[Articles] Concurrent chemoradiotherapy with nedaplatin versus cisplatin in stage II –IVB nasopharyngeal carcinoma: an open-label, non-inferiority, randomised phase 3 trial
Our findings show that nedaplatin-based concurrent chemoradiotherapy represents an alternative doublet treatment strategy to cisplatin-based concurrent chemoradiotherapy for patients with locoregional, advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Further investigations are needed to explore the potential use of this treatment as induction or adjuvant chemotherapy or in combination with other agents. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 28, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Lin-Quan Tang, Dong-Ping Chen, Ling Guo, Hao-Yuan Mo, Ying Huang, Shan-Shan Guo, Bin Qi, Qing-Nan Tang, Pan Wang, Xiao-Yun Li, Ji-Bin Li, Qing Liu, Yuan-Hong Gao, Fang-Yun Xie, Li-Ting Liu, Yang Li, Sai-Lan Liu, Hao-Jun Xie, Yu-Jing Liang, Xue-Song Sun, J Tags: Articles Source Type: research

[Comment] Addition of platinum salts to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in triple-negative breast cancer: a new standard of care?
The St Gallen Consensus Conference panel strongly endorsed the preference for neoadjuvant therapy in stage II and III triple-negative breast cancer.1 In The Lancet Oncology, Sibylle Loibl and colleagues report the results of the randomised, double-blind, phase 3, BrighTNess trial.2 The study assessed the addition of the poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor veliparib plus carboplatin, or carboplatin alone, to a standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy regimen (weekly paclitaxel followed by doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide) in patients with triple-negative breast cancer, and showed that the proportion of patients who achiev...
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 28, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Giuseppe Curigliano Tags: Comment Source Type: research

[Comment] Nedaplatin in nasopharyngeal cancer: the rebirth of platinum salts?
During the past 20 years, three major advances have helped to substantially improve the prognosis of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma. First, the use of cisplatin-based concurrent chemoradiation,1 alone2 or with adjuvant3,4 or induction5,6 chemotherapy, has led to improved survival and disease control. Second, the advent of intensity-modulated radiotherapy has allowed treatment volumes to be adapted to the local and regional extension of disease, especially for patients with a posterior extension close to neurological structures, along with better protection of adjacent normal tissues. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 28, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Pierre Blanchard, Yungan Tao Tags: Comment Source Type: research

[Articles] Adjuvant anastrozole versus exemestane versus letrozole, upfront or after 2 years of tamoxifen, in endocrine-sensitive breast cancer (FATA-GIM3): a randomised, phase 3 trial
5 years of treatment with aromatase inhibitors was not superior to 2 years of tamoxifen followed by 3 years of aromatase inhibitors. None of the three aromatase inhibitors was superior to the others in terms of efficacy. Therefore, patient preference, tolerability, and financial constraints should be considered when deciding the optimal treatment approach in this setting. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 23, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Sabino De Placido, Ciro Gallo, Michelino De Laurentiis, Giancarlo Bisagni, Grazia Arpino, Maria Giuseppa Sarobba, Ferdinando Riccardi, Antonio Russo, Lucia Del Mastro, Alessio Aligi Cogoni, Francesco Cognetti, Stefania Gori, Jennifer Foglietta, Antonio Fr Tags: Articles Source Type: research

[Comment] Adjuvant aromatase inhibition: more options for patients
Aromatase inhibitors are the preferred treatment for postmenopausal patients with hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer.1 Third-generation aromatase inhibitors exist in two classes with different modes of action: reversible binding of the aromatase enzyme by the non-steroidal aromatase inhibitors anastrazole and letrozole, and irreversible inhibition of the enzyme by the steroidal aromatase inhibitor exemestane. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 23, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Luc Y Dirix Tags: Comment Source Type: research

[News] Ultra-processed foods might increase cancer risk
The consumption of ultra-processed foods might be proportionally linked to an increased cancer risk, according to results from the ongoing NutriNet-Sant é cohort study. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 22, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Elizabeth Gourd Tags: News Source Type: research

[News] Possible X chromosome-linked transmission of ovarian cancer
A family history of ovarian cancer is the most reliable predictor of a woman developing the disease, but current genetic models do not explain why the sisters of a woman diagnosed with ovarian cancer have a higher risk of developing the disease than their mother. Findings from a new study suggest an X chromosome-linked pattern of inheritance for ovarian cancer from fathers to daughters. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 22, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Priya Venkatesan Tags: News Source Type: research

