Guideline standard is radical surgery. Alternative possibilities are still limited. (C) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.”
“For patients with Stage II colon cancer, the use of adjuvant chemotherapy remains controversial. The purpose of this study was to identify clinical and/or pathological findings ZD1839 in vitro related to a worse prognosis in this category of patients.\n\nWe retrospectively analyzed the data

of consecutive patients, extracted by an institutional Tumour Registry, admitted to an affiliated University Hospital in Milan (European Institute of Oncology) for adenocarcinoma of the colon (all sites), between 2000 and 2005, and having a final pT3 N0 pathology staging after curative surgery. Adjuvant chemotherapy was decided as a result of a medical decision within a multidisciplinary Tumor Board.\n\nData of 137 patients were obtained, with a median follow-up of 77 months (range 6-131). Patients who received chemotherapy were younger than patients who did not. Nine patients out of 137 (6.5 %) died as a consequence of colon cancer recurrence; four of them had received adjuvant chemotherapy. Only histological grade III and mucinous histotype were found to impact on cumulative incidence of colon-related events

(p 0.03 and 0.02, respectively); no impact was found on cumulative incidence of colonic neoplasm recurrence-related deaths (p 0.74 and 0.74, respectively). Number of analyzed LNs (lymph nodes) emerged as a factor possibly affecting the cumulative incidence of colon-related events (p 0.09) as well as the cumulative incidence of colonic neoplasm recurrence-related deaths (p 0.10). The risk of events was inversely proportional CBL0137 to 3-MA cost the number of dissected LNs, even over 20 up to about 25 LNs. Never-smokers exhibited a lower incidence of colon-related events, although the difference was not statistically significant (p 0.09). All other analyzed variables did not show any impact on survival rate, including age, gender, ASA score, BMI, site of colonic

neoplasm, multifocality, perivascular invasion, and use of adjuvant chemotherapy.\n\nHistology grading G3 and mucinous histotype were predictors of worse outcome. Efforts to improve LN evaluation should result in clinically significant improvements in outcome, and also the quality of care for patients with radically resected stage II colon cancer.”
“Objective: To describe how preferences and treatment influence symptoms at end of life and site of death in pediatric cancer. Methods: We included 61 pediatric palliative patients with cancer whose parents previously participated in a study that elicited preferences for aggressive chemotherapy versus supportive care alone and who subsequently died. Main outcomes were severe pain and dyspnea proximal to death and site of death. Results: Choice of aggressive chemotherapy predicted significantly more severe pain (odds ratio [OR] 3.1, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.0-9.6; P.049).