Keep the corners; impact of chemotherapy on renal function

Implication for health policy/practice/research/medical education: Due to kidneys’ role in metabolism and excretion of toxic waste, they are subjects to drug toxicity. keywords: Cancer, Chemotherapy, Malignant tumor, Reactive oxygen species, Renal toxicity, Tubulointerstitial injur

A Rare Case of Craniopharyngioma in the Temporal Lobe

Herein, we report on a rare case of craniopharyngioma arising in the left temporal lobe with no prior history of head trauma or surgery. There was a solid-cystic mass in the left temporal lobe on MR images. To the best of our knowledge, this is the second case of a craniopharyngioma occurring in the temporal lobe

Optimization of the photoneutron target geometry for e-accelerator based BNCT

Background and aim: Today, electron accelerators are taken into consideration as photoneutron sources. Therefore, for maximum production of epithermal neutron flux, designing a photoneutron target is of significant importance. In this paper, the effect of thickness and geometric shape of a photoneutron target on neutron output were investigated. Methods: In this study, a pencil photon source with 13, 15, 18, 20 and 25 MeV energies and a diameter of 2 mm was investigated using Monte Carlo simulation method using MCNP code. To optimize the design of the photoneutron target, the tungsten target with various geometries and thicknesses was investigated. Results: The maximum neutron flux produced for all target geometries and thicknesses occurred at neutron energy peak of around 0.46 MeV. As the thickness increased to 2 cm, neutron flux increased and then a decreasing trend was observed. For various geometrical shapes, the determining factor in photoneutron output was the effective target thickness in the photon interaction path that increased by the increase in the area of interaction. Another factor was the angle of the photon's incidence with the target surface that resulted in a significant decrease in photoneutron output in cone-shaped targets Conclusion: Three factors including the total neutron flux, neutrons energy spectrum, and convergence of neutrons plays an important role in the selection of geometry and shape of the target that should be investigated considering beam shaping assembly (BSA) shap

The comparison between effect of chemoradiation with weekly cisplatin with or without celecoxib in treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma: A phase III clinical trial

Introduction: Concurrent cisplatin-based chemoradiation is currently considered the treatment of choice for locoregional nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Celecoxib is a selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor which can potentially enhance the effect of radiotherapy. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy and safety of celecoxib in nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Materials and Methods: Patients with newly diagnosed locoregional nasopharyngeal carcinoma were included in this clinical trial study. The patients were assigned to receive 7 weeks concurrent chemoradiation with weekly cisplatin and either celecoxib 100 mg twice daily or placebo. After completion of chemoradiation, all patients received combined chemotherapy with cisplatin plus 5-Fu every 3 weeks for 3 cycles. Clinical response rates and treatment-related toxicity were the primary and secondary end-point of the study. Results: Total of 50 eligible patients with the median age of 43 years were enrolled in the trial. Overall (complete and partial) clinical response rate was 100% in both groups. Complete and partial clinical response rates were 64% and 36% in study group and 44% and 56% in control group respectively (P>0.25). There was no difference in terms of treatment-related toxicity rates between two groups. Conclusions: This clinical trial showed that addition of celecoxib 100 mg twice daily to concurrent chemoradiation does not increase the response rates and treatment-related toxicities in patients with locoregional nasopharyngeal carcinoma