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Editorial BoardEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
(Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews)
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - October 29, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Source Type: journals

Management of unfit patients with unfavourable non-Hodgkin’s lymphomasEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Lymphoma is a malignant disease that often occurs in elderly patients. Although many treatment options are available, comorbidities and limitations of functional reserves limit their use in frail patients. Still, because of the high sensitivity of disease to these treatments, even reduced doses and schedules may allow long-term disease control or even cure. The question that remains is how to use these treatments while controlling risks. Fortunately, both biological and clinical researches allow for progress that will help clinicians improve treatment strategies. During the last years, interest for research in the...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - September 16, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Pierre Soubeyran, Cécile Mertens, Carine Bellera, Simone Mathoulin-Pélissier, Muriel Rainfray Tags: Guest Editor: Silvio Monfardini Source Type: journals

Management of primary and advanced breast cancer in older unfit patients (medical treatment)Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Elderly women constitute a large group of breast cancer patients, and after multidimensional geriatric assessment (MGA) only a minor part of them are found in perfect health (=fit), while the remaining display one or more physical or functional limitations or familial/social problems and are therefore categorized as vulnerable or frail (=unfit). Although randomized trials have not produced modest evidence that surgery impacts on ultimate survival of elderly women with hormone-responsive tumors, there is a general consensus that age alone should not prevent surgical local treatment even in unfit women due to the li...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - September 16, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: M. Aapro, Silvio Monfardini, Antonio Jirillo, Umberto Basso Tags: Guest Editor: Silvio Monfardini Source Type: journals

Lapatinib: A competitor or companion to trastuzumab?Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Trastuzumab (Herceptin), a monoclonal antibody against HER2 has established itself as the treatment paradigm of HER2-overexpressing breast cancer. Its success, however, has been tempered by its sequelae. In particular, most tumours become resistant to trastuzumab through a variety of mechanisms. Furthermore, there is both an increased incidence of cardiac dysfunction and a worrying pattern of CNS metastasis associated with trastuzumab. To manage these concerns, many new treatments targeting HER2 have been developed. Of these emerging therapies, the dual tyrosine kinase receptor inhibitor against EGFR and HER2, lap...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - September 14, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: D. Collins, A.D.K. Hill, L. Young Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Challenges for the future modifications of the TNM staging system for head and neck cancer: Case for a new computational model?Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: The TNM system of staging cancers is a simple and effective method to map the extent of tumours. It had traditionally strived to maintain a balance between being simple and user-friendly on one hand and comprehensive on the other. A number of revisions have taken place over the years with the goal of improving utility. However, numerous controversies surround the TNM system. There is a school of thought that contends that patient co-morbidity and specific tumour-related factors should be incorporated to add further prognostic capabilities in the TNM system, but this raises concerns that such an approach may unnece...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - August 25, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Kapila Manikantan, Suhail I. Sayed, Konstantinos N. Syrigos, Peter Rhys-Evans, Chris M. Nutting, Kevin J. Harrington, Rehan Kazi Tags: Controversy Source Type: journals

The management of vulval cancerEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
This article will review the evidence for the current management of vulval carcinoma. (Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews)
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - August 21, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Emma J. Crosbie, Richard J. Slade, Ahmed S. Ahmed Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Theoretical model of treatment strategies for clear cell carcinoma of the ovary: Focus on perspectivesEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Conclusion: The inhibitors that target HNF-1beta and PLK-Emi1 and their downstream signaling molecules would be evaluated. In addition, the therapy currently used in renal CCC should be considered as an alternative for the present treatments or an attractive therapeutic option for ovarian CCC. The challenges accompanying the recent advance are described in this review article. (Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews)
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - August 10, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Shozo Yoshida, Naoto Furukawa, Shoji Haruta, Yasuhito Tanase, Seiji Kanayama, Taketoshi Noguchi, Mariko Sakata, Yoshihiko Yamada, Hidekazu Oi, Hiroshi Kobayashi Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Harnessing the fruits of nature for the development of multi-targeted cancer therapeuticsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Cancer cells exhibit deregulation in multiple cellular signaling pathways. Therefore, treatments using specific agents that target only one pathway usually fail in cancer therapy. The combination treatments using chemotherapeutic agents with distinct molecular mechanisms are considered more promising for higher efficacy; however, using multiple agents contributes to added toxicity. Emerging evidence has shown that some “natural products” such as isoflavones, indole-3-carbinol (I3C) and its in vivo dimeric product 3,3′-diindolylmethane (DIM), and curcumin among many others, have growth inhibitory and apoptosi...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - August 6, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Fazlul H. Sarkar, Yiwei Li Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Editorial BoardEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
(Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews)
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - July 31, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Source Type: journals

