Gastrointestinal Cancer

The management of patients with malignant peritoneal surface disease (PSD) commonly known as "carcinomatosis" continues to evolve.

A recent study determined that it would take 6.7 years on average to enroll enough patients with pancreatic cancer for the trials that opened in 2011-a tall order considering that the 5-year relative survival rate for those diagnosed with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is only 6%.

Ghassan K. Abou-Alfa, MD, discusses the phase II study of a novel transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β1) receptor I kinase inhibitor, LY2157299 monohydrate, in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), which was presented at the 2014 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium.

Epidemiologic and scientific research indicates that diet and other lifestyle factors have a significant influence on the risk of developing colorectal cancer.

Roberto Bordonaro, MD, discusses first-line treatment options for advanced colorectal cancer (CRC).

Marwan G. Fakih, MD, professor, director, Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology, City of Hope, discusses extended RAS mutations in colon cancer.

Studies presented at the 2014 GI Cancers Symposium emphasized the need for full RAS mutational analyses in the management of metastatic colorectal cancer prior to initiating treatment with anti-EGFR monoclonal antibodies.

Treatment with LY2157299 led to significant reductions in a prespecified biomarker that correlated with increased time to progression and overall survival in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma.

Add-on treatment with the hedgehog pathway inhibitor vismodegib demonstrated encouraging activity in patients with untreated metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Ramesh K. Ramanathan, MD, discusses the potential of identifying actionable targets in appendiceal cancers.

John L. Marshall, MD, from Georgetown University Hospital, on the recent advancements in colorectal cancer.

Robert L. Fine, MD, from the Columbia University Medical Center, discusses the prospective phase II study of CAPTEM for patients with neuroendocrine tumors.

Smitha Krishnamurthi, MD, discusses the results of the RAINBOW TRIAL

Single-agent neoadjuvant capecitabine combined with radiation therapy demonstrated similar outcomes as previously established standards of care for patients with stage II or stage III rectal cancer.

The combination of ramucirumab and paclitaxel resulted in a significant prolongation in survival and gains in quality of life when compared to paclitaxel alone for the second-line treatment of patients with metastatic gastric cancer.

Combining two specific anti-cancer vaccines, rather than administering one as monotherapy, doubles the 1-year survival probability in patients with metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), according to the results of a phase II study presented January 14.

An analysis of phase III, second-line data has shown that RAS mutations beyond KRAS exon 2 are negative predictive biomarkers for the EGFR-inhibitor panitumumab in metastatic colorectal cancer.

Margaret A. Tempero, MD, director, Pancreas Center, University of California, San Francisco, gives an overview of new therapies for pancreatic cancer.

Several new drugs have recently shown promise for the treatment of gastric cancer, including rilotumumab, ramucirumab, and anti-HER2 agents, according to a presentation at the 2013 Chemotherapy Foundation Symposium.

The addition of albumin-bound paclitaxel (nab-paclitaxel; Abraxane) to standard treatment with gemcitabine significantly lengthens survival in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer, researchers report.

Charles S. Fuchs, MD, MPH, director, Gastrointestinal Cancer Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discusses the use of aspirin for the prevention and treatment of colorectal cancer.

Ramucirumab, a monoclonal antibody that targets VEGFR-2, significantly prolonged survival in patients with advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma following progression on first-line therapy, according to results from the phase III REGARD study published in The Lancet.

Margaret A. Tempero, MD, director, Pancreas Center, University of California, San Francisco, discusses the outlook for immunotherapies in pancreatic cancer.

Colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death among African Americans. The CRC mortality rate among African Americans is 29.8% compared with 19.5% among Caucasians.

Charles S. Fuchs, MD, MPH, director, Gastrointestinal Cancer Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discusses the potential of targeting the c-MET receptor to treat gastrointestinal cancers.