Anita T. Shaffer

Bendamustine should become the preferred chemotherapy standard of care in initial combination regimens for indolent lymphomas and mantle cell lymphoma.

An immunotherapy agent that targets the PD-1 pathway demonstrated response rates as high as 28% in an early-phase study involving patients with different tumor types.

Pharmaceutical industry analysts and companies have been weighing in on their selections for the most noteworthy research to be presented during the 2012 ASCO Annual Meeting.

Olanzapine, an antipsychotic medication that is often used off-label, has proved highly effective in controlling breakthrough chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.

In a six-week span, José Baselga, MD, PhD, notched a stunning series of milestones in breast cancer research that could potentially change practice in different subtypes of the disease.

Despite initial disappointing findings on overall survival, PARP inhibitors remains under active investigation for patients with ovarian cancer.

A further analysis of clinical trial data for sipuleucel-T suggests that it may have delivered a greater OS benefit than previously described.

The use of advanced gene analysis techniques in a small group of women with triple-negative metastatic breast cancer has revealed activity in two pathways found in most patients with this subtype.

The concept of screening people at high risk for developing lung cancer with low-dose computed tomography continues to gain support in the oncology community.

HER2 status in patients with breast cancer has emerged as a durable and effective marker for evaluating tumors and selecting therapies.

Next-generation immunotherapy in breast cancer treatment is an active field of scientific exploration with the potential to yield a vaccine.

Technological advances in genomics have prompted a "sea change" in breast cancer drug development and treatment.

The choice of breast-conserving surgery over mastectomy is often based on fear of recurrence and death rather than clinical evidence.

Debu Tripathy, MD, culled the highlights from abstracts presented in 2011 at the ASCO annual meeting in Chicago, Illinois, and at the CCTR-AARC SABCS in Texas.

Clarient provides more than 350 diagnostic tests to assess and characterize tumors, including tests for BRAF, KRAS, and EGFR gene mutations.

Bevacizumab has failed to demonstrate statistically significant improvements in OS for women with recurrent ovarian cancer in 2 recent clinical trials.

Patients with metastatic breast cancer who were treated with eribulin mesylate were less likely to experience peripheral neuropathy.

Genzyme Corporation announced that the FDA has approved its new manufacturing plant in Framingham, Massachusetts.

A proposed overhaul of the NCI's clinical trials system has created anxiety among gynecologic researchers who fear projects in women's cancer will be diminished in a scramble for funding with more common malignancies.

The FDA approved more new oncology drugs in 2011 than it has in a single year in more than a decade, thanks in part to priority review and streamlined evaluation procedures. While this is good news for patients, oncology and hematology specialists must tackle the challenges posed by integrating new therapies into treatment plans. Leading specialists give their perspectives on key issues.

A study of bevacizumab in women with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer demonstrated that combining the drug with standard therapy improves PFS.

The CLEOPATRA trial marks the first time that dual inhibitors have demonstrated value in the treatment of HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer.

The results of 2 studies likely to have a significant impact upon the treatment of women with metastatic breast cancer.

Although the use of tumor markers to evaluate patients with breast cancer is well established, the nuances involved in such testing are growing along with the emergence of novel assays and fresh research findings.

The impact that the tumor microenvironment has on the survival and growth of cancer cells is becoming increasingly well defined on several fronts.

The scientific strategy of attacking cancer by thwarting angiogenesis has been on a roller coaster ride for the past 40 years

There are at least 7 drugs specifically targeting VEGF in later-stage clinical trials that have been the subject of presentations at oncology conferences in recent months.

The controversy over the breast cancer indication for Avastin culminated in June when the ODAC voted after an unusual and emotional 2-day hearing to uphold a prior recommendation to withdraw the label indication.

Advances in the understanding of tumor biology and a robust drug development pipeline are combining to form a 'perfect storm' of opportunity for personalized cancer research to make a leap forward.

Improving the accuracy and value of tumor marker testing in patients with breast cancer has resulted in a dramatic upswing in accredited laboratories and the clarification of guideline definitions.