Uveal melanoma (UM) is the most common primary intraocular malignancy, despite comprising <5% of all melanomas. To date, relatively few case series of UM have been published. Moreover, the factors ...influencing survival remain largely unknown. This study sought to analyze the impact of demographics, histology, clinical presentation, and treatments on the clinical outcomes of UM in a large modern nationwide patient cohort.
Demographics and clinical data were abstracted on 277,120 histologically confirmed melanoma patients from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database between 1973 and 2012.
A total of 7,516 cases of UM represented 3.2% of all recorded cases of melanoma. The mean age-adjusted incidence was 5.1 per million (95% CI 4.2-6.1) and was higher in males (5.9, CI =4.4-7.6) compared to females (4.5, CI =3.3-5.8),
<0.001. UM occurred most commonly in the sixth decade of life (61.4±15) and among Caucasians (94.7%). A total of 52.3% of cases were reported in the Western US (35.7% in California). The initial diagnoses in 65.2% of cases were by histopathology, followed by clinical diagnosis (18.8%) and radiographic imaging (16.0%). The percentage of UM cases managed by surgery alone decreased by 69.4% between the 1973-1977 and 2006-2012 time periods, concomitant with a 62% increase in primary radiotherapy,
<0.001. The UM mean overall and cancer-specific 5-year relative survival rates were 79.8%±5.8% and 76%±5.3%, respectively. The mean 5-year cancer-specific survival rate (76%) remained stable during the study period between 1973 and 2012. The mean survival for patients treated with primary radiotherapy was significantly improved compared to those treated with surgery alone (15.4±0.4 vs 13.6±0.3,
<0.001). Multivariate analysis identified male sex (odds ratio OR 1.1, CI =1.0-1.3), age >50 years (OR 4.0, CI =3.4-4.6), distant metastases (OR 8.6, CI =4.7-15), and primary surgical treatment (OR 2.6, CI =2.0-3.3) as independently associated with increased mortality,
<0.005. Conversely, patients identified as Hispanic (OR 0.6, CI =0.5-0.8) and patients receiving radiation treatment (OR 0.5, CI =0.4-0.7) were independently associated with reduced mortality,
<0.005.
UM remains a rare form of melanoma that occurs primarily in Caucasian patients older than 50 years. More than two-thirds of UM patients are curatively treated with primary radiotherapy as opposed to surgery, which has resulted in a significant improvement in both overall survival and cancer-specific survival. Despite this shift in management strategy, the mean 5-year cancer-specific survival rate remained relatively unchanged during the study period. Male sex, older age, distant disease, and primary surgical therapy rather than radiotherapy are associated with an increased risk of mortality.
Chronic heart failure (CHF), which affects >5 million Americans, accounts for >1 million hospitalizations annually. As a part of the Hospital Readmission Reduction Program, the Affordable Care Act ...requires that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reduce payments to hospitals with excess readmissions. This study sought to develop a scale that reliably predicts readmission rates among patients with CHF.
The State Inpatient Database (2006-2011) was utilized, and discharge data including demographic and clinical characteristics on 642,448 patients with CHF from California and New York (derivation cohort) and 365,359 patients with CHF from Florida and Washington (validation cohort) were extracted. The Readmission After Heart Failure (RAHF) scale was developed to predict readmission risk.
The 30-day readmission rates were 9.42 and 9.17% (derivation and validation cohorts, respectively). Age <65 years, male gender, first income quartile, African American race, race other than African American or Caucasian, Medicare, Medicaid, self-pay/no insurance, drug abuse, renal failure, chronic pulmonary disorder, diabetes, depression, and fluid and electrolyte disorder were associated with higher readmission risk after hospitalization for CHF. The RAHF scale was created and explained the 95% of readmission variability within the validation cohort. The RAHF scale was then used to define the following three levels of risk for readmission: low (RAHF score <12; 7.58% readmission rate), moderate (RAHF score 12-15; 9.78% readmission rate), and high (RAHF score >15; 12.04% readmission rate). The relative risk of readmission was 1.67 for the high-risk group compared with the low-risk group.
The RAHF scale reliably predicts a patient's 30-day CHF readmission risk based on demographic and clinical factors present upon initial admission. By risk-stratifying patients, using models such as the RAHF scale, strategies tailored to each patient can be implemented to improve patient outcomes and reduce health care costs.
