Two-year Survival Rates Research Articles

Effects of Traditional Chinese Medicine Anticancer Decoction Combined with Basic Chemotherapy and Nursing Intervention on Oral Cancer Patients after Surgery and Its Effect on Tumor Markers and Immune Function.

Objective To prospectively study the application effect of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) anticancer decoction with basic chemotherapy and nursing intervention on oral cancer patients after surgery and the effect on tumor markers and immune function. Methods Eighty-four postoperative oral cancer patients in our hospital from May 2017 to February 2019 were selected and divided into observation group (42 cases) and control group (42 cases). The control group was treated with basic chemotherapy combined with basic nursing care, and the observation group was treated with TCM anticancer decoction and comprehensive nursing intervention on the basis of the control group. The clinical efficacy, the occurrence of adverse reactions, the satisfaction of nursing care, and the two-year cumulative survival rate of the two groups were compared. The immune function, tumor marker level, VAS score, QoR40 score, and survival quality score of the two groups were compared before and after nursing care. Results The total clinical treatment efficiency of the observation group (88.10%) was significantly higher than that of the control group (69.05%), and the differences between the two groups in oral cleanliness, aspiration frequency, and oral comfort were statistically significant (P < 0.05). The differences in the occurrence of halitosis, oral fungal infection, leukopenia, gastrointestinal reaction, and fever in the observation group were statistically significant compared with the control group (P < 0.05). The nursing satisfaction rate in the observation group (95.24%) was significantly higher than that in the control group (78.57%). The two-year cumulative survival rate of the observation group (92.86%) was significantly higher than that of the control group (73.81%). After nursing care, CD4+, CD4+/CD8+, VAS scores, QoR40 scores, and quality of survival scores in both groups all increased, and CD8+, CD56+, CEA level, NSE level, and CA19-9 level all decreased (all P < 0.05). Conclusion The clinical efficacy of TCM anticancer decoction with basic chemotherapy and nursing interventions in the treatment of postoperative oral cancer patients was remarkable, which could significantly improve patients' oral cleanliness and comfort, reduce the frequency of sputum aspiration, improve patients' immunity, reduce tumor marker levels, inhibit tumor activity, improve patients' nursing satisfaction, further improve patients' treatment compliance, reduce patients' pain level, improve patients' survival quality, and prolong patients' survival time with high safety. It could be used as a theoretical basis for subsequent clinical research.

The beneficial effect of csDMARDs co-medication on drug persistence of first-line TNF inhibitor in rheumatoid arthritis patients: data from Czech ATTRA registry

The study aimed to compare treatment retention for first-line TNF inhibitor (TNFi) in the ATTRA registry patients receiving either combination with conventional synthetic DMARDs or TNFi as monotherapy. A retrospective multicenter study analyzed data of all adult patients with rheumatoid arthritis (n = 3032) starting TNF inhibitor as the first-line biological therapy in combination with csDMARDs or in monotherapy from January 1st 2012 to December 31st 2020. Kaplan–Meier method was employed to calculate drug retentions. Survival curves of treatment retentions were compared through Log-rank test between the studied subgroups. The hazard ratio for drug discontinuation was assessed through univariate cox regression models. In patients who started the first line TNFi therapy, the median treatment retention was 47.7 (42.2; 53.1) months for combination therapy and 22.7 (14.9; 30.6) months for TNFi monotherapy (p < 0.001). Estimated one-year survival was higher in patients on TNFi combined with csDMARDs as compared with TNFi monotherapy (75.3% vs 65.7%); two-year survival rate was 63.2% vs 49.2%, three-year survival rate was 55.4% vs 42.4% and five-year survival 44.9% vs 26.4% of patients. The estimated survival on the first TNFi was higher in patients taking combination therapy with methotrexate than with other csDMARDs (p = 0.003). Use of csDMARDs co-medication was associated with significantly better first TNFi drug survival compared to monotherapy. The combination of TNFi with MTX is more effective than the combination with leflunomide, which did not demonstrate a significant effect.

The Role of Surgery in High-Grade Neuroendocrine Cancer: Indications for Clinical Practice.

