Microarray data providing the expression matrix and normalization values for samples of Batch I, Batch II, Batch I and II merged and the outcome of unsupervised and supervised clustering analysis. (XLSX 2362Â kb)
Background: A troublesome and usually unavoidable consequence of Head and Neck chemo radiation is oral mucositis which decreases patients’ compliance and negatively influences the outcome of therapy by increasing overall treatment time. Currently, no single effective recommended treatment exists for this problem and a variety of supportive care measures have been practiced with limited benefits. This study was done to evaluate the therapeutic benefit of Placentrex in the management of oral mucositis seen in oral cancer patients undergoing treatment with concurrent chemoradiation. Methodology: This study was carried out, as a retrospective analysis, on oral cancer patients undergoing concurrent chemoradiation with weekly Cisplatin regimen treated between Oct 2015 and July 2017. All the patients received 2ml of Inj Placentrex, once daily administered intramuscularly for 4 weeks, NSAIDs, topical analgesics, and mouth wash as treatment for oral mucositis. The results were compared with a historical control group of 40 oral cancer patients who had received treatment prior to the study period without receiving Inj Placentrex as a part of oral mucositis management. Results: Over 60% of the patients in both groups were older than 60 years of age. Buccal mucosa was the predominant sub site of the investigated cancer type. The addition of placentrex resulted in delay in the progression of mucositis, reduction of treatment breaks, regression of pain, and improvement of dysphagia while leading to no adverse effects (p<0.05). Conclusion: Placentrex appears to be a beneficial therapeutic option for the management of concurrent chemo-radiation induced acute oral mucositis in oral cancer patients.
Materils and methods: All the cases of Hodgkin's lymphoma registered in our institution from January 2005 to December 2012 were evaluated for demography, clinical presentation, stage, subtype, response to treatment and five year predicted freedom from progression.
To evaluate the prognostic role of markers of fluor-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography with computed tomography (18F-FDG-PET-CT), such as maximum standard uptake value (SUVmax) and metabolic tumour volume (MTV) measured at primary and nodal disease, and their clinical significance in terms of predicting treatment outcomes and survival.Between January 2017 and January 2020, 20 case records of nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients who underwent 18F-FDG-PET-CT as part of staging workup before radiotherapy and as a part of response evaluation after radiotherapy were retrospectively reviewed.At a median follow-up of 34.7 months, the 2-year progression-free survival (PFS) was 70% and 2-year overall survival (OS) was 79%. Patients with a lower nodal SUVmax (SUVmax-N) had a better 2-year PFS (91% vs. 46%; p = 0.035) and 2-year OS (95% vs. 58%; p = 0.015). A high SUVmax-N of > 10.58 was a negative predictor of OS (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.93-1; p = 0.003) as well as PFS (95% CI: 0.64-1; p = 0.017). Also, a high MTV > 25.8 cm3 was a negative predictor of PFS (95% CI: 0.58-0.98; p = 0.048). MTV was an independent predictor of PFS and OS on univariate analysis, whereas it was not significant in the Cox regression multivariate analysis.High values of MTV and SUVmax-N can be considered as independent prognostic factors of OS and PFS in nasopharyngeal cancer patients treated with concurrent chemoradiation, highlighting the need for more intensified treatment.
Ovarian cancer is the seventh most common cancer in women and the eighth most common cause of cancer death in the world with an overall 5-year survival rate of <50%. (1) The most common age of presentation is at the perimenopausal age group and two-thirds of them present with advanced stage of disease. (2) Thoracic metastases occur in up to 50% of patients. Pleural effusion is the most common presentation of thoracic metastases in these patients, whereas pulmonary parenchymal metastases, lymphangitis, and nodal involvement are less commonly reported. (3) Tracheobronchial involvement is rare with few cases reported in literature. Herewith, we are presenting a case of ovarian cancer in a young female with both lung parenchymal and endobronchial metastases. Bronchoscopy revealed endobronchial tumor in right lower lobe bronchus part of which was covered by yellowish necrotic material. Biopsy showed metastatic ovarian malignancy complicated by aspergillosis. She was started on oral itraconazole along with supportive management following which hemoptysis stopped.
