Cancer and renal insufficiency results of the BIRMA study

Background: Half of anticancer drugs are predominantly excreted in urine. Dosage adjustment in renal insufficiency (RI) is, therefore, a crucial issue. Moreover, patients with abnormal renal function are at high risk for drug-induced nephrotoxicity. The Belgian Renal Insufficiency and Anticancer Medications (BIRMA) study investigated the prevalence of RI in cancer patients, and the profile/dosing of anticancer drugs prescribed. Methods:Primary end point: to estimate the prevalence of abnormal glomerular filtration rate (GFR; estimated with the abbreviated Modification of Diet in Renal Disease formula) and RI in cancer patient. Secondary end point: to describe the profile of anticancer drugs prescribed (dose reduction/nephrotoxicity). Data were collected for patients presenting at one of the seven Belgian BIRMA centres in March 2006. Results: A total of 1218 patients were included. The prevalence of elevated SCR (1.2 mg per 100 ml) was 14.9%, but 64.0% had a GFR90 ml min 1 per 1.73 m 2. In all, 78.6% of treated patients (n1087) were receiving at least one drug needing dosage adjustment and 78.1% received at least one nephrotoxic drug. In all, 56.5% of RI patients receiving chemotherapy requiring dose reduction in case of RI did not receive dose adjustment. Conclusions: The RI is highly frequent in cancer patients. In all, 80% of the patients receive potentially nephrotoxic drugs and/or for which dosage must be adjusted in RI. Oncologists should check the appropriate dose of chemotherapeutic drugs in relation to renal function before prescribing. © 2010 Cancer Research UK.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Localization of the Surface Acoustic Longitudinal Pseudomode of Silicon In A Buried Sio2 Layer

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Renal insufficiency in cancer patients: Results of the BIRMA study

American Society of Nephrology, 41th Annual Meeting (Philadelphia, USA, 2008)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Breast cancer and renal insufficiency

Abstract Abstract #6086 Background:&amp;#x2028; The Belgian IRMA study (Renal Insufficiency and Anticancer Medications) reported the high prevalence of renal insufficiency (RI) in 1208 cancer patients, with a glomerular filtration rate (GFR) &amp;lt;90 ml/min for 64%. Furthermore, 78.1% were receiving potentially nephrotoxic drugs and 78.8% drugs necessitating dosage adjustment in case of renal dysfunction. We present here the results for the 510 BIRMA patients with breast cancer.&amp;#x2028; Methods:&amp;#x2028; Data were collected for patients presenting at one of the 7 BIRMA centers in March 2006: tumor, sex, age, weight, height, serum creatinine (SCR), bone metastasis (BM) and anticancer drugs (including dose modification). Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR) was estimated by the aMDRD formula.&amp;#x2028; Results:&amp;#x2028; 510 breast cancer patients were included: mean age 58.7 years, weight 68.1 kg, height 161.6 cm, 4 men, 46.9% of patients had BM. The prevalence of elevated SCR (&amp;gt;=1.2 mg/dL) was 7.3%, of GFR&amp;lt;90 ml/min/1.73m² 67.8%, and of GFR&amp;lt;60 (threshold for many anticancer drugs to consider dose modification) 15.9% (Table). 86.6% of treated patients (n=486) were receiving at least one drug needing dosage adjustment in case of renal dysfunction and 73.4% received at least one potentially nephrotoxic drug. Furthermore, the prevalence of GFR&amp;lt;90/60 was 74.9/24.3% for breast cancer patients with BM (Table). When comparing the prevalence of GFR&amp;lt;90 between patients with or without BM (for patients with available GFR), the frequency of RI was significantly higher for BM patients (78.9 vs 69.9%, p=0.03).&amp;#x2028; Conclusions:&amp;#x2028; The results of the BIRMA study showed that RI is highly frequent in breast cancer patients in Belgium and that nearly 94% of the patients receive potentially nephrotoxic drugs and/or drugs for which dosage must be adjusted in RI. Furthermore, patients with BM had a higher rate of RI than patients without. These frequencies are higher compared to data from the NHANES study in the US general population, especially for breast cancer patients with a stage 3 RI for whom SCR was normal in 55.7% of the cases. This underlines that estimating renal function with formulae such as aMDRD is mandatory in every breast cancer patient, even when SCR is within the normal range.&amp;#x2028; &amp;#x2028; Citation Information: Cancer Res 2009;69(2 Suppl):Abstract nr 6086.</jats:p

Dendritic Assembly of Gold Nanoparticles during Fuel-Forming Electrocatalysis

We observe the dendritic assembly of alkanethiol-capped gold nanoparticles on a glassy carbon support during electrochemical reduction of protons and CO2. We find that the primary mechanism by which surfactant-ligated gold nanoparticles lose surface area is by taking a random walk along the support, colliding with their neighbors, and fusing to form dendrites, a type of fractal aggregate. A random walk model reproduces the fractal dimensionality of the dendrites observed experimentally. The rate at which the dendrites form is strongly dependent on the solubility of the surfactant in the electrochemical double layer under the conditions of electrolysis. Since alkanethiolate surfactants reductively desorb at potentials close to the onset of CO2 reduction, they do not poison the catalytic activity of the gold nanoparticles. Although catalyst mobility is typically thought to be limited for room-temperature electrochemistry, our results demonstrate that nanoparticle mobility is significant under conditions at which they electrochemically catalyze gas evolution, even in the presence of a high surface area carbon and binder. A careful understanding of the electrolyte- and polarization-dependent nanoparticle aggregation kinetics informs strategies for maintaining catalyst dispersion during fuel-forming electrocatalysis