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Extended analysis of BIG trial results confirms drug benefits
January 26, 2010

Investigators from the Breast International Group 1-98 study and the Intergroup Exemestane Study updated their respective trial results at SABCS 2009.

Who's News
January 21, 2010

Combination Rx with cytokine optimizes response in anemic MDS patients
January 21, 2010

Patients with lower-risk myelodysplastic syndromes and anemia can derive long-term benefits from erythropoietin and myeloid growth factor hormones, according to a study in Blood.

Focal therapy for prostate cancer: An unproven technique or a reasonable alternative to radical prostatectomy?
January 21, 2010

In order for a new treatment modality to be considered efficacious, it needs to be evaluated by acceptable criteria and demonstrate an improvement on the natural course of the disease.

Study teases out physician intent and preferences for CRC regimen selection
January 21, 2010

Fluorouracil, oxaliplatin (Eloxatin), and bevacizumab (Avastin) for first-line therapy is preferred in metastatic colon cancer.

Without randomized trials, role of vitamin D in cancer prevention remains uncertain
January 21, 2010

The Four Corners Breast Cancer Study is a population-based case-control study of women living in the southwestern states—Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah.

Four-drug regimen ups response, progression-free survival in older multiple myeloma patients
January 21, 2010

More is better, at least when it comes to treatments for multiple myeloma. Studies from Spanish and Italian investigators showed that upfront use of four drugs improves durable responses and progression-free survival in elderly patients.

Dual HER2-blockade regimen boosts overall survival in refractory metastatic breast ca
January 21, 2010

The targeted combination of lapatinib (Tykerb) plus trastuzumab (Herceptin) led to a median overall survival of 14 months in women with refractory metastatic breast cancer.

Obese breast ca patients carry greater recurrence risk
January 21, 2010

A 30-year study of nearly 20,000 Danish women made a defensible connection between obesity and poor prognosis after breast cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Bendamustine plus rituximab offers new standard of care for treatment of NHL and indolent lymphoma
January 21, 2010

There was good news at ASH 2009 on promising treatments for indolent lymphoma and aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

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Oncology NEWS Today Blog

New genome project targets childhood cancers
Greg Freiherr , January 25, 2010

Some believed the unraveling of the human genome would lead overnight to the genetic tweaking of errant cells and the tailoring of treatments to patients. That dream’s time has not yet come, even a decade after the human genome was first sequenced. But the scientific community has made enormous progress in developing tools to examine the genome and their application. And those efforts may soon lead to practical results for mainstream oncology.

Breast cancer surgeons prefer to go it alone
By Greg Freiherr , January 19, 2010

The standard for delivering the best quality of care to breast cancer patients calls for surgeons to consult with other specialists and to provide resources and education to help patients decide their course of treatment. That doesn't mean they do it.

German researchers detail how metastatic cancer takes root in the brain
By Greg Freiherr , January 11, 2010

As many as one in four cancer patients develop metastatic cancers of the brain. Existing therapies seldom do more than slow the disease. Adding to the urgency to find a way to prevent brain metastasis is the increasing number of such cases.

Elastography jockeys to replace some biopsies
By Greg Freiherr , December 8, 2009

Ultrasound elastography may be the link bridging the gap between suspicion and definitive proof, a noninvasive means to distinguish between benign and malignant tissue. The technology for doing so appeared some years ago at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America as an experimental curiosity. It’s been evolving since then until it appears now to have reached a clinical tipping point.

Grin and bear it: Oncologists find reason to smile about Medicare cuts
By Greg Freiherr , December 2, 2009

The oncology community is happy about next year’s cut in Medicare reimbursement. Well, maybe not so much happy as relieved.

Radiosurgery gains momentum for use in noncancer applications
By Greg Freiherr , November 23, 2009

Precise and noninvasive, stereotactic radiosurgery is proving a godsend to some noncancer patients. Its use for applications outside oncology, such as the treatment of movement disorders, arteriovenous malformations, and neuralgia, have been around almost since the commercial introduction of this technology.

