In a nutshell This study investigated the ability of mutations in the protein TP53 to predict outcome of patients with advanced NSCLC. Some background Non small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a common type of lung cancer that is both difficult to treat and has a poor survival rate. A common cause associated with developing NSCLC is a mutation...
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In a nutshell The authors evaluated skeletal events to determine whether denosumab (Prolia) reduced the risk of skeletal complications in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. Some background Denosumab is a drug used to treat metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (cancer which has spread from the prostate and...
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In a nutshell This study investigated the benefits of combination drug therapy (mFOLFOX6 and bevacizumab) for patients with colorectal cancer that has spread to the liver (liver metastases). Some background The 5-year survival rate is lower for colorectal cancer patients if the cancer has spread (metastasized) to other organs (stage IV). In...
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In a nutshell This study evaluated the benefit of the new HER2-targeted therapy T-DM1 compared to an often-used alternative treatment. Some background Breast cancers expressing the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 protein are known as HER2-positive cancer. In recent years therapies that directly target the HER2 protein, for...
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In a nutshell The authors aimed to determine whether nivolumab (Opdivo) can improve survival in advanced melanoma patients without the BRAF mutation. Some background Nivolumab is a man-made immune cell (protects the body from disease). It works by blocking a protein called programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) that is found on active immune...
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In a nutshell The authors aimed to determine the effects of GC1008 (Fresolimumab) as a treatment option in advanced malignant melanoma. Some background Transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ) is a protein in the body that helps to maintain cell growth and the immune system. In advanced cancer TGFβ can lose this function and can instead...
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In a nutshell The aim of this trial is to determine the effectiveness of the combination of pembrolizumab (Keytruda), dabrafenib (Tafinlar), and trametinib (Mekinist) as a treatment for patients with advanced melanoma. This trial will measure the safety and tolerability of the three therapies, as well as the progression-free survival time of the...
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In a nutshell The authors aimed to evaluate the use of Gleason scores in predicting the outlook of metastatic prostate cancer. Some background The Gleason grading system is from 2-10. It describes how different the cancer cells look from normal cells and predicts the likelihood of the tumor spreading. The lower the score, the less likely it...
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In a nutshell The study investigated whether cetuximab (Erbitux) and brivanib alaniate (BMS-582664) can improve the quality of life of patients with chemotherapy-refractory metastatic colorectal cancer. Some background Some patients with colorectal cancer have chemotherapy-refractory metastatic cancer (the cancer does not respond to chemotherapy...
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In a nutshell This study investigated whether certain patients should not be considered for combined liver and colon surgery. Some background For patients with colorectal cancer surgery remains the only option for cure. In up to 25% of patients with colorectal cancer the cancer will already have spread (metastasized) to the liver at diagnosis. For...
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In a nutshell This study assessed whether panitumumab is as good as cetuximab for patients with colorectal cancer that is unresponsive to chemotherapy (chemotherapy-refractory colorectal cancer). Some background Colorectal cancer is the fourth-leading cause of cancer related death worldwide. For patients whose cancer has metastasized (spread...
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In a nutshell This study examined PV-10, an injection of rose bengal disodium, as a treatment for melanoma. Some background Treatment for patients with metastatic melanoma (melanoma that has spread to distant sites) can be difficult. Even though average survival times can be long, new lesions and differences in the genetic makeup of the disease...
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