Adjuvant anastrozole versus exemestane versus letrozole, upfront or after 2 years of tamoxifen, in endocrine-sensitive breast cancer (FATA-GIM3): a randomised, phase 3 trial
Background: Uncertainty exists about the optimal schedule of adjuvant treatment of breast cancer with aromatase inhibitors and, to our knowledge, no trial has directly compared the three aromatase inhibitors anastrozole, exemestane, and letrozole. We investigated the schedule and type of aromatase inhibitors to be used as adjuvant treatment for hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer. Methods: FATA-GIM3 is a multicentre, open-label, randomised, phase 3 trial of six different treatments in postmenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer. Eligible patients had histologically confirmed invasive hormone receptor-positive breast cancer that had been completely remov…
Oral chemotherapy and patient perspective in solid tumors: a national survey by the Italian association of medical oncology.
Aim To assess patient perception toward oral chemotherapy for solid tumors, the Italian Association of Medical Oncology performed a large multi-institutional national survey. Methods A 17-item anonymous questionnaire including 7 general and 10 investigational questions with free-text, single-choice, or multiple-choice answers was administered. Analysis of response distribution according to predefined factors was described by summary measures and conducted by χ2 test and other nonparametric tests. Results From January to June 2010, 581 patients completed the questionnaire; data of 404 patients constituted the final study sample. Three groups could be distinguished according to treatment: IV …
Editorial debate: Challenges we oncologists, working within a universal healthcare system, have to face in these hard times
I have been very much impressed by the clarity, pragmatism and good medical judgement of the article by Camilo Porta,1 a respected and dedicated ESMO faculty member and friend, giving his personal perspective on real issues many oncologists working in a public system are eventually facing during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. I understand Professor Porta is voicing what many oncologists from countries deeply affected by the pandemic, such as Italy or Spain, may think. Although I concur with most of his approaches and comments, I would like to complement some of these statements with some additional thoughts. Medicine was created more than 2500 years ago as a profession aiming at alleviating suffe…