• Issue

    Cancer: Volume 123, Issue 5

    711-893
    March 1, 2017

Issue Information

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Issue Information – TOC – Masthead

  • Pages: 711-720
  • First Published: 21 February 2017

Editorials

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Five more years! Not everything changes

  • Pages: 724-727
  • First Published: 17 January 2017

Cancer remains a high-impact journal whose relevance continues to grow as we introduce several novel features to adapt to our times and to the needs of our community of clinicians and scientists. The journal's team-based effort has been and continues to be enhanced by an outstanding team of highly committed and qualified experts in the field.

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The promise of molecular staging for the future

  • Pages: 728-730
  • First Published: 06 January 2017

Molecular profiling is becoming increasingly powerful in characterizing cancers. This technology should be used to augment the traditional anatomic and histologic staging of all cancers and particularly of endometrial cancers. See also pages 802-13.

Free Access

Timing isn't everything: Influenza vaccination in cancer patients

  • Pages: 731-733
  • First Published: 20 December 2016

Influenza vaccination is a critical intervention for improving the health of cancer patients with yearly influenza immunization recommended by the CDC. Influenza vaccine studies in cancer patients generally demonstrate impaired influenza vaccine responses in comparison with age-matched, healthy controls. The present study by Keam et al. defined the effect of vaccine timing with respect to cytotoxic chemotherapy regimens on immunogenicity and adverse events after influenza vaccination in cancer patients with solid malignancies. No significant differences in post-vaccination serologic response or adverse event frequencies were found between patients vaccinated concurrent with cytotoxic chemotherapy administration and patients vaccinated during the cytopenic period post-chemotherapy administration. Further study is warranted to better define optimal timing and interventions to improve influenza vaccine immunogenicity in this at-risk population.

See also pages 841-8.

Review Articles

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Immunotherapy approaches in the treatment of malignant brain tumors

  • Pages: 734-750
  • First Published: 22 November 2016

Despite current standard therapies, glioblastoma bears a dismal prognosis. Fortunately, a greater understanding of the complex interactions between the immune system and malignant gliomas, coupled with recent advances in immunotherapy for other cancers, have promoted research in immunotherapy for primary glial tumors that hopefully will shift to more positive outcomes.

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Hepatocellular carcinoma as an emerging morbidity in the thalassemia syndromes: A comprehensive review

  • Pages: 751-758
  • First Published: 01 December 2016

Hepatocellular carcinoma is an emerging morbidity in thalassemia. No guidelines have been established on the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with thalassemia, but there is compelling evidence that systematic screening and prevention programs, in conjunction with appropriate iron chelation and viral hepatitis treatment, constitute the mainstay of management of this entity in thalassemia patients.

Original Articles

Disease Site

Breast Disease

Open Access

Comparison of an AC-taxane versus AC-free regimen and paclitaxel versus docetaxel in patients with lymph node-positive breast cancer: Final results of the National Surgical Adjuvant Study of Breast Cancer 02 trial, a randomized comparative phase 3 study

  • Pages: 759-768
  • First Published: 12 January 2017

In postoperative patients with breast cancer, the combination of an anthracycline and cyclophosphamide followed by a taxane is a standard regimen. The results of the current phase 3 study demonstrate that noninferiority in disease-free survival is not shown between regimens containing the combination of doxorubicin plus cyclophosphamide and those that do not, and that compared with a similar regimen of paclitaxel, docetaxel increased disease-free survival.

Endocrine Disease

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Notch3 expression correlates with thyroid cancer differentiation, induces apoptosis, and predicts disease prognosis

  • Pages: 769-782
  • First Published: 02 November 2016

Expression of the Notch family's third isoform (Notch3) is progressively lost across lesser differentiated, more malignant thyroid cancer subtypes, and correlates directly with disease prognosis. Conversely, activation of Notch3 suppresses thyroid cancer cell proliferation and upregulates thyroid-specific differentiated features. These findings warrant further investigation into therapeutic targeting of Notch3 for treating advanced disease.

Gastrointestinal Disease

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Can we eliminate neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in favor of neoadjuvant multiagent chemotherapy for select stage II/III rectal adenocarcinomas: Analysis of the National Cancer Data base

  • Pages: 783-793
  • First Published: 25 October 2016

Because the selective elimination of neoadjuvant radiation for stage II/III rectal adenocarcinomas is evolving, the National Cancer Data Base is used to identify US practice patterns, to determine predictors of receiving neoadjuvant multiagent chemotherapy versus traditional neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy, and to identify factors associated with overall survival. The results indicate that eliminating radiation produces worse survival outcomes, and radiation should not be omitted outside of a clinical trial.

Genitourinary Disease

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Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio as a bladder cancer biomarker: Assessing prognostic and predictive value in SWOG 8710

  • Pages: 794-801
  • First Published: 27 October 2016

This is the first category B biomarker study testing the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in bladder cancer. In contrast to previous reports, these data suggest that the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio holds neither prognostic nor predictive value for overall survival.

