Metastatic pancreatic cancer is a rapidly fatal disease with few therapeutic options. The authors summarize four abstracts (#148, #233, #158, #291) presented at the 2013 ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium which were focused on novel agents for metastatic pancreatic cancer.

PURPOSE To identify the extent of persistence (period of time of continuous therapy with the drug prescribed) of glaucoma patients treated with prostaglandins (latanoprost, bimatoprost, or travoprost), or beta-blocker (timolol) monotherapy. METHODS An observational retrospective study of a 24-month follow-up in 191 patients (from four centers) was done to identify the time elapsed until patie...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Medical therapy of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is becoming more complex, given the increasing choice of drugs to treat Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). We aimed to summarize the current guidelines for first-line treatments in IBD. METHODS An extensive literature search with focus on the guidelines of the European Crohn's and Colitis Organisation for t...

For the past ten years, there has been a dynamic development of new therapeutic compounds and prognostic parameters for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Hematologists and oncologists are challenged to use these new possibilities for an optimized, risk- and fitness-adapted treatment strategy, with the goal of achieving long-term remissions and preserving a good quality of life. This review is...

Background: Ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF) is a widely-accepted treatment for this arrhythmia. Ablation is traditionally reserved for second-line therapy in patients who have failed drug therapy, but it may be ready for first-line treatment. Objective: This article outlines the rationale for using ablation as first-line therapy for AF. Findings: AF increases both morbidity and mortality....

First-line chemotherapy for metastatic breast cancer has been the focus of ongoing controversy, a condition that partially reflects the imperfections of available therapy. It also partially reflects not only the imperfections in our ability to monitor response, but also the disagreements among clinicians over the goals of therapy. Each physician maintains a hierarchy of goals for the treatment ...

the Ebola outbreak in West Africa to be a public health emergency of international concern (WHO 2014b). This step helps to raise global awareness and mobilize resources to support outbreak management, reflecting the seriousness of the situation in affected countries and the strong need for an internationally coordinated response. At the time of the declaration, there were 961 deaths and 1,779 c...

Metastatic pancreatic cancer remains a difficult disease to treat; however, there are more new drug combinations on the horizon each week. We will discuss the results of the MPACT trial presented at the 2013 ASCO Annual Meeting (Abstracts #4005, #4058, and #4059) and compare to the 2011 FOLFIRINOX data.

In the June issue of the European Respiratory Journal (ERJ), A. Skrahina and co-workers reported alarming rates of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in Minsk, Belarus. In their survey, they diagnosed MDR-TB in 35.3% of new patients and 76.5% of previously treated patients [1]. The reflex response to such figures is to strengthen classical infection control activities, to intensify case ...