Tuesday, January 17, 2012
open access - PLoS ONE: Identification of a Potential Ovarian Cancer Stem Cell Gene Expression Profile from Advanced Stage Papillary Serous Ovarian Cancer
"...We propose the side population of ascites from women with high-grade advanced stage papillary serous ovarian adenocarcinoma would be enriched for cancer stem-like cells, and would express a gene signature trend for “stemness” in ovarian cancer stem-like cells...."
"Ethics Statement
Fresh ascites was obtained from 10 women with high-grade advanced stage ovarian adenocarcinoma at the time of primary cytoreductive surgery at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA......
".....In summary, an expression profile for SP enriched for cancer stem-like cells from ascites of ovarian cancer patients is reported. The nature of the “stemness” of the SP gene signature was demonstrated by the identification of several stem cell-related genes including an activated Notch signaling pathway. The results were biologically validated using identified SP population from human ovarian cancer cell lines. The SP gene list generated from ovarian cancer patients was also found to be enriched in recurrent tumors from ovarian cancer patients. These results have important implications concerning the tumor recurrence and potential therapeutic approach. The SP cells showed a dose dependent sensitivity towards Notch pathway inhibitor, suggests the Notch signaling pathway may be an important therapeutic target in ovarian cancer."
Controversies in Oncologist-Patient Communication: A Nuanced Approach to Autonomy, Culture, and Paternalism - Cancer Network
"....Several aspects of communication between oncologists and their patients remain contentious:
• Autonomy: To what degree must physicians observe the principle of full disclosure in order to ensure true autonomy and informed decision making on the part of the patient?
• Culture: In caring for patients from different cultures, how should the physician respond to requests of family members who claim that in their culture decision making should be left to the family rather than to the patient?
• Paternalism: How does one balance the need for information with the concern that some patients may be harmed by physicians' honoring requests for either too much or too little information? When should the physician invoke the “therapeutic privilege” of paternalistically overriding a patient request or not seeking the patient's opinion?...."
Rexall Recalls Calcium Vitamin Softgels Lot On Undeclared Shellfish
"The recalled product involves only one lot number 387651-04, and has product number 45211, UPC Code 3 01220 45211 3, and expiration date 08/15."
FDA fines Red Cross $9.6 million - Healthcare business news and research | Modern Healthcare (includes copies of letters FDA and Red Cross)
"....The Red Cross said in a written statement that the fine focuses on one inspection conducted at a donor and client support center in Philadelphia more than a year ago. The not-for-profit also said it is addressing other issues cited by the FDA in the letter.
“We are disappointed that the FDA believed it necessary to issue a fine for an inspection conducted so long ago and it is important to know we have already taken corrective steps to address those matters and that improvements in operations have been made,” the Red Cross said. “We are not aware of any adverse donor reactions or patient issues due to the problems in the FDA report.”
Ovarian cancer susceptibility alleles and risk of ovarian cancer in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers - abstract
Abstract
"Germline mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 are associated with increased risks of breast and ovarian cancer. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) identified six alleles associated with risk of ovarian cancer for women in the general population. We evaluated four of these loci as potential modifiers of ovarian cancer risk for BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers."
"Four SNPs, rs10088218 (at 8q24), rs2665390 (at 3q25), rs717852 (at 2q31) and rs9303542 (at 17q21), were genotyped in 12,599 BRCA1 and 7,132 BRCA2 carriers, including 2,678 ovarian cancer cases."
" The identification of multiple loci modifying ovarian cancer risk may be useful for counselling women with BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations regarding their risk of ovarian cancer."
"Four SNPs, rs10088218 (at 8q24), rs2665390 (at 3q25), rs717852 (at 2q31) and rs9303542 (at 17q21), were genotyped in 12,599 BRCA1 and 7,132 BRCA2 carriers, including 2,678 ovarian cancer cases."
" The identification of multiple loci modifying ovarian cancer risk may be useful for counselling women with BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations regarding their risk of ovarian cancer."
Cochrane Summaries website wins plain language award | The Cochrane Collaboration
Cochrane Summaries website wins plain language award
Only recently launched, the Cochrane Summaries website (summaries.cochrane.org) has received global attention, which reached a pinnacle when The Cochrane Collaboration was awarded the runner-up trophy for the best public website by the Plain English Campaign, which has been “fighting for crystal-clear communication since 1979.” David Tovey, the Editor in Chief of the Cochrane Library, explains that "The Cochrane Summaries website aims to deliver the credible, accessible, and impartial information that patients and carers need to improve understanding and promote shared decision making."...
BMC Medical Research Methodology | Full text | Characteristics of meta-analyses and their component studies in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews: a cross-sectional, descriptive analysis
Background
Cochrane systematic reviews collate and summarise studies of the effects of healthcare interventions. The characteristics of these reviews and the meta-analyses and individual studies they contain provide insights into the nature of healthcare research and important context for the development of relevant statistical and other methods."Some of the more widely studied medical specialty areas in the CDSR include meta-analyses that are able to draw upon a wealth of studies, the largest containing 294 [15], whilst 1% of meta-analyses contain 28 studies or more. Among the 11 specialty categories we used, cancer had a slightly higher median number of included studies (5) than any of the other categories."
"Study sizes show notable variation across medical specialties. The medians and quartiles are highest in cancer, and high also for meta-analyses in the areas of infectious diseases and gynaecology, pregnancy and birth. Study sizes tend to be lower in the areas of mental health and behavioural conditions and pathological conditions, symptoms and signs."abstract: Combined treatment of L1CAM antibodies and cytostatic drugs improve the therapeutic response of pancreatic and ovarian carcinoma
Abstract: The adhesion molecule L1CAM (CD171) accounts for enhanced motility, invasiveness and chemoresistance of tumor cells and represents a novel marker for various tumor entities including pancreatic and ovarian carcinoma. Recently, we showed that L1CAM inhibition increases the apoptotic response of tumor cells towards cytostatic drugs pointing to the potential of L1CAM to serve as a chemosensitizer in anti-cancer therapy. Thus, the present study evaluated the therapeutic potential of combined treatment with L1CAM antibodies and chemotherapeutic drugs in pancreatic and ovarian carcinoma model systems in vivo.....
abstract: Uterine Serous Carcinoma: Increased Familial Risk for Lynch-Associated Malignancies.
Abstract
Purpose:Serous uterine cancer is not a feature of any known hereditary cancer syndrome. This study evaluated familial risk of cancers for serous uterine carcinoma patients, focusing on Lynch syndrome malignancies.
CONCLUSIONS: We identified an excess of endometrial, ovarian, and pancreatic cancers in relatives of serous cancer patients in a single institution study. Follow-up studies suggest only pancreatic cancers are over-represented in relatives. DNA mismatch repair defects in familial clustering of pancreatic and other Lynch-associated malignancies are unlikely. The excess of pancreatic cancers in relatives may reflect an as yet unidentified hereditary syndrome that includes uterine serous cancers.
