Findings on the efficacy of adjuvant chemotherapy (ACT) of locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) after the concurrent chemoradiation (CCRT) therapy were inconsistent, and the OUTBACK trial was ...expected to shed some light regarding the topic. Its results on ACT in LACC were negative, with the conclusion of not to use it. The objective of this review was to present the inconsistencies of previous studies, along with the OUTBACK trial in more detail, and to rethink whether its results provide an unambiguous and definite answer to the optimal position of ACT in the treatment of LACC. To critically appraise the OUTBACK trial and understand the consequences of its results, we used only randomized controlled studies (RCTs) on ACT in LACC that have been included in high-quality systematic reviews and meta-analyses. We calculated the pooled prediction intervals using a random effects meta-analysis of all published randomized studies including the OUTBACK trial. After combining the OUTBACK trial with the results of four previous randomized trials, the pooled hazard ratio for overall survival benefit of CCRT + ACT was 0.95 (95% CI 0.75; 1.20). The pooled hazard ratio of the four previous trials was 1.00 (95% CI 0.69; 1.44). The OUTBACK trial improved the precision of the pooled estimate, but the clinical heterogeneity and the consequent prediction intervals are still very wide, and with 95% reliability, we can expect that if the new study, using a similar approach to the ACT, on a randomly selected patient population from the presented five trials is conducted, its hazard ratio for overall survival after ACT would be between 0.47 and 1.93. In conclusion, there is an absolute need for further research in order to optimally define the position of ACT in the treatment of LACC.
The aim of this study was to explore the red blood cell changes that occur during neoadjuvant dose-dense chemotherapy (NAC) of breast cancer. Also, we investigated the role of macrocytosis as a ...predictive biomarker for pathological complete response and disease-free survival (DFS) in these patients. A retrospective analysis of 82 breast cancer patients' data treated with anthracycline-cyclophosphamide-paclitaxel (AC-T) NAC in three oncology institutions in south Croatia from 2013 to 2020 was carried out. During chemotherapy mean corpuscular volume increased with time, with a median increase of 7.25 fl. Macrocytosis was induced in 38% of patients overall. Development of macrocytosis did not correlate with DFS hazard ratio = 0.525; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.074-3.768; P = 0.525. Higher percentage of patients in macrocytosis group achieved PCR, 39% vs. 29% in no macrocytosis group, but this difference was not statistically significant. The relevance of macrocytosis induction during dose-dense neoadjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer should be further explored.
Locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) is one of the leading health problems of the developing countries. We present long-term outcomes of treatment with a concomitant chemobrachyradiotherapy ...followed by consolidation chemotherapy regimen.
We treated 118 patients with LACC (International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stages IB2-IVA) with external radiotherapy (50 Gy in 25 fractions) and concomitant chemobrachyradiotherapy (low-dose rate). Chemotherapy was applied during brachyradiotherapy (cisplatin on day 1 in combination with 24-hour infusion of ifosfamide and mesna uroprotection). Four cycles of consolidation chemotherapy were given starting 4 weeks after the second concomitant chemobrachyradiotherapy cycle.
After median follow-up period of 99.3 months, we observed acceptable acute and late toxicity, local control rate of 97.5%, and an overall survival of 74.6% at 96 months.
Chemobrachyradiotherapy regimen followed by consolidation chemotherapy described in this article is a valuable treatment option for LACC.
The aims of this study were to investigate a clinical observation that patients with epithelial ovarian cancer treated with first-line platinum-paclitaxel chemotherapy combination (TP) develop ...macrocytosis and to explore the possible predictive role of macrocytosis in response rate, progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival. A retrospective analysis of laboratory and clinical data on 184 consecutive ovarian cancer patients treated with first-line TP chemotherapy in a single oncology center from 2004 to 2015 was carried out. Macrocytosis was defined as an increase in mean corpuscular volume of peripheral red blood cells above 97.2 fl during the treatment and/or 30 days after the last chemotherapy cycle. One hundred and forty-one patients were treated with a conventional 3-weekly TP schedule, whereas 43 patients were treated with a dose-dense schedule. Macrocytosis was induced in 35% of patients overall. It was induced significantly more often in patients treated with the dose-dense schedule than in those treated with the 3-weekly schedule (67 vs. 26%, P=1.29×10). Macrocytosis did not correlate with PFS and overall survival in the overall patient population, nor in patients treated with the 3-weekly schedule. It correlated with PFS (hazard ratio=0.42, 95% confidence interval=0.18-0.94, P=0.036) and objective response on therapy in patients treated with the dose-dense schedule (P=0.0285). Dose-dense TP chemotherapy induces macrocytosis significantly more often than does a 3-weekly schedule in ovarian cancer patients. In patients treated with a dose-dense schedule, macrocytosis can potentially be predictive for longer PFS and better response rate. This finding needs further confirmation, preferentially in a prospective study.
