'Integrated Symposia' New Feature at ASCO Conference

PHILADELPHIA--Two highlights of the 1996 American Society of ClinicalOncology (ASCO) meeting (to be held May 18-21 in Philadelphia)will be the integrated symposia, ASCO president John Glick saidin an interview. Dr. Glick, of the University of PennsylvaniaCancer Center, said that the innovative symposia will integrateeducational material and state-of-the-art abstracts.

Thrombopoietin Results

The subjects of the integrated symposia are thrombopoietin andadjuvant therapy for colon cancer. "At the thrombo-poietinsymposium, results of some of the double-blinded large nationaltrials on its use to bolster platelet counts will be unblindedfor the first time," he said.

Other important presentations include the President's Symposiumon the biological, clinical, and ethical implications of genetictesting for cancer. Dr. Francis Collins, director of the NationalGenome Project, will be one of the speakers at this timely session.

Dr. Glick noted that the director of the National Cancer Institute,Richard Klausner, MD, will be at ASCO to give his vision of theNCI and will also be available for a question and answer sessionafter his talk.

The plenary session will include results of tamoxifen studiesfrom the NSABP and the Swedish Breast Cancer group. Dr. BernardFisher will present the NSABP's trials of adjuvant tamoxifen innode-negative and node-positive breast cancer, and Dr. Lars Rutquistwill report on the Swedish findings.

Results of two studies on the use of chemotherapy plus radiotherapywill be presented: a SWOG study on its use in early stage non-Hodgkin'slymphoma, and an Intergroup study on its use in nasopharyngealcarcinoma.

Dr. Glick's address the afternoon of May 20 will review the stateof the Society, including its work on developing evidence-basedclinical practice guidelines; its public policies on testing forgenetic

predispositions, smoking, unorthodox treatments, and coverageof patient care cost in clinical trials; a discussion of the Society'sefforts to assure that the primary care "gate-keepers"do not deny patients access to oncologists; and a review of theactivities of various ASCO committees.