All News

LAS VEGAS-The increased speed and improved visualization of dual-energy CT helps pinpoint lesions at an earlier, more treatable stage. Faster and better visualization are the main reasons to use dual-energy CT for the assessment of pancreatic masses, according to a radiologist from the University of Munich.

The basis for the increased risks of cytomegalovirus and P. carinii infections with DENSE-R-CHOP-14 was puzzling, said Dr. Zelenetz of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

GENOA-Investigators from the San Martino Hospital in Italy are reporting that direct intrabone cord-blood transplantation overcomes graft failure even when low numbers of human leucocyte antigen-mismatched cord-blood cells are transplanted.

Preliminary data from a Children’s Oncology Group (COG) study has calculated the maximum tolerated dose of motexafin gadolinium (MGd) for radiation therapy for pontine glioma.

The CONKO-001 trial presents a mix of good news and bad news, said Dr. Wolff of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Taken together, the results of the C-07 and MOSAIC trials suggest that oxaliplatin improves both disease-free and overall survival in this population [resected stage II-III colon cancer patients], said Dr. Goldberg, of the University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.

In this first installment of ONCOLOGY’s new department, we review “graviola.” Graviola was chosen for review because it is one of the most commonly searched terms sought by visitors to MSKCC’s “About Herbs” website. Because graviola is commonly promoted as a cancer treatment, your patients may be inclined to take it.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new oral formulation of palonosetron hydrochloride (Aloxi) for the prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV). Oral administration of palonosetron capsules is indicated for the prevention of acute nausea and vomiting following initial and repeat courses of moderately emetogenic chemotherapy. A single 0.5-mg palonosetron capsule is administered approximately 1 hour prior to the start of chemotherapy.

Bernard Fisher, MD received his medical degree in 1943 from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. As a young doctor, he was torn between a life in the operating room and one in the research lab. His curiosity about the biology of the diseases that were being treated by surgery eventually led to his decision to combine those interests.

NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE, Canada-Long-term survivors of childhood cancer are at increased risk of several late effects, including premature cardiovascular disease and insulin resistance as young adults. New research suggests that one cause of these conditions may be growth hormone deficiency (GHD) caused by cancer therapy.

Advanced applications, such as image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) and stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), are being rapidly deployed in radiation oncology.

Basically, the manufacturer list price for darbepoetin is so high that it is nearly impossible to buy it as a single-source drug. Instead, companies are creatively bundling drugs, putting physicians under contractual obligation to purchase drugs as a package in order to get the best price and get the “rebate.”

Deciding on a bilateral mastectomy is a bold move for any woman. But for a Hollywood actress, whose very livelihood depends in large part on her being attractive, such a drastic step could verge on foolhardy. It was both heartening and surprising when 36-year-old actress Christina Applegate, star of the ABC TV show Samantha Who?, announced that she had undergone a double mastectomy.

Brain tumor patients receiving standard radiation therapy must wait up to 10 weeks for follow-up CT or MR to determine whether the treatment is working, based on the established MacDonald criteria for assessing treatment.

After 17 years, I am stepping down as editor of Oncology News International to enjoy a long-awaited retirement. When ONI was first introduced back in 1991, it represented a new concept in cancer news publications-rather than simply summarizing journal articles, we actually attended meetings all over the country and reported the results of major presentations.

The difficulty of manufacturing new chemotherapeutic agents-particularly specially formulated biologic cytotoxins-escalates the financial outlay that must be made by physicians as well as driving up the cost of drug delivery to patients, said Howard A. Burris III, MD, chief medical officer and director of drug development at the Sarah Cannon Research Institute and associate with Tennessee Oncology, both in Nashville.

New labeling for Aranesp and Procrit will tighten the use of both medications in cancer patients. The Food and Drug Administration ordered Amgen of Thousand Oaks, California to make changes to the prescribing information for its anemia drug darbepoetin alfa (Aranesp). Johnson & Johnson’s Ortho Biotech had already accepted the changes for the labeling of its ESA epoetin alfa (Procrit).

A significant number of ONI readers believe that their medical training in pain relief and opioid pharmacology is inadequate to help them meet the needs of their cancer patients with pain.

The US Department of Veterans Affairs has selected the American College of Radiology to accredit 33 VA hospital radiation oncology facilities nationwide.

Cetuximab (Erbitux) has received broader approval in the European Union as a first-line treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer.

In today’s healthcare environment, physicians are compensated for the volume of services rendered as well as ancillary services (MRI, PET, CT, catheterization, and other test orders).

Only in Hollywood can New Orleans stand in for Los Angeles while a suave crooner portrays a serious scientist.

The lead investigator in an evaluation of bevacizumab (Avastin) combined with sunitinib malate (Sutent) for renal cell carcinoma (RCC) said the project would be abandoned. FDA issued a product safety alert after Genentech, Avastin’s developer, reported serious complications in several patients enrolled in the phase I trial.

Polypharmacy, defined as concurrent use of several drugs, is not uncommon in the elderly and increases their risk of adverse drug reactions and interactions.[1] Besides adverse drug reactions and drug-drug interactions, other clinical sequelae of polypharmacy include nonadherence, increased risk of hospitalizations, and medication errors.

Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals and Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc, recently announced that The New England Journal of Medicine published results of a phase III trial demonstrating that sorafenib (Nexavar) tablets decreased the absolute risk of death by 31% in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) vs patients who received placebo. This represents a 44% improvement in median overall survival for patients treated with sorafenib.

There are a plethora of websites that hawk miracle cancer cures, luring consumers in with seductive testimonials of instant good health. To the average person, these sites are dubious at best. But for some cancer patients, the promise of an easy panacea veers on dangerous.

As a boy growing up in the Jim Crow South, LaSalle Leffall, Jr., MD, lifted himself above that era’s stifling segregation by embracing his father’s rock-solid credo: With a good education and hard work, combined with honesty and integrity, there are no boundaries.

A common conundrum that community oncologists face in their practices is whether to bill a first encounter with a new patient referred by another physician as a consultation or as a new patient visit. Making the distinction may seem like splitting hairs, but the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has very specific billing criteria on this issue.