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BMJ Clinical Evidence Nov 2010Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in both men and women, with 80% to 90% of cases caused by smoking. Small cell lung cancer accounts for 20% of all... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in both men and women, with 80% to 90% of cases caused by smoking. Small cell lung cancer accounts for 20% of all cases, and is usually treated with chemotherapy. Adenocarcinoma is the main non-small cell pathology, and is treated initially with surgery.
METHODS AND OUTCOMES
We conducted a systematic review and aimed to answer the following clinical questions: What are the effects of treatments for resectable and unresectable non-small cell lung cancer? What are the effects of treatments for small cell lung cancer? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library, and other important databases up to October 2009 (Clinical Evidence reviews are updated periodically, please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this review). We included harms alerts from relevant organisations, such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
RESULTS
We found 96 systematic reviews and RCTs. We performed a GRADE evaluation of the quality of evidence for interventions.
CONCLUSIONS
In this systematic review, we present information relating to the effectiveness and safety of the following interventions: chemotherapy (postoperative or preoperative, dose intensification), continuous hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy (CHART), first-line platinum (or non-platinum)-based chemotherapy, molecular-targeted therapy, non-CHART hyperfractionated radiotherapy, prophylactic cranial irradiation, second-line chemotherapy (with single agent), second-line molecular-targeted therapy (with gefitinib or erlotinib), and thoracic irradiation (with or without chemotherapy).
Topics: Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung; Cranial Irradiation; Humans; Lung Neoplasms; Small Cell Lung Carcinoma
PubMed: 21406127
DOI: No ID Found -
BMJ Clinical Evidence Apr 2009Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in both men and women, with 80-90% of cases caused by smoking. Small cell lung cancer accounts for 20% of all cases,... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in both men and women, with 80-90% of cases caused by smoking. Small cell lung cancer accounts for 20% of all cases, and is usually treated with chemotherapy. Adenocarcinoma is the main non-small cell pathology, and is treated initially with surgery.
METHODS AND OUTCOMES
We conducted a systematic review and aimed to answer the following clinical questions: What are the effects of treatments for resectable and unresectable non-small cell lung cancer? What are the effects of treatments for small cell lung cancer? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library, and other important databases up to May 2008 (Clinical Evidence reviews are updated periodically, please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this review). We included harms alerts from relevant organisations, such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
RESULTS
We found 86 systematic reviews and RCTs. We performed a GRADE evaluation of the quality of evidence for interventions.
CONCLUSIONS
In this systematic review, we present information relating to the effectiveness and safety of the following interventions: chemotherapy (postoperative or preoperative, dose intensification), continuous hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy (CHART), different single-agent chemotherapy regimens, first-line palliative chemotherapy (single or multiple agents), first-line platinum (or non-platinum)-based chemotherapy, molecular-targeted therapy, non-CHART hyperfractionated radiotherapy, palliative care, prophylactic cranial irradiation, second-line chemotherapy (with single or multiple agents), second-line molecular-targeted therapy (with gefitinib or erlotinib), second-line palliative chemotherapy, and thoracic irradiation (with or without chemotherapy).
Topics: Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung; Cranial Irradiation; Humans; Lung Neoplasms; Palliative Care; Small Cell Lung Carcinoma
PubMed: 19445746
DOI: No ID Found -
European Journal of Cancer (Oxford,... Sep 2023The recommended preoperative approach for HER2-positive breast cancer is unclear. We aimed to investigate the following: i) what is the optimal neoadjuvant regimen and... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
BACKGROUND
The recommended preoperative approach for HER2-positive breast cancer is unclear. We aimed to investigate the following: i) what is the optimal neoadjuvant regimen and ii) whether anthracyclines could be excluded.
METHODS
A systematic literature search in Medline, Embase and Web of Science databases was performed. Studies had to satisfy the following criteria: i) randomised controlled trials (RCTs), ii) enroled patients treated preoperatively for HER2-positive BC (breast cancer), iii) at least one treatment group received an anti-HER2 agent, iv) available information of any efficacy end-point and v) published in English. A network meta-analysis with a frequentist framework using random-effects model was used to pool direct and indirect evidence. Pathologic complete response (pCR), event-free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) were the efficacy end-points of interest, and selected safety end-points were also analysed.
