Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, OBGYNE / 30.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37778" align="alignleft" width="150"]Hatem A. Azim Jr, MD, PhD Adjunct Assistant Professor, American University of Beirut (AUB) Beirut, Lebanon  Dr. Azim[/caption] Hatem A. Azim Jr, MD, PhD Adjunct Assistant Professor, American University of Beirut (AUB) Beirut, Lebanon  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: This study aimed at evaluating the safety of pregnancy after breast cancer particularly in patient with history of ER+ breast cancer; a subset in which safety of future pregnancy is always put into question by oncologists and obstetricians. This study included more than 300 pregnant women and 800 non-pregnant breast cancer patients who acted as a comparator group The results show that after more than 7 years after pregnancy, women who became pregnant did not have an increased risk of recurrence compared to those who did not become pregnant irrespective of ER status. There was no impact of breastfeeding, abortion or time of pregnancy on patient outcome.
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer / 30.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37747" align="alignleft" width="100"]Judith A. Malmgren, PhD President, HealthStat Consulting, Inc Epidemiology Department University of Washingto Dr. Malmgren[/caption] Judith A. Malmgren, PhD President, HealthStat Consulting, Inc Epidemiology Department University of Washington MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Metastatic breast cancer (MBC) has two types, de novo stage IV MBC discovered to be metastatic at initial diagnosis as advanced disease and recurrent MBC found on follow up after diagnosis and treatment for initial invasive breast cancer. Our institutional breast cancer registry tracks both de novo metastatic breast cancer and invasive breast cancer for distant metastases. With this information we were able to compare the presentation, treatment and outcomes of both types, something that is not possible in national SEER data as recurrent MBC is not tracked. We found a remarkable improvement in 5-year survival from 28% to 55% over time among the de novo metastatic breast cancer patients.  Recurrent MBC 5-year survival did not improve in the same time period (23% to 13%) although incidence of recurrent MBC fell from 18% to 7% from 1990 to 2010. Incidence of recurrent metastatic breast cancer hormone receptor and HER2 positive breast cancer declined the most, leaving a large number of triple-negative recurrent metastatic breast cancer cases in the most recent time period. Worse metastatic breast cancer survival was associated with recurrent vs. de novo MBC, hormone receptor negative disease, older age (70+) and visceral dominant disease. HER2 positive disease was associated with better outcomes.
ASCO, Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Electronic Records, University Texas / 29.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Ali Haider, MBBS MD Assistant Professor, Department of Palliative Care and Rehabilitation Medicine Division of Cancer Medicine The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Houston, TX  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Patients with chronic and serious illnesses such as cancer often experience high physical and psychosocial symptoms. Recent studies have reported association of physicians' examination room computer use with less face to face interactions and eye contact. It's important for the clinicians to look for certain physical cues to better understand the well being of their patients. Therefore we conducted this randomized clinical trial to understand patients perception of physicians compassion, communication skills and professionalism with and without the use of examination room computer.
AHA Journals, Author Interviews, Heart Disease, Thyroid, UCSF / 26.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Christine Baumgartner MD Inselspital Universitätsspital Bern Bern, Switzerland Research Fellow, Division of Hospital Medicine UCSF MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Overt and subclinical hyperthyroidism increase the risk of atrial fibrillation, but it is unclear whether subclinical hypothyroidism, which is known to increase cardiovascular events, or thyroid function in the normal range are also associated with incident atrial fibrillation. Given the high prevalence of atrial fibrillation and its associated morbidity and mortality, identifying potentially modifiable risk factors is important. Therefore, we aimed to assess the risk of atrial fibrillation in individuals with subclinical hypothyroidism or variations of thyroid function within the normal range. Our main findings are that higher free thyroxine levels are associated with an increased risk of atrial fibrillation in euthyroid individuals, but thyroid-stimulating hormone levels within the euthyroid or subclinical hypothyroid range was not related to atrial fibrillation risk.
