Impact of a New Gynecologic Oncology Hashtag During Virtual-Only ASCO Annual Meetings: An X (Twitter) Social Network Analysis.

Background: Official conference hashtags are commonly used to promote tweeting and social media engagement. The reach and impact of introducing a new hashtag during an oncology conference have yet to be studied. The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) conducts an annual global meeting, which was entirely virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. Objective: This study aimed to assess the reach and impact (in the form of vertices and edges generated) and X (formerly Twitter) activity of the new hashtags #goASCO20 and #goASCO21 in the ASCO 2020 and 2021 virtual conferences. Methods: New hashtags (#goASCO20 and #goASCO21) were created for the ASCO virtual conferences in 2020 and 2021 to help focus gynecologic oncology discussion at the ASCO meetings. Data were retrieved using these hashtags (#goASCO20 for 2020 and #goASCO21 for 2021). A social network analysis was performed using the NodeXL software application. Results: The hashtags #goASCO20 and #goASCO21 had similar impacts on the social network. Analysis of the reach and impact of the individual hashtags found #goASCO20 to have 150 vertices and 2519 total edges and #goASCO20 to have 174 vertices and 2062 total edges. Mentions and tweets between 2020 and 2021 were also similar. The circles representing different users were spatially arranged in a more balanced way in 2021. Tweets using the #goASCO21 hashtag received significantly more responses than tweets using #goASCO20 (75 times in 2020 vs 360 times in 2021; z value=16.63 and P<.001). This indicates increased engagement in the subsequent year. Conclusions: Introducing a gynecologic oncology specialty-specific hashtag (#goASCO20 and #goASCO21) that is related but different from the official conference hashtag (#ASCO20 and #ASCO21) helped facilitate discussion on topics of interest to gynecologic oncologists during a virtual pan-oncology meeting. This impact was visible in the social network analysis.

The Top Ten Annals of Surgical Oncology Original Articles on Twitter/X: 2020-2023.

Social media has become omnipresent in society, especially given that it enables the rapid and widespread communication of news, events, and information. Social media platforms have become increasingly used by numerous surgical societies to promote meetings and surgical journals to increase the visibility of published content. In September 2020, Annals of Surgical Oncology (ASO) established its Social Media Committee (SMC), which has worked to steadily increase the visibility of published content on social media platforms, namely X (formerly known as Twitter). The purpose of this review is to highlight the 10 ASO original articles with the most engagement on X, based on total number of mentions, since the founding of the SMC. These articles encompass a wide variety of topics from various oncologic disciplines including hepatopancreatobiliary, breast, and gynecologic surgery.

Best original research presented at the 25th European Congress on Gynaecological Oncology: best of ESGO 2024.

The 'Best of ESGO 2024' article includes a selection of the most highly rated original research presented during the 25th Annual Congress of the European Society of Gynaecologic Oncology (ESGO), held in Barcelona, Spain, March 7-10, 2024. Of 1218 asbtracts submitted, 35 studies presented during the best oral sessions, mini oral sessions, best three minute presentations session, and young investigator session were selected by the ESGO abstract committee and the authors of the European Network of Young Gynae Oncologists (ENYGO). There was a strong focus on the surgical treatment of early stage cervical cancer and the management of advanced or recurrent gynecological cancers using induction therapy, immunotherapy, and maintenance therapy. With this work, ENYGO and ESGO aim to focus the attention of clinicians, scientists, patients, and all stakeholders interested in gynecologic oncology on research advances in the field.

Patient care and access to clinical trials in gynaecological oncology: global implications of the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.

PURPOSE: Our prospective international survey evaluated the impact of the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic on the management gynaecological malignancies from the multidisciplinary physicians' perspective with particular focus on clinical infrastructures and trial participation. METHODS: Our survey consisted of 53 COVID-related questions. It was sent to healthcare professionals in gynaecological oncology centres across Europe and Pan-Arabian region via the study groups and gynaecological societies from April 2020 to October 2020. All healthcare professionals treating gynaecological cancers were able to participate in our survey. RESULTS: A total of 255 answers were collected from 30 countries. The majority (73%) of participants were gynaecological oncologists from university hospitals (71%) with at least an Intensive Care Unit with cardiopulmonary support available at their institutions. Most institutions continued to perform elective surgeries only for oncological cases (98%). Patients had to wait on average 2 weeks longer for their surgery appointments compared to previous years (range 0-12 weeks). Most cases that were prioritised for surgical intervention across all gynaecological tumours were early-stage disease (74%), primary situation (61%) and good ECOG status (63%). The radicality of surgery did not change in the majority of cases (78%) across all tumour types. During the pandemic, only 38% of clinicians stated they would start a new clinical trial. Almost half of the participants stated the pandemic negatively impacted the financial structure and support for clinical trials. Approximately 20% of clinicians did not feel well-informed regarding clinical algorithm for COVID-19 patients throughout the pandemic. Thirty percent stated that they are currently having trouble in providing adequate medical care due to staff shortage. CONCLUSION: Despite well-established guidelines, pandemic clearly affected clinical research and patientcare. Our survey underlines the necessity for building robust emergency algorithms tailored to gynaecological oncology to minimise negative impact in crises and to preserve access to clinical trials.

Awareness of Pregnant Patients about Congenital Cytomegalovirus Infection-A Semi-Systematic Review.

