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Is Cancer Outwitting 'Personalized Medicine'?

Posted 7 Mar 2012 by Drugs.com

WEDNESDAY, March 7 – The genetic makeup of cancer cells differs significantly from region to region within a single tumor, according to new research that raises questions about the true potential of personalized cancer medicine. With this treatment approach, doctors study a tumor's genetic makeup to determine which drugs would work best in a particular patient. But if the genetic mutations driving the cancer cells vary widely, a single tissue sample won't necessarily give the full picture. This "targeted therapy" involves "sticking a needle into the primary tumor site and taking a small sliver of a tumor, doing a gene analysis, and creating a genetic profile of the tumor to predict how the tumor will behave," explained Dr. Dan Longo, an oncologist and deputy editor at the New England Journal of Medicine. "What this paper tells us is that is an oversimplification of the complexity of ... Read more

Related support groups: Cancer, Tarceva, Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer, Herceptin, Erlotinib, Trastuzumab

Mixed News on Tough-to-Treat Lung Cancer

Posted 10 Jan 2012 by Drugs.com

TUESDAY, Jan. 10 – Dutch researchers report disappointing results from an early clinical trial of the drug Nexavar (sorafenib) in fighting a tough-to-treat form of lung cancer. But, in better news, an experimental drug known as ganetespib showed promise in laboratory and animal experiments. The results of both studies were to be presented Tuesday at an American Association for Cancer Research/International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer meeting in San Diego. In recent years, researchers have made some headway in finding treatments to combat lung cancer, which often doesn't respond well to chemotherapy, explained Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society. Those treatments include drugs such as crizotinib (Xalkori) and erlotinib (Tarceva), which are most effective in tumors that contain certain genetic mutations. However, those drugs tend ... Read more

Related support groups: Lung Cancer, Tarceva, Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer, Nexavar, Xalkori, Small Cell Lung Cancer, Erlotinib, Sorafenib, Crizotinib

Cancer Patients Should Ask Doctors to Use Simple Terms

Posted 28 Sep 2011 by Drugs.com

WEDNESDAY, Sept. 28 – Cancer patients are often faced with many difficult-to-understand treatment choices that can have serious side effects and even mean the difference between life and death. That's why it's crucial that patients insist doctors use plain language in explaining the options, advised Angela Fagerlin, an associate professor of internal medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School and a researcher at the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center. "People are making life and death decisions that may affect their survival and they need to know what they're getting themselves into. Cancer treatments and tests can be serious. Patients need to know what kind of side effects they might experience as a result of the treatment they undergo," Fagerlin said in a university news release. She and her colleagues outlined a number of tips to help patients get the information they need ... Read more

Related support groups: Cancer, Methotrexate, Provera, Breast Cancer, Lupron, Accutane, Depo-Provera, Prostate Cancer, Tamoxifen, Femara, Arimidex, Lupron Depot, Medroxyprogesterone, Claravis, Fluorouracil

Tarceva Battles Lung Cancer in Some

Posted 21 Jul 2011 by Drugs.com

THURSDAY, July 21 – New research finds that the targeted cancer drug Tarceva nearly triples the amount of time lung cancer patients survive without a recurrence and has fewer side effects than standard chemotherapy. The authors of a study appearing in the July 21 online issue of The Lancet Oncology recommend using Tarceva (erlotinib) as a first-line treatment for patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer who have the particular gene mutation this drug targets. Other experts agreed. "This is a very important study [because] it shows that we can identify patients with a specific genetic marker and direct specific treatment toward them," said Dr. Jay Brooks, chairman of hematology/oncology at Ochsner Health System in Baton Rouge, La. "In the past, if a patient needed system-wide treatment, it would be chemotherapy. However, now it's clear that we need to check for the EGFR ... Read more

Related support groups: Lung Cancer, Tarceva

Experimental Drug Bests Chemo in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Study

Posted 5 Jul 2011 by Drugs.com

TUESDAY, July 5 – A drug designed to treat certain patients with non-small cell lung cancer boosts survival time without progression of cancer by several months, according to a new study. The findings reveal that the drug, known as erlotinib (brand name Tarceva), doesn't just boost lifespan, said Dr. Neal E. Ready, associate professor of medical oncology at Duke Cancer Institute, who was not involved with the study. "What you really get is a prolonged period of time when the cancer is under control and someone has a really good quality of life." This study is the first of its kind to look at Western patients. "Although a growing body of evidence has been emerging about this type of lung cancer, almost all of the studies have been conducted in Asian patients, a group that historically has had significantly different results to [non-small cell lung cancer] therapy compared to Western ... Read more

Related support groups: Tarceva, Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer, Erlotinib

