Cancer, Cancer Treatment

CHCIAGO, Nov. 17 — For carefully selected Asian patients with non-small-cell lung cancer, the tyrosine kinase inhibitor gefitinib (Iressa) significantly improved progression-free survival compared with the standard carboplatin (Paraplatin) and paclitaxel (Taxol), researchers reported here.

The phase III IRESSA-Pan Asia Study (IPASS) included patients who were chemotherapy na?ve, were never smokers or light smokers with a good performance status, an adenocarcinoma histology and Stage IIIb/IV non-small-cell lung cancer. The patients were selected from centers in China, Singapore, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Taiwan.

The researchers assigned 609 patients to gefitinib at 250 mg/day and 609 patients were offered carboplatin at a dose of 5 or 6 area under the curve with paclitaxel at 200 mg/m2. The aim of the study was to show that gefitinib was non-inferior to the chemotherapy regimen, but Tony Mok, M.D., of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, found that patients taking gefitinib had superior outcomes.

After 12 months, 25.6% of patients on gefitinib had achieved progression-free survival compared with 18.3% of patients on carboplatin-paclitaxel, a highly significant superiority (P

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Related Posts:


- A huge study funded by the National Institutes of Health triples the number of genes linked to lung cancer and points toward new treatments. The study analyzed DNA sequences from 623 genes in tumor samples from 188 patients with lung adenocarcinoma, the most common form of lung cancer. The study turned up 26 genes mutated at

Full Post: Lung Cancer Genes Raise Treatment Hopes
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For the first time on record, the percentage of U.S. adults who smoke cigarettes has fallen below 20 percent, a new report shows. An estimated 19.8 percent of American adults - 43.4 million individuals - were smokers in 2007. The new data is a percentage point below the 2006 figure and followed three years of

Full Post: U.S. Smoking Rate Drops
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MONDAY, Nov. 17 — Psychological counseling may improve the chances of survival for breast cancer patients, a new study says. Sessions that concentrate on mood improvement, effective coping and altering health behaviors appear to reduce stress and help the patient live longer, according to the report, published in the Dec. 15 issue of Cancer. “If efficacious psychological

Full Post: Psychological Counseling Boosts Breast Cancer Outcomes
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thursday October 16, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) — In the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, you may do something to help yourselves reduce the risk of breast cancer. But first, equip yourselves with current knowledge about how to prevent the disease. We have published quite a few articles on breast cancer prevention because it is better

Full Post: Radiotherapy raises risk of contralateral breast cancer - Study
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A mastectomy is prudent when breast cancer returns after a lumpectomy, because survival rates are better than with another lumpectomy, according to a new report. “We were surprised to find that so many women in our study — almost a quarter of them — had received another lumpectomy rather than a

Full Post: Lumpectomy not advised if breast cancer returns