Pulmonary neuroendocrine tumors (pNET) represent a particular type of malignant lung cancers and can be divided into well-differentiated low-grade NET and poorly-differentiated high-grade NET. Typical and atypical carcinoids belong to the first group while large cell neuroendocrine carcinomas (LCNEC) and small-cell lung cancers (SCLC) belong to the second one. The aim of this mini-review is to focus on the role of surgical therapy for high grade neuroendocrine tumors. SCLC has the worst prognosis among all lung cancer neoplasms: in fact, the two-year survival rate is about 5% and median survival usually ranges between 15 and 20 months. The surgical treatment of SCLC has thus infrequently been judged as a valuable aspect of the therapeutic approach, the gold standard treatment being a combination of platinum-based chemotherapy and radiotherapy. As LCNEC are rare, there is a lack of extensive literature and randomized clinical trials, therefore the curative approach is still controversial. Current treatment guidelines suggest treating LCNEC by surgical resection in non-metastatic stages and recommend adjuvant chemotherapy according to SCLC protocol. Upfront surgery is suggested in early stages (from I to IIB), a multimodality approach is recommended in locally advanced stages (III) while surgery is not recommended in stage IV LCNEC. The rate of surgical resection is quite low, particularly for SCLC, ranging from 1 to 6% in limited diseases; lobectomy with radical lymphadenectomy is considered the gold standard surgical procedure in the case of limited disease SCLC and resectable LCNEC; pneumonectomy, although reported as an effective tool, should be avoided in the light of local and distant recurrence rates.

Clinical Value Analysis of Xiaozheng Decoction Combined with Bladder Perfusion for Postoperative Treatment of Bladder Cancer and Its Effect on Serum miR-143 and miR-92a.

Objective To study the clinical value of Xiaozheng decoction combined with bladder perfusion treating bladder cancer after the operation and its effect on serum miR-143 and miR-92a. Methods The patients in the control group were treated with gemcitabine bladder instillation, and patients in the study group were treated with the combination of gemcitabine bladder instillation + Xiaozheng decoction. The clinical efficacy, postoperative adverse effects, and recurrence between the two groups were compared. miR-143 and miR-92a levels, immune function levels, and tumor factor levels were compared before and after treatment. The relationship between patient prognosis and miR-143/miR-92a expression was analyzed. Results The overall effective rate of treatment in the study group (86.67%) was significantly increased, and the occurrence of adverse reactions and recurrence were significantly decreased (P < 0.05). After treatment, serum miR-143 and miR-92a levels, CD4+, CD4+/CD8+, and NK levels increased in both groups (P<0.05). CD8+ levels, BTA, NMP, and UBC levels decreased in both groups (P < 0.05). Analysis of survival results indicated that the two-year survival rates of patients with miR-143 and miR-92a high expressions were significantly higher than patients with low expressions (P < 0.05). Conclusion The efficacy of Xiaozheng decoction combined with bladder perfusion in treating postoperative patients with bladder cancer was significant, which could reduce the incidence of adverse reactions and postoperative recurrence rate, improve serum tumor marker levels, and enhance patients' immunity with a good prognosis.

A simple CD4+ T cells to FIB-4 ratio for evaluating prognosis of BCLC-B hepatocellular carcinoma: a retrospective cohort study

IntroductionImmunotherapy has become a new therapy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC); however, its treatment results are considerably different. CD4+ T cells (CD4+) are the key to immunotherapy, but patients with HCC that have low CD4+ are rarely observed for clinical evidence. Hepatitis B virus-related HCC is often accompanied by cirrhosis and portal hypertension; therefore, CD4+ tend to be relatively low in number. TACE is the standard treatment for Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC)-B HCC, which may further reduce the number of CD4 + .MethodsThis retrospective cohort study further reduced CD4+ by including patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) to observe the relationship between CD4+ and Chronic hepatitis B virus (CHB) induced HCC. A total of 170 BCLC-B HCC patients (42 HIV+) were included. Univariate and multivariate analyses, and artificial neural networks (ANNs) were used to evaluate the independent risk factors for the two-year survival.ResultsThe statistical analysis of the two-year survival rate showed that the main factors influencing survival were liver function and immune indices, including CD4+, platelet, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index, and fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) (P < 0.05). Compared with that in other indices, in logistic and ANN multivariate analysis, CD4 + -to-FIB-4 ratio (CD4+/FIB-4) had the highest importance with 0.716 C-statistic and 145.93 cut-off value. In terms of overall survival rate, HIV infection was not a risk factor (P = 0.589); however, CD4+/FIB-4 ≤ 145.93 significantly affected patient prognosis (P = 0.002).ConclusionHIV infection does not affect the prognosis of BCLC-B HCC, but CD4+ have a significant predictive value. CD4+ played a vital role in HCC and this deserves the attention from physicians. Further, the CD4+/FIB-4 is a clinically valuable effective prognostic indicator for these patients.