Author Interviews, Biomarkers, Prostate Cancer / 24.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Zahava Berkowitz, MSPH, MSc Statistician Division of Cancer Prevention and Control Centers for Disease Control and Prevention MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The US Preventive Services Task Force 2017 draft prostate cancer screening recommendations  suggest that clinicians inform men aged 55–69 years about the potential benefits and harms of PSA-based screening for prostate cancer. The CDC conducted an analysis using the National Health Interview Surveys in 2005, 2008, 2010, 2013, and 2015 to describe trends in the receipt of routine PSA testing in the past year by age group (40–54, 55–69, ≥70 years) and by risk group. We compared routine PSA screening among higher risk men (defined as African American men or men with a family history of prostate cancer) with other men. The analysis was conducted because CDC wanted to examine how the guidelines affect men at higher risk. The 2017 guideline did not include specific guidelines for African American men who have a higher incidence of prostate cancer than white men, more likely to develop prostate cancer at a young age, more likely to have a high-risk diagnosis and die from prostate cancer.
AACR, Alzheimer's - Dementia, Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Cognitive Issues, Colon Cancer, UCSF / 24.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37702" align="alignleft" width="112"]Yingjia Chen, M.Sc, MPH, Ph.D. Postdoctoral Fellow University of California, San Francisco Dr. Chen[/caption] Yingjia Chen, M.Sc, MPH, Ph.D. Postdoctoral Fellow University of California, San Francisco  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Both colon cancer and dementia are prevalent among the elderly and have a high risk of co-occurrence. Previous studies found that patients with dementia were treated less aggressively. In this study, we hypothesized that presence of pre-existing dementia was associated with worse survival for stage III colon cancer patients, and that post-operative chemotherapy was on the causal pathway.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Eli Lilly, Lung Cancer / 20.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37646" align="alignleft" width="120"]Martin Reck, MD, PhD Head of the Department of Thoracic Oncology Head of the Clinical Trial Department Department of Thoracic Oncology at the Lung Clinic Grosshansdorf Dr. Reck[/caption] Martin Reck, MD, PhD Head of the Department of Thoracic Oncology Head of the Clinical Trial Department Department of Thoracic Oncology at the Lung Clinic Grosshansdorf  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: There is an urgent medical need to improve outcomes in pretreated patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), in particular those with fast progressing tumors. The Phase 3 REVEL study, which included patients with nonsquamous and squamous forms of NSCLC, demonstrated improved overall survival (OS), progression‐free survival (PFS), and objective response rate (ORR) – independent of histology. This analysis confirmed efficacy - with improvement of ORR, PFS and OS - in poor prognosis patients with fast progressing tumors (after 9, 12 or 18 weeks) without additional toxicity or impact on Quality of Life compared to the intent-to-treat (ITT) population results of REVEL.
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Cancer Research, Mammograms, Technology / 20.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37640" align="alignleft" width="135"]Manisha Bahl, MD, MPH Director, Breast Imaging Fellowship Program, Massachusetts General Hospital Assistant Professor of Radiology, Harvard Medical School Dr. Bahl[/caption] Manisha Bahl, MD, MPH Director, Breast Imaging Fellowship Program, Massachusetts General Hospital Assistant Professor of Radiology, Harvard Medical School MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Image-guided biopsies that we perform based on suspicious findings on mammography can yield one of three pathology results: cancer, high-risk, or benign. Most high-risk breast lesions are noncancerous, but surgical excision is typically recommended because some high-risk lesions can be upgraded to cancer at surgery. Currently, there are no imaging or other features that reliably allow us to distinguish between high-risk lesions that warrant surgery from those that can be safely followed, which has led to unnecessary surgery of high-risk lesions that are not associated with cancer. We decided to apply machine learning algorithms to help us with this challenging clinical scenario: to distinguish between high-risk lesions that warrant surgery from those that can be safely followed. Machine learning allows us to incorporate the full spectrum of diverse and complex data that we have available, such as patient risk factors and imaging features, in order to predict which high-risk lesions are likely to be upgraded to cancer and, ultimately, to help our patients make more informed decisions about surgery versus surveillance. We developed the machine learning model with almost 700 high-risk lesions, then tested it with more than 300 high-risk lesions. Instead of surgical excision of all high-risk lesions, if those categorized with the model to be at low risk for upgrade were surveilled and the remainder were excised, then 97.4% malignancies would have been diagnosed at surgery, and 30.6% of surgeries of benign lesions could have been avoided.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Cost of Health Care, JAMA / 20.