Avastin: New Ovarian Cancer Drug Approved By European Medicines Watchdog Gives New Hope To Sufferers | UK News + link to Cancer Drugs Fund in England/UK
"We are delighted that Avastin is now available to women across the country."
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has yet to consider the drugs for routine use by the NHS.
But it is available through the Cancer Drugs Fund in England. Doctors in other parts of the UK can make individual applications for funding.
abstract: Synchronous gynecologic malignancy and preliminary results of Lynch syndrome (Korean women)
METHODS:
Thirty six women with synchronous gynecologic tumors of endometrial and ovarian cancer were identified among patients being treated at our institution.CONCLUSION:
In this study, the frequency of Lynch syndrome associated immunohistochemical staining (MLH1, MSH2, and MSH6) group was estimated as 9% (3/32) among Korean women with synchronous gynecologic tumors.Monday, January 16, 2012
BMJ Group blogs: Liz Wager: Do we need to rethink our approaches to research misconduct and research integrity?
"....Having failed to start a reasonable conversation about research integrity, based on major scandals, we see no point in trying to address so-called “minor” offences. But as Iain Chalmers said at the meeting, “lesser offences,” such as failing to publish research and publishing welcome results more often than disappointing results, harms many more patients than the high profile scandals (since it distorts the evidence on which guidelines and clinical practice are based). While plagiarism may be a nasty symptom of a sick system, it has probably never killed anybody while unreliable guidelines and misguided research undoubtedly have....."
abstract: Prevalence of BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations in Ashkenazi Jewish families with breast and pancreatic cancer
BACKGROUND:
Germline mutations in the BRCA2
cancer susceptibility gene are associated with an increased risk of
pancreatic cancer (PC). Breast-pancreas cancer families with BRCA1 mutations have also been observed. The influence of a family history (FH) of PC on BRCA mutation prevalence in patients with breast cancer (BC) is unknown.
CONCLUSIONS:
BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations are observed with nearly equal distribution in AJ breast-pancreas cancer families, suggesting that both genes are associated with PC risk. In this population, a FH of PC was found to have a limited effect on mutation prevalence.Major Cancer Societies to Support New Wiley Open Access Journal
January 16, 2012 – Wiley-Blackwell, the scientific, technical, medical and scholarly publishing business of John Wiley & Sons, Inc., today announced the launch of Cancer Medicine, a new Wiley Open Access journal. Cancer Medicine is a peer reviewed, open access, interdisciplinary journal providing rapid publication of cutting edge research from global biomedical and clinical researchers across all the oncologic specialties in cancer biology, clinical cancer research and cancer prevention. The journal’s promise of full global reach is reinforced by its editorial leadership and support from prestigious journals and societies. Cancer Medicine has unprecedented support from three major cancer societies......
Dr. Wei (Editor in Cheif) comments, “I am delighted to introduce Cancer Medicine, which will allow readers to have fast access to the most up to date global collaborations in cancer research and international approaches in practicing cancer medicine, as well as highlighting key achievements from the integration of basic, clinical and preventive research of cancer. In the years to come, I will work closely with the Wiley-Blackwell Cancer Medicine team to provide timely and impartial service to all contributors and readers, who will, without a doubt, make Cancer Medicine a success.”
The journal is open to submissions now and aims to publish its first content online in Spring 2012. Please visit the journal’s website www.cancermedicinejournal.com for further information and future updates.
Resources for Health Care Providers [NCCAM] - Complimentary and Alternative Medicine
Evidence-Based Medicine
- Results of NCCAM Research
- Literature Reviews from PubMed®
- Evidence Reports from AHRQ
- Cochrane Reviews (The Cochrane Collaboration)
Clinical Practice Guidelines
For Your Patients
Printable fact sheets and links to more resources.Abstract: Training Surgeons and the Informed Consent Process: Routine Disclosure of Trainee Participation and Its Effect on Patient Willingness and Consent Rates
Patients
Three hundred sixteen individuals scheduled for elective surgery.
Conclusions
Most patients expressed approval of teaching facilities and resident education. However, consent rates were significantly altered when more detailed information was provided and they declined with increasing levels of resident participation. Providing detailed informed consent is preferred by patients but it could adversely affect resident participation and training.
Million Women Study Wrong, Group Says - in Endocrinology, Menopause from MedPage Today
"A study long used to establish causal links between hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and breast cancer is severely flawed, a group of epidemiologists have charged. The observational Million Women Study (MWS), conducted in the U.K., doesn't adequately satisfy several criteria for causality -- including information bias, detection bias, and biological plausibility -- and thus can't be used to conclude that HRT causes breast cancer, according to Samuel Shapiro, PhD, of the University of Cape Town in South Africa, and colleagues.
"HRT may or may not increase the risk of breast cancer, but the MWS did not establish that it does," they wrote in the Journal of Family Planning and Reproductive Healthcare.
Several experts not involved in the study, however, have emphasized that they're well aware of the limitations of observational studies such as the MWS, and that the totality of evidence thus far has shown a strong association between HRT and breast cancer....."
"The analysis of the Million Women Study is the latest in a series of four papers by the Shapiro group exploring the credibility of three studies -- the MWS, the Women's Health Initiative (WHI), and the collaborative reanalysis (CR) -- that causally linking HRT, particularly estrogen plus progestogen therapy, with breast cancer.
The earlier papers similarly found that neither the CR nor the WHI could satisfy criteria for establishing causality...."
Changes in tumor cells that lead to metastasis CTC's/circulating tumor cells)
ScienceDaily (Jan. 16, 2012) — Researchers at the Centro de Genómica e Investigación Oncológica (GENYO) -of which the University of Granada, Pfizer and the Andalusian Regional Government are members- have identified the genetic and phenotypic changes that cause tumor progression and metastasis. The process of metastasis -- which is the main cause of cancer death -- is caused by tumor cells invading distant organs with no direct anatomical relationship with the organ originally affected. For this to happen, it is necessary that these cells -which researchers call "circulating tumor cells" (CTCs) -, travel to these organs through blood....