nationwide lockdown on 24 March 2020, as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 pandemic in India; limiting movement of the entire 1.3 billion population of India.Hence the continuing cancer treatment posed a big challenge during the pandemic.There were several issues such as, lack of clear guidelines for cancer treatment during pandemic situation; unavailability of public transport; difficulty in getting e-pass; dread among the patients to access a health care facility and financial constraints during lock down.In this article, we reviewed the challenges faced and the measures taken to continue the cancer care during the COVID-19 pandemic and report the statistical analysis of patients treated with chemotherapy since the start of national lock down to September 2020.Methodology: In view of the national lock down which started in India, hospitals had to abate the elective patient care in all departments during the initial 6 months.In this article, we reviewed the retrospectively collected, statistical data of 522 inpatient admissions of various age groups, in our center in the department of medical oncology, on those who were treated with chemotherapy and other palliative care during this pandemic from March 24th 2020 to September 30th 2020.We also analyzed the problems faced by the patients during the lock down in order to access the health care so that the seamless management was provided to them amidst the pandemic.The decision of giving chemotherapy was determined by the performance status, the co morbidities and the intent of treatment, controlling the disease burden which results in extension of life, patient's tolerance and patient's covid-19 status before each cycle of chemotherapy.Results: As on September 30th India had 63, 10,264 COVID-19 cases, Tamil Nadu had 5, 97,602 cases and Chennai being the hot spot had 1, 67,376 cases with 11,323 active cases.Despite the pandemic being a setback, we have treated 172 cancer patients, out of which 97 patients (56%) received neo adjuvant and adjuvant chemotherapy with curative intent and 58 patients (33%) received palliative chemotherapy with selected patients among them receiving growth factor support.Among the 172 patients, 8 patients (5%) tested positive for COVID-19 during or at start of the treatment, out of which 6 patients recovered and were restarted on cancer treatment and 2 succumbed to death.The PPV (positive predictive value) is 0.953 versus NPV (negative predictive value) 0.9943.The case fatality rate (CFR) in COVID with cancer patients was 2/8= 0.25 versus COVID-only patients 80/3107= 0.0257.Conclusion: The infectivity rate of COVID-19 was attenuated among the patients on cancer chemotherapy by adequate precautions; therefore the aftermath was not significant enough to delay the systemic treatment of cancer patients owing to COVID-19 pandemic situation.
Background: Micro-ribonucleic acids (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression. Expression of miRNAs has been shown to be dysregulated in patients with breast cancer. These markers have been shown to be potential markers of diagnostic significance. We intended to study the usefulness of miRNA-155 and miRNA-205 in monitoring response to surgery by monitoring their pre- and post-operative expression. Methods: Twenty patients newly diagnosed with malignant breast disease along with 20 age-matched females not having any breast lesion were included in the study. Reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction was used to assess the expression of circulating miRNAs. Results: MiRNA-155 was found to be significantly upregulated and miRNA-205 was significantly downregulated in patients with breast cancer compared to controls. There was no change in expression of miRNA-155 and miRNA-205 following surgery. Conclusions: The findings of the present study do not support the role of miRNA-155 and miRNA-205 as markers suitable for follow-up. However, the findings of the present study need to be confirmed in a larger sample size and samples collected over a defined post-operative period.
Seethalakshmi Ravichandran1, Pavithra Sasikumar1, Santhosh Kumar Ganesan1, Vaishnavi Karthikeyan1, Jayasutha Jayram1 and Manickavasagam Meenakshisundaram2 Author informationArticle notesCopyright and License informationCitations 1Department of Pharmacy Practice, Sri Ramachandra Faculty of Pharmacy, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (DU), Porur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, INDIA 2Department of Medical Oncology, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research
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