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Old 06-22-2010, 08:27 AM   #1
Nancy L
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Personalized treatment trial for early-stage BC

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Personalized cancer treatments part of Beaufort Memorial trial



A revolutionary breast cancer treatment being developed by researchers at Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center now is available at Beaufort Memorial Hospital.
As part of Duke's genomic clinical trials, Lowcountry patients with early-stage breast cancer will have the opportunity to receive personalized treatment based on the genetic makeup of their individual tumors.
Using the molecular traits of a patient's own cancerous cells could help oncologists select the chemotherapy most likely to be successful.
Generally, the first course of cancer-fighting drugs a patient receives offers the most benefits. Choosing the best chemotherapy at the outset also spares the patient the toxic side effects of ineffective drugs.
"Can you imagine, as a patient, knowing how you'll respond to chemotherapy before we ever give it to you?" said Dr. Majd Chahin, a medical oncologist and principal investigator for Beaufort Memorial's Clinical Trials Program. "This is more personal, directed cancer treatment. We have waited a long time for
this."
Beaufort Memorial is one of only a half dozen community hospitals in the country to be invited to participate in the groundbreaking study. Until now, the clinical trial was offered only at Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center in Durham, N.C.
Duke physicians and scientists have spent several months training the staff at Beaufort Memorial's Keyserling Cancer Center on the protocols of the study. The process involves removing a small sample of the tumor to be sent to Duke for genetic analysis. The genomic profile then is fed into models that predict the response the tumor will have to the two chemotherapy regimens that have been shown to work best on those particular types of cancer.
Once the patient has been treated with the selected drugs, Beaufort Memorial oncologists will monitor their effect on the tumor. With early-stage breast cancer, that kind of immediate readout is not available under today's best standard of care because the tumor typically is removed before chemotherapy is administered. It often takes years before it is known if the cancer is going to recur.
The tumor will be surgically removed approximately three months later at Beaufort Memorial.
"We've studied thousands of patients in trials and determined the sequence doesn't matter," said Dr. Kelly Marcom, the Duke medical oncologist leading the breast cancer study. "But if you perform the surgery first, you don't get a sense if the chemo worked or not."
The genomic trial will involve a total of 270 patients with early-stage breast cancer. To qualify for the study, the tumor must be in stages T1c to T3 and be at least 1.5 centimeters. Approximately 30 percent to 40 percent of early-stage breast cancer patients meet those requirements. In addition, candidates must be at least 18 years of age, in otherwise good health and have had no prior chemotherapy treatments.
To join the genomic breast cancer trial, Beaufort Memorial also needed the approval of the Department of Defense, which is paying for the Duke study.
The Defense Department's Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs was originally established by Congress to promote innovative breast cancer research. It finances 17 different programs with a budget of $400 million.
Details: Clinical Trials Research nurse Ruth Finch, 843-522-7819

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    Old 06-22-2010, 10:51 AM   #2
    AlaskaAngel
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    Thumbs up Re: Personalized treatment trial for early-stage BC

    Thanks for the post - I'd be pounding on the door to get in if this had been available when I was diagnosed in 2002....

    AlaskaAngel
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