Final results of the IFCT-0803 study, a phase II study of cetuximab, pemetrexed, cisplatin, and concurrent radiotherapy in patients with locally advanced, unresectable, stage III, non-squamous, non-small-cell lung cancer

PurposeRoughly 20% of patients with non-small-cell lung cancer exhibit locally advanced, unresectable, stage III disease. Concurrent platinum-based chemoradiotherapy is the backbone treatment, which is followed by maintenance immunotherapy, yet with poor long-term prognosis. This phase II trial (IFCT-0803) sought to evaluate whether adding cetuximab to cisplatin and pemetrexed chemoradiotherapy would improve its efficacy in these patients. Materials and methodsEligible patients received weekly cetuximab (loading dose 400mg/m2 day 1; subsequent weekly 250mg/m2 doses until two weeks postradiotherapy). Chemotherapy comprised cisplatin (75mg/m2) and pemetrexed (500mg/m2), both delivered on day 1 of a 21-day cycle of maximally four. Irradiation with maximally 66Gy started on day 22. Disease control rate at week 16 was the primary endpoint. ResultsOne hundred and six patients were included (99 eligible patients). Compliance exceeded 95% for day 1 of chemotherapy cycles 1 to 4, with 76% patients receiving the 12 planned cetuximab doses. Maximal grade 3 toxicity occurred in 63% patients, and maximal grade 4 in 9.6%. The primary endpoint involving the first 95 eligible patients comprised two (2.1%) complete responses, 57 (60.0%) partial responses, and 27 (28.4%) stable diseases. This 90.5% disease control rate (95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 84.6%–96.4%) was achieved at week 16. After median 63.0-month follow-up, one-year and two-year survival rates were 75.8% and 59.5%. Median overall survival was 35.8months (95% CI: 23.5–NR), and median progression-free survival 14.4months (95% CI: 11.2–18.8), with one-year and two-year progression-free survival rates of 57.6% and 34.3%. ConclusionThese survival rates compare favourably with published data, thus justifying further development of cetuximab-based induction chemoradiotherapy.

Reirradiation for Rare Head and Neck Cancers: Orbit, Auditory Organ, and Salivary Glands.

We analyzed the efficacy and toxicity following reirradiation for locoregional recurrence of rare head and neck tumors. We retrospectively analyzed 17 patients who had received reirradiation for rare head and neck tumors. Primary tumor sites included nine ears (auditory organ), four salivary glands, and four orbits. The median follow-up time was 13.2 months for surviving patients. The median survival time was 12.6 months with one- and two-year survival rates of 53.1% and 44.3%, respectively. Nine out of 17 patients experienced local failure. The one- and two-year local control rates were 42.4% and 31.8%, respectively. The median survival times were 12.6, 5.3, and 11.0 months for orbit, auditory organ, and salivary glands, respectively. Three patients experienced grade 3 toxicity, including meningitis, brain necrosis, and facial nerve disorders. No grade ≥4 toxicities were observed. Reirradiation of rare head and neck tumors is feasible, with acceptable toxicity.

