METHODS: We randomly sampled 351 people with localised melanoma [American Joint Cancer Committee (AJCC) substages 0 - II] who had not had recurrent or new primary melanoma diagnosed from a total of 902 people diagnosed and treated for localised melanoma at a specialist centre in 2014. We interviewed participants by telephone about their experience of follow-up in the past year, and documented the proportion of patients who were undertaking shared care follow-up with a GP. We also recorded the frequency and type of investigations during follow-up. We calculated weighted estimates that are representative of the full inception cohort.
RESULTS: Of the 351 people who were invited to participate, 230 (66%) people consented to the telephone interview. The majority undertook shared care follow-up with a GP (61%). People who choose to have shared care follow-up with a GP are more likely to be male (p = 0.006), have lower AJCC stage (p for trend = 0.02), reside in more remote areas (p for trend
METHODS: Using Singapore Malaysia Hospital-Based Breast Cancer Registry, clinical information was retrieved from 7064 stage I to III breast cancer patients who were diagnosed between 1990 and 2011 and underwent surgery. Predicted and observed probabilities of positive nodes and survival were compared for each subgroup. Calibration was assessed by plotting observed value against predicted value for each decile of the predicted value. Discrimination was evaluated by area under a receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) with 95 % confidence interval (CI).
RESULTS: The median predicted probability of positive lymph nodes is 40.6 % which was lower than the observed 43.6 % (95 % CI, 42.5 %-44.8 %). The calibration plot showed underestimation for most of the groups. The AUC was 0.71 (95 % CI, 0.70-0.72). Cancermath predicted and observed overall survival probabilities were 87.3 % vs 83.4 % at 5 years after diagnosis and 75.3 % vs 70.4 % at 10 years after diagnosis. The difference was smaller for patients from Singapore, patients diagnosed more recently and patients with favorable tumor characteristics. Calibration plot also illustrated overprediction of survival for patients with poor prognosis. The AUC for 5-year and 10-year overall survival was 0.77 (95 % CI: 0.75-0.79) and 0.74 (95 % CI: 0.71-0.76).
CONCLUSIONS: The discrimination and calibration of CancerMath were modest. The results suggest that clinical application of CancerMath should be limited to patients with better prognostic profile.
METHODS: ASCO convened a multidisciplinary, multinational Expert Panel that reviewed existing guidelines and conducted a modified ADAPTE process and a formal consensus process with additional experts for one round of formal ratings.
RESULTS: Existing sets of guidelines from 12 guideline developers were identified and reviewed; adapted recommendations from six guidelines form the evidence base and provide evidence to inform the formal consensus process, which resulted in agreement of 75% or more on all recommendations.
RECOMMENDATIONS: For nonmaximal settings, the recommended treatments for colon cancer stages nonobstructing, I-IIA: in basic and limited, open resection; in enhanced, adequately trained surgeons and laparoscopic or minimally invasive surgery, unless contraindicated. Treatments for IIB-IIC: in basic and limited, open en bloc resection following standard oncologic principles, if not possible, transfer to higher-level facility; in emergency, limit to life-saving procedures; in enhanced, laparoscopic en bloc resection, if not possible, then open. Treatments for obstructing, IIB-IIC: in basic, resection and/or diversion; in limited or enhanced, emergency surgical resection. Treatment for IIB-IIC with left-sided: in enhanced, may place colonic stent. Treatment for T4N0/T3N0 high-risk features or stage II high-risk obstructing: in enhanced, may offer adjuvant chemotherapy. Treatment for rectal cancer cT1N0 and cT2n0: in basic, limited, or enhanced, total mesorectal excision principles. Treatment for cT3n0: in basic and limited, total mesorectal excision, if not, diversion. Treatment for high-risk patients who did not receive neoadjuvant chemotherapy: in basic, limited, or enhanced, may offer adjuvant therapy. Treatment for resectable cT3N0 rectal cancer: in enhanced, base neoadjuvant chemotherapy on preoperative factors. For post-treatment surveillance, a combination of medical history, physical examination, carcinoembryonic antigen testing, imaging, and endoscopy is performed. Frequency depends on setting. Maximal setting recommendations are in the guideline. Additional information can be found at www.asco.org/resource-stratified-guidelines .
NOTICE: It is the view of the American Society of Clinical Oncology that health care providers and health care system decision makers should be guided by the recommendations for the highest stratum of resources available. The guidelines are intended to complement but not replace local guidelines.