Trastuzumab versus lapatinib: The cardiac side of the storyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: HER2 gene plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of 20% of breast cancer patients. At the same time, it is one of the main cardiac survival pathways when subjected to bio-mechanical stress including exposure to anthracyclines. With the emergence of the anti-HER2 targeting agents, concerns raised regarding the potential cardiac toxicities of these drugs. In the early clinical trials with trastuzumab, it was evident that it has a significant cardiac toxicity. The incidence of symptomatic heart failure ranged from 4% to 7% with trastuzumab alone, and 27% when administered concurrently with doxorubicin. On the other...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - July 29, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Hamdy Azim, Hatem A. Azim, Bernard Escudier Tags: Complications of Treatment Source Type: journals

Prevalence and risk factors of radiation-induced growth hormone deficiency in childhood cancer survivors: A systematic reviewEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Background: Growth hormone deficiency (GHD) is usually the first and most frequent endocrine problem occurring after cranial radiotherapy (CRT). The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the existing evidence of the prevalence and risk factors of radiation-induced GHD in childhood cancer survivors.Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE and CENTRAL were searched for studies reporting on radiation-induced GHD in childhood cancer survivors. Information about study characteristics, prevalence and risk factors was abstracted and the quality of each study was assessed. A meta-regression analysis was performed.Results: The pre...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - July 29, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Renée L. Mulder, Leontien C.M. Kremer, Hanneke M. van Santen, Jan Lucas Ket, A.S. Paul van Trotsenburg, Caro C.E. Koning, Antoinette Y.N. Schouten-van Meeteren, Huib N. Caron, Sebastian J.C.M.M. Neggers, Elvira C. van Dalen Tags: Complications of Treatment Source Type: journals

Targeting DNA repair pathways: A novel approach to reduce cancer therapeutic resistanceEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Increased chemo-resistance and radio-resistance of cancer cells is a major obstacle in the treatment and management of malignant cancers. An important mechanism that underlies the development of such therapeutic resistance is that cancer cells recognize DNA lesions induced by DNA-damaging agents and by ionizing radiation, and repair these lesions by activating various DNA repair pathways. Therefore, Use of pharmacological agents that can inhibit certain DNA repair pathways in cancer cells has the potential for enhancing the targeted cytotoxicity of anticancer treatments and reversing the associated therapeutic res...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - July 27, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Yongjian Zhu, Jue Hu, Yiduo Hu, Weiguo Liu Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Contemporary issues and the potential uses of capecitabine in metastatic breast cancerEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Since its first regulatory approval more than 10years ago, oncologists have gained wide experience in using the oral fluoropyrimidine, capecitabine, as monotherapy or in combination with other agents and the body of evidence supporting these approaches continues to grow. Alongside this increasing experience has been the appearance of new challenges in patient management. We now recognise several different biological subtypes of breast cancer, such as HER2-positive disease. The standard of care in these tumours comprises anti-HER2 therapy, and phase III data show that capecitabine can be effectively combined with s...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - July 27, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Peter Barrett-Lee, François-Clément Bidard, Jean-Yves Pierga Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