"Biodynamics of Circulating Tumor Cell, Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis," published in the journals Cancer Biology & Therapy, Clinical Translational Oncoly y Annals of Oncology.
abstract: Re-operation outcome in patients referred to a gynecologic oncology center with presumed ovarian cancer FIGO I-IIIA after sub-standard initial surgery
Blogger's Note:
1) this issue is not a new issue irrespective of country origin
2) it would be helpful if a timely comprehensive study be done (retrospective) on the fatality rates, stage and pathology, and according to surgeon/upstaging required via eg. national registries albeit the data bases most likely are lacking; until mandates are in place requiring specific surgical skills in surgical oncology these practices will continue (past and future decades)
Abstract
Background
Surgery is the mainstay of treatment for early ovarian cancer both as therapeutic and comprehensive staging. Only the latter allows appropriate tailoring of systemic treatment. However, the compliance with guidelines for comprehensive staging has been reported to be only moderate and, therefore, re-staging procedures are commonly indicated to avoid undertreatment. The purpose of our study was to evaluate re-operation (2nd surgery) in a tertiary gynecologic oncology unit after primary operation for presumably ovarian cancer FIGO I-IIIA in general gynecology departments. Only 5 patients (13%) were classified as having had a comprehensive staging by surgical records and pathology reports and 35 patients underwent comprehensive re-staging laparotomy after which 20 patients (50%) experienced an upstaging including 13 patients with final diagnosis of FIGO stage IIIC.Results
40 patients were enrolled of whom 53% came by self-referral. Only 18% were referred by the primary surgeon and the remaining patients were referred by their home gynecologist..........Conclusion
Comprehensive staging of presumed early ovarian cancer has been described as major problem especially outside gynecologic oncology units. Re-staging results in our department confirmed this deficiency by showing a considerable proportion of upstaging associated with alterations of recommendations for systemic treatment. However, series like this may even underestimate the problem, because incomplete staging is unfortunately accompanied by non-systematic referral practices not reflecting staging quality.Access : Open-label feasibility study of pazopanib, carboplatin, and paclitaxel in women with newly diagnosed, untreated, gynaecologic tumours: a phase I|[sol]|II trial of the AGO study group : British Journal of Cancer
"Severe myelotoxicity was reported in 6 of 12 patients."
Conclusion:
Conclusion:
Combining either 800 or 400 mg per day pazopanib with standard carboplatin/paclitaxel chemotherapy is not a feasible treatment option.
Seth's Blog: "Straight up"
Blogger's Note: a blog worth following
“On some positions, Cowardice asks the question, "Is it safe?" Expediency asks the question, "Is it politic?" And Vanity comes along and asks the question, "Is it popular?" But Conscience asks the question "Is it right?" And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must do it because Conscience tells him it is right.”
Access : CA-125 can be part of the tumour evaluation criteria in ovarian cancer trials: experience of the GCIG CALYPSO trial : British Journal of Cancer
Background:
CA-125 as a tumour progression criterion in relapsing ovarian cancer (ROC) trials remains controversial. CALYPSO is a large randomised trial incorporating CA-125 (GCIG criteria) and symptomatic deterioration in addition to Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumours (RECIST) criteria (radiological) to determine progression.
......In patients with CA-125 first progression who subsequently progressed radiologically, a delay of 2.3 months was observed between the two progression types......
......In patients with CA-125 first progression who subsequently progressed radiologically, a delay of 2.3 months was observed between the two progression types......
Conclusion:
CA-125 and radiological tests performed similarly in determining progression with C-PLD (carboplatin-pegylated liposomal doxorubicin) or C-P (carboplatin–paclitaxel). Additional follow-up with CA-125 measurements was not associated with overtreatment.
open access: Swallowing dysfunction in cancer patients (International study)
"Swallowing of food and liquids including saliva is a complex biomechanical interaction of physiology and anatomy that occurs in four stages: oral preparatory, oral, pharyngeal, and esophageal [1, 2]."
"Dysphagia and odynophagia (painful swallowing) are common in cancer patients. Most studies on this complication are performed in patients with head and neck cancers (HNC), but swallowing disorders may also develop in patients with other malignancies."
"Non-head and neck cancers
Acute as well as chronic dysphagia may develop in any cancer patient with oropharyngeal mucositis as a result of treatment toxicity to the esophagus or secondary infection..... Dysphagia may also develop in patients with a wide variety of malignancies treated with targeted therapies."
Concluding remarks and future directions
"Most studies are performed in HNC patients, but the heterogeneous nature
of studies with respect to design, inclusion criteria,
and dysphagia assessment makes it difficult to obtain a clear insight
in the prevalence and severity of dysphagia and
aspiration after different treatment modalities. These conditions are
likely
underreported [52, 98]."
Supportive Care: Daytime sleepiness and sleep duration in long-term cancer survivors and non-cancer controls: results from a registry-based survey study
Conclusions
Disturbances in daytime sleepiness and sleep duration persist among long-term cancer survivors and should be monitored in routine survivorship care. More research is needed to identify cancer survivors who are at increased risk for daytime sleepiness and disturbed sleep duration, as well as to identify causal mechanisms for, and interventions to mitigate, persistent differences.
open access: Evidence of constitutional MLH1 epimutation associated to transgenerational inheritance of cancer susceptibility - Human Mutation
Blogger's Note: see references in paper to ovarian cancer; BRAF mutations
Epimutation , epimutation meaning , definition of epimutation , what is epimutation - A heritable change in gene expression that does not affect the actual base pair sequence of DNA . The first sign of cellular abnormality in some tumors is an epimutation—a change in heritable chromatin marks , such as an increase or decrease in the density of DNA methylation.
................................................................
"In addition, two patients were included in the study because of personal medical past history (endometrial cancer at the age of 24, and multiple sebaceous tumors associated with ovary cancer at the age of 44, respectively) strongly suggesting Lynch syndrome. The mean age of patients at diagnosis of the first Lynch syndrome-related cancer was 46 years (range, 24–74)."
"In conclusion, we have shown that constitutional epimutations in MMR genes constitute a rare cause of Lynch syndrome. However, they are associated to a real risk of transgenerational inheritance of cancer susceptibility. Moreover, tumors from patients with constitutional MLH1 epimutation can display BRAF mutations, mimicking MSI-H sporadic tumors. Altogether, these findings may have important implications for future diagnostic strategies and genetic counseling."
Sunday, January 15, 2012
abstract: (Lim et al.) JNCI Predictive Value of Symptoms for Ovarian Cancer: Comparison of Symptoms Reported by Questionnaire, Interview, and General Practitioner Notes
1) abstract:
Background
Because of the poor survival outcomes associated with advanced ovarian cancer, early detection strategies are needed. Although several symptom indices have been described, their relationship with the potential lead time has been poorly documented..........
Blogger's Note: see also prior post (Finding Ovarian Cancer) as well as re-post below - response to Lim et al:
2) Finding Ovarian Cancer
open access - JNCI: Finding Ovarian Cancer (correspondence in response to Lim et al.)
