In a recent article, MSK is recognized as a top hospital for treating children with cancer. Its team approach for rendering care to children is highlighted. The team includes researchers, pediatric oncologists, teachers, therapists and child life specialists. A unique feature of MSK’s pediatric cancer care is that most of the time, patients are treated on an outpatient basis, except in emergency cases. From the outset, the entire team monitors the children. Some cancer treatments can delay the growth and development of babies and small children. To offset these effects, the physical and occupational therapists step in to keep the delays to a minimum. A state-of-the-art playroom with all sorts of features and gadgets provides an enchanting non-hospital environment where the children feel safe and comfortable.
The results of a randomized phase III trial which studied the use of docetaxel together with androgen deprivation therapy for patients with metastatic, hormone-sensitive prostate cancer, demonstrated practice-changing results. In comparison to standard treatment with androgen deprivation therapy alone, an almost 14 month survival benefit was achieved for patients receiving the combination treatment. The groundbreaking report was presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting by Dr. Nicholas J. Vogenzang, MD, who was involved in designing the study. MSK’s chief of the Breast Cancer Medical Service and current ASCO president, Dr. Clifford A. Hudis, commented that for prostate cancer, the degree of improvement in survival achieved in this study has not been seen before.
The American Cancer Society has reported that new cases of colon cancer dropped considerably in middle-aged and older adults because they were screened with colonoscopy and precancerous polyps were discovered and removed. A study carried out by MSK and Erasmus University in the Netherlands employed computer models to look at possible effects of colonoscopies on 10 million people who had never been screened, in the 76 to 90 age group. The results indicated that healthy patients can be screened up to 86 years old; patients with serious health problems could benefit from first-time screening up to age 80. It is known that a substantial number of Americans age 50 or older do not have colonoscopies, a procedure which saves lives.
It is known that mammography does not detect half of all breast cancers in women with dense breasts. There is controversy over the implications of this fact. One point of view advocates that such women should have digital or three-dimensional mammograms or MRI to rule out breast cancer. On the other hand, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists does not recommend the use of additional tests for women with dense breasts since there is no strong evidence that those who do have MRI live longer. MSK’s Dr. Carol Lee, a diagnostic radiologist, stated that “mammograms pick up cancer in women with dense breasts every day.”