur when cells cross a magnet, as in other techniques. The nonmagnetic method is also simple and quick, John Gribben, MD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, said at the 41st annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

Accurate imaging of the hepatic and extrahepatic abdomen is an important component of the management of many patients with cancer. Historically, clinicians have relied on computed tomography (CT). The use of intravenous (IV) and oral contrast

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla-Palliative care, broadly defined, can benefit cancer patients who are newly diagnosed and who are in active treatment, as well as those who are near death. In creating guidelines for palliative care, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Palliative Care Panel members found agreement on this point.

WASHINGTON-As part of its move to self-management, the American Society of Hematology (ASH) has moved its offices to a new independent location in Washington, DC. Formerly with an association management firm, the ASH executive committee voted in 1999 for the Society to make the move. Martha Liggett, Esq, will continue to serve as executive director.

SAN DIEGO-AIDS experts have long worried that human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection might increase a woman’s risk of cervical cancer, particularly in the presence of concurrent human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla-Older cancer patients are at increased risk for complications of chemotherapy, and such risks must be weighed against the potential benefits of treatment. However, chronologic age is an imprecise gauge of physical condition. A geriatric assessment can help the physician determine the best approach to cancer treatment, Lodovico Balducci, MD, said at the fifth annual conference of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN).

ROCKVILLE, Md-The FDA has proposed rules that would enable it to authorize states to certify, inspect, and enforce quality standards at mammography facilities within their boarders. The rules would implement a provision of the Mammography Quality Standards Act of 1992 (MQSA) and significantly increase the role of the states in the process.

Medicare has made some changes in how it will calculate payments to outpatient cancer clinics when the new

SUNNYVALE, California-RadioTherapeutics Corporation has received clearance from the FDA to market its RF System for the ablation of nonresectable liver lesions. The system, consisting of the RF 2000 Radio-frequency Generator and family of LeVeen Needle Electrodes, provides radiofrequency (RF) energy to heat and destroy soft tissue.

WASHINGTON-When the National Coalition of Cancer Research (NCCR) brought its concerns about the impact of proposed patient privacy regulations on medical research to Capitol Hill, it got strong confirmation about its fears from the founder of the House Cancer Awareness Working Group.

ORLANDO-The technology for mammography to go digital is here, but it may take 5 or 10 years for the transition because of the higher costs that the newer method entails, Maria Kallergi, PhD, said at the Joint Cancer Conference of the Florida Universities.

CLEVELAND-Distance education for continuing medical education (CME), often conducted via e-mail and the Inter-net, is designed for independent study at the participant’s convenience. It also eliminates the need for travel, an important consideration in a country like Canada with a large geographic area and a small population.

WASHINGTON-A safer cigarette from R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company? Leading antismoking groups don’t buy it, and Health and Human Services Secretary Donna E. Shalala expressed “significant concerns about the marketing plans” for RJR’s new Eclipse brand.

SAN DIEGO-Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected women from the southeastern United States are more likely to have contracted HIV through heterosexual contact, to be black, and to harbor multiple subtypes of human papillomavirus (HPV) than are HIV-positive women from other parts of the country, Ronald D. Alvarez, MD, said at the 31st Annual Meeting of the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists (SGO).

NEW ORLEANS-A mutant her-pesvirus has been shown, in vitro and in vivo, to be highly oncolytic against colon carcinoma cells in liver metastases. On-colysis induced by the replication of this virus, combined with cyclophosphamide prodrug activation, appears to hold therapeutic promise in this setting, according to research presented at the Society of Surgical Oncology Cancer Symposium.

CHICAGO-While the main objective in caring for cancer patients has been to prolong life and to focus on short-term and long-term survival, more recent efforts include considerations of health-related quality of life (QOL).[1,2] The World Health Organization defines QOL as “not merely the absence of disease but a state of physical, emotional, and social well being.”[3]