Onkologie

BACKGROUND: Advanced pancreatic adenocarcinoma still remains associated with a desperate prognosis. Nevertheless, treatment options for patients with metastasized disease have improved considerably over the last few years. Recently, cytotoxic combination therapies such as the FOLFIRINOX regimen and combined nab-paclitaxel/gemcitabine have shown improved overall survival compared to gemcitabine alone. There is still no standard of care in second-line therapy for patients with disease progression...

BACKGROUND: Treatment of germ cell tumours with cisplatin-based chemotherapy results in cure for the majority of patients. There is, however, a small but significant mortality rate, reported to be higher in patients with multiple co-morbidities. CASE REPORT: We report our management of a renal transplant patient with spina bifida, who was diagnosed with stage IIIC, poor-risk, non-seminomatous germ cell carcinoma. A marker-negative partial response, which has been maintained more than 2 years following completion of treatment, was seen following chemotherapy with cisplatin and etoposide...

BACKGROUND: Accumulating evidence has shown that microRNAs (miRNAs) are aberrantly expressed in human esophageal cancer and crucial to tumorigenesis. Herein, we identified the role of miR-145 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) development in vitro and in vivo. MATERIAL AND METHODS: miR-145 expression was investigated in 40 ESCC samples as well as 5 ESCC cell lines by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Crystal violet and transwell assays were conducted to explore the effects of miR-145 on the proliferation and invasion of human ESCC cell lines, respectively...

BACKGROUND: Knowing the status of the internal mammary lymph (IML) nodes is important for accurate staging and appropriate selection of subsequent treatment in breast cancer. We conducted a meta-analysis to clarify the rate of IML node metastasis in breast cancer patients and discussed the importance of this finding. METHODS: We retrieved articles from the literature that reported positive rates of IML node metastasis in breast cancer patients. The quality of the selected articles was assessed using the 'Methodological Index for Non-Randomized Studies'...

BACKGROUND: Delayed diagnosis of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) increases recurrence, metastatic potential, and management costs. This study aims to identify risk factors of patient-related delayed presentation in cutaneous SCC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 513 patients, who first sought care for cutaneous lesions that were subsequently removed and histologically confirmed as SCCs, were included. Attitude to symptoms, psychosocial profile, and reasons for delayed presentation were obtained via a structured questionnaire-based interview...

BACKGROUND: We have analyzed the patient population of one clinic (Charité) over a period of 15 years. Besides the changes in the technical facilities and therapeutical guidelines during these years, this period also reflects the changes in the health system attributable to the reunification of East and West Germany. Until now only few analyses for breast cancer patients from the German speaking area have been reported. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All 2,062 patients undergoing surgical treatment for breast cancer between 1984 and 1998 were documented and followed up until 2007...

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer (CRC) plays an important role in cancer mortality and morbidity. This study examined colorectal tissues for RAS, BRAF, and TP53 gene mutations to assess their value as indicators of outcomes of CRC therapy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: DNA was extracted from tissues taken from 165 patients with CRC. RAS gene mutations (exons 2 and 3) were detected by primer extension analysis. BRAF gene mutations (V600E) were detected by high resolution melting (HRM) analysis...

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to examine the cardiac effects of anthracycline therapy based on speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE) and to identify patients at risk for cardiotoxicity. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The study included 35 breast cancer (BC) and 15 lymphoma patients who were treated with anthracycline-based chemotherapy. Conventional echocardiography and STE were performed 1 month prior to and 1 month after chemotherapy. Longitudinal strain analysis was performed via STE using automated functional imaging...

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The aim of this systematic review was to examine the relationship between pre-operative peritumoral edema and survival in patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). We searched for studies involving patients with GBM who underwent pre-operative imaging (magnetic resonance imaging and/or computed tomography) in which the peritumoral edema was assessed as a prognostic factor for survival. 7 retrospective studies met the eligibility criteria and were included in the study. 2 studies found that pre-operative peritumoral edema was an independent prognostic factor for decreased survival...

BACKGROUND: Pazopanib is a multi-targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor that has recently been approved for treatment of advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC). There are no previous reports of pazopanib triggering radiation recall dermatitis (RRD). CASE REPORT: A 60-year-old male patient was commenced on pazopanib for metastatic RCC 2 weeks prior to receiving radiotherapy (10×30 Gy) to bone metastases at the T9 and L4 vertebrae and right mid-shaft of humerus...

BACKGROUND: Treatment of osteosarcoma of the extremities consists of surgical resection preceded and followed by chemotherapy, including high-dose methotrexate or adriamycin-based protocols. When distant relapse occurs, therapeutic options are scarce. Trabectedin, a DNA-binding agent, is indicated for the treatment of patients with advanced soft tissue sarcomas after failure of anthracyclines and ifosfamide. In this indication, the 6-month progression-free survival is about 35-40%. Recent reports showed that some specific single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from DNA repair genes could be associated with sensitivity to trabectedin in soft tissue sarcomas...

BACKGROUND: Germ cell tumor (GCT) patients are at risk of venous thromboembolic events (VTEEs). A higher incidence of VTEEs has been reported in GCT patients undergoing cisplatin-based chemotherapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis of the incidence of and risk factors for VTEEs in 193 GCT patients receiving platinum-based chemotherapy in Hamburg, Germany, between 2000 and 2009 was performed. RESULTS: VTEEs occurred in 22 patients (11%)...

BACKGROUND: This phase I study evaluated the safety of SU5416, a potent and selective inhibitor of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) receptor tyrosine kinase Flk-1, in combination with weekly cisplatin and irinotecan in patients with advanced solid tumors. METHODS: The patients received cisplatin 30 mg/m² and irinotecan 50 mg/m² weekly from week 1 to week 4, with SU5416 at either 65 mg/m² (dose level (DL)1) or 85 mg/m² (DL2) twice weekly for 6 weeks (1 cycle)...

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate the role of far upstream element-binding protein 1 (FUBP1) in gastric cancer development. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Using immunohistochemistry, we detected FUBP1 expression in 18 chronic superficial gastritis patients, 33 chronic atrophic gastritis patients, 21 moderate and severe gastric dysplasia patients, and 31 gastric cancer patients. FUBP1 mRNA expression in gastric cancer tissue and paraneoplastic tissue was measured with fluorescent quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction...

BACKGROUND: Limited clinical data have been published on patients suffering from advanced gynaecological malignancies treated in palliative care units, and little is known about prognostic factors. METHODS: In a retrospective study, the data of 225 patients with breast, ovarian and cervical cancer treated in the palliative care unit of a university hospital between 1998 and 2009 were assembled. Clinical aspects and baseline symptoms, laboratory parameters, the clinical course, and outcome were evaluated...

BACKGROUND: The ratio of metastatic to dissected lymph nodes (lymph node ratio; LNR) is a sensitive and superior prognostic factor for lymph node evaluation, but its relationship to cancer subtypes is unclear. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Data from 469 patients with axillary lymph node metastasis out of 640 early breast cancer cases were retrospectively analyzed. They were classified into 4 molecular subtypes; luminal A, luminal B HER2(+), HER2 overexpression, basal-like...

AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the expression and clinical prognostic significance of adhesion molecules in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) tissues and peripheral blood. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Flow cytometry assays for the expression levels of CD44v6 and CD62P protein in peripheral blood and tissues from controls and NPC patients were performed. Clinical and pathological features were reported and analyzed, and a survival study was carried out. RESULTS: The expression of CD44v6 and CD62P in NPC tissues and peripheral blood was higher than that of the control group (p < 0...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.