Oncology Commons^™

Oncolog, Volume 60, Number 09, September 2015, Sarah Bronson, Bryan Tutt, K. Nair

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Enhanced Surgical Recovery Programs Improve Perioperative Outcomes for Cancer Patients: For patients undergoing cancer surgery, potential complications and long recovery times can delay the delivery of additional life-saving therapy. To improve patients' perioperative outcomes and clear the way for timely administration of additional therapies, several surgical teams at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center gave begun using enhanced surgical recovery programs (ESRPs).
• New Treatments for Respiratory Viruses in Immunocompromised Patients: Viral respiratory infections are a major concern for immunocompromised patients, in whom such infections are difficult to treat and can lead to pneumonia and even death. Although few …

Oncolog, Volume 60, Number 08, August 2015, Stephanie Deming, Bryan Tutt, K. Nair

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• New Gene Therapy for Bladder Cancer Shows Promise: A gene therapy that stimulates interferon production within the body may prove to be effective against high-risk, early-stage bladder cancer when standard treatment fails.
• Vaccine Helps T Cells Target Sarcomas, Melanomas and other Tumors: A vaccine that delivers an antigen to dendritic cells, in turn activating killer T cells that can target specific cancers, is the subject of two ongoing clinical trials,
• INBRIEF: Glypican-1 Shows Promise as a Biomarker for Pancreatic Cancer/Stereotactic Ablative Radiation Therapy for Stage I Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer May Offer Survival Benefit
• HOUSE CALL: Prostate Cancer Screening-Who should …

Oncolog, Volume 60, Number 07, July 2015, Kathryn L. Hale, Bryan Tutt, K. Stuyck

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Emergency Care for Cancer Patients: Medical problems that may seem routine in patients without cancer often mean something different or have a different cause in cancer patients and may be much more serious, requiring urgent treatment. Managing these problems promptly and effectively is a challenge faced by all cancer centers.
• Immunotherapy Trials Offer Hope to Patients with High-Risk or Metastatic Cancer: Although the cure rate for the breast cancer has risen steadily in recent decades, recurrent or metastatic disease remains difficult to control. To fight metastatic breast cancer and forestall the recurrence of high-risk primary disease, researchers at The University …

Oncolog, Volume 60, Number 06, June 2015, Bryan Tutt, Joe Munch, U. Arizor

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• New Breast Imaging Modalities Show promise for Cancer Screening and Staging: New technology to supplement digital mammography may improve breast cancer screening and diagnosis. Although some of these new imaging modalities are still under development, others are already in clinical use as adjuncts to mammography for breast cancer screening and staging.
• Addressing Sexual Dysfunction in Cancer Survivors: Cancer treatments carry a host of side effects that can affect patients' ability to have and enjoy sex. The sexual dysfunction arising from these side effects, which include functional changes, can often be addressed, but uncovering sexual dysfunction can prove challenging.
• HOUSE CALL: …

Oncolog, Volume 60, Number 05, May 2015, Sarah Bronson, Bryan Tutt, U. Arizor

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Algorithm for Treating Advanced Ovarian Cancer Increases Complete Resection Rate: Most ovarian cancers have spread beyond the ovary by the time they are diagnosed, and they often recur even after responding to primary treatment. Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center aim to improve patient outcomes by changing the standard approach to newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer.
• Clinical Trials Explore Systemic Treatments for Brain Metastases from Breast Cancer: Brain metastases from breast cancer are difficult to treat because many of the systemic drugs that are effective against breast cancer cannot cross the blood-brain barrier. But researchers at …

Oncolog, Volume 60, Number 04, April 2015, Jill Deisigne, Joe Munch, Bryan Tutt, Sarah Bronson

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Multidisciplinary Globe-Sparing Treatment for Lacrimal Gland Carcinoma Preserves Vision and Minimizes Morbidity: Until recently, the treatment of lacrimal gland carcinoma almost always required removal of the eye. But for some patients with these tumors, globe-sparing surgery followed by radiation therapy can preserve vision and decrease ocular morbidity and facial disfigurement.
• Novel Trial Design Streamlines Development of Breast Cancer Therapies: Developing a cancer-fighting drug can take around a billion dollars and a dozen or more years. Even then, fail in clinical trials. To identify effective cancer therapies more quickly and efficiently, researchers have tuned to an innovative clinical model in which …

Oncolog, Volume 60, Number 03, March 2015, Bryan Tutt, Kathryn L. Hale, K. Stuyck

