October 16, 2018

On October 16, 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved talazoparib, a poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitor, for patients with deleterious or suspected deleterious germline BRCA-mutated, HER2‑negative locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer. Patients must be selected for therapy based on an FDA-approved companion diagnostic for talazoparib.

October 16, 2018

The Right-to-Try law, which has been in effect since May 2018, may have a misleading name, given that it doesn’t require drug manufacturers to grant access to experimental treatments that have passed phase I trials to any patient who seeks it. Rather, the law grants terminally ill patients the “right to ask” the drug company directly, but the request can be denied for several reasons (e.g., limited supply, expense).

October 15, 2018

At a recent college alumni dinner, a friend and wine expert pulled me aside and asked, “Is it true that wine increases the risk of breast cancer?” She knew I worked in the cancer division at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), so it was a reasonable question. I’ve been at wine tastings she’s hosted, and I needed to be straight. 

“Yes,” I said, “the evidence is clear: drinking alcohol of any kind increases breast cancer risk.”

October 12, 2018

What comes to mind when someone mentions Brazil? Do you think soccer? The 2016 Rio Olympics? Carnival? The Amazon rainforest? Although all of those are true, even more impressive is what’s happening in oncology nursing throughout Brazil. In August 2018, a small group of dedicated Brazilian oncology nurses—many of whom are ONS members—hosted the Inaugural Oncology Nursing Brazil 2018 conference in Sao Paulo.

October 10, 2018

A new study demonstrated that pediatric cancer rates vary by U.S. state and geographic region, with the highest rates in the Northeast, specifically New Hampshire; Washington, DC; and New Jersey. The study findings were published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.