Anxiety During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Web-Based Survey of Thyroid Cancer Survivors.

Objective: Cancer patients and survivors may be disproportionately affected by COVID-19. We sought to determine the effects of the pandemic on thyroid cancer survivors' health care interactions and quality of life.

Methods: An anonymous survey including questions about COVID-19 and the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System profile (PROMIS-29, version 2.

Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase II study of istiratumab (MM-141) plus nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine versus nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine in front-line metastatic pancreatic cancer (CARRIE).

Background: Preclinical data suggest that dual blockade of the insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF-1R) and HER3 pathways has superior activity to IGF-1R blockade alone in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). We tested whether istiratumab, an IGF-1R- and ErbB3-bispecific antibody, can enhance the efficacy of standard of care (SOC) chemotherapy in patients with metastatic PDAC selected for high IGF-1 serum levels.

Patients And Methods: CARRIE was an international, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase II study for patients with previously untreated metastatic PDAC.

Challenges and solutions in the design and execution of the PROSPECT Phase II/III neoadjuvant rectal cancer trial (NCCTG N1048/Alliance).

Background: More than half of the 40,000 incident rectal cancer patients in the United States each year are diagnosed at clinical stage II and III (locally advanced stage). For this group, high rates of cure can be achieved with the combination of pelvic radiation and sensitizing 5-fluorouracil (chemoradiation), surgery and chemotherapy, but treatment is long, arduous and toxicities are substantial. The PROSPECT trial (N1048, NCT01515787) was designed to determine whether neoadjuvant chemotherapy with 5-fluorouracil and oxaliplatin (FOLFOX) could be used as an alternative to neoadjuvant chemoradiation without compromising treatment outcomes and to spare these patients excess toxicity.

Biologic determinants of tumor recurrence in stage II colon cancer: validation study of the 12-gene recurrence score in cancer and leukemia group B (CALGB) 9581.

Purpose: A greater understanding of the biology of tumor recurrence should improve adjuvant treatment decision making. We conducted a validation study of the 12-gene recurrence score (RS), a quantitative assay integrating stromal response and cell cycle gene expression, in tumor specimens from patients enrolled onto Cancer and Leukemia Group B (CALGB) 9581.

Patients And Methods: CALGB 9581 randomly assigned 1,713 patients with stage II colon cancer to treatment with edrecolomab or observation and found no survival difference.

Genomic prognostic models in early-stage lung cancer.

Patients with early-stage lung cancer demonstrate significant recurrence rates and lower-than-expected survival rates after surgical resection, indicating that our current staging methods do not adequately predict outcome. Since the last revision of the TNM staging system, a number of genomic models have been proposed which more accurately predict prognosis in patients with early-stage lung cancer. A variety of prognostic genomic models based on gene-expression profiling and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) are able to stratify patients with early-stage lung cancer into high- and low-risk groups with respect to disease-free and overall survival.

Unmet need in lung cancer: can vaccines bridge the gap?

Despite recent advances in therapy for lung cancer, median survival remains poor. Cancer vaccines might meet the unmet need for new and effective therapies with low toxicity. A better understanding of the immunology of cancer has led to novel strategies for vaccine delivery, including the use of immunogenic adjuvant agents, genetic modification of tumor cells to produce cytokines, viral vectors, and the use of antigen-presenting cells.

Wnt signaling in stem cells and lung cancer.

The Wnt signal transduction pathway plays important roles during embryo development, regulating cell proliferation and survival of immature cells. However, its improper function can lead to harmful consequences for humans, such as aberrant cell proliferation and, therefore, cancer. Increasing evidence suggests that stem cells may be the source of mutant cells that cause cancers to develop and proliferate.

Adoptive immunotherapy by allogeneic stem cell transplantation for metastatic renal cell carcinoma: a CALGB intergroup phase II study.

A graft-versus-tumor effect through nonmyeloablative allogeneic stem cell transplantation (N-SCT) in metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) has been reported. An Intergroup phase II trial was undertaken to define further the feasibility, toxicity and efficacy of this approach in a multi-institutional setting, Patients with cytokine-refractory, metastatic RCC were treated with N-SCT. The conditioning regimen was fludarabine 30 mg .

Androgen-deprivation therapy as primary treatment for localized prostate cancer: data from Cancer of the Prostate Strategic Urologic Research Endeavor (CaPSURE).

Background: Prostate cancer is largely an androgen-sensitive disease. Androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) generally has been used for patients with advanced disease. However, ADT is used increasingly as monotherapy for patients with clinically localized disease.

