Too Much Imaging? Study Finds in Early-Stage Breast Cancer, the Answer is Yes
February 24th 2016A study involving nearly 30,000 patients diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer has found that up to 60% of these women received imaging tests such as CT, bone, and PET scans that were not medically justified, contrary to national guidelines.
Intervention Reduces Emergency Department Visits, Improves Patient Care
February 23rd 2016A telephone triage service combined with patient education has helped to reduce cancer-related emergency department visits by 60% over 4 months, where it was piloted at a Florida health system, and it’s an approach researchers say can be easily replicated by other practices.
Effort Launched to Increase HPV Vaccine Uptake
February 16th 2016Sixty-nine National Cancer Institute–designated cancer centers are urging parents, young adults, and healthcare providers to increase HPV vaccination rates, with only an estimate 40% of girls and 21% of boys in the United States receiving the recommended three doses of the HPV vaccine.
Young Adults With Cancer Need More Dialogue With Providers on Costs
February 15th 2016A paper in Cancer Medicine finds that cancer has a devastating and age-specific impact on the finances of young adult survivors, and increased dialogue between healthcare providers and YAs has the potential to empower this population at risk for adverse financial and psychosocial outcomes, and steer them towards reputable sources of financial support.
Myelofibrosis Drug Pacritinib Placed on Full Clinical Hold by FDA
February 15th 2016After reports of patient deaths related to intracranial hemorrhage, cardiac failure, and cardiac arrest in the phase III PERSIST-2 trial, the FDA has placed a “full clinical hold” on trials exploring the tyrosine kinase inhibitor pacritinib.
Single-Dose Emend for Injection Approved
February 5th 2016Fosaprepitant dimeglumine (Emend for injection) received FDA approval as a single-dose in combination with other antiemetic agents for the prevention of delayed chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting following moderately emetogenic chemotherapy.
Oral HPV Test Shows Potential for Predicting Oropharyngeal Cancer Risk
January 30th 2016Individuals with detectable human papillomavirus (HPV)-16 in their mouthwash samples were 22 times more likely to develop oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) than those without the type of virus, according to findings of a new study.
Less Toxic Treatment Found Effective in Rectal Cancer
January 21st 2016Short-course radiation therapy and three cycles of chemotherapy administered before surgery reduced side effects and improved overall survival (OS) when compared with standard chemoradiation for patients with locally advanced rectal cancer, new research has found.