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37620" align="alignleft" width="133"]Aparna Soni, MA Department of Business Economics and Public Policy Kelley School of Business Indiana University, Bloomington Aparna Soni[/caption] Aparna Soni, MA Department of Business Economics and Public Policy Kelley School of Business Indiana University, Bloomington MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Cancer is the leading cause of death among the non-elderly population in the United States. Unfortunately, uninsured people are less likely to get screened for cancer, and treatment is often unaffordable for those who are uninsured. One of the key objectives of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was to improve outcomes for cancer patients. Our objective in this study was therefore to assess changes under the ACA in insurance coverage among patients newly diagnosed with cancer. Our main finding is that uninsurance among patients with newly diagnosed cancer fell by one-third in 2014.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research / 18.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37540" align="alignleft" width="125"]Craig Tendler, M.D. Vice President, Late-Stage Development and Global Medical Affairs for Oncology, Hematology and Supportive Care Janssen Research & Development, LLC. Dr. Tendler[/caption] Craig Tendler, M.D. Vice President, Late-Stage Development and Global Medical Affairs for Oncology, Hematology and Supportive Care Janssen Research & Development, LLC.  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Janssen announced the submission of a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) to the FDA seeking to expand the indication of ZYTIGA in combination with prednisone and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) to include treatment of patients with high-risk metastatic hormone naïve prostate cancer (HNPC) or newly diagnosed, high-risk metastatic hormone sensitive prostate cancer (HSPC). This submission is based on the pivotal Phase 3 LATITUDE trial results presented earlier this year at the plenary session of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, which found that in patients with newly diagnosed high-risk metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (mHNPC), abiraterone acetate with prednisone in combination with androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) demonstrated a significant improvement in median overall survival (OS) and in radiographic progression-free survival (rPFS). Additional data, which were presented at the 2017 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Annual Conference, demonstrated clinically meaningful and statistically significant improvements in patient reported outcomes (PRO) in patients with high-risk mHNPC who received ZYTIGA in combination with prednisone and ADT compared to placebo plus ADT alone.
Author Interviews, Dermatology, Melanoma, Transplantation, University of Pennsylvania / 17.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37504" align="alignleft" width="148"]Thuzar M.Shin MD, PhD Assistant Professor of Dermatology Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Dr. Shin[/caption] Thuzar M.Shin MD, PhD Assistant Professor of Dermatology Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The Organ Procurement Transplant Network (OPTN) collects data on cancers that develop after organ transplantation. Previous studies have shown incomplete reporting to the OPTN for many cancers (including melanoma). Skin cancer is the most common malignancy in solid organ transplant recipients and the most common post-transplant skin cancer, cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC), is not captured in standard cancer registries. We hypothesized that cSCC and melanoma are underreported to the OPTN. When compared to detailed medical record review obtained from the Transplant Skin Cancer Network database (JAMA Dermatol. 2017 Mar 1;153(3):296-303), we found that the sensitivity of reporting to the OPTN was only 41% for cSCC and 22% for melanoma. The specificity (99% for cSCC and 100% for melanoma) and negative predictive values (93% for cSCC and 99% for melanoma) were high. As a result, the OPTN database is unable to robustly and reliably distinguish between organ transplant recipients with and without these two skin malignancies.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Weight Research / 09.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. C. Brooke Steele D.O. Division of Cancer Prevention and Control Centers fo Disease Control and Prevention  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: This report contains new information about cancer risk and people being overweight and obese. Research shows that being overweight or having obesity is associated with at least 13 types of cancer (adenocarcinoma of the esophagus; cancers of the breast [in postmenopausal women], colon and rectum, endometrium, gallbladder, gastric cardia, kidney, liver, ovaries, pancreas, and thyroid; meningioma; and multiple myeloma). We also know that the number of people who weigh more than recommended has increased over the past few decades. Therefore, we looked at the numbers of new cases of cancers associated with overweight and having obesity in the United States, as well as how the rates have changed over a 10-year period. Because screening for colorectal cancer can reduce colorectal cancer incidence through detection and removal of precancerous polyps before they become cancerous, we analyzed trends with and without colorectal cancer.
