July 1 Clinical Cancer Research Highlights

PDF Version for Printing

Selected Articles from the July 1, 2006 Issue

The articles referenced in this Highlights section will be available online in HTML and PDF formats to all interested users at no charge until the next issue of Clinical Cancer Research is published. Click on the article title to view the complete article.

View the Table of Contents for the July 1 issue of Clinical Cancer Research.

PET Plus [¹⁸F]Galacto-RGD Identifies Integrin α_vβ₃ Expression in Human Tumors

Pomegranate Prolongs Posttreatment PSA Doubling Time

A phase II, Simon two-stage clinical trial of pomegranate juice for men with rising prostate-specific antigen (PSA) after surgery or radiotherapy was conducted. Mean PSA doubling time significantly increased with treatment, from a mean of 15 months at baseline to 54 months posttreatment. In vitro assays comparing pre- and posttreatment patient serum on the growth of LNCaP showed a 12% decrease in cell proliferation and a 17% increase in apoptosis, and significant reductions in oxidative state and sensitivity to oxidation of serum lipids. The prolongation of PSA doubling time coupled with corresponding laboratory effects warrant further testing in a placebo-controlled study.

Saliva Tumor Markers Increase With Oral Cancer

Oral cancer is a most common human malignancy. Circulatory epithelial tumor markers were previously investigated in the serum of oral cancer patients but almost never in their saliva, in spite of the fact that there is a direct contact between the saliva and the oral cancer lesion. Nagler et al. measured the concentrations of the six most-studied epithelial serum-circulatory tumor markers in the saliva of oral cancer (tongue) patients and found a significant increase (of 400%) in salivary concentrations of Cyfra 21-1, TPS, and CA125 while the salivary concentrations of CA19-9, SCC, and CEA were also substantially increased, although this did not reach statistical significance. This increase in salivary tumor markers may be used as a diagnostic tool, especially when a concurrent analysis for significantly increased markers is performed. Salivary testing is noninvasive, making it an attractive, effective alternative to serum testing.

IL-2 Plus Stem Cell Factor Deemed Safe for Patients with HIV and Cancer

CD56^bright natural killer (NK) cells show greater than additive, i.e. synergistic, proliferation in response to IL-2 and stem cell factor (SCF) as compared with the growth response to stimulation with either cytokine alone. In the setting of HIV/AIDS, this lymphocyte subset could be a crucial surrogate source of IFN-γ, directing immune response to infection and malignant transformation. Shah et al. report a first-in-human Phase I study of IL-2 and SCF in patients with HIV and/or HIV and cancer. Therapy is safe and well tolerated. CD56^bright NK cells as well as CD4⁺CD25⁺ "regulatory" T cells are expanded in vivo.

Gefitinib, Erlotinib Treatment Outcomes Associated with Specific EGFR Mutations

Somatic mutations in exons 19 and 21 of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) have been previously associated with sensitivity to treatment with gefitinib and erlotinib. When Jackman et al. compared the clinical outcomes of patients with these EGFR mutations, patients with exon 19 deletions had a prolonged overall survival after treatment with gefitinib or erlotinib compared with patients with an L858R point mutation (38 vs. 17 months, p = .038). These findings provide evidence that specific EGFR genotypes are associated with different clinical outcomes to treatment with gefitinib and erlotinib.