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Pathologica Apr 2022Phyllodes tumors (PT) are fibroepithelial neoplasms of the breast showing a peculiar leaf-like appearance. They account for 0.3 to 1% of all primary breast tumors and... (Review)
Review
Phyllodes tumors (PT) are fibroepithelial neoplasms of the breast showing a peculiar leaf-like appearance. They account for 0.3 to 1% of all primary breast tumors and 2.5% of all fibroepithelial breast tumors. PT are classified into benign, borderline and malignant based upon their stromal morphology with a distribution of 60%, 20%, and 20%, respectively. Malignant PT of the breast constitute an uncommon challenging group of fibroepithelial neoplasms. They have a relatively high tendency to recur, although distant metastasis is uncommon, and nearly exclusive to malignant PT. Adequate surgical resection remains the standard approach to achieve maximal local control. Giant malignant PT are rare and a pose a diagnostic dilemma for pathologists, especially when comprised of sarcomatous elements. This review highlights the morphological features of PT detected in cytology and histology specimens and discusses diagnostic pitfalls and differential diagnosis.
Topics: Breast; Breast Neoplasms; Female; Humans; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; Neoplasms, Fibroepithelial; Phyllodes Tumor
PubMed: 35414723
DOI: 10.32074/1591-951X-754 -
BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care Sep 2021Pain is one of the most common and problematic symptoms encountered by patients with cancer. Due to the multifactorial aetiology, pain management of these patients... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Pain is one of the most common and problematic symptoms encountered by patients with cancer. Due to the multifactorial aetiology, pain management of these patients frequently requires multidisciplinary interventions including conventional support and specialty palliative care. Acupuncture has been identified as a possible adjunctive therapy for symptom management in cancer pain, and there is currently no systematic review focused solely on the evidence of acupuncture on cancer pain in palliative care.
OBJECTIVE
To critically analyse currently available publications regarding the use of acupuncture for pain management among patients with cancer in palliative care settings.
METHODS
Multiple academic databases were searched from inception to 29 October 2020. Randomised controlled trials involving acupuncture in palliative care for treatment of cancer-related pain were synthesised. Data were extracted by two independent reviewers, and methodological quality of each included study was assessed using the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine (OCEBM) 2011 Levels of Evidence.
RESULTS
Five studies (n=189) were included in this systematic review. Results indicated a favourable effect of acupuncture on pain relief in palliative care for patients with cancer. According to OCEBM 2011 Levels of Evidence, they were level 2 in one case (20%), level 3 in two cases (40%) and level 4 in the remaining (40%). Low-level evidence adversely affects the reliability of findings.
CONCLUSIONS
Acupuncture may be an effective and safe treatment associated with pain reduction in the palliative care of patients with cancer. Further high-quality, adequately powered studies are needed in the future.
Topics: Acupuncture Therapy; Cancer Pain; Humans; Neoplasms; Pain Management; Palliative Care; Reproducibility of Results
PubMed: 33441387
DOI: 10.1136/bmjspcare-2020-002638 -
CA: a Cancer Journal For Clinicians Mar 2021Guidelines promote high quality cancer care. Rehabilitation recommendations in oncology guidelines have not been characterized and may provide insight to improve...
Guidelines promote high quality cancer care. Rehabilitation recommendations in oncology guidelines have not been characterized and may provide insight to improve integration of rehabilitation into oncology care. This report was developed as a part of the World Health Organization (WHO) Rehabilitation 2030 initiative to identify rehabilitation-specific recommendations in guidelines for oncology care. A systematic review of guidelines was conducted. Only guidelines published in English, for adults with cancer, providing recommendations for rehabilitation referral and assessment or interventions between 2009 and 2019 were included. 13840 articles were identified. After duplicates and applied filters, 4897 articles were screened. 69 guidelines were identified with rehabilitation-specific recommendations. Thirty-seven of the 69 guidelines endorsed referral to rehabilitation services but provided no specific recommendations regarding assessment or interventions. Thirty-two of the 69 guidelines met the full inclusion criteria and were assessed using the AGREE II tool. Twenty-one of these guidelines achieved an AGREE II quality score of ≥ 45 and were fully extracted. Guidelines exclusive to pharmacologic interventions and complementary and alternative interventions were excluded. Findings identify guidelines that recommend rehabilitation services across many cancer types and for various consequences of cancer treatment signifying that rehabilitation is a recognized component of oncology care. However, these findings are at odds with clinical reports of low rehabilitation utilization rates suggesting that guideline recommendations may be overlooked. Considering that functional morbidity negatively affects a majority of cancer survivors, improving guideline concordant rehabilitative care could have substantial impact on function and quality of life among cancer survivors.