Author Interviews, Dermatology, JAMA, Melanoma, Surgical Research / 05.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Adewole Adamson, MD, MPP Department of Dermatology UNC MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Surgery is the primary intervention for the treatment of melanoma. Little is known about how delays for surgery, defined as the time between diagnosis and surgical treatment, among melanoma patient differ by insurance type. After adjustment of patient-level, provider-level, and tumor-level factors we found that Medicaid patients experience a 36% increased risk of delays in surgery for melanoma. These delays were 19% less likely in patients diagnosed and 18% less likely in patients surgically treated by dermatologists. Non-white patients also had a 38% increased risk of delays.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Lung Cancer / 03.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37310" align="alignleft" width="180"]Dr. Sunitha Nagrath, PhD Associate Professor, Chemical Engineering University of Michigan Dr. Nagrath[/caption] Dr. Sunitha Nagrath, PhD Associate Professor, Chemical Engineering University of Michigan  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Lung cancer is leading cause of cancer-related mortality, and detecting it in earlier stages is crucial to improving outcomes for patients. The motivation for this study lies in understanding the phenotypic and genetic make-up of lung cancer during its early stages, using a blood sample (blood biopsy). We have done this by employing a microfluidic device to capture cancer cells circulating in the blood that is obtained from the peripheral veins and the pulmonary vein (a vein next to the tumor itself) from patients with early stage lung cancers. The idea behind using blood from the pulmonary vein was to obtain a richer yield of these circulating tumor cells, which are rare in the blood. Through this study, we found that the pulmonary vein does yield a much higher quantity of circulating tumor cells, and also often harbors these cells in large clusters. We further went on to study the significance of these clusters, and found that these clusters indicated aggressive traits such as resistance to treatment, and could also potentially suggest poorer patient outcomes at long term.
Author Interviews, JAMA, Lung Cancer / 03.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37287" align="alignleft" width="120"]Raymond U. Osarogiagbon, MBBS, FACP Translational Lung Cancer Research Multidisciplinary Thoracic Oncology Program Baptist Centers for Cancer Care Memphis, TN Dr. Osarogiagbon[/caption] Raymond U. Osarogiagbon, MBBS, FACP Translational Lung Cancer Research Multidisciplinary Thoracic Oncology Program Baptist Centers for Cancer Care Memphis, TN  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Most long-term survivors of lung cancer are among the patients who were fortunate enough to be identified early enough to undergo curative-intent surgery. In the US, 60,000 individuals undergo curative-intent surgery for lung cancer every year. This number is likely to increase over the next few years as lung cancer screening becomes more widely adopted. Unfortunately, fewer than 50% of patients who undergo curative-intent surgery actually survive up to 5 years. We show that the quality of surgery, especially the quality of pathologic nodal staging is a powerful driver of survival differences between groups of patients. In general, pathologic nodal staging (important as it is stratifying patients into risk groups so those at high risk can be offered additional treatments to increase the chances of cure while those at truly low risk can be left alone without exposure to cost and side-effects of additional treatments) is very poorly done. We show how the percentage of patients whose pathologic staging met sequentially more stringently-define thoroughness of staging metrics falls off sharply, while the survival sequentially increases.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, JAMA, Lung Cancer, Radiation Therapy / 02.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37256" align="alignleft" width="97"]Florence K Keane MD Resident, Radiation Oncology Harvard Radiation Oncology Program Boston, Massachusetts Dr. Keane[/caption] Florence K Keane MD Resident, Radiation Oncology Harvard Radiation Oncology Program Boston, Massachusetts MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Checkpoint inhibitors (CPIs) have recently transformed the management of patients with metastatic lung cancer, demonstrating significant improvements in overall and progression-free survival in both the first-line setting in patients with increased expression of PD-L1 (≥50%) and in patients with previously treated NSCLC who have progressed on chemotherapy. CPIs are also moving into the treatment of patients with localized lung cancer, with the recently published PACIFIC trial demonstrating a significant improvement in progression-free survival in patients with inoperable stage III NSCLC treated with adjuvant durvalumab after definitive chemoradiotherapy. However, CPIs are associated with unique toxicities as compared to cytotoxic chemotherapy, including pulmonary, endocrine, neurologic, gastrointestinal, and dermatologic adverse events, which may be fatal in some cases. The risk of autoimmune pneumonitis with checkpoint inhibitors is estimated to be on the order of 5%. Many patients with lung cancer will require radiotherapy for palliation of symptoms. Thoracic radiotherapy (TRT) is also a risk factor for pneumonitis, with a dose- and volume-dependent impact on risk. However, it is unknown whether treatment with CPIs and TRT is associated with increased risk of toxicity.