Prospective Evaluation of the Quality of Life of Patients after Surgical Treatment of Rectal Cancer: A 12-Month Cohort Observation

This study constitutes a prospective, three-stage evaluation of quality of life among patients receiving surgical treatment for colorectal cancer depending on the type of surgery performed (open anterior resection, laparoscopic anterior resection, abdominoperineal resection, or Hartmann’s procedure). The study included 82 patients treated at the Surgical Oncology Outpatient Department of the Oncology Center in Bydgoszcz from June 2019 to August 2021. The study tools consisted of diagnostic surveys and analyses of medical records. The standardized study tools were the surveys EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ-CR29. In addition, a proprietary questionnaire was developed to collect demographic data. Quality of life was measured at three time-points: the day before the surgery and 6 and 12 months post-surgery. Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) were observed in the domains of role functioning (III, p = 0.030), body image (II, p < 0.001; III, p < 0.001), sexual functioning (II, p = 0.037), buttocks/anal area/rectum pain (III, p = 0.031), and embarrassment (II, p = 0.022; III, p = 0.010). Statistically significant differences in the functional and symptom scale scores were also observed within each group at different stages of cancer treatment. As shown by our study, the quality of life of patients treated for colorectal cancer is determined not only by the operating technique but also by sociodemographic and clinical factors. The use of minimally invasive surgical techniques enables patients to return to their social roles more quickly and improves their self-assessment of body image

Changing patterns of urologic emergency visits and admissions during the COVID-19 pandemic : a retrospective, multicenter, nationwide study

INTRODUCTION: We aimed to examine the change in the number and severity of visits to the emergency departments (EDs) and subsequent admissions for urgent urologic conditions in the early stage of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in Poland. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We evaluated data from 13 urologic centers in Poland and compared the number of visits to the EDs and subsequent admissions before and after the advent of COVID-19 in 2020, and before and after the escalating national restrictions. Furthermore, data on types of urologic complaints, crucial laboratory parameters, and post-admission procedures were analyzed. RESULTS: In total 1,696 and 2,187 urologic visits (22.45% decrease) and 387 and 439 urologic urgent admissions (11.85% decrease) were reported in given periods in 2020 and 2019, respectively. The year-over-year difference in daily mean visits was clear (36.1 vs. 46.5; p < 0.001). Declines were seen in all complaints but device malfunction. In 2020 daily mean visits and admissions decreased from 40.9 and 9.6 before lockdowns to 30.9 (p < 0.001) and 6.9 (p = 0.001) after severe restrictions, respectively. There was a trend towards more negative laboratory parameter profiles in 2020, with patients who visited the EDs after severe restrictions having twice as high median levels of C-reactive protein (15.39 vs. 7.84, p = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: The observed declines in ED visits and admissions were apparent with the significant effect of national lockdowns. Our results indicate that some of the patients requiring urgent medical help did not appear at the ED or came later than they would have done before the pandemic, presenting with more severe complaints