A local oncologist conducted cancer trials that presented findings during an international cancer symposium in early December.
Several thousand oncologists, surgeons, patient advocates and patients attended the 2011 Cancer Therapy and Research Center-American Association for Cancer Research San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium from Dec. 6 through Dec. 10 in Woodlands, Texas.
?I was part of three studies presented there,? Dr. Deborah Lindquist said.
Dr. Paul Goss presented the finding of the first study, the Tykerb Evaluation After Chemotherapy, or TEACH, which started in 2006.
?In the TEACH trial, we looked at an oral medication to decrease the relapse of certain kinds of breast cancer. That trial randomized people to the placebo or the drug,? Lindquist said. ?It helped but not as much as we thought it might, but we had a very mixed group of people who had cancer up to many years prior to the trial.?
The second presentation revealed the findings of a 2007 study that treated women for Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Positive. HER2+ breast cancer is considered aggressive because it grows and spreads quickly.
?Since we now have treatments for that type of cancer, the patients do better than most other cancer patients so they have a good prognosis,? Lindquist said.
The third study looked at two different kinds of chemotherapy for patients whose breast cancer spread.
?I was the principal investigator. What we found was the second kind of chemotherapy had fewer side effects,? Lindquist said. ?We started this trial in April of 2009. These trials take a long time.?
The side effects of chemotherapy can include anemia, nausea, loss of appetite, fatigue, difficulty with memory and hair loss.
The Texas symposium is the largest gathering of professionals in the field of cancer and cancer research, she said. Nearly 50 other presentations took place over the five days.
?What?s really exciting, our patients here took part in the symposium through the studies and helped make cancer treatment better. That?s important because it?s curing more patients,? Lindquist said. ?If we didn?t have people participate in the trials, we?d still be using nitrogen mustard.?
Initially, nitrogen mustard was used as chemical warfare during World War II. As a treatment for cancer patients, doctors or nurses used the mustard as an intravenous treatment, she said.
?Treatment has come a long way, from nothing to radical surgery or burning the area off to more modern treatments that are far less invasive,? Lindquist said.
Lindquist became a medical oncologist in 1980 and started a practice in Sedona 23 years ago. Her office is at Verde Valley Medical Center Sedona Campus.
Lindquist continues her search for improved treatments for cancer patients, particularly breast cancer patients. Her office is participating and enrolling people for future clinical trials. One is chemotherapy trials for breast cancer patients who just underwent surgery. Two trials look at a new oral agent not considered chemotherapy to treat HER2+. Two more trials involve a not-yet-released biologic drug to use in combination with chemotherapy: one for lung cancer that has spread and another for colon cancer that has spread.
Other trials are available for pancreatic cancer patients to study ways to prevent nausea for patients undergoing chemotherapy for the first time.
?Clinical trials such as these offer renewed hope to cancer patients by providing them with new treatment options as well as intensive follow-up by our research staff,? Lindquist said.
Lindquist is a member of the American College of Physicians, the American Society of Hematology, the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the American Society of Breast Disease. She is also a member of Arizona Oncology, the largest group of medical professionals in Arizona devoted exclusively to cancer care.
?It?s especially gratifying to be able to offer this level of comprehensive cancer care to patients right here in the Sedona area, and to have their participation affect other cancer patients around the world.?
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Lu Stitt can be reached at 282-7795, ext. 122, or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Source: http://www.redrocknews.com/News/sedona-cancer-patients-help-others-around-world.html
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