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Small Cell Lung Cancer Studies May Increase Treatment Options: Despite advances in treating many cancers, the standard treatment of small cell lung cancer has remained unchanged for decades. But researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center are exploring several new approaches to treat small cell lung cancer.
• Improved Maintenance Therapy Promotes Myeloma patients' Quality of Life After Stem Cell Transplantation: High-dose chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplantation can prolong survival for patients with multiple myeloma. However, patients remain at a high risk of relapse even after transplantation. Maintenance therapy can extend remission in these patients, and …

Oncolog, Volume 60, Number 02, February 2015, Sarah Bronson, Bryan Tutt, N. Danckers

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Natural Killer Cell Therapy May Augment Treatment of Hematological Cancers: Tough cancer treatments can severely weaken the body's natural ability to attack cancer cells. To improve immune recovery and function in patients who have undergone these treatments, especially those who may later receive a stem cell transplant, researchers are turning to natural killer cells that have been expanded in the laboratory.
• Concurrent Treatment of HIV and Cancer Improves Survival Outcomes: Concurrent HIV and cancer present special challenges in the clinic, regardless of which disease is diagnosed first. The simultaneous treatment of HIV and cancer is complicated by patients' weakened immune …

Oncolog, Volume 60, Number 01, January 2015, Bryan Tutt, Markeda Wade, Bryan Tutt, N. Danckers

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Simultaneous Resection of Liver and Lung Metastases from Colorectal Cancer Eliminates Need for Second Surgery: Patients with colorectal cancer metastases to the liver and one or both lungs often face the unwelcome prospect of two operations and two recovery periods. But a novel surgical approach enables the liver and lung lesion resections to be performed during the same operation.
• Some Breast Cancer Patients May Benefit from Shorter Course of Whole-Breast Irradiation: A shorter course of radiation therapy at higher doses per fraction than the standard regimen could reduce side effects and improve quality of life for some patients with breast …

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 11-12, November-December 2014, Bryan Tutt, Sunita Patterson, S. Moreau

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Striving to Improve Treatments for Uveal Melanoma: Although primary uveal melanoma can be effectively treated with radiation or surgery, patients with metastatic disease-or those at high risk for metastases-have few proven options. But specialists in medical oncology, radiation oncology, ophthalmology, surgery, and traditional research are working to improve those options
• Beyond Diabetes: Metformin May Have Broad Utility in Cancer: Metformin, an inexpensive drug that has been prescribed for diabetes for decades, may also be useful in preventing or treating several types of cancer
• HOUSE CALL: Smoking Cessation-Medications help smokers quit
• INBRIEF: Vaccine Explored to Reduce Risk of HER2-Positive Breast Cancer …

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 10, October 2014, Sarah Bronson, Kathryn L. Hale, Roberto Molar-Candanosa, K. Stuyck

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• New Drugs for Myeloproliferative Neoplasms Ease Suffering and Extend Life: A new class of drugs has redefined treatment for patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms by easing their symptom burden while extending their lives
• Neoadjuvant Targeted Therapy May Offer Multiple Benefits for Patients with Locally Advanced Renal Cancer: Despite definitive treatment with nephrectomy, locally advanced renal cancer recurs in 20%-30% of patients, substantially reducing their chance for long-term survival. To prevent such recurrences and prolong survival, urologic oncologists are studying the integration of targeted molecular therapies with surgical treatments
• New Combination Therapy Offers Potential to Cure FLT3-ITD Acute Myelogenous Leukemia: A new …

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 09, September 2014, Stephanie Deming, Bryan Tutt, Joe Munch, Jill Deisigne

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Biomarker-Driven Clinical Trials may Improve Personalized Treatment for Patients With Lung Cancer: Innovative clinical trials that assign patients to treatment arms based on tumor biomarkers could lead to increase treatment options for patients with lung cancer
• New Antibody-Chemotherapy Combinations Show Promise Against Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: Two investigational agents-inotuzumab and ofatumumab-shows promise when combined with cytotoxic chemotherapy drugs for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in adults
• Deep Inspiration Breath Hold Protects Against Radiation-Induced Cardiotoxicity in Patients With Left-Sided Breast cancers: Patients with lest-sided breast cancers have an increased risk of heart damage from adjuvant radiation therapy given after lumpectomy …

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 08, August 2014, Kathryn L. Hale, Bryan Tutt, Sunita Patterson, R. Molar-Candanosa

