Breast cancer multifocality and multicentricity and locoregional recurrence.

The impact of multifocal (MF) or multicentric (MC) breast cancer on locoregional (LR) control rates is unknown. Methods. MF was defined as two or more separate invasive tumors in the same quadrant of the breast. MC was defined as two or more separate invasive tumors occupying more than one quadrant of the same breast. Patients were categorized by LR treatment: breast conservation therapy (BCT; n = 256), mastectomy (n = 466), or mastectomy plus postmastectomy radiation therapy (PMRT; n = 184). All patients with MC disease had mastectomy (10 patients treated with BCT for MC disease were excluded). The Kaplan-Meier product limit method was used to calculate 5-year LR control rate. Cox proportional hazards models were used to determine independent associations of multifocality or multicentricity with LR control. Results. A total of 906 patients had either MF disease (n = 673) or MC disease (n = 233). With median follow-up of 52 months, the 5-year LR control rate was 99% for MF, 96% for MC, and 98% for unifocal tumors (p = .44). Subset analysis revealed no difference in LR control regardless of the LR treatment (p = .67 for BCT, p = .37 for mastectomy, p = .29 for mastectomy plus PMRT). There were five in-breast recurrences after BCT in the MF group. MF and MC did not have an independent impact on LR control rate on multivariate analysis. Conclusion. MF and MC disease are not independent risk factors for LR recurrence. Patients with MF and MC breast cancer had rates of LR control similar to those of their unifocal counterparts. These data suggest that BCT is a safe option for patients with MF tumors and that MF or MC disease alone is not an indication for PMRT.

Medical students' experiences of the benefits and influences regarding a placement mentoring programme preparing them for future practice as junior doctors: a qualitative study.

OBJECTIVE: To study medical students' views and experiences of the benefits and influences regarding a mentoring programme aimed at preparing them for future practice as a doctor during their Obstetrics and Gynaecology (O&G) placement in a UK teaching hospital. DESIGN: A qualitative approach, employing focus groups and thematic analysis. SETTING: Single-centre UK Teaching hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Thirteen undergraduate medical students at the University of Southampton who had completed their standard 8-week placement in O&G and had been assigned a mentor throughout. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Medical students' experiences and perceptions of the benefits and influences of having a mentor throughout their O&G placement. RESULTS: From our data, four central themes were identified: integration, feedback, seniority and expectations. Students found mentorship useful for integration into the team, and an opportunity for constructive feedback on their clinical skills and professional skills for example, communication and team-working. Seniority and the level of contact of their mentor was the main reason for differing mentoring experiences: although senior mentors spent less time with their mentees, they were able to offer more careers advice. Students felt that the mentors and mentees were not always clear on the expectations of the mentoring programme. CONCLUSIONS: Mentorship may be a useful addition to help prepare students for future clinical practice. Mentor training may improve consistency of experiences. This study demonstrates that a mentoring programme is deliverable and widely accepted by medical students in a clinical placement such as O&G, and may have wider benefits if introduced on a regional/national level.

Mindfulness Interventions Delivered by Technology Without Facilitator Involvement: What Research Exists and What Are the Clinical Outcomes?

New cost-effective psychological interventions are needed to contribute to treatment options for psychiatric and physical health conditions. This systematic review aims to investigate the current literature on one potentially cost-effective form of mindfulness-based therapy, those delivered through technological platforms without any mindfulness facilitator input beyond the initial design of the programme. Three electronic databases (Ovid Medline, PsychINFO and Embase) were searched for relevant keywords, titles, medical subject headings (MeSH) and abstracts using search terms derived from a combination of two subjects: 'mindfulness' and 'technology'. Overall, ten studies were identified. The majority of studies were web-based and similar in structure and content to face-to-face mindfulness-based stress reduction courses. Clinical outcomes of stress (n = 5), depression (n = 6) and anxiety (n = 4) were reported along with mindfulness (n = 4), the supposed mediator of effects. All eight studies that measured significance found at least some significant effects (p < .05). The highest reported effect sizes were large (stress d = 1.57, depression d = .95, both ps > .005). However, methodological issues (e.g. selection bias, lack of control group and follow-up) which reflect the early nature of the work mean these largest effects are likely to be representative of maximal rather than average effects. Whilst there are important differences in the construction, length and delivery of interventions, it is difficult to draw firm conclusions about the most effective models. Suggestions of key characteristics are made though, needing further investigation preferably in standardised interventions. Given the existing research and the speed at which technology is making new platforms and tools available, it seems important that further research explores two parallel lines: first, refinement and thorough evaluation of already established technology-based mindfulness programmes and second, exploration of novel approaches to mindfulness training that combine the latest technological advances with the knowledge and skills of experienced meditation teachers.

Ten-Year Outcomes of Patients With Breast Cancer With Cytologically Confirmed Axillary Lymph Node Metastases and Pathologic Complete Response After Primary Systemic Chemotherapy.