First-line chemotherapy of non-seminomatous germ cell tumors(NSGCTs)Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Germ cell tumors (GCTs) account for the majority of testicular cancer cases occurring in men of young age and are divided into two main histologic groups, seminomas and non-seminomas. The introduction of cisplatin in the treatment of germ cell tumors was a breakthrough, classifying them among curable diseases. The identification of 3 subgroups of patients with non-seminomatous tumors (good-risk, intermediate and poor-risk), with different profiles concerning prognosis and response to treatment, supported clinical trials aiming to assess different treatment strategies and recommend the most effective and less toxic...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - July 3, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: K. Pliarchopoulou, D. Pectasides Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Survivin: A new target for anti-cancer therapyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Survivin is one of the most cancer-specific proteins identified to date, being upregulated in almost all human tumors. Biologically, survivin has been shown to inhibit apoptosis, enhance proliferation and promote angiogenesis. Because of its upregulation in malignancy and its key role in apoptosis, proliferation and angiogenesis, survivin is currently attracting considerable attention as a new target for anti-cancer therapies. In several animal model systems, downregulation of survivin or inactivation of its function has been shown to inhibit tumor growth. Strategies under investigation to target survivin include ...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - June 26, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Bríd M. Ryan, Norma O’Donovan, Michael J. Duffy Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Comparative survival with diverse chemotherapy regimens for cancer of unknown primary site: Multiple-treatments meta-analysisEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Conclusion: No type of chemotherapy has been solidly proven to prolong survival in patients with CUP. Regimens using either platinum or taxanes or both need further testing. (Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews)
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - June 18, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Vassilis Golfinopoulos, George Pentheroudakis, Georgia Salanti, Andreas D. Nearchou, John P.A. Ioannidis, Nicholas Pavlidis Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Future directions in neoadjuvant therapy of rectal cancer: Maximizing pathological complete response ratesEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: Neoadjuvant therapy is widely accepted as the current standard of care for localized rectal cancer. Downstaging of disease has been significantly improved and pathological complete response rates (pCR) which were historically below 10% with preoperative radiation alone, now range from 15% to 30% with preoperative chemo-radiation. While the availability of new chemotherapeutic drugs (Irinotecan, Oxaliplatin, etc.) and molecular targeted agents (Bevacizamab, Cetuximab, etc.) hold a great deal of promise, results of recent studies indicate that the pCR rate with neoadjuvant therapy appears to have plateaued at 20–...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - June 18, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Mohammed Mohiuddin, Majid M. Mohiuddin, John Marks, Gerald Marks Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Adjuvant hormone therapy for localised and locally advanced prostate carcinoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised trialsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Background: Adjuvant hormone therapy (AHT) following radiotherapy or surgery is a treatment option frequently offered to men with localised or locally advanced prostate cancer. We performed a systematic review of published randomised trials to assess the effectiveness of AHT.Methods: We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, the Cochrane library, SCI, LILACS and SIGLE for randomised trials comparing AHT plus primary therapy (radiotherapy or prostatectomy) with primary therapy alone. Data on study design, participants interventions and outcomes were extracted from relevant studies and where possible pooled for meta-analysis.Fin...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - June 3, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: M.D. Shelley, S. Kumar, B. Coles, T. Wilt, J. Staffurth, M.D. Mason Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Dose adjustment and supportive care before and during treatmentEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Though elderly patients represent a majority of cancer patients, their treatment of is still inadequate, mainly due to the lack of data deriving from randomized clinical trials.Factors limiting the use of standard chemotherapy regimens in elderly cancer patients are the fear of toxicity and unexpected side effects. The assessment of comorbidity and the multidimensional geriatric assessment are of major importance in the decision plan. All supportive measures must be adopted in order to successfully treat vulnerable and unfit elderly patients with cancer, and in particular, the use of growth factors when chemothera...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - June 2, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Antonella Brunello, Elena Loaldi, Lodovico Balducci Tags: Guest Editor: Silvio Monfardini Source Type: journals

