The oncologist
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To describe the clinical studies that led to the FDA approval of rituximab in combination with fludarabine and cyclophosphamide (FC) for the treatment of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). ⋯ On the basis of the demonstration of clinically meaningful prolongation of PFS, the FDA granted regular approval to rituximab in combination with FC for the treatment of patients with CLL. The magnitude of the treatment effect in patients 70 years and older is uncertain.
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In the majority of patients, existing therapies for neuropathic pain are far from effective. Furthermore, all current treatments are symptomatic rather than disease-modifying or curative. ⋯ In this article, we suggest a shift in emphasis of the drug discovery paradigm toward unbiased evaluation of the particular neurobiological mechanisms contributing to neuropathic pain in individual patients. Genomewide association studies and other discovery science approaches to identify significant novel targets should be given priority as should the development of increasingly sophisticated tools for measuring and categorizing neuropathic pain.