News

TOKYO-Neoadjuvant therapy with the taxane docetaxel (Taxotere) is well tolerated and boosts survival over local treatment alone in patients with radically treatable, locally advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), investigators reported at the Ninth World Conference on Lung Cancer.

MADISON, Wisconsin-Although topotecan (Hycamtin) has clear activity in small-cell lung cancer, the optimal combinations, schedule, and route of administration for use of this topoisomerase-I inhibitor as first-line therapy are yet to be determined, according to Joan H. Schiller, MD, of the University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center, Madison, Wisconsin.

NAGASAKI, Japan-The combination of irinotecan (Camptosar) 40 mg/m² and cisplatin (Platinol) 60 mg/m² with concurrent thoracic radiotherapy should be tested for its potential role in treating patients with limited-stage small-cell lung cancer (SCLC).The recommendation was made at the conclusion of a phase I trial that evaluated the combination of irinotecan and cisplatin in three dose schedules in patients with histologically or cytologically proven limited-stage SCLC who had not undergone prior therapy for their disease.

AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands-Cisplatin (Platinol), the cornerstone of chemotherapy for advanced non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), continues to come under increased scrutiny, noted Pieter E. Postmus, MD, FCCP. Investigators are searching for chemotherapeutic strategies that are as effective as platinum-based therapy, but are better tolerated and more cost-effective, he explained. Dr. Postmus is with the Department of Pulmonology, Vrije Universiteit, University Hospital, in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted marketing clearance for bexarotene (Targretin) gel 1%, a novel therapy for the topical treatment of cutaneous lesions in patients with early-stage (IA and IB) cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) who develop refractory or persistent disease after undergoing other therapies or who have not tolerated other therapies.

Patients with limited-stage small-cell carcinoma of the lung are treated with combined-modality therapy with the intent to cure. Standard therapy consists of platinum-based combination chemotherapy, thoracic irradiation, and

Patients with limited-stage small-cell carcinoma of the lung are treated with combined-modality therapy with the intent to cure. Standard therapy consists of platinum-based combination chemotherapy, thoracic irradiation, and

Testicular cancer is a highly curable cancer. However, 30% of patients are refractory to standard therapy and will need additional therapy. This article focuses on the use of high-dose chemotherapy in germ-cell tumors.

TOKYO-Weekly paclitaxel (Tax-ol) and carboplatin (Paraplatin) is an effective and well-tolerated second-line therapy in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who failed first-line therapy with the same agents, Mark A. Socinski, MD, said at the 9th World Conference on Lung Cancer. Dr. Socinski is director of the Multidisciplinary Thoracic Oncology Program, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

NASHVILLE, Tennessee-Irinotecan (Camptosar) combined with radiation therapy is active in non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and is most effective when the chemotherapy and radiation therapy are given concurrently, Hak Choy, MD, reported at a clinical investigators’ workshop sponsored by the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and Pharmacia Oncology. Dr. Choy is Professor and Vice Chairman of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the Vanderbilt Cancer Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

OSAKA, Japan-Irinotecan/cisplatin combination therapy improved survival compared to etoposide/cisplatin in extensive-stage small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), Masahiro Fukuoka, MD, reported at an investigators’ workshop sponsored by the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and Pharmacia Oncology. Two-year survival in the Japan Clinical Oncology Group (JCOG)-9511 study was 19% with irinotecan/cisplatin vs 9% with etoposide/cisplatin, according to Dr. Fukuoka, who is professor of the 4th Department of Internal Medicine at Kinki University School of Medicine in Osaka, Japan.

In medically suitable patients with stage III (locally advanced) non–small-cell lung cancer, the use of cisplatin (Platinol)-based chemotherapy as induction therapy prior to definitive local therapy has been shown to improve survival (J Natl Cancer Inst 86:673-680, 1994; Ann Intern Med 125:723-729, 1996). This is true regardless of whether the local treatment modality used is surgery or thoracic irradiation. However, because cisplatin therapy is particularly toxic, there is interest in studying other agents in the induction setting. Given its activity in non–small-cell lung cancer, docetaxel (Taxotere) is one logical agent to investigate.

