Histopathological distribution of thyroid cancers: A retrospective analysis of 570 patients

Aim: Thyroid cancers are the most commonly encountered endocrine system malignancies.  The incidence continues to rise worldwide. Our aim in this study is to investigate the frequency and histopathological subtypes of thyroid cancer in our clinic. Methods: The present study was conducted with 3614 patients who were followed up in our endocrinology and general surgery clinic and operated with the diagnosis of multinodular and/or nodular goiter between 2015 and 2021. The histopathological types and information of patients diagnosed with thyroid cancer were obtained retrospectively from the pathology reports. Among the patients included in the study, a total of 570 people who were reported to have thyroid cancer due to histopathology were included in the study. Results: The data of a total of 3614 biopsy reports were examined for the study. Among these patients, 570 (421 females, 149 males) were operated and whose pathology reports were accessed were included in the study. The mean age of the patients was 49.12±10.4 years. As a result of the operations, malign postoperative tissue histopathology was 98.9% (n=564), and uncertain malignancy potential was reported to be 1.0% (n=6). In our study, the histopathological distribution of thyroid cancers was as follows; thyroid papillary cancer 89.4% (n=510), follicular cancer 7.3% (n=42), medullary cancer 2.1% (n=12), and malignancy potential uncertain 1.0% (n=6). Conclusion: The results of our study suggest that thyroid cancers are more common in women in our country, in parallel with the similar rates reported in the literature, with the increase worldwide

Positive Effects of Oral beta-Glucan on Mucositis and Leukopenia in Colorectal Cancer Patients Receiving Adjuvant FOLFOX-4 Combination Chemotherapy

The present study aimed to determine the effect of oral beta-glucan on mucositis and leukopenia in 62 consecutive patients with colorectal cancer treated with an adjuvant FOLFOX-4 regimen. The patients were retrospectively evaluated in 2 groups: one group received beta-glucan and the other did not (control group). Leucocytes, neutrophils, and platelets were evaluated before and 1 week after chemotherapy and oral mucositis and diarrhea were noted. Leucocyte and neutrophil counts after chemotherapy in the beta-glucan group were 7,300/mm(3) and 3,800/mm(3), respectively, and the reductions, as compared to baseline, were not significant (p=0.673 and 0.784). The median platelet count was 264,000/mm(3) after chemotherapy in the beta-glucan group and the reduction, as compared to baseline, was borderline significant (p=0.048). In the control group, reduction in leucocyte, neutrophil, and platelet counts was statistically significant. Oral mucositis and diarrhea were less common in the beta-glucan group. We conclude that beta-glucan can be used to reduce the adverse effects of chemotherapy

Real-world outcomes of pazopanib in metastatic soft tissue sarcoma: a retrospective Turkish oncology group (TOG) study

Aim: Description of patient characteristics, effectiveness and safety in Turkish patients treated with pazopanib for metastatic soft tissue sarcoma (STS). Patients and methods: This multicenter study is based on retrospective review of hospital medical records of patients (≥ 18 years) treated with pazopanib for non-adipocytic metastatic STS at 37 Oncology clinics across Turkey. Objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were evaluated with further analysis of data on the three most common histological subtypes (leiomyosarcoma [LMS], undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma [UPS], synovial sarcoma [SS]) in the cohort. Results: Data of 552 adults (57.6% women, median age: 52 years) were analyzed. DCR and ORR were 43.1% and 30.8%, respectively. Median PFS was 6.7 months and OS was 13.8 months. For LMS, UPS and SS, median PFSs were 6.1, 5.9 and 7.53 months and median OSs were 15.03, 12.87 and 12.27 months, respectively. ECOG ≥ 2 was associated with poor PFS and OS. Liver metastasis was only a factor for progression. Second-line use of pazopanib (vs. front-line) was associated with better PFS, its use beyond third line predicted worse OS. Adverse events (AE) occurred in 82.7% of patients. Most common AEs were fatigue (58.3%) and anorexia (52.3%) which were graded as ≥ 3 in 8.2% and 7.4% of patients, respectively. Conclusion: Pazopanib is effective and well-tolerated in treatment of non-adipocytic metastatic STS. Its earlier use (at second-line), good performance status may result in better outcomes. Worldwide scientific collaborations are important to gain knowledge on rarer STS subtypes by conducting studies in larger patient populations