Topics: Cancer Survivors; Exercise Therapy; Humans; Medical Oncology; Neoplasms; Practice Guidelines as Topic; Quality of Life; Survivorship
PubMed: 33107982
DOI: 10.3322/caac.21639 -
BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.) Nov 2020To quantify the association of cancer treatment delay and mortality for each four week increase in delay to inform cancer treatment pathways. (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
OBJECTIVE
To quantify the association of cancer treatment delay and mortality for each four week increase in delay to inform cancer treatment pathways.
DESIGN
Systematic review and meta-analysis.
DATA SOURCES
Published studies in Medline from 1 January 2000 to 10 April 2020.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SELECTING STUDIES
Curative, neoadjuvant, and adjuvant indications for surgery, systemic treatment, or radiotherapy for cancers of the bladder, breast, colon, rectum, lung, cervix, and head and neck were included. The main outcome measure was the hazard ratio for overall survival for each four week delay for each indication. Delay was measured from diagnosis to first treatment, or from the completion of one treatment to the start of the next. The primary analysis only included high validity studies controlling for major prognostic factors. Hazard ratios were assumed to be log linear in relation to overall survival and were converted to an effect for each four week delay. Pooled effects were estimated using DerSimonian and Laird random effect models.
RESULTS
The review included 34 studies for 17 indications (n=1 272 681 patients). No high validity data were found for five of the radiotherapy indications or for cervical cancer surgery. The association between delay and increased mortality was significant (P<0.05) for 13 of 17 indications. Surgery findings were consistent, with a mortality risk for each four week delay of 1.06-1.08 (eg, colectomy 1.06, 95% confidence interval 1.01 to 1.12; breast surgery 1.08, 1.03 to 1.13). Estimates for systemic treatment varied (hazard ratio range 1.01-1.28). Radiotherapy estimates were for radical radiotherapy for head and neck cancer (hazard ratio 1.09, 95% confidence interval 1.05 to 1.14), adjuvant radiotherapy after breast conserving surgery (0.98, 0.88 to 1.09), and cervix cancer adjuvant radiotherapy (1.23, 1.00 to 1.50). A sensitivity analysis of studies that had been excluded because of lack of information on comorbidities or functional status did not change the findings.
CONCLUSIONS
Cancer treatment delay is a problem in health systems worldwide. The impact of delay on mortality can now be quantified for prioritisation and modelling. Even a four week delay of cancer treatment is associated with increased mortality across surgical, systemic treatment, and radiotherapy indications for seven cancers. Policies focused on minimising system level delays to cancer treatment initiation could improve population level survival outcomes.
Topics: Humans; Neoplasms; Risk Factors; Survival Analysis; Time-to-Treatment
PubMed: 33148535
DOI: 10.1136/bmj.m4087 -
International Journal of Molecular... Aug 2022Uterine fibroids (UFs) are the most common benign tumors of female genital diseases, unlike uterine leiomyosarcoma (LMS), a rare and aggressive uterine cancer. This... (Review)
Review
Uterine fibroids (UFs) are the most common benign tumors of female genital diseases, unlike uterine leiomyosarcoma (LMS), a rare and aggressive uterine cancer. This narrative review aims to discuss the biology and diagnosis of LMS and, at the same time, their differential diagnosis, in order to distinguish the biological and molecular origins. The authors performed a Medline and PubMed search for the years 1990-2022 using a combination of keywords on the topics to highlight the many genes and proteins involved in the pathogenesis of LMS. The mutation of these genes, in addition to the altered expression and functions of their enzymes, are potentially biomarkers of uterine LMS. Thus, the use of this molecular and protein information could favor differential diagnosis and personalized therapy based on the molecular characteristics of LMS tissue, leading to timely diagnoses and potential better outcomes for patients.
