Breast Cancer

BETHESDA-Combination chemotherapy as an adjuvant treatment for breast cancer yields long-term survival benefits and should be offered to patients, even those whose tumors have not spread beyond the breast, according to a consensus panel convened by the National Institutes of Health. The panel also recommended hormone therapy for women whose tumors have hormone receptors, and radiation therapy for women who have had a mastectomy and are at high risk of recurrence.

High-dose chemotherapy with hematopoietic support improves the response rate for patients with metastatic breast cancer. There are many long-term disease-free survivors following high-dose chemotherapy and autologous peripheral blood

CHICAGO-Until findings from two recent clinical studies were released, there was no clear indication about the effectiveness of tamoxifen (Nolvadex) or prophylactic mastectomy for reducing the risk of invasive breast cancer in high-risk women.

At the 10th annual conference of the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR), Dr. Leena Hilakivi-Clarke, of the Lombardi Cancer Center at Georgetown University, outlined the increasing evidence that fetal and childhood diets may have a greater impact on lifetime breast cancer risk than diets during adulthood. Dr. Hilakivi-Clarke described her own work and summarized ongoing worldwide research efforts.

WASHINGTON-Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) shows evidence of inhibiting mammary carcinogenesis and angiogenesis in both animal and in vitro models, said Margot M. Ip, PhD, professor of pharmacology and therapeutics, Roswell Park Cancer Institute.

Approximately 10% to 15% of patients with stage I/II invasive breast cancer will develop a clinically isolated local recurrence. The standard management of an ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence following breast-

WILMINGTON, Delaware-The National Breast Cancer Awareness Month campaign (NBCAM) has launched a new tool to help the public navigate the Internet to obtain the most credible and accurate information about breast cancer. The “Hot Topics” search engine offers “one-stop shopping” for women seeking information about breast cancer, Bette Iacino, national coordinator of NBCAM, said in an interview with ONI.

Approximately 10% to 15% of patients with stage I/II invasive breast cancer will develop a clinically isolated local recurrence. The standard management of an ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence following breast-

Approximately 10% to 15% of patients with stage I/II invasive breast cancer will develop a clinically isolated local recurrence. The standard management of an ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence following breast-

ATLANTA-Overexpression of HER-2/neu may not be as critical to breast cancer prognosis as its activation, according to research reported by Michael P. DiGiovanna, MD, PhD, at the Era of Hope: U.S. Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program Meeting. Dr. DiGiovanna is assistant professor of medicine and pharmacology, Yale University School of Medicine.

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif-The first computer-aided detection (CAD) system for mammography (Image-Checker from R2 Technology) received FDA approval only 2 years ago, and, to date, only a handful of institutions and mammography centers offer the service on site.

NEW ORLEANS-Adjuvant tam-oxifen (Nolvadex) is as effective among black women as among white women in reducing the incidence of contralateral breast cancer, according to a retrospective analysis of nine trials from the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP) (B-13 through B-20 and B-22). In addition, increases in endometrial cancer with tamoxifen use are similar for both races.

NEW YORK-The American Society of Breast Disease (ASBD) began in 1976 as a relatively small group of physicians interested in studying diseases of the breast. It soon expanded into a multi-disciplinary organization whose stated mission is “to provide a forum for learning and sharing new developments related to breast disease.” The operative word for this group is “multidisciplinary.”

Computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) can help radiologists find early-stage breast cancers that might otherwise be missed, according to findings from a retrospective study presented at the “Era of Hope” Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program meeting.

BETHESDA, Md-Speakers at the National Institutes of Health Consensus Development Conference on Adjuvant Therapy for Breast Cancer will address the data on adjuvant chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, and other aspects of postsurgical treatment. The 2½-day meeting convenes on Nov. 1.

ATLANTA-All breast cancer patients under age 35 should be offered adjuvant chemotherapy even if they have low-risk disease, Mads Melbye, MD, PhD, said at the Era of Hope: U.S. Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program Meeting.

