Continuing Avastin Beyond Initial Cancer Progression Improves Survival Time

Continuing Avastin® (bevacizumab) beyond the time when advanced colorectal cancer gets worse helps patients, according to new study reports.  Patients who continued to receive Avastin with a new chemotherapy regimen after their cancer first progressed lived almost 12 months longer than patients who got more chemo but stopped Avastin.  Both groups did better than those who had no further treatment at all.

BRiTE (Bevacizumab Regimens: Investigation of Treatment Effects and Safety) observed progress of three groups of patients when their cancer got worse after their first chemotherapy treatments.  All patients had Avastin as part of the first chemo, some continued it beyond that first cancer progression. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on October 17th, 2008
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 3 Comments »
Tags: Avastin, bevacizumab, chemotherapy, metastatic colorectal cancer

Vitamin C Reduces Chemo Effectiveness in Cancer Cells and Mice

Oncologists often recommend that patients on chemotherapy avoid antioxidant supplements including vitamin C.  Now basic research shows that vitamin C reduces the activity of several different chemotherapy drugs, both in cancer cell lines and in experimental mice.

Vitamin C appears to protect the cell against death during chemotherapy by restoring its mitochondria.  Mitochondria power cells, converting nutrients to energy.  When mitochondria are damaged they force the cell to die — the goal of chemotherapy.  By revitalizing damaged mitochondria, the vitamin reduced the effectiveness of all the chemo drugs tested, by as much as 70 percent for some. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on October 1st, 2008
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 1 Comment »
Tags: chemotherapy, nutritional supplements, vitamin C

Improved Outcomes with Chemotherapy After Surgery to Remove Metastases

Patients who received chemotherapy after surgery to remove colorectal cancer that had spread to their liver or lungs had better long-term outcomes than those who only had surgery, according to an analysis that pooled two similar studies.

Two different clinical trials studied chemotherapy after surgical removal of liver or lung metastases due to colorectal cancer.  While neither trial was large enough to draw clear conclusions on its own, researchers combined information from both to decide if chemo made a difference for patients. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on September 16th, 2008
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 2 Comments »
Tags: chemotherapy, liver metastases, surgery

Colon Cancer Patient Opinions Sought

Were you diagnosed with colon cancer within the past three months?  Have you had your surgery and seen a medical oncologist?

Dr. Neil Love and Research to Practice want to talk to you about your chemotherapy decision-making. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on September 15th, 2008
Posted in: C3 News, Research & Treatment News | No Comments »
Tags: chemotherapy, research studies

Avastin Benefits Not Affected by KRAS Mutations

Colorectal cancer patients with a KRAS mutation in their tumors benefit when Avastin® (bevacizumab) is added to chemotherapy, as do patients with no mutation or wild-type KRAS.

Both the time until cancer got worse (progression-free survival) and time patients lived after beginning treatment (survival) were better when Avastin was added to chemotherapy regardless of tumor KRAS mutation.  Avastin did not improve overall response rates in the patients with KRAS mutations.

However, overall prognosis is worse for patients with KRAS mutations than those with wild-type KRAS with either chemotherapy alone or chemotherapy with Avastin.  As a group, they tend to live for a shorter time and have their tumors progress more quickly.

Results of an analysis of 280 tumor samples from an earlier Phase III trial comparing chemotherapy with Camptosar® (irinotecan), 5FU, and leucovorin to the same chemotherapy plus Avastin were presented at the World Congress on Gastrointestinal Cancer in Barcelona in June, 2008. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on June 29th, 2008
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 2 Comments »
Tags: Avastin, chemotherapy, KRAS