Trial of labor after caesarean section in low risk pregnancies: is it risky?

PURPOSE: To evaluate the influence of a previous caesarean section on adverse composite maternal and perinatal outcome in women who attempted a trial of labor. METHODS: This historical cohort study analyzed maternal and perinatal outcome in women with otherwise low risk pregnancies at term who underwent a trial of labor after a caesarean section (TOLAC). The primary outcome measure was the adverse composite outcome. Secondary outcome measures were amongst others the caesarean section rate and the mode of vaginal delivery. RESULTS: The adverse composite outcome was more frequently in the previous caesarean section group compared to women with no previous caesarean Sect. (22.3% vs. 15.6%, p < 0.0001). The percentage of caesarean Sect. (15.4% vs. 8.2%, p < 0,0001), uterine rupture (1.0% vs. 0.02%, p < 0.0001), placental abruption (1.1% vs. 0.3%, p = 0.0014), vaginal operative delivery (16.0% vs. 8.6%, p < 0.0001), pH < 7.10 (3.7% vs. 2.5%, p = 0.0151), base excess < -12 (3.2% vs. 2.2%, p = 0.0297), abnormal cardiotocography (22.5% vs. 13.9%, p < 0,0001) and fetal blood analysis (6.2% vs. 2.6%, p < 0.0001) was significantly higher in women with a previous caesarean section. Taking the parity into account, these differences could only been seen in women without a previous vaginal delivery. In parous women with a previous vaginal delivery and a caesarean section in history, the adverse composite did not differ between the groups. Only the rate of pH < 7.1 was higher in women after a caesarean Sect. (4.5% vs. 1.8%, p = 0.0436). CONCLUSION: Trial of labor after caesarean in otherwise low risk pregnancies is associated with a higher rate of complications especially if there is no history of vaginal delivery.

Can Chat-GPT read and understand guidelines? An example using the S2k guideline intrauterine growth restriction of the German Society for Gynecology and Obstetrics.

PURPOSE: To investigate the capacity of chat-generative pre-trained transformer (Chat-GPT) to understand the S2k guideline of the German Society for Gynecology and Obstetrics on intrauterine growth restriction. METHODS: The German-language free Chat-GPT version was used to test the ability of Chat-GPT to understand the definition of small for gestational age and intrauterine growth restriction, to indicate the correct time and place of delivery and to evaluate ist ability to recommend a spontaneous delivery versus a primary caesarean section in accordance with the guideline recommendations. In order to objectively evaluate the suggestions a simple three-color 'traffic light' evaluation system was employed. RESULTS: Almost all Chat-GPT's suggestions in the context of definition of small for gestational age/intrauterine growth restriction as well as correct time of delivery were adequate, whereas more than half of the suggestions made in terms of correct delivery mode needed reformulation or even correction. CONCLUSION: Chat-GPT appears to be a valuable form of artificial intelligence that could be integrated into everyday clinical practice.

Update Breast Cancer 2022 Part 2 - Advanced Stage Breast Cancer.

For patients with advanced breast cancer, several novel therapies have emerged in recent years, including CDK4/6 inhibitors, immune checkpoint inhibitors, PARP inhibitors, alpelisib, tucatinib and trastuzumab-deruxtecan, and sacituzumab-govitecan, which have transformed and expanded the therapeutic landscape for patients with advanced breast cancer. Some of these substances have now been approved for use in the early stages of the disease, or are expected to be approved in the near future, so the therapeutic landscape will change once again. Therefore, current scientific efforts are focused on the introduction of new substances and understanding their mechanisms of progression and efficacy. This review summarizes recent developments with reference to recent publications and conferences. Findings on the treatment of patients with HER2-positive breast cancer and brain metastases are presented, as are a number of studies looking at biomarkers in patients with HER2-negative, hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. In particular, the introduction of oral selective estrogen receptor degraders provides new opportunities to establish biomarker-based therapy. Molecular diagnostics is establishing itself as a diagnostic marker and parameter of progression.