Background: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection represents a major issue worldwide, since it constitutes the most common viral congenital infection, with a prevalence of 0.58% and 1-5% in developed and developing countries, respectively. According to recent studies, prenatal treatment significantly decreases the risk of vertical CMV transmission, and early intervention may even prevent the termination of pregnancy. This study aimed to investigate the level of awareness of CMV among pregnant patients through a semi-systematic review. Methods: We included all of the original articles investigating knowledge and awareness about CMV infection among pregnant women. Our research included the PubMed database. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 statement, the Covidence system automatically guided us to screen the titles and/or abstracts, and then full-texts, followed by data extraction from the eligible studies. Results: We screened 764 studies altogether, with 13 studies included in this analysis. Knowledge about the existence of CMV infection risk varied between the articles, ranging from 11.4% in a study performed in Ireland to 60% reported in a study on the French population. Studies analyzing the impact of educational interventions on patients' knowledge about preventive measures reported significant improvement compared to their level of awareness before the intervention. Conclusions: Patients' awareness and knowledge about CMV seemed to be generally low or very low during the last decade before the development of effective secondary prevention methods. Educational interventions seem to be effective, and therefore their wide use could be of potential benefit. In the era of available secondary prevention of vertical transmission, it is crucial to concentrate the efforts of different stakeholders to increase the awareness of cCMV among pregnant women.

Management of Patients with Hypersensitivity to Platinum Salts and Taxane in Gynecological Cancers: A Cross-Sectional Study by the European Network of Young Gynaecologic Oncologists (ENYGO).

Platinum and taxane chemotherapy is associated with the risk of hypersensitivity reactions (HSRs), which may require switching to less effective treatments. Desensitization to platinum and taxane HSRs can be used to complete chemotherapy according to the standard regimen. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the current management of HSRs to platinum and/or taxane chemotherapy in patients with gynecologic cancers. We conducted an online cross-sectional survey among gynecological and medical oncologists consisting of 33 questions. A total of 144 respondents completed the survey, and 133 respondents were included in the final analysis. Most participants were gynecologic oncologists (43.6%) and medical oncologists (33.8%), and 77.4% (n = 103) were involved in chemotherapy treatment. More than 73% of participants experienced >5 HSRs to platinum and taxane per year. Premedication and a new attempt with platinum or taxane chemotherapy were used in 84.8% and 92.5% of Grade 1-2 HSRs to platinum and taxane, respectively. In contrast, desensitization was used in 49.4% and 41.8% of Grade 3-4 HSRs to platinum and taxane, respectively. Most participants strongly emphasized the need to standardize the management of platinum and taxane HSRs in gynecologic cancer. Our study showed that HSRs in gynecologic cancer are common, but management is variable and the use of desensitization is low. In addition, the need for guidance on the management of platinum- and taxane-induced HSRs in gynecologic cancer was highlighted.

Current practice with operative hysteroscopy for fertility preservation in endometrial cancer and endometrial premalignancies.

PURPOSE: The primary aim was to analyze the current practices on the use of operative hysteroscopy for preserving fertility in patients diagnosed with endometrial cancer and premalignancies. Our secondary objectives included investigating medical therapy and analyzing reported pregnancy-related outcomes subsequent to fertility preservation procedures. METHODS: We performed a semi-systematic literature review on PubMed, employing pertinent terms related to hysteroscopy, fertility preservation, and endometrial cancer and premalignancies. Patients undergoing operative hysteroscopy with or without following medical treatment were included. We adhered to the PRISMA 2020 statement and utilized Covidence software to manage our systematic review. We performed a pooled analysis on various outcomes. RESULTS: Our final analysis included 15 studies evaluating 458 patients, where 238 (52.0%) were diagnosed with endometrial cancer, and 220 (48.0%) had endometrial premalignancies. With 146 pregnancies in our study, the overall pregnancy rate was 31.9%. Among these, 97 resulted in live births, accounting for 66.4% of the reported pregnancies. In terms of medical treatment, various forms of progestins were reported. Complications or adverse effects related to operative hysteroscopy were not reported in more than half of the studies. Among those studies that did report them, no complications nor adverse effects were documented. After hysteroscopic resection, complete response to medical treatment has been reported in 65.5% of the overall cases. CONCLUSION: Our review sheds light on the contemporary landscape of operative hysteroscopy for fertility preservation in endometrial cancer and premalignancies. Future studies should include the integration of molecular classification into fertility-preserving management of endometrial malignancies to offer a more personalized and precise strategy.

Pre-Operative Malnutrition in Patients with Ovarian Cancer: What Are the Clinical Implications? Results of a Prospective Study.

BACKGROUND: Malnutrition was associated with worse survival outcomes, impaired quality of life, and deteriorated performance status across various cancer types. We aimed to identify risk factors for malnutrition in patients with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) and impact on survival. METHODS: In our prospective observational monocentric study, we included the patients with primary and recurrent EOC, tubal or peritoneal cancer conducted. We assessed serum laboratory parameters, body mass index, nutritional risk index, nutritional risk screening score (NRS-2002), and bio-electrical impedance analysis. RESULTS: We recruited a total of 152 patients. Patients > 65 years-old, with ascites of >500 mL, or with platinum-resistant EOC showed statistically significant increased risk of malnutrition when evaluated using NRS-2002 (p-values= 0.014, 0.001, and 0.007, respectively). NRS-2002 < 3 was an independent predictive factor for complete tumor resectability (p = 0.009). The patients with NRS-2002 ≥ 3 had a median overall survival (OS) of seven months (95% CI = 0-24 months), as compared to the patients with NRS-2002 < 3, where median OS was forty-six months (p = 0.001). A phase angle (PhAα) ≤ 4.5 was the strongest predictor of OS. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, we found malnutrition to be an independent predictor of incomplete cytoreduction and independent prognostic factor for poor OS. Preoperative nutritional assessment is an effective tool in the identification of high-risk EOC groups characterized by poor clinical outcome.