Patients with rectal cancer who use a combination of chemotherapy (capecitabine) with 5 weeks of radiation (50 Gy) prior to surgery may have an 88% chance of surviving the cancer 3 years after treatment, according to results presented at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology held October 2-6, 2011, in Miami Beach, Florida.
A higher dose of radiation (74 Gy) does not improve overall survival for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that has spread to the lymph nodes, compared to the standard radiation dose (60 Gy), according to a new study, according to results presented at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology held October 2-6, 2011, in Miami Beach, Florida.
The following articles are based on presentations at the Fourth American Association for Cancer Research Conference on The Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved held September 18-21, 2011, in Washington, DC
WASHINGTON, DC—The overall incidence of breast cancer is generally higher among white women than black women. The incidence of a second breast cancer in the opposite breast, however, is higher among black women, according to new data.
Many cancer survivors who thought they were fertile now may be finding that is not the case. New research is suggesting that current estimates of the impact of chemotherapy on women’s reproductive health are too low.
Researchers at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) say their analysis of the age-specific, longterm effects of chemotherapy provides new insights that will help patients and clinicians make more informed decisions about future reproductive options, such as egg harvesting (Cancer. September 1, 2011. Epub ahead of print).
Many oncology nurses may be wearing uniforms that contain harmful bacteria, including drug-resistant organisms. A new study has found that more than 60% of hospital staff’s uniforms are colonized with potentially pathogenic bacteria. The study, which was published in the September issue of the American Journal of Infection Control (Wiener-Well Y, et al. 2011;39:555-559), suggests that physicians and nurses may be transferring pathogens that could cause clinically relevant infection.
ORLANDO—A novel prostate brachytherapy technique that avoids the central zone may sharply reduce periurethral prostate radiation (XBT) and significantly reduce posttreatment urinary obstruction/irritation. In addition, this approach may significantly reduce long-term urinary incontinence, according to a prospective study presented at the Genitourinary Cancers Symposium.
Investigators of a phase 2 study comparing 2 dosing schedules of sunitinib (Sutent) as first-line therapy for patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) concluded that clinicians should stay with the currently approved dosing regimen of 50 mg daily for 4 weeks followed by a 2-week break. Robert Motzer, MD, attending physician, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, who presented the findings, said the data add to a growing body of evidence favoring the dosing regimen that the US Food and Drug Administration approved for sunitinib.
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Adding androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) to dose-escalated external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) for men with intermediate-risk prostate cancer improves biochemical failure-free survival but not overall survival (OS), according to a retrospective study. Researchers from Emory University School of Medicine and the Atlanta Veterans Administration in Georgia conducted the study. Read More ›
SAN DIEGO—Prostate cancer patients who are treated with a combination of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) and radiotherapy may have a substantially improved chance of survival compared with patients who do not receive radiotherapy, according to British researchers. They reported at the 52nd annual meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology that combination therapy resulted in substantial benefits in overall survival and disease-specific survival in men with locally advanced prostate cancer.
SAN DIEGO—Stereotactic radiation appears to be highly effective and safe for treatment of patients with operable, early-stage non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In some cases, it may be an appropriate alternative surgery, resulting in fewer side effects, according to a new Japanese study presented at the 52nd annual meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology.
SAN DIEGO—Two studies presented at the 52nd annual meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology have found that the use of fast neutron radiotherapy (FNRT), a form of radiation that is about three times more powerful than typical photon radiotherapy, is highly effective and safe for patients with non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
SAN DIEGO—Omitting adjuvant tamoxifen may not put women aged older than 65 years with early-stage breast cancer at increased risk for local or distant disease recurrence, according to a large, retrospective study presented at the 52nd annual meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology.
SAN DIEGO—Elizabeth Brunton, RN, MSN, OCN, started in the nursing field in 1973. More than 35 years later, she is the recipient of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Nurse Excellence Award. This award is presented annually to a registered nurse who goes above and beyond the normal standards of nursing practice.
The past 5 years have ushered in a new era in the treatment of kidney cancer, and new medications are giving patients more options than ever before. In addition, the traditional end points in oncology drug development, such as survival and tumor response, are changing when it comes to this tumor type. The goal of therapy now is to improve symptomatic and functional ability in patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC).
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