Treatment of prostate cancer in unfit senior adult patientsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Prostate cancer is a disease typical of the elderly with a peak of incidence at 80years.As most patients aged ⩾70years show impairment of physical and/or cognitive performance, a complete geriatric assessment should be mandatory before planning any oncological treatment, in order to remove treatable conditions and to estimate the individual cancer-independent survival probability.In unfit patients with early prostate cancer watchful waiting represent the best strategy when the chance of living (Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews)
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 31, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Cristina Falci, Elisabetta Morello, Jean Pierre Droz Tags: Guest Editor: Silvio Monfardini Source Type: journals

Chemotherapy for operable and advanced colorectal cancerEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: The majority of colorectal cancer patients receive chemotherapy either to palliate advanced unresectable disease or to reduce the risk of recurrence after radical surgery. Thanks to the improvements in systemic chemotherapy, in the last 20years the median survival time for patients with unresectable metastatic disease has indeed progressively increased from less than 6 to almost 24months and recurrences after radical surgery in patients with early-stage tumors have been halved.Although colorectal cancer incidence increase with aging, there is limited scientific evidence based on prospective clinical trials to guid...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 31, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Carlo Aschele, Francesca Bergamo, Sara Lonardi Tags: Guest Editor: Silvio Monfardini Source Type: journals

Can we better manage Unfit older cancer patients?Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: The term Unfit refers to older cancer patients not amenable with standard treatment and needing therefore a modified or attenuated treatment or also not deserving an active therapeutic approach.To determine whether an old patient is Unfit a Multidimensional Geriatric Evaluation is needed, but to spare time, shortened tools of evaluation are now in a phase of development. Most of the available data on older cancer patients derive from clinical prospective studies carried out in a selected population, with the exclusion then of Unfit patients. The challenge of this special issue of CTR is that of providing a clinica...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 31, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Silvio Monfardini Tags: Guest Editor: Silvio Monfardini Source Type: journals

Evaluation of speech outcomes following treatment of oral and oropharyngeal cancersEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Oral and oropharyngeal cancers are amongst the commonest cancers worldwide and present a major health problem. Owing to their critical anatomical location and complex physiologic functions, the treatment of oral and oropharyngeal cancers often affects important functions, including speech. The importance of speech in a patient’s life can not be overemphasized, as its loss is often associated with severe functional and psychosocial problems and a poor quality of life. A thorough understanding of the speech problems that are faced by these patients and their timely management is the key to providing a better funct...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 31, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Raghav C. Dwivedi, Rehan A. Kazi, Nishant Agrawal, Christopher M. Nutting, Peter M. Clarke, Cyrus J. Kerawala, Peter H. Rhys-Evans, Kevin J. Harrington Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Multidimensional geriatric evaluation for older cancer patients as a clinical and research toolEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: The comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA), originally developed by geriatricians as a multidimensional evaluation of the older patients, has become in the recent years a fundamental aid for evaluation and treatment planning of older cancer patients. Traditional parameters used by oncologists (such as performance status assessment) are insufficient to properly address older cancer patients’ issues. Therefore CGA encompasses several items which help to identify, manage and possibly correct issues which could interfere with oncologic treatment.Items in the CGA are determination of functional and cognitive status...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 28, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Antonella Brunello, Riccardo Sandri, Martine Extermann Tags: Guest Editor: Silvio Monfardini Source Type: journals

The efficacy of arsenic trioxide for the treatment of relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma: A systematic reviewEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Arsenic trioxide (ATO) has been proposed as an option for the treatment of relapsing or refractory multiple myeloma. In order to critically appraise the published clinical evidence, a systematic search of the databases PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and the Cochrane Library was performed. Studies were selected according to prospectively defined criteria. Eventually 16 articles met the inclusion criteria. Six trials evaluated ATO as a single agent or in combination with ascorbic acid and ten trials added ATO to other cytostatic agents. Apart from one randomized controlled trial (RCT), all other studies were designe...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 24, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Christoph Röllig, Thomas Illmer Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Combining systemic therapies with radiation in breast cancerEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
This article reviews combining systemic therapies (chemotherapy, hormonotherapy and trastuzumab) with radiation in breast cancer patients. In clinical practice, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are most commonly used sequentially but this strategy is not based on level 1 evidence. Increased cardiotoxicity and skin reactions preclude the concomitant radiotherapy and anthracycline-based chemotherapy. Further investigations are warranted to determine the safety of taxane-based schedules used concomitantly with radiotherapy, particularly with regard to pneumotoxicity. Concurrent chemo–radiotherapy with the use of selected schem...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 24, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Krzysztof Adamowicz, Małgorzata Marczewska, Jacek Jassem Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Editorial BoardEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
(Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews)
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 23, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Source Type: journals

