Excerpts from 2012 Rounds with the Investigators Multiple Myeloma, Lung Cancer and Breast Cancer Meetings
In 2012 Research To Practice (RTP) conducted a series of 3 closed meetings focusing on the management of patients with multiple myeloma, lung cancer and breast cancer. Four clinical investigators with an expertise in each of these tumor types were recruited to serve as the faculty panel and, along with community-based oncologists, participated in daylong sessions discussing the most relevant and important treatment strategies for patients.
To augment these activities and create a uniquely interactive environment, RTP afforded its users the opportunity to submit questions, cases and discussion topics through its Facebook page and Twitter account. Numerous posts and tweets were collected and presented during the meetings by RTP President Dr Neil Love, who served as the moderator.
The following are actual excerpts from the meetings, held April 13 (multiple myeloma), April 20 (lung cancer) and July 20 (breast cancer), during which the faculty discussed the social media submissions.
Multiple Myeloma
- 1. Case: A 74-year-old man with disease recurrence in the rib cage and soft tissue 16 months after treatment for a plasma cell neoplasm in the lung and soft tissue
- 2. Bone health in patients with renal insufficiency who are not candidates for bisphosphonates
- 3. Potential biomarkers for active treatment versus observation in MGUS/smoldering myeloma
- 4. Pomalidomide dose intensification upon disease progression
- 5. Unusual fractures in patients receiving long-term bisphosphonates
- 6. Methods of risk stratification testing
- 7. Case: A 79-year-old woman with renal failure and worsening anemia after 6 cycles of VMP
Breast Cancer
- 1. Adding bisphosphonates to AIs in adjuvant ER-positive postmenopausal breast cancer
- 2. Case: Continuing to treat Stage IV metastatic TNBC in a premenopausal woman who had a very good partial response to gemcitabine/cisplatin/ bevacizumab.
- 3. Elderly but vigorous patients with HER2-positive breast cancer
- 4. Further lymph-node examination in premenopausal patients
- 5. Managing ER- and HER2-positive disease in a younger, otherwise healthy patient while dealing with potential insurance issues
- 6. The validity of Oncotype DX® for otherwise healthy premenopausal patients
- 7. HER2-positivity in lobular breast cancer
- 8. CMF versus anthracyclines in adjuvant chemotherapy
- 9. HER2-positive metastatic disease that spreads to the brain
- 10. How long before a woman can breast-feed after having surgery or radiation?
Lung Cancer
- 1. Case: A 40-year-old woman with metastatic lung adenocarcinoma to the liver and bone and an EGFR mutation experiences a dramatic response to erlotinib but now presents with disease progression
- 2. Case: A 58-year-old woman with SCLC recurrence in the transverse colon after a disease-free interval of 3 months
- 3. Case: A 67-year-old woman with a 3-cm adenocarcinoma with areas of poorly differentiated disease and lymphovascular invasion and an EGFR mutation
- 4. Incidence of EGFR mutations and EML4-ALK translocations in tumors testing positive for K-ras mutations
- 5. Case: A 72-year-old man with metastatic NSCLC with squamous differentiation experiences an excellent response to carboplatin/paclitaxel and is now being considered for maintenance therapy