"For decades, investigators have sought a strategy for finding ovarian cancer early enough to reduce the risk of dying of ovarian cancer. In this issue of the Journal, Lim et al. (1) report on their study in which women answered a dozen simple questions such as whether they felt pelvic or abdominal pain in the recent past and, if so, when, how frequently, and how severely. Symptom indices like this are being promoted as easier or better ways to find ovarian cancer early, under the assumption that early therapy can achieve a better outcome than if the women wait until more or worse symptoms prompt them to see a physician. The study revealed that symptom indices as ovarian cancer screeners can be sensitive to the presence of cancer in the period between 3 and 14 months before clinical diagnosis......
financial media: (cryoablation) Tumor-Freezing Treatment Gives Ovarian Cancer Patients Extra Time: Presented at ISET 2012 - MarketWatch
"MIAMI BEACH, Fla., Jan 15, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) --
Killing tumors by freezing them through cryoablation can extend the
lives of women with ovarian cancer that has spread to other parts of the
body and is cost-effective, according to research being presented at the
4th annual Symposium on Clinical Interventional Oncology
(CIO), in collaboration with the International Symposium on Endovascular
Therapy (ISET).
The study included 21 patients whose tumors in the abdomen, liver, lung
and bone could not be removed surgically......."
FDA plans survey on direct-to-consumer drug ads -Modern Healthcare
Posted: January 15, 2012 - 1:00 pm ET
The Food and Drug Administration announced plans to survey doctors, nurse practitioners and physician assistants on their awareness and perception of direct-to-consumer prescription drug advertising. The agency is seeking comment on a proposed survey of 2,000 healthcare professionals, according to a notice scheduled to appear in the Federal Register (PDF).
Jan 15th: New Symptom Indices Offer No Gain in Ovarian Ca - in Oncology/Hematology, Ovarian Cancer from MedPage Today
Action Points
- Explain that two new ovarian cancer symptom indices offered little advantage over the current Goff Index.
- Point out that for all three indices, sensitivity was lower for data obtained from the general practitioner's notes and highest for those interviewed over the telephone, ant that the specificity was largely unchanged
"This sobering news follows hard on the heels of a large U.S. randomized trial finding no benefit, and indeed some harm, to women who were screened annually with a transvaginal ultrasound exam and a CA-125 blood test compared with a usual care control group," they wrote, referring to the NIH-sponsored Prostate, Lung, Colon, and Ovary (PLCO) screening program (JAMA 2011; 305:2295-2303).
They said one question the ovarian cancer community needs to answer is where it should focus its efforts: On the time between when a tumor is large enough to cause mild symptoms and when it is large enough to cause symptoms that prompt women to call a physician, or on a better understanding of disease etiology, leading to better prevention and therapy.
"These other research directions remain critical as the search continues for better ways to find ovarian cancer early," they said.
Primary source: Journal of the National Cancer Institute
Source reference: Lim AWW, et al. "Predictive value of symptoms for ovarian cancer: Comparison of symptoms reported by questionnaire, interview, and general practitioner notes" J Natl Cancer Inst 2012; 104: 1-11. Additional source: Journal of the National Cancer Institute Source reference: Hartge P, Speyer JL. "Finding Ovarian Cancer" J Natl Cancer Inst 2012; DOI: 10.1093/jnci/drj518. |
|
Related Article(s): |
Medscape: Dermatologic Manifestations of Metastatic Carcinoma of the Skin
"Cutaneous metastasis is a rare occurrence but may be the presenting sign of a primary internal malignancy."
"The most common sources of cutaneous metastases in woman are the breasts (69%), the colon (9%), melanoma (5%), the ovaries (4%), and the lungs (4%). In men, they are the lungs (24%), the colon (19%), melanoma (13%), and the oral cavity (12%)."
New Articles -- EvidenceUpdates: A phase 3 trial of bevacizumab in ovarian cancer - abstract, reference + professional commentaries
also see linked reference:
Perren TJ, Swart AM, Pfisterer J, et al. A phase 3 trial of bevacizumab in ovarian cancer. N Engl J Med. 2011 Dec 29;365(26):2484-96. (Original) PMID: 22204725
Saturday, January 14, 2012
PET/CT imaging in gynecologic malignancies: A critical overview of its clinical impact and our retrospective single center analysis 10.1016/j.critrevonc.2011.10.002 : Critical Reviews in Oncology
A growing body of evidence defines PET/CT as one of the most powerful tools for tumor, nodal and metastasis (TNM) cancer staging both in pre-treatment and in post treatment follow-up settings.
At any phase of cancer evaluation, detection of metastasis represents one of the most critical impediments to the cure of tumor; traditional diagnostic imaging modalities, such as computed tomography (CT), are frequently found to inadequately stage the tumor, based on subsequent outcomes.. ...
Highlights
► FDG-PET/CT is a valid instrument for the detection of recurrent or metastatic gynaecologic tumours.
► Evidence corroborates FDG-PET/CT's role in ovarian cancer in monitoring response to chemotherapy.
► In uterine cervical carcinoma, FDG-PET/CT is more sensitive than MRI for detecting nodal metastases.
► Retrospective analysis of 116 patients showed FDG-PET/CT was principally useful in the setting of suspected recurrence.
► Evidence corroborates FDG-PET/CT's role in ovarian cancer in monitoring response to chemotherapy.
► In uterine cervical carcinoma, FDG-PET/CT is more sensitive than MRI for detecting nodal metastases.
► Retrospective analysis of 116 patients showed FDG-PET/CT was principally useful in the setting of suspected recurrence.
open access: Identifying women with suspected ovarian cancer in primary care: derivation and validation of algorithm | BMJ (note reference to recent NICE guidelines)
Objective
To derive and validate an algorithm to estimate the absolute risk of having ovarian cancer in women with and without symptoms.
Main outcome
The primary outcome was incident diagnosis of ovarian cancer recorded in the next two years.
Conclusion
The algorithm has good discrimination and calibration and, after independent validation in an external cohort, could potentially be used to identify those at highest risk of ovarian cancer to facilitate early referral and investigation. Further research is needed to assess how best to implement the algorithm, its cost effectiveness, and whether, on implementation, it has any impact on health outcomes.
.......As there are few established risk factors, targeted screening of asymptomatic patients at risk of developing ovarian cancer is unlikely to be cost effective at present (although further information is likely to become available when the UK ovarian cancer screening trial reports in 2015-6). The challenge presented by ovarian cancer, therefore, is to make the correct diagnosis as early as possible, despite the non-specific nature of symptoms and signs.4 This is particularly the case in primary care, where general practitioners need to differentiate those patients for whom further investigation is warranted from those who require reassurance or a “watch and wait” policy. Moreover, primary care clinicians need to decide which patients require urgent investigation or referral and which require routine tests or referral.........
Summary of key findings
We have developed and validated a new algorithm designed to estimate the absolute risk of having existing but as yet undiagnosed ovarian cancer based on a combination of symptoms and simple variables such as age and family history of ovarian cancer, which the patient is likely to know and which will increase the baseline absolute risk......................................................................................................................................