The two-year survival rate of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma patients treated at Dr. George Mukhari academic hospital South Africa

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Background:&lt;/strong&gt; The study was conducted to assess the outcome of patients diagnosed with laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) treated at a tertiary level hospital in South Africa. The focus was the two-year disease-specific survival (DSS) rate after diagnosis as a measuring tool for the outcomes of the disease.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Methods:&lt;/strong&gt; A retrospective cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted at Dr. George Mukhari academic hospital (DGMAH) from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2015. The data was collected from files of patients who were identified by clinical laryngeal symptoms, pan-endoscopy and biopsy. A total of 37 files of patients diagnosed as LSCC were included in the study.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Results:&lt;/strong&gt; 166 hospital records were retrieved. After application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, the study excluded 129 files because of benign lesions, malignancies other than SCC on histology report, SCC from upper aero-digestive sites other than the larynx or files with incomplete information. Therefore, 37 recordswere considered for the study.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Conclusions:&lt;/strong&gt; The study found the two-year DSS to be 43.2%. A significant contributing factor to the low two-year DSS was the advanced stage of the disease (III and IV) at the time of the presentation that was managed by palliative treatment. Advanced disease was likely due to delayed presentation to the hospital influenced by a low level of patient health knowledge, the negative impact of religious and cultural beliefs, low disposable household income coupled with high distance from home to the nearest hospital, and suboptimal screening at the primary health care level.&lt;/p&gt;

Alpha-Emitter Radiopharmaceuticals and External Beam Radiotherapy: A Radiobiological Model for the Combined Treatment.

Simple SummaryThe linear–quadratic (LQ) model was adapted to 223Ra therapy using brachytherapy formalism for a mixture of radionuclides, considering the contribution of all daughter isotopes in the decay chain. The LQ model allowed us to predict the two-year overall survival and neutropenia rates with a combination of external beam radiotherapy and 223Ra treatment. The fitted model could be used to guide future optimization and personalization of combined treatments.Previously published studies combined external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) treatments with different activities of 223Ra. The data of two-year overall survival (2y-OS) and neutropenia (TOX) incidence when combining EBRT and 223Ra are not homogeneous in literature. We adapted the linear–quadratic model (LQ) to 223Ra therapy using brachytherapy formalism for a mixture of radionuclides, considering the contribution of all daughter isotopes in the decay chain. A virtual cohort of patients undergoing 223Ra therapy was derived using data from the literature. The doses delivered using 223Ra and EBRT were converted into biologically equivalent doses. Fixed-effect logistic regression models were derived for both the 2y-OS and TOX and compared with available literature. Based on the literature search, four studies were identified to have reported the 223Ra injection activity levels varying from the placebo (0) to 80 kBq/kg, associated or not with EBRT. Logistic regression models revealed a dose-dependent increase in both the 2y-OS (intercept = −1.364; slope = 0.006; p-value ≤ 0.05) and TOX (−5.035; 0.018; ≤0.05) using the EBRT schedule of 8 Gy in 1 fr. Similar results were obtained for other schedules. Discrepancies between our TOX model and those derived for EBRT combined with chemotherapy are discussed. Radiobiological models allow us to estimate dose-dependent relationships, to predict the OS and TOX following combined 223Ra + EBRT treatment, which will guide future treatment optimization.

Is ovarian cystectomy feasible for patients with borderline ovarian tumors? A retrospective study and review of the literature

Background: Given that borderline ovarian tumors (BOTs) are usually found in young, fertile women without a history of childbirth, fertility preservation should be considered in the treatment plan. This retrospective study aimed to evaluate the safety of ovarian cystectomy in patients with BOTs. Methods: Patients with BOTs treated between August 2007 and August 2016 at our institution were divided into two groups according to the type of surgery: the cystectomy group and the oophorectomy group with or without salpingectomy, and differences in surgical outcomes were compared. The cumulative disease recurrence was also compared using Kaplan–Meier curves. Results: Of the 162 patients enrolled, 128 (79.0%) underwent an oophorectomy with or without salpingectomy and 34 (21.0%) underwent an ovarian cystectomy. The patients in the cystectomy group were younger than those in the oophorectomy group (29.2 years vs. 46.5 years, p &lt; 0.001), and the proportion of patients who underwent minimally invasive surgery was higher in the cystectomy group than in the oophorectomy group (88.2% vs. 46.9%, p &lt; 0.001). During the mean follow-up period of 44 months, six patients (3.70%) developed disease recurrence (five [3.9%] and one [2.9%] in the oophorectomy and cystectomy groups, respectively). The two-year disease-free survival rate was 97.1% and 97.6% in the cystectomy and oophorectomy groups, respectively, and did not differ between the groups (p = 0.818). Discussion: Ovarian cystectomy can be considered a safe and effective option for young women with BOTs who wish to preserve their fertility.

