Sarcoma

The occurrence of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) in patients with HIV infection is more than 7,000 times higher than in the non-HIV infected population. The reason for this association is unclear but may involve decreased immune surveillance as a result of the profound cellular immune deficiency caused by HIV, a sexually transmitted KS-inducing virus, whose KS-transforming capabilities may be enhanced by HIV, or a direct or indirect effect of HIV itself in susceptible individuals.

ROCKVILLE, Md--In a flurry of activity at year's end, the FDA approved two new anti-HIV agents, as well as two liposomal products to combat HIV-related infections and Kaposi's sarcoma.

SEATTLE--DNA from the recently discovered Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) has been isolated in KS lesions as well as some AIDS-related lymphomas, and the new research suggests that foscarnet (Foscavir) may effectively inhibit the virus. Enrique. A. Mesri, PhD, of the Department of Medicine, Cornell University Medical College, reported the findings at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) meeting.

ROCKVILLE, Md--The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new indication for Roche Laboratories' Roferon-A (interferon alfa-2A recombinant). The agent, previously approved for use in treating hairy cell leukemia and AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma, is now also indicated for the treatment of chronic phase, Philadelphia chromosome positive chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML).

ROCKVILLE, Md--The FDA's Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) has unanimously recommended approval of DaunoXome (liposomal daunorubicin) as first-line therapy for the treatment of advanced HIV-related Kaposi's sarcoma (KS). The usual treatment, a combination of Adriamycin, bleomycin, and vincristine (ABV), is not well tolerated over the long haul, especially when given with antiretroviral agents (ddI, ddC, and AZT).

BOULDER, Colo--NeXstar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced that the FDA's Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) has recommended approval of DaunoXome, NeXstar's liposomal formulation of daunorubicin, as first-line therapy for Kaposi's sarcoma. ODAC made its recommendation upon review of the company's amended NDA, which included data from NeXstar's phase III study of 227 HIV-positive patients with advanced Kaposi's sarcoma.

WASHINGTON--The FDA's Biological Response Modifiers Advisory Committee unanimously recommended approval of Hoffmann-La Roche Inc.'s Roferon-A (interferon alfa-2a, recombinant) for the treatment of adult patients with Philadelphia chromosome positive chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). The interferon is currently approved for use in hairy cell leukemia and AIDS related Kaposi's sarcoma.

NEW ORLEANS--A novel therapy, based on antisense RNA technology, targets aberrant fusion products produced by chromosomal translocations and may lead to the loss of tumorigenicity in tumor cells of the Ewing's sarcoma family, a study from Thomas Jefferson University has shown.

LISBON, Portugal--A new regimen that employs escalating doses of etoposide (VePesid) and ifosfamide (Ifex), together with G-CSF (Neupogen), appears to be among the most active combinations tested to date in adult soft-tissue sarcoma, according to a report from the Scandinavian Sarcoma Group

The 20-year search for an infectious agent associated with Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) may be over. Researchers at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York have reported significant evidence directly linking a probable new herpesvirus to

ROCKVILLE, Md--After hours of heated debate, the FDA's Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) decided there was sufficient evidence of efficacy to recommend approval of DOX-SL (pegylated liposomal doxorubicin) for the treatment of AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) in patients who have failed first-line treatment or who cannot tolerate other treatment. The potential benefits of the drug generally outweigh the risks, the committee said.

There are few success stories in solid tumor oncology that match osteogenic sarcoma. Drs. Damron and Pritchard have chronicled this story, and present a multidisciplinary overview of the current management of conventional osteogenic sarcoma.

The evaluation and treatment of osteosarcoma have evolved considerably over the past 2 decades, with corresponding dramatic improvements in prognosis. In large part, the improved outlook is attributable to

In this issue of ONCOLOGY, Damron and Pritchard discuss combined therapy for high-grade osteosarcoma. This is a nice review of the current status of osteogenic sarcoma, certainly from the point of view of modern surgical management, and for

WASHINGTON--New research presented at the 2nd National Conference on Human Retroviruses and Related Infections appears to confirm last year's report that a virus is the cause of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS). Its discoverers, Drs. Patrick S. Moore and Yuan Chang of Columbia University, are calling the virus Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV).

CAMBRIDGE, Mass--Genzyme Corporation and Argus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (The Woodlands, Texas) are cosponsoring a phase II/III clinical trial of TretinoinLF in Kaposi's sarcoma patients. TretinoinLF is Argus' intravenous liposomal formulation of all-trans-retinoic acid.