Upfront zoledronic acid appears to significantly increase bone mineral density in postmenopausal women with early breast cancer receiving letrozole for 5 years versus delayed zoledronic acid administration. Long-term coadministration of letrozole and zoledronic acid is well tolerated.

Concurrent use of metformin with adjuvant chemotherapy does not appear to significantly impact survival outcomes in diabetic patients with triple receptor-negative breast cancer. However, compared with the metformin group, patients who are not treated with metformin and nondiabetic patients tend to have a higher risk of distant metastases.

The use of in situ molecular methods of viral detection to reassess the frequency of human papillomavirus (HPV) in malignant breast tissue produces limited evidence of HPV in breast tissue of women with breast cancer. However, given the presence of HPV in 8.6% of breast cancer specimens in this study, further investigation in women with no history of breast cancer is warranted to test causal association.

The authors performed a case-control study to determine the effect of cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) genotype on risk of recurrence in early breast cancer patients who were receiving tamoxifen. The study found that after adjustment for stage, CYP2D6 inhibitors, and follow-up time, CYP2D6 genotype was not associated with a significant effect on disease recurrence in breast cancer patients who were taking tamoxifen.

Family history of thyroid cancer in first-degree relatives, particularly in siblings, is associated with an increased risk of sporadic differentiated and papillary thyroid carcinoma.

The results from this study suggest that exposure to bisphosphonates may reduce the risk of presenting with colorectal cancer. Among the individual bisphosphonate agents, the benefit from risendronic acid may be the greatest.

Understanding metachronous cancer associations can modify pancreas cancer risk. Primary malignancies associated with certain environmental and genetic risk factors are associated with the development of pancreatic adenocarcinoma later in life.

One hundred nineteen treatment-naive patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) received once-daily dosing of sunitinib 37.5 mg. Continuous dosing with sunitinib was active with a manageable safety profile as first-line metastatic RCC therapy, making this a feasible alternative dosing regimen.

Radiographic staging in men with incident prostate cancer is overused in men with low-risk and intermediate-risk disease and underused in men with high-risk disease. This may have significant financial and treatment-related consequences.

Increased epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expression, which, in some patients, may be caused by EGFR copy number changes, occurs in a fraction of patients who have renal cell carcinoma with an unfavorable histologic phenotype. High polysomy occurs in about 5% of renal cell carcinomas, but EGFR gene mutations (the strongest predictor of a possible response to tyrosine kinase inhibitors) are not observed.

The increasing use of radiation over the past 2 decades has had no adverse impact on laryngeal cancer survival. Black race and residence in low-income counties are associated with a significantly lower frequency of radiotherapy administration.

The authors validate the developmental transcription factor engrailed homeobox 1 (EN1) as a potential biomarker in a large cohort of patients with salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC). Immunohistochemical analysis of EN1 in biopsy specimens obtained for diagnostic purposes and/or surgically resected material reveals that EN1 is a biologic predictor of poor prognosis in patients with salivary ACC.

Total focal adhesion kinase is strongly expressed in small-cell lung carcinoma but is not associated with disease stage, response to therapy, recurrence/progression-free survival, and overall survival.

Bevacizumab and daily temozolomide in monotherapy appear to have clinically meaningful activity in recurrent glioblastoma. In this trial, the authors demonstrate that bevacizumab and daily temozolomide in combination therapy have some activity and are well tolerated.

Data from this study provide guidance in the development of follow-up schedules after a diagnosis of a medulloblastoma or primitive neuroectodermal tumor. Differences in survival between children and adults with these tumors emerge only 4 years after diagnosis, and adults fare worse.

Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is one of several potential treatment options that may be effective for patients with brain metastasis from breast cancer, and markers that correlate with the degree of individual patient response to SRS and with overall outcome are of value to clinicians deciding upon management strategies for these patients. We demonstrated that radiographic evidence of necrosis at the time of stereotactic radiosurgery is associated with diminished efficacy of SRS therapy and is a negative prognostic marker.

Molecular analysis of invasive breast tumors as well as nonmalignant breast tissues reveal differences in gene expression between African American and Caucasian women. These differences in expression of genes involve immunity, cell growth, and differentiation, and invasion and metastasis may contribute to aggressive breast cancer in African American women.

Patient self-reported limitations in activities of daily living and instrumental activities of daily living do not correlate well with clinician perception of impairment related to cancer screening. A disability measurement instrument designed to assess factors relevant for cancer screening may be useful for identifying and accommodating patients who are at increased risk of not receiving cancer control services.

The authors study nationwide, population-based Swedish registries and compare cause-specific survival between cancer patients with and without type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The results indicate that patients with T2DM who are diagnosed with subsequent cancer are at an increased risk of cause-specific mortality compared with patients with cancer who do not have T2DM.

Three novel, monoallelic, truncating mutations of the partner and localizer of breast cancer 2 gene PALB2 are detected in African American women with both familial and nonfamilial breast cancer. Although their clinical significance is undetermined, rare PALB2 mutations account for a small but substantial proportion of breast cancers.

Studying common cancer types in the US Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results 9 registries, the authors find that age-specific incidence, mortality, and prevalence normally peak between ages 75 and 95 years and, when the results have statistical power, usually drop abruptly afterward.

The authors use the International Agency for Research on Cancer tumor protein p53 gene (TP53) database to analyze the types, age at onset, and mutation patterns of sarcoma in TP53 mutation carriers. These data are compared with sarcoma types in the general population of Caucasians using the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program data to improve the characterization of sarcomas occurring in carriers.

Racial disparities in tumor stage at diagnosis were observed particularly among older nonactive duty beneficiaries in the Department of Defense Health System, which provides all racial groups with equal access to medical care.

Uncertainty exists about the benefits versus the risks of surgery for early stage nonsmall cell lung cancer in older patients. The authors of this report used a geographic analysis to address bias and observed that higher rates of surgery for stage I/II nonsmall cell lung cancer were associated with improved survival, even when older patients and sicker patients underwent resection.

Although there is level I evidence demonstrating the superiority of intravesical therapy in patients with bladder cancer, surveillance strategies are primarily founded on expert opinion. The authors examined compliance with surveillance and treatment strategies and the pursuant impact on survival in patients with high-grade disease.

This work demonstrates that the Royal Marsden Hospital prognostic score is independent of the center, patient population, and treating physician. In addition, a subpopulation of patients is identified (with a Royal Marsden Hospital prognostic score of 3) in which the median survival is only 4 weeks. This subgroup may need to be excluded from phase 1 trials; or, alternatively, washout periods may need to be minimized for these patients

In this nationwide study, 2920 patients who underwent surgery for spinal metastases at academic medical centers were examined. Patients admitted in July had significantly higher adjusted odds of in-hospital death and development of an intraoperative complication compared with those admitted between August and June.

Childhood cancer survivors encounter problems during schooling and complete professional education with some delay. However, with the exception of patients who have brain tumors and those who have had a relapse, the final educational achievement in survivors of childhood cancer is comparable to that in the general population.

This retrospective study of longitudinal changes in pulmonary function tests (PFTs) of survivors of pediatric malignant solid tumors who were treated with whole lung irradiation shows frequent abnormalities in PFT parameters, especially in lung volumes, which deteriorated over time. These findings suggest that long-term, continual follow-up of pulmonary function and symptoms, timely intervention, and patient education are important.

Results of the current study have confirmed the validity, reliability, cross-cultural applicability, and sensitivity of the 22-item European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) QLQ-BM22 module. It is therefore recommended that the QLQ-BM22 be used in addition to the QLQ-C30 in clinical trials to assess health-related quality of life in patients with bone metastases.