The standard treatment for locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) is concomitant chemoradiotherapy. In the majority of patients with LACC after properly executed concomitant chemoradiotherapy local ...control of the disease is achieved, and consequently distant relapse becomes the main cause of death for these patients. In an attempt to improve the outcome of patients with LACC, we designed a regimen of concomitant chemobrachyradiotherapy with cisplatin and ifosfamide followed by consolidation chemotherapy.
Between 1999 and 2012, 118 patients diagnosed with LACC, The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stages IB2-IVA, regardless of histology, were treated with concomitant chemobrachyradiotherapy and consolidation chemotherapy at our Institution. Chemotherapy consisted of two cycles of cisplatin and ifosfamide applied concomitantly with two intracavitary low-dose rate brachytherapy applications, and of four cycles of the same drug combination as an adjuvant/consolidation part of the treatment. The primary outcome in this analysis was distant disease-specific survival.
A total of 18 patients had documented relapse of cervical cancer, with only three local recurrences observed; 15 patients developed only distant recurrence, and one patient developed both local and distant recurrence. The distant disease-specific survival after a median follow-up of 96 months was 86.4%.
Consolidation or adjuvant chemotherapy that follows concomitant chemoradiotherapy has a potential role in further improving control of the disease, especially distant control of the disease.
Rak jajnika i jajovoda, odnosno adneksa, i primarni rak potrbušnice jest šesta po učestalosti zloćudna bolest žena i najsmrtonosniji ginekološki tumor u Hrvatskoj. Histološki je rak jajnika, jajovoda ...i potrbušnice najčešće epitelnog podrijetla, i to seroznog podtipa. Rjeđi su različiti neepitelni tumori jajnika kao i presadnice u jajnike. Posebnu skupinu čine karcinomi niskog zloćudnog potencijala označeni neinvazivnošću, klinički indolentnim tijekom i dobrom prognozom. Klinički su karcinomi u ranim stadijima razvoja uglavnom asimptomatski, tako da se najčešće dijagnosticiraju u kasnijim, uznapredovalim stadijima bolesti. Dijagnoza se potvrđuje patohistološkim nalazom, a iznimno nalazom citološkog bloka nakon provedene dijagnostičke obrade. O liječenju i praćenju bolesnica odlučuje multidisciplinarni tim uzimajući u obzir osobitosti bolesnice (dob, opće stanje i komorbiditete) kao i obilježja samog tumora (stadij bolesti, histološki tip i stupanj zloćudnosti tumora, status homologne rekombinacije, odnosno gena BRCA 1 i 2 kao i odgovor na prethodno liječenje i popratnu toksičnost ako se radi o povratu bolesti). Liječenje primarnog raka jajnika, jajovoda i potrbušnice temelji se na kirurškom liječenju, sistemskoj primjeni kemoterapije, imunoterapije, ciljane terapije i hormonske terapije kao i suportivno-simptomatskih mjera tijekom cijelog liječenja. Terapijski pristup se razlikuje kod rjeđih neepitelnih histoloških tipova ovih tumora jer se češće dijagnosticiraju u ranim stadijima bolesti, imaju indolentniji tijek, drugačiju biologiju bolesti kao i osjetljivost na sistemsko liječenje. U tekstu koji slijedi predstavljene su obnovljene i nadopunjene kliničke upute s ciljem standardizacije postupaka i kriterija postavljanja dijagnoze, liječenja te praćenja bolesnica s rakom jajnika, jajovoda i potrbušnice u Hrvatskoj. Prvo izdanje smjernica za dijagnozu, liječenje i praćenje bolesnica s rakom jajnika objavljeno je 2013. godine.1
Rak tijela maternice, prema zadnjim podatcima Registra za rak iz 2017. godine u Republici Hrvatskoj, nalazi se na četvrtom mjestu po učestalosti, a na osmom mjestu po smrtnosti. Najčešće se ...dijagnosticira u postmenopauzalnih žena, većinom u dobi od 50. do 79. godine života. Dijagnoza karcinoma endometrija utvrđuje se patohistološkom analizom kiretmana ili bioptata sluznice maternice, a stupanj proširenosti bolesti primjenom slikovnih metoda. U većine bolesnica bolest se otkriva u lokaliziranom stadiju te se uspješno liječi operativno, a ovisno o patohistološkom nalazu i primjenom odgovarajuće adjuvantne terapije. Lokalno uznapredovala bolest najčešće se liječi operativno uz adjuvantnu terapiju, a metastatska primjenom kemoterapije ili hormonske terapije. Mezenhimalni tumori tijela maternice liječe se operativno uz dodatak sistemske terapije adjuvantno ili samo sistemskom terapijom u slučaju diseminirane bolesti. Ove kliničke upute pisane su u cilju postizanja najviših standarda i ujednačenja postupaka u dijagnosticiranju, liječenju i praćenju bolesnica sa zloćudnim tumorima tijela maternice u Republici Hrvatskoj.