Post-Chemo Treatment May Boost Lung Cancer Survival

Posted 20 May 2010 by Drugs.com

THURSDAY, May 20 – Among people with non-small-cell lung cancer, treatment with the drug erlotinib (Tarceva) after chemotherapy appears to slightly boost survival rates, a new study suggests. Non-small-cell lung cancer makes up about 85 percent of lung cancer cases. About half the time, people have advanced disease when diagnosed and are treated solely with chemotherapy, usually platinum-based chemo. But chemotherapy only boosts survival by eight to 10 months, the study authors noted. The study findings, which support the use of erlotinib as a "maintenance" treatment, are based on research by Dr. Federico Cappuzzo of the Civil Hospital of Livorno in Italy and his colleagues. The researchers tested the drug in 889 people who'd had chemotherapy and whose disease had not gotten worse. They were randomly assigned to take erlotinib an inactive placebo. According to the study, published ... Read more

Related support groups: Tarceva, Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer, Erlotinib

FDA Approves Tarceva as a Maintenance Therapy for Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Posted 18 Apr 2010 by Drugs.com

MELVILLE, N.Y., Apr 16, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) – OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the daily pill Tarceva (erlotinib) as a maintenance treatment for patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose disease has not progressed after four cycles of platinum-based first-line chemotherapy. "We are delighted that lung cancer patients and their physicians will have the option of beginning Tarceva therapy in the first-line maintenance setting. We believe that Tarceva, as the only medicine approved in the maintenance setting for the squamous and non-squamous forms of NSCLC, offers a valuable treatment option for these patients," said Colin Goddard, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of OSI Pharmaceuticals. "We remain committed to a strategy of maximizing the value of Tarceva as an important therapy ... Read more

Related support groups: Tarceva, Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Gene Mutation Improves Response to Lung Cancer Drug

Posted 12 Jan 2010 by Drugs.com

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 19 – People with lung cancer who are screened for a genetic mutation and then given a drug called Tarceva, which is believed to work well with that mutation, live longer than those without the mutation who take the drug, new research has found. According to the Spanish authors of a study in the Aug. 20 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, this type of widespread screening is actually doable and could lead to better decisions about treatment. "They proved that it is worthy to test patients for the [epidermal growth factor receptor gene] mutations, and that if you have the mutations you are going to do well," said Dr. Edgardo Santos, an assistant professor of medicine in the hematology and oncology section at the University of Miami's Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. "If we are moving toward personalized medicine in the future, I think this is the way to go ... Read more

Related support groups: Lung Cancer, Tarceva

Drug Combo Proves Powerful Against Lung Cancer

Posted 30 May 2009 by Drugs.com

SATURDAY, May 30 – A two-drug combination treatment proved successful in safely slowing advanced non-small cell lung cancer in a recent clinical trial. In the study, a phase 3 trial involving 768 people with the disease, those who had erlotinib (Tarceva) added to their dose of the bevacizumab (Avastin) saw the progression of the disease slow more than if on bevacizumab alone. People on the combo therapy tolerated the drugs well and survived an average of 4.8 months before the disease grew worse, compared with 3.7 months for those on bevacizumab alone. Non-small cell lung cancer, often linked to past tobacco use, is the most common of all lung cancers, according to the National Cancer Institute. "This is the first study to show the addition of erlotinib to maintenance therapy prolongs progression-free survival in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer," the study's co-author, ... Read more

Related support groups: Avastin, Tarceva, Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

FDA Medwatch Alert: Tarceva (erlotinib)

Posted 8 May 2009 by Drugs.com

OSI, Genentech and FDA notified healthcare professionals of new safety information added to the WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS sections of the prescribing information for Tarceva. Gastrointestinal perforation (including fatalities), bullous, blistering and exfoliative skin conditions including cases suggestive of Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis, in some cases fatal, and ocular disorders, including corneal perforation or ulceration have been reported during use of Tarceva. The new safety information comes from routine pharmacovigilance activities of clinical study and postmarketing reports. Tarceva monotherapy is indicated for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer after failure of at least one prior chemotherapy regimen. In combination with gemcitabine, Tarceva is also indicated for the first-line treatment of patients with ... Read more

Related support groups: Tarceva

FDA Medwatch Alert: Tarceva (erlotinib)

Posted 23 Sep 2008 by Drugs.com

[Posted 09/23/2008] OSI and Genentech notified healthcare professionals that cases of hepatic failure and hepatorenal syndrome, including fatalities, have been reported during use of Tarceva, particularly in patients with baseline hepatic impairment. Patients with hepatic impairment receiving Tarceva should be closely monitored during therapy and the product should be used with extra caution in patients with total bilirubin >3x ULN. Dosing should be interrupted or discontinued if changes in liver function are severe, such as doubling of total bilirubin and/or tripling of transaminases in the setting of pretreatment values outside the normal range. New information from a pharmacokinetic study in patients with moderate hepatic impairment associated with significant liver tumor burden has been provided in the revised prescribing information, and other recommendations are included in the ... Read more

Related support groups: Tarceva

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