Update Breast Cancer 2022 Part 1 - Early Stage Breast Cancer.

Evidence relating to the treatment of breast cancer patients with early-stage disease has increased significantly in the past year. Abemaciclib, olaparib, and pembrolizumab are new drugs with good efficacy in the relevant patient groups. However, some questions remain unanswered. In particular, it remains unclear which premenopausal patients with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer should be spared unnecessary treatment. The question of the degree to which chemotherapy exerts a direct cytotoxic effect on the tumor or reduces ovarian function through chemotherapy could be of key importance. This group of patients could potentially be spared chemotherapy. New, previously experimental biomarker analysis methods, such as spatial analysis of gene expression (spatial transcriptomics) are gradually finding their way into large randomized phase III trials, such as the NeoTRIP trial. This in turn leads to a better understanding of the predictive factors of new therapies, for example immunotherapy. This review summarizes the scientific innovations from recent congresses such as the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium 2021 but also from recent publications.

Correction: Update Breast Cancer 2021 Part 5 - Advanced Breast Cancer.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1055/a-1724-9569.][This corrects the article DOI: 10.1055/a-1724-9569.].

Update Breast Cancer 2021 Part 4 - Prevention and Early Stages.

This past year has seen new and effective options for further improving treatment outcome in many patients with early-stage breast cancer. Patients with hormone receptor-positive disease benefited significantly from the addition of the CDK4/6 inhibitor abemaciclib to endocrine adjuvant therapy. In triple-negative disease, data were presented for two treatment regimens. Patients with advanced disease (stage 2 and 3) benefit from neoadjuvant treatment with the immune checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab in combination with standard chemotherapy, regardless of PD-L1 expression. When neoadjuvant therapy has failed to achieve the desired remission in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations, the administration of the PARP inhibitor olaparib has demonstrated an impressive response. Other data address translational issues in HER2-positive breast cancer and neoadjuvant therapy approaches with the oral SERD giredestrant and the PARP inhibitor talazoparib. This review presents and analyses the findings of this year' s most important study outcomes.

Update Breast Cancer 2021 Part 5 - Advanced Breast Cancer.

Despite the COVID 19 pandemic and mostly virtual congresses, innovation in the treatment of breast cancer patients continues at an unabated pace. This review summarises the current developments. Initial overall survival data for CDK4/6 inhibitor treatment in combination with an aromatase inhibitor as the first advanced line of therapy in treatment-naive postmenopausal patients have been published. Similarly, a trial comparing trastuzumab-deruxtecan versus trastuzumab-emtansine revealed a clear benefit regarding progression-free survival. Understanding of biomarkers making checkpoint inhibitor therapy particularly effective is increasing, and new compounds such as oral selective estrogen receptor destabilisers (SERDs) are entering clinical development and completing the first phase III trials.

Update Breast Cancer 2021 Part 3 - Current Developments in the Treatment of Early Breast Cancer: Review and Assessment of Specialised Treatment Scenarios by an International Expert Panel.

The continuous availability of findings from new studies repeatedly results in updated treatment recommendations and guidelines. In the case of breast carcinoma in particular, several studies have been published in the last few years that have transformed how early and advanced breast carcinoma is being treated. However, this by no means means implies that there is agreement among all experts on specific issues. It is precisely the diversity of interpretation of guidelines and study findings that reflects the constantly changing available data and its complexity, as well as the availability of new drugs. In recent years, new substances such as pertuzumab, T-DM1, neratinib and capecitabine have become available to treat patients with early stages of breast carcinoma. Furthermore, the first results on the use of CDK4/6 inhibitors for adjuvant treatment have now been published. Last but not least, the use of multigene tests to avoid the necessity of chemotherapy in certain patients is still under discussion. This review summarises the state of the data and publishes the results of the survey completed by experts at the 2021 St. Gallen Breast Cancer Conference on early-stage breast cancer.