Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Hematology & Oncology for January 2019. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.
Long-Term Incidence of A-Fib Increased in Women With Breast Cancer
THURSDAY, Jan. 31, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Women with breast cancer have an increased long-term incidence of atrial fibrillation (AF), according to a study published online Jan. 28 in Heart Rhythm.
Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Editorial (subscription or payment may be required)
Symptom Combos Suggesting Laryngeal Cancer Identified
THURSDAY, Jan. 31, 2019 (HealthDay News) — New symptom combinations that may indicate early symptoms of laryngeal cancer have been identified, according to a study published online Jan. 28 in the British Journal of General Practice.
E-Cigarettes More Effective for Smoking Cessation
THURSDAY, Jan. 31, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Electronic cigarettes are more effective for smoking cessation than nicotine replacement therapy, according to a study published online Jan. 30 in the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Editorial 1 (subscription or payment may be required)
Editorial 2 (subscription or payment may be required)
FDA Receives an ‘F’ in Tobacco Prevention Report Card
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 30, 2019 (HealthDay News) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration was given an “F” in a new American Lung Association report card evaluating tobacco prevention programs.
CNN Article
State of Tobacco Control
9/11 Responders May Have Higher Head, Neck Cancer Risk
TUESDAY, Jan. 29, 2019 (HealthDay News) — There may be a significant, emerging risk for human papillomavirus (HPV)-related head and neck cancers (HNC) among workers and volunteers who responded to the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center (WTC), according to a study recently published in the International Journal of Cancer.
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Finasteride Not Tied to Increase in Prostate Cancer Mortality
TUESDAY, Jan. 29, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Finasteride is not associated with an increased risk for death due to prostate cancer, according to a research letter published in the Jan. 24 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Tachycardia May Indicate Higher Mortality Risk in Cancer Patients
MONDAY, Jan. 28, 2019 (HealthDay News) — For patients with cancer, tachycardia can predict the risk for mortality, according to a study presented at the Advancing the Cardiovascular Care of the Oncology Patient conference organized by the American College of Cardiology and held from Jan. 25 to 27 in Washington, D.C.
Direct-Acting Antivirals Not Tied to Liver Cancer Recurrence
FRIDAY, Jan. 25, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Direct-acting antiviral (DAA) therapy is not associated with increased overall or early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) recurrence among patients with a previous complete response to HCC treatment, according to a study published online Jan. 17 in Gastroenterology.
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Assay Aids Anticoagulant Dosing of Obese Patients for Bariatric Sx
FRIDAY, Jan. 25, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Endogenous thrombin potential (ETP) may provide better information than anti-factor Xa (anti-XA) in determining the best dosage for blood thinners among obese patients undergoing bariatric surgery, according to a study recently published in Surgery for Obesity and Related Disorders.
Virtual Video Visits Liked by Patients, Providers
FRIDAY, Jan. 25, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Virtual video visits can effectively replace office visits for selected patients across medical specialties without sacrificing quality of care or patient-physician communication, according to a study published in the January issue of the American Journal of Managed Care.
Oncologists Have Low Awareness of LGBTQ Issues
FRIDAY, Jan. 25, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Most oncologists report a lack of knowledge about treating lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) patients, according to survey results published online Jan. 16 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
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Many Teens Not Up to Date on HPV Vaccination
FRIDAY, Jan. 25, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Many adolescents do not complete human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination before turning 13 or 15 years old, according to a report published online Jan. 17 in the Journal of Infectious Diseases.
Report IDs Areas Lacking Good Practice in Health Tech Assessment
FRIDAY, Jan. 25, 2019 (HealthDay News) — In a report published in the January issue of Value in Health, an ISPOR–The Professional Society for Health Economics and Outcomes Research working group indicates the lack of good practices in three areas of health technology assessment (HTA).