METHODS: Histopathological reports of all patients diagnosed with colorectal carcinoma from January 2012 to December 2016 from public hospitals in Sabah were retrieved from the central computerized database of the Pathology Department of Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. Supplementary data was obtained from patients' case files from each hospital. Clinico-pathological data were analysed using the IBM SPSS Statistical Software Version 23 for Windows for descriptive statistics (mean, median, ASR, AR, relative risk) and inferential statistics (Chi square test).
RESULTS: A total of 696 patients met the inclusion criteria. The median age for colorectal cancer in Sabah was 62 years (95% CI 60.3 to 62.3), with an age specific incidence rate of 21.4 per 100 000 population. The age specific incidence rate in the indigenous populations was 26.6 per 100 000, much lower than the Chinese, at 65.0 per 100 000. The risk of colorectal cancer occurring before the age of 50 was three times higher in the indigenous population compared to the Chinese. The tumours were mainly left-sided (56.5%), adenocarcinoma in histology (98.4%) and moderately differentiated (88.7%). Approximately 79.2% of patients received curative treatment.
CONCLUSION: Indigenous populations in Sabah develop colorectal cancer at an earlier age, and present at more advanced stages. This has implications for screening and therapeutic strategic planning.
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METHODS: This was a multicenter retrospective-cohort study. We collected HGD and T1 lesions of ≤ 10 mm resected by CSP among 15 520 patients receiving CSP from 2014 to 2019 at nine related institutions, and we extracted only cases receiving definite follow-up colonoscopy after CSP of HGD and T1 lesions. We analyzed these tumor's characteristics and therapeutic results such as R0 resection and local recurrence and risk factors of recurrence.
RESULTS: We collected 103 patients (0.63%) and extracted 80 lesions in 74 patients receiving follow-up colonoscopy for CSP scar. Mean age was 68.4 ± 12.0, and male rate was 68.9% (51/80). The mean tumor size (mm) was 6.6 ± 2.5, and the rate of polypoid morphology and rectum location was 77.5% and 25.0%. The rate of magnified observation was 53.8%. The rates of en bloc resection and R0 resection were 92.5% and 37.5%. The local recurrence rate was 6.3% (5/80, median follow-up period: 24.0 months). The recurrence developed within 3 months after CSP for four out of five recurrent cases. Comparing five recurrent lesions to 75 non-recurrent lesions, a positive horizontal margin was a significant risk factor (60.0% vs 10.7%, P
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio on prognosis in non-metastatic primary nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients and to further refine the cut off between high and low neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio values.
METHODS: The medical charts of patients with histologically confirmed nasopharyngeal carcinoma from 1st January 2005 until 31st December 2009 were reviewed retrospectively and theneutrophil-lymphocyte ratio was calculated to see if there was any association between their higher values with higher failure rates.
RESULTS: Records of 98 patients (n=98) were retrieved and reviewed. Only neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (p=0.004) and tumor node metastasis staging (p=0.002) were significantly different between recurrent and non-recurrent groups, with the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio being independent of tumor node metastasis staging (p=0.007). Treatment failure was significantly higher in the high neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio group (p=0.001). Disease free survival was also significantly higher in this group (p=0.000077).
CONCLUSION: High neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio values are associated with higher rates of recurrence and worse disease free survival in non-metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients undergoing primary curative treatment.
METHODS: We analyzed data for 121,435 women diagnosed with breast cancer from 67 studies in the Breast Cancer Association Consortium with 16,890 deaths (8,554 breast cancer specific) over 10 years. Cox regression was used to estimate associations between risk factors and 10-year all-cause mortality and breast cancer-specific mortality overall, by estrogen receptor (ER) status, and by intrinsic-like subtype.
RESULTS: There was no evidence of heterogeneous associations between risk factors and mortality by subtype (P adj > 0.30). The strongest associations were between all-cause mortality and BMI ≥30 versus 18.5-25 kg/m2 [HR (95% confidence interval (CI), 1.19 (1.06-1.34)]; current versus never smoking [1.37 (1.27-1.47)], high versus low physical activity [0.43 (0.21-0.86)], age ≥30 years versus <20 years at first pregnancy [0.79 (0.72-0.86)]; >0-<5 years versus ≥10 years since last full-term birth [1.31 (1.11-1.55)]; ever versus never use of oral contraceptives [0.91 (0.87-0.96)]; ever versus never use of menopausal hormone therapy, including current estrogen-progestin therapy [0.61 (0.54-0.69)]. Similar associations with breast cancer mortality were weaker; for example, 1.11 (1.02-1.21) for current versus never smoking.
