September 2007

The Academy delivers the latest news on biotech and oncology research, providing a link between the clinical world of cancer care and the university researchers who are pushing farther in pursuit of knowledge and discovery. In this issue: 1) University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI: Gene Fusions Switch on Prostate Cancer 2) Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA: New, Powerful Lung Tumor Suppressor Gene Found 3) Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center, Durham, NC: Two-Drug Combo for Kidney Cancer 4) University of California, Los Angeles: COX-2 Inhibitors Delay Pancreatic Cancer Precursors 5) James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville, Louisville, KY Gardasil Developers Working on Affordable HPV Vaccine 6) Indiana University Cancer Center, Indianapolis, IN: Chemotherapy and Stem Cell Treatment Could Cure Metastatic Testicular Cancer 7) Northwestern University, Evanston, IL: Optical Technique Captures Early Signs of Pancreatic Cancer

The topics covered in this issue include: 1) Exemestane Is a Cost-Effective Alternative to Tamoxifen in Estrogen Receptor–Positive Breast Cancer 2) A More Accurate Way of Deciding Which Prostate Cancers to Treat? 3) Senate Proposal Would Increase Payments to Oncologists… 4) …But Medicare Seeks to Cut Physician Payments Across the Board 5) Factors Influencing Treatment Interruptions With Imatinib 6) "Patient-Centered" Management Reduces Services Use But Not Outcomes 7) Inappropriate Medications Rife in Last Year of Life

Two presentations are highlighted from the meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology held in Chicago, IL: 1) Navigating Multiple Pathways: Evolving Strategies and Future Directions in Targeted Therapies 2) Two Studies Evaluate Efficacy and Safety of Lapatinib (Tykerb) in Advanced Breast Cancer

Physicians' Financial News focuses on newsworthy and/or notable companies in the oncology/biotech sector. In this issue: 1) Amgen: Amgen Oncology Under Review 2) Myriad Genetics, Inc.: Launches Test to Predict Toxicity to 5-FU 3) GPC Biotech AG: Pulls NDA for Prostate Cancer Drug 4) Cell Therapeutics, Inc.: Pads Pipeline through $20-Million Acquisition of Systems Medicine 5) Veridex: FDA Approves First Gene-Based Test to Detect the Spread of Breast Cancer 6) Ariad Pharmaceuticals/Merck: Ariad Could Earn $727 Million in Deal with Merck Related to Its Novel mTOR Inhibitor

The Clinical Trials reported in this issue include: PHASE IV: Obesity a Major Risk Factor for Multiple Myeloma PHASE III: 1) Long-Term Safety of Adjuvant Trastuzumab (Herceptin) 2) Bevacizumab (Avastin) Helps Slow Tumor Growth in Patients with Advanced or Recurrent Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer 3) Addition of Bevacizumab To Interferon Alfa 2a Nearly Doubles Median Progression-Free Survival in Patients with Previously Untreated Advanced Kidney Cancer 4) New Hope for the Treatment of Advanced Melanoma PHASE II: 1) Leukemia Treatment With Fludarabine Plus Cyclophosphamide 2) Refractory Soft Tissue Sarcoma Treatment PHASE I: Radiation-Induced Vision Loss Curtailed by Cancer Drug

Articles in this issue include: 1) England: GAMEC for Untreated or Relapsed Refractory Germ-Cell Tumors Preventing Oxaliplatin-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy 2) Australia: Immunodeficiency May Be Linked to Multiple Cancer Types 3) Sweden: Long-Term Steroid Use in Rheumatoid Arthritis Has One Benefit, at Least 4) Netherlands: Increasing Survival of Infants With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia 5) Israel: Breast Cancer Survival Rates No Worse for Women with BRCA Mutations 6) France: Rituximab Added to CHOP Chemotherapy in Poor-Risk Older Patients with Untreated Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma Results in Good Survival

Like the Vikings of old, scientists are hoping a new "longboat" drug delivery system will compromise the walls of resistant cancer cells and fight them with high-dose chemotherapy released only when they are inside.

Cell Genesys has announced that it has completed recruitment of more than 600 patients into VITAL-1, the first of two ongoing Phase III clinical trials of GVAX immunotherapy for prostate cancer.

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), a nonprofit alliance of 21 leading cancer centers worldwide, develops and publishes clinical practice guidelines to promote the importance of continuous quality improvement. The primary goal of all its initiatives is to improve the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of oncology practice so patients can live better lives.

In keeping with our goal of reporting on the practical aspects of oncology, in this issue we highlight the new National Comprehensive Cancer Network's (NCCN) updated clinical practice guidelines for kidney and cervical cancers.