RESULTS
A total of 11,049 patients with HER2-positive BC (46 RCTs) were included in the network meta-analysis, and 32 different regimens were evaluated. Dual anti-HER2-therapy, with pertuzumab or tyrosine kinase inhibitors, combined with chemotherapy was significantly superior to trastuzumab and chemotherapy in terms of pCR, EFS and OS. However, a higher risk of cardiotoxicity was observed with dual anti-HER2-therapy. Anthracycline-based chemotherapy was not associated with better efficacy outcomes in comparison with non-anthracycline-based chemotherapy. In anthracycline-free regimens, the addition of carboplatin presented numerically better efficacy outcomes.
CONCLUSION
Dual HER2 blockade with chemotherapy is the recommended choice as neoadjuvant therapy for HER2-positive breast cancer, preferably by omitting anthracyclines in favour of carboplatin.
Topics: Humans; Female; Neoadjuvant Therapy; Carboplatin; Network Meta-Analysis; Receptor, ErbB-2; Breast Neoplasms; Trastuzumab; Antibiotics, Antineoplastic; Anthracyclines; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols
PubMed: 37142539
DOI: 10.1016/j.ejca.2023.03.042 -
BMJ Clinical Evidence Jan 2016About 10% of adults have suffered an attack of asthma, and up to 5% of these have severe disease that responds poorly to treatment. Patients with severe disease have an... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
About 10% of adults have suffered an attack of asthma, and up to 5% of these have severe disease that responds poorly to treatment. Patients with severe disease have an increased risk of death, but patients with mild to moderate disease are also at risk of exacerbations. Most guidelines about the management of asthma follow stepwise protocols. This overview does not endorse or follow any particular protocol, but presents the evidence about a specific intervention, magnesium sulfate.
METHODS AND OUTCOMES
We conducted a systematic overview, aiming to answer the following clinical question: What are the effects of magnesium sulfate for acute asthma? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library, and other important databases up to November 2014 (Clinical Evidence overviews are updated periodically; please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this overview).
RESULTS
At this update, searching of electronic databases retrieved 50 studies. After deduplication and removal of conference abstracts, 24 records were screened for inclusion in the overview. Appraisal of titles and abstracts led to the exclusion of 10 studies and the further review of 14 full publications. Of the 14 full articles evaluated, one systematic review was updated and one systematic review was added at this update. We performed a GRADE evaluation for five PICO combinations.
CONCLUSIONS
In this systematic overview, we categorised the efficacy for two comparisons based on information about the effectiveness and safety of magnesium sulfate (iv) versus placebo and magnesium sulfate (nebulised) plus short-acting beta2 agonists (inhaled) versus short-acting beta2 agonists (inhaled) alone.
Topics: Acute Disease; Administration, Inhalation; Adrenergic beta-2 Receptor Antagonists; Adult; Anti-Asthmatic Agents; Asthma; Humans; Magnesium Sulfate
PubMed: 26761432
DOI: No ID Found -
Journal of Medical Internet Research Jul 2022Given the growing significance of conversational agents (CAs), researchers have conducted a plethora of relevant studies on various technology- and usability-oriented... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Given the growing significance of conversational agents (CAs), researchers have conducted a plethora of relevant studies on various technology- and usability-oriented issues. However, few investigations focus on language use in CA-based health communication to examine its influence on the user perception of CAs and their role in delivering health care services.
OBJECTIVE
This review aims to present the language use of CAs in health care to identify the achievements made and breakthroughs to be realized to inform researchers and more specifically CA designers.
METHODS
This review was conducted by following the protocols of the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) 2020 statement. We first designed the search strategy according to the research aim and then performed the keyword searches in PubMed and ProQuest databases for retrieving relevant publications (n=179). Subsequently, 3 researchers screened and reviewed the publications independently to select studies meeting the predefined selection criteria. Finally, we synthesized and analyzed the eligible articles (N=11) through thematic synthesis.
RESULTS
Among the 11 included publications, 6 deal exclusively with the language use of the CAs studied, and the remaining 5 are only partly related to this topic. The language use of the CAs in these studies can be roughly classified into six themes: (1) personal pronouns, (2) responses to health and lifestyle prompts, (3) strategic wording and rich linguistic resources, (4) a 3-staged conversation framework, (5) human-like well-manipulated conversations, and (6) symbols and images coupled with phrases. These derived themes effectively engaged users in health communication. Meanwhile, we identified substantial room for improvement based on the inconsistent responses of some CAs and their inability to present large volumes of information on safety-critical health and lifestyle prompts.