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Time to Breast Cancer Surgery Delayed for Non-Hispanic Blacks
THURSDAY, Jan. 24, 2019 (HealthDay News) — The time to surgery (TTS) after a breast cancer diagnosis is delayed for non-Hispanic black (NHB) versus non-Hispanic white (NHW) women, according to a study published online Jan. 23 in JAMA Surgery.
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Herd Protection Seen With 4-Valent HPV Vaccination
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 23, 2019 (HealthDay News) — From 2006 to 2017, there was a decrease in 4-valent vaccine-type human papillomavirus (HPV) detection among vaccinated and unvaccinated women, according to a study published online Jan. 22 in Pediatrics.
Addition of BMT Not Indicated in Some With Peds Hypodiploid ALL
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 23, 2019 (HealthDay News) — For some children with hypodiploid acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation does not improve outcomes compared with chemotherapy alone, according to a study published online Jan. 18 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
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Medical Cannabis Decisions Being Made by Users, Not Doctors
TUESDAY, Jan. 22, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Many patients use medical cannabis without their mainstream health care provider’s knowledge, and further, they self-adjust their pharmaceutical use in response to cannabis use, according to a study published online Jan. 8 in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs.
FDA Chief Threatens to Halt E-Cigarette Sales
TUESDAY, Jan. 22, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Sales of electronic cigarettes could be halted if companies do not stop marketing the devices to youth, U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., warned.
Many New Cancer Patients Unaware of Their Hepatitis Status
TUESDAY, Jan. 22, 2019 (HealthDay News) — A substantial proportion of patients with newly diagnosed cancer and concurrent hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection are unaware of their viral infection at the time of cancer diagnosis, according to a study published online Jan. 17 in JAMA Oncology.
Messages for Increasing Parental Confidence in HPV Vaccine ID’d
TUESDAY, Jan. 22, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Providing information on the benefits of vaccination, including cancer prevention, and avoiding expressing urgency to vaccinate can increase parent confidence in human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination, according to a study published online Jan. 22 in Pediatrics.
Melanoma Survival Varies Among U.S. States
FRIDAY, Jan. 18, 2019 (HealthDay News) — U.S. states with more physicians and a larger percentage of non-Hispanic whites have worse melanoma survival, according to a study published online Jan. 16 in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
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FDA Down to 5 Weeks of Funding to Review New Drug Applications
THURSDAY, Jan. 17, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Due to the federal government shutdown, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has only about five weeks of funding left to review new drug applications, according to Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D.
Achieving Healthy Diet From Sustainable Food Feasible
THURSDAY, Jan. 17, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Achieving a healthy diet from sustainable food systems is feasible but will require considerable shifts toward healthy dietary patterns, according to a report from the EAT-Lancet Commission published online Jan. 16 by The Lancet.
EAT-Lancet Commission (subscription or payment may be required)
Editorial (subscription or payment may be required)
Hemochromatosis Mutation Linked to Other Morbidity
THURSDAY, Jan. 17, 2019 (HealthDay News) — HFE p.C282Y homozygosity, the most common gene mutation causing hereditary hemochromatosis (type 1), is associated with other morbidity in men and women, according to a study published online Jan. 16 in The BMJ.
Breast Cancer Patients Do Not Overreact to Genetic Testing
THURSDAY, Jan. 17, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Among breast cancer patients, more extensive genetic testing is not associated with increased cancer worry, according to a study recently published in JCO Precision Oncology.
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Adoption of Advanced Health IT Capabilities Inconsistent
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 16, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Adoption of advanced health information technology (HIT) capabilities is inconsistent across health care systems, with electronic health record (EHR) standardization being the strongest predictor of advanced capabilities, according to a study published in the January issue of the American Journal of Managed Care.
Complications Higher Than Expected for Invasive Lung Tests
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 16, 2019 (HealthDay News) — The rates of complications after invasive diagnostic procedures for lung abnormalities are higher in the community setting than in clinical trials, according to a study published online Jan. 14 in JAMA Internal Medicine.
