Editorial
  Lung cancer in Singapore
   
  Lead Stories
  Mechanistic insights into lung cancer
   
  Lung cancer chemoprevention - why does it not work?
   
  Does radiological screening help in lung cancer?
   
  Non-small cell lung cancer: emerging therapies
   
  From NCC Tumour Board Files
   
  NCC Roundup
   
  Onco Quiz
   
  Lung cancer: an overview
   
  Pharmarcy Tips
  Smoking cessation products
   
  Staff Directory
   
  Contact
   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Top

 

 

 
NCC at ASCO
 
The annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology was recently held in Chicago, USA. Many important research studies from NCC were presented in this meeting. Some notable studies include the preliminary report of the Head & Neck Oncology multi-disciplinary team’s randomised study of surgery and adjuvant radiation versus combined chemotherapy and radiation in patients with surgically treatable HNSCC (head & neck squamous cell carcinoma). These findings are notable not only because of successful completion of such a study in Singapore, but also the unique design which offers hope to patients to preserve function as an alternate therapy for such cancers, whose treatment otherwise meant debilitating surgery.

The NPC medical oncologists (nasopharyngeal cancer) at NCC also updated the results of the Phase II study of gemcitabine, paclitaxel and carboplatin in patients with metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma. This study continues to guide improved response rates in treatment of this common South-east Asian disease. Preliminary findings of Dr Sandeep Rajan’s study of telomerase expression in invasive breast cancer were also included in this year’s meeting. Higher telomerase expression appears to predict higher risk of nodal and visceral metastases and a shorter failure free survival. Findings from the high risk breast cancer risk evaluation and prevention (REAP) clinic have been submitted for presentation by Drs Peter Ang, Khoo Kei Siong, Ms Flora Yong and Kwee-Yuen Tan. The findings demonstrated the ‘low acceptance of prophylactic surgery and chemoprevention even in individuals at increased risk of cancer in Singapore’.
 
Farewell to A/Prof. Richard J. Epstein
 
A/Prof. Richard J.Epstein, former Head of Medical Oncology and Academic Affairs and Deputy Director of the NCC has moved to Hong Kong assuming the position of Professor and Head of Hematology/Oncology in Department of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong. During his tenure in NCC, he was the inaugural Head of Department of Medical Oncology and the founding Chairman of the Ethics Committee and Pharmacy & Therapeutics Committee. He was also the Editor-in-Chief of Cancer Update till his departure.

Apart from patient care, he continued with his bench research in phosphoprotemics. Recently, his new book Human Molecular Biology was published by Cambridge University Press. We wish him good luck in his new position and best wishes in his new endeavours.
 
Research Round Up
 
NCC takes pride in research and innovation. In the last quarter, despite distraction due to the SARS outbreak in Singapore, NCC researchers and physicians continued to excel with their work.

Mr Balram Chowbay from Clinical Trials & Epidemiologic Sciences, has studied the unique polymorphism in CYP 3 A 5, in Asian population. The genetic polymorphism may explain differences in metabolism of some drugs in different individuals. These findings would have far reaching impact in cancer medicine and in the fields of organ transplantation and pharmacogenomics.

A/Prof. London Lucien Ooi and his team of hepatobiliary surgeons had recently published the NCC/SGH experience in surgical resection of Hepatocellular carcinoma, in Aust NZ J Surg. This being a common cancer in South-east Asia, the publication establishes the regional academic credibility of NCC.

Researchers and clinicians of the gastric cancer study group have reported in the June 15 issue of Cancer Research their findings from 60 cases of gastric cancer characterised by comparative genomic hybridisation, expression microarray and DNA mismatch repair analyses. Their findings point to a novel genetic classification of gastric cancers that correlates with survival.

NCC Thoracic Oncology study group has published in J Clin Oncol their results from randomised double-blind trial of combined modality treatment with or without amifostine in unresectable stage III non-small-cell lung cancer. This study was directed to minimise toxicity in lung cancer patients .

The Medical Oncology team in Thoracic Oncology led by Drs. Tan Eng Huat and Leong Swan Swan, is also directing clinical trials to improve response to therapy favourable in elderly lung cancer patients. Their experience with chemotherapy in these poor risk elderly patients will be presented at the upcoming 10th World Conference on Lung Cancer.