Phase II study of the safety and efficacy of oral capecitabine in patients with platinum-pretreated advanced or recurrent cervical carcinoma

n/

Health-related quality of life in breast cancer patients treated with CDK4/6 inhibitors: a systematic review

Background: Evaluation of health-related quality of life (HR-QoL) among cancer patients has gained an increasing importance and is now a key determinant of anticancer treatments’ value. HR-QoL has been assessed in trials testing cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 inhibitors (CDK4/6i) in breast cancer (BC), using various questionnaires at different timepoints. HR-QoL reports from BC patients treated with CDK4/6i in the real-world setting are also available. Methods: We systematically reviewed the literature, searching for full-length articles, and selected conference abstracts reporting data on HR-QoL in BC patients at any stage and of any molecular subtype treated with abemaciclib, palbociclib or ribociclib. Results: A total of 533 full-length articles and 143 abstracts were retrieved. After screening for eligibility, 38 records were included (31 clinical trials; 7 real-world reports). Assessment methods were heterogeneous across studies in terms of questionnaires, evaluation timepoints and endpoints. Overall, adding CDK4/6i to endocrine therapy did not worsen patients’ HR-QoL, with a positive trend towards pain improvement. Gastrointestinal scores (diarrhea, nausea and appetite loss) statistically favored the control arm among metastatic BC patients receiving abemaciclib, whereas they were superimposable in the early setting. The combination of palbociclib and endocrine therapy showed similar HR-QoL outcomes compared with endocrine therapy alone, but determined better scores compared with chemotherapy. HR-QoL was specifically assessed in premenopausal patients treated with ribociclib, showing similar scores compared with postmenopausal patients. Conclusions: Despite methodological heterogeneity does not allow a proper comparison, HR-QoL was generally maintained with CDK4/6i. However, differences between abemaciclib, palbociclib and ribociclib exist and mainly rely on the distinct safety profiles of the compounds. These differences should be acknowledged and taken into account in the clinical practice

In vitro evaluation of the inhibitory activity of different selenium chemical forms on the growth of a fusarium proliferatum strain isolated from rice seedlings

In this study, the in vitro effects of different Se concentrations (5, 10, 15, 20, and 100 mg kg−1) from different Se forms (sodium selenite, sodium selenate, selenomethionine, and selenocystine) on the development of a Fusarium proliferatum strain isolated from rice were investigated. A concentration‐dependent effect was detected. Se reduced fungal growth starting from 10 mg kg−1 and increasing the concentration (15, 20, and 100 mg kg−1 ) enhanced the inhibitory effect. Se bioactivity was also chemical form dependent. Selenocystine was found to be the most effective at the lowest concentration (5 mg kg−1 ). Complete growth inhibition was observed at 20 mg kg−1 of Se from selenite, selenomethionine, and selenocystine. Se speciation analysis revealed that fungus was able to change the Se speciation when the lowest Se concentration was applied. Scanning Electron Microscopy showed an alteration of the fungal morphology induced by Se. Considering that the inorganic forms have a higher solubility in water and are cheaper than organic forms, 20 mg kg−1 of Se from selenite can be suggested as the best combination suitable to inhibit F. proliferatum strain. The addition of low concentrations of Se from selenite to conventional fungicides may be a promising alternative approach for the control of Fusarium species

Worsening renal function in patients hospitalised for acute heart failure: clinical implications and prognostic significance.

BACKGROUND: Renal function is a powerful prognostic variable in patients with heart failure (HF). Hospitalisations for acute HF (AHF) may be associated with further worsening of renal function (WRF). METHODS AND RESULTS: We analysed the clinical significance of WRF in 318 consecutive patients admitted at our institute for AHF. WRF was defined as the occurrence, at any time during the hospitalisation, of both a > or =25% and a > or =0.3 mg/dL increase in serum creatinine (s-Cr) from admission (WRF-Abs-%). RESULTS: Patients were followed for 480+/-363 days. Fifty-three patients (17%) died and 132 (41%) were rehospitalised for HF. WRF-Abs-% occurred in 107 (34%) patients. At multivariable survival analysis, WRF-Abs-% was an independent predictor of death or HF rehospitalisation (adjusted HR, 1.47; 95%CI, 1.13-1.81; p=0.024). The independent predictors of WRF-Abs-%, evaluated using multivariable logistic regression, were history of chronic kidney disease (p=0.002), LV ejection fraction (p=0.012), furosemide daily dose (p=0.03) and NYHA class (p=0.05) on admission. CONCLUSION: WRF is a frequent finding in patients hospitalised for AHF and is associated with a poor prognosis. Severity of HF and daily furosemide dose are the most important predictors of the occurrence of WRF

