Effect of adjuvant trastuzumab treatment in conventional clinical setting: an observational retrospective multicenter Italian study.

Clinical trials have shown the efficacy of trastuzumab-based adjuvant therapy in HER2-positive breast cancers, but routine clinical use awaits evaluation of compliance, safety, and effectiveness. Adjuvant trastuzumab-based therapy in routine clinical use was evaluated in the retrospective study GHEA, recording 1,002 patients treated according to the HERA protocol between March 2005 and December 2009 in 42 Italian oncology departments; 874 (87.23 %) patients completed 1-year trastuzumab treatment.

National Cancer Information Service in Italy: an information points network as a new model for providing information for cancer patients.

The international literature data report that good information and communication are fundamental components of a therapeutic process. They contribute to improve the patient-health care professional relationship, to facilitate doctor-patient relationships, therapeutic compliance and adherence, and to the informed consent in innovative clinical trials. We report the results of a multicentric national initiative that developed a 17-information-structure network: 16 Information Points located in the major state-funded certified cancer centers and general hospitals across Italy and a national Help-line at the nonprofit organization AIMaC (the Italian oncologic patients, families and friends association), and updated the already existing services with the aim to create the National Cancer Information Service (SION).

CIGNOweb.it.

We introduce CIGNOweb.it, a database of oncology resources for patients, the general public and healthcare professionals. It builds on the previous Italian cancer resource Azaleaweb and offers quality-evaluated content.

Increased overall survival independent of RECIST response in metastatic breast cancer patients continuing trastuzumab treatment: evidence from a retrospective study.

Recent studies have reported the potential clinical utility for metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients of continuing trastuzumab beyond progression. Based on those results, here the authors have examined the benefits of trastuzumab-continuation by specifically evaluating RECIST responses upon first line trastuzumab-treatment as a potential predictive marker for therapeutic effect of trastuzumab-continuation beyond metastatic disease progression. The authors carried out a retrospective analysis of 272 HER2 positive MBC patients under trastuzumab treatment at 22 different oncology Italian centers during the years of 2000 and 2001 who progressed under first line trastuzumab-treatment.

Biology, prognosis and response to therapy of breast carcinomas according to HER2 score.

Background: The standardization of the HER2 score and recent changes in therapeutic modalities points to the need for a reevaluation of the role of HER2 in recently diagnosed breast carcinoma.

Patients And Methods: A multicenter, retrospective study of 1794 primary breast carcinomas diagnosed in Italy in 2000/2001 and scored in HER2 four categories according to immunohistochemistry was conducted.

Results: Ductal histotype, vascular invasion, grade, MIB1 positivity, estrogen and progesterone receptor expression differed significantly in HER2 3+ tumors compared with the other categories.