Introduction. Gallbladder carcinoma (GBC) is the most common malignancy of the biliary tract and the third most common gastrointestinal tract malignancy. This study examines a large cohort of GBC ...patients in the United States in an effort to define demographics, clinical, and pathologic features impacting clinical outcomes. Methods. Demographic and clinical data on 22,343 GBC patients was abstracted from the SEER database (1973–2013). Results. GBC was presented most often among Caucasian (63.9%) females (70.7%) as poorly or moderately differentiated (42.5% and 38.2%) tumors, with lymph node involvement (88.2%). Surgery alone was the most common treatment modality for GBC patients (55.0%). Combination surgery and radiation (10.6%) achieved significantly longer survival rates compared to surgery alone (4.0±0.2 versus 3.7±0.1 years, p=0.004). Overall mortality was 87.0% and cancer-specific mortality was 75.4%. Conclusions. GBC is an uncommon malignancy that presents most often among females in their 8th decade of life, with over a third of cases presenting with distant metastasis. The incidence of GBC has doubled in the last decade concurrent with increases in cholecystectomy rates attributable in part to improved histopathological detection, as well as laparoscopic advances and enhanced endoscopic techniques. Surgical resection confers significant survival benefit in GBC patients.
Ocular melanoma (OM) comprises <5% of all melanomas. Uveal melanoma (UM) is the most common subtype of OM, while conjunctival melanoma (CM) is rare and differs significantly from UM. The purpose of ...this study is to evaluate a large cohort of OM patients to differentiate demographic, pathologic, and clinical factors between these two neoplasms, which may affect treatment and outcomes.
The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database (1973-2012) was used to extract demographic and clinical data on 8,165 OM patients (92.1% UM and 7.9% CM).
Both CM and UM were most prevalent among Caucasian males in the seventh decade of life. UM patients presented more often with localized disease (90.9% vs 81.2,
<0.01). Surgery (42.8%), radiation (43.0%), or combined surgery and radiation (7.0%) were used in the treatment of UM, while CM was treated almost exclusively with surgery (88.7%). Mean overall survival was longer (15.4 vs 14.6 years;
<0.01) and mortality rates were lower in patients (38.8% vs 46.1%;
<0.01) with CM.
Despite presenting with more advanced disease than UM, CM is associated with an increased overall survival. Surgery is the primary therapy for CM, whereas radiotherapy is the primary therapy for UM and is associated with prolonged survival.
Introduction. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a rare pediatric cancer accounting for 0.5% of all pediatric malignancies. This study examines a large cohort of HCC patients in an effort to define ...the factors impacting clinical outcomes in pediatric HCC patients compared to adults. Methods. Demographic and clinical data on 63,771 HCC patients (257 pediatric patients ≤ 19 and 63,514 adult patients age ≥ 20) were abstracted from the SEER database (1973–2011). Results. HCC was more common among males (59.5% pediatric and 75.1% adults) and Caucasians (50.4% and 50.5%), p < 0.05 . Children more often presented with fibrolamellar variant HCC (24.1% versus 0.3%, p = 0.71 ) and advanced HCC, including distant disease (33.1% versus 20.8%, p < 0.001 ), and tumors > 4 cm in size (79.6% versus 62.0%, p = 0.02 ). Pediatric HCC patients undergoing surgery (13.107 versus 8.324 years, p < 0.001 ) had longer survival than adult HCC patients. Overall mortality was lower (65.8% versus 82.0%, p < 0.001 ) in the pediatric HCC group. Conclusion. HCC is a rare pediatric malignancy that presents most often as an advanced tumor, >4 cm in Caucasian males. Children with HCC achieve significantly longer mean overall survival compared to adults with HCC, primarily attributable to the more favorable fibrolamellar histologic variant, and more aggressive surgical intervention, which significantly improves survival.
Atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumors (ATRTs) are rare, highly malignant embryonal tumors of the central nervous system (CNS) accounting for 20% of CNS tumors in children under the age of 3. This study ...examines a large cohort of ATRT patients to determine demographic, clinical, and pathologic factors which impact prognosis and survival.
Demographic and clinical data were abstracted on 174 ATRT patients (171 pediatric patients age <20 and 3 adult patients age ≥20) from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database (1973-2010). Standard statistical methodology was used.
