CLINICAL CORNER


Prostate Cancer Awareness Month — Restoring Normalcy

After cancer surgery to remove his prostate about five years ago, Bernard Cancel faced a frustrating dilemma common to men in his situation — male stress urinary incontinence, or unintended urine leakage.

Cancel, now 62, was using four to five incontinence pads a day for two years to protect himself following the operation, an experience Cancel described as miserable.

But a medical device called ProACT™, implanted by a University of Florida Health urologist, has changed Cancel’s life and is allowing him to regain a lost sense of normalcy.

Cancel, who lives about an hour’s drive south of Gainesville in the community of Belleview, was 57 when he was diagnosed with stage III prostate cancer, which required the removal of his prostate and subsequent radiation therapy. But suffered incontinence as a result, a common side effect of the procedure.

Cancel visited UF Health Urology — Medical Plaza to see urologist Lawrence L. Yeung, M.D., an associate professor and medical director in the University of Florida College of Medicine’s department of urology. Yeung recommended the implantation of the ProACT device.

“Just Dr. Yeung’s aura gives me a sense of confidence,” Cancel said. “I had no questions and no worries. Having this procedure is a no-brainer.” 


New Clinical Trials Open for Enrollment

Only Available at UF Health Cancer Center

The UF Health Cancer Center has four new open clinical trials that are only available through our center. Study-specific information is below; please send any trial inquiries to the Cancer Center’s Clinical Research Office: trials@cancer.ufl.edu

A Phase II Randomized Therapeutic Optimization Trial for Subjects with Refractory Metastatic Colorectal Cancer using ctDNA (RAPID – Trial 1)

About: This randomized Phase II study will investigate the use of the Signatera ctDNA assay versus the standard scan-based approach to guide treatment in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. The aim of this study is to measure and compare the overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS) and best overall response (OR) of patients whose treatment has been guided by one of these two approaches.

Age Range: Adults, 18+ | PI: Sherise Rogers, M.D.

Tazemetostat in Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumors

About: This Phase II, open label, single arm study will investigate the use of continuously administered oral tazemetostat in patients with recurrent refractory and/or metastatic malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors.

Age Range: Children and adults, 12+ | PI: Joanne Lagmay, M.D.

Accelerated Dose Schedule of Cytarabine Consolidation Therapy for Older Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Complete Remission

About: This Phase II, open label, non-randomized study will evaluate the safety and tolerance of administering high dose cytarabine (HiDAC) consolidation therapy on days 1-3 of each cycle, as compared to standard administration on days 1, 3, and 5 of each cycle, in patients 61 years and older with de novo acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

Age Range: Adults, 61+ | PI: Jack Hsu, M.D.

Atezolizumab Plus Tivozanib in Immunologically Cold Tumor Types

About: Despite its demonstrated potential, immunotherapy is not currently thought to be an effective intervention in the treatment of several immunologically “cold” tumors such as prostate cancer, biliary tract cancers, soft tissue sarcomas, well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumors, microsatellite stable colorectal cancer, pancreatic cancer, and non-triple negative breast cancer. This study aims to evaluate the combination of the immune checkpoint inhibitor atezolizumab and the VEGF-TKI tivozanib in a variety of tumors which have a low response rate to checkpoint inhibitor therapy alone.

Age Range: Adults, 18+ | PI(s): Jonathan Chatzkel, M.D. | Brian Ramnaraign, M.D.