Oncol Lett
-
The aim of the present study was to compare the oncological outcomes following lobectomy using either video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) or thoracotomy in clinical stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. Short- and long-term data from 212 consecutive patients who underwent lobectomy for clinical stage I NSCLC via VATS or thoracotomy between February 2003 and July 2013 were retrospectively reviewed. The primary endpoints were mediastinal lymph node staging, disease-free survival time and overall survival time. ⋯ Multivariate Cox regression analysis of survival times revealed that significant predictors of shorter survival times were advanced pathological T3 stage, pathological N1 or N2 disease and poor cancer differentiation. In conclusion, it is reasonable to conclude from the present study that VATS lobectomy performed by specialist thoracic surgeons is safe and may achieve similar long-term survival times to the open surgery approach. However, further prospective randomized multi-center trials are warranted prior to incorporating VATS into clinical routine.
-
The treatment of acute chest pain can be a challenge in palliative care. Firstly, because acute chest pain is a symptom of a paucity of diseases, which makes diagnosis difficult and time consuming, while there is also a time constraint, due to the extreme suffering of the patient. Secondly, the condition of a patient with advanced cancer disease and co-morbidities does not always allow for required diagnostic procedures. ⋯ As the source of pain remained unclear, a second esophagoduodenoscopy was performed to determine a diagnosis, resulting in pain relief. Thus, in the present case, esophagoduodenoscopy was diagnostic and therapeutic. Furthermore, although the treatment of acute chest pain may be a challenge in palliative care, the present study indicates that pain treatment should be adjusted to anatomical, pathophysiological and pharmacological factors, and may pose risks due to the unavoidable parenteral co-administration of multiple agents with strong therapeutic effects.
-
The aim of the present study was to investigate brain glucose metabolism in patients with Hodgkin disease (HD) after diagnosis and during chemotherapy treatment. Following the administration of first-line doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine and dacarbazine (ABVD) chemotherapy, 74 HD patients underwent 18F-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography brain scans, both baseline (PET0) and interim (PET2) at the Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata (Rome, Italy). Fifty-seven patients were further evaluated 15±6 days after four additional cycles (PET6). ⋯ Compared with the PET0 and CG scans, the PET2 scan demonstrated a higher metabolic activity in Brodmann area (BA) 39, and a metabolic reduction in BA 11 bilaterally and in left BA 32. All of these changes disappeared at PET6. The results of the present study indicate that ABVD chemotherapy has a limited impact on brain metabolism.
-
Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting is a serious adverse side-effect of anthracycline-based chemotherapy regimens, in patients with breast cancer. A combination of three drugs, 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT3) receptor antagonist, aprepitant and dexamethasone, is recommended for antiemetic therapy. Palonosetron (PALO), a novel 5-HT3 receptor antagonist has been identified to be effective against delayed nausea and vomiting. ⋯ However, during the third cycle, a significant difference was observed in acute-phase complete control of emetic events between the PALO and GRA groups, which was defined as no emetic episode, no additional antiemetic treatment and no more than mild nausea, between PALO and GRA. These results demonstrated that changing antiemetics may affect the efficacy of antiemetics. This study indicates that alteration of antiemetic regimens, including drug combination and order, may improve the efficacy of antiemetic treatment.
-
Interleukin (IL)-32 is a newly identified cytokine in humans and primates. It has been established that IL-32 may antagonize cancer growth. However, to the best of our knowledge, the direct effect of IL-32 on breast cancer cell growth has not yet been investigated. ⋯ The effects of IL-32 on cell proliferation and apoptosis were investigated by MTT assay and TUNEL staining, respectively. The results revealed that IL-32 increases the proliferation rate of cancer cells and decreases the rate of apoptosis, In addition, IL-32 was found to enhance the growth of tumor xenografts in vivo. In summary, IL-32 may represent a useful therapeutic target for human breast cancer.