Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer
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This manuscript presents my personal experiences as a physician undergoing radiation therapy for throat cancer. I describe the physical and emotional effects of the radiation treatment and how I coped with them. ⋯ I hope that my perspectives will assist individuals who undergo radiation treatment cope better with them. It is also my hope that health care professionals who care for these patients will gain insight into what their patients experience and feel so that they would be able to better assist them during this difficult time.
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Support Care Cancer · Jun 2011
Review Meta Analysis Comparative StudyEfficacy of palonosetron (PAL) compared to other serotonin inhibitors (5-HT3R) in preventing chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) in patients receiving moderately or highly emetogenic (MoHE) treatment: systematic review and meta-analysis.
The objective of this work is to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of all randomized controlled trials comparing a single intravenous dose of palonosetron (PAL) 0.25 mg with other 5-HT(3)R in patients receiving moderately or highly emetogenic (MoHE) chemotherapy. ⋯ PAL was more effective than the other 5-HT(3)R in preventing acute and delayed CINV in patients receiving MoHE treatments, regardless of the use of concomitant corticosteroids.
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Support Care Cancer · Jun 2011
Randomized Controlled TrialA double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of a topical treatment for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy: NCCTG trial N06CA.
Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is a troublesome chronic symptom that has no proven pharmacologic treatment. The purpose of this double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial was to evaluate a novel compounded topical gel for this problem. ⋯ Topical treatment with BAK-PLO appears to somewhat improve symptoms of CIPN. This topical gel was well tolerated, without evident systemic toxicity. Further research is needed with increased doses to better clarify the clinical role of this treatment in CIPN.
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Support Care Cancer · Jun 2011
Issues of "life" and "death" for patients receiving palliative care--comments when confronted with a research tool.
To be able to study the desire for hastened death (DhD) in patients receiving palliative care, research tools reflecting the thoughts of patients are needed. In order to better understand what issues of "life" and "death" mean to patients receiving palliative care in Germany, we analysed their spontaneous comments during a validation study of the German version of the Schedule of Attitudes Towards Hastened Death. ⋯ The existing construct of an increased DhD may benefit from a further differentiation between "non-acute" and "acute." In addition, it could be helpful to conceptualize "will to live" and "desire for death" not as polarities from one dimension (two sides of the same coin), but to think them as two independent dimensions.
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Support Care Cancer · Jun 2011
The effects of exercise therapy on delirium in cancer patients: a retrospective study.
The present study aimed to investigate the effects of exercise therapy on delirium in cancer patients. ⋯ Given the relatively low antipsychotic doses used, it is conceivable that delirium symptoms were attenuated in patients who received exercise therapy. This study suggests that exercise therapy may be useful as one environmental/supportive intervention for delirium.