Topics: Female; Humans; Leiomyoma; Leiomyosarcoma; Pelvic Neoplasms; Uterine Neoplasms; Uterus
PubMed: 36077127
DOI: 10.3390/ijms23179728 -
Frontiers in Public Health 2022Anxiety and depression are highly prevalent in people with cancer. Medical therapies are usually prescribed to alleviate anxiety and depression, but they are associated... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
BACKGROUND
Anxiety and depression are highly prevalent in people with cancer. Medical therapies are usually prescribed to alleviate anxiety and depression, but they are associated with a variety of adverse effects. Recently, aromatherapy showed potential as a complementary medicine to improve psychological health and wellbeing. However, its effectiveness on relieving anxiety and depression has not been established.
OBJECTIVE
This study explored the beneficial effects of aromatherapy on psychological symptoms such as anxiety and depression in people with cancer.
METHODS
We searched international databases including PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Embase, Medline, Ebscohost, ProQuest and Scopus from inception to 31 May 2021. The risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane Collaboration's tool for assessing risk of bias. The systematic review and meta-analysis were performed according to the PRISMA guidelines. Quantitative analysis was performed on the studies that met our inclusion criteria, and Meta-analysis was performed on the studies with available data by RevMan software.
RESULTS
The quality of the literatures were assessed carefully by two researchers, a total of 17 studies were included in the systematic review and 10 articles were conducted in meta-analysis. The aromatherapy was effective in relieving anxiety (SMD = -0.49, < 0.05) in people with cancer. Subgroup analysis suggested that most effective methods were aromatic massage ( = -0.70, < 0.005), aromatherapy with lavender essential oils ( = -1.12, < 0.01), short-time interventions (duration < 4weeks) ( = -0.87, < 0.05) and studies in Asia ( = -0.83, < 0.05). Regarding depression and psychological wellbeing, there were no difference between aromatherapy and control groups.
CONCLUSION
In cancer patients, the aromatherapy was effective for relieving anxiety. However, there was no beneficial effect on depression and psychological wellbeing.
SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION
PROSPERO, identifier: 42021272465.
Topics: Anxiety; Anxiety Disorders; Aromatherapy; Depression; Humans; Neoplasms
PubMed: 35757624
DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.853056 -
Complementary Therapies in Medicine Aug 2022Despite advances in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, patients still suffer from the various physical and psychological complications of cancer. The aim of this... (Review)
Review
OBJECTIVE
Despite advances in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, patients still suffer from the various physical and psychological complications of cancer. The aim of this research was to integrate and synthesize relevant scientific evidence about the effect of lavender on cancer complications.
METHODS
A systematic review of the international literature was undertaken. The search process encompassed four databases of PubMed [including MEDLINE], Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane library without time and language limits. All types of interventional studies examining the effects of lavender on cancer complications were included in data analysis and research synthesis. Relevant data were obtained from eligible studies after quality appraisal using appropriate methodological tools. Given that meta-analysis could not performed, the review findings were synthesized narratively.
RESULTS
Thirteen studies were included in this review with a total of 838 patients. Nine studies used a randomized controlled trial design and the majority of them were conducted on patients with multiple types of cancer. Lavender was often used as inhalation aromatherapy. In the majority of the included studies, lavender was significantly effective in the reduction of anxiety and pain, and improved sleep quality and vital signs.
CONCLUSIONS
This review provides scientific evidence regarding the effectiveness of lavender in mitigating cancer complications. Healthcare providers are suggested to use lavender in patient care along with other healthcare interventions to relieve cancer complications.
Topics: Anxiety; Anxiety Disorders; Aromatherapy; Humans; Lavandula; Neoplasms; Oils, Volatile; Pain; Plant Oils; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
PubMed: 35462027
DOI: 10.1016/j.ctim.2022.102836 -
Supportive Care in Cancer : Official... Jun 2022To provide evidence-based recommendations on the management of malignant bowel obstruction (MBO) for patients with advanced cancer.
