Cancer trial alert - A study of CH5424802/RO5424802 in patients with ALK-rearranged non-small cell lung cancer

This non-randomized, open-label, multicentre study will evaluate the safety and efficacy of CH5424802/RO5424802 in patients with ALK-rearranged non-small cell lung cancer who failed crizotinib treatment. In Phase I, cohorts of patients will receive escalating doses of CH5424802/RO5424802 orally twice daily. In Phase II, patients who failed crizotinib treatment will receive the recommended phase II dose (600 mg) daily in two oral doses.

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Dana-Farber researchers uncover link between Down syndrome and leukemia

Although doctors have long known that people with Down syndrome have a heightened risk of developing acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) during childhood, they haven’t been able to explain why. Now, a team of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute investigators has uncovered a connection between the two conditions. In a recent study, the researchers track the genetic chain of events that links a chromosomal abnormality in Down syndrome to the cellular havoc that occurs in ALL. Read more here.

Alcohol consumption from a cancer perspective

Cancer Risk Factors in Ontario: Alcohol, the third report in the Cancer Risk Factors in Ontario series, provides: Detailed information on the prevalence and distribution of alcohol consumption in Ontario, with special attention to the recommendation related to alcohol from the World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research; Estimates of the cancer burden in the province related to alcohol consumption; Information on socio-demographic differences in alcohol consumption, including consumption among Ontario’s off-reserve Aboriginal population. Read the report here.

New gene variant found that increases the risk of colorectal cancer from eating processed meat

A common genetic variant that affects one in three people appears to significantly increase the risk of colorectal cancer from the consumption of processed meat. Lead author, Jane Figueiredo, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Preventive Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, explained that eating processed meat is associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer and for about a third of the general population who carry this genetic variant, the risk of eating processed meat is even higher compared to those who do not. Read more here.

Chronic inflammation linked to high-grade prostate cancer

Men who show signs of chronic inflammation in non-cancerous prostate tissue may have nearly twice the risk of actually having prostate cancer than those with no inflammation, according to results of a new study led by researchers from the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. The link between persistent inflammation and cancer was even stronger for men with so-called high-grade prostate cancer — those with a Gleason score between 7 and 10 — indicating the presence of the most aggressive and rapidly growing prostate cancers. Read more here.

Study identifies a likely key driver of colorectal cancer development and progression

A new study identifies a molecule that is a probable driving force in colorectal cancer and suggests that the molecule could be an important target for colorectal cancer treatment and a valuable biomarker of tumor progression. The researchers demonstrate that miR-135b is present at abnormally high levels in both mouse and human colorectal (CRC) tumors. The overexpression can be induced by mutations in either well-known oncogenes or tumor-suppressor genes that frequently occur in CRC, the researchers say. Read more here.

Body mass index associated with breast cancer, regardless of body shape

A study of predominantly white women finds a larger waist circumference is associated with higher risk of postmenopausal breast cancer, but not beyond its contribution to BMI. The study, by American Cancer Society researchers, fails to confirm previous findings that body shape itself is an independent risk factor for breast cancer. Read more here.

Does a more refined categorisation of tumour response and/or progression improve prediction of overall survival in RECIST 1.1?

In a recent analysis by the RECIST Working Group, EORTC researchers had explored whether a more refined categorisation of tumour response or various aspects of progression could improve prediction of overall survival in the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumours (RECIST) database. They found that modelling target lesion tumour growth did not improve the prediction of overall survival above and beyond that of the other components of progression. Read more here.

Anti-cancer medicines availability study

Study objectives: to provide European health authorities with data on the availability of licensed anti-neoplastic medicines across Europe. This ESMO study is conducted under the auspices of the ESMO Emerging Countries Committee in collaboration with the World Health Organization, the Kings College London Institute of Cancer Policy, the Union for International Cancer Control, and the European Society of Oncology Pharmacy (liaising with the European Association of Hospital Pharmacy). Read more here.

Patient centered perspective initiatives in Canada

A newly released background document on Patient Centered Perspective Initiatives funded by the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer this month outlines the goal of the Patient Experience through Patient-reported Outcomes Initiative is to improve the patient experience across the cancer journey through standardized measurement that accelerates optimal care and measures impact (health-related outcomes for patients) across Canada.

See the document here.

Canine cancer study aimed at improving survival for humans and dogs

With a Innovation Grant from the Canadian Cancer Society, a University of Saskatchewan research team will treat dogs with drug-resistant lymphoma to uncover the reasons for this resistance and to identify ways to reverse it. "The cancer we’re studying – lymphoma – is very similar to human non-Hodgkin lymphoma. It’s spontaneous and responds to drug therapy. The same therapies are used, and both the canine and human cancers develop similar drug resistance,” says study leader Dr Troy Harkness, a molecular geneticist and professor at the university. “Because dogs age faster than humans, their disease advances more quickly and we are able to observe results that much sooner.”
Read more here.