Rak vrata maternice, u odnosu na novotvorine drugih ginekoloških sijela, bolest je žena mlađe životne dobi koja se može prevenirati zdravstvenim odgojem i cijepljenjem adolescentske populacije te ...preventivnim i redovitim ginekološkim pregledima, a u ranim stadijima bolesti i učinkovito liječiti. Metode liječenja uključuju kirurgiju, radioterapiju i sistemnu terapiju, ovisno o stadiju bolesti i općem stanju bolesnica. Odluku o liječenju donosi multidisciplinarni tim u koji trebaju biti uključeni ginekolozi, radiolozi, klinički onkolozi, patolozi, citolozi i po potrebi kirurzi i urolozi. Uspjeh liječenja uvelike ovisi o njihovoj međusobnoj suradnji i kvalitetnoj komunikaciji u razmjeni iskustava i nalaza. S obzirom na važnost ove bolesti i posljedice koje ostavlja na obitelj i društvo potrebno je definirati i provoditi standardizirani pristup u dijagnostici, liječenju i praćenju ovih bolesnica. U tekstu koji slijedi iznesene su obnovljene i nadopunjene kliničke smjernice s ciljem implementacije standardiziranih postupaka u radu s bolesnicama s rakom vrata maternice u Republici Hrvatskoj.
Rak mokraćnog mjehura (RMM) jest, u skladu s podatcima hrvatskog Registra za rak iz 2015. godine, drugi prema učestalosti tumor urinarnog sustava, odmah nakon raka prostate. U 90% slučajeva radi se o ...urotelnom karcinomu, a razlika u preživljenju kod bolesnika s mišićnoinvazivnim RMM-om (MIRMM) i nemišićnoinvazivnim RMM-om (NMIRMM) znatna je. Liječenje NMIRMM-a usmjereno je na smanjenje recidiva i sprječavanje napredovanja bolesti, a sastoji se od transuretralne resekcije (TUR) tumora i primjene intravezikalne terapije ovisno o procjeni rizika od povrata bolesti. Temelj liječenja bolesnika s MIRMM-om jest radikalno kirurško liječenje, tj. cistektomija kojoj u bolesnika koji su sposobni primiti cisplatinu prethodi neoadjuvantna kemoterapija (NKT). U trenutku postavljanja dijagnoze bolest je kod 4 – 6% bolesnika proširena, dok će se u 50% bolesnika razviti povrat bolesti nakon cistektomije. Metode liječenja proširenje bolesti uključuju: kemoterapiju temeljenu na cisplatini, imunoterapiju, palijativnu radioterapiju te simptomatsko i potporno liječenje. Važno obilježje RMM-a jest prisutnost visoke stope somatskih mutacija koje su omogućile promjenu paradigme u liječenju proširenog RMM-a i dovele do odobravanja niza novih lijekova koji pripadaju inhibitorima PD-1 i PD-L1, tj. inhibitorima nadzornih točaka imunosnog odgovora posredovanog T-stanicama .
Svjetlostanični karcinom bubrežnih stanica najčešći je oblik raka bubrega. Klinički je uglavnom asimptomatski, a samo se kod manjeg postotka bolesnika očituje hematurijom, tupom boli i palpabilnom ...masom u trbuhu. Najčešće se otkrije slučajno tijekom radioloških pregleda zbog nekoga drugog razloga. Dijagnoza raka bubrega potvrđuje se patohistološkim nalazom nakon provedene dijagnostičke obrade. Odluka o liječenju donosi se temeljem kliničke procjene stadija bolesti i drugih čimbenika rizika. Ovisno o tome, mogućnosti liječenja uključuju kirurški zahvat, sustavnu terapiju malim molekulama, imunoterapiju, kemoterapiju u odabranih bolesnika te palijativnu radioterapiju. U tekstu koji slijedi predstavljene su kliničke upute radi standardizacije postupaka i kriterija postavljanja dijagnoze, liječenja i praćenja bolesnika s rakom bubrega u Republici Hrvatskoj.
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