Precision Medicine Presents a Disconnect in Oncology Practice
June 16th 2021Multiple FDA approvals and an increasing number of clinical trials examining molecular target–based therapeutics, including second- or even third-generation drugs against a well-defined target, present an ever-widening array of drugs for routine cancer care based on the discovery of specific molecular targets within the tumor or within the germline.
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COVID-19 Vaccination Hesitancy Finds Echo in Cancer Care
June 1st 2021Although the COVID-19 vaccine rollout is unprecedented in speed and scope, the process of postapproval surveillance has been shown to be robust and should serve as a source of reassurance to the public regarding the effectiveness of the initial and follow-up review process.
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Reaching Conclusions From Limited Data Holds Pitfalls
May 13th 2021The challenges of assessing COVID-19 vaccines shows that events in the real world may differ from those of a formal objective scientific analysis, especially in a setting where such evaluations of necessity involve very small numbers.
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Missteps Highlight the Need for Objectivity in Science
April 30th 2021Although the spectacular success associated with the development of several safe and highly efficacious vaccines and therapies for COVID-19 has once again confirmed the remarkable impact of advancements on public and individual health, we must also acknowledge recent stunning examples of the failure of scientifically oriented government agencies to provide objectively valid nonpolitical recommendations, policies, and conclusions.
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Clinical Progress Creates Need for Decision-Support Tools
April 20th 2021The current endorsement of 3 COVID-19 vaccines in the United States, with several additional products pending FDA review, in less than 1 year from the identification of the structure of the COVID-19 virus is simply remarkable.
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Public Health Communication Gaps Extend to Cancer Care
April 6th 2021In the cancer arena, COVID-19 information problems highlight the critical role of clear, honest, and effective communication with the public, patients, and their families regarding the increasing complexity of a multitude of topics related to malignant disease and its management.
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Cancer Staging and Toxicity Framework Should Be Overhauled for the Modern Era
February 8th 2021Formerly, small cell lung cancer was generally considered more chemotherapy sensitive in the short term but also associated with an overall inferior survival outcome; however, the difference in prognosis compared with metastatic non–small cell lung cancer was measured in months—rarely longer.
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Real-World Data Grow Increasingly Relevant in Oncology Practice
January 27th 2021The importance of objectively valid data is well established in clinical medicine. Such data include an accurate recording of a patient’s clinical history; evaluation of signs and symptoms of illness; and measurement of various routine indicators, such as granulocyte and platelet counts, serum glucose, electrolytes, and liver function tests.
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PFS Deserves More Than Surrogate Status as a Clinical Trial End Point
January 20th 2021Although recent benefits do not pertain to all cancers and “cure” remains a relatively uncommon event, oncologists have an increasing number of molecularly targeted and immunotherapeutic strategies to employ based on objectively meaningful clinical trial outcomes.
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Markman: COVID-19 Takes Science on a Roller-Coaster Ride
January 10th 2021In a pandemic, the public and its leaders yearn for relatively simple answers that can lead to solutions and forceful actions such as preventing serious infection and hospitalizations, treating active illness, and developing safe and effective vaccines quickly made available to the public.
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Real-World Impact of Low-Grade AEs Needs a Closer Look
November 18th 2020Although PARP inhibitors are generally reasonably well tolerated, certainly compared with platinum and other routinely employed cytotoxic antineoplastic drugs, the majority of patients receiving PARP inhibitors in multiple reported clinical trials reported low-grade nausea and fatigue.
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HPV Vaccination Is a Battle That Must Be Won
November 2nd 2020Despite solid evidence that human papillomavirus vaccination is remarkably effective in preventing persistent infection by HPV types that are known to be responsible for more than 70% to 80% of cervical cancer cases worldwide, this strategy’s utility in substantially reducing the subsequent development of the malignancy itself remained an open question.
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Complex Clinical Trial Issues Require an Ethical Balancing Act
October 13th 2020The fundamental objectivity of major scientifically oriented public health agencies has been called into question, while the issue of what constitutes sufficient evidence for a therapeutic strategy to be considered “standard” is also being challenged.
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Scramble Over COVID-19 Clinical Trials Holds Lessons for Oncology
September 12th 2020Because it is likely that COVID-19 will be around for a considerable period of time, it is hoped that all involved in the clinical research establishment can view this experience as a process that needs substantial improvement.
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Pandemic Poses a Crucial Moment for Science and the Public Trust
June 2nd 2020At this moment, we should consider what it will take for the scientific community as a collective entity to self-regulate far more forcefully so that the actions of a limited number of its members do not squander the well-deserved awakening of public trust in the entire scientific enterprise.
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Oncology Clinical Trials Should Reflect Molecular Advances, Real-World Patients
May 11th 2020From the earliest moments of medical school instruction, through residency and fellowship training, physicians are taught the primacy of the randomized phase 3 trial in the hierarchy of evidence-based medicine.
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Oncology Clinical Trials Should Reflect Molecular Advances, Real-World Patients
May 11th 2020From the earliest moments of medical school instruction, through residency and fellowship training, physicians are taught the primacy of the randomized phase 3 trial in the hierarchy of evidence-based medicine.
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COVID-19 Pandemic Exposes Faults in System, But May Prompt Advances in Telehealth and Research
April 21st 2020What was simply unimaginable just a few weeks earlier regarding the potential impact of an infectious illness in the United States on jobs, schools, the economy, and personal and family safety has become a stream of daily pronouncements about the severity of the pandemic and how best to respond.
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Unique Aspects of Cancer Surgery Make Clinical Trials Challenging
April 7th 2020The conduct of randomized trials in surgical oncology, although highly appealing in concept, may be problematic, especially in complex settings where the skills, experience, and clinical judgment of individual surgeons and their institutions may vary greatly.
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