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Recent advances in treatment modalities for breast and prostate cancerhave resulted in an increasing number of patients that are cured orthat, despite residual disease, live long enough to start experiencingcomplications from cancer treatment. Osteoporosis is one such problemthat has been increasingly identified in cancer patients. Hypogonadismand glucocorticoid use are the two major causes of bone loss inthese patients. Osteoporosis is characterized by low bone mass and abnormalbone microarchitecture, which results in an increased risk offractures. Vertebral body and hip fractures commonly result in a drasticchange of quality of life as they can result in disabling chronic pain,loss of mobility, and loss of independence in performing routine dailyactivities, as well as in increased mortality. In patients with prostatecarcinoma, androgen-deprivation therapy by either treatment with agonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) or bilateral orchiectomy resultsin increased bone turnover, significant bone loss, and increasedrisk of fractures. Patients with breast cancer are at increased risk forestrogen deficiency due to age-related menopause, ovarian failure fromsystemic chemotherapy, or from the use of drugs such as aromataseinhibitors and GnRH analogs. Several studies have indicated that theprevalence of fractures is higher in breast and prostate cancer patientscompared to the general population. Therefore, patients at risk for boneloss should have an assessment of their bone mineral density so thatprevention or therapeutic interventions are instituted at an early enoughstage to prevent fractures. This article will address the characteristicsof bone loss observed in breast and prostate cancer patients and potentialtreatments.

Approximately 70% to 80% of all patients who receive chemotherapyexperience nausea and vomiting, which can disrupt their lives in numerousways. Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) hastraditionally been classified according to three patterns: acute, delayed,and anticipatory. Additional classifications include refractory and breakthroughnausea and vomiting. The mechanisms by which chemotherapycauses nausea and vomiting are complex, but the most common isthought to be activation of the chemoreceptor trigger zone. An appreciationof the risk factors for developing CINV is important when matchingantiemetic treatment to risk. The emetogenicity of the chemotherapyregimen-generally categorized as high, moderate, low, or minimal-greatly affects a patient’s risk for developing CINV. In addition to establishedand emerging pharmacologic approaches to managing CINV,many complementary and integrated modalities may be options.Progress in CINV management must include a better understanding ofits etiology and a focus on prevention. This review will consider theetiology, assessment, and treatment of patients with CINV.

Small-cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) accounts for 20% to 25% of all new cases of lung cancer in the United States. It is estimated that approximately 42,000 new cases will occur in the United States in 1995 [1,2]. Of the various histologic types of lung cancer, small-cell is the most sensitive to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, yet overall outcome is poor, with only 5% to 10% of patients surviving 5 years from diagnosis.

With the advent of modern therapeutic and prophylactic regimens, bacterial infections have become more effectively controlled, while fungal and viral infections have emerged as more prominent complications in the management of immunocompromised patients.

Allogeneic marrow transplantation is used to reconstitute hematopoiesis in patients who have received myeloablative therapy for a hematologic malignancy or in patients with irreversible marrow failure, to reconstitute the immune system in patients with severe immunodeficiency, and to normalize metabolism in patients with select inherited metabolic deficiency disorders.

The indolent non-Hodgkin's lymphomas constitute a heterogeneous group of lymphoproliferative disorders usually associated with relatively prolonged survival. They are categorized based on pathologic and cytologic features, and, with few exceptions [1], they are almost exclusively of B-cell origin.

In the United States, cancer of the large bowel is the second most common cause of cancer deaths after cancer of the lung [1]. 1995 estimates place large bowel cancer as the third most common malignancy, behind lung and prostate carcinomas in men and behind lung and breast cancers in women.

Over 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].

Despite an overall rise in the incidence of gastrointestinal malignancies in the United States, there has been a significant decrease in the incidence of adenocarcinoma of the stomach over the past few decades. Nevertheless, gastric carcinoma remains the eighth leading cause of cancer death in the United States [1].

Neuroendocrine tumors manifest in the gastrointestinal tract mainly as carcinoid and pancreatic islet-cell tumors. They comprise an interesting group of rare neoplasms that are derived from neuroendocrine cells interspersed within the gastrointestinal system amd throughout the body. Neuroendocrine tumors are well known for producing various hormonal syndromes and for their indolent clinical course in most patients, although some of these tumors do not produce hormones of clinical significance. Patients may have symptoms for many years before the diagnosis is suspected and confirmed.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special “annual highlights” supplement to Oncology News International (ONI)is a compilation of selected news on important advances in the management ofgastrointestinal cancers over the past year, as reported in ONI. Guest Editor, Dr.James L. Abbruzzese, comments on the reports included herein and discussesdevelopments in the clinical management of GI cancers, with a look at the impactof targeted agents with cytotoxic chemotherapy, first-line and adjuvant therapies foradvanced disease, and the role of statins and COX-2 inhibitors in prevention.

This special supplement to Oncology News International comprises expertcommentary and selected reports from the 2004 meetings of RSNA andASTRO about new imaging techniques, with a focus on state-of-the-art magneticresonance imaging, positron emission tomography, computed tomography,and complementary modalities for improving the diagnosis, staging, andtreatment of a variety of cancers. Evident in these reports is the increasingcollaboration between the specialties of radiation oncology and diagnosticradiology as imaging technology continues to evolve.

Although patients with lung cancer have benefited from advancesin diagnostic techniques, surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation, infectionfrequently complicates the course of cancer treatment. Infectionmay be caused by the tumor itself, by antineoplastic therapy, or by supportivecare measures. Recognition of risk factors for infection is critical.The relationship between an underlying immune defect and certaininfections is well documented. Diagnosis may be complicated bythe paucity of signs and symptoms or by an atypical presentation. Promptinstitution of empiric antimicrobial therapy is usually warranted, particularlyin life-threatening infections. This review will focus on theepidemiology, diagnosis, and management of particular infections thatcan occur in patients with lung cancer.

Lung cancer is the most commoncause of cancer-relatedmortality in the United Statesand worldwide.[1] In the UnitedStates, lung cancer was responsiblefor an estimated 160,440 deaths in2004. This surpassed the combinedmortality resulting from colorectal,breast, and prostate cancer.