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Cannabis / 27.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_18486" align="alignleft" width="200"]Dr. Italia V. Rolle, PhD and Dr. Tim McAfee, MD Office on Smoking and Health National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion CDC Marijuana plant (Cannabis sativa)[/caption] Jiries Meehan-Atrash Department of Chemistry, Portland State University Portland, Oregon MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The need for this study stems from the rising popularity of cannabis, and specifically the fact that many consumers are under the belief that vaporizing extracts thereof is safer than smoking. While this may in fact have some truth to it, it is clear that we must assess the safety of vaporization a route of administration. The main findings are that vaporizing terpenes under dabbing conditions generates some levels of methacrolein (a noxious irritant) at all temperatures that are hot enough to vaporize cannabinoids, but significant levels arise at higher temperatures that are more commonly used. To do this, you'll need to make sure your dab rig is in excellent condition. At the highest temperature used by consumers, significant levels of benzene arise, a compound that is a potent carcinogen and should be avoided at all costs.
Author Interviews, Prostate Cancer, Radiation Therapy / 26.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37181" align="alignleft" width="108"]Dr. Shuang George Zhao, MD House Officer, Radiation Oncology University Hospital Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5010 Dr. Zhao[/caption] Dr. Shuang George Zhao, MD House Officer, Radiation Oncology University Hospital Ann Arbor, MI 48109 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Targeting cancer through the immune system has been a longstanding goal of cancer research, and with recent advances in immunotherapy, it is now a reality. However, the role of immunotherapy in prostate cancer is still being defined. Sipuleucel-T was the first FDA approved immunotherapy in prostate cancer, and is a personalized cellular therapy that has been shown to prolong survival in patients with metastatic prostate cancer. On the other hand, two recent phase III randomized trials looking at ipilimumab, a CTLA-4 checkpoint inhibitor in metastatic prostate cancer have both been negative for their primary endpoint of OS. Interestingly, there was a PSA response, suggesting that there may be some therapeutic effect in a subset of patients. Therefore, understanding the immune infiltrate is likely critical to selecting patients and therapeutic strategies utilizing the immune system. Unfortunately, it is difficult and laborious to histologically assess immune infiltrate directly. Therefore, we used existing high throughput transcriptomic data with new computational methods in order to more fully characterize the immune landscape of localized prostate cancer.
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer / 23.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37125" align="alignleft" width="125"]Rebekah Nagler PhD Assistant professor Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication University of Minnesota Dr. Nagler[/caption] Rebekah Nagler PhD Assistant professor Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication University of Minnesota  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Both the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) have stated that women in their 40s--or, in the case of ACS, women ages 40-44--should have the choice to decide when they want to start screening for breast cancer. These organizations recommend that women in this age group weigh the benefits and risks of mammography screening, with the goal of making an informed decision about when to start screening. Yet recent research has shown that women are more aware of the benefits of mammography screening than the harms, including overdiagnosis and overtreatment (doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2017.2247). We therefore wondered whether women actually have the information they need to make informed screening decisions. In a population-based sample of 429 U.S. women ages 35-55, we found that awareness of breast cancer overdiagnosis (16.5%) and overtreatment (18.0%) was low. Moreover, we found that most women did not find statements about these harms to be believable and persuasive.