Gene panel effectively screens dozens of genes for cancer-associated mutations

As many as 10 percent of women with a personal or family history of breast or ovarian cancer have at least one genetic mutation that, if known, would prompt their doctors to recommend changes in their care, according to a new study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Read more here.

In-depth focus on effective cancer control and care in China, India, and Russia

The Lancet Oncology has published a major new Commission examining the challenges to effective cancer control in China, India, and Russia – which together experience 46% of all new cancers worldwide, and account for more than half (52%) of all cancer deaths globally. The Commission was led by Professor Paul Goss, of Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, USA, in collaboration with over 40 leading cancer experts from the regions studied, and across the world. Read more here.

Report highlights the need for culturally safe cancer care in Inuit communities

Although relatively unknown to past generations, cancer has become the second-highest cause of death in the Inuit population and is having a profound effect on patients, their families and communities.

A new report released Monday on April 14, 2014 examines cancer control for Inuit across Canada and provides a baseline against which progress can be measured over the coming years.

The Inuit Cancer Control in Canada Baseline Report provides context for the cancer pathway for Inuit and includes information on promising practices across the cancer control continuum. It looks at the patient experience from screening and diagnosis through to survivorship or palliative care, as well as challenges experienced by Inuit patients throughout their cancer journey.

Study in mice shows that an aggressive type of breast cancer is linked to an inflammatory protein

Aberrant expression of an inflammatory protein, nitric oxide synthase 2 (NOS2), may enhance the progression and metastasis of an aggressive and less common form of breast cancer, known as the estrogen receptor-negative type of disease. In this work, NCI scientists used tumor xenografts (human tumor cells transplanted into mice) to mimic an aggressive tumor microenvironment that included inflammation, nutrient deprivation and hypoxia. Read more here.

A meta-analysis of first generation EGFR TKIs vs. chemotherapy in patients with wild type EGFR non-small cell lung cancer

A meta-analysis of 11 clinical trials with 1605 included patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), harbouring wild type (WT) epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), shows that previous treatment with chemotherapy compared with first generation EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) is associated with improvement in progression-free survival (PFS), but not with improvement in overall survival. Read more here.

A subset of breast cancer patients most likely to benefit from neoadjuvant regimen with Pan-HER inhibitor neratinib

I-SPY 2 study mechanism efficiently evaluates agents in biomarker-defined patient subsets. In a modest number of patients, its adaptive randomisation strategy successfully identified a biomarker signature for further development of pan-HER inhibitor, neratinib. A neoadjuvant regimen of standard chemotherapy and neratinib was beneficial for hormone receptor (HR)-negative, HER2-positive patients with primary breast cancer, according to data presented at the AACR Annual Meeting 2014 (5-9 April, San Diego, USA). Read more here.

Post-Authorization Activity Table (PAAT) for Pomalyst

This PAAT describes post-authorization activity for Pomalyst, a product which contains the medicinal ingredient pomalidomide. Based on Health Canada's review, the benefit/risk profile of Pomalyst is considered favourable, in combination with dexamethasone (Pomalyst+LD-dex), for patients with multiple myeloma (MM) for whom both bortezomib and lenalidomide have failed and who have received at least two prior treatment regimens and have demonstrated disease progression on the last regimen. Read more here.

Cervical cancer vaccine program in England a success

Upon analyzing the test results of more than 4000 young women, British researchers at Public Health England have determined that the national vaccination program, launched in England in 2008, has resulted in a drop in HPV infection rates among young sexually active women (aged 16-18) to 1 in 15. In addition to the infection-reducing benefits of this immunization program, it is believed that herd-immunity is also occurring as a result of this initiative, whereby "vaccination of a large population affords some protection against infection to those in the population who are not vaccinated." To read more about this study, presented on April 14, 2014 at the Society for General Microbiology annual conference in Liverpool, England, click here.

Wait times for priority procedures in Canada, 2014

Canadians have indicated that waiting too long for care is the largest barrier to accessing health services. As a result, policy-makers made reducing wait times and improving access to care a high priority in Canada. This report provides comparative wait time information for procedures in the five priority areas set by the first ministers in 2004, including radiation therapy. Read the full report here.

