In a nutshell This study looks at the use of panitumumab and irinotecan as a combination treatment in patients with KRAS wild-type (non-mutated) metastatic colorectal cancer which has continued to progress while on standard chemotherapy (oxaliplatin, fluoropyrimidines, irinotecan, bevacizumab). Some background Cancer cells can have...
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In a nutshell This study was a phase I clinical trial that tested the safety and efficacy of Dabrafenib in melanoma patients with brain metastases (melanoma that has spread to the brain). Results showed that the drug had manageable side effects and improved progression-free survival. Some background Metastatic melanoma means that the cancer has...
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In a nutshell This paper presents results from phase I and II clinical trials evaluating the safety and efficacy of two targeted therapies – dabrafenib and trametinib – given in combination for metastatic melanoma patients with BRAF mutations. Some background BRAF is a protein that plays a role in cell division and growth. About 50% of...
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In a nutshell This study presents the results of a phase III clinical trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of the drug trametinib for the treatment of metastatic melanoma patients with BRAF mutations. Some background BRAF is a protein from a chain of proteins in the cell called the MAP kinase pathway. These play a role in cell division and...
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In a nutshell This study investigated the use of the chemotherapy regimen known as FOLFIRI with or without the addition of Aflibercept (Zaltrap) to treat metastatic colorectal cancer. Results showed that adding Aflibercept significantly increased the length of time patients survive and the length of time they survive without any disease...
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In a nutshell This article presents the results of a phase II clinical trial that evaluated the efficacy and safety of the combination of two targeted therapies – cetuximab and erlotinib – for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Some background Colorectal cancer that has spread outside the large...
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In a nutshell The present clinical trial compared two chemotherapy regimens as first-line treatment for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC): XELIRI-bevacizumav versus FOLFIRI-bevacizumab. Some background Approximately one quarter of patients with colorectal cancer (cancer in the large intestine) have metastases,...
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In a nutshell This paper presents the results of a clinical study which looked at the use of a new drug called Bosutinib (Bosulif) for the treatment of breast cancers diagnosed as being stage III or IV. In patients previously treated with chemotherapy, Bosutinib showed promising efficacy in delaying cancer progression. Some background Locally...
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In a nutshell This article presents the results from the first human trial of PD 0332991, a new anti-cancer drug. The main objective of the study was to determine the safety and recommended dose for further testing. Results warrant further studies and revealed that neutropenia (low white cell count) was the main side effect. Some background Cells...
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In a nutshell This study compared the efficacy of Eribulin (Halaven) versus other treatments in women with previously treated stage IV breast cancer. Eribulin extended overall survival more than the other treatment options. Some background Late stage breast cancer offers limited treatment options. At this point in the disease,...
Read MoreIn a nutshell The present study evaluated the efficacy of a new drug, Regorafenib, for the treatment of refractory (progressing despite several lines of treatment) metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Some background Many of the patients with colorectal cancer do not present any symptoms in the early stages of the disease so the cancer...
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In a nutshell The present study evaluated the long-term quality of life (QOL) for patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) who had cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and HIPEC (hyperthermic perioperative chemotherapy). Main findings: patients who survived the procedure regained their baseline (pre-operative) QOL within 6-12 months after...
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