Treatment of patients with high risk localized prostate cancer: results from cancer of the prostate strategic urological research endeavor (CaPSURE).

Purpose: Pretreatment risk assessment models facilitate more appropriate selection of treatment for prostate cancer. However, men with high risk disease remain a challenge with significant potential for primary treatment failure. We characterize patterns of treatment for high risk prostate cancer in a community based cohort.

Antitumor activity of systemically delivered ribozymes targeting murine telomerase RNA.

Purpose: To test ribozymes targeting mouse telomerase RNA (mTER) for suppression of the progression of B16-F10 murine melanoma metastases in vivo.

Experimental Design: Hammerhead ribozymes were designed to target mTER. The ribozyme sequences were cloned into a plasmid expression vector containing EBV genomic elements that substantially prolong expression of genes delivered in vivo.

Wnt pathway activation in mesothelioma: evidence of Dishevelled overexpression and transcriptional activity of beta-catenin.

Malignant pleural mesothelioma is a relatively uncommon and yet incurable tumor. The pathogenesis of mesothelioma remains poorly understood. This study evaluated the role of Wnt signaling in mesothelioma.

Overexpression of vascular endothelial growth factor isoforms drives oxygenation and growth but not progression to glioblastoma multiforme in a human model of gliomagenesis.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is thought to promote tumor growth and angiogenesis. Whereas VEGF is up-regulated in only a portion of anaplastic astrocytoma (AA), it is overexpressed in most glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), and the level of expression is correlated with grade of glioma. To explore the possibility that VEGF may act as a driving force in the progression of AA to GBM, the VEGF isoforms VEGF(121) and VEGF(165) were overexpressed in genetically modified, mutant H-Ras-transformed human astrocytes that on intracranial implantation form AA-like tumors.

A modified staging classification for cutaneous T-cell lymphoma.

Background: Despite refinements in the diagnosis of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), since 1979 there have been no changes to the staging of CTCL used to classify mycosis fungoides and Sézary syndrome.

Objective: We reviewed the current staging of CTCL and examined the usefulness of a new staging scheme for mycosis fungoides and Sézary syndrome.

Methods: We determined overall survival of 450 patients with mycosis fungoides and Sézary syndrome using the current and modified staging classifications.

Comprehensive genome sequence analysis of a breast cancer amplicon.

Gene amplification occurs in most solid tumors and is associated with poor prognosis. Amplification of 20q13.2 is common to several tumor types including breast cancer.

Quantitative mRNA expression analysis from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues using 5' nuclease quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction.

Analysis of gene expression and correlation with clinical parameters has the potential to become an important factor in therapeutic decision making. The ability to analyze gene expression in archived tissues, for which clinical followup is already available, will greatly facilitate research in this area. A major obstacle to this approach, however, has been the uncertainty about whether gene expression analyses from routinely archived tissues accurately reflect expression before fixation.

Induced expression of Rnd3 is associated with transformation of polarized epithelial cells by the Raf-MEK-extracellular signal-regulated kinase pathway.

Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) epithelial cells transformed by oncogenic Ras and Raf exhibit cell multilayering and alterations in the actin cytoskeleton. The changes in the actin cytoskeleton comprise a loss of actin stress fibers and enhanced cortical actin. Using MDCK cells expressing a conditionally active form of Raf, we have explored the molecular mechanisms that underlie these observations.

Sensitivity of the cervical transformation zone to estrogen-induced squamous carcinogenesis.

Regions where one type of epithelium replaces another (metaplasia) have a predilection for cancer formation. Environmental factors are closely linked to metaplastic carcinogenesis. In particular, cervical cancers associated with human papillomavirus (HPV) infection develop primarily at the transformation zone, a region where metaplastic squamous cells are detected in otherwise columnar epithelial-lined endocervical glands.

A subset of skin tumor modifier loci determines survival time of tumor-bearing mice.

Studies of mouse models of human cancer have established the existence of multiple tumor modifiers that influence parameters of cancer susceptibility such as tumor multiplicity, tumor size, or the probability of malignant progression. We have carried out an analysis of skin tumor susceptibility in interspecific Mus musculus/Mus spretus hybrid mice and have identified another seven loci showing either significant (six loci) or suggestive (one locus) linkage to tumor susceptibility or resistance. A specific search was carried out for skin tumor modifier loci associated with time of survival after development of a malignant tumor.