What is already known on this topic
- Ovarian cancer is the second most common gynaecological cancer and most women are diagnosed with late stage disease, which has a poor survival rate
- Earlier diagnosis could improve with more targeted investigation of symptomatic patients and increased public awareness of symptoms, which is a major challenge given the non-specific nature of some of the symptoms
What this study adds
- An algorithm based on simple clinical variables such as age, family history of ovarian cancer, anaemia, abdominal pain, abdominal distension, rectal bleeding, postmenopausal bleeding, appetite loss, and weight loss, which the patient is likely to know or which are routinely recorded in general practice computer systems, can estimate absolute risk of ovarian cancer in women with and without symptoms in primary care
- The algorithm could be integrated into general practice clinical computer systems and used to assess risk in women presenting with and without symptoms
Biomedcentral: open access - Biomarker robustness reveals the PDGF network as driving disease outcome in ovarian cancer patients in multiple studies
link: ABSTRACT and open text PDF
Background:
Ovarian cancer causes more deaths than any other gynecological cancer.
Identifying the molecular mechanisms that drive disease progress in ovarian cancer is a critical step in providing therapeutics, improving diagnostics, and affiliating clinical behavior with disease etiology. Identification of molecular interactions that stratify prognosis is key in
facilitating a clinical-molecular perspective.
Results:
The Cancer Genome Atlas has recently made available the molecular characteristics of more than 500 patients......
Blogger's Note: see also - The Cancer Genome Atlas completes detailed ovarian cancer analysis NCI Press Release (2011)
CONCLUSIONS
"..........Over the past few decades, different genes have been used, with greater or lesser success, as biomarkers for prognostics. In the work presented here, by performing genome-wide sequential
analyses across all genes and across all pathways, starting with TCGA and validating in two additional datasets, we saw how the single-gene approach fails to stratify patients robustly into prognostic groups.
"Our results demonstrate that pathway interactions are either associated with improved prognosis by "helping" the pathway counter the tumor, or with poor prognosis by "breaking down" the pathway's normal activity. Through better understanding of the pathway mechanisms and the interactions that undergo changes, we may find targets for new treatments. The fact that the pathway we identified did not correlate with age or tumor diameter and was found in all
three datasets strengthens the hypothesis that this pathway is a core mechanism of the disease."
Reported referral for genetic counseling or BRCA 1/2 testing among United States physicians: a vignette-based study.
Blogger's Note: in the absence of the full paper ($$$) conclusions should be viewed with caution (eg. detailed reasons, albeit summarized in the abstract...) because....the conclusion do not make sense.
Please post a message IF this paper is available elsewhere in open text publishing format.
BACKGROUND:
Genetic
counseling and testing is recommended for women at high but not average
risk of ovarian cancer. National estimates of physician adherence to
genetic counseling and testing recommendations are lacking.
METHODS:
Using a vignette-based study, we surveyed 3200 United States family physicians, general internists, and obstetrician/gynecologists and received 1878 (62%) responses. The questionnaire included an annual examination vignette asking about genetic counseling and testing. The vignette varied patient age, race, insurance status, and ovarian cancer risk. Estimates of physician adherence to genetic counseling and testing recommendations were weighted to the United States primary care physician population.CONCLUSION:
Physicians reported that they would refer many average-risk women and would not refer many high-risk women for genetic counseling/testing. Intervention efforts, including promotion of accurate risk assessment, are needed.
Risks - When Too Much Vitamin D Is Too Much - NYTimes.com
references Johns Hopkins University study published in The American Journal of Cardiology.
Resveratrol Scientists React to Fraud Scandal
January 13, 2012 (New York, New York) — As the controversy over the research fraud allegations against Dr Dipak Das enter its third day, researchers, clinicians, and red-wine enthusiasts more generally are wondering just what the news means for the field of resveratrol research. At the very least, scientists told heartwire , plans for an international meeting scheduled for later this year have been turned upside down: Das was one of just eight international experts on the scientific committee for Resveratrol 2012.
Jan 2012: Faulty proteins may prove significant in identifying new treatments for ovarian cancer | e! Science News
Link: PLOS One published study
Objective
To define the BRCAness profile of sporadic ovarian carcinoma and determine whether BRCA1, PARP, FANCD2, PTEN, H2AX, ATM, and P53 protein expression correlates with response to treatment, disease recurrence, and recurrence-free survival.
"The study -- which was supported by the Sherie Hildreth Ovarian Cancer (SHOC) Foundation -- focused on proteins that are supposed to assist cells in repairing harmful breaks in DNA strands, a process called homologous recombination (HR). The malfunctioning of HR is not well understood in ovarian cancers where there is no family history of the disease. However, there is evidence that these proteins influence a patient's ability to respond to drugs and their survival rates after treatment."
abstract: Predictive Value of Symptoms for Ovarian Cancer: Comparison of Symptoms Reported by Questionnaire, Interview, and General Practitioner Notes
Background:Because of the poor survival outcomes associated with advanced ovarian cancer, early detection strategies are needed. Although several symptom indices have been described, their relationship with the potential lead time has been poorly documented.
Methods
Women aged 50–79 years who had newly diagnosed ovarian cancer (n = 194) and control subjects (n = 268) who attended ovarian cancer screening clinics were included in the analysis.
Conclusions
Previous estimates of index performance have been overly optimistic because they did not take into account the time required to make a diagnosis on the basis of testing in response to symptoms. In addition, the specificity of a symptom index is lower when based on a telephone interview vs questionnaire or GP notes. Thus, the clinical utility of a symptom index depends on precisely how it is used and how index-positive women are managed.
abstract: Genetic Counseling: Bias in the Reporting of Family History: Implications for Clinical Care
".....This is evident by the underreporting of paternal family histories of cancer, and also, though to a lesser extent, by degree (family relationship). These discrepancies in reporting family history of cancer imply we need to take more care in collecting accurate family histories and also in the clinical management of individuals in relation to hereditary risk"
abstract: Objectives: Published data are conflicting on the influence of cell type on prognosis in ovarian cancer. The recent separation of low-grade serous carcinoma as a distinctive cell type of ovarian cancer with an indolent behavior, in retrospect, suggests that survival in studies that have not separated this group may be inaccurate.
Blogger's Note: the focus of this abstract is serous cell type
Conclusions:
Low-grade serous carcinoma has a significantly better prognosis than high-grade serous carcinoma and also differs with regard to substage distribution and proportion of patients optimally debulked. Because of its excellent prognosis, failure to separate low-grade serous carcinomas, notwithstanding its infrequent occurrence, can change the results of survival analyses that do not make this separation.