CONCLUSIONS: We confirm associations between modifiable lifestyle factors and 10-year all-cause mortality. There was no strong evidence that associations differed by ER status or intrinsic-like subtype.
IMPACT: Given the large dataset and lack of evidence that associations between modifiable risk factors and 10-year mortality differed by subtype, these associations could be cautiously used in prognostication models to inform patient-centered care.
METHODS: In total, 80 samples of tumor and matched adjacent normal tissues were collected from breast cancer patients at Seberang Jaya Hospital (SJH) and Kepala Batas Hospital (KBH), both in Penang, Malaysia. The protein expression profiles of breast cancer and normal tissues were mapped by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The Gel-Eluted Liquid Fractionation Entrapment Electrophoresis (GELFREE) Technology System was used for the separation and fractionation of extracted proteins, which also were analyzed to maximize protein detection. The protein fractions were then analyzed by tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) analysis using LC/MS LTQ-Orbitrap Fusion and Elite. This study identified the proteins contained within the tissue samples using de novo sequencing and database matching via PEAKS software. We performed two different pathway analyses, DAVID and STRING, in the sets of proteins from stage 2 and stage 3 breast cancer samples. The lists of molecules were generated by the REACTOME-FI plugin, part of the CYTOSCAPE tool, and linker nodes were added in order to generate a connected network. Then, pathway enrichment was obtained, and a graphical model was created to depict the participation of the input proteins as well as the linker nodes.
RESULTS: This study identified 12 proteins that were detected in stage 2 tumor tissues, and 17 proteins that were detected in stage 3 tumor tissues, related to their normal counterparts. It also identified some proteins that were present in stage 2 but not stage 3 and vice versa. Based on these results, this study clarified unique proteins pathways involved in carcinogenesis within stage 2 and stage 3 breast cancers.
CONCLUSIONS: This study provided some useful insights about the proteins associated with breast cancer carcinogenesis and could establish an important foundation for future cancer-related discoveries using differential proteomics profiling. Beyond protein identification, this study considered the interaction, function, network, signaling pathway, and protein pathway involved in each profile. These results suggest that knowledge of protein expression, especially in stage 2 and stage 3 breast cancer, can provide important clues that may enable the discovery of novel biomarkers in carcinogenesis.
METHODS: All 4930 women diagnosed with breast cancer in University Malaya Medical Center, Malaysia from 1993 to 2011 were included. Factors associated with very early presentation (stage I) at diagnosis were identified. Tumour characteristics, management patterns, and survival of very early breast cancer were described, and where appropriate, compared with other settings.
RESULTS: Proportion of women presenting with stage I breast cancer significantly increased from 15.2% to 25.2% over two decades. Factors associated with very early presentation were Chinese ethnicity, positive family history of breast cancer, and recent period of diagnosis. Within stage I breast cancers, median tumour size at presentation was 1.5 cm. A majority of stage I breast cancer patients received mastectomy, which was associated with older age, Chinese ethnicity, postmenopausal status, and larger tumours. Chemotherapy was administered in 36% of patients. Five-year age-adjusted relative survival for women with stage I breast cancer was 99.1% (95% CI: 97.6-99.6%).
CONCLUSIONS: The proportion of women presenting with very early breast cancer in this setting without organised screening is increasing. These women seem to survive just as well as their counterparts from affluent settings.
METHODS: Over half a million participants from 10 European countries were followed up for over 11 years, after which 865 newly diagnosed exocrine pancreatic cancer cases were identified. Adherence to the MD was estimated through an adapted score without the alcohol component (arMED) to discount alcohol-related harmful effects. Cox proportional hazards regression models, stratified by age, sex and centre, and adjusted for energy intake, body mass index, smoking status, alcohol intake and diabetes status at recruitment, were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) associated with pancreatic cancer and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs).
RESULTS: Adherence to the arMED score was not associated with risk of pancreatic cancer (HR high vs low adherence=0.99; 95% CI: 0.77-1.26, and HR per increments of two units in adherence to arMED=1.00; 95% CI: 0.94-1.06). There was no convincing evidence for heterogeneity by smoking status, body mass index, diabetes or European region. There was also no evidence of significant associations in analyses involving microscopically confirmed cases, plausible reporters of energy intake or other definitions of the MD pattern.
CONCLUSIONS: A high adherence to the MD is not associated with pancreatic cancer risk in the EPIC study.