Surgical stage in sequential therapy of unresectable oral cancer T3-4bN0-3M0: evaluation of treatment results

Introduction. Unresectable oral cancer is an urgent and complex problem in modern oncology. Annually, the proportion of patients with stage III–IV is 35 %, and the one-year mortality rate for this pathology reaches 32 %. Patients with advanced oral tumors usually have a negative prognosis and treatment tactics are limited to radiation therapy (RT), chemoradiation therapy, or sequential therapy, including induction chemotherapy (CT). Polymodal therapy for oral cancer is of particular interest in the treatment of pathology in this area.The study objective – to analyze the results of sequential treatment, including induction CT followed by RT and induction CT followed by surgery and RT in patients with unresectable oral cancer (T3–4bN0–3M0).Materials and methods. This retrospective study included 30 patients (11 women and 19 men) with primary non-resectable squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity (T3–4bN0–3M0) who received 2–3 courses of induction chemotherapy (CT) with DCF (docetaxel, cisplatin, 5-fluorouracil). Mean patients’ age was 61.2 years. The first treatment stage included induction CT according to the following scheme: docetaxel (75 mg/m2 /day on day 1) + cisplatin (75 mg/m2 /day on day 1) + 5-fluorouracil (1000 mg/m2 /day on days 1–4) repeated every 21 days. Study participants were divided into 2 groups according to their objective response to CT. Patients with resectable residual tumors have undergone surgery (after induction CT) followed by radical radiation therapy (RT) (induction CT + surgery + RT). Patients with non-resectable residual tumors/no objective response/no complete response after induction CT have undergone radical RT (induction CT + RT).Results. The objective response rate (ORR) to induction CT was 66.6 % (20 / 30). Five out of thirty patients (16.7 %) received no subsequent therapy: 3 individuals developed grade III–IV adverse events, while 2 individuals had progressive disease. One-third of patients (10 / 30; 33.3 %) had surgery followed by RT. Half of patients (15 / 30; 50 %) received RT after induction CT. The two-year relapse-free survival rates in the groups of induction CT + surgery + RT and induction CT + RT was 14 and 16 %, respectively (p = 0.49). The two-year overall survival rates in the same groups were 44 and 38 %, respectively (р = 0.74).Conclusion. Resectability was achieved in 33.3 % (10 / 30) of patients with initially unresectable oral cancer after induction CT. A sequential therapy regimen, including a surgical stage after induction CT, did not demonstrate a statistically significant increase in overall and disease-free survival rates. Sequential multimodal treatment of common oral cancers has some potential, but requires further study to assess its significance.

Survey of malignant pleural mesothelioma treatment in Japan: Patterns of practice and clinical outcomes in tomotherapy facilities.

We conducted a nationwide survey of tomotherapy for malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) in Japan. Fifty-six facilities were surveyed and data on 31 patients treated curatively between 2008 and 2017 were collected from 14 facilities. Twenty patients received hemithorax irradiation after extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) (first group). Five patients received irradiation without EPP (second group), while six received salvage radiotherapy for local recurrence (salvage group). Among the seven patients not undergoing EPP, five (four in the second group and one in the salvage group) were treated with lung sparing pleural irradiation (LSPI) and two with irradiation to visible tumors. Two-year overall survival (OS) rates in the first and second groups were 33% and 60%, respectively (median, 13 vs 30 months, P = 0.82). In the first and second groups, 2-year local control (LC) rates were 53 and 67%, respectively (P = 0.54) and 2-year progression-free survival (PFS) rates were 16% and 60%, respectively (P = 0.07). Distant metastases occurred in 15 patients in the first group and three in the second group. In the salvage group, the median OS was 18 months. Recurrence was observed in the irradiated volume in four patients. The contralateral lung dose was higher in LSPI than in hemithorax irradiation plans (mean, 11.0 ± 2.2 vs 6.1 ± 3.1 Gy, P = 0.002). Grade 3 or 5 lung toxicity was observed in two patients receiving EPP and hemithorax irradiation, but not in those undergoing LSPI. In conclusion, outcomes of EPP and hemithorax irradiation were not satisfactory, whereas LSPI appeared promising and encouraging.

