Lung Cancer

NEW YORK-Screening of smokers with helical (spiral) low-dose computed tomography (CT) is more likely than chest x-rays to find malignant tumors, and the tumors are “substantially smaller than those detected on chest radiography,” said Claudia I. Henschke, MD, of New York Presbyterian Hospital-Weill Cornell Medical Center.

Gordon and Vokes present a comprehensive review of the management of locally advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). They summarize historical data on sequential and concurrent chemoradiation, as well as altered radiation

The article by Drs. Gordon and Vokes provides the reader with a comprehensive overview of the treatment of locally advanced unresectable non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with chemotherapy and radiation therapy. The authors

The optimal therapy for locally advanced, unresectable, stage III non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) continues to evolve. The critical determinants of overall survival include local tumor control and the

PHILADELPHIA-Research shows that genetic makeup may offer a clue to an individual’s affinity for smoking and propensity to develop lung cancer, investigators said at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).

A phase II study of combined-modality treatment consisting of uracil and tegafur (in a molar ratio of 4:1 [UFT]) plus cisplatin (Platinol) and concurrent radiotherapy was conducted to evaluate the activity of this regimen in

Cure rates for non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remain low and the prognosis for patients with even stage IA disease is poor. Complete surgical resection is still the first-line treatment for NSCLC, but many investigators

Malignant pleural mesothelioma is an aggressive tumor associated with exposure to asbestos. Although this disease is rare, with an annual incidence in the United States of 2,000 to 3,000 cases, a steady rise in cases has

WASHINGTON-Overall incidence and mortality rates for cancer continue to decline in the United States. However, a new report finds considerable disparities among racial and ethnic groups, and it warns that a resurgence of smoking among teen-agers forewarns of a likely reversal of the downward trend, especially for lung cancer.

In patients with endobronchial obstruction due to locally advanced lung cancer, photodynamic therapy (PDT) with porfimer

A study published in a recent issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, and Physics found that elderly patients with limited small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) can tolerate radiation and should not be denied potentially curative

Finnish investigators recently reported that the survival rates of patients whose lung cancer was found during screening with a single chest radiograph were significantly higher than survival rates in patients whose cancer was detected through “the

Nearly one-third of the estimated 144,000 patients who are diagnosed with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the

As Matin and Goldberg note, the accurate staging of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is necessary to provide patients with correct information regarding prognosis and appropriate treatment recommendations. Therefore, physicians who treat

Drs. Matin and Goldberg describe and comment on the invasive techniques currently used for the clinical staging of lung cancer. Although they term this “surgical” staging, in reality, it is part of clinical staging (cTNM) and should be distinguished

The staging of lung cancer defines the extent of disease. Accurate staging is important to define operability, select treatment regimens, and predict survival. Nonsurgical and surgical techniques are used to stage patients. The

WASHINGTON-Medicare will cover three additional uses of positron emission tomography (PET) for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. In addition to the previously covered uses for the diagnostic evaluation of solitary pulmonary nodules and for staging non-small-cell lung cancer, PET will now be covered for the detection and localization of recurrent colorectal cancer with rising CEA levels; the staging and characterization of both Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in place of a gallium scan or lymphangiogram; and the identification of metastases in melanoma recurrence in place of gallium scans.

SAN ANTONIO-Photodynamic therapy (PDT) with porfimer sodium (Photofrin) in patients with endobronchial obstruction due to locally advanced lung cancer appears to be at least as good as an Nd-YAG laser for palliation and “probably better,” Harvey I. Pass, MD, said at a satellite symposium of the Society for Thoracic Surgeons meeting.

NEW YORK-A man wanted to know why his chest x-ray was normal 4 months before he was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. A woman wanted to know how her mother could have negative tumor markers and seven brain metastases at the same time.

Elderly patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with vinorelbine tartrate (Navelbine) injection enjoy improved survival over those receiving best supportive care, according to a study published in the February issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

The following consensus statement was developed by over 30 researchers meeting in Varese, Italy, in December 1998.

NAPLES-Nearly one-third of the estimated 144,000 new non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients diagnosed in the United States each year are over the age of 65, and these patients often do not have access to the range of treatment options available to younger patients. Platinum-based therapy is often avoided due to concerns about tolerability.

A cooperative national clinical trial has produced the first major treatment advance in years for small-cell lung cancer. The study, which was published in the February 1999 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, used two treatments of radiation daily, combined with chemotherapy, compared to the usual practice of delivering one radiation dose per day. Specifically, the protocol covered small-cell lung cancer limited to one-half of the chest area.

RESTON, Virginia-A new national clinical study known as LAMP (locally advanced multimodality protocol) will help evaluate the best manner in which to give patients radiation and chemotherapy to treat locally advanced, non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The trial, conducted by the American College of Radiology (ACR), is using the chemotherapy agents paclitaxel (Taxol) and carboplatin (Paraplatin).

NEW YORK-Preliminary data presented at the Chemotherapy Foundation Symposium XVI suggest that the toposiomerase I inhibitor irinotecan (Camptosar) in combination with other chemotherapy agents may be effective in multiple tumor types, including advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and advanced esophageal cancer.

HOUSTON-There are currently 581 clinical trials underway at The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, John Mendelsohn, MD, the Center’s president, said at a seminar held in conjunction with the opening of the Center’s new Alkek Hospital .

PHILADELPHIA-SmithKline Beecham’s topoisomerase I inhibitor Hycamtin (topotecan HCl for injection) has received FDA approval for the treatment of small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) after failure of first-line chemotherapy. The agent was previously approved for use in ovarian cancer after failure of initial or subsequent chemotherapy.

ATHENS-Patients with inoperable non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who receive paclitaxel (Taxol) together with best supportive care survive significantly longer than those managed with best supportive care alone, according to results from a phase III, randomized trial conducted at six sites in the United Kingdom and Canada, and presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) congress.

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) will sponsor phase III trials to test the efficacy of AE-941/Neovastat, an angiogenesis inhibitor developed by AEterna Laboratories Inc., a Canadian biotechnology corporation, in the treatment of cancer.

NEW YORK-The availability of new therapeutic options are focusing more attention on lung cancer, a disease for which advances have been slow in coming, said Ronald Blum, MD, director of the Comprehensive Cancer Center and chief of oncology, St. Vincent’s Hospital and Medical Center, New York City. He discussed these advances during a Cancer Care, Inc., teleconference for patients.