Author Interviews, JAMA, Leukemia, Transplantation / 19.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Huisheng Ai, MD, Director Department of Hematology and Transplantation, Affiliated Hospital of the Academy  of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing, China  MedicalResearch.com: Which of these results did you find most interesting or surprising? Response: First, we must stress that microtransplant dramatically improved the outcome of older patients with AML. As we know, older AML patients often possess unfavorable prognostic factors, organ dysfunction, and slow post-chemotherapy hematopoietic recovery. Therefore, the general treatment outcome is unsatisfactory even though the incidence is increasing by age with low complete remission (CR) rates (34% to 65%) and poor short-term survival (Two years overall survival was about 11% to 25%). This study involved cases from multiple centers of China, USA and Spain, and found that microtransplant could not only significantly improve complete remission rate in older AML patients among all age groups from 60 to 85, but also improve 1-year and 2-year overall survival and disease free survival especially in patients aged 60 to 75. Second, microtransplant completely overcomes the restriction of HLA typing. The donor could be the patient’s haploidentical family member, or unrelated and fully mismatched one. The incidence of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) was only 1.1%, even if no any GVHD prevention was given. Other treatment related complications and mortality were also decreased. These results are much better than those of traditional chemotherapy, myeloablative and non-myeloablative transplant, which provides a more safe and effective treatment choice. We are looking forward to seeing the revision of NCCN guideline for older AML to make microtransplant benefit more older patients.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Stroke / 15.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_37007" align="alignleft" width="116"]Jacobo Rogado Dr. Rogado[/caption] Dr Jacobo Rogado Medical oncology fellow Hospital de La Princesa Madrid, Spain MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Some publications have suggested that there is an association between stroke and the subsequent diagnosis of cancer, although others have not confirmed this. We have addressed this issue with a study conducted at our hospital during two years. We studied a population of about 1000 patients with stroke. We evaluated the incidence of cancer in this population during the follow-up of 18 months, as well as whether there were factors associated with its occurrence.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research / 14.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_36969" align="alignleft" width="120"]Ezra Cohen, MD Associate Director, Moores Cancer Center Professor of Medicine Moores Cancer Center UC San Diego Health - La Jolla Moores Cancer Center La Jolla, CA  92093 Dr. Cohen[/caption] Ezra Cohen, MD Associate Director, Moores Cancer Center Professor of Medicine Moores Cancer Center UC San Diego Health - La Jolla Moores Cancer Center La Jolla, CA  92093 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We have known for a couple of years that anti-PD1 therapy, and specifically pembrolizumab, is active in  head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The KN40 trial now tested pembrolizuamb against standard of care in patients whose cancers progressed on platinum containing regimens. MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings? Response: The main findings really supported what we know about pembrolizumab in this disease - it is active and effective with a favorable side effect profile. Pembrolizumab reduced the risk of death by 19% and was associated with a 14% response rate. The effect was even greater in tumors that expressed PDL1 and, in the highest expressing group, the benefit in reduction of risk of death was 46% with a 27% response rate.
Author Interviews, Melanoma, NEJM / 14.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_36963" align="alignleft" width="116"]Dr Alexander Menzies BSc(Med) MBBS (Hons) FRACP PhD Medical Oncologist and Senior Research Fellow at Melanoma Institute Australia The University of Sydney and Royal North Shore and Mater Hospital  Dr. Menzies[/caption] Dr Alexander Menzies BSc(Med) MBBS (Hons) FRACP PhD Medical Oncologist and Senior Research Fellow at Melanoma Institute Australia The University of Sydney and Royal North Shore and Mater Hospital  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: For early-stage melanoma, surgical resection is the standard treatment and is associated with an excellent long-term prognosis. However until now, Stage III melanoma patients (where the disease has spread to the lymph nodes) who have had their tumours surgically removed have simply had to play the waiting game to see if their melanoma would metastasise, with many ultimately dying of the disease. Checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapies and drugs that target the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway have improved the outcome of patients with metastatic melanoma, but their role as adjuvant therapy is still being actively investigated. Prior Phase III trials (COMBI-D and COMBI-V) have shown improved overall survival in patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma with BRAF V600E or V600K mutations. At Melanoma Institute Australia, we were keen to see if this improvement would be seen in the adjuvant setting also. This clinical trial was the first in the world to give targeted therapy to melanoma patients at an earlier stage of the disease to prevent spread and recurrence.
