Preclinical and pilot clinical studies of docetaxel chemoradiation for Stage III non-small-cell lung cancer.

Purpose: Local and distant failure rates remain high despite aggressive chemoradiation (CRT) treatment for Stage III non-small-cell lung cancer. We conducted preclinical studies of docetaxel's cytotoxic and radiosensitizing effects on lung cancer cell lines and designed a pilot study to target distant micrometastasis upfront with one-cycle induction chemotherapy, followed by low-dose radiosensitizing docetaxel CRT.

Methods And Materials: A preclinical study was conducted in human lung cancer cell lines NCI 520 and A549.

An exploratory study on the effects of an expectancy manipulation on chemotherapy-related nausea.

Context: Previous research has shown that the effectiveness of acupressure bands in reducing chemotherapy-related nausea is related to patients' expectations of efficacy.

Objective: To test whether an informational manipulation designed to increase expectation of efficacy regarding acupressure bands would enhance their effectiveness.

Methods: We conducted an exploratory, four-arm, randomized clinical trial in breast cancer patients about to begin chemotherapy.

FDG-PET on the trail of an unsuspected primary malignancy in the breast.

Proper identification of the primary malignancy can radically alter clinical management for the patient's benefit. This is a report of an unsuspected primary breast cancer in a patient being worked up for presumptive lymphoma. Prior investigation of lymphedema in the left lower extremity found widespread lymphadenopathy on computed tomography imaging, leading to initial biopsy revealing adenocarcinoma of unknown primary.

Acustimulation wrist bands are not effective for the control of chemotherapy-induced nausea in women with breast cancer.

This experiment examined the efficacy of an acustimulation wrist band for the relief of chemotherapy-induced nausea using a randomized three-arm clinical trial (active acustimulation, sham acustimulation, and no acustimulation) in 96 women with breast cancer who experienced nausea at their first chemotherapy treatment. Five outcomes related to wrist band efficacy (acute nausea, delayed nausea, vomiting, QOL, and total amount of antiemetic medication used) were examined. The five outcomes were examined separately using analysis of covariance controlling for age and severity of past nausea.

Effect of paroxetine hydrochloride (Paxil) on fatigue and depression in breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy.

Background: Fatigue can significantly interfere with a cancer patient's ability to fulfill daily responsibilities and enjoy life. It commonly co-exists with depression in patients undergoing chemotherapy, suggesting that administration of an antidepressant that alleviates symptoms of depression could also reduce fatigue.

Methods: We report on a double-blind clinical trial of 94 female breast cancer patients receiving at least four cycles of chemotherapy randomly assigned to receive either 20 mg of the selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor (SSRI) paroxetine (Paxil, SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals) or an identical-appearing placebo.