Toward molecularly selected chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer: State of the art and future perspectivesEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: In the last few years therapeutic options for gastric cancer patients have slowly, but constantly expanded following the introduction of both new chemotherapy agents and innovative indications for treatment. Along with the medical therapy also our knowledge of the molecular mechanisms underlying this disease has progressively improved. However although the available treatment options have undoubtedly increased no clear definitive indications can be made for a standard chemotherapy regimen and we are still unable to accurately select the appropriate treatment for the appropriate patient. Many molecular determinants...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Mario Scartozzi, Alessandro Bittoni, Mirco Pistelli, Eva Galizia, Rossana Berardi, Riccardo Giampieri, Luca Faloppi, Stefano Cascinu Tags: Laboratory-Clinical Interface Source Type: journals

Management of unfit older patients with advanced NSCLCEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Lung cancer in the older individual is an increasingly common problem faced by the oncologist. Elderly patients over 70years account about 40% of lung cancer patients. Performance Status 2 patients represent a significantly high proportion of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients (30–40%) when population-based surveys are conducted. Thus, unfit older patients represent a significant proportion of advanced NSCLC patients, for whom specific prospective data are very scarce. Elderly cancer patients often present with medical and physiological challenges that make the selection of their optimal treatm...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 19, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Cesare Gridelli, Paolo Maione, Antonio Rossi, Giovanni Palazzolo, Giuseppe Colantuoni, Emanuela Rossi Tags: Guest Editor: Silvio Monfardini Source Type: journals

Surgical risk and post-operative complications in older unfit cancer patientsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Surgeons have always dealt with elderly cancer patients, but understanding frailty and tailoring treatment is a new achievement endeavour.Mounting evidence is resulting in the introduction of geriatric assessment into clinical practice. Particularly, undernourishment should be assessed and corrected in order to avoid emergency situations whenever possible. (Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews)
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 11, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Siri R. Kristjansson, Eriberto Farinella, Suzanne Gaskell, Riccardo A. Audisio Tags: Guest Editor: Silvio Monfardini Source Type: journals

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs): Detection methods and their clinical relevance in breast cancerEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: The enumeration of circulating tumor cells has long been regarded as an attractive diagnostic tool, as circulating tumor cells are thought to reflect aggressiveness of the tumor and may assist in therapeutic decisions in patients with solid malignancies.However, implementation of this assay into clinical routine has been cumbersome, as a validated test was not available until recently. Circulating tumor cells are rare events which can be detected specifically only by using a combination of surface and intracellular markers, and only recently a number of technical advances have made their reliable detection possibl...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - May 3, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Bianca Mostert, Stefan Sleijfer, John A. Foekens, Jan Willem Gratama Tags: Laboratory-Clinical Interface Source Type: journals

Tolerability of first-line therapy for metastatic renal cell carcinomaEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: The treatment options for metastatic renal cell carcinoma have expanded rapidly over the past 3 years, with four new agents available and others in late-stage development. This has resulted in a change of the standard of first-line care, with sunitinib or bevacizumab plus interferon the treatments of choice for patients with good or intermediate-risk renal cell carcinoma and temsirolimus treatment of choice for poor-risk disease. Sunitinib and bevacizumab plus interferon have similar efficacy, meaning that treatment choice is influenced by other factors: disease-related factors such as clear cell versus non-clear ...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Camillo Porta, Cezary Szczylik Tags: Complications of Treatment Source Type: journals