CONCLUSIONS
This is the first systematic review of language use in CA-based health communication. The results and limitations identified in the 11 included papers can give fresh insights into the design and development, popularization, and research of CA applications. This review can provide practical implications for incorporating positive language use into the design of health CAs and improving their effective language output in health communication. In this way, upgraded CAs will be more capable of handling various health problems particularly in the context of nationwide and even worldwide public health crises.
Topics: Communication; Delivery of Health Care; Health Communication; Humans; Language; Life Style
PubMed: 35802407
DOI: 10.2196/37403 -
BMJ Clinical Evidence Jan 2009Ovarian cancer is the fourth most common cause of cancer deaths in the UK. The 5-year relative survival rate in the UK at diagnosis for women aged 15-39 years is nearly... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
Ovarian cancer is the fourth most common cause of cancer deaths in the UK. The 5-year relative survival rate in the UK at diagnosis for women aged 15-39 years is nearly 70%. In comparison, it is only 12% for women diagnosed aged over 80 years.
METHODS AND OUTCOMES
We conducted a systematic review and aimed to answer the following clinical questions: What are the effects of surgical treatments for ovarian cancer that is advanced at first presentation? What are the effects of platinum-based chemotherapy for ovarian cancer that is advanced at first presentation? What are the effects of taxane-based chemotherapy for ovarian cancer that is advanced at first presentation? What are the effects of intraperitoneal chemotherapy for ovarian cancer that is advanced at first presentation? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library, and other important databases up to September 2007 (Clinical Evidence reviews are updated periodically, please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this review). We included harms alerts from relevant organisations such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
RESULTS
We found 31 systematic reviews, RCTs, or observational studies that met our inclusion criteria. We performed a GRADE evaluation of the quality of evidence for interventions.
CONCLUSIONS
In this systematic review we present information relating to the effectiveness and safety of the following interventions: adding taxanes to platinum-based chemotherapy, carboplatin plus a taxane, cisplatin plus a taxane, combination or single-agent platinum-based chemotherapy, docetaxel, intravenous and intraperitoneal chemotherapy, interval debulking, paclitaxel, primary surgery, and second-look surgery.
Topics: Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols; Carboplatin; Cisplatin; Female; Humans; Ovarian Neoplasms; Paclitaxel; Second-Look Surgery
PubMed: 19445772
DOI: No ID Found -
The Journal of Antimicrobial... Dec 2022Surveillance is a useful tool for tracking antimicrobial resistance (AMR) trends, patterns, therapeutic and policy interventions. Proper correlation of surveillance data... (Review)
Review
AIMS
Surveillance is a useful tool for tracking antimicrobial resistance (AMR) trends, patterns, therapeutic and policy interventions. Proper correlation of surveillance data gives meaningful insight into the underlying epidemiology and facilitates development of rational interventions. This comprehensive review aims to identify, classify and assess gaps in Global Antimicrobial Resistance and Use Surveillance System (GLASS) reporting and national action plan (NAP) implementation in Africa.
METHODS
Articles published in English were searched across five electronic databases (PubMed, Scopus, Embase, AJOL and Cochrane) and grey literature. Articles were screened against inclusion/exclusion criteria and data from eligible studies were retrieved and analysed. This systematic review was registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) on 31 July 2020 under protocol CRD42020192165.
RESULTS
Of the 4304 records found, only 32 met the initial inclusion criteria (4 peer reviews and 28 were grey literature). From these records, 41 surveillance systems were identified (30 national and 11 transnational). After final review of reported outcomes, only 23 national surveillance systems met the inclusion criteria. Indicators recorded from these systems shows lack of external quality assessment (EQA) in some systems and limited reporting of parameters such as infection origin, patient population and pathogen types.
CONCLUSIONS
The outcome of the review shows that although AMR surveillance has been implemented in 23 out of the 47 countries in the region, a number of limitations exist in the surveillance methods and reporting protocols that can impair the usefulness, validity and trustworthiness of data generated from these surveillance systems.
