Cancer Research Lab

The rate of new or missed colorectal cancer (CRC) after colonoscopy is influenced by who performs the examination and where it takes place, Canadian researchers report. Cancers are more likely to be missed with colonoscopy by an internist or family physician, and in an office setting.

Given these findings, senior investigator Dr. Linda Rabeneck said that “for the delivery of colonoscopy services in Ontario, we need to further study the practice of colonoscopy in offices and private clinics… There is something different about the practice of colonoscopy in these settings that gives rise to higher cancer miss rates, a worrisome finding.”

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Many women who die of ovarian cancer do not receive high intensity pain medication in the last 6 months of life, according to a study published in the January issue of the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management.

“When patients with cancer are nearing the end of life, they need to made as comfortable and free of pain as possible,” Dr. Sharon J. Rolnick, of HealthPartners Research Foundation, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and colleagues write. “Yet, research indicates that medical care is not always optimal; many such patients are undertreated and thus suffer significant and unnecessary pain … despite the availability of analgesic drug therapies and treatment protocols.”

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An analysis of men with early prostate cancer treated at the Cleveland Clinic found that those treated with external beam radiation therapy had poorer overall survival than those treated with radioactive seed implants (brachytherapy) or radical prostatectomy. The findings persisted after controlling for potentially confounding factors such as age, comorbidities, and smoking history.

“These findings indicate that the three major forms of treatment for early-stage prostate cancer are not necessarily equivalent in terms of overall survival,” said Dr. Jay Ciezki of the Cleveland Clinic in a statement. He presented the results Saturday in Orlando at the at The Prostate Cancer Symposium, co-sponsored by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Society of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, and the Society of Urologic Oncology.

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Recent studies that have defined the benefits of chemotherapy in older patients with metastatic lung cancer indicate that the use of single agent therapy is well justified, according to a review by Minnesota-based researchers. However, more information is required on treatment for non-small cell lung cancer in this group of patients.

“Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States, and it is becoming a major cause of morbidity and mortality among older Americans,” study co-author Dr. Aminah Jatoi told Reuters Health. “There is a growing need for research on how best to treat lung cancer in the elderly.”

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High intakes of vitamin A, retinol, and provitamin A carotenoids reduce the risk of gastric cancer, results of a study published in the February issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggest.

“Vitamin A may influence gastric carcinogenesis through its essential role in controlling cell proliferation and differentiation,” Dr. Susanna C. Larsson, of Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden, and colleagues write. “However, epidemiologic studies of vitamin A, retinol (preformed vitamin A), and provitamin A carotenoids in relation to the risk of gastric cancer have documented inconsistent results.”

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Using exhaled breath, a colorimetric chemical sensory array (ChemSensing, Champagne, Illinois) can distinguish between patients with lung cancer and healthy subjects, according to research published ahead of print in Thorax.

Cancer cells undergo metabolic changes that alter the production and processing of volatile organic compounds, explain lead author Dr. Peter J. Mazzone and his colleagues at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.

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The current American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging system for prostate cancer does not incorporate tumor classification, pretreatment prostate specific antigen (pPSA) level or Gleason score (GS) and therefore does not include information that is needed to make decisions on appropriate treatment options, according to investigators writing in the January 15th issue of Cancer.

Dr. Mack Roach of the University of California at San Francisco and colleagues used multivariate analyses to create a Cox proportional hazards model in 912 men with localized prostate cancer who had received external beam radiation therapy between 1987 and 1998.

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In a small minority of patients, prostate cancer may progress despite undetectable or low serum levels of prostate specific antigen (PSA), according to Houston-based researchers.

In the January 15th issue of Cancer, Dr. Dan Leibovici and colleagues at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer note that PSA level after definitive treatment for prostate cancer is a powerful predictor of outcome. However, this is not invariably the case.

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Except for hematopoietic cancers, cancer incidence is no more common among patients with inflammatory arthritis than in the general population, investigators in the UK report. However, 5-year cancer survival is significantly reduced.

Mortality among patients with rheumatoid arthritis is about twice as high as that of the general population, Dr. Alan Silman and his associates note, and mortality related to cancer is also increased. What remains unsettled is whether the higher mortality is due to greater incidence or a higher case fatality rate.

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Advanced age and other factors predispose patients to respiratory infections after lung cancer surgery, according to a report in the January Journal of Thoracic Oncology.

“Although elderly patients have risk factors for postoperative infections in lung cancer surgery, preoperative rehabilitation may reduce the risk of postoperative complications,” Dr. Satoshi Shiono from National Cancer Center Hospital East, Kashiwa, Chiba, Japan said.

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