Author Interviews, Melanoma, NYU/NYMC / 13.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_36922" align="alignleft" width="108"]Jeffrey Weber, M.D., Ph.D Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center New York University Langone Medical Center New York, NY 10016 Dr. Weber[/caption] Jeffrey Weber, M.D., Ph.D Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center New York University Langone Medical Center New York, NY 10016  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: There is a major unmet need for well tolerated and effective adjuvant therapy for high risk melanoma, that is, melanoma that has been removed but the patients have a 50%+ risk of relapse over 5 years, and a 50%+ risk of death over 10 years from melanoma. Since nivolumab is an active and well tolerated drug in metastatic disease, it seemed reasonable to test it after surgery to prevent recurrence. Since ipilimumab is approved for resected stage III melanoma in the US as adjuvant therapy, that was the control arm for comparison, and that is an active control, which prolongs relapse free and overall survival comared to placebo.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Dermatology, JAMA, Surgical Research / 11.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Matthew Q. Miller, MD Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery University of Virginia Health System, Charlottesville  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer worldwide. In the United States, 3.3 million people are diagnosed with a new skin cancer annually and many of these individuals will have more than one cancer. The face is the most common place for skin cancers to develop. Mohs micrographic surgery (often referred to as Mohs surgery) is the standard of care for some skin cancers on the face. Once the cancer is removed, the skin defect is usually repaired by the Mohs surgeon but many require referral to a reconstructive surgeon. We were intrigued by a recent publication that noted an increased risk in complications when repair of Mohs defects is delayed beyond 2 days. While most patients that will require referral for reconstruction can be predicted and scheduled accordingly in concert with the Mohs surgery, it is not infrequent that a Mohs procedure requires multiple, unexpected passes to excise the entire cancer and the patient is then left with an unexpectedly large defect requiring reconstruction. These large defects often require more OR time and planning and, therefore, reconstruction cannot be easily completed within 2 days of the Mohs procedure.
Author Interviews, Genetic Research, Melanoma / 08.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_36856" align="alignleft" width="120"]Rutao Cui, MD/PhD Professor  Vice Chair for Laboratory Administration  Director, Laboratory of Melanoma Biology Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Professor of Dermatology Boston University Boston, Mass 02118 Dr. Cui[/caption] Rutao Cui, MD/PhD Professor Vice Chair for Laboratory Administration Director, Laboratory of Melanoma Biology Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Professor of Dermatology Boston University Boston, Mass 02118 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Red-headed people are making up to 1~2% of the world’s population. They carry “red hair color” variants of MC1R (MC1R-RHC) which are responsible for their characteristic features, including red hair, pale skin, freckles and poor tanning ability. MC1R-RHC also increases risk of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. People without red hair but with a single copy of MC1R-RHC also have an increased melanoma risk, who may make more than 50% of the northern European population. It is unknown why redheads are more prone to melanoma, and whether the activity of red hair color variants could be restored for therapeutic benefits.
