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ORLANDO-Prolonged maintenance treatment improves long-term outcome in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) more than intensive consolidation, even in those patients with poor prognosis, according to a study reported by Thomas Buchner, MD, professor of internal medicine, hematology and oncology at the University of Muenster in Germany (ASCO abstract 1046).

Any new medical textbook must compete for readership under new rules. It is not just the numerous other books being published but also the wealth of information on the Internet that vies for the time and attention of the inquiring reader. Web-based general search engines and medical literature tools have made the previous frequent trips to the hospital library nearly obsolete for many of us. There is ready access to original references or discussion about almost any topic in cancer care. A successful book on cancer treatment, therefore, must provide more-something unique for the practicing physician, student, or teacher. Ideally, it will present a useful synthesis, interpretation, and, with luck, clinical wisdom

ORLANDO-Preliminary results of a French study show improved event-free survival for patients with indolent non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) who received high-dose chemotherapy with purged autologous stem cell transplantation as first-line therapy, compared with conventional standard therapy.

NANTES, France-The farnesyl transferase inhibitor R115777 (tipifarnib, also known as Zarnestra) is well-tolerated and effective even in relapsed, refractory acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), according to interim results of a phase II study (ASCO abstract 1056). "In this multicenter trial, we have treated relapsed and refractory patients including those who never had a complete response," lead author Jean-Luc Harousseau, MD, professor and head of the hematology department at University Hospital (hotel Dieu) in Nantes, France, told Oncology News International. "Disappearance of blasts and complete response is very encouraging for the future of Zarnestra in AML."

WASHINGTON-A Delaware judge has sided with the American Legacy Foundation in its legal jousting with Lorillard Tobacco Co. The judge denied Lorillard’s request to stay or dismiss a lawsuit filed by the foundation in a series of court maneuvers that began in January. His ruling would allow the Legacy lawsuit to go forward before one filed in North Carolina by Lorillard against the foundation.

ST. PETERSBURG, Florida-As a nurse and 22-year survivor of Hodgkin’s disease, Debra Thaler-DeMers, RN, OCN, from the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship (NCCS), brought her personal survivorship perspective to the Late Effects of Normal Tissues (LENT) IV workshop on late effects criteria and applications.

NEW YORK-"In 2002 there is a lot of activity in mesothelioma research," Nicholas J. Vogelzang, director, University of Chicago Cancer Research Center, said at a media briefing on malignant mesothelioma, sponsored by the American College of Preventive Medicine. "This was an orphan disease for many years." Roman Perez-Soler, MD, of Albert Einstein College of Medicine, added: "We’re moving from empiricism to rational therapies."

BRISBANE, Australia-Progen Industries is conducting a phase I trial combining its cancer drug PI-88 with docetaxel (Taxotere) in patients with advanced malignancies. The trial is taking place at the University of Colorado Cancer Center,

NEW YORK-The death toll associated with the World Trade Center disaster of September 11 may rise 20 or 30 years from now, according to experts who spoke at a media briefing on malignant pleural mesothelioma. Many thousands of people at or near the disaster site had some exposure to asbestos, a causative agent of mesothelioma, said Stephen M. Levin, MD, medical director, Mount Sinai-Irving J. Selikoff Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

HOUSTON-Dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has shown PTK787/ZK 222584 (PTK/ZK), an antiangiogenesis agent, to be capable of blocking vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR)/VEGF activity in recurrent glioblastoma multiforme (ASCO abstract 315).

BETHESDA, Maryland-Total annual cancer cases will likely double in the United States during the first half of the 21st century, with 2.6 million people diagnosed with the disease in the year 2050, according to a new federal report (see Figure). The major driving force for this projected increase is the growth and aging of the American population, which will sharply increase the number of cases even if the cancer rate remains constant.

ORLANDO-Despite early mortality risks, HLA-matched sibling bone marrow transplants (BMTs) offer a greater possibility of cure for patients with relapsed chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) than does chemotherapy, according to a report presented at the 43rd Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (abstract 2011). A second report (abstract 2013) showed that allogeneic transplant led to better event-free survival than autologous transplant.

BURLINGTON, Vermont-Despite the availability of effective antiemetics, oncologists and oncology nurses often fail to recognize chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. This finding was based on a study comparing predictions of physicians and nurses to the experiences of patients as recorded in their diaries and reported in questionnaires (ASCO abstract 996).

WASHINGTON-Almost twice as many blacks (45%) smoke as the general population (25%), but blacks are 34% less successful than others at kicking the habit. Smoking cessation approaches that work with this population are particularly important.