Cervical screening in Ontario

The Ontario Cervical Screening Program 2012 Report, released in 2014, builds on the 2003–2008 report. Nine new indicators, including histology and colposcopy data, are reported for the first time. These additional data provide a more complete picture of Ontario’s performance in cervical cancer screening, highlighting the program's strengths and areas of focus for future improvement. Socio-demographic factors have been calculated for most indicators in the report, including information about the potential effects of age, income, rural versus urban residence, immigrant status and community size on program performance. Download the full report here.

Cancer’s thirst for copper can be targeted

Drugs used to block copper absorption for a rare genetic condition may find an additional use as a treatment for certain types of cancer, researchers at Duke Medicine report. The researchers found that cancers with a mutation in the BRAF gene require copper to promote tumor growth. These tumors include melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer that kills an estimated 10,000 people in the United States a year, according to the National Cancer Institute. Read more here.

HPV as a primary screening tool in women 25 years and older for risk assessment of cervical cancer

Three-year follow-up data from the ATHENA trial indicate that human papilloma virus (HPV) primary screening with triage to colposcopy based on genotyping and reflex cytology provides a more sensitive cervical screening strategy than cytology and is more efficient than cotesting. The results were presented at the Plenary session, entitled “Innovative and Practice Changing Concepts in Gynecologic Oncology”, of the 45th Annual Meeting on Women’s Cancer, organised by the Society of Gynecologic Oncology (22-25 March, 2014, Tampa, USA). Read more here.

Double-headed motor protein offers new targets in cancer treatment

The structure of a key part of the machinery that allows cells to divide has been identified by researchers at the University of California, Davis — opening new possibilities for throwing a wrench in the machine and blocking runaway cell division in cancer. "The structure of kinesin-5 is unexpected, and the implications are big — it allows us to target it, for example in various forms of cancer," said Jawdat Al-Bassam, assistant professor of molecular and cellular biology at UC Davis, who led the project. Read more here.

NCI intramural research highlighted at 2014 AACR meeting

At this year’s annual American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) meeting in San Diego there were plenary talks by two NCI intramural scientists -- Steven Rosenberg, M.D., and Louis Staudt, M.D., Ph.D. Dr. Rosenberg, chief of NCI’s Surgery Branch, focused on the curative potential of adoptive T-cell therapy in his presentation. B-cell associated cancers and the challenges in treating them were the focus of the presentation by Dr. Louis Staudt, head of NCI’s Molecular Biology of Lymphoid Malignancies Section. Read more here.

Gene sequencing project discovers mutations tied to deadly brain tumors in young children

The St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital-Washington University Pediatric Cancer Genome Project has identified new mutations in pediatric brain tumors known as high-grade gliomas (HGGs), which most often occur in the youngest patients. The discoveries stem from the most comprehensive effort yet to identify the genetic missteps driving these deadly tumors. The results provide desperately needed drug development leads, particularly for agents that target the underlying mutations. Read more here.

Tumor suppressor gene TP53 mutated in 90 percent of most common childhood bone tumor

The St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital—Washington University Pediatric Cancer Genome Project found mutations in the tumor suppressor gene TP53 in 90 percent of osteosarcomas, suggesting the alteration plays a key role early in development of the bone cancer. The discovery that TP53 is altered in nearly every osteosarcoma also helps to explain a long-standing paradox in osteosarcoma treatment, which is why at standard doses radiation therapy is largely ineffective against the tumor. Read more here.

Statement on forthcoming changes in NCI's clinical trials programs

In keeping with the recommendations outlined in the IOM report and with the advice of clinical scientists from across the country, NCI has created a new National Clinical Trials Network (NCTN). The NCTN will improve the speed and efficiency of cancer clinical trials, using fewer but larger groups of investigators and distributing resources in a more effective way. Read more here.

No prognostic effect of HPV on the outcome of primary radiotherapy in advanced non-oropharyngeal cancers

Patients with oropharyngeal cancer who are positive for the human papilloma virus (HPV-positive) have a good prognosis, but until now the effect of HPV status on the prognosis of tumours located elsewhere in the head and neck area was unknown. Danish researchers have now shown that HPV status appears to have no prognostic effect on the outcome of primary radiotherapy in head and neck cancer outside the oropharynx. It was a topic of the award lecture, based on analysis of 1606 patients, and presented by Dr Pernille Lassen from the Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark at the ESTRO 33 Congress in Vienna, Austria (4-8 April 2014). Read more here.

Combination of palbociclib and letrozole shows promising results in first-line treatment of ER-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer

A combination of palbociclib, a selective inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinases (CDK) 4 and 6, and aromatase inhibitor letrozole demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) in a phase II trial of first-line treatment for ER-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer, according to Dr Richard Finn, an associate professor of medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He presented the study results at AACR Annual Meeting 2014 (5-9 April, San Diego, USA). Read more here.