Novel agents for renal cell carcinoma require novel selection paradigms to optimise first-line therapyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: First-line therapies available for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) have increased rapidly with the recent introduction of three novel agents: sunitinib, temsirolimus and bevacizumab (in combination with interferon [IFN]). This expansion means that the selection of the optimal therapy for individual patients has become more difficult and increasingly important. A treatment algorithm based on tumour histology and patient risk status is currently used to guide clinical practice, but does not always allow specific treatment for individual patients to be identified. This is particularly true for the largest group...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Manuela Schmidinger, Christoph C. Zielinski Tags: New Drugs Source Type: journals

TRAIL receptor signalling and modulation: Are we on the right TRAIL?Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Tumour necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand or Apo2 ligand (TRAIL/Apo2L) is a member of the tumour necrosis factor (TNF) superfamily of cytokines that induces apoptosis upon binding to its death domain-containing transmembrane receptors, death receptors 4 and 5 (DR4, DR5). Importantly, TRAIL preferentially induces apoptosis in cancer cells while exhibiting little or no toxicity in normal cells. To date, research has focused on the mechanism of apoptosis induced by TRAIL and the processes involved in the development of TRAIL resistance. TRAIL-resistant tumours can be re-sensitized to TRAIL by a combina...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Devalingam Mahalingam, Eva Szegezdi, Maccon Keane, Steven de Jong, Afshin Samali Tags: New Drugs Source Type: journals

Detection of circulating tumor cells in bladder cancer patientsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: The methods employed for the detection of circulating bladder cancer cells (CBCs) and their use as a molecular staging tool in clinical settings are thoroughly reviewed. CBC isolation and enrichment methods are discussed according to their advantages and pitfalls along with the clinical data of PCR-based techniques used for CBC detection. In addition, we review the specificity of molecular markers that have been proposed so far for CBC identification, and we comment on the controversial clinical data, proposing laboratory approaches which may improve the clinical significance of CBC detection in bladder cancer. (S...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Adrianos Nezos, Nikolaos Pissimisis, Peter Lembessis, Antigone Sourla, Peter Dimopoulos, Theodore Dimopoulos, Kostantinos Tzelepis, Michael Koutsilieris Tags: Laboratory-Clinical Interface Source Type: journals

Clinical relevance of EGFR- and KRAS-status in colorectal cancer patients treated with monoclonal antibodies directed against the EGFREmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) plays an important role in tumorigenesis and tumor progression of colorectal cancer (CRC). As a result, the EGFR has evolved as a relevant target in the treatment of metastatic CRC. KRAS serves as a mediator between extracellular ligand binding and intracellular transduction of signals from the EGFR to the nucleus. The presence of activating KRAS mutations has been identified as a potent predictor of resistance to EGFR-directed antibodies such as cetuximab or panitumumab. These agents should therefore be applied only in tumors with a wild-type status of the KRAS gene.Fur...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Volker Heinemann, Sebastian Stintzing, Thomas Kirchner, Stefan Boeck, Andreas Jung Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Microtubule dynamics as a target in oncologyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Drugs that affect microtubule dynamics, including the taxanes and vinca alkaloids, have been a mainstay in the treatment of leukemias and solid tumors for decades. New, more effective microtubule-targeting agents continue to enter into clinical trials and some, including the epothilone ixapebilone, have been approved for use. In contrast, several other drugs of this class with promising preclinical data were later shown to be ineffective or intolerable in animal models or clinical trials. In this review, we discuss the molecular mechanisms as well as preclinical and clinical results for a variety of microtubule-ta...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: April L. Risinger, Francis J. Giles, Susan L. Mooberry Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Chemotherapy for colorectal cancer in the elderly: Whom to treat and what to useEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: The median age at diagnosis of colorectal cancer is during the seventh decade, and the incidence of the disease increases continuously with age. However, as the age increases, the possibilities of receiving adequate cancer treatment diminish and the mortality rises. So, there is a huge need for defined treatment strategies in elderly patients with colorectal carcinoma. The geriatric population is a very heterogeneous group where patients with an excellent health status coexist with the patients with both co-morbidities and functional dependency. Therefore, it is necessary to personalize each treatment according to...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Jaime Feliu, María Sereno, Javier De Castro, Cristóbal Belda, Enrique Casado, Manuel González-Barón Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals