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors Show Promise Against Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma, Other Difficult-to-Treat Cancers: A decade ago, oncologists had little to offer most patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC). However, a breakthrough discovery that has already changed the treatment of metastatic melanoma is showing promise against other metastatic cancers-including metastatic RCC-and giving patients new hope for long-term survival
• Clinical Study Offers Definitive Local Treatment of Bone Metastases from Breast Cancer: Metastatic breast cancer carries a poor prognosis, and most systemic treatments for metastatic disease aim to slow its progression rather than to cure it. In a select group of patients, …

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 07, July 2014, Sarah Bronson, Joe Munch, Bryan Tutt, K. Stuyck

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Side Effects of Targeted Molecular Agents Vary According to Mechanism of Action: The main side effects of cytotoxic chemotherapy are notorious. But the side effects of newer, targeted molecular agents are less well known, so patients receiving such drugs may not know what to expect and may require additional guidance from physicians
• INBRIEF: Study Finds Less Frequent Bisphosphonate Treatment Equivalent to Standard Regimen
• RAS Mutation Status May predict Outcomes After Surgery for Colorectal Cancer Liver Metastases
• HPV Test Does Not Replace Pap Test for Cervical cancer Screening: The recent approval of a human papillomavirus (HPV) test for cervical cancer screening …

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 06, June 2014, Jill Deisigne, Luanne Jorewicz, K. Stuyck

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• New Agents Hold Promise for Patients With Advanced Thyroid Cancer: New agents are expanding treatment options for patients with advanced thyroid cancer-not only the papillary variant but also the less common medullary and differentiated variants of the disease
• Surgical Options for Lymphedema: Lymphedema of the extremities, whether from cancer treatment or other causes, typically is not curable. But advances in surgical techniques are reducing or eliminating symptoms for many patients
• INBRIEF: Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy Improves Survival in Head and Neck Cancer Patients/ Research Findings Could Lead to Blood Test for Cancer-Related Gene Defects/ Tumor-Suppressing Protein May Help Predict Survival in …

Wai-Kwan Alfred Yung, Md, Oral History Interview, May 7, 2014, Wai-Kwan Alfred Yung Md, Tacey A. Rosolowski Phd

Interview Sessions

Major Topics Coveted:

• History of Neuro-Oncology services and research at MD Anderson
• History of the Department of Neuro-Oncology
• The Brain Tumor Center: collaborative relationships and shared resources with Neuro-Oncology, Neuro-Surgery, Neuro-Pathology, neuro-imaging and other support fields

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 05, May 2014, Bryan Tutt, Therese Bevers, Zach Bohannan

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• New Treatments may Improve Outcomes for AL Amyloidosis Patients: AL amyloidosis-a rare, potentially fatal disease-has no approved treatments. The ''standard'' treatments are prescribed off-label, and few clinical trials have compared their effectiveness
• Dialog: Screening Mammography Reduces Breast Cancer-Related deaths
• 'Sleeping Beauty'' Technique Modifies T Cells to Treat B Cell Malignancies: A novel technique that helps the patient's own immune system find and destroy cancer cells could extend remission times for patients with B cell lymphomas and leukemias
• INBRIEF: Analysis Suggests Need to Revise Low-Grade Glioma Classification, Treatment/Combination of Antiangiogenic Drugs Shows Activity Against Solid Tumors/ Computed Tomography Predicts Chemotherapy Response …

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 04, April 2014, Zach Bohannan, Joe Munch, J. Delsigne

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• New fat Grafting Technique Improves Aesthetic Outcomes Following Head and Neck Reconstructive Surgery: A new gat grafting technique is enabling reconstructive surgeons to maximize aesthetic outcomes following major reconstruction for head and neck cancer treatment-related defects
• INBRIEF: Invasive Bladder Cancer Subtypes Resemble Breast Cancer Subtypes
• New Kinase Inhibitors Hold Promise for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia, Other B-Cell Malignancies: New targeted therapies against chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) are eliciting overall response rates similar to those achieved using standard chemoimmunotherapy but with fewer toxic effects
• HOUSE CALL: Animal-Assisted Therapy- Interacting with pets helps recovery

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 03, March 2014, Bryan Tutt, Joe Munch, K. Stuyck

