European journal of cancer : official journal for European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) [and] European Association for Cancer Research (EACR)
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Patients with bone metastases from advanced cancer often experience skeletal-related events (SRE), which cause substantial pain and morbidity. Denosumab, a fully human monoclonal antibody that inhibits RANK Ligand (RANKL), is a novel bone-targeted agent with a distinct mechanism of action relative to the bisphosphonate zoledronic acid, for prevention of SRE. This pre-planned analysis evaluates the efficacy and safety of denosumab versus zoledronic acid across three pivotal studies. ⋯ Denosumab was superior to zoledronic acid in preventing SRE with favourable safety and convenience in patients with bone metastases from advanced cancer.
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Due to the poor prognosis of locally advanced oesophageal cancer, predictive markers are warranted to better select patients who may benefit from multimodal therapy. ⋯ From our study it appears that the pathohistologic results can be a valuable surrogate marker for predicting long term survival and local tumour control in patients with locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the oesophagus after preoperative radiochemotherapy and surgery. Moreover, even after intensive preoperative therapy a complete tumour resection seems to be an important precondition for long term survival.
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Cluster identification has emerged as a priority for symptom research. Variation in statistical approaches has hampered the identification of common clusters that should be targeted for intervention. The purpose of this study was to identify and validate common symptom clusters in a large population-based cohort of ambulatory cancer subjects. ⋯ The identification of common symptom clusters using robust statistical methods will help to yield targets to improve symptom management and identify populations at risk for worse disease outcomes.
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Comparative Study
Tumor characteristics and recurrence patterns in triple negative breast cancer: a comparison between younger (<65) and elderly (≥65) patients.
In an aging population an increasing number of breast cancers is diagnosed in elderly women. Tumor characteristics and patterns of metastasation have been extensively elucidated in younger triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients, but data regarding TNBC in elderly women are missing. The goal of this investigation was to compare clinical pathological characteristics of younger and elderly TNBC patients in order to assess their relevance for TNBC in an aging population. ⋯ TNBC of elderly patients is an aggressive breast cancer subtype claiming as much attention as TNBC in younger patients, thus warranting chemotherapeutic intervention irrespectively of age.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Safety results from a phase III study (TURANDOT trial by CECOG) of first-line bevacizumab in combination with capecitabine or paclitaxel for HER-2-negative locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer.
We report safety data from a randomised, phase III study (CECOG/BC.1.3.005) evaluating first-line bevacizumab plus paclitaxel or capecitabine for locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer. ⋯ These findings are in-line with safety data for bevacizumab plus paclitaxel or capecitabine, reported in previous phase III trials.