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Most recent reports across all therapeutic categories. The following reflects new findings and outcomes in medical research as presented at major medical meetings and published peer-reviewed medical journals. In this section members can view reports from important congresses as well as summaries of some recently published journal articles. Please let us know if you have a particular area of interest you would like to see covered. 5th International Primary Care Respiratory Group World Conference Pediatric Asthma: Relevance of ICS PharmacodynamicsToronto, Ontario / June 2-5, 2010 Toronto - In young children presumed to have asthma due to persistent wheezing and breathlessness, there are two major challenges. The first is ruling out the many causes of the presenting symptoms other than asthma. If asthma is confirmed, the second is keeping patients adherent to a management plan that will control the underlying disease. For children with mild-to-moderate persistent symptoms, this treatment plan should include inhaled corticosteroids (ICS), which address the underlying (...) Read more... Asthma, Respirology, Pediatrics 23rd International Symposium on Supportive Care in Cancer New Data in the Prevention of CINVVancouver, British Columbia / June 24-26, 2010 Vancouver - Prior to the modern era of emetic prophylaxis, chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) was one of the most worrisome side effects from chemotherapy. Significant improvement has been achieved since the introduction of the serotonin antagonists (5-HT3 receptor antagonists [RA]) plus corticosteroids. Yet with even moderately emetogenic chemotherapy regimens, standard antiemetic regimens often fail to achieve complete emesis control in all patients. Promising results (...) Read more... MEDICAL FRONTIERS - 46th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology Update on Optimal Long-term Control of GIST with Targeted TherapiesChicago, Illinois / June 4-8, 2010 Chicago - The efficacy of imatinib, an oral small molecule inhibitor in the long-term control of metastatic or unresectable gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GIST), has provided an impressive demonstration of the potency of targeted therapy in malignant diseases. Recently, the indication for its use in GIST was expanded in Canada and elsewhere to include adjuvant treatment after primary resection. The new indication was based on results of a phase III study published in 2009 which (...) Read more... PRIORITY PRESS - 105th Annual Meeting of the American Urological Association GnRH Antagonists: Advances in Androgen Deprivation Therapy for Prostate CancerSan Francisco, California / May 29-June 3, 2010 San Francisco - GnRH agonists effectively suppress testosterone in over 90% of patients with advanced prostate cancer but can require as much as 30 days to achieve full suppressive effects, during which time testosterone levels actually increase. In contrast, GnRH antagonists are a class of compounds that achieve immediate receptor blockade, thus avoiding testosterone surge. Data from the pivotal phase III trial of the new-generation GnRH antagonist degarelix showed that after 12 months of (...) Read more... PRIORITY PRESS - 12th Milan Breast Cancer Conference The ATAC Trial: 10-year AnalysisMilan, Italy / June 16-18, 2010 Milan - Studies have now established the efficacy of adjuvant third-generation aromatase inhibition over the antiestrogen tamoxifen in reducing the risk of breast cancer recurrence among postmenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive tumours. The efficacy of anastrozole after five years compared to tamoxifen, for example, has also been shown to improve disease-free survival (DFS) and reduce early distant metastasis, which may ultimately translate into improved overall survival. As (...) Read more... HEALTH ODYSSEY - Pediatric Nutrition Identification and Management of Feeding Difficulties in ChildrenMay 2010 Miami – Various treatments are implemented for treatment of feeding disorders, including behaviour modifi cation, parental education, drug therapy and nutritional supplementation. A program has been designed to help pediatricians identify and manage feeding diffi culties in infants and young children. The program involves a parental questionnaire used for evaluation and helps physicians with diagnosis and parental education. Outcomes data are still needed to test the underlying causal (...) Read more... PRIORITY PRESS - 2010 Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR) Targeted Cytokine Blocker Efficacy in Rheumatoid Arthritis TrialsRome, Italy / June 16-19, 2010 Rome - The rapid expansion of biological drug classes that downregulate the inflammatory response is substantially broadening the therapeutic options in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Following a proliferation of tumour necrosis factor (TNF) inhibiting agents, newer drugs with different targets within the inflammatory cascade - such as interleukin 6, activated B cells and surface antigens that stimulate T cells - may offer similar efficacy with a different and perhaps more favourable safety (...) Read more... MEDICAL FRONTIERS - 163rd Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association Treatment of ADHD Across the Lifespan: Effective Therapies in Children Demonstrate Benefits in Adolescents and AdultsNew Orleans, Louisiana / May 22-26, 2010 New Orleans - Efforts to better characterize the dimensions of attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are also generating a more rational approach to symptom control. Once considered to be a developmental issue, potentially exacerbated by environmental triggers, ADHD is now well established as the product of a biochemical, typically genetically-induced, alteration in neurotransmitter signalling that is often a sustained and lifelong condition. In childhood, effective treatment is (...) Read more... MEDI-NEWS - Based on: Mateos et al. Bortezomib plus melphalan and prednisone compared with melphalan and prednisone in previously untreated multiple myeloma: Updated follow-up and impact of subsequent therapy in the phase III VISTA trial. J Clin Oncol 2010;28(13):2259-66. Emerging Standard for Previously Untreated Multiple Myeloma PatientsJune 2010 The standard first-line regimen for symptomatic multiple myeloma patients ineligible for high-dose chemotherapy preserves its survival advantage over the previous standard even when patients are followed across subsequent rescue regimens, according to new long-term data