A total of 174 ATRT cases (mean age of 2.84 years) were identified. ATRT had a higher incidence in males (56.3%), Caucasians (59.1%), and children <3 years of age (80.5%), P<0.001. The most common primary sites were the cerebellum (17.8%), ventricles (16.1%), and frontal lobe (12.6%). Mean overall survival was 3.2±0.4 years, while overall and cancer-specific mortality were 63.2% and 56.3%, respectively, P=0.005. Most ATRT cases were treated with surgery alone (58.0%), followed by a combination of surgery and radiation (34.3%), no treatment (6.5%), and radiation alone (1.2%). The use of combination therapy has increased significantly (16.1%) since 2005 (P<0.001), while primary surgical resection and radiation therapy rates remain relatively unchanged. The longest survival was observed among ATRT patients receiving combination therapy (5.9±0.7 years), followed by radiation alone (2.8±1.2 years), and surgery alone (1.9±0.4 years), P<0.001. Multivariable analysis identified only distant metastases (OR =4.6) as independently associated with increased mortality, whereas combination therapy (OR =0.4) was associated with reduced mortality, P<0.005.
ATRT is a rare and highly aggressive embryonal malignancy of the CNS that presents more often as locoregional tumors >4 cm in male Caucasian children of age <3 years, involving the cerebellum, ventricles, or frontal lobe. Combination therapy significantly improves survival, and its use has been increasing since 2005.
Oligodendrogliomas (OGs) account for <20% of all intracranial tumors and 25% of gliomas. Despite improvements in imaging techniques allowing for earlier diagnosis, OG is rare among the pediatric ...population. This study examines a large cohort of OG patients in an effort to define the demographic, clinical, and pathologic factors associated with clinical and survival outcomes.
Data on 7,001 OG patients were abstracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Result (SEER) database (1973-2013). Pediatric patients were defined as ≤19 years old, and adult patients were defined as age ≥20 years.
Among 7,001 OG patients, 6.5% were pediatric (mean age 12 ± 6 years), and 93.5% were adult (mean age 46 ± 15 years). Overall, OGs were more common among males, with a male-to-female ratio of 1.28:1. Overall, OGs were more common among Caucasians (76.9%) and also among the African American (10.8% pediatric vs. 4.0% adult) and Hispanic (12.8% pediatric vs. 11.8% adult). OGs occurred most commonly in the temporal lobe of pediatric patients and the frontal lobes of adults. Surgical resection was the primary treatment modality for both pediatric and adult populations (70.6% and 40.5%), followed by combined surgery and radiation (19.7% and 41.2%). Surgical resection was associated with significantly improved survival in both groups. Pediatric patients had a lower overall mortality (19.8% vs. 48.5%) and lower cancer-specific mortality (17.6% vs. 36.8%).
OGs most often present in Caucasian males in their fifth decade of life with tumors >4 cm in size. Children typically present with tumors in the temporal lobe, while adults present with tumors in the frontal lobe. Surgical resection confers a survival advantage among all patients, especially pediatric patients. Overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival are higher in the pediatric population. Further studies on novel treatment techniques, including bevacizumab and immunotherapy approaches, are required.
Background Completion pancreatectomy (CP) is a reoperative procedure to excise remnant pancreatic tissue after a prior pancreatic resection. In this study, we document our institution’s experience ...with CP for recurrent malignant disease of the pancreas, describing indications for surgery, procedures performed, and patient outcomes. Methods We performed a retrospective review of 861 patients from the pancreatic surgery database in the Department of Surgery of Thomas Jefferson University from October 2005 to December 2010 to identify all cases of CP performed for suspected malignant disease. Results Eleven patients underwent reoperative CP at our institution from 2005 to 2010. The median time interval between the initial operation and CP was 32 mo. A combination of clinical symptoms, elevated tumor markers, and imaging studies were used for diagnosis of recurrent disease. Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma was the most common pathology, found in six patients. The postoperative complication rate was 18% and the median postoperative hospital length of stay was 6 d. There were no 30-d readmissions and no perioperative deaths. The 1-y survival rate following CP was 71% with an overall median survival of 17.5 mo. Conclusions CP is a safe and effective option for a highly selected group of patients with suspected recurrent malignant disease of the remnant pancreas. Morbidity and mortality rates are within acceptable limits and similar to initial pancreatic resection. Eligibility depends heavily upon the absence of distant metastatic disease, technical factors for resection, and patient performance status.
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