Three studies presented at the “Era of Hope” Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program meeting described ways in which the body’s own genes and immune system are being used to guide and develop promising new therapeutic approaches.

ATLANTA-Experimental use of laser therapy to destroy small, localized breast tumors is showing promise as an alternative to lumpectomy in highly selected patients, researchers from England and the United States reported at the Era of Hope: U.S. Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program Meeting.

ATLANTA-Susan M. Love, MD, predicts that significant new information about breast cancer will emerge as doctors begin using a new duct cell screening technique. Dr. Love discussed her work on ductal lavage at the Era of Hope: U.S. Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program Meeting in Atlanta, and updated results of a study of the technique were presented at the Second Annual Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Symposium in Chicago.

ATLANTA-An immunogenic marker, TA-90, can detect breast cancers missed by mammograms and other known markers, Rishab K. Gupta, PhD, said at the Era of Hope: U.S. Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program Meeting.

Two studies presented at the “Era of Hope” Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program meeting exemplify different but equally promising approaches to the development of cancer vaccines.

WASHINGTON-More than 2.5 million mammograms and Papanicolaou tests were provided to women in the first 9 years of the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP), managed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The total includes 1,157,207 mammograms and 1,353,684 Pap tests administered from 1991 through September 1999.

I was surprised to find inaccurate information in the July 2000 issue of Oncology News International, in an article on page 4, “NCI Urges Support of Ongoing Breast Cancer Transplant Trial.”

Taxanes are the most active drugs in the treatment of metastatic breast and ovarian cancer. Weekly therapy with paclitaxel produces notable activity, with remarkably low toxicity.

This phase I study was undertaken to define the maximum tolerated dose, the dose-limiting toxicity, and the recommended dose of UFT plus leucovorin and vinorelbine in combination treatment of patients with metastatic breast cancer previously treated with one chemotherapy regimen. The pharmacokinetics of UFT and vinorelbine were also evaluated.

This article describes the design and early results of an open-label, nonrandomized phase I/II trial of oral UFT plus leucovorin therapy in combination with bolus injections of epirubicin and cyclophosphamide in patients with advanced or metastatic breast cancer. This study was designed as a cohort dose-escalation study with the principal aims being to determine dose-limiting toxicity, overall toxicity, maximum tolerated dose, tumor response, and time to disease progression.

CANTON, Ohio-Neoadjuvant breast cancer therapy research has revealed that “epirubicin has good activity in the neoadjuvant setting and was associated with prolonged survival in four studies, although this remains to be confirmed,” Terry Mamounas, MD, stated. Dr. Mamounas, Medical Director at Aultman Memorial Hospital in Canton, Ohio, spoke at the clinical investigators’ workshop sponsored by the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and Pharmacia Oncology.

NEW YORK-“The number one question that I used to get as a clinician taking care of people with breast cancer and people worried about breast cancer was about hormone replacement therapy. Now, by far, the number one question is about soybeans,” said Larry Norton, MD, chief of Breast Medicine and head of the Division of Solid Tumor Oncology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

MUNICH, Germany-‘‘Epirubicin-containing regimens significantly prolong relapse-free and overall survival rates compared with standard regimens” for treating breast cancer, Michael Untch, MD, reported at a clinical investigators’ workshop. ‘‘The dose-response relationship for epirubicin,” he continued, “translated into significant improvements in outcome, and dose-intensification of epirubicin and paclitaxel was well tolerated.”

ROCHESTER, Minnesota-Researchers have begun to suspect that estrogen might be important not only for its receptor-mediated effects but also because it may exert genotoxic effects, reported James N. Ingle, MD. “There is evidence that estrogen genotoxicity may play a role in breast cancer development. That is, in the course of metabolism of estrogen, semi-quinones and quinones are formed, which can result in depurinating DNA adducts,” Dr. Ingle stated.