Expert review of anticancer therapy
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Expert Rev Anticancer Ther · Mar 2010
ReviewTransoral laser microsurgery for early laryngeal cancer.
The decision to treat patients suffering from glottic cancer with either radiotherapy or surgery is both complex and controversial. Transoral laser microsurgery is a surgical technique that offers an attractive alternative therapy for laryngeal cancer. ⋯ In this article we examine the surgical technique and discuss the oncologic and functional outcomes of transoral laser microsurgery. Furthermore, we offer a vision of the future of endoscopic laser surgery for the management of cancer of the larynx and the upper aerodigestive tract.
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Expert Rev Anticancer Ther · Feb 2010
ReviewTrastuzumab and lapatinib beyond trastuzumab progression for metastatic breast cancer: strategies and pitfalls.
The discovery of HER2 gene amplification and protein overexpression in approximately 15-20% of breast cancers and access to the tailored humanized antibody, trastuzumab (Herceptin), have heralded a new era in breast cancer therapy. Trastuzumab combined with chemotherapy has caused marked tumor responses and increased overall survival in patients with metastatic breast cancer, and has also increased survival in the adjuvant setting after radical surgery. ⋯ In this event, possible options include the replacement of trastuzumab with lapatinib, the continuation of trastuzumab after disease progression with changed chemotherapy and the suspension of the use of targeted agents. New-generation tyrosine kinase inhibitors, which have a broader target, are now considered the key to treatment for breast cancer.
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Expert Rev Anticancer Ther · Jan 2010
ReviewAdvances in breast cancer treatment: the emerging role of ixabepilone.
Although taxanes and anthracyclines have dramatically improved the treatment of breast cancer, resistance to these agents upon continued exposure is almost inevitable. The epothilone ixabepilone was US FDA approved in 2007 based on its demonstrated activity in metastatic breast cancer that is resistant to other approved agents, including taxanes and anthracyclines. ⋯ Moreover, certain hard-to-treat subgroups of patients may derive additional benefit from ixabepilone therapy. The objective of this report is to review the updated body of ixabepilone clinical data in breast cancer, as well as key considerations for ixabepilone administration and side-effect management.