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Expanding the Use of Laparoscopic Liver Resection: Minimally invasive surgical resection of liver tumors once was used only in select patients with easily accessible lesions located in the anterior of the liver. However, recent improvements in surgical techniques and the use of preoperative imaging have made laparoscopic approaches possible for even compels liver resection
• Physicians Refining Lung Cancer Screening Program: Lung cancer screening with low-dose computed tomography (CT) has been shown to reduce the rate of lung cancer-specific mortality in people at high risk for the disease
• Should the Primary Tumor Be Treated in Patients With Metastatic Prostate Cancer?: Researchers …

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 02, February 2014, Sarah Bronson, Kathryn L. Hale, Bryan Tutt, M. Yeoman

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• New Approaches Revolutionize the Treatment of Advanced Melanoma: Recent breakthroughs in immunotherapy and targeted therapy have improved outcomes for patients with advanced melanoma
• Comprehensive Tobacco Treatment Approach Helps Patients Quit on Their Terms: Kicking a tobacco habit is a formidable task. Quitting tobacco after a diagnosis of cancer, can be even more difficult
• Targeted Drug Shows Promise Against Advanced Breast Cancer: Adding the experimental kinase inhibitor palbociclib to standard hormonal therapy may delay disease progression in patients with advanced breast cancer that is estrogen receptor (ER) positive and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER@) negative
• HOUSE CALL: Avoiding Food-Drug …

Oncolog, Volume 59, Number 01, January 2014, Joe Munch, Jill Delsigne, M. Yeoman

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Addressing Fertility Issues in Cancer Patients: For some newly diagnosed cancer patients, whether they will be able to have children after treatment is the furthest question from their minds-until the risks of therapy bring it front-and-center
• INBRIEF: Intensity-Modulated Proton Therapy May Reduce Side Effects of Oropharyngeal Carcinoma Treatment
• Medical Advances Improve Bile Duct Cancer Treatment: Cholangiocarcinoma, the most common bile duct cancer, is a clinically silent disease in its early stages; patients usually present with advanced disease, which carries a poor prognosis
• HOUSE CALL: Weight Loss Tips for Breast Cancer Survivors-Losing excess weight has multiple benefits

Oncolog, Volume 58, Number 11-12, November - December 2013, Amelia Scholtz, Bryan Tutt, Luanne Jorewicz, K Stuyck

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Paget Disease of the Breast: A Rare, Often Misdiagnosed Malignancy: A small, scaling rash around the nipple may not be just another case of eczema or dermatitis. Paget disease of the breast, a rare malignancy, is often mistaken for a benign dermatological condition. But Paget disease typically indicates underlying ductal carcinoma in situ or invasive breast cancer
• New Partial-Breast Radiation Therapy Regimen Uses Protons: Whole-or partial-breast radiation therapy can reduce a patient's chance of brest cancer recurrence after lumpectomy, but this benefit must be weighed against the risk of damage to healthy tissue
• Managing Dental Complications in Patients with Head …

Oncolog, Volume 58, Number 10, October 2013, Bryan Tutt, Sunni Hosemann, C. Wilcox

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Sentinel Lymph Node Dissection After Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Node-Positive Breast Cancer May replace Axillary Dissection for Some Patients: Sentinel lymph node dissection has become a standard staging tool for breast cancer patients with no clinical eveidence of disease in the lymph nodes
• INBRIEF: miR-200 MicroRNAs Slow Tumor Growth
• Compass: Resectable or Borderline Resectable Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma: Initial Treatment Options-Neoadjuvent chemoradiation may benefit patients with resectable disease
• HOUSE CALL: Hereditary Cancers: Genetic screening can give valuable information

Oncolog, Volume 58, Number 09, September 2013, Jill Deisigne, Markeda Wade

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Advances in Neuroimaging Help Unveil the Mechanisms of Chemobrain: Chemobrain, a catchall term for the cognitive dysfunction and neurophysiological changes produced bt chemotherapy toxicity, is an important quality-of-life issue for cancer survivors
• Opioid Rotation Can Improve Pain Control and Reduce Neurotoxicity for Cancer Patients: Opioids are a main stay in the relief of pain-especially the chronic cancer-related pain often encountered in the palliative care setting. However, extended opioid use can result in tolerance, dependence, and opioid-induced neurotoxicity
• INBRIEF: Researchers Identity Inhibitor of Cancer-Promoting Protein SKp2/ Change in CA-125 Level Over Time Shows Promise for Ovarian cancer Screening
• HOUSE CALL: Myths …