Ovarian Endometrioid Adenocarcinoma: Incidence and Clinical Significance of the Morphologic and Immunohistochemical Markers of Mismatch Repair Protein Defects and Tumor Microsatellite Instability
"Ovarian cancer, particularly endometrioid (cell type)adenocarcinoma, is also associated with Lynch syndrome.....Overall, 10% of tumors had abnormal MMR protein status, defined as complete immunohistochemical loss of expression of MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, and/or PMS2.....Concurrent uterine tumor was present in 5/7 patients whose ovarian tumor had abnormal MMR/MSI.......Although abnormal MMR/MSI did not carry prognostic value in this study, it did predict the involvement of the uterus by the tumor. Thus, in patients with ovarian endometrioid adenocarcinoma who undergo uterus-sparing surgery, abnormal MMR/MSI should prompt further diagnostic evaluation of the endometrium for tumor."
Perspective: The clinical trial barriers: Nature Publishing Group (western medicine/Asian approaches)
"Western medicine depends on science to create and assess drugs at the molecular level. In Asia, there is a commonly held belief that there is an art to healing too, and that both art and science should cooperate to help eradicate illness and relieve suffering."
"For traditional Asian approaches to become integrated into modern medicine, we need to consider alternative inclusion and exclusion criteria for RCTs. We also need to review how outcomes are assessed. These concepts are neither new nor unproven. Both Western-style modern medicine and traditional Asian medicine aim to heal patients in a harmonized way and can be developed together into an integrated form of personalized medicine. Redesigning clinical trials will accelerate the blending of these two styles of healing, for the benefit of humankind."
Eighth retraction marks slide of lung cancer work (+breast cancer) | Reuters
"...."To a certain extent, what I'm worried about is that this may show aspects of how it is becoming increasingly difficult to check the scientific literature and how that difficulty stems at least in part from lack of immediate access to data but also lack of code and documentation," Baggerly told Reuters Health.
Given the highly technical nature of the work, it's not surprising that the flaws in the papers weren't caught before they were published, according to Baggerly.
"That's actually OK," he said. "It's not OK that it took so long for the challenges to be accepted once the research was questioned."
"The other thing that is not OK is the fact that it made it into guiding clinical trials," Baggerly added.
Brawley said the story "is a tragedy in a number of different ways.".....
abstract: Cancer and environment: Definitions and misconceptions - Environmental Research
Conclusions
Our findings emphasize the discrepancies in reporting environmental causation of cancer and the limits of inference in interpreting environmentally attributable risk estimates. Rather than achieving consensus on a single definition for the environment, we suggest the focus be on achieving transparency for any environmentally attributable risks.
Highlights
► We report definitions of the environment and attributable risk estimates over time.
► Definitions were categorized and assessed in relation to risk estimates.
► Reported environmentally attributable risk estimates ranged from 1% to 100%.
► There are limits of inference in interpreting environmentally attributable risks.
► The focus should be on transparency in the derivation of attributable risk estimates.
► Definitions were categorized and assessed in relation to risk estimates.
► Reported environmentally attributable risk estimates ranged from 1% to 100%.
► There are limits of inference in interpreting environmentally attributable risks.
► The focus should be on transparency in the derivation of attributable risk estimates.
abstract: Predictors of Long-Term Outcome from Intraperitoneal Radioimmunotherapy for Ovarian Cancer.
"A statistically significant improvement in progression-free survival (p≤0.05) was noted for less bulky disease and younger age. Administration of paclitaxel plus IFN, an immune response, and use of (90)Y showed a favorable nonsignificant trend. Dose escalation of radionuclide did not change risk of progression; thus, this therapy may have therapeutic efficacy at modest dose levels."
Friday, January 13, 2012
Adolescents And Young Adults: Bringing A Neglected Group Into Cancer Research – Health Affairs Blog (ages 7-18rs)
“A child is not a small adult,” but an adolescent is not a large child...."
"Consent and Assent in Children and AYA Cancer Patients
For most IRBs, informed consent can be granted by any prospective human subject over the age of 18. For minor patients under 7, consent is granted by the parents or guardians. What to do with patients between the ages of 7 and 18 (or with “intellectual ages” between 7 and 18) is less clear. While they are still minors and under the care of their parents or guardians, they are also independent human beings capable of judgments, particularly ones with which their parents or guardians may not agree. This is certainly the case when it comes to choosing their friends, making time for school work, selecting extracurricular activities, carefully operating a motor vehicle and experimenting with alcohol, drugs or sex....."
abstract: Whole-brain radiation therapy of brain metastasis.
Source
Department of Radiation Oncology, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Princess Margaret Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont., Canada.
Abstract
The purpose of this report was to review the role of whole brain radiotherapy (WBRT) in the management of brain metastases. In particular, we review the role of WBRT as a prophylactic therapy, and the role of surgery and stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) with respect to WBRT, by discussing the relevant randomized controlled trials. WBRT is associated with toxicities and this may influence the decision to use WBRT and, therefore, we review both the acute side effects of WBRT and the moreserious late side effects of neurocognitive impairment and leukoencephalopathy. As patients are living longer with brain metastases the role of WBRT is moving forward; however, using modern radiation technology we may be able to reduce the morbidity of this therapy. We present an extreme case of re-re-treatment WBRT with hippocampal sparing and simultaneous integrated boosts to multiple lesions as one of the future directions under evaluation.abstract: Pancreatic cancer and a novel MSH2 germline alteration
CONCLUSIONS:
The MSH2 P349L may increase the risk for pancreatic cancer beyond the usual mutations in DNA mismatch repair genes; however, studies of additional families with the identical missense alteration are needed to confirm this initial impression.abstract: Incidence and predictors of positive and negative effects of BRCA1/2 genetic testing on familial relationships: a 3-year follow-up study
"....Reporting positive relationship effects was associated with older age, intolerance for uncertainty, cancer-specific distress, and more social support. Low education, positive attitude toward prophylactic mastectomy, and low social support increased the likelihood of negative effects.
Conclusion:Our findings do not support the belief that family relationships are frequently disrupted by BRCA1/2 testing."
abstract: What do we know about patients' perceptions of continuity of care? A meta-synthesis of qualitative studies
Abstract
Objective The increasing complexity in healthcare delivery might impede the achievement of continuity of care, being defined as ‘one patient experiencing care over time as coherent and linked’. This article aims to improve the knowledge on patients' perceptions of relational (RC), informational (IC) and management continuity (MC) across care levels.
Results The selected 25 studies most frequently investigated RC. Being attended to regularly and over time by one physician (RC) was valued by chronic ill patients, but balanced with convenient access by young patients (MC). Communication and information transfer across care settings as well as the gathering of holistic information about the patient were perceived to foster IC. Critical features for achieving MC were accessibility between care levels, individualized care and a smooth discharge process including the receipt of support. Patients further considered that their personal involvement was one facilitating element of continuity of care.
