After Lariat LAA Ligater Disappoints in aMAZE, is a Path Ahead Still Possible?
Adjunctive left atrial appendage (LAA) ligation failed to increase the efficacy of catheter pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in the aMAZE trial, though it appeared safe enough for further clinical investigation. In a population of people with nonparoxysmal atrial fibrillation (Afib), LAA ligation plus PVI was associated with no better primary effectiveness by 12 months — […]
Elotuzumab Misses Mark Again as Frontline Treatment for Multiple Myeloma
Elotuzumab (Empliciti) failed for a third time to improve progression-free survival (PFS) in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma when added to standard therapy, a large randomized trial showed. After 4 years of follow-up, neither the median PFS nor the 3-year PFS differed significantly among four treatment groups who received lenalidomide (Revlimid) and bortezomib (Velcade) plus dexamethasone […]
Linezolid ‘Not Recommended’ to Treat Early Syphilis
Linezolid failed to meet noninferiority criteria when compared with standard benzathine penicillin G (BPG) in the treatment of early syphilis, according to findings of the randomized, controlled Trep-AB Study of cisgender men. Only 70% of trial participants with early syphilis who were treated with linezolid were cured, compared with 100% of participants treated with penicillin, […]
Apixaban Prophylaxis Fails to Reduce Clots in Pediatric ALL
Prophylaxis with apixaban (Eliquis) failed to reduce the rate of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in children with newly diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoma, according to results from the phase III randomized PREVAPIX-ALL study. During a median follow-up of 27 days, 12% of patients receiving the direct oral anticoagulant had a composite VTE compared with 18% […]
Inhaled Glucocorticoid Flops for Speeding COVID Recovery in Outpatients
Inhaled fluticasone furoate failed to shorten recovery time for non-hospitalized adults with COVID-19, new data from the adaptive ACTIV-6 trial found. When used daily for 2 weeks, a quicker COVID-19 recovery time — considered at least 3 consecutive days without symptoms — was no more likely with fluticasone furoate than with placebo (HR 1.01, 95% […]
Delaying Esophageal Cancer Surgery After Neoadjuvant CRT Fails in Trial
Prolonging the time to surgery following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT) for esophageal cancer failed to improve histological complete response rates and may even worsen overall survival (OS), according to results from the randomized NeoRes II study. Among the subset with adenocarcinoma, complete response rates were not significantly better with the prolonged surgical approach (10-12 weeks) compared […]
Shorter TB Regimen Misses the Mark
Shorter high-dose rifampicin regimens proved safe for treating pulmonary tuberculosis (TB), but failed to demonstrate noninferiority compared with the standard 6-month regimen, a phase III trial found. For the primary efficacy outcome, an absolute 6.3% more adults receiving a 4-month regimen that included the highest dose of rifampicin had an unfavorable outcome at 12 to […]
Nurse Home-Visit Program Shows No Benefit for Prenatal Care Uptake
Sending registered nurses out on home visits throughout pregnancy failed to move the needle when it came to improving uptake of prenatal care, a randomized trial involving Medicaid patients found. Use of prenatal care services and receipt of recommended guideline-based prenatal care were similar whether patients received the intensive program or were assigned to a […]
Adjuvant Everolimus Falls Short in High-Risk Renal Cancer
Adjuvant everolimus (Afinitor) failed to significantly improve recurrence-free survival (RFS) in patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) who were at high risk for recurrence after nephrectomy, according to results from a randomized phase III trial. The so-called EVEREST study showed that among 1,545 patients with histologically confirmed RCC who had undergone a full surgical resection, […]
Vitamin D for Cardiovascular Prevention Runs Into Another Wall
Monthly super-sized vitamin D supplements failed to significantly reduce major cardiovascular events in older adults, the Australian D-Health Trial found. Over up to 5 years of treatment, incident myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, and coronary revascularization turned up in 6% of the vitamin D group and 6.6% of the placebo group (HR 0.91, 95% CI 0.81-1.01), […]