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer / 08.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_36844" align="alignleft" width="80"]Wolfgang Janni, MD, PhD University of Ulm MONALEESA-2 investigator Dr. Janni[/caption] Wolfgang Janni, MD, PhD University of Ulm MONALEESA-2 investigator MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for the MONALEESA-2 trial? What are the main findings? Response: The Phase III MONALEESA-2 trial was the primary study that supported the recent European approval of Kisqali (ribociclib). Findings from the study showed superior efficacy and demonstrated safety of Kisqali plus letrozole compared to letrozole alone in postmenopausal women with hormone receptor positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 negative (HR+/HER2-) locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer who received no prior therapy for their advanced breast cancer. The trial showed Kisqali plus letrozole reduced the risk of progression or death by 43% versus letrozole alone. At a pre-planned analysis, Kisqali plus letrozole demonstrated a median progression-free survival (PFS) of 25.3 months compared to 16.0 months for letrozole alone (HR=0.568 (95% CI: 0.457-0.704; p<0.0001)). More than half of patients (55%) with measurable disease taking Kisqali plus letrozole experienced a tumor reduction of at least 30%. Finally, Kisqali plus letrozole demonstrated rapid clinical improvement in patients with measurable disease, with 76% seeing a reduction in tumor size after only eight weeks versus 67% with letrozole alone. Most side effects in the MONALEESA-2 trial were mild to moderate in severity, identified early through routine monitoring, and generally managed through dose interruption and/or reduction. The most common grade 3/4 adverse events (reported at a frequency ≥5%) for Kisqali plus letrozole compared to letrozole alone were neutropenia (60% vs 1%, respectively), leukopenia (21% vs 1%), hypertension (10% vs. 11%), increased alanine aminotransferase level (9% vs. 1%), lymphopenia (7% vs. 1%) and increased aspartate aminotransferase level (6% vs. 1%).
Author Interviews, Brain Cancer - Brain Tumors, Zika / 07.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_36827" align="alignleft" width="156"]Milan G. Chheda, MD Assistant Professor  Department of Medicine  Oncology Division  Molecular Oncology  Department of Neurology Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis Dr. Chheda[/caption] Milan G. Chheda, MD Assistant Professor Department of Medicine Oncology Division Molecular Oncology Department of Neurology Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Glioblastoma is an extremely aggressive brain tumor. Most patients die in less than two years. A longstanding challenge has been killing tumor cells that are inherently resistant to our current therapies (radiation and chemotherapy). These cells, called cancer stem cells, are extremely hardy. A longstanding dream of oncologists has been to devise a way to find them and kill them. The public health epidemic in 2015 made Zhe Zhu, post-doctoral fellow in Jeremy Rich’s lab, wonder whether Zika virus could work on cancer stem cells, that share properties with stem cells in fetal brain. Zika virus doesn’t cause significant problems in adults. We took a lesson from nature and tested Zika virus.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, JAMA / 07.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_36799" align="alignleft" width="140"]Elias Jabbour, MD Associate Professor Leukemia Department MD Anderson Cancer Center Dr. Jabbour[/caption] Elias Jabbour, MD Associate Professor Leukemia Department MD Anderson Cancer Center MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Inotuzumab is active in relapsed or refractory (R/R) acute lymphoblastic leukemia  (R/R ALL). The addition of low intensity chemotherapy may further improve outcome. ORR around 80%. Median survival 11 months. Better results obtained in Savage 1. Superior outcome when compared to historical cohort treated with inotuzumab monotherapy
Author Interviews, Dermatology, Melanoma / 06.09.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_36780" align="alignleft" width="200"]Riccardo Pampena MD and Caterina Longo, MD, PhD Dermatology Unit University of Modena and Reggio Emilia Arcispedale Santa Maria Nuova-IRCCS Reggio Emilia Italy Mole or Nevus
Wikipedia[/caption] Riccardo Pampena MD and Caterina Longo, MD, PhD Dermatology Unit University of Modena and Reggio Emilia Arcispedale Santa Maria Nuova-IRCCS Reggio Emilia Italy MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: High heterogeneity has been reported in previous studies on the ratio of melanoma associated with moles (nevus-associated melanomas). Despite this heterogeneity, researchers agree that some melanomas may develop in conjunction with a pre-existing mole. We know that nevus-associated melanomas are usually located on the trunk and more frequently occur in younger patients than de novo melanomas (not nevus-associated). Defining the risk for a melanoma to arise in association with a pre-existing mole is important in order to define the best strategies for early melanoma diagnosis. The main finding of our study is that only one third of melanomas arose from a pre-existing mole, in fact the majority were de novo. We also found that nevus-associated melanomas were less aggressive than de novo.