The impact of patient and public involvement on UK NHS health care: a systematic review
Study selection UK studies from 1997 to 2009 which included service user involvement in NHS healthcare services.
Conclusion There is a need for significant development of the PPI (Patient Public Involvement) evidence base particularly around guidance for the reporting of user activity and impact. The evidence base needs to be significantly strengthened to ensure the full impact of involving service users in NHS healthcare services is fully understood.
Analysis of Australian newspaper coverage of medication errors
Conclusion
Australian newspaper reporting of medication errors was relatively limited. Given the high prevalence of errors and the potential role consumers can play in identifying and preventing errors, there is a clear argument for increasing public awareness and understanding of issues relating to medication safety. Existing coverage of this issue is unrelated to research evidence. This suggests the need for patient safety researchers and advocacy groups to engage more strongly with the media as a strategy to increase the productive public discourse concerning medication errors and gain support for evidence-based interventions.
The Ann Arbor Chronicle | 2nd grade child dies of complications related to rare ovarian cancer
"At the opening of the Dec. 14, 2011 board meeting, board president Deb Mexicotte requested a moment of silence to acknowledge the recent loss of two students. Mariel Almendras, a second grader at Dicken, died of complications related to a rare ovarian cancer."
Uncertainty Over Use of GnRH Agonists in Breast Cancer (fertility preservation)
"One randomized trial is still ongoing — the Prevention of Early Menopause (POEMS), in women with hormone-receptor-negative breast cancer.
In view of the conflicting data, and while mature results from ongoing studies are awaited, the role of this treatment approach remains "uncertain," Dr. Partridge notes in her editorial.
Women...should not rely on GnRH agonist treatment.
"Given the current level of evidence, women who are interested in future fertility, and the providers who are assisting them in these often difficult decisions, should not rely on GnRH agonist treatment during chemotherapy for preservation of menstrual and ovarian function or fertility," she concludes."
media: Unleashing the genome in the bottle (Ion Torrent dna testing)
MORE STILL TO LEARN
"Another challenge is that although a person's genome doesn't change, its meaning will. As scientists uncover more DNA variants that protect against disease and variants that make it more likely, a genome sequence that meant one thing in 2012 will have a different meaning in 2013, not to mention 2020.A DNA variant that was once thought to be dangerous "might turn out to be benign if countered by another," says Greely. "Whose responsibility will it be to tell you that, years later?" DNA testing companies offer subscriptions that give customers regular updates like that."
CMAJ Editorial: Parking-centred health care
Blogger's Note:
the professional responses, in general, were not patient-friendly, rather system-friendly which indicates an ongoing disparity between those that give (care) and those that receive (care) and the public reality of the unrecognized, still, costs of healthcare.
Link to article - CMAJ
References
video: Patient Safety Advocates Talk About the Bureaucracy in Canadian Health Care - Leslie Worthington/Val Lee - Winnipeg
1) video: Sisters Leslie Worthington and Val Lee (Winnipeg)
The Patient Factor.com
2)The Patient Factor: Leslie Worthington "Her Father's Voice"
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Hereditary Cancer in Clinical Practice | Full text | Lynch syndrome: barriers to and facilitators of screening and disease management
Conclusions
Individuals with Lynch syndrome often encounter multiple barriers to and facilitators of disease management that go beyond the individual to the provider and health care system levels. The current organization and implementation of health care services are inadequate. A coordinated system of local services capable of providing integrated, efficient health care and follow-up, populated by providers with knowledge of hereditary cancer, is necessary to maintain optimal health.Table 1. Participant characteristics
"Importantly, Lynch syndrome has significant implications for public health policy [4]. The ultimate plan should be to provide resources that enable individuals in high risk families to develop a strong sense of resilience and maintain a balanced screening schedule. In particular, this cohort requires timely and appropriate health care services, including:
○ A critical mass of genetic counselors to provide timely services to high risk families
before, during and following genetic testing.
○ Service providers to coordinate and streamline diverse screening and treatment resources.
○ Health care providers, especially primary care physicians, informed about the risk
of cancer within families and reinforcing the importance of maintaining recommended
screening and initiating referrals to appropriate specialists.
○ Clinical monitoring tools designed to evaluate the impact of predictive testing
and the ongoing psychosocial and behavioral adjustment to living in families with
hereditary cancer.
Hereditary Cancer in Clinical Practice |open access: Novel germline MSH2 mutation in Lynch syndrome patient surviving multiple cancers (ovarian cancer as first cancer)
Case report
Hereditary Cancer in Clinical Practice 2012, 10:1 doi:10.1186/1897-4287-10-1
Published: 10 January 2012
Abstract (provisional)
Lynch syndrome (LS) individuals are predisposed to a variety of cancers, most commonly colorectal, uterine, urinary tract, ovarian, small bowel, stomach and biliary tract cancers. The risk of extracolonic manifestations appears to be highest in MSH2 mutations carriers. We present a carrier case with a novel MSH2 gene mutation that clearly demonstrates the broad extent of LS phenotypic expression and highlights several important clinical aspects. Current evidence suggests that colorectal tumors from LS patients tend to have better prognoses than their sporadic counterparts, however survival benefits for other cancers encountered in LS are unclear.In this article we describe a family with a novel protein truncating mutation of c.2388delT in the MSH2 gene, particularly focusing on one individual carrier affected with multiple primary cancers who is surviving 25 years on. Our report of multiple primary tumors occurring in the 12-25 years interval might suggest these patients do not succumb to other extracolonic cancers, provided they are regularly followed-up.
The complete article is available as a provisional PDF. The fully formatted PDF and HTML versions are in production.
"Firstly, the patient over time presented with five primary cancers (in different organs) all of them, except that of breast, typical for the tumor spectrum of LS. Early-stage ovarian mucinous carcinoma was the first manifestation of LS spectrum in the proband. The lifetime risk of ovarian cancer in Lynch syndrome is approximately 10-12% [12], with higher risks (36%) reported in MSH2 carriers [13]. Recent estimates of age-specific cumulative cancer risks in Lynch syndrome families suggest lower than published elsewhere ovarian cancers risk (24% ovarian cancer risk in MSH2) [14]. MMR-deficient ovarian cancers are biologically and clinically different from BRCA deficient cancers, the former overrepresented by non-serous histology types, early-stage and early-onset disease [12, 15]...."
Fertility Preservation Practices Among Ontario Oncologists (study - male/female patients?)