PET gains medical and political traction in cancer prognosis
By Greg Freiherr , November 16, 2009

PET/CT is gaining recognition both medically and politically when it comes to sizing up cancer. And the timing for oncologists couldn’t be better.

ASCO seeks to turbo charge cancer research with new report
By Greg Freiherr , November 10, 2009

Oncology is gaining ground on several fronts, thanks in large part to increased sophistication in the technology of cancer therapeutics, but also in how those technologies are applied.

Striking the right tone on prostate and breast screening
By Greg Freiherr , October 27, 2009

Dr. Otis W. Brawley took a courageous stand late last week, one he has taken many times before, but which had until then gone all but unnoticed. Responding to a Journal of the American Medical Association article detailing the scientific and medical limitations of breast and prostate screening, the chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society acknowledged that “in the case of some screening for some cancers, modern medicine has overpromised.”

Pain relief may come at too high a price
By Greg Freiherr , October 19, 2009

An analysis by researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center shows that costs vary widely for different treatment regimens and from one delivery method to another. Yet receiving more treatments and spending extra on more sophisticated technology may do little good, at least when it comes to pain relief.

Specialized PET scan picks up endometrial cancer
By Greg Freiherr , October 9, 2009

Comparative uptake of two radiotracers allows characterization of tumor.

Researchers hang development of blood test on understanding genetic pathways
By Greg Freiherr , October 2, 2009

Clues to radiosensitivity promise personalized radiation therapy

Ultrasound images bear prognostic gems for oncologists
By Greg Freiherr , September 25, 2009

Pattern analyses reveal clues to better patient management

Making proton therapy practical
By Greg Freiherr , September 21, 2009

Megadollar centers give way to smaller, cheaper machines

Chemotherapy disrupts sleep patterns
By Greg Freiherr , September 11, 2009

Researchers suggest routine screening of breast cancer patients for disruptions.

Medicare takes a swing at radiation oncology; ASTRO swings back
By Greg Freiherr , September 4, 2009

Freestanding and community-based cancer centers will be leading with their chins if the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services revises its reimbursement rules on equipment utilization.

Turncoats in the battle against cancer
By Greg Freiherr , August 31, 2009

They are supposed to be the standard bearers of the body’s defense against disease. But when it comes to cancer, some macrophages are traitors, helping rather than fighting the enemy. They attach to metastatic tumor cells, as they do to other threats. But rather than destroying metastatic cells, these macrophages enable their growth.

Breast surgeon repeatedly slams breast MR with same data, questions use in newly diagnosed women
By Greg Freiherr , August 24, 2009

For the third time in less than a year, results from a retrospective study of breast cancer cases were framed as new research, challenging the routine use of MRI as a means to improve surgical outcomes in newly diagnosed breast cancer patients. The results, announced in press releases in fall last year and twice this summer, bear repeating, said the principal author of the study, Richard J. Bleicher, co-director of the breast fellowship program at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia.

Must providers scare patients into cancer screening?
By Greg Freiherr , August 17, 2009

For every 1000 women aged 40 to 74 years who participated in screening, 3.9 diagnosed with breast cancer died compared with 5.0 among those who did not participate. The absolute benefit in terms of reduced deaths due to mammography screening, therefore, is about one in 1000.

Most oncologists believe their career choice was a good one, survey finds
By John C. Hayes , August 6, 2009

Oncologists remain largely satisfied with their career choice, with 85% expressing satisfaction and 82% of that group saying they would recommend their specialty to a medical student, according to a survey conducted by Epocrates, a provider of online clinical decision support tools for mobile and desktop devices.

Kennedy files bill to modernize Nixon’s '71 War-on-Cancer Act
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Increased risk of lung cancer tied to supplements, according to study
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Despite worries over unprecedented spending, Obama intent on healthcare reform
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US lags far behind in HIT adoption, survey finds
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Study provides HPV data that may aid vaccine’s effectiveness in cervical cancer
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