Clinical outcomes of patients with pure small cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder

Objectives There is not yet a standardized approach to treat patients with small cell carcinoma of the bladder (SmCCB). This study aims to investigate the clinical features, treatment, and survival outcomes of patients with pure SmCCB. Materials and methods Patients diagnosed with SmCCB between January 2006 and September 2015 were retrospectively evaluated. Results A total of 34 patients with a median age of 63.0 years were included in the study, with a male to female ratio of 4.6:1.0. At the time of diagnosis, 22 patients (64.7%) had stage IV disease. At a median follow-up time of 12.7 months, 67.6% of patients died of bladder carcinoma, with an overall survival (OS) of 15.7 months for all patients. In the patients with stages I-III, nodal involvement, and distant metastases, the median OS was 31.8, 15.7, and 8.4 months, respectively (P = 0.005). Considering the survival rates of the patients (stages I-III) treated with surgery vs. local therapy, there was not a statistically significant difference (26.6 months and 31.8 months, P = 0.97, respectively). A multivariate analysis revealed that stage IV disease and poor ECOG performance status were associated with OS. Conclusion The optimal treatment of SmCCB has been under debate. For the patients with advanced stage of disease (T4b, N+, M+), platinum containing chemotherapeutic agents should be preferred. Stage IV disease and poor ECOG performance status were associated with shorter OS

The association of illness perception with chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting

Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) may be linked to the psychological status of cancer patients. Therefore, the authors aimed to better understand the underlying risk factors for CINV using the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire. A total of 238 patients were recruited during three cycles of chemotherapy. Patient, disease and treatment characteristics were noted at the onset of chemotherapy. The Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire was administered face-to-face prior to chemotherapy. The relationship between illness perceptions and CINV was analyzed using Spearman's rank correlation. Positive illness perception parameters, including personal and treatment control, were negatively correlated, whereas negative illness perception parameters, including consequences, time line, identity, concern and emotions, were positively correlated with CINV after adjusting for age, sex and emetogenic potential of chemotherapy (p < 0.001). Illness perception may be an underlying risk factor for CINV

Prognostic Factors and Adjuvant Treatments for Surgically Treated Cancers of the Biliary Tract: A Multicentre Study of the Anatolian Society of Medical Oncology (ASMO)

Background: Biliary tract cancers are rare, and surgical resection is the standard treatment at early stages. However, reports on the benefits of adjuvant treatment following surgical resection are conflicting. This study aimed to evaluate the factors affecting survival and adjuvant treatments in patients with surgically treated biliary tract cancers. Materials and Methods: Patient clinical features, adjuvant treatments, and efficacy and prognostic factor data were evaluated. Survival analyses were performed using SPSS 15.0. Results: The median overall survival was 30.7 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 18.4-42.9 months). Median survival was 19 months (95% CI, 6-33) for patients treated with fluorouracil based chemotherapy and 53 months (95% CI, 33.2-78.8) with gemcitabine based chemotherapy (p=0.033). On univariate analysis, poor prognostic factors for survival were galbladder localization, perineural invasion, hepatic invasion, a lack of adjuvant chemoradiotherapy treatment, and a lack of lymph node dissection. On multivariate analysis, perineural invasion was a poor prognostic factor (p=0.008). Conclusions: Biliary tract cancers generally have poor prognoses. The main factors affecting survival are tumour localization, perineural invasion, hepatic invasion, adjuvant chemoradiotherapy, and lymph node dissection. Gemcitabine-based adjuvant chemotherapy is more effective than 5-fluorouracil-based chemotherapy

Prognostic Factors and Adjuvant Treatments for Surgically Treated Cancers of the Biliary Tract: A Multicentre Study of the Anatolian Society of Medical Oncology (ASMO)

Background: Biliary tract cancers are rare, and surgical resection is the standard treatment at early stages. However, reports on the benefits of adjuvant treatment following surgical resection are conflicting. This study aimed to evaluate the factors affecting survival and adjuvant treatments in patients with surgically treated biliary tract cancers. Materials and Methods: Patient clinical features, adjuvant treatments, and efficacy and prognostic factor data were evaluated. Survival analyses were performed using SPSS 15.0. Results: The median overall survival was 30.7 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 18.4-42.9 months). Median survival was 19 months (95% CI, 6-33) for patients treated with fluorouracil based chemotherapy and 53 months (95% CI, 33.2-78.8) with gemcitabine based chemotherapy (p=0.033). On univariate analysis, poor prognostic factors for survival were galbladder localization, perineural invasion, hepatic invasion, a lack of adjuvant chemoradiotherapy treatment, and a lack of lymph node dissection. On multivariate analysis, perineural invasion was a poor prognostic factor (p=0.008). Conclusions: Biliary tract cancers generally have poor prognoses. The main factors affecting survival are tumour localization, perineural invasion, hepatic invasion, adjuvant chemoradiotherapy, and lymph node dissection. Gemcitabine-based adjuvant chemotherapy is more effective than 5-fluorouracil-based chemotherapy