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Researchers at Roswell Park Cancer Institute have cast doubt on the widely held belief that the mutation of the p53 gene triggers the chain reaction of cancer development.

A new 20-member National Cancer Policy Board (NCPB) is being set up within the National Academy of Sciences. Just as we went to press, it was announced that Peter Howley, chairman of pathology at Harvard, had been named chairman and Joseph Simone of the Huntsman Cancer Institute in Utah had been named vice-chairman. Bob Cook-Deegan, the executive director of the NCPB, said that other members will be appointed soon and the first meeting is scheduled for mid-February. Joe Harford, associate director of special projects at the National Cancer Institute, says the new Board hopes to provide a common meeting ground for all interested in furthering cancer research and treatment, including governmental bodies-- federal, state, and local--and private organizations. The Board is not meant to replace but rather supplement other advisory groups already in existence. Its function will be to make recommendations on various aspects of cancer policy. These might be issues such as how managed care affects payment for patients in cancer clinical trials, or the advisability of restrictions on tobacco advertising. The Board may also lend its recommendations to various groups as to how research monies might best be spent. Richard Klausner, Director of the National Cancer Institute, has been an enthusiastic advocate for the new Board, according to Harford. Of course, there already is a three-member President's Cancer Panel. But its members are presidential appointees, and the executive secretary is a member of Klausner's office. The NCI will not have a representative on the NCPB, Harford says. Susan Polan, director of government relations for the American Cancer Society, says the ACS "supports the idea of coordination of all agencies involved in the fight against cancer."

The FDA has granted orphan drug status to methylnaltrexone, a medication that blocks the side effects of morphine without interfering with pain relief.

COLUMBUS, Ohio--Champions in the Kitchen, a cookbook with more than 200 recipes for healthful eating, is now available from the Comprehensive Cancer Center-Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Research Institute and The Ohio State University (OSU) Extension. The book is a combined effort to raise awareness of cancer prevention through a healthy diet.

A study presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) found that taking Salagen tablets (pilocarpine hydrochloride) during radiation therapy reduces the symptoms of xerostomia more effectively than taking the drug after radiation therapy is completed.

WILMINGTON, Del--Nine leading health care professionals from the United States' top cancer hospitals, research facilities, and nonprofit organizations have joined together as members of the National Cancer Pain Coalition (NCPC), with the goal of improving chronic cancer pain treatment (see box).

BETHESDA, Md--Intermittent infusions of interleukin-2 (aldesleukin, Proleukin) in HIV-infected patients produced "substantial and sustained" increases in the number and percentage of CD4 cells, with no associated increase in plasma HIV RNA levels, says Joseph A. Kovacs, MD, and his associates at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Keeping a daily record of sun-exposure behavior is the latest way for people to find out what they are doing wrong.

Results of a newly published study show that initial empiric monotherapy with the antibiotic meropenem (Merrem) has positive clinical benefits, is well-tolerated, and is a realistic alternative to standard combination therapy (ceftazidime plus amikacin) in the treatment of febrile episodes in neutropenic patients, including those with persistent, profound neutropenia who are at high risk of infection. The study was published in a recent issue of Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy.

LOS ANGELES--In the first positive randomized US trial of hyperthermia in cancer, glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) patients who received hyperthermia in addition to bra-chytherapy survived significantly longer than those who did not get the heat treatment, Penny K. Sneed, MD, said at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) meeting.

NeXstar Pharmaceuticals announced that a team of independent investigators has reported the findings of a phase II study in which DaunoXome (liposomal daunorubicin citrate for injection) was evaluated as a treatment for low- and intermediate-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). The data, presented November 7, 1996, at the 16th Chemotherapy Foundation Symposium in New York City, included 14 patients whose disease was resistant to conventional chemotherapy or who had relapsed after prior therapy. DaunoXome is NeXstar's proprietary liposomal formulation of the anthracycline chemotherapy agent daunorubicin.

Myth: Cancer patients will become addicted to the morphine doctors prescribe for pain relief.

This paper consists of a review of the literature on carcinoma of the anal margin, as well as the authors' institutional experience with this uncommon malignancy. The authors offer recommendations for treatment based on the size of the tumor, which correlates with the T-stage from the TNM or Union Internationale Contre le Cancer (UICC) staging systems. They recommend radiation alone or local excision for T1 lesions, radiation and elective nodal irradiation for T2 lesions, and chemoradiation, including irradiation of the primary tumor and inguinal and pelvic nodes, for T3 and T4 lesions.

