Angiotensin receptor blockade and stereotactic body radiation therapy for early stage lung cancer ARB & SBRT for early stage lung cancer.

Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) demonstrates excellent local control in early stage lung cancer, however a quarter of patients develop recurrence or distant metastasis. Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-ß) supports metastasis and treatment resistance, and angiotensin receptor blockade (ARB) indirectly suppresses TGF-ß signaling. This study investigates whether patients taking ARBs while undergoing SBRT for early stage lung cancer exhibited improved overall survival (OS) or recurrence free survival (RFS) compared to patients not taking ARBs. This was a single institution retrospective analysis of 272 patients treated with SBRT for early stage lung cancer between 2009 and 2018. Patient health data was abstracted from the electronic medical record. OS and RFS were assessed using Kaplan-Meier method. Log-rank test was used to compare unadjusted survival between groups. Univariable and multivariable Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs). Of 247 patients analyzed, 24 (10%) patients took ARBs for the duration of radiotherapy. There was no difference in mean age, median tumor diameter, or median biologic effective dose between patients taking ARBs or not. Patients taking ARBs exhibited increased OS (ARB = 96.7 mo.; no ARB = 43.3 mo.; HR = 0.25 [95% CI: 0.10 to 0.62, P = .003]) and increased RFS (median RFS, ARB = 64.3 mo.; No ARB = 35.1 mo.; HR = 0.26 [95% CI: 0.10 to 0.63, P = .003]). These effects were not seen in patients taking angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) or statins. ARB use while undergoing SBRT for early stage lung cancer may increase OS and RFS, but ACEI use does not show the same effect.

HLH-Like Syndrome and Rhabdomyolysis in an Adolescent Patient.

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a rare heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by immune overactivation. It can occur because of primary genetic mutations or secondary to almost any inflammatory or infectious process. The clinical manifestations of this syndrome are varied and life-threatening and resemble those of many malignancies, infections, sepsis, and multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children. Laboratory abnormalities often are not diagnostic for HLH until late in the disease course, and the laboratory studies are send-out tests at most institutions. Thus, quickly and accurately diagnosing pediatric patients with HLH presents significant challenges to the clinician. Furthermore, there has been recent discussion in the literature regarding the use of diagnostic criteria for HLH. In this case report, we detail an adolescent male individual who developed persistent unexplained fever, rhabdomyolysis, and regional ischemic immune myopathy. To our knowledge, there is no previous report of a pediatric patient with this rare myopathy or HLH presenting with persistent rhabdomyolysis in the literature. The patient was hospitalized for a total of 61 days, with multiple treatments attempted throughout during his course of illness. In this report, we highlight the importance of using diagnostic flexibility when HLH is suspected in pediatric patients and provide insight into the unique challenges of identifying this condition.