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Liver Transplant Survival May Improve With Race Matching
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 16, 2019 (HealthDay News) — For African-American patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) undergoing liver transplantation, donor-recipient race matching is associated with improved survival, according to a study published online Jan. 10 in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.
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Suicide Risk Up More Than Fourfold for Cancer Patients
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 16, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Cancer patients have an increased suicide risk, which is predominant among men and white patients, according to a study published online Jan. 14 in Nature Communications.
Personalized Tx May Extend Life in CKD With Small Renal Tumors
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 16, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Personalized treatment selection may extend life expectancy in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and small renal tumors (≤4 cm), according to a study published online Jan. 15 in Radiology.
USPSTF Recommends Risk-Reducing Meds for Breast Cancer
TUESDAY, Jan. 15, 2019 (HealthDay News) — The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends risk-reducing medications for women at high risk for breast cancer who are at low risk for adverse events, but medications are not recommended for routine use. These recommendations form the basis of a draft recommendation statement published online Jan. 15 by the task force.
Draft Recommendation Statement
Draft Evidence Review
Comment on Recommendation
American College of Physicians Releases 7th Edition of Ethics Manual
TUESDAY, Jan. 15, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Ethical principles are discussed in an updated Ethics Manual, issued by the American College of Physicians (ACP) and published as a supplement to the Jan. 15 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
American College of Physicians Ethics Manual
Editorial (subscription or payment may be required)
Comorbidities Adversely Linked to Cancer Trial Participation
TUESDAY, Jan. 15, 2019 (HealthDay News) — For cancer patients, the presence of comorbidities is adversely linked to trial discussions, trial offers, and trial participation, according to a study published online Jan. 10 in JAMA Oncology.
Study Explores Influence of Genetics, Environment in Disease
TUESDAY, Jan. 15, 2019 (HealthDay News) — The influence of heritability and environmental factors has been identified for a large number of phenotypes, according to a study published online Jan. 14 in Nature Genetics.
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Red Cross Issues Emergency Call for Blood Donations
MONDAY, Jan 14, 2019 (HealthDay News) — The holidays, winter weather, and the flu season have all prompted a blood shortage, the American Red Cross warns.
Breast Cancer Incidence Up With Persistent Vasomotor Symptoms
MONDAY, Jan. 14, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Postmenopausal women with persistent vasomotor symptoms (VMS) have an increased incidence of breast cancer, according to a study published online Dec. 28 in Menopause.
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Median Survival for Stage 4 ALK-Positive NSCLC Nearly 7 Years
MONDAY, Jan. 14, 2019 (HealthDay News) — The median overall survival (OS) from diagnosis for patients with stage IV anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is 6.8 years, according to a study published online Dec. 29 in the Journal of Thoracic Oncology.
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Terrorist Attack Victims With PTSD Have Higher Cancer Risk
MONDAY, Jan. 14, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Among individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), those who were victims of terrorist attacks (TA) have a higher risk for neoplasms than those who experience other traumatic events (OTE), according to a study published online Jan. 8 in the Journal of Neuroscience Research.
Smoking Associated With Worse Bladder Cancer Outcomes
FRIDAY, Jan. 11, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Cigarette smoking is linked to a poor response to cisplatin-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) among patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) who undergo radical cystectomy (RC), according to a study published online Jan. 9 in BJU International.
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Number of Colorectal CA Deaths Projected to Rise Worldwide
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Most Specialty Oral Anticancer Meds for Blood Cancers Are Initially Rejected by Insurers 
Personalized Support Boosts Families" Genetic Testing for Hereditary Cancers .jpg)
Cancer Survivors Have Lower Levels of Physical Activity 
Pharmacist-Led Med Review Improves Medication Quality in Older Patients With Cancer 
Lower Cognitive Functioning During 60s Linked to Subsequent Stroke Risk 
Nearly 1 in 10 Older Adults Used Cannabis in the Past Year 
Polypharmacy of Prescription Medications Increased for U.S. Older Adults 
Lower Vertebral Bone Mineral Density Linked to Cognitive Decline 