Soft-tissue sarcomas arising from the retroperitoneum are rare tumors, and their successful treatment is problematic. This group of tumors tends to be large at presentation, and they exist in a body cavity with few fascial planes to contain them. They frequently abut vital organs or major blood vessels, which further complicates their complete removal.

The modern pandemic known as AIDS continues to spread at an alarming rate, with approximately 5,000 people becoming infected with HIV daily.[1] The World Health Organization estimated in 1995 that 20 million people worldwide were HIV infected, and that there were more than 4 million cases of AIDS.[1]

PHILADELPHIA--The use of all-trans-retinoic acid (RA, Vesanoid) in-duces a very high incidence of complete remission in patients with acute promye-locytic leukemia (APL) who have not received previous retinoid therapy.

Mendenhall and colleagues provide a useful review of the management of squamous cell carcinoma of the anal margin. Although I generally agree with their conclusions and recommendations for treatment, their paper highlights the continuing difficulties in developing a universally agreed-upon descriptive terminology for the anal region.

WASHINGTON--Navy veterans exposed to nuclear bomb tests at Bikini a half century ago have a higher death rate than sailors not present at the tests. However, this increased mortality does not appear to result from radiation exposure.

DUMONT, NJ--The Berlex Oncology Foundation is accepting applications until January 6, 1997, for a 2-year clinical research training program open to academically oriented physicians specializing in oncology. The intent is to encourage careers in clinical cancer research. For more information, contact Svetlana Lisanti, Berlex Oncology Foundation, 80 W. Madison Ave., Dumont, NJ 07628; or call 201-385-0006.

WASHINGTON-Federal AIDS programs faired well in the budget bill passed by Congress and signed by President Clinton, which included increased funding in fiscal year 1997 for research, prevention, care, and drug assistance.

BETHESDA, Md--The National Cancer Institute has released the latest edition of Cancer Rates and Risks, a 205-page reference book with cancer statistics and brief chapters by NCI experts, written in lay language, on known cancer risk factors. Single copies are available free through the NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).

NEW ORLEANS-A large review with long-term follow-up of patients from Group Health Cooperative of Puget Sound, Seattle, seems to put to rest any fears that short-term use of metronidazole may cause cancer in humans.

ORLANDO-Payers have an obligation to provide the best possible oncology care, and the obligation is fulfilled "as a direct result of having a managed network," said Christine Ngo, capitation network manager for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida/Health Options, Inc., Jacksonville. Further, she said, "the most successful way we have found to develop a managed network is through capitation."

BETHESDA, Md-The National Cancer Institute is urging the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to replace its current cigarette testing protocol with one that provides the full range of tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide yields in individual cigarette brands.

NEW ORLEANS--The number of presentations and overflowing symposia devoted to antifungal resistance were testament to the concerns of physicians attending the 36th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC).

ROCHESTER, Minn-Use of transdermal fentanyl (Duragesic) in ambulatory cancer pain patients appears to be safe and effective, Julie E. Hammack, MD, and her colleagues from four North Central Cancer Treatment Group (NCCTG) institutions report.

HOUSTON-A new automated computerized system for analyzing the microvessel density of prostate tumors may help physicians more accurately stage the cancer before surgery, and thus assist physicians and patients in making treatment decisions, say Brian J. Miles, MD, of Baylor College of Medicine, and his colleagues at the Mayo Clinic, Washington University, Laval University, Quebec, University of Colorado, and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

NEW ORLEANS--Ganciclovir (Cytovene) protects allogeneic bone marrow transplant (BMT) recipients in the early postoperative period, but late infection with cytomegalovirus (CMV) continues to cause serious problems, Helen C. Maltezou, MD, reported at the 36th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC).

ROCKVILLE, Md-The FDA has postponed a meeting of its Antiviral Drugs Advisory Committee that was to consider Rescriptor (delavirdine), a Pharmacia and Upjohn Co. drug for use in treating HIV infection. The agency said the postponement will allow time to incorporate results of additional study information that recently became available. The FDA said it will reschedule the meeting, but announced no date.

Researchers at Duke University Medical Center have found that the very population most likely to be affected by legalizing physician-assisted suicide is the group that favors it the least.