Gynecologic Oncology

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Confirmation of ProMisE: A simple, genomics-based clinical classifier for endometrial cancer

  • Pages: 802-813
  • First Published: 06 January 2017

The prognostic ability of Cancer Genome Atlas–inspired, genomics-based classification method in endometrial carcinomas is confirmed. This pragmatic system will enable more consistent categorization of tumors, stratification of clinical trials, more rapid identification of hereditary cancers, prognostic information, and potentially predictive applications to better guide clinical management.

See also pages 728–30.

Hematologic Malignancies

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HLA-E allelic genotype correlates with HLA-E plasma levels and predicts early progression in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

  • Pages: 814-823
  • First Published: 02 November 2016

In a cohort of 110 individuals with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, human leukocyte antigen-E (HLA-E)*01:03 alleles and high levels of soluble HLA-E are significantly associated with an early treatment requirement. HLA-E alleles and soluble HLA-E levels may represent novel biomarkers for early disease progression in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

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Autologous stem cell transplantation for adult acute myelocytic leukemia in first remission—Better outcomes after busulfan and melphalan compared with busulfan and cyclophosphamide: A retrospective study from the Acute Leukemia Working Party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT)

  • Pages: 824-831
  • First Published: 01 December 2016

For adult patients with acute myelocytic leukemia in first remission who undergo autograft, the combination of busulfan plus high-dose melphalan (BUMEL) results in a better outcomes than the historic combination of busulfan plus cyclophosphamide (BUCY), producing leukemia-free survival rates at 3 years of 55.4% versus 44.6% post BUCY, respectively (hazard ratio, 0.69; P = .005). Patients in molecular remission who undergo autograft after receiving BUMEL have a leukemia-free survival rate of 66%, supporting the use of BUMEL before autograft for patients in first molecular complete remission.

Neuro-Oncology

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Family caregivers' level of mastery predicts survival of patients with glioblastoma: A preliminary report

  • Pages: 832-840
  • First Published: 27 October 2016

In the current study, the authors investigate whether caregivers' anxiety, depressive symptoms, burden, and mastery influence survival in a sample of patients newly diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme. After controlling for known covariates, caregiver mastery appears to be predictive of patient survival.

Discipline

Clinical Trials

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Optimal timing of influenza vaccination during 3-week cytotoxic chemotherapy cycles

  • Pages: 841-848
  • First Published: 20 December 2016

Results are presented for a randomized clinical trial comparing the immunogenicity of an influenza vaccine administered concurrently with chemotherapy and within the cytopenic period during 3-week chemotherapy cycles in cancer patients. The antibody responses to the influenza vaccine according to an hemagglutination inhibition antibody assay are comparable for the 2 time points of vaccine administration.

See also pages 731-3.

Disparities Research

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Integrative genomic analysis identifies ancestry-related expression quantitative trait loci on DNA polymerase β and supports the association of genetic ancestry with survival disparities in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

  • Pages: 849-860
  • First Published: 01 December 2016

African Americans with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma have higher levels of DNA polymerase β expression than white patients because of ancestry-related genetic factors. Integrative genomic analyses show that ancestry-related alleles can act as expression quantitative trait loci in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, and they support the association of ancestry-related genetic factors with survival disparities in patients diagnosed with oral cavity and laryngeal cancer.

Survivorship

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The experience of treatment barriers and their influence on quality of life in American Indian/Alaska Native breast cancer survivors

  • Pages: 861-868
  • First Published: 20 October 2016

The social quality of life for American Indian/Alaska Native breast cancer survivors is significantly affected when they encounter 5 or more barriers to accessing initial cancer treatment. More barriers are encountered during cancer treatment than when accessing care, except for those who are uninsured or who use public care and those who report that they have one-half or less American Indian/Alaska Native blood.

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Mental distress and health care use among survivors of adolescent and young adult cancer: A cross-sectional analysis of the National Health Interview Survey

  • Pages: 869-878
  • First Published: 17 November 2016

In the current study, greater than 30% of survivors of adolescent and young adult cancer reported nonspecific moderate or severe mental distress versus 20% of a comparison group. Only 14% of survivors reported having seen a mental health professional within the previous year. Moreover, 75% and 52% of survivors with moderate and severe distress, respectively, had not talked to a mental health professional within the previous year.

Translational Research

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Dynamic optical contrast imaging as a novel modality for rapidly distinguishing head and neck squamous cell carcinoma from surrounding normal tissue

  • Pages: 879-886
  • First Published: 20 October 2016

Dynamic optical contrast imaging is a novel technology based on unique optical properties that rapidly and accurately distinguish head and neck squamous cell carcinoma from surrounding normal tissue. An analysis of dynamic optical contrast imaging reveals microscopic characterization sufficient for tissue-type identification consistent with histology.