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OncoLogue™: Improving Outcomes in Locally Advanced Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck With Targeted Therapy and Contemporary Induction Regimens

Release Date: December 24, 2008
Expiration Date: December 24, 2009

Publication Overview

Authors

Medical writer:
Sonia Cunningham, PhD; Reviewed by:
Ezra Cohen, MD

Overview and Purpose

Squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) is expected to be diagnosed in 47,560 patients in the United States in 2008, and 11,260 patients will die from this disease. Patients with SCCHN most frequently present with locally advanced disease, and a current standard of care consists of concurrent chemoradiation therapy. The risk of local and distant recurrence remains high for many patients, however, and several avenues are being evaluated in order to further improve locoregional control and survival outcomes. One such approach involves targeted agents, and monoclonal antibodies directed against the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), which is upregulated in SCCHN, are now approved for concurrent use with radiation therapy. Sequential therapy comprised of induction chemotherapy followed by chemoradiation therapy in order to improve survival has also been studied. Although the benefits of induction therapy remain under investigation, newer induction regimens have yielded promising data.

The purpose of this activity is to apprise physicians on the efficacy and toxicity data reported in phase III trials that have evaluated targeted therapy or novel induction regimens in patients with locally advanced SCCHN in addition to the ongoing early-phase trials that aim to improve upon current standards of care.

Target Audience

This educational activity is intended for medical oncologists involved in the care of patients with locally advanced SCCHN. No specific skills or knowledge other than a basic training in oncology is required for successful participation in this activity.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this educational activity, you should be able to:

  • Outline the safety and efficacy of incorporating EGFR inhibitors into combined modality regimens for patients with locally advanced SCCHN
  • Appraise clinical trials evaluating taxane-based combinations as induction therapy for treatment of locally advanced SCCHN

Instructions for Participation

  1. Read the following information before entering the educational activity.
  2. Study the educational activity.
  3. Submit your clinical questions or scenarios on this topic.
  4. Complete the CME test.
  5. Answer the evaluation questions.
  6. After successful completion of the CME test and evaluation, you will receive your certificate online.
  7. Return to this activity to view a list of questions and scenarios from your peers.
  8. Return January 14, 2009, to access the answers to the questions.
  • The CME test and evaluation must be completed by December 24, 2009, in order for you to receive your certificate.

Ask the Expert

Be part of the oncology dialogue and e-mail your specific clinical scenarios or questions on this topic to OncoLogue@cancerlearning.com with the subject title 8504, or fax them to (214) 367-3304 directed to 8504.

Return to this activity to view a list of questions and scenarios from your peers.

Questions submitted by January 14, 2009, will be addressed in an on-demand online interview with an expert or answered directly by e-mail, as appropriate.

Read all of the conditions in the Activity Terms box below. You must accept the Activity Terms in order to continue:

Disclosure Policy

It is the policy of Physicians’ Education Resource to ensure balance, independence, objectivity, and scientific rigor in all of its educational activities. As an organization accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), Physicians’ Education Resource requires everyone who is in a position to control the content of an educational activity, including spouses/partners, to disclose all relevant financial relationships with any commercial interest. The ACCME defines “relevant financial relationships” as financial relationships in any amount occurring within the past 12 months that create a conflict of interest. Physicians’ Education Resource has implemented a mechanism to identify and resolve all conflicts of interest prior to the activity.

Sonia Cunningham, PhD
No relevant relationships to disclose

Ezra Cohen, MD
Speaker’s Bureau – Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, ImClone Systems Incorporated, sanofi-aventis U.S.

PER Editorial Staff
No relevant relationships to disclose

This CME activity might include discussion of investigational and/or unlabeled uses of drugs. If the activity includes discussion of investigational and/or unlabeled uses of a drug, specific information is located on the title page. Please refer to the full prescribing information for each drug discussed in this newsletter for FDA-approved dosing, indications, and warnings.

Commercial Support
An educational grant for this activity was provided by Bristol-Myers Squibb/ImClone Systems.

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Banner Illustration

(Illustrator: Erin Moore)

Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this activity are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the sponsor, supporter, or publisher. Although great care has been taken in compiling and checking the information given in this activity to ensure accuracy, the authors and Physicians’ Education Resource and its servants or agents shall not be responsible or in any way liable for the continued currency of the information or for any errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in this publication, whether arising from negligence or otherwise howsoever or for any consequences arising therefrom.

Please consult full prescribing information for any drugs or procedures discussed within.

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All rights reserved. No part of this activity may be translated, reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means or in any type of media form including electronic, mechanical photocopying, recording, broadcasting, or otherwise without prior permission from the publisher.

©Copyright 2008 by Physicians’ Education Resource. No material may be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form, without written permission from the publisher.

All correspondence should be directed to:
Editor, Improving Outcomes in Locally Advanced Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck With Targeted Therapy and Contemporary Induction Regimens
Physicians’ Education Resource
3500 Maple Ave.
Suite 700
Dallas, TX 75219
Phone: (214) 367–3400
Fax: (214) 367–3304
E-mail: OncoLogue@cancerlearning.com

Download a Print Version of this Publication*

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Educational Grants

An educational grant for this activity was provided by:


  1. Bristol-Myers Squibb/
    ImClone Systems