Topics: Humans; Africa; Anti-Infective Agents; Policy
PubMed: 36227707
DOI: 10.1093/jac/dkac342 -
Natural Hazards (Dordrecht, Netherlands) 2023This systematic review provides a comprehensive overview of tsunami evacuation models. The review covers scientific studies from the last decade (2012-2021) and is... (Review)
Review
UNLABELLED
This systematic review provides a comprehensive overview of tsunami evacuation models. The review covers scientific studies from the last decade (2012-2021) and is explicitly focused on models using an agent-based approach. The PRISMA methodology was used to analyze 171 selected papers, resulting in over 53 studies included in the detailed full-text analysis. This review is divided into two main parts: (1) a descriptive analysis of the presented models (focused on the modeling tools, validation, and software platform used, etc.), and (2) model analysis (e.g., model purpose, types of agents, input and output data, and modeled area). Special attention was given to the features of these models specifically associated with an agent-based approach. The results lead to the conclusion that the research domain of agent-based tsunami evacuation models is quite narrow and specialized, with a high degree of variability in the model attributes and properties. At the same time, the application of agent-specific methodologies, protocols, organizational paradigms, or standards is sparse.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11069-022-05643-x.
PubMed: 36212893
DOI: 10.1007/s11069-022-05643-x -
BMJ Clinical Evidence Dec 2010Each year in the UK there are 8100 new cases of malignant melanoma, and 1800 deaths, largely as a result of metastatic disease. The median survival of people with... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
Each year in the UK there are 8100 new cases of malignant melanoma, and 1800 deaths, largely as a result of metastatic disease. The median survival of people with metastatic melanoma is 6 to 9 months after diagnosis, with 10% of people alive at 5 years. Chemotherapy is given with palliative rather than curative intent for metastatic disease.
METHODS AND OUTCOMES
We conducted a systematic review and aimed to answer the following clinical questions: What are the effects of chemotherapy for metastatic melanoma? What are the effects of immunotherapy for metastatic melanoma? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library, and other important databases up to March 2010 (Clinical Evidence reviews are updated periodically; please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this review). We included harms alerts from relevant organisations such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
RESULTS
We found 24 systematic reviews, RCTs, or observational studies that met our inclusion criteria. We performed a GRADE evaluation of the quality of evidence for interventions.
CONCLUSIONS
In this systematic review we present information relating to the effectiveness and safety of the following interventions: adding interferon alfa (with or without interleukin-2) to chemotherapy; dacarbazine; single-agent or combination chemotherapy; supportive palliative care alone or with chemotherapy; and temozolomide.
Topics: Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols; Humans; Interferon-alpha; Interleukin-2; Melanoma; Palliative Care
PubMed: 21418691
DOI: No ID Found -
The Cochrane Database of Systematic... Jun 2013People with intermittent claudication (IC) suffer from pain in the muscles of the leg occurring during exercise which is relieved by a short period of rest. Symptomatic... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
BACKGROUND
People with intermittent claudication (IC) suffer from pain in the muscles of the leg occurring during exercise which is relieved by a short period of rest. Symptomatic relief can be achieved by (supervised) exercise therapy and pharmacological treatments. Ginkgo biloba is a vasoactive agent and is used to treat IC.
OBJECTIVES
To assess the effect of Ginkgo biloba on walking distance in people with intermittent claudication.
SEARCH METHODS
For this update the Cochrane Peripheral Vascular Diseases Group Trials Search Co-ordinator searched the Specialised Register (March 2013) and CENTRAL (2013, Issue 2).
SELECTION CRITERIA
Randomised controlled trials of Ginkgo biloba extract, irrespective of dosage, versus placebo in people with IC.
DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
Two authors independently assessed trials for selection, assessed study quality and extracted data. We extracted number of patients, mean walking distances or times and standard deviations. To standardise walking distance or time, caloric expenditures were used to express the difference between the different treadmill protocols, which were calculated from the speed and incline of the treadmill.
MAIN RESULTS
Fourteen trials with a total of 739 participants were included. Eleven trials involving 477 participants compared Ginkgo biloba with placebo and assessed the absolute claudication distance (ACD). Following treatment with Ginkgo biloba at the end of the study the ACD increased with an overall effect size of 3.57 kilocalories (confidence interval (CI) -0.10 to 7.23, P = 0.06), compared with placebo. This translates to an increase of just 64.5 ( CI -1.8 to 130.7) metres on a flat treadmill with an average speed of 3.2 km/h. Publication bias leading to missing data or "negative" trials is likely to have inflated the effect size.
AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS
Overall, there is no evidence that Ginkgo biloba has a clinically significant benefit for patients with peripheral arterial disease.
Topics: Ginkgo biloba; Humans; Intermittent Claudication; Phytotherapy; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Treatment Outcome; Vasodilator Agents
PubMed: 23744597
DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD006888.pub3