A new technique of evisceration with one-stage plasty pelvic organs

The evisceration procedure of pelvic organs with the one-moment recovery of continuity of the urinary tract and intestine is developed. The work is based on the experience of surgical treatment of 56 patients with locally widespread forms of the pelvic organ cancer after evisceration. The complications after the operation were found in 19 (36,5%) patients, of which 8 (15,3%) patients died. The remote results are studied in 42 patients. The two-year survival rate index was 76,8+1,7%, three-year64,1+1,5%, five-year49,5+1,5%. In surgical treatment of the pelvic organ cancer the evisceration is an adequate and oncolo-gically justified operative intervention. With the one-moment reconstructive intervention the evisceration makes it possible to reach the optimal results and to improve the life quality of the radically operated patients.

POS-576 OUTCOMES OF GERIATRIC PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE STAGE 5 : SINGLE CENTRE EXPERIENCE

Globally, the number of elderly persons with stage 5 chronic kidney disease (CKD) is rising. It's still unclear whether dialysis will benefit geriatric patients with advanced CKD. The decision to start dialysis or to follow a non-dialysis treatment plan is complex and difficult. This study aims to investigate how modality selection affects geriatric patient survival and to explore the associated risk factors. The pre-dialysis clinic database was used to identify geriatric patients (age > 65 years) with an eGFR of 15 mls/min/1.73m2 who were followed up in the nephrology clinic from January 1 to December 31 2016. Demographics, comorbidities, dialysis modality, clinical outcome, and laboratory data were obtained from hospital electronic medical reports. Patients were then followed up till 31stDecember 2018. Survival was calculated from the time when eGFR was <15 mls/min/1.73m2 until death or the end of the study. A total of 97 patients were identified during this study period. Sixty-one (62.9%) patients opted for long term dialysis (LTD) whilst the remaining 37.1% (n=36) opted for non-dialysis (ND) pathway. Patients in the ND group were older with median(IQR) age of 74.5(8) years compared to LTD patients with median age of 70.0(6) (P<0.001). One and two-year survival rates were 67.2% and 62.2% in the LTD group and 66.7% and 60.7% in the ND (p =0.815). Further analysis of patients who chose LTD found that 47.5% (n=29) started dialysis in a timely manner, with mean eGFR of 7.4ml/min/1.73m2, while 52.4% (n=32) crashed-landed with mean eGFR of 5.9ml/min/1.73m2. Patients who crash-landed had the lowest survival rate when compared to patients who started dialysis in a timely manner and those who chose the ND course, as shown in the table below. Mean time of decline in eGFR 15mls/min/ 1.73m2to death or study end was 22.5±12.7 months for those on LTD and 20.8±11.9 months for those managed conservatively (P=0.303). Comorbidities and age did not have a significant impact on survival. Tabled 1No. of patientsNo. of events1 Year Survival %2 Years Survival %P-valueLTD with timelyinitiated dialysis29589.786.10.002LTD butcrash-landed321946.940.6Non-dialysis treatment361566.760.7 Open table in a new tab In this study, geriatric patients who chose dialysis had similar survival to those who chose non-dialysis treatment. If opted for long-term dialysis treatment, it must be started in a timely manner to maximize the survival advantage as crash-lander had the lowest survival rate.

Importance of the creation of a short musculofascial tunnel in peritoneal dialysis catheter placement.

