Relevance of treatment-free remission recommendations in chronic phase chronic leukemia patients treated with frontline tyrosine kinase inhibitors.

Background: Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) can be safely discontinued in chronic phase chronic myeloid leukemia (CP-CML) patients who had achieved a sustained deep molecular response. Based on the results of discontinuation trials, recommendations regarding patient selection for a treatment-free remission (TFR) attempt had been proposed. The aims of this study were to evaluate the rate of patients eligible for TKI discontinuation and molecular recurrence-free survival (MRFS) after stop according to recommendations.

Incidences of Deep Molecular Responses and Treatment-Free Remission in de Novo CP-CML Patients.

Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors (TKIs) discontinuation in patients who had achieved a deep molecular response (DMR) offer now the opportunity of prolonged treatment-free remission (TFR). Aims of this study were to evaluate the proportion of de novo chronic-phase chronic myeloid leukemia (CP-CML) patients who achieved a sustained DMR and to identify predictive factors of DMR and molecular recurrence-free survival (MRFS) after TKI discontinuation. Over a period of 10 years, 398 CP-CML patients treated with first-line TKIs were included.

[Management of cancer patients by general practitioners. Results of a survey among 422 physicians in Aquitaine].

Objective: To have a better knowledge on the role of the general practitioner in the management of cancer patients, their opinion on communications with the specialists and their training in oncology.

Method: In March 2000, a questionnaire was sent to a random sample of 730 general practitioners in the Aquitaine area.

Results: We obtained 440 answers (60%).

[Update on soft tissue sarcomas].

Important refinements have taken place in the diagnosis of soft tissue sarcoma with extensive use of immuno-histochemistry. New entities have been described, while malignant histiocytofibroma, the most diagnosed sarcoma type during the last two decades, has been dismembered. As for prognosis, the new UICC classification is effectively more discriminating in the definition of prognostic groups; but the usefullness of new biological or genetic markers remains to be assessed.