Head and neck cancer in the elderly: An overview on the treatment modalitiesEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: The percentage of elderly people with head and neck cancers (HNC) is rising due to increasing average lifespan. As with younger patients, elderly patients require a multidisciplinary approach in order to optimise treatment results. The biological, not the chronological, age should be defined individually based on co-morbidities and performance status. A comprehensive geriatric assessment represents the first and essential step for selecting further treatment options. Major improvements have been accomplished in surgical techniques and radiotherapy delivery. Several chemotherapeutic agents and targeted therapies wi...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Kostas N. Syrigos, Dimitris Karachalios, Eleni M. Karapanagiotou, Christopher M. Nutting, Leonidas Manolopoulos, Kevin J. Harrington Tags: Tumour Reviews Source Type: journals

Clinical and therapeutic aspects of extrapulmonary small cell carcinomaEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Extrapulmonary small cell carcinoma (EPSCC) is usually treated similarly to small cell lung cancer. Differences in aetiology, clinical course, frequency of brain metastases, and survival, however, warrant a differential therapeutic approach. In this review, we focus on the treatment of the most predominant sites of origin of EPSCC; the gastrointestinal tract, the genitourinary tract, the head and neck region, and small cell carcinoma of unknown primary. Furthermore we review the available data concerning the controversial issue of prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) after optimal treatment of EPSCC. We found in...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Annemiek M.E. Walenkamp, Gabe S. Sonke, Dirk T. Sleijfer Tags: Tumour Reviews Source Type: journals

Molecular assignment of tissue of origin in cancer of unknown primary may not predict response to therapy or outcome: A systematic literature reviewEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
We examined chemotherapy activity and outcome in CUP trials and in metastatic solid tumour trials in order to screen for a distinct biological behaviour of CUP.Patients and methods: An online search for autopsy or molecular platform studies on CUP indolent primaries was followed by identification of phase II or III clinical trials enrolling at least thirty patients with poor-risk CUP from 2002 or later. Chemotherapy activity and patient survival data were narratively compared to data from phase III chemotherapy trials on patients with metastatic breast, lung, pancreatic and colon cancer, to which CUP is most commonly class...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: George Pentheroudakis, F.A. Greco, Nicholas Pavlidis Tags: Tumour Reviews Source Type: journals

p16INK4a immunostaining in cytological and histological specimens from the uterine cervix: A systematic review and meta-analysisEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Conclusion: Although there is good evidence that p16INK4a immunostaining correlates with the severity of cytological/histological abnormalities, the reproducibility is limited due to insufficiently standardized interpretation of the immunostaining. Therefore, a consensus needs to be reached regarding the evaluation of p16INK4a staining and the biomarker needs to be assessed in various clinical settings addressing specific clinical questions. (Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews)
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: I. Tsoumpou, M. Arbyn, M. Kyrgiou, N. Wentzensen, G. Koliopoulos, P. Martin-Hirsch, V. Malamou-Mitsi, E. Paraskevaidis Tags: Hot Topics Source Type: journals

Gene expression profiling in colorectal cancer using microarray technologies: Results and perspectivesEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Nowadays molecular biology represents one of the most interesting topics in medical oncology, because it provides a global and detailed view on the molecular changes involved in tumour progression, leading to a better understanding of the carcinogenesis process, to discovering new prognostic markers and novel therapeutic targets.The gene expression profiling analysis with microarray technology has shown a great potential in cancer research and in medical oncology, mapping simultaneously the expression of thousands of genes in a single tumour sample and giving a measurement of articulated genes expression patterns....
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Margherita Nannini, Maria Abbondanza Pantaleo, Alessandra Maleddu, Annalisa Astolfi, Serena Formica, Guido Biasco Tags: Hot Topics Source Type: journals

