Table of contents
September 2005 Volume 2 No 9
Editorial
Viewpoints
Mortality and survival in breast and colorectal cancer
424Differences in cancer survival rates throughout Europe are difficult to interpret, but declines in cancer mortality rates from breast cancer and colorectal cancer occurring in many developed countries reflect the great advances in cancer control that have been made in recent years.
Phase III trials in oncology: setting standards of care?
426In this provocative Viewpoint the authors challenge the concept that patients in clinical trials have a better survival and quality of life than those managed routinely. For instance, phase III trials of breast cancer that restrict access to post-study salvage chemotherapy have yielded 'superior' survival data for investigational drug combinations compared with single-agent therapy, despite poor survival in all cohorts. Should such studies set new standards of care for our patients?
Research Highlights
Laparoscopic bowel resection: comparable efficacy to that of open surgery in patients with colon cancer
428TP53 mutations as a prognostic factor in women with breast cancer
428Effective early evaluation of isolated limb perfusion in the treatment of limb sarcoma
428Predicting outcome after preoperative therapy for rectal cancer
42996-hour infusion of paclitaxel in advanced bronchioloalveolar carcinoma
430Promoter methylation reduces expression of TGF-
receptor type 2 gene in prostate cancer
430Prognostic role of survivin expression in pancreatic cancer
431A novel biomarker with high sensitivity for hepatocellular carcinoma
431Novel method for distinguishing between metastatic and benign pheochromocytoma
431GVT effect of reduced-intensity allogeneic transplantation for Hodgkin's lymphoma
432Darbepoetin alfa: an effective treatment for chemotherapy-related anemia
432Practice Points
Do cyclo-oxygenase 2 inhibitors increase the risk of cardiovascular events?
434Can axillary radiotherapy replace axillary dissection for early-stage breast cancer?
436Is radiofrequency ablation effective in patients with early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma and cirrhosis?
438What are the long-term effects of chemotherapy and hormonal therapy for early breast cancer?
440Does postmastectomy radiation reduce mortality in women with stage T1–2 node-positive breast cancer?
442Does treatment with recombinant human erythropoietin affect the survival of anemic patients with cancer?
444Reviews
Should sentinel lymph-node biopsy be used routinely for staging melanoma and breast cancers?
448Most modern medical centers worldwide now offer sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy for treating melanoma and breast cancer, yet debate continues regarding whether SLN biopsy should be routinely used in clinical practice. The authors assert that SLN biopsy is an accurate, safe and minimally invasive staging technique that is an extremely powerful prognostic tool, and should be considered a staging procedure, not a therapeutic one. This review provides a concise overview of the current literature on SLN biopsy and discusses the controversies associated with technical and patient management issues.
doi:10.1038/ncponc0293 | Full Text | PDF (414K)
New concepts for phase I trials: evaluating new drugs combined with radiation therapy
456Some molecular targeted therapies can confer radiation response and minimize toxicity compared with chemoradiation regimens. Many of these molecular targeted drugs are being tested in clinical trials in combination with radiotherapy; however, for the optimal translation of these drugs in the clinical setting, their safety must be demonstrated in phase I clinical trials. The combination of new molecular targeted therapies and radiation might not necessarily be equivalent to the toxicity of the targeted drug plus the usual toxicity of radiation. Deutsch et al. discuss the need for specific and long-term clinical evaluation and the necessity to reassess phase I strategies, toxicity endpoints, and trial concepts in order to fully optimize these regimens.
doi:10.1038/ncponc0295 | Full Text | PDF (302K)
Primer: an evidence-based approach to prognostic markers
466In oncology, hundreds of prognostic marker studies are published each year, yet few markers have been demonstrated to be clinically useful. Altman and Riley discuss the pitfalls associated with publication bias, inadequate reporting and retrospective studies, and advocate that an evidence-based approach should be adopted. The authors comment on the advantages of making individual patient data available and improving the reporting of the results of prognostic marker studies.
doi:10.1038/ncponc0287 | Full Text | PDF (137K)
Case Study
Long-term complete remission of laryngeal Kaposi's sarcoma after palliative radiotherapy
473doi:10.1038/ncponc0294 | Full Text | PDF (128K)