[Articles] Adjuvant vemurafenib in resected, BRAFV600 mutation-positive melanoma (BRIM8): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicentre, phase 3 trial
The primary endpoint of disease-free survival was not met in cohort 2, and therefore the analysis of cohort 1 showing a numerical benefit in disease-free survival with vemurafenib versus placebo in patients with resected stage IIC –IIIA–IIIB BRAFV600 mutation-positive melanoma must be considered exploratory only. 1 year of adjuvant vemurafenib was well tolerated, but might not be an optimal treatment regimen in this patient population. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 21, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Michele Maio, Karl Lewis, Lev Demidov, Mario Mandal à, Igor Bondarenko, Paolo A Ascierto, Christopher Herbert, Andrzej Mackiewicz, Piotr Rutkowski, Alexander Guminski, Grant R Goodman, Brian Simmons, Chenglin Ye, Yibing Yan, Dirk Schadendorf, BRIM8 Inves Tags: Articles Source Type: research

[Comment] The brim of uncertainty in adjuvant treatment of melanoma
Until recently, standard options for adjuvant melanoma therapy have been limited to interferon- α and ipilimumab, both of which are associated with substantial toxicity and only modest clinical benefit.1–3 2017 was a major year for the adjuvant treatment of melanoma as two new regimens were shown to significantly lower the risk of recurrence in patients with resected, high-risk melanoma. Th e anti-programmed death 1 agent, nivolumab (compared with ipilimumab in the Checkmate 238 study4) and the combination of the RAF and MEK inhibitors, dabrafenib and trametinib (compared with placebo in the COMBI-AD study5) were both s...
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 21, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Allison Betof Warner, Michael A Postow Tags: Comment Source Type: research

[Articles] A gene-expression profiling score for prediction of outcome in patients with follicular lymphoma: a retrospective training and validation analysis in three international cohorts
We developed and validated a robust 23-gene expression-based predictor of progression-free survival that is applicable to routinely available formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tumour biopsies from patients with follicular lymphoma at time of diagnosis. Applying this score could allow individualised therapy for patients according to their risk category. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 20, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Sarah Huet, Bruno Tesson, Jean-Philippe Jais, Andrew L Feldman, Laura Magnano, Emilie Thomas, Alexandra Traverse-Glehen, Benoit Albaud, Marjorie Carr ère, Luc Xerri, Stephen M Ansell, Lucile Baseggio, Cécile Reyes, Karin Tarte, Sandrine Boyault, Corinne Tags: Articles Source Type: research

[Articles] Umbralisib, a novel PI3K δ and casein kinase-1ε inhibitor, in relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and lymphoma: an open-label, phase 1, dose-escalation, first-in-human study
Umbralisib was well tolerated and showed preliminary signs of activity in patients with relapsed or refractory haematological malignancies. The safety profile of umbralisib in this phase 1 study was distinct from that of other PI3K δ inhibitors, with fewer occurrences of autoimmune-like toxicities such as colitis. These findings warrant further evaluation of this agent in this setting. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 20, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Howard A Burris, Ian W Flinn, Manish R Patel, Timothy S Fenske, Changchun Deng, Danielle M Brander, Martin Gutierrez, James H Essell, John G Kuhn, Hari P Miskin, Peter Sportelli, Michael S Weiss, Swaroop Vakkalanka, Michael R Savona, Owen A O'Connor Tags: Articles Source Type: research

[Comment] Predicting early relapse in follicular lymphoma: have we turned a corner?
In The Lancet Oncology, Sarah Huet and colleagues1 report a novel prognostic score, derived from the expression profile of 23 genes, that can discriminate between patients with follicular lymphoma at high and low risk of disease progression. Although most patients with follicular lymphoma follow an indolent course, surviving upwards of 20 years after diagnosis, an intractable group of patients has substantially worse outcomes because their cancer is prone to early progression (within 2 years) after treatment (POD-24)2 or undergoes transformation to an aggressive form of lymphoma. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 20, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Shamzah Araf, Jessica Okosun, Jude Fitzgibbon Tags: Comment Source Type: research

[Comment] Can umbralisib bring PI3K δ out of the shadows?
During the past 5 years, the treatment landscape for patients with B-cell malignancies has seen a sharp increase in the array of available small molecules that target dysregulated pathways necessary for the survival and proliferation of the malignant clone.1 The phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) pathway has an important role in many cellular functions, including B-cell antigen receptor signalling. Selective inhibition of PI3K isoform δ-dependent signalling has direct antitumour activity and exerts pleiotropic effects in the tumour microenvironment of B-cell malignancies, inducing apoptosis and reducing proliferation. (...
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 20, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Jacqueline C Barrientos Tags: Comment Source Type: research

[News] Public Health England publishes e-cigarette review
On Feb 6, 2018, Public Health England published an independent review of the evidence on electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes). (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 15, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Talha Khan Burki Tags: News Source Type: research

[News] Apalutamide shows efficacy in prostate cancer
The androgen receptor inhibitor apalutamide significantly improves metastasis-free survival in patients with non-metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, according to a recent study. (Source: The Lancet Oncology)
Source: The Lancet Oncology - February 15, 2018 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Elizabeth Gourd Tags: News Source Type: research