BACKGROUNDPeritoneal dialysis (PD) catheter migration impedes the efficacy of dialysis. Therefore, several techniques involving additional sutures or incisions have been proposed to maintain catheter position in the pelvis.AIMTo evaluate the efficacy of creating a short musculofascial tunnel beneath the anterior sheath of the rectus abdominis during PD catheter implantation.METHODSPatients who underwent PD catheter implantation between 2015 and 2019 were included in this retrospective study. The patients were divided into two groups based on the procedure performed: Patients who underwent catheter implantation without a musculofascial tunnel before 2017 and those who underwent the procedure with a tunnel after 2017. We recorded patient characteristics and catheter complications over a two-year follow-up period. In addition, postoperative plain abdominal radiographs were reviewed to determine the catheter angle in the event of migration.RESULTSThe no-tunnel and tunnel groups included 115 and 107 patients, respectively. Compared to the no-tunnel group, the tunnel group showed lesser catheter angle deviation toward the pelvis (15.51 ± 11.30 vs 25.00 ± 23.08, P = 0.0002) immediately after the operation, and a smaller range of migration within 2 years postoperatively (13.48 ± 10.71 vs 44.34 ± 41.29, P < 0.0001). Four events of catheter dysfunction due to migration were observed in the no-tunnel group, and none occurred in the tunnel group. There was no difference in the two-year catheter function survival rate between the two groups (88.90% vs 84.79%, P = 0.3799).CONCLUSIONThe musculofascial tunnel helps maintain catheter position in the pelvis and reduces migration, thus preventing catheter dysfunction.

A Real-World Comparative Study of Microwave and Radiofrequency Ablation in Treatment-Naïve and Recurrent Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

The efficacy and safety of microwave ablation (MWA) compared to radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for patients with treatment-naïve and recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has not been clarified in Korea. There were 150 HCC patients (100 in the RFA group and 50 in the MWA group) enrolled in our study. The primary outcome was one- and two-year disease-free survival (DFS). Secondary outcomes were complete response (CR) rate, two-year survival rate, risk factors for DFS and complication rate. Treatment outcomes were also assessed using propensity-score matching (PSM). The MWA group had better one- and two-year DFS than the RFA group (p = 0.035 and p = 0.032, respectively), whereas the CR rate, two-year survival rate, and complication rate were similar between the two groups with fewer major complications in the MWA group (p = 0.043). Patients with perivascular tumors, high risk of recurrence, and small tumor size (≤3 cm) were more suitable for MWA than RFA. MWA was also an independent factor for favorable one- and two-year DFS. Finally, the MWA group still showed better one- and two-year DFS than the RFA group after PSM. In conclusion, MWA could be an alternative treatment to RFA especially in patients with a high risk of recurrence, perivascular tumors, and small tumor size.

ART restorations for occluso-proximal cavities in primary molars: a two-year survival and cost analysis of an RCT comparing two GIC brands

There are many glass ionomer cements available on the Brazilian market for Atraumatic Restorative Treatment (ART), however, there is still a gap in the literature regarding their cost-effectiveness. Objectives To evaluate the influence of restorative materials (Ketac Molar, 3M ESPE; and Vitro Molar, Nova DFL) in the two-year survival rate and cost-effectiveness of occluso-proximal ART restorations in primary molars. Methodology A total of 117 children (aged four to eight years) with at least one occluso-proximal carious lesion in primary molars were selected and randomly divided in treatment groups (KM or VM) in this parallel randomized controlled trial. Treatments followed ART premises and were conducted in public schools by trained operators in Barueri, Brazil. A trained, calibrated, and blinded examiner performed the evaluations after two, six, 12, and 24 months (k=0.92). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to estimate restoration survival and Cox regression was used to test the association with clinical factors (α=5%). For cost analysis, material and professional costs were considered. Monte Carlo analysis was used to generate a cost-effectiveness plane and bootstrapping was used to compare material costs over the years. Results The overall survival rate was 36.9% after two years (48.6% for KM and 25.4% for VM). Restorations with VM failed more than those with KM (HR=1.70; 95% CI=1.06–2.73; p=0.027). VM presented lower initial cost, but no difference was observed between groups considering the two-year incremental cost. Conclusion After a two-year evaluation, KM proved to be a better option than VM for occluso-proximal ART restorations in primary molars. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02267720

Mast cells as a tumor microenvironment factor associated with the aggressiveness of prostate cancer.

