Oncology

Having psychosocial support for patients with cancer, and for their family members, is critical, because patients often feel that their emotional needs are overlooked in busy clinics, said Sophia K. Smith, PhD, MSW, associate professor at the Duke School of Nursing.

Bristol-Myers Squibb has challenged the recently released report by the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review that evaluates the clinical and cost effectiveness of newer treatments for multiple myeloma.

A new study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute has established that institutional volume can significantly influence survival in lung cancer patients receiving chemoradiation.

Oncologists at the Mayo Clinic have developed a more aggressive approach to treating patients with pancreatic cancer-combining surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation, surgical oncologists have been successful in significantly improving survival in a small number of patients.

What we're reading, May 25, 2016: Senior citizens are expected to be sicker and more costly than the previous generation; men with early-stage cancer are increasingly choosing to avoid treatment; and the FDA is looking at an implantable treatment for opioid addiction.

A survey conducted by MaPS/Millward Brown Analytics, on behalf of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, has identified multiple concerns of American consumers with cancer clinical trial participation, which could be responsible for the dismal 4% national enrollment rate in clinical trials.

A phase 1 study in 225 patients diagnosed with breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, glioblastoma, melanoma, or colorectal cancer has concluded that abemaciclib, a selective inhibitor of the cell cycle regulators CDK4/6, has single-agent activity in specific tumor types.

An Oklahoma-based non-profit hospital is the latest medical facility to sue pharmaceutical giant Genentech,accusing the company of shipping less than the labeled claim of the anticancer drug trastuzumab (Herceptin) in each multi-dose vial.

Men and women diagnosed with colorectal cancer who were class I obese had the lowest risk of dying due to their cancer, according to a new study published in JAMA Oncology.

The sequence of events that led to Thursday's complaint points to a coordinated effort to challenge Myriad Genetics' long-held position that it does not share information on public databases.

A microchip sensor that can measure specific volatile compounds in the breath of those with lung cancer, is being developed by research groups in the United States and in Britain.

Stories on the potential health savings if more people quit smoking, and Louisiana's failed attempt to put nursing homes in managed care.

Survival rates increase as more quality measures are incorporated into care, but only 13% of eligible patients with Stage IIIA non-small cell lung cancer actually receive all 4 measures.

High levels of physical activity are associated with lower rates of cancer, according to a new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

A multigene test for breast cancer recurrence risk was used in a minority of eligible patients, yet was associated with a decrease in chemotherapy use.

A new study warns that symptoms associated with rare CNS tumors could lead to a misdiagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder among pediatric patients.

The FDA has approved the combination of lenvatinib and everolimus for use in patients with renal cell carcinoma who have failed at least 1 anti-angiogenic treatment. The approval raises questions around the sequencing these agents when a patient fails on first-line care.

Rising costs in cancer care have fueled a national conversation on how to decide whether today’s new therapies are “worth it.” A supplement of Evidence-Based Oncology features interviews with those developing value frameworks and coverage of the Oncology Stakeholders Summit, which included patient advocacy, payers and pharmaceutical manufacturers.

There is much excitement over the new checkpoint inhibitors, which have shown benefit across a variety of tumors. Right now, researchers are trying to define the subgroup of patients with breast cancer who might be most suited to checkpoint inhibitors, explained Lee Schwartzberg, MD, FACP, chief of Division of Hematology Oncology and professor of medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.

According to a new report released by the American Cancer Society, prevention, early detection, and interventions have worked for controlling cancer-but only for those cancer types for which these tools are available.

Researchers in Germany have discovered that mitoxantrone-used to treat aggressive, relapsing, or progressive multiple sclerosis-can increase the risk of leukemia and colorectal cancer in those being treated.

The immunotherapy agent nivolumab was approved by the European Commission in combination with ipilimumab for the treatment of advanced melanoma, but rejected by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence for use in patients with advanced lung cancer.

Cancer patients who receive a particular type of chemotherapy, called doxorubicin, run a risk of sustaining severe, lasting heart damage. But until now, there was no way of knowing who would experience this serious side effect.

A review of the various value calculators that have emerged to measure the value of cancer therapies—these calculators reflect the interests of their developers and vary substantially in their intention, format, and usability.

In a blogpost on Health Affairs, 2 economists have challenged the claim made by researchers that packaging expensive, patented chemotherapy drugs into multiple vial sizes could reduce wastage and in turn significantly reduce healthcare costs.