Jon Garinn

	The 17th international Thyroid Cancer Survivors’ Conference will be held Oct. 17 to 19, 2014 in Denver. Sponsored by the nonprofit Thyroid Cancer Survivors Association, the event will feature more than 35 speakers who will discuss the latest advances in treating thyroid cancer, issues related to long-term survivorship, coping skills for well-being and more. A separate dinner and auction supporting thyroid cancer research will be held on Oct. 18. Conference registration is $50. For details, visit 

Articles

The 17th international Thyroid Cancer Survivors' Conference will be held Oct. 17 to 19, 2014 in Denver. 

Thyroid Cancer Survivors' Conference

	Started by two cancer rights attorneys, Triage Cancer is a nonprofit organization that provides education and resources about an array of survivorship issues, including nutrition, fertility, employment, legal matters, financial concerns, insurance, sexuality, pain management, advocacy and more. Through the organization’s website, users can access a speakers bureau of experts, an educational blog, previous seminars and webinars, tools and resources, as well as support for educational event planning. To learn more, visit 

Triage Cancer is a nonprofit organization that provides education and resources about an array of survivorship issues.

TriageCancer.org

The fall issue will be arriving in mailboxes soon, and our team has been hard at work to put the final touches on some compelling articles. Here's a lineup of what readers can expect:

Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is a condition of the breast that bears the genetic signature of cancer but is non-invasive, meaning the cells remain in their tissue ducts and don't invade a layer known as the basement membrane. The dilemma for many patients is that DCIS is almost always survivable, even when left untreated, yet a diagnosis can produce emotional distress and the possibility of overtreatment. Should women with DCIS have a lumpectomy or mastectomy? What about radiation and hormone therapy? Charlotte Huff addresses these questions, as well as still unresolved controversies surrounding the condition, and discusses non-surgical options, such as active surveillance.

How can biomarkers facilitate personalized medicine? While new cancer biomarkers are discovered all the time, the reality is that only a small number have advanced beyond the discovery phase to become useful in a clinical/practical sense. Why are so few biomarkers considered "reliable"? What limitations of current technology are hindering the discovery and development of new biomarkers? What does the revolution in genomics (next generation sequencing) hold for biomarkers? Maureen Salamon describes how research is helping us better use biomarkers, identify and validate new ones, and develop ways of using them in clinical trials so that promising therapies can get to patients faster.

The care that patients ought to receive at the end of their lives includes physical, mental, emotional and spiritual comfort, as well as social support. Studies show that people who discuss end-of-life care with their loved ones and healthcare providers feel less stress at the end of lives, and so do their families. Yet few people have these discussions. One reason is that some people with advanced disease don't know they're dying. Kathy LaTour explores why there is so much resistance to initiating these discussions, and explains why this remains a great unmet need in ensuring a dignified death. 

Prehabilitation is a fairly new concept that is quickly gaining momentum in cancer care. It involves baseline assessments of a patient's psychosocial and physical conditions prior to treatment, so that appropriate interventions and therapies can be deployed to shore up any deficiencies and optimize treatment success. Call it a boot camp for cancer treatment. For example, patients who are preparing for surgery for head and neck cancers may benefit from swallowing exercises. Or patients may boost their nutrition to fight fatigue. Jane Hill describes prehabilitation and discusses its usefulness in that window of opportunity between diagnosis and treatment.

Cancer and its treatment can lead to a range of potentially life-threatening conditions that require urgent action to correct them. The experience can be terrifying, especially when the patient's cancer team is far away and the patient must go to a local emergency room. Jeanne Erdmann defines an oncologic emergency and describes what patients should do if something suddenly goes wrong. 

Although lymphedema is mostly a complication of breast cancer treatment, the condition can result from treating a number of different cancers, including head and neck, ovarian, prostate and uterine, as well as lymphoma and melanoma--anywhere that nodes are removed or damaged by radiation or surgery. The condition include swelling, tightness, pain and reduced range of motion in one arm or leg, although sometimes both arms or legs can be affected. And because lymphedema is generally considered chronic, managing it requires constant care and, often, the help of a trained specialist. Sonya Collins reveals the latest in lymphedema treatment and prevention.

Sometimes, even the most well-intentioned caregivers can become overbearing, making the patient their "project." Don Vaughan suggests ways caregivers can avoid doing more harm than good. 

We'll also look at the link between certain food preservatives and cancer, the problems some patients are encountering when try to access cancer care using insurance plans they obtained through the Affordable Care Act's Health Insurance Marketplace, and a condition called arthralgia--a painful side effect of many cancer treatments that affects the joints.

What we're working on

On July 3, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to Beleodaq (belinostat) for treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL). It is the third drug that has been approved since 2009 for treating patients with this rare form of lymphoma. 

 were approved for use in this same patient population in 2009 and 2011, respectively. 

PTCL is a fast-growing immune system cancer affecting the T cells.More than 70,000 Americans are expected to receive a diagnosis of non-Hodgkin lymphoma this year, and 10 to 15 percent of those cases will be PTCL, according to the National Cancer Institute.

The FDA based its decision on a single arm clinical trial of 120 participants who had received at least one prior treatment. Participants received the experimental drug until they experienced disease progression or an unacceptable toxicity. The overall response rate (meaning the percentage of participants who experienced either a complete or partial response to the treatment) was 25.8 percent, with a median response duration time of 8.4 months.

Side effects included nausea, fatigue, fever, low red blood cells and vomiting. A small number of participants (less than 2 percent) experienced serious side effects, including pneumonia, infection, thrombocytopenia and organ failure. To receive full approval from the FDA, the manufacturer must continue to evaluate Beleodaq's effectiveness in further clinical trials.

Beleodaq is also being studied in other cancer types, including liver, ovarian and non-small cell lung.

Jon Garinn

Thyroid Cancer Survivors' Conference

TriageCancer.org

What we're working on

FDA approves treatment for rare form of lymphoma

Latest News