HPV-Positive Oropharyngeal Cancer: The Nurse's Role in Patient Management of Treatment-Related Sequelae.

BACKGROUND: Patients diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) make up about 3% of all new cancer cases in the United States, with increasing numbers of these patients being diagnosed aged younger than 45 years and with human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive disease. Treatment effects may alter patients' physical and mental states during and after treatment. OBJECTIVES: This article provides an overview of possible OPC treatment long-term effects to equip oncology nurses with information needed to empower patients with OPC to perform self-care. METHODS: The OPC literature was reviewed to identify incidence, survival, risk factors, symptoms, treatment options, and treatment effects. FINDINGS: This article provides a foundation for the plan of care for patients with OPC and strategies for patients to contribute to their self-care.

Evaluation of pharmacokinetics and safety of cetuximab with cisplatin/carboplatin in patients with advanced solid tumor: Result from phase II studies.

The pharmacokinetics and potential drug-drug interactions between cetuximab and cisplatin or carboplatin from two studies (JXBA and JXBB) were evaluated. These studies were multicenter, open-label phase II trials designed to evaluate the drug-drug interactions between cetuximab (400 mg m-2 initial dose) and cisplatin (JXBA; 100 mg m-2) or carboplatin (JXBB; area under the curve [AUC] = 5 mg × min mL-1) with or without 5-fluorouracil (5FU) in patients with advanced solid tumors. Concentrations of cetuximab, cisplatin and carboplatin were determined using analytical methods. The safety and tolerability of cetuximab in combination with cisplatin or carboplatin was also determined in all treated patients. The JXBA study showed that cetuximab serum concentrations were similar when cetuximab was administered alone or in combination with cisplatin. The Cmax, tmax and overall AUC for the cetuximab group (194 µg mL-1, 2.0 hour, 14 900 µg × h mL-1) and the cetuximab and cisplatin combination group (192 µg mL-1, 1.99 hour, 16 300 µg × h mL-1) were similar. The JXBB study showed that mean cetuximab serum concentrations were similar when cetuximab was administered alone or in combination with carboplatin. The Cmax, tmax and overall AUC for the cetuximab group (199 µg mL-1, 1.15 hour, 17 200 µg × h mL-1) and the cetuximab and carboplatin combination group (199 µg mL-1, 3.17 h, 16 800 µg × h mL-1) were similar. Both studies showed that the safety profile was consistent with known side effects of cetuximab, platinum-based therapies and 5-FU. There was no clinically relevant change in cetuximab pharmacokinetics when it was administered in combination with cisplatin or carboplatin.