We previously reported the efficacy of concurrent cisplatin (Platinol)/etoposide (PE) and radiotherapy in stage IIIB non–small-cell lung cancer in which biopsy confirmation of T4 (noneffusion) or N3 status was required (S9019). In view of the activity of docetaxel (Taxotere) as second-line therapy and potential molecular mechanisms of action favoring taxane sequencing, we designed the present study to maintain a core of concurrent PE/radiotherapy, but to substitute docetaxel consolidation for the two additional cycles of PE.

One hundred centers from Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and South America participated in a non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) study with broad inclusion criteria (first and second line) to establish the toxicity and efficacy profile of docetaxel (Taxotere) at 100 mg/m² in worldwide clinical practice.

NEW ORLEANS-Topotecan (Hycamtin) after standard therapy with etoposide/cisplatin (Platinol) improved progression-free survival but failed to improve overall survival in extensive-disease small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) when compared to observation, according to a randomized phase III trial presented at the 36th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).

HERAKLION, Greece-A multicenter randomized phase III study comparing paclitaxel (Taxol)/etoposide/cisplatin (Platinol) (TEP) with standard-therapy etoposide/cisplatin (EP) in patients with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) was stopped prematurely due to a 13% toxic death rate, according to a report given at the 36th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).

KANAGAWA, Japan-According to the results of a randomized, multicenter phase III trial, irinotecan (Camptosar) plus cisplatin (Platinol) was associated with a highly significant improvement in survival, with less myelosuppression, in patients with extensive-disease small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), compared with the standard therapy of etoposide/cisplatin. The findings were presented at the 36th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).

BETHESDA, Md-The addition of interleukin-2 (IL-2) to standard anti-retroviral therapy significantly improved CD4 cell response in HIV-infected patients, reported Richard T. Davey Jr, MD, of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

PHILADELPHIA-Fit, elderly patients with non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) can handle platinum-based therapy as well as younger patients, according to a secondary analysis of data from Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) study 5592. Corey Langer, MD, of Fox Chase Cancer Center, presented the analysis at the ASCO annual meeting.

A number of randomized clinical trials and meta-analyses now support the conclusion that combined modality regimens that include cisplatin (Platinol)-based chemotherapy improve survival in stage III non–small-cell lung

HOUSTON-Improved survival with a very favorable toxicity profile resulted from using weekly single-agent paclitaxel (Taxol) 80 mg/m² in patients with advanced non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who failed first-line therapy with paclitaxel/carboplatin (Paraplatin).

ASCO-Cytoreductive nephrectomy prior to interferon-alfa-2b (Intron A) therapy increased survival by 50% in patients with previously untreated metastatic renal cell cancer, compared with interferon alone, Robert Flanigan, MD, reported at the plenary session of the 36th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in New Orleans.

CHAPEL HILL, NC-In the treatment of non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), combination chemotherapy with paclitaxel (Taxol) and carboplatin (Paraplatin) given before and during radiation therapy may double survival time over that seen with radiation alone.

Because the majority of patients with stage IIIA N2 non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) ultimately die of distant metastases, recent efforts to improve their intermediate- and long-term survival have focused on neoadjuvant

DAVIS, Calif-“Unprecedented” survival times for patients with stage IIIB non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have resulted from adding taxane sequencing to combined-modality therapy with radiotherapy plus cisplatin (Platinol) and etoposide. These results from the Southwestern Oncology Group (SWOG) 9504 trial were presented at the ASCO meeting by David R. Gandara, MD, of the University of California Cancer Center, Davis.

ROCKVILLE, Md-Stung by the failure of several researchers to fully comply with federal gene therapy rules and reporting procedures, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have taken a series of steps to tighten the control and monitoring of such trials.

NEW ORLEANS-Encouraging results have emerged for a gene therapy approach that stimulates a T cell response in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). William G. Wierda, MD, of the Human Gene Therapy Program at the University of San Diego School of Medicine, presented the results at the 41st annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH).

Most patients with advanced-stage follicular non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) are not cured with conventional therapy. The use of high-dose therapy and autologous stem-cell transplantation in patients with relapsed follicular