Long-Term Nerve Damage Possible after Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer

https://www.cancer.gov/news-events/cancer-currents-blog/2017/peripheral-neuropathy-chemotherapy-breast-cancer

	doxorubicin + docetaxel	doxorubicin + cyclophosphamide + docetaxel (ACT)	doxorubicin + cyclophosphamide followed by docetaxel (AC→T)
* Neuropathy can also be associated with common medical conditions, such as diabetes, or other medical procedures, including some types of surgery.
Before treatment*	19.1%	20.7%	15.8%
At 6-month follow-up	33.3%	37.7%	68.2%
At 12-month follow-up	31.2%	37.1%	56.4%
At 24-month follow-up	34.7%	41.4%	49.8%

What it is ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS)

Doctors also call this type of carcinoma in situ intraductal carcinoma. It is one of the most common types of breast cancer, according to the American Cancer  Society. Ductal means that cells are growing in the milk ducts of the breasts. There is an estimated 20 percent of breast cancers diagnosed annually in the United States are DCIS, equivalent to about 60,000 cases.

Ibrutinib now FDA-approved for treatment of chronic Graft versus Host Disease  after a hematopoietic stem cell transplant

A drug previously approved for adults with certain types of lymphoma or leukemia has become the first FDA approved medication for chronic graft-vs-host disease (GVHD).

Ibrutinib, marketed as Imbruvica, inhibits Bruton tyrosine kinase, a protein that plays a role in the survival and spread of malignant B cells. The medication is indicated for adults who develop chronic GVHD after a hematopoietic stem cell transplant but don’t respond to systemic therapy. An estimated 30% to 70% of patients who undergo these transplants subsequently develop chronic GVHD.

The drug’s approval is based on an ongoing, single-arm Phase I and Phase 2 trial that evaluated ibrutinib’s safety and efficacy in 42 patients with chronic GVHD who didn’t respond to first-line corticosteroid therapy.

http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2654365?utm_source=TWITTER&utm_medium=social_jn&utm_term=1089176912&utm_content=content_engagement|article_engagement&utm_campaign=article_alert&linkId=42700319

 

Worldwide Cancer Death Continue raising

Full Radiation Dose May Not Be Necessary for Some Early-Stage Breast Cancers

Five-year results from a U.K. study suggest that treating just the area around where the cancer used to be with radiation may be as good as treating the whole breast with radiation.

The research was published on Sept. 9, 2017 by The Lancet.

The study included 2,016 women age 50 or older who had been diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer between 2007 and 2010. All the cancers were 3 cm or smaller, and all the women had three or fewer positive lymph nodes. All the women had lumpectomy to remove the breast cancer.

After surgery, the women were randomly assigned to one of three radiation regimens.

After 5 years of follow-up, local recurrence rates (breast cancer coming back in the same breast) were:

• 1.1% for women who got the standard dose of radiation
• 0.2% for women who got the full dose of radiation to the area where the cancer was and a slightly lower dose further away
• 0.5% for women who got the standard full dose of radiation only to the area where the cancer was

While these results are very promising, they are still early results. Doctors need longer follow-up information to see whether radiation to just the area where the cancer was offers the same local recurrence rates 7, 9, or 10 years after treatment.

A new blood test shows promise for detecting pancreatic cancer at its earliest stage

https://www.cancer.gov/news-events/cancer-currents-blog/2017/blood-test-pancreatic-cancer

FDA Approves Pembrolizumab for PD-L1+ Gastric Cancer

The FDA has approved pembrolizumab (Keytruda) for the treatment of patients with PD-L1–positive recurrent or advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma who have received 2 or more lines of chemotherapy, including fluoropyrimidine- and platinum-containing chemotherapy, and, if appropriate, HER2/neu-targeted therapy.
The approval is based on findings from the phase II KEYNOTE-059 study. In the study, 143 of 259 patients had PD–L1-positive tumors (combined positive score ≥1) and microsatellite stable tumor status or undetermined microsatellite instability or mismatch repair status. The overall response rate (ORR) in these patients was 13.3% (95% CI, 8.2-20.0), including a complete response (CR) rate of 1.4% and a partial response (PR) rate of 11.9%.The duration of response among the 19 responding patients ranged from 2.8+ to 19.4+ months. Responses were 6 months or longer in 11 (58%) patients and 12 months or longer in 5 (26%) patients.

http://www.onclive.com/web-exclusives/fda-approves-pembrolizumab-for-pdl1-gastric-cancer

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