MSCO Upcoming 2011 Events

Fall Membership Conference: Thursday, September 22, Millennium Hotel Minneapolis, Minneapolis, Minn.

For more information, go to www.msco-minnesota.com.

MSCO Board of Directors

President
Joseph W. Leach, MD
Minnesota Oncology Hematology

President Elect
Lorre Ochs, MD, FACP
Park Nicollet Clinic

Secretary/Treasurer
Steven Rousey, MD
Minnesota Oncology Hematology

Past President
Amy B. Spomer, MD
Park Nicollet Clinic

Members-at-Large
Randy Hurley, MD
Healthpartners Medical Group/Regions Hospital

Balkrishna Jahagirdar, MD
Healthpartners Medical Group/Regions Hospital

David King, MD
Minnesota Oncology Hematology

Tim Larson, MD
North Memorial Health Care

Kurt Nisi, MD
Minneapolis Radiation Oncology Physicians

Nicholas Reuter, MD
CentraCare Health Plaza

Avina Singh, MD
Minnesota Oncology Hematology

Allied Health Representative
Jodi A. Nordberg
University of Minnesota Physicians

MSCO Corporate Partners

(as of 6/30/11)

Platinum

Amgen Inc.
Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals/Onyx Pharmaceuticals

Gold

Celgene Corporation
Genentech, Inc.
GlaxoSmithKline
Lilly Oncology
Merck & Co.
Novartis Pharmaceutical Corp.
Pfizer, Inc.

Thank you for the value you add to MSCO!

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— Summer 2011 —

President’s Message—Difficult and Rewarding Job, Individual and Collective Challenges
Joseph W. Leach, MD

Dear Colleague:

"You have a really hard job." This is a common sentiment that I have come to expect when someone whom I don't know finds out about my occupation. I was taken aback recently, however, when these words were expressed by a patient. After years of battling with some successes but too many defeats, we had reached the point in her fight where what I had to offer could only worsen her already compromised quality of life. As I struggled to convey this with compassion but clarity, as I tried to find the balance between stating reality without crushing hope, she stopped me to offer words to relieve my own pain. "You have a really hard job."

As oncologists we do have a really hard job. It is an amazing, fulfilling, rewarding job but one that has unique challenges, both personally and professionally. The mission of the Minnesota Society of Clinical Oncology through our partnership with the ACCC is to continually advocate for the oncologists of our state so that we can continue bringing compassionate care to our patients. This is an incredibly important time for our profession, and it has never been more vital to have a committed membership and an active society.

Our next membership conference will take place from 5:00–9:00 pm on September 22 at the Millennium Hotel in Minneapolis. We are pleased to have two terrific speakers, Dr. Kelly Hunt, Chief, Surgical Breast Oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center and Dr. Nancy Hutchison at Sister Kinney Rehabilitation Institute and Virginia Piper Cancer Institute, talk about breast cancer surgery and related issues. Dr. Daniel M. Hayes from ASCO also will join us to provide a legislative update. It should be a wonderful evening of education and networking with your oncology colleagues. I hope you can make it. I look forward to seeing you there!

Drugs in the News from MSCO's Corporate Partners

AMGEN INC. (www.amgen.com) announced that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Xgeva™ (denosumab) to help prevent skeletal-related events (SREs) in patients with cancer that has metastasized and damaged the bone. Skeletal-related events include bone fractures from cancer and bone pain requiring radiation. Xgeva is a monoclonal antibody that targets a protein involved in cancer-related bone destruction called human RANKL. Xgeva is not approved for patients with multiple myeloma or other cancers of the blood. Xgeva’s safety and effectiveness were confirmed in three randomized, double-blind clinical studies in 5,723 patients comparing Xgeva with Zometa. The head-to-head trials evaluated Xgeva delivered every four weeks as a 120 mg subcutaneous injection vs. Zometa® (zoledronic acid) delivered every 4 weeks via a 15-minute intravenous infusion, adjusted for kidney function per the labeled instructions. (Oncology Issues, January/February 2011)

NOVARTIS PHARMACEUTICALS CORPORATION (www.novartis.com) announced that the FDA has approved Afinitor® (everolimus) tablets for patients with subependymal giant cell astrocytoma (SEGA), a benign brain tumor associated with tuberous sclerosis (TS), who require therapeutic intervention but are not candidates for curative surgical resection. (Oncology Issues, January/February 2011)

GENENTECH, a member of the Roche Group, and Biogen Idec (www.gene.com) announced that the FDA has approved Rituxan© (rituximab) as a maintenance treatment for patients with advanced follicular lymphoma who responded to initial treatment with Rituxan plus chemotherapy (induction treatment). This approval was based on data from the Phase III PRIMA study, which showed continuing Rituxan administration every two months for two years in patients who responded to initial treatment with Rituxan plus chemotherapy, nearly doubled the likelihood of them living without the disease worsening (progression-free survival) compared to those who stopped treatment. (Oncology Issues, March/April 2011)

The FDA approved SCHERING CORPORATION’S (www.merck.com) Sylatron™ (peginterferonalfa-2b) for the treatment of patients with melanoma with microscopic or gross nodal involvement within 84 days of definitive surgical resection, including complete lymphadenectomy. The approval was based on a single trial, EORTC18991, an open label, multi-center trial enrolling 1,256 patients. The recommended dose and schedule for Sylatron is 6 mcg/kg/week, subcutaneously for 8 doses, followed by 3 mcg/kg/week subcutaneously. The maximum treatment period is 5 years (260 weeks). Sylatron is contraindicated in patients with a history of anaphylaxis to peginterferon alfa-2b or interferon alfa-2b, in patients with autoimmune hepatitis, and in patients with hepatic decompensation (Child-Pugh score >6 [class B and C]). (Oncology Issues, May/June 2011)

CELGENE CORPORATION (www.celgene.com) announced that the FDA has granted accelerated approval for its supplemental new drug application (sNDA) for an additional indication for Istodax (romidepsin) for injection for the treatment of peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) in patients who have received at least one prior therapy. Istodax is also approved for the treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) in patients who have received at least one prior systemic therapy. (Celgene Corporation, Press Release, June 16, 2011)

The FDA approved Afinitor® (everolimus) Tablets (NOVARTIS PHARMACEUTICALS CORPORATION, www.novartis.com) for the treatment of progressive neuroendocrine tumors of pancreatic origin (PNET) in patients with unresectable, locally advanced or metastatic disease. (Oncology Issues, July/August 2011)

Welcome New MSCO Members!

For more information about Minnesota Society of Clinical Oncology (MSCO)
go to www.msco-minnesota.com or call 301.984.9496, ext. 218

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