NHL patients are at elevated risk of developing second malignancy, particularly leukemia and lung cancer. The relative risk is greater with patients who are younger at first treatment. Chemotherapy predisposes patients toan increased risk of leukemia, and possibly lung and colorectal cancers. The role of specific drug treatments in the etiology of solid cancers after NHL deserves further investigation.

This study found both positive and negative associations of haplotypes in p53 for glioblastoma and ATM for meningioma. This study provides new data that could add to our understanding of brain tumour susceptibility.

OS with maintenance erlotinib was not superior to second-line treatment in patients whose tumor did not harbor an EGFR-activating mutation. Safety results were consistent with the established safety profile of erlotinib. Thus, maintenance treatment with erlotinib in patients with advanced/metastatic NSCLC without EGFR-activating mutations is considered unfavorable.

BackgroundType 2 diabetes is a major risk factor for chronic kidney disease, which substantially increases the risk of cardiovascular disease mortality. This Phase IIb safety study (AleNephro) in patients with stage 3 chronic kidney disease and type 2 diabetes, evaluated the renal effects of aleglitazar, a balanced peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α/γ agonist.MethodsPatients were randomized to 52 weeks’ double-blind treatment with aleglitazar 150 μg/day (n = 150) or pioglitazone 45 mg/day (n = 152), followed by an 8-week off-treatment period. The primary endpoint was non-inferiority for the difference between aleglitazar and pioglitazone in percentage change in estimated glomerular filtration rate from baseline to end of follow-up. Secondary endpoints included change from baseline in estimated glomerular filtration rate and lipid profiles at end of treatment.ResultsMean estimated glomerular filtration rate change from baseline to end of follow-up was –2.7% (95% confidence interval: –7.7, 2.4) with aleglitazar versus –3.4% (95% confidence interval: –8.5, 1.7) with pioglitazone, establishing non-inferiority (0.77%; 95% confidence interval: –4.5, 6.0). Aleglitazar was associated with a 15% decrease in estimated glomerular filtration rate versus 5.4% with pioglitazone at end of treatment, which plateaued to 8 weeks and was not progressive. Superior improvements in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides, with similar effects on glycosylated hemoglobin were observed with aleglitazar versus pioglitazone. No major safety concerns were identified.ConclusionsThe primary endpoint in AleNephro was met, indicating that in stage 3 chronic kidney disease patients with type 2 diabetes, the decrease in estimated glomerular filtration rate after 52 weeks’ treatment with aleglitazar followed by 8 weeks off-treatment was reversible and comparable (non-inferior) to pioglitazone.Trial registrationNCT01043029 January 5, 2010.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2369-15-180) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.