Cancer
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Serum epidermal growth factor receptor/HER-2 predicts poor survival in patients with metastatic breast cancer.
Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR, HER-1, and erbB1) is overexpressed in primary breast cancer and had been identified as a poor prognostic factor. ⋯ In patients who had metastatic breast cancer, decreased serum EGFR/normal serum HER-2 predicted shorter survival compared with patients who had normal levels of serum EGFR/HER-2. This patient subgroup deserves further study to assess their response to and selection for anti-EGFR-directed therapies.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Quality-of-life and health benefits of early treatment of mild anemia: a randomized trial of epoetin alfa in patients receiving chemotherapy for hematologic malignancies.
Chemotherapy-related anemia is prevalent among patients with hematologic malignancies. A randomized, open-label, multicenter trial of early versus late epoetin alfa in this population was conducted, focusing on quality of life (QOL). ⋯ Treating mild anemia immediately with epoetin alfa during chemotherapy for hematologic malignancy significantly improved QOL, productivity, and hemoglobin compared with delaying treatment until the hemoglobin level decreases to < 9.0 g/dL.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
A randomized trial to improve early detection and prevention practices among siblings of melanoma patients.
Identifying high-risk individuals for melanoma education and risk reduction may be a viable strategy to curb the incidence of melanoma, which has risen precipitously in the past 50 years. The first-degree relatives of melanoma patients represent a risk group who may experience a 'teachable moment' for enhanced education and risk reduction. ⋯ This study is the one of the first, to our knowledge, to address skin cancer risk-reduction strategies in a sample of individuals who have a recent family diagnosis of melanoma. Diagnosis of melanoma in a family member provides an important opportunity to intervene with others in that family. The components of the intervention may provide a useful foundation for future efforts to target the more than half million siblings at risk for melanoma, a lethal but preventable disease.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Comparison of anastrozole versus tamoxifen as preoperative therapy in postmenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer: the Pre-Operative "Arimidex" Compared to Tamoxifen (PROACT) trial.
The Pre-Operative "Arimidex" Compared to Tamoxifen (PROACT) study was a randomized, multicenter study comparing anastrozole with tamoxifen as a preoperative treatment of postmenopausal women with large, operable (T2/3, N0-2, M0), or potentially operable (T4b, N0-2, M0) breast cancer. The effect of preoperative endocrine therapy in patients scheduled for mastectomy or with inoperable tumors at baseline was also investigated. ⋯ Anastrozole is an effective and well-tolerated preoperative therapy, producing clinically beneficial tumor downstaging and reductions in tumor volume. These effects enable more minimal surgical interventions in patients scheduled for mastectomy, and mastectomy in patients with previously inoperable tumors. Anastrozole appears to be at least as effective as tamoxifen in this setting, and more effective than tamoxifen in certain clinically relevant subgroups. Cancer 2006. (c) 2006 American Cancer Society.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Mature results from a randomized Phase II trial of cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil and radiotherapy with or without tirapazamine in patients with resectable Stage IV head and neck squamous cell carcinomas.
The objective of this article was to report the results from a randomized trial that evaluated the efficacy and toxicity of adding tirapazamine (TPZ) to chemoradiotherapy in the treatment of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC). ⋯ The addition of TPZ increased hematologic toxicity but did not improve outcomes in patients with resectable, Stage IV HNSCC using the protocol administered this small randomized study. The combination of induction and simultaneous chemoradiotherapy resulted in excellent survival in these patients.