Oncolog, Volume 58, Number 08, August 2013, Bryan Tutt, Sarah Bronson

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Specialized Care Improves Lives of patients With Head and Neck Lymphedema: A unique program is producing dramatic results for patients with head and neck lymphedema, a side effect of cancer treatment that can interfere with patient's ability to speak, swallow, or breath
• Targeted Cancer Therapies May Help Overcome Resistance to Radiation Therapy: Some cancer cells are resilient enough to withstand and recover from the damage to their DNA caused by radiation therapy. But recent studies have shown that adding molecularly targeted agents to radiation therapy can prevent the repair of this radiation-induced damage and therapy improve the treatment response of …

Oncolog, Volume 58, Number 07, July 2013, Zach Bohannan, Sunni Hosemann

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Treating Diabetes in Cancer Patients: Type 2 diabetes is a serious health concern for any patient-but when the patient also has cancer, diabetes may interfere with potentially life-saving cancer treatment
• INBRIEF: MET Protein May Serve as a Biomaker for a Treatment-Resistant Colorectal Cancer Subtype
• Compass: Penile Cancer- Although curable, localized or regional squamous cell carcinoma of the penis present treatment dilemmas
• HOUSE CALL: Stand Up for Your Health- Prolonged sitting may increase your risk for cancer and other disease

Oncolog, Volume 58, Number 06, June 2013, Joe Munch, Amelia Scholtz, Luanne Jorewicz

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Addressing Emerging Survivorship Issues in Glioblastoma Patients: An increasing number of glioblastoma patients are becoming '' long-term'' survivors-living 3 or more years after diagnosis
• Prediction Tool Helps Determine Whether Older Breast Cancer Patients will benefit from Radiation: A statistical tool is now available to predict the likely individual benefit of radiation therapy for older women who have undergone breast-conserving surgery for breast cancer
• Sequential Multidrug Regiman May Offer an Alternative to Standard Cisplatin-Based Therapy for Urothelial Cancer: Cisplatin-based chemotherapy is the standard neoadjuvant treatment for high-risk, surgically resectable, invasive urothelial cancer. But some patients are not good candidates for this …

Oncolog, Volume 58, Number 05, May 2013, Jill Deisigne, Bryan Tutt

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Robotic Surgery Makes Tissue Harvest for Breast Reconstruction Less Invasive: A new minimally invasive robotic procedure enables surgeons to harvest latissimus dorsi muscle flaps for breast reconstruction with less scarring and discomfort than traditional techniques
• Diagnosis and Treatment of Invasive Fungal Infections in patients with Hematological Malingnancies: Invasive fungal infections are important causes of morbidity and death for patients with hematological malignancies. Although much progress has been made in the management of opportunistic fungal infections, their diagnosis and treatment remain a challenge
• INBRIEF: Beta-Blocker Use Associated With Higher Survival Rates in Lung Cancer Patients Receiving Radiation Therapy/ Selumetinib Shows Promise …

Oncolog, Volume 58, Number 04, April 2013, Kathryn L. Hale, Sunni Hosemann

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Preventing and Treating Graft-Versus-Host Disease After Stem Cell Transplantation: Each year, thousands of patients with hematologic malignancies undergo allogeneic (donor) stem cell transplantation (SCT), which offers a chance at cure. Graft-versus-host disease (GHVD) is a potentially deadly complication of this therapy and occurs in 25%-60% of patients. However, clinicians and researchers are continually working to reduce the rate of GVHD occurrance and improve patient outcomes
• Compass: Breast cancer Risk Reduction: Women at increased risk have multiple options
• HOUSE CALL: Benefits of In-Person Support Groups- Face-to-face contact helps people cope with chronic illness

Oncolog, Volume 58, Number 03, March 2013, Sarah Bronson, Zach Bohannan, Bryan Tutt

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues)

• Advances in Pulmonary Medicine Facilitate Cancer Diagnosis, Treatment: The lungs present unique challenges in cancer diagnosis and treatment-navigating a maze of bronchi to find and sample tissue that will lead to an accurate diagnosis of lung cancer, for example, or deciding whether to proceed with treatment for cancer in the presence of concomitant lung disease
• New Drugs Increase Treatment Options for Patients with Imatinib-Resistant Chronic Myeloid Leukemia: In the past year, several new targeted drugs have been approved as second-line treatments for imatinib-resistant chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). These drugs include the second-generation tyrosine kinase inhibitor bosutinib and the third-generation tyrosine …