from a phase III study. In the new data set, median survival from the start of subsequent therapy was almost 50% greater (30.2 vs. 21.9 months) among those initially randomized to the newer regimen. The advantage was (...) Read more... MEDICAL FRONTIERS - 2010 Congress of the European Renal Association and European Dialysis and Transplant Association (ERA-EDTA) Controlling Hyperphosphatemia in Patients with Chronic Kidney DiseaseMunich, Germany / June 25-28, 2010 Munich - Even between non-calcium-containing agents, phosphate binders used in dialysis patients appear to differ substantially. While these differences are now being closely evaluated for their influence on outcome, the attention generated by these comparisons may have more immediate importance for drawing attention to an acute need for more aggressive serum phosphorus (SP) control. Despite guidelines, surveys suggest that a large proportion of dialysis patients continue to have SP levels (...) Read more... PRIORITY PRESS - 15th Congress of the European Hematology Association Update on the Treatment of Iron OverloadBarcelona, Spain / June 10-13, 2010 Barcelona - Patients who become transfusion-dependent due to chronic anemia are highly predisposed to iron overload and iron overload in turn is toxic to many organs. Guidelines indicate that patients with high serum ferritin concentrations should receive iron chelation to reduce iron stores and help preserve organ function. New data presented here at the EHA demonstrate that a once-daily oral iron chelator is both efficacious and well-tolerated, thereby improving patient satisfaction with (...) Read more... FRONTLINE - Geriatric Medicine Translating Research into Clinical PracticeJune 2010 Based on Sessions from the 30th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Geriatrics Society
PRIORITY PRESS - 15th Congress of the European Hematology Association Novel Agents Significantly Improve Outcomes in Multiple MyelomaBarcelona, Spain / June 10-13, 2010 Barcelona - Novel agents, including a proteasome inhibitor and two immunomodulatory drugs, are changing the therapeutic landscape for multiple myeloma. Unlike in the past, the goal of treatment today is to attain complete remission. Treatment is still highly individualized, based on both patient and disease characteristics; but some novel agents may be able to overcome classic resistance to treatment and triple therapy. Combinations that include at least one novel agent are leading to (...) Read more... RESOURCE LINE - Nutrition Strategies to Improve and Maintain Intestinal Flora Balance: The Role of Prebiotics and ProbioticsJune 2010 Las Vegas – Research into prebiotics and probiotics on human health continues and emerging evidence appears promising. Both are able to provide optimal balance in the vast ecology of intestinal microbes and both have been associated with significant clinical benefit in a variety of therapeutic areas. Among their many proven effects is an ability to reduce antibiotic-associated diarrhea, including diarrhea caused by Clostridium difficile, alleviation of pouchitis and symptoms of ulcerative (...) Read more... JOURNAL CLUB - Transplantation Immunosuppression for Kidney Transplant Recipients: Evidence-based KDIGO Practice GuidelinesJune 2010 Based on The KDIGO Clinical Practice Guideline for the Care of Kidney Transplant Recipients.
PRIORITY PRESS - 46th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology Enhancing Quality of Life for Metastatic Breast Cancer PatientsChicago, Illinois / June 4-8, 2010 Chicago - New phase III comparative data have provided evidence for a rational first-line selection of a single-agent cytotoxic drug in the treatment of HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer (MBC). In guidelines such as those issued by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network and the European Society of Medical Oncology, sequential use of single agents has been identified as the standard, but the guidelines have not identified a preferable first-line choice among several candidate drugs. (...) Read more... PRIORITY PRESS - 5th International Primary Care Respiratory Group World Conference COPD Inflammation as the New Target for Emerging TherapiesToronto, Ontario / June 2-5, 2010 Toronto - It is important to diagnose chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at a stage when early interventions can have the greatest impact, and several novel ways of detecting COPD at earlier stages were discussed by speakers here. Introduced in younger patients, long-acting anticholinergics help reduce the rate of lung function decline, underscoring the importance of early detection. Bronchodilators remain the cornerstone of treatment, with inhaled corticosteroids providing (...) Read more... PRIORITY PRESS - 5th International Primary Care Respiratory Group World Conference Early Intervention in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary DiseaseToronto, Ontario / June 2-5, 2010 Toronto - Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is persistently under-diagnosed and therefore under-treated. By the time it is diagnosed, most patients have irreversible lung damage and interventions including smoking cessation can do little to reconstitute lung function. Physicians need to be wary of COPD in all smokers and ex-smokers 40 years of age and older and send those with suspected COPD for spirometry. Although not possible in all patients with COPD, a reduction in the rate (...) Read more... RESOURCE LINE - Pediatric Nutrition From Breast Milk to Weaning and BeyondMay 2010 Mothers’ perception that their infant is not satisfied by breast milk alone is consistently cited as one of the top three reasons why mothers decide to stop breast-feeding, regardless of the age at which the infant is weaned, according to a US study.
HEALTH ODYSSEY - Diabetes Management Circle Blood Glucose Self-Monitoring in Diabetes: Identifying and Dismantling Barriers to AdherenceMay 2010 Studies have long indicated that maintaining normal glucose levels in patients with diabetes is critical for the prevention of diabetes-related complications. Patients must take an active interest in their own care by following an all-in-one diabetes management plan, the foundation of which is self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG). There is considerable evidence that adherence to recommended frequencies of SMBG is far from optimal but a recent survey of patients on insulin therapy has (...) Read more... Diabetes, Diabetes, Complementary |
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