We aimed to investigate the relationship between the degree of mast cells' (MCs) infiltration and clinicopathological features of prostate cancer (PCa) malignancy and to find out the possible mechanisms of the involvement of these cells in the formation of the aggressive course of the PCa development. The study was conducted on the clinical material of 60 patients with PCa of stages II-III. MCs in the PCa tissue were determined by a histochemical method using toluidine blue. The expression of osteopontin (OPN) was studied by the immunohistochemical method. The expression of miRNA-21, -126, -146a, -181a, and -221 was investigated by quantitative real-time PCR. Statistical processing of the results was performed using the GraphPad Prism 8 program. Our results demonstrated that the increased level of infiltration and degranulation of MCs in the PCa tissue was associated with such indices of the malignancy of the tumor process as the Gleason score and the preoperative PSA level in the blood serum of patients. A high level of MCs infiltration of the PCa tissue was associated with a significant decrease in the two-year recurrence-free survival rates of the patients by 23.3% (р=0.0455). A high degree of MCs infiltration of the PCa tissue was associated with 1.2 times (p=0.0347) higher level of OPN expression and 1.7 (p=0.0051) and 1.65 (p=0.0087) times lower levels of miR-126 and miR-181a expression, respectively. The obtained results indicate the participation of MCs as a factor of the tumor microenvironment in the PCa progression.

Značaj funkcije desne srčane komore za ishod lečenja i remodelovanje srca nakon implantacije uređaja za trajnu mehaničku cirkulatornu potporu leve komore

The efficiency of the device for permanent circulatory support of the left ventricle has been proven through clinical practice with the trend of constant improvement of treatment results along with biotechnological progress and improvement of surgical implantation techniques. The published reports of most reference cardiac surgery centers present a one-year survival rate of over 85%, a two-year survival rate of 70% and a five-year survival rate of 45-50%. In addition to clear benefits for the patient, implantation of LVAD also carries significant specific risks, so infections, post-implantation bleeding, strokes, and right ventricular postimplantation weakness are the most common complications. Given that the progress of the LVAD program is ensured primarily by reducing the incidence of complications not related to the functioning of individual segments of the cardiovascular system, and as left ventricular function is completely replaced by LVAD device, the most recent challenge is the decision to install LVAD device in the heart with right ventricular, given that the postimplantation weakness of right ventricular is associated with proven increased mortality and morbidity. Since the 1990s, studies on hearts with implanted LVAD as a bridge to heart transplantation have shown regression of cell hypertrophy, normalization of cell size, muscle fiber architecture, and heart chamber geometry. The described changes are characterized by the notion of reverse remodeling, which is synonymous with function recovery. It is this process at the level of the right ventricle that is recognized as extremely important for the success of LVAD programs, especially in the group of patients who have a certain degree of right ventricular weakness preoperatively. The basic requirements of the cardiac surgery team are adequate preoperative assessment of right ventricular weakness, then application of measures to prevent damage and load on the right ventricle during and after LVAD implantation, as well as providing adequate therapeutic measures for right ventricular recovery in the postimplantation period.

Effects of Psychological Intervention on Perioperative Quality of Life and Serum PSA and FPSA Levels of Patients with Prostate Cancer Treated with Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine.

Objective To observe the effects of psychological intervention on the perioperative quality of life and serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and free PSA (FPSA) levels in patients with prostate cancer treated with integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine. Method A total of 208 prostate cancer patients were selected and randomly divided into a study group with 104 cases and a control group with 104 cases. The control group received a plan of basic nursing combined with integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine, and the study group received psychological intervention on the basis of the control group. Negative emotion, pain degree, quality of life, maximum urine flow rate, residual urine volume, International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), and incidence of adverse reactions were compared between the two groups before and after the treatment. The levels of PSA and FPSA and the long-term efficacy of the two groups of patients before and after treatment were compared. Results After nursing, Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) score, Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) score, pain degree, maximum urine flow rate, residual urine volume, IPSS score, emotional function, social function, role function, and physical function scores of patients in two groups were decreased, and the decrease was more significant in the study group. After treatment, serum PSA and FPSA levels in the study group were obviously lower than those in the control group. The two-year cumulative survival rate of the study group was higher than that of the control group. There was no significant difference in the cognitive function score and incidence of adverse reactions between the two groups. Conclusion Psychological intervention combined with traditional Chinese and Western medicine in the treatment of prostate cancer can effectively improve the patient's psychological state, reduce the degree of pain in patients, improve the therapeutic effect and the quality of life of patients, and significantly reduce serum PSA and FPSA levels, which could lead to a prolonged life.