The footprints of cancer development: Cancer biomarkersEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Diagnostic detection and measurement of cancer disease progression are essential elements for successful cancer disease management. The early stages of cancer development carry the maximum potential for therapeutic interventions. However, these stages are often asymptomatic, leading to delayed diagnosis at the very advanced stages when effective treatments are unavailing. The application of biomarkers to cancer is leading the way because of the unique association of genomic changes in cancer cells with the disease process. They have the potential to not only help identify who will develop cancer but also to predic...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Mohd. Fahad Ullah, Mohammad Aatif Tags: Hot Topics Source Type: journals

Editorial BoardEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
(Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews)
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 20, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Source Type: journals

Quality of life and outcomes research in head and neck cancer: A review of the state of the discipline and likely future directionsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Quality of life (QOL) is by definition a multi-dimensional global construct that has become an increasingly important outcome measure in cancer treatment. The impact of a head and neck cancer (HNC) diagnosis on the person and the consequences of its treatment cross multiple functional domains that have a clear and direct influence on one’s post-treatment well-being and associated QOL. The evaluation of QOL and performance outcome in cancer is critical to optimal patient care, comprehensive evaluation of treatment alternatives, and the development of informed rehabilitation and patient education services. Despite...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 16, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Suhail I. Sayed, B. Elmiyeh, Peter Rhys-Evans, Konstantinos N. Syrigos, Chris M. Nutting, Kevin J. Harrington, Rehan Kazi Tags: Hot Topics Source Type: journals

How powerful is CD133 as a cancer stem cell marker in brain tumors?Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: Cancer stem cells (CSCs) have been identified in a growing number of hematopoietic and solid tissue malignancies and are typically recognized by virtue of the expression of cell surface markers. CD133, a stem cell marker, is now extensively used as a surface marker to identify and isolate brain tumor stem cells (BTSCs) in malignant brain tumors. However, CD133 as the marker to sort BTSCs suffered some controversies. In this review, we reviewed the rise of CD133, analyzed the efficiency of CD133 on identification and isolation of BTSCs, explained some controversial study results and summed up the role of CD133 and ...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 14, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Jin-Xiang Cheng, Bo-Lin Liu, Xiang Zhang Tags: Tumour Review Source Type: journals

Surgical removal of the breast primary for patients presenting with metastases – Where to go?Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: One of the leading causes of cancer mortality in women worldwide is breast malignancy. In western countries 3.5–10% of newly diagnosed patients are found to have metastases at diagnosis (MBC). Despite the epidemiological burden of this condition, there are no guidelines on how to manage breast cancer patients presenting with systemic spread; for these patients treatment planning is essentially based on personal preferences rather than reliable clinical data. Through this review we outline the currently available evidence and discuss the role of surgical resection of the primary breast cancer in MBC. (Source: Can...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - April 12, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Roberto Gennari, Riccardo A. Audisio Tags: Hot Topics Source Type: journals

DNA minor groove binders: Back in the grooveEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Summary: With recent approval of the minor groove binding agent trabectidin in Europe for the treatment of patients with soft tissue sarcomas, there has been renewed interest in minor groove binders. Though previously considered to be without clinical value due to their initial significant toxicities, new minor groove binders are emerging which are challenging that perception. Toxicities in the most recently completed and ongoing trials have been easily manageable. These agents have demonstrable anti-tumor activity against a wide variety of tumor types including leukemias, sarcomas, melanomas, breast and ovarian cancers. A...
Source: Cancer Treatment Reviews - March 30, 2009 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Xuemei Cai, Phillip J. Gray, Daniel D. Von Hoff Tags: Anti-Tumour Treatment Source Type: journals