A phase I dose-escalation study of MEDI-575, a PDGFRα monoclonal antibody, in adults with advanced solid tumors.

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to evaluate safety and determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of MEDI-575, a fully human monoclonal antibody that selectively binds to platelet-derived growth factor receptor-α (PDGFRα), in patients with advanced solid tumors.

Methods: This phase I multicenter, open-label, single-arm study enrolled adults in a 3 + 3 dose escalation design to receive MEDI-575 (3, 6, 9, 12, or 15 mg/kg) once weekly (QW) until toxicity or disease progression occurred. One 0.

Evaluation of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy using current perception threshold and clinical evaluations.

Purpose: Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is increasing with introduction of new and combination cancer pharmacotherapies. This study evaluated associations between clinical and self-report measurements and current perception threshold (CPT), a neuroselective measure of sensory nerve function that may detect asymptomatic CIPN damage.

Methods: Data for this secondary analysis were from a prospective, observational study using CPT to evaluate CIPN.

A novel approach to improve health status measurement in observational claims-based studies of cancer treatment and outcomes.

Objectives: To develop and provide initial validation for amultivariate, claims-based prediction model for disability status (DS), a proxymeasure of performance status (PS), among older adults. The model was designed to augment information on health status at the point of cancer diagnosis in studies using insurance claims to examine cancer treatment and outcomes.

Materials And Methods: We used data from the 2001–2005 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS), with observations randomly split into estimation and validation subsamples.

Out-of-pocket health care expenditure burden for Medicare beneficiaries with cancer.

Background: There is increasing concern regarding the financial burden of care on cancer patients and their families. Medicare beneficiaries often have extensive comorbidities and limited financial resources, and may face substantial cost sharing even with supplemental coverage. In the current study, the authors examined out-of-pocket (OOP) spending and burden relative to income for Medicare beneficiaries with cancer.

Use and spending on antineoplastic therapy for Medicare beneficiaries with cancer.

Background: Oral antineoplastic drugs, not generally covered by Medicare Part B, have assumed an increasingly important role in cancer treatment.

Objective: We examined use and spending on infused/injected (Part B covered) and non-Part B antineoplastic agents in a Medicare beneficiary population with cancer, and the effect of supplemental insurance.

Research Design: This retrospective, observational study used pooled 1997-2007 data from the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey, linked to Medicare claims.

Analysis of local control in patients receiving IMRT for resected pancreatic cancers.

Purpose: Intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) is increasingly incorporated into therapy for pancreatic cancer. A concern regarding this technique is the potential for geographic miss and decreased local control. We analyzed patterns of first failure among patients treated with IMRT for resected pancreatic cancer.

Comparative and cost-effectiveness of oxaliplatin-based or irinotecan-based regimens compared with 5-fluorouracil/leucovorin alone among US elderly stage IV colon cancer patients.

Background: Clinical trials have shown a statistically significant disease-free survival benefit of oxaliplatin-based or irinotecan-based combination regimens for stage IV colon cancer. Less is known regarding the comparative effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of these agents among elderly patients. Whether the benefits of these agents justify the additional costs for elderly Medicare recipients is particularly policy relevant after US health care reform.

Comparative effectiveness of different chemotherapeutic regimens on survival of people aged 66 and older with stage III colon cancer: a "real world" analysis using Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Medicare data.

Objectives: To compare the effectiveness and utilization trends of irinotecan (IRI)-based and oxaliplatin (OX)-based regimens with those of 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin (5FU/LV) alone in people aged 66 and older with Stage III colon cancer.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: Data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-Medicare data.

Chemotherapy treatment and survival in older women with estrogen receptor-negative metastatic breast cancer: a population-based analysis.

Unlabelled: To investigate the survival benefit associated with chemotherapy receipt in older women with estrogen receptor-negative (ER-) Stage IV breast cancer.

Design: Observational, retrospective cohort study using Cox proportional hazards regression to determine effect of chemotherapy on hazard of all-cause mortality. The two samples were an overall sample (n=1,519) and a propensity score-matched sample (n=580) to control for selection to treatment receipt.

Trends in disparities in receipt of adjuvant therapy for elderly stage III colon cancer patients: the role of the medical oncologist evaluation.

Background: Race disparities in adjuvant chemotherapy for stage III colon cancer patients have been documented, and medical oncologist evaluation is a critical step in the treatment process. Recent healthcare system and environmental changes may have reduced treatment gaps.

Objectives: To examine differential rates of oncologist evaluation and conditional treatment, by race, and to determine whether changing evaluation and treatment patterns reduced disparities.

Toxicity of aromatase inhibitors.

Adjuvant hormonal therapy in hormone receptor-positive breast cancer is used for the prevention of disease recurrence and prolongation of survival. Aromatase inhibitors are increasingly being used for this purpose. Numerous studies now reveal their benefits over tamoxifen while demonstrating a markedly different toxicity profile.