Preliminary evaluation of a serious game for the dissemination and public awareness on preschool children's oral health.

This article presents the preliminary evaluation by dentists, teachers and parents of a serious game for dissemination of public awareness on preschool children's oral health. In this game, the player keeps a victory condition, while your tooth remains whole. Preliminary evaluation was performed in two parts. The first part was a questionnaire designed to evaluate the applicability of this technology and the opinions on the effectiveness of games in education and in oral health promotion. In the second part, the game is presented and an evaluation questionnaire of it is applied. This study had the participation of 115 persons. There was 80% approval which suggested that the game is an alternative for the prevention of dental awareness. Furthermore, the study perceives that teachers can work together with dentists in order to perform dental prevention.

Increased serum CA-125 levels in patients with lung cancer post thoracotomy.

Cancer antigen (CA)-125 is a useful tumor marker for the follow up of ovarian and lung cancer. It is a sensitive, but not specific, tumor marker. Increased serum CA-125 levels have already been described in a number of benign and malignant diseases. We report two cases of increased serum CA-125 levels status post thoracotomy for resection of an early stage lung tumor that regressed spontaneously 3 and 8 months following surgery. Serum CA-125 levels may increase after thoracotomy, unrelated to tumor recurrence. Therefore, CA-125 levels obtained postoperatively should be interpreted with caution.

Gefitinib (Iressa) in metastatic patients with non-small cell lung cancer: preliminary experience in a Brazilian center.

CONTEXT: Patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer are deemed incurable, but they may derive some benefit from systemic palliative chemotherapy. Recently, with the introduction of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) antagonists such as gefitinib (Iressa), an effective and less toxic option is now available for the treatment of such patients. OBJECTIVE: To assess the activity and toxicity of gefitinib in a group of Brazilian patients. TYPE OF STUDY: Prospective, open label, non-randomized and non-controlled. SETTING: Clínica de Oncologia e Hematologia (CLIOH), São Paulo, Brazil. PATIENTS AND METHODS: From June 2002 to April 2003 we treated five patients with metastatic previously-treated non-small cell lung cancer (median of two previous chemotherapy regimens), using gefitinib at a dose of 250 mg orally on a daily basis, within a compassionate protocol sponsored by AstraZeneca. The patients' median age was 65 years and two of them were male. Three had a performance status of 1, one of 2 and one of 3, on the ECOG (Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group) scale. RESULTS: We observed skin rash in two patients, diarrhea in three and arthralgia in two. One patient had a partial response and another had stabilization of her disease, as measured via imaging studies (which have lasted for more than 11 and 4 months, respectively), which were accompanied by significant decrease in tumor markers, whereas three patients worsened during treatment. DISCUSSION: New options of chemotherapy agents with favorable toxicity profiles are urgently needed for the treatment of metastatic non-small lung cancer patients who usually have short life expectancies. In our small series of five patients, we observed stabilization of the disease in two of them and the skin and gastrointestinal reactions often described in the literature in all of them. Two had arthralgia, not reported before. CONCLUSION: We concluded that gefitinib is an important addition to the therapeutic armamentarium for patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer.

Gefitinib (Iressa®) in metastatic patients with non-small cell lung cancer: preliminary experience in a Brazilian center

CONTEXTO: Pacientes com carcinoma de pulmão não-pequenas células metastático são considerados incuráveis mas podem se beneficiar de quimioterapia sistêmica paliativa. Recentemente, com o advento de inibidores do receptor do fator de crescimento epitelial (EGFR), uma alternativa eficiente e menos tóxica surgiu para o tratamento destes pacientes. OBJETIVO: Testar em nosso meio a atividade e toxicidade do gefitinib. TIPO DE ESTUDO: Prospectivo, não aleatorizado e não controlado. LOCAL: Clínica de Oncologia e Hematologia (CLIOH), São Paulo, Brasil. PACIENTES E MÉTODOS: De junho de 2002 a abril de 2003, tratamos cinco pacientes com carcinoma de pulmão não-pequenas células metastático e previamente expostos a quimioterapia sistêmica (mediana do número de esquemas quimioterápicos prévios = 2) com gefitinib na dose de 250 mg ao dia, oralmente, no contexto de um protocolo de disponibilização da droga patrocinado pela AstraZeneca. A idade média dos pacientes foi de 65 anos, dois eram de sexo masculino e três tinham um estado funcional de 1, um de 2 e um de 3 na escala do ECOG (Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group). RESULTADOS: Observamos erupção cutânea em dois, diarréia em três e artralgias em dois pacientes. Notamos uma resposta parcial e um paciente teve estabilização de sua doença com durações de 11+ e 4+ meses, respectivamente, ambas acompanhadas de significativa queda em seus marcadores tumorais. Três pacientes progrediram durante o tratamento. DISCUSSAO: Novas opções de agentes quimioterápicos com perfis de toxicidade mais favoráveis são urgentemente necessárias para o tratamento de pacientes com câncer de pulmão não-pequenas células, que normalmente têm baixa expectativa de vida. Na nossa pequena série de cinco pacientes, observamos estabilização da doença em dois e reações de pele e gastrintestinais, freqüentemente descritas na literatura, em todos. Dois tiveram artralgia, não reportada até o momento. CONCLUSÕES: Concluímos que o gefitinib constitui importante adição ao armamentário terapêutico para tratamento de casos avançados de carcinoma de pulmão não-pequenas células.