BETHESDA, Maryland-Oncologists nationwide now have access to National Cancer Institute (NCI) clinical trials under a new policy intended to encourage a wider participation in phase III studies. The new policy makes it easier for oncologists to become credentialed as investigators and to enroll their patients in the advanced studies through NCI’s Cancer Trials Support Unit (CTSU). Previously, access to NCI’s clinical trials was limited to members of NCI’s cooperative groups.

Previous research has demonstrated that many patients enrolled in clinical trials incorrectly believe that the primary purpose of

MOUNTAIN VIEW, California-Pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (Doxil, Caelyx) offered a sustained clinical benefit to 37% of patients with AIDS-related Kaposi’s sarcoma vs 16% of patients treated with liposomal daunorubicin (DaunoXome) in a randomized trial comparing the two drugs (ASCO abstract 1640).

ORLANDO-European researchers have shown that transdermal fentanyl (Duragesic) is as effective as sustained-release morphine and better tolerated when given to strong-opioid-naïve patients with chronic cancer pain, according to a poster presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s 38th Annual Meeting (abstract 1506).

SEATTLE-The standard treatments for cervical squamous intraepithelial lesions (SIL) are significantly less effective in HIV-infected women than in HIV-uninfected women, according to the results of a study presented at the 9th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (abstract LB16).

ROCKVILLE, Maryland-The FDA has approved the MammoSite Radiation Therapy System (Proxima Therapeutics, Alpharetta, Georgia), to deliver adjuvant radiation therapy after breast-conserving surgery for patients with early-stage disease. The device is designed to irradiate the surgical site with minimal exposure to surrounding tissue. It consists of a hollow catheter, to which an inflatable balloon is attached. After surgery, the device is implanted, the balloon inflated, and a radiation source is placed in the catheter. The balloon centers the radiation source at the wound site. After a series of treatments, generally extending over several days, the catheter is withdrawn.

New data for 1999 show that death rates for all cancers continued to decline in the United States. However, the number of cancer cases is expected to rise in coming years due to the growth and aging of the population, according to a recent report. The "Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, 1973-1999, Featuring Implications of Age and Aging on the US Cancer Burden" was published in a recent issue of the journal Cancer (94:2766-2792, 2002).

ORLANDO-Pemetrexed (Alimta) plus cisplatin (Platinol) with folic acid/vitamin B12 supplementation should be considered standard front-line therapy for patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma, Nicholas J. Vogelzang, MD, said at the plenary session of the 38th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (abstract 5).

TEL HASHOMER, Israel-Israeli investigators report that a new technique delivering waves of paclitaxel (Taxol) directly into recurrent brain tumors has produced significant responses in patients with recurrent glioblastoma (ASCO abstract 316).

A 66-year-old Asian woman presents with chronic heartburn and epigastric discomfort. She has suffered with these symptoms most of her adult life and underwent multiple upper gastrointestinal series in her homeland, China. The radiologic

Every 3 years, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) asks researchers, advisory panels, and advocacy groups to recommend "extraordinary opportunities for investment," which it defines as "broad-based, overarching areas of scientific pursuit that hold tremendous promise for significantly expanding our understanding of cancer."

WASHINGTON-More than one in four American high school students smoke cigarettes, but tobacco use among this age group has steadily declined since 1997, according to a school-based study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

WASHINGTON-In 1997, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued new guidelines for radiation therapy that, for the first time, permitted outpatient use of radioactive iodine therapy in selected patients (ie, highly compliant patients discharged to low-occupancy settings). Previously, this therapy had required inpatient treatment and 3 days of isolation.

SAN FRANCISCO-Use of tyrosine kinase inhibitors, including PKI166 (investigational, Novartis) and imatinib mesylate (STI571, Gleevec) can significantly reduce the size of metastatic bone tumors, decrease angiogenesis, and preserve bone structures, according to animal studies presented at the 93rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research.

Dr. Yee and his colleagues have offered a comprehensive overview of the epidemiology, diagnosis, and therapy of both gallbladder carcinoma and cholangiocarcinoma. They correctly note the infrequency of these two neoplasms, with approximately 7,500 cases diagnosed in the United States each year, two-thirds of which are gallbladder cancer. Unfortunately, neither the incidence rate nor prognosis of these neoplasms has changed substantially since biliary tumors were last reviewed in this journal[1]; the median 5-year survival rate has remained at 5%. Some progress has been made, however, in our understanding of the etiology of cancers of the biliary tract, and a body of literature continues to emerge exploring the question of how best to approach screening and prophylaxis in high-risk populations.

In December 2000, ONCOLOGY’s Jim McCarthy sent me a letter, inviting me to prepare an article for the journal on "The Current Status of Chemotherapy Sensitivity Assays." I was informed that the paper would be referred to one or two reviewers, who would write a commentary to be published alongside the paper. The commentary, I was told, might be "entirely laudatory, highly critical, or somewhere in between," and the result, "both lively and informative."