The lancet oncology
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The lancet oncology · Jun 2017
ReviewChallenges behind proving efficacy of adjuvant chemotherapy after preoperative chemoradiation for rectal cancer.
For patients with high-risk stage II or stage III colon cancer, adjuvant chemotherapy with fluoropyrimidine monotherapy reduces the risk of recurrence and death by approximately 20-30%. Additional improvements have been reported in three phase 3 colon cancer trials when oxaliplatin was added to fluoropyrimidines, although the effect was mainly on disease-free survival. However, patients with rectal cancer were specifically excluded from these landmark studies because of potential toxicity and the confounding impact of radiotherapy and chemoradiation. ⋯ Consequently, clinical guidelines offer inconsistent recommendations for the management of this patient population. In this Review, we suggest that the available data do not robustly support the routine use of postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy for patients with rectal cancer treated with preoperative chemoradiation. We discuss sources of bias and offer potential reasons to explain this observation, as well as propose a recommended schema for a randomised phase 3 trial that might potentially answer this question definitively.
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The lancet oncology · Jun 2017
Review Practice GuidelineEuropean Association for Neuro-Oncology (EANO) guideline on the diagnosis and treatment of adult astrocytic and oligodendroglial gliomas.
The European Association for Neuro-Oncology guideline provides recommendations for the clinical care of adult patients with astrocytic and oligodendroglial gliomas, including glioblastomas. The guideline is based on the 2016 WHO classification of tumours of the central nervous system and on scientific developments since the 2014 guideline. The recommendations focus on pathological and radiological diagnostics, and the main treatment modalities of surgery, radiotherapy, and pharmacotherapy. ⋯ The guideline aims to provide guidance for diagnostic and management decisions, while limiting unnecessary treatments and costs. The recommendations are a resource for professionals involved in the management of patients with glioma, for patients and caregivers, and for health-care providers in Europe. The implementation of this guideline requires multidisciplinary structures of care, and defined processes of diagnosis and treatment.
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The lancet oncology · Jun 2017
Review Practice GuidelineEuropean Association for Neuro-Oncology (EANO) guidelines for palliative care in adults with glioma.
Patients with glioma present with complex palliative care needs throughout their disease trajectory. The life-limiting nature of gliomas and the presence of specific symptoms related to neurological deterioration necessitate an appropriate and early palliative care approach. ⋯ When recommendations could not be made because of the scarcity of evidence, the task force either used evidence from studies of patients with systemic cancer or formulated expert opinion. Areas of palliative care that currently lack evidence and thus deserve attention for further research are fatigue, disorders of behaviour and mood, interventions for the needs of caregivers, and timing of advance care planning.
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The lancet oncology · Jun 2017
Review Practice GuidelineEuropean Association for Neuro-Oncology (EANO) guidelines for palliative care in adults with glioma.
Patients with glioma present with complex palliative care needs throughout their disease trajectory. The life-limiting nature of gliomas and the presence of specific symptoms related to neurological deterioration necessitate an appropriate and early palliative care approach. ⋯ When recommendations could not be made because of the scarcity of evidence, the task force either used evidence from studies of patients with systemic cancer or formulated expert opinion. Areas of palliative care that currently lack evidence and thus deserve attention for further research are fatigue, disorders of behaviour and mood, interventions for the needs of caregivers, and timing of advance care planning.
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The lancet oncology · Jun 2017
ReviewEvolving adoptive cellular therapies in urological malignancies.
Immunotherapies have long been used to treat urological cancers but rarely lead to cure. In the past 5 years, success of immune checkpoint inhibition has led to a resurgence of enthusiasm for immunotherapy in the treatment of solid tumours. ⋯ In this Review, we present the results of clinical studies investigating autologous cellular therapies in urological malignancies. Specifically, we discuss the rationale for upcoming studies, and how novel therapies and adoptive cell combinations can be used for personalised cancer therapy.