Effect of Milling and Parboiling Processes on Arsenic Species Distribution in Rice Grains

This study identified the role of milling and parboiling on arsenic (As) content and its species in large numbers of rice samples. Total As contents were 108 \ub1 33 \u3bcg/kg in polished rice grains (PR), 159 \ub1 46 \u3bcg/kg in unpolished rice grains (UR), 145 \ub1 42 \u3bcg/kg in parboiled polished rice grains (PPR) and 145 \ub1 44 \u3bcg/kg in parboiled unpolished rice grains (PUR). The percentages of inorganic As (iAs) were 66% \ub1 8% in PR and from 72% to 77% in other grain categories. The polishing process reduced the As content in the rice grains, removing outer part of the UR with high amount of As, whereas the parboiling technique transferred the semimetal content within the grain. Total As and iAs contents were not significantly different in UR, PPR and PUR, homogenizing its distribution inside the grains. The results allowed to understand how different operations affect As fate and its chemical forms in grains

Predicting candidemia in internal medicine departments: are we chasing the Holy Grail?

Candidemia is a challenging clinical condition with high rates of morbidity and mortality.1 Key requirements for its prompt management include early identification and timely initiation of appropriate systemic antifungal therapy, consistently reported as a major determinant of survival. However, the diagnosis of candidemia can be challenging and is often delayed as there are no specific clinical signs, blood cultures have low sensitivity, and detection of fungal blood cultures takes a long time. In addition, there is evidence that a significant percentage of such infections occurs in patients admitted to internal medicine departments. This is not particularly surprising given the advanced age of many inpatients at internal medicine departments and multiple complex comorbidities. Moreover, related therapies and healthcare system contacts often involve the use of central venous catheters and other indwelling devices, potentially entailing high risk of candidemia.2 Therefore, optimization of the diagnostic and therapeutic approach is an important and still unfulfilled need for the management of candidemia in internal medicine department

KRAS status and risk of venous thromboembolic events in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer: a case-control study.

No abstract availabl

Infrapatellar fat pad gene expression and protein production in patients with and without osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common joint disorders. Evidence suggests that the infrapatellar fat pad (IFP) is directly involved in OA pathology. However, a comparison between OA versus non-OA IFP is still missing. Thus, the aim of this study was to compare IFP molecular, adipocytes and extracellular matrix characteristics of patients affected by OA, and patients undergoing anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. We hypothesized that not only inflammation but also changes in adipocytes and extracellular matrix (ECM) composition might be involved in OA pathogenesis. Fifty-three patients were enrolled. IFP biopsies were obtained, evaluating: (a) lymphocytic infiltration and vascularization; (b) adipocytes area and number; (c) adipo-cytokines and extracellular matrix gene expression levels; (d) IL-6 and VEGF protein production; (e) collagen fibers distribution. OA IFP was more inflamed and vascularized compared to ACL IFP. OA IFP adipocytes were larger and numerically lower (1.3-fold) than ACL IFP adipocytes. An increase of gene expression of typical white adipose tissue genes was observed in OA compared to ACL IFP. Collagen-types distribution was different in the OA IFP group compared to controls, possibly explaining the change of the biomechanical characteristics found in OA IFP. Statistical linear models revealed that the adipocyte area correlated with BMI in the OA group. In conclusion, inflammation and fibrotic changes of OA IFP could represent novel therapeutic targets to counteract OA

The low-energy limit of AdS(3)/CFT2 and its TBA

We investigate low-energy string excitations in AdS3 × S3 × T4. When the worldsheet is decompactified, the theory has gapless modes whose spectrum at low energies is determined by massless relativistic integrable S matrices of the type introduced by Al. B. Zamolodchikov. The S matrices are non-trivial only for excitations with identical worldsheet chirality, indicating that the low-energy theory is a CFT2. We construct a Thermodynamic Bethe Ansatz (TBA) for these excitations and show how the massless modes’ wrapping effects may be incorporated into the AdS3 spectral problem. Using the TBA and its associated Y-system, we determine the central charge of the low-energy CFT2 to be c = 6 from calculating the vacuum energy for antiperiodic fermions — with the vacuum energy being zero for periodic fermions in agreement with a supersymmetric theory — and find the energies of some excited states