Blogger's Note: in absence of the full text. it is not obvious if the study included male patients
Abstract
This
study explores the attitudes, knowledge, and referring behaviors in
fertility preservation among Ontario physicians providing
adult cancer care.. ...... Seventy-four percent of the
physicians indicated that they rarely or never modified cancer treatment
due to concern about future fertility........ About 45% did not know where to refer female patients,
and 69.7% rarely ever made a fertility preservation
consultation referral for their female patients..........
Medical News: Gene Test Influences Cancer Treatment - in Meeting Coverage, AACR-IASLC from MedPage Today
Action Points
- This study was published as an abstract and presented at a conference. These data and conclusions should be considered to be preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.
- Use of guideline-recommended cancer therapy increased by more than 50% when oncologists included a tumor's gene expression profile in the decision-making process.
......"The changes that oncologists made in response to the test results weren't limited to the choice of chemotherapy," John Hornberger, MD, of Stanford University, said at the Joint Conference on the Molecular Origins of Lung Cancer.
"Some patients had surgery that initially wasn't planned and, in at least one case, the treating oncologist referred a patient to a different oncologist because the test showed the tissue of origin was different from what was indicated by pathology. Referrals to hospice also increased."..........
Access : Peutz Jeghers syndrome (PJS) and family planning: the attitude towards prenatal diagnosis and pre-implantation genetic diagnosis : European Journal of Human Genetics
"Peutz–Jeghers syndrome (PJS) is a hereditary disorder caused by LKB1 gene mutations, and is associated with considerable morbidity and decreased life expectancy. This study (median age of 44) was conducted to assess the attitude of PJS patients towards family planning, prenatal diagnosis (PND) and pregnancy termination, and pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD)......."
open access: European Jnl Human Genetics - Permanence of the information given during oncogenetic counseling to persons at familial risk of breast/ovarian and/or colon cancer
"How long counselees retain the information given during their genetic consultation is of major importance. To address this issue, we conducted a survey among the 3500 families that have been offered genetic counseling at our Center since 1988........."
Discussion
"This prospective survey belongs to
the very few that studied the evolution of genetic knowledge of persons
with a cancer hereditary risk. The range of topics surveyed appeared
adequate to answer our questions. The 58%
response rate was rather good for a survey sent by mail.
Impact of surgeon volume on patient safety in laparoscopic gynecologic surgery: Gynecologic Oncology
Highlights
► Low volume surgeons experience increased perioperative laparoscopic complications
► Outcomes are improved in patients treated by medium and high-volume surgeons
► Outcomes are improved in patients treated by medium and high-volume surgeons
open access: Impact of using multiple causes of death codes to compute site-specific, death certificate-based cancer mortality statistics in the United States 10.1016/j.canep.2011.07.004 : Cancer Epidemiology | ScienceDirect.com
"Background: Cancer mortality statistics, an important indicator for monitoring cancer burden, are traditionally restricted to instances when cancer is determined to be the underlying cause of death (UCD) based on information recorded on standard certificates of death. This study's objective was to determine the impact of using multiple causes of death codes to compute site-specific cancer mortality statistics."
Table 1. Proportion of non-UCD cancer deaths by cancer site listed on the death certificate.
"There are a number of limitations to this analysis. For example, this analysis did not examine all causes of death retrospectively with regard to a cancer registry, and includes data from only three states within the United States; among those three states, the deaths eligible for this analysis do not reflect the full population of cancer deaths. Specifically, this analysis focused on cancer-related deaths and excluded cancer patients who died in another state, cancers diagnosed prior to 1993, individuals with multiple primaries, and death certificate and autopsy only deaths...."
Synta Pharmaceuticals and University of Toronto Researchers Elucidate Elesclomol Mechanism of Action Using Innovative Yeast-based Technology - MarketWatch
Elesclomol clinical trials on-going in acute myeloid leukemia and ovarian cancer-
"Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp. SNTA +0.67% -- A report published in the peer-reviewed journal PLoS ONE demonstrate how a novel yeast screening platform pioneered by researchers at the University of Toronto was used to elucidate the mechanism of action of elesclomol, a first-in-class drug that targets cancer cell metabolism and is currently being clinically developed by Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp. of Lexington, Massachusetts. Elesclomol is currently in clinical trials in both solid tumor and hematologic cancers, including a study in combination with paclitaxel in ovarian cancer and a single agent study in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) currently being conducted at Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto....."
Blogger's Note: PLOS is an open access publisher; PLOS link - 3 publications:
Blogger's Note: PLOS is an open access publisher; PLOS link - 3 publications:
- itochondrial Electron Transport Is the Cellular Target of the Oncology Drug Elesclomol Drug Elesclomol Elesclomol Targets Mitochondrial ETC ... Mitochondrial Electron Transport Is the Cellular Target of the Oncology Drug Elesclomol ... Elesclomol is a first-in-class investigational drug PLoS ONE: Research Article, published 11 Jan 2012 10.1371/journal.pone.0029798
- Role of Mitochondrial Electron Transport Chain Complexes in Capsaicin Mediated Oxidative Stress Leading to Apoptosis in Pancreatic Cancer Cells agents such as Elesclomol or Trisenx are currently PLoS ONE: Research Article, published 25 May 2011 10.1371/journal.pone.0020151 Views: 1093Citations: Yes
- Cancer Biomarker Discovery: The Entropic Hallmark . Elesclomol) works by inducing apoptosis via a mechanism PLoS ONE: Research Article, published 18 Aug 2010 10.1371/journal.pone.0012262
Heat Biologics: Vaccine biotech Heat Bio lands $250K; plans trials for bladder, ovarian cancers
"Heat (Biologics) is in phase 2 clinical trials studying its vaccine candidate HS-110 to treat non-small cell lung cancer. The company plans to start additional clinical studies in bladder and ovarian cancer this year."
NEJM - interactive - (1812-2012) 200 years of medicine
Blogger's Note: interactive map adjusted to include: general medicine,surgery,obgyn and biology/science
http://nejm200.nejm.org/timeline/?emp=marcom
Survivorship Conference 2012 - survivor advocate program deadline to apply January 23rd, 2012
The National Cancer Institute’s Office of Cancer Survivorship, the American Cancer Society, LIVESTRONG, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are bringing together researchers, clinicians, cancer survivors, advocates, program planners, policy-makers, and public health experts to present, discuss and disseminate groundbreaking cancer survivorship research. The 6th Biennial Cancer Survivorship Research Conference, entitled “Cancer Survivorship Research: Translating Science to Care,” will be held on June 14-16, 2012, at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Virginia.
The deadline for applications for the Survivor Advocate Program, which provides scholarships for up to 20 advocates to attend the conference, is extended to Monday, January 23rd, 2012. Advocates will learn first-hand about translating cancer survivorship advances from early-stage research to survivor care, interact with other advocate leaders and researchers, and develop tools to educate communities about key survivorship issues.
Subscribe to:
Posts
(
Atom
)
