REFERENCE: American Association for Cancer Research 97th Annual Meeting 1st-5th April 2006, Washington, DC. Abstract 415
Christophe Nemos, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha
A new blood test for pancreatic cancer was under discussion at the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting held in Washington, DC.  In some patients the results of the test proved to signal pancreatic cancer six months before the disease became detectable by other means.  Christophe Némos of the University of Nebraska in Omaha told Peter Goodwin about his group’s use of MUC4 mRNA molecule normally present in tumor tissue, which has now been measured in the blood.  The hope is that very early detection of the disease could improve further the rates of survival made possible by early resection combined with chemotherapy.

Robert Ozols of the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia joins Derek Thorne to talk about the top presentations on cancer prevention.

- Raloxifene is as good as tamoxifen at preventing breast cancer in high-risk women. Lawrence Wickerham of the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project in Pittsburgh presented the clinical data from the STAR trial, while Patricia Ganz of UCLA had information on quality of life (Abstracts 5 and 561)
- The human papillomavirus vaccine (HPV) doesn’t just protect against cervical cancer – it may protect against vaginal and vulvar cancers as well. That’s according to findings from the FUTURE II study, presented by Jorma Paavonen of the University of Helsinki (Abstract 5011)
- Noah Kauff, of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, has data confirming that women with mutations in the genes for BRCA1 and 2 can reduce their risk of breast and ovarian cancer if they have their ovaries and fallopian tubes removed (Abstract 1003)

Robert Mayer of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston joins Derek Thorne to discuss the major hematologic malignancy news reported at the 2006 ASCO meeting.

- Older patients with multiple myeloma can benefit from adding thalidomide to their standard therapy of melphalan and prednisone; and the thalidomide regimen is also better than melphalan followed by autologous stem cell transplantation. Thierry Facon from the University of Lille told ASCO delegates about his group’s findings (Abstract 1)
- A decreased dose of thalidomide may be just as effective in multiple myeloma while having a better side effect profile – but should these results change practice? Ibrahim Yakoub-Agha from the University of Lille had the data at ASCO (Abstract 7520)
- Imatinib is still proving effective at treating chronic myeloid leukemia, even after more than 5 years of follow up. Robert Mayer describes the latest findings from the IRIS study
- In the “core-binding factor” subtype of acute myeloid leukemia, certain mutations in the KIT gene predict for a poor prognosis. This could help tailor therapy for this disease, according to Peter Paschka of Ohio State University

Some major progress in kidney cancer and head and neck cancer was announced at the ASCO meeting in Atlanta, and the Audio Journal of Oncology has all the details, plus expert comment from Dean Bajorin of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

- Sunitinib is superior to interferon alpha as first line therapy in metastatic kidney cancer. Robert Motzer from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York told the ASCO conference about his team’s ground-breaking phase III trial with this drug
- In high risk advanced renal cell carcinoma, temsirolimus has proved more effective than interferon alpha – that’s according to a study presented by Gary Hudes, of the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia
- A new three-drug “induction” chemotherapy regimen involving docetaxel has produced a significant benefit in advanced head and neck cancer. Marshall Posner of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute had the data at the ASCO meeting

Julie Gralow, from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, joins Derek Thorne to talk about the latest news from the ASCO annual meeting in Atlanta.

- In women with advanced HER2/neu positive breast cancer, lapatinib plus capecitabine is better than capecitabine alone and could be recommended for compassionate use. Charles Geyer, from Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, presented the data to the ASCO meeting in a Scientific Special Session
- Postmenopausal women with breast cancer may benefit from a switching strategy, where tamoxifen is replaced by exemestane after two to three years – that’s according to the Intergroup Exemestane Study, presented by Judith Bliss of the Institute of Cancer Research in London (Late Breaking Abstract 527)
- Is the higher bone loss associated with anastrozole a concern? Robert Coleman, of Sheffield University, presented bone mineral density data from the ATAC study, which compared anastrozole and tamoxifen in postmenopausal women (Abstract 511)

- Elderly patients with non-small cell lung cancer can benefit from chemotherapy after surgery, and do not experience increased toxicity when compared to younger patients – that’s according to Carmela Pepe of the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto (abstract 7009)
- the Oncology Drugs Advisory Committee has concluded that the drug dasatinib should be recommended for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukaemia. Breaking the news at the Atlanta meeting was John Goldman of Imperial College London, and the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda
- Roy Herbst from the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston tells the Audio Journal about some of the most exciting announcements to be made at the 2006 ASCO conference, including progress in multiple myeloma and targeted therapy in renal cancer
- the outgoing president of ASCO, Sandra Horning, of Stanford University, explains how ASCO has focussed on cancer survivorship over the last year – and how cancer survivors can expect to receive more support in the future.