British journal of cancer
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British journal of cancer · Feb 2015
Circulating leukocyte telomere length and risk of overall and aggressive prostate cancer.
Recent large-scale prospective studies suggest that long telomeres are associated with an increase cancer risk, counter to conventional wisdom. ⋯ In this prospective study, longer LTL was modestly associated with higher risk of prostate cancer. A stronger association for more aggressive cancer in men with a family history of the disease needs to be confirmed in larger studies.
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British journal of cancer · Feb 2015
Impact of investigations in general practice on timeliness of referral for patients subsequently diagnosed with cancer: analysis of national primary care audit data.
For patients with symptoms of possible cancer who do not fulfil the criteria for urgent referral, initial investigation in primary care has been advocated in the United Kingdom and supported by additional resources. The consequence of this strategy for the timeliness of diagnosis is unknown. ⋯ For six specified cancers, investigation in primary care was associated with later referral for specialist assessment. This effect was independent of the nature of symptoms. Some patients for whom urgent referral is mandated by NICE guidance are nevertheless investigated before referral. Reducing the intervals between test order, test performance, and reporting can help reduce the prolongation of primary-care intervals associated with investigation use. Alternative models of assessment should be considered.
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A chemoresponse assay that can be used to predict which patients will respond to which drugs would be useful in directing treatment. Two new analytic methods to assess the predictive ability of a chemoresponse assay have been proposed by Tian et al. ⋯ The examples presented here demonstrate that it can be challenging to evaluate the predictive value of a chemoresponse assay.
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British journal of cancer · Feb 2015
Multicenter StudyPredictors of complications in gynaecological oncological surgery: a prospective multicentre study (UKGOSOC-UK gynaecological oncology surgical outcomes and complications).
There are limited data on surgical outcomes in gynaecological oncology. We report on predictors of complications in a multicentre prospective study. ⋯ This multicentre prospective audit benchmarks the considerable morbidity associated with gynaecological oncology surgery. There are significant patient and surgical factors that influence this risk.