IMPORTANCE: The long-term effect of axillary pathologic complete response (pCR) on survival among women with breast cancer treated with primary systemic chemotherapy (PST) is unknown. OBJECTIVE: To assess the long-term effect of axillary pCR on relapse-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) in women with breast cancer with cytologically confirmed axillary lymph node metastases treated with PST. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: We retrospectively analyzed the effect of axillary pCR on 10-year OS and RFS among all women who received a diagnosis of breast cancer stages II to III with cytologically confirmed axillary metastases between 1989 and 2007 who received PST at a large US comprehensive cancer center. Women were stratified by post-PST axillary status, and survival outcomes were estimated and compared according to response in the breast and axilla. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Outcomes of interest were RFS and OS. RESULTS: Of 1600 women treated, median (range) age at diagnisis was 49 (21-86) years. A total of 454 (28.4%) achieved axillary pCR. These patients were more likely to have human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive and triple-negative disease (P < .001), pCR in the breast (P < .001), high-grade tumors (P < .001), and lower clinical and pathologic T stage (P = .002). Ten-year OS rates were 84% (95% CI, 79%-88%) and 57% (95% CI, 54%-61%) (P < .001) and 10-year RFS rates 79% (95% CI, 74%-83%) and 50% (95% CI, 46%-53%) (P < .001) for patients with axillary pCR and residual axillary disease, respectively. For patients with axillary pCR, 10-year OS rates were 90% (95% CI, 84%-94%) for those with breast pCR and 72% (95% CI, 61%-80%) for those with residual breast disease (P < .001). For patients with residual axillary disease, 10-year OS rates were 66% (95% CI, 56%-74%) for patients with and 56% (95% CI, 52%-60%) for patients without breast pCR (P = .02). Of patients receiving HER2-targeted therapy for HER2-positive disease, 67.1% (100 of 149) achieved axillary pCR; 10-year OS rates were 92% (95% CI, 84%-96%) and 57% (95% CI, 20%-82%) (P = .003) and 10-year RFS rates 89% (95% CI, 81%-94%) and 44% (95% CI, 18%-68%) (P < .001) for those with axillary pCR and residual axillary disease, respectively. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Axillary pCR was associated with improved 10-year OS and RFS. Patients with axillary and breast pCR after PST had superior long-term survival outcomes. Patients undergoing HER2-targeted therapy for HER2-positive disease had high rates of axillary pCR, and those with axillary pCR had excellent 10-year OS.

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy in small cell urothelial cancer improves pathologic downstaging and long-term outcomes: results from a retrospective study at the MD Anderson Cancer Center.

BACKGROUND: Small cell urothelial carcinoma (SCUC) is a rare, aggressive malignancy with a propensity for early microscopic metastases. Data suggest that neoadjuvant chemotherapy may lead to improved survival compared with initial surgery. OBJECTIVE: To determine the influence of neoadjuvant chemotherapy on survival of SCUC patients in a large single-institution cohort. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Between 1985 and 2010, 172 patients were treated for SCUC at MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC). Clinical, pathologic, and surgical data were collected and analyzed. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Overall survival (OS) and disease-specific survival (DSS) were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate the effects of neoadjuvant chemotherapy on survival. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: Of 125 patients with resectable disease (≤ cT4aN0M0), 95 were surgical candidates. Forty-eight received neoadjuvant chemotherapy, and 47 underwent initial surgery. Neoadjuvant treatment was associated with improved OS and DSS compared with initial cystectomy (median OS: 159.5 mo vs 18.3 mo, p<0.001; 5-yr DSS: 79% vs 20%, p<0.001). Neoadjuvant chemotherapy resulted in pathologic downstaging to ≤ pT1N0 in 62% of tumors compared with only 9% treated with initial surgery (odds ratio: 44.55; 95% confidence interval, 10.39-191). Eight patients with clinically node-positive disease had surgical consolidation with cystectomy and extended lymph node dissection after clinical complete response to chemotherapy. Median OS and DSS in this group of patients were 23.3 mo and 21.8 mo, respectively, with 5-yr OS and DSS of 38%. CONCLUSIONS: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy is associated with a high rate of pathologic downstaging and correlates with significantly higher survival compared with historical expectations. Although limited by a small sample size and retrospective analysis, in the context of a rare disease, this experience suggests neoadjuvant chemotherapy as a standard approach in treating SCUC.

Dialectics of mindfulness: implications for western medicine.

Mindfulness as a clinical and nonclinical intervention for a variety of symptoms has recently received a substantial amount of interest. Although the application of mindfulness appears straightforward and its effectiveness is well supported, the concept may easily be misunderstood. This misunderstanding may severely limit the benefit of mindfulness-based interventions. It is therefore necessary to understand that the characteristics of mindfulness are based on a set of seemingly paradoxical structures. This article discusses the underlying paradox by disentangling it into five dialectical positions - activity vs. passivity, wanting vs. non-wanting, changing vs. non-changing, non-judging vs. non-reacting, and active acceptance vs. passive acceptance, respectively. Finally, the practical implications for the medical professional as well as potential caveats are discussed.