Capsule Summary

CCO-Independent Conference Coverage of the


American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting, June 2009*




Omacetaxine Active With Minimal Toxicity in T315I-Positive CML Patients Who Failed Imatinib


Posting Date: June 03, 2009


o Ongoing, non-randomized phase II/III trial[1]
Omacetaxine, a first-in-class cetaxine, resulted in durable hematologic and cytogenetic responses in patients with T315i positive chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) who had previously failed imatinib therapy



Summary of Key Conclusions




o Generally well tolerated
o Potential for patients to self-administer
o Most common toxicity: myelo-suppression

Hematologic Malignancies
In this Expert Recap, Edward A. Stadtmauer, MD, discusses the most important studies in multiple myeloma, lymphomas, and leukemias, as presented at the 2009 Clinical Oncology meeting.

Cutting-edge drugs to be fast-tracked, bypassing NICE
15 July 2009

The UK government has announced plans to allow highly innovative drugs to be made available on the NHS for a limited period without going through appraisal by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).

At 24th of June 2009 a new campaign European Action Against Rare Cancers has been launched. The new campaign urges European policy-makers to prioritise better treatment and care for patients with rare cancers within the framework of the new Commission Communication on cancer and other recent policy initiatives such as the Council Recommendation on Rare Diseases. The CML Advocates Network is one of the supporting organisations. The campaign has launched a Call to Action – an international petition appealing to all stakeholders to initiate targeted actions to address the challenges of rare cancers.

May 22 (HealthDay News) -- Low levels of vitamin D may contribute to cancer development, U.S. researchers have found.

Interim guidance for use of 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine during novel influenza A (H1N1) outbreak
June 9, 2009

Table. U.S. ACIP recommendations for use of pneumococcal polysaccacharide vaccine.

Persistent CML-initiating cells, or CML stem cells, which are protected from imatinib killing by their quiescent status, are
probably responsible for the regrowth of the disease.

Life Extension Magazine
June 2, 2009
New model of cancer development proposed

In an article scheduled to appear in the Annals of Epidemiology, epidemiologist Cedric Garland, DrPH and his associates at the University of California San Diego's Moores Cancer Center propose that cancer, rather than commencing with genetic mutations, is initially caused by a reduction in the of ability of cells to stick together.

Clinical, pharmacokinetic (PK), and pharmacodynamic findings from a phase I trial of an Eg5 inhibitor (AZD4877) in patients with refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

Recognition for inventors in the fight against disease
[Date: ]

The fight against leukaemia and malaria - two of the world's most virulent diseases - was rewarded in two out of the four categories at the recent European Inventor of the Year awards.

NICE opens NHS door to blood cancer therapy Revlimid
27 April 2009
It was further good news for patients with multiple myeloma in the UK last week after the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence cemented its position on using Celgene’s Revlimid to treat the disease.