In a nutshell This study wanted to look at the different types of treatment for melanoma, and find out which was best and had the least side effects. The study found that the best treatment was to use MEK inhibitors and BRAF, as it worked the best and had the least side effects. Some background There are a number of treatments available for melanoma...
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Hypofractionated stereotactic radiotherapy improves outcomes in advanced colorectal cancer
In a nutshell This study investigated the effectiveness of hypofractionated stereotactic radiotherapy (HSR; high doses of radiation given in fewer sessions than conventional radiotherapy) in advanced colorectal cancer. Researchers suggested that HSR is associated with improved outcomes and manageable side effects. Some background Colorectal cancer is...
Read MoreSearching for patients with untreated advanced non-small cell lung cancer to trial a new combined treatment
In a nutshell This trial aims to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the combination of nivolumab (Opdivo), ipilimumab (Yervoy), and paclitaxel (Taxol) for treating lung cancer. The main outcome that will be measured is survival without the tumor growing or spreading. The study is taking place in Durham, North Carolina, the United States. The...
Read MoreSearching for patients with advanced breast cancer to trial a new medication
In a nutshell This trial is aiming to determine how effective a new medication called elacestrant is for treating advanced breast cancer. The main outcome that will be measured is how long the patients go without the disease progressing. This study is being conducted in Illinois, United States. The details Some breast cancers grow in response to the...
Read MoreSurgery to remove the main tumor in patients with breast cancer that has spread
In a nutshell This study wanted to find out if removing the main tumor in women with cancer that has spread to other organs leads to greater survival than not removing the main tumor. The study found that the patients who had the surgery survived 47% longer than patients without the surgery. Some background Breast cancer can sometimes be caught quite...
Read MoreThe effect of FDG-PET imaging on patients with melanoma treated with immunotherapy.
In a nutshell The study looked at the use of FDG-PET imaging to assess long-term outcomes of treatment in patients with melanoma. Researchers found that FDG-PET imaging may be useful in predicting long-term outcomes of treatment in these patients. Some background Treatment for melanoma has vastly improved in recent years. Immunotherapies have improved...
Read MoreLooking for women with metastatic breast cancer to evaluate whole, plant based diets
In a nutshell This trial is examining the effectiveness of a whole food diet for women with stable metastatic (spread) breast cancer currently undergoing treatment. The main outcomes to be measured will be the recruitment of patients approached, adherence to diet and change in symptoms and biomarkers. This study is being...
Read MoreComparing the effectiveness of different immunotherapy drugs for patients with NSCLC
In a nutshell This study looked at three different immune checkpoint inhibitors and how effective they were at treating patients with non-small-cell lung cancers (NSCLC) with different levels of PD-L1 protein. The authors found that all three drugs analyzed were more effective than chemotherapy for these patients. Some background Many tumor cells have...
Read MoreThe effect of pembrolizumab on patient health and quality of life
In a nutshell This study examined the effect of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) on the health and quality of life of patients with non-small-cell lung cancer. The study concluded that treatment with pembrolizumab was better for patient health than treatment with chemotherapy. Some background Many tumor cells have a protein called PD-L1 which stops the immune...
Read MoreComparing targeted therapy to chemotherapy for patients with advanced NSCLC
In a nutshell This trial compared the effectiveness of alectinib (Alecensa) against chemotherapy for treating patients with ALK-positive non-small-cell lung cancer that have progressed passed previous targeted therapy. The authors determined that alectinib was more effective than chemotherapy at treating this subgroup of patients. Some background Lung...
Read MoreVemurafenib increases survival of patients with advanced BRAF-mutated melanoma
In a nutshell This study examined the long-term effectiveness of vemurafenib (Zelboraf) as treatment for BRAF-mutant metastatic melanoma. Researchers concluded that vemurafenib is associated with improved overall survival. Some background Over 50% of melanoma patients has a mutation (permanent change) in the BRAF gene. This can increase...
Read MoreDoes age effect immunotherapy treatment in melanoma?
In a nutshell The study examined if age played a role in the effect of immunotherapy treatment on patients with melanoma. The study concluded that immunotherapy is similarly effective in patients of all ages. Some background Immunotherapy is a type of treatment which targets the immune system to help it to fight cancer. A specific type of...
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