Prognostically distinct clinical patterns of systemic lupus erythematosus identified by cluster analysis.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the patterns of clinical manifestations and their mortality in a large cohort of Chinese patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. The cumulative clinical manifestations of a large group of Chinese systemic lupus erythematosus patients who fulfilled at least four American College of Rheumatology criteria for systemic lupus erythematosus were studied. Patients were divided into distinct groups by using the K-mean cluster analysis. Clinical features, prevalence of proliferative lupus nephritis (World Health Organization class III, IV), autoantibody profile, and treatment data were compared and the standardized mortality ratios were calculated for each cluster of patients. There were 1082 patients included in the study (mean age at systemic lupus erythematosus diagnosis 30.5 years; mean systemic lupus erythematosus duration 10.3 years). Three distinct groups of patients were identified. Cluster 1 (n = 347) was characterized predominantly by mucocutaneous manifestations (malar rash, discoid rash, photosensitivity, oral ulcer) and arthritis but having the lowest prevalence of serositis, hematologic manifestations (hemolytic anemia, leukopenia, and thrombocytopenia), and proliferative lupus nephritis. Patients in cluster 2 (n = 409) had mainly renal and hematological manifestations but having the lowest prevalence of mucocutaneous manifestations. Pulmonary and gastrointestinal manifestations were significantly more frequent in cluster 2 than the other clusters. Cluster 3 patients (n = 326) had the most heterogeneous features. Besides having a high prevalence of mucocutaneous manifestations, serositis and hematologic manifestations, renal involvement, and proliferative lupus nephritis was also most prevalent among the three clusters. Patients in cluster 2 had a much higher standardized mortality ratio [standardized mortality ratio 7.23 (6.7-7.7), p < 0.001] than those in cluster 3 [standardized mortality ratio 1.27 (1.1-1.5), p = 0.005] and cluster 1 [standardized mortality ratio 0.95 (0.5-1.7), p = 0.86]. In conclusion, patients with systemic lupus erythematosus could be clustered into prognostically distinct patterns of clinical manifestations.

Complete excision with narrow margins provides equivalent local control to wider excision in breast conservation for invasive cancer.

Background: Society of Surgical Oncology and American Society for Radiation Oncology guidelines define clear margins in breast-conserving therapy (BCT) as 'no ink on tumour', in contrast to the attainment of margins of at least 1 mm widely practised in the UK. The primary aim of this study was to explore clinical, surgical and tumour-related factors associated with local recurrence after BCT, with a secondary aim of assessing the impact of margin re-excision on the risk of local recurrence. Methods: Patient demographics, surgical details, tumour characteristics and local recurrence were recorded for consecutive women with BCT undergoing surgery between January 1997 and January 2007. Margins were defined as clear (greater than 1 mm), close (less than 1 mm but no ink on tumour), reaches (ink on tumour) and clear after re-excision. Results: A total of 1045 women of median age 54 (range 18-86) years were studied. Median follow-up was 89 (range 4-196) months. Local recurrence occurred in 52 patients (5·0 per cent). Ink on tumour was associated with local recurrence (hazard ratio (HR) 4·86, 95 per cent c.i. 1·49 to 15·79; P = 0·009). Risk of local recurrence was the same for close and clear margins (HR 1·03, 0·40 to 2·62; P = 0·954). In women with involved margins, re-excision was still associated with an increased local recurrence risk (HR 2·50, 1·32 to 4·72; P = 0·005). Oestrogen receptor negativity increased risk (HR 2·28, 1·28 to 4·06; P = 0·005). Conclusion: Adequately excised margins, even when under 1 mm, provide equivalent outcomes to wider margins in BCT. Achieving complete excision at primary surgery achieves the lowest rates of local recurrence.