PURPOSE
To provide evidence-based recommendations on the management of malignant bowel obstruction (MBO) for patients with advanced cancer.
METHODS
The Multinational Association for Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC) MBO study group conducted a systematic review of databases (inception to March 2021) to identify studies about patients with advanced cancer and MBO that reported on the following outcomes: symptom management, bowel obstruction resolution, prognosis, overall survival, and quality of life. The review was restricted to studies published in English, but no restrictions were placed on publication year, country, and study type. As per the MASCC Guidelines Policy, the findings were synthesized to determine the levels of evidence to support each MBO intervention and, ultimately, the graded recommendations and suggestions.
RESULTS
The systematic review identified 17,656 published studies and 397 selected for the guidelines. The MASCC study group developed a total of 25 evidence-based suggestions and recommendations about the management of MBO-related nausea and vomiting, bowel movements, pain, inflammation, bowel decompression, and nutrition. Expert consensus-based guidance about advanced care planning and psychosocial support is also provided.
CONCLUSION
This MASCC Guideline provides comprehensive, evidence-based recommendations about MBO management for patients with advanced cancer.
Topics: Humans; Intestinal Obstruction; Nausea; Neoplasms; Palliative Care; Quality of Life
PubMed: 35274188
DOI: 10.1007/s00520-022-06889-8 -
Critical Reviews in Oncology/hematology Mar 2022Pharmacological strategies for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neurotoxicity (CIPN) are very limited. We systematically reviewed data on rehabilitation, exercise,... (Review)
Review
Rehabilitation, exercise, and related non-pharmacological interventions for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neurotoxicity: Systematic review and evidence-based recommendations.
Pharmacological strategies for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neurotoxicity (CIPN) are very limited. We systematically reviewed data on rehabilitation, exercise, physical therapy, and other physical non-pharmacological interventions and offered evidence-based recommendations for the prevention and treatment of CIPN. A literature search using PubMed, Web of Science and CINAHL was conducted from database inception until May 31st, 2021. 2791 records were title-abstract screened, 71 papers were full-text screened, 41 studies were included, 21 on prevention and 20 on treatment of CIPN. Treatment type, cancer type, chemotherapy compounds were heterogeneous, sample size was small (median: N = 34) and intention-to-treat analysis was lacking in 26/41 reports. Because of the methodological issues of included studies, the reviewed evidence should be considered as preliminary. Exercise, endurance, strength, balance, and sensorimotor training have been studied in low-to-moderate quality studies, while the evidence for other treatments is preliminary/inconclusive. We offer recommendation for the design of future trials on CIPN.
Topics: Antineoplastic Agents; Exercise; Humans; Neoplasms; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases
PubMed: 34968623
DOI: 10.1016/j.critrevonc.2021.103575 -
International Journal of Hyperthermia :... 2021Histotripsy is the first noninvasive, non-ionizing, and non-thermal ablation technology guided by real-time imaging. Using focused ultrasound delivered from outside the...
Histotripsy is the first noninvasive, non-ionizing, and non-thermal ablation technology guided by real-time imaging. Using focused ultrasound delivered from outside the body, histotripsy mechanically destroys tissue through cavitation, rendering the target into acellular debris. The material in the histotripsy ablation zone is absorbed by the body within 1-2 months, leaving a minimal remnant scar. Histotripsy has also been shown to stimulate an immune response and induce abscopal effects in animal models, which may have positive implications for future cancer treatment. Histotripsy has been investigated for a wide range of applications in preclinical studies, including the treatment of cancer, neurological diseases, and cardiovascular diseases. Three human clinical trials have been undertaken using histotripsy for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia, liver cancer, and calcified valve stenosis. This review provides a comprehensive overview of histotripsy covering the origin, mechanism, bioeffects, parameters, instruments, and the latest results on preclinical and human studies.
Topics: Ablation Techniques; Animals; High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Ablation; Humans; Models, Animal; Neoplasms; Ultrasonography
PubMed: 33827375
DOI: 10.1080/02656736.2021.1905189