METHODS AND MATERIALS: Patients with T3-4, N2 M0 breast cancer diagnosed between January 2005 and December 2008 and who received at least one cycle of neoadjuvant chemotherapy were eligible for this study. Thirty-four patients were identified from the Chemotherapy Daycare Records and their medical records were reviewed retrospectively. The neoadjuvant chemotherapy regimen administered was at the discretion of the treating oncologist. Breast tumour size and nodal status was assessed at diagnosis, at each cycle and before surgery.
RESULTS: All 34 patients had invasive ductal cancer. The median age was 52 years (range 27-69). 65% had T4 disease and 76% were clinically lymph node positive at diagnosis. The median size of the breast tumour at presentation was 80 mm (range 42-200 mm). Estrogen and progesterone receptor positivity was seen in less than 40% and HER2 positivity, by immunohistochemistry, in 27%. The majority (85%) of patients had anthracycline based chemotherapy, without taxanes. The overall response rate (clinical CR+PR) was 67.6% and pathological complete responses were apparent in two (5.9%). 17.6% of patients defaulted part of their planned treatment. Recurrent disease was seen in 44.1% and the median time to relapse was 11.3 months. The three year disease free and overall survival rates were 52.5% and 58% respectively.
CONCLUSION: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy for locally advanced breast cancer in a Malaysian setting confers response and pCR rates comparable to published clinical trials. Patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy are at risk of defaulting part of their treatment and therefore their concerns need to be identified proactively and addressed in order to improve outcomes.
DISCUSSION: This paper presents comprehensive report on breast carcinoma disease and its modalities available for detection and diagnosis, as it delves into the screening and detection modalities with special focus placed on the non-invasive techniques and its recent advancement work done, as well as a proposal on a novel method for the application of early breast carcinoma detection.
CONCLUSION: This paper aims to serve as a foundation guidance for the reader to attain bird's eye understanding on breast carcinoma disease and its current non-invasive modalities.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: miR-205 expression was investigated in 48 cases of inflammatory, benign and malignant tumor tissue array of the neck, oronasopharynx, larynx and salivary glands by Locked Nucleic Acid in situ hybridization (LNA-ISH) technology.
RESULTS: miR-205 expression was significantly differentially expressed across all of the inflammatory, benign and malignant tumor tissues of the neck. A significant increase in miR-205 staining intensity (p<0.05) was observed from inflammation to benign and malignant tumors in head and neck tissue array, suggesting that miR-205 could be a biomarker to differentiate between cancer and non-cancer tissues.
CONCLUSIONS: LNA-ISH revealed that miR-205 exhibited significant differential cytoplasmic and nuclear staining among inflammation, benign and malignant tumors of head and neck. miR-205 was not only exclusively expressed in squamous epithelial malignancy. This study offers information and a basis for a comprehensive study of the role of miR-205 that may be useful as a biomarker and/or therapeutic target in head and neck tumors.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Formalin-fixed paraffin- embedded tumour tissue of 144 no special type (NST) invasive breast carcinomas histologically diagnosed between January 2009 and December 2012 in Hospital Sultanah Bahiyah, Alor Setar, Kedah were immunostained with COX-2 antibody. COX-2 overexpression was analysed against demographic data, hormone receptor status, HER2- neu overexpression, histological grade, tumour size and lymph node status.
RESULTS: COX-2 was overexpressed in 108/144 (75%) tumours and was significantly more prevalent (87%) in hormone receptor-positive tumours. There was no correlation between COX-2 overexpression and HER2/neu status. Triple negative cancers had the lowest prevalence (46%) (p<0.05). A rising trend of COX-2 overexpression with increasing age was observed. There was a significant inverse relationship with tumour grade (p<0.05), prevalences being 94%, 83% and 66% in grades 1, 2 and 3 tumours, respectively. A higher prevalence of COX-2 overexpression in smaller size tumours was observed but this did not reach statistical significance. There was no relationship between COX-2 expression and lymph node status.
CONCLUSIONS: This study did not support the generally held notion that COX-2 overexpression is linked to poor prognosis, rather supporting a role in tumorigenesis. Larger scale studies with outcome data and basic studies on cancer pathogenetic pathways will be required to cast further light on whether COX-2 inhibitors would have clinical utility in cancer prevention or blockage of cancer progression. In either setting, the pathological assessment for COX-2 overexpression in breast cancers would have an important role in the selection of cancer patients for personalized therapy with COX-2 inhibitors.