News by Subject Education

Targeting a common mutation in patients with hormone receptor positive (HR+) HER2 negative (HER2-) advanced breast cancer with the alpha-specific phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor alpelisib significantly improves progression-free survival, according to late-breaking results reported at ESMO 2018.

Adjuvant treatment with the bone sparing drug zoledronic acid plus hormonal therapy with the aromatase inhibitor letrozole significantly increases disease-free survival compared to tamoxifen in premenopausal women with hormone receptor positive (HR+) early breast cancer, according to results reported at ESMO 2018 Congress in Munich. It is the first study to assess this specific combination in premenopausal breast cancer and adds to previous observations with zoledronic acid and anastrozole in premenopausal women receiving ovarian suppression.

A high concentration of multi-strain probiotic helps to reduce mild to moderate episodes of chemotherapy-induced diarrhoea (CID) in cancer patients, according to results of a phase II/III study in India.

Biological medicines are responsible for some of the most promising innovations in cancer treatment, including immunotherapy, targeted drugs and vaccines -- but they are also expensive.

Young cancer patients at the crossroads of childhood and adulthood seem to be stuck in a treatment impasse. A study to be presented at the ESMO 2018 Congress in Munich, has highlighted the existence of barriers to the inclusion of 12 to 25-year-olds in both adult and paediatric early phase clinical trials, suggesting a need for more tailored approaches to give this patient population better access to therapeutic innovation.

Social vulnerability showed to be a major limitation to participation in cancer screening for four tumors types - breast, cervical, colorectal and lung -- according to the French nationwide observational survey, EDIFICE 6. Also, a disbelief in cancer test efficacy among target populations was highlighted as new indicator of the non-uptake of screening, according to results to be presented at the ESMO 2018 Congress.

Some European countries take more than twice as long as others to reach health technology assessment (HTA) decisions to reimburse new cancer drugs following their approval by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). The average decision time is longer than one year in some countries, according to a study to be reported at ESMO 2018 Congress.