Stabilised Hyaluronic Acid (sHA) gel as a novel marker for breast cancer tumour bed cavity: Surgical feasibility.

Introduction: Consistent delineation of the breast conserving surgery (BCS) tumour bed (TB) for breast cancer remains a challenge for radiation oncologists. Accurate delineation allows for better local control and reduces toxicity when planning partial breast or TB boost radiation therapy (RT). Methods: In the operating theatre (OT) breast surgeons inserted stabilised hyaluronic acid (sHA) gel as small drops approximately one cm into the walls surrounding the resection cavity. Surgical feasibility was determined by the rate of successful sHA gel insertion procedure, the ease of insertion as rated by surgeons, the time required for insertion procedure, the quantity used, and any adverse events (AE) relating to sHA gel insertion. Results: Thirty-five patients were enrolled. All patients underwent sHA gel insertion successfully. The procedure added a median of 2.8 min to the OT time and was rated as 'easy' in 89 % of patients. There were no immediate AE in OT. Five (14 %) patients experienced a grade 2 or higher AE. Three of the five patients were prescribed oral antibiotics for breast infection. Two of the five patients experienced a grade 3 AE - haematoma which required evacuation in OT day 1 post-BCS, and infected seroma which required drainage and washout in OT 2 months post-BCS. All five patients recovered and underwent the planned adjuvant therapies for their BC. The AE data reflects common risks with standard BCS and are not clearly attributed to sHA gel insertion alone. Conclusion: We show that sHA gel is surgically feasible as a marker to help define the TB cavity for post-BCS adjuvant MRI-based RT planning.

Pathologic Complete Response and Oncologic Outcomes in Locally Advanced Breast Cancers Treated With Neoadjuvant Radiation Therapy: An Australian Perspective.

PURPOSE: To assess the degree of pathologic complete response (pCR), postoperative surgical complication rates, and oncological outcomes in women with locally advanced breast cancer or high-risk breast cancers treated with neoadjuvant radiation therapy (NART). METHODS AND MATERIALS: This retrospective, multi-institutional review involved 138 clinically staged patients with 140 breast cancers treated with NART between January 2014 and February 2021. Treatments involved sequential neoadjuvant chemotherapy and NART, followed by mastectomy with or without axillary surgery and immediate autologous breast reconstruction. Descriptive statistics were used to assess patient and disease features, treatment regimens, pathologic response, and factors affecting postoperative complications. Kaplan-Meier curves were performed to assess locoregional recurrence-free, distant metastasis-free, and overall survival outcomes. RESULTS: Median age was 47 years (interquartile range, 42-52). The median follow-up was 35.2 months (interquartile range, 17.1-46.5). pCR was achieved in 36.4% (as defined by Chevallier classification) or 42.1% (as defined by Miller-Payne scores) of patients. Greater pCR rates were achieved for HER2+ (73.8%-85.7%) and triple-negative phenotypes (47.6%-57.1%). There were 21 grade 3 surgical complications including 10 grade 3B breast events and 8 grade 3B donor-site events, where surgical reintervention was required. At 3-years' follow-up, the locoregional recurrence-free survival was 98.1%, distant metastasis-free survival was 83.6%, and overall survival was 95.3%%. CONCLUSIONS: NART is feasible to facilitate a single-stage mastectomy and immediate autologous breast reconstruction. This study demonstrated comparable rates of postoperative complication to standard of care, and high rates of pCR, which translates to high rates of locoregional control, distant metastasis-free survival, and overall survival.

Optimal assessment tools in assessing breast surgery: patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) vs. objective measures.

Improving the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients is the fundamental aim of aesthetic breast surgery and its importance is increasingly recognised in breast cancer-related surgery. There has been growing acceptance of the value of assessing physical, psychological and social well-being through patient reported outcome measures (PROMs). It is important to consider the role of PROMs in relation to objective measures to ensure that the optimal assessment tools are selected when assessing outcomes in breast surgery. A narrative review was conducted of published articles identified on Ovid Medline by searching the terms: patient reported outcome measures, quality of life (QoL), functional outcomes, aesthetic outcomes, complications and breast surgery. Reference lists were also examined to find relevant articles not detected through the search. Survival and mortality are outcomes of immense importance in breast surgery that are not suitable for assessment through PROMs and should be measured objectively. Post-operative complication rates and markers of their severity are most appropriately assessed using objective measures, however, patients may provide valuable insights into the impact complications have on their QoL. All current assessment tools for assessing aesthetic outcome have inherent limitations, and thus it is likely that both subjective and objective measures are required to comprehensively assess aesthetic outcomes in breast surgery. Physical dysfunction can be assessed objectively, however, PROMs may better evaluate physical well-being, reflecting the real-life implications of a change in function. Psychological and social well-being is irrefutably personal in nature and best assessed through PROMs. There is no one optimal assessment tool for assessing breast surgery outcomes. Utilising a combination of PROMs and objective measures is necessary to accurately and comprehensively evaluate the impact and effectiveness of surgical breast interventions.

Study on the time taken for patients to achieve the ability to self-care their new stoma.

BACKGROUND: Stoma formation in colorectal surgery is a recognized independent cause of prolonged hospital stay. It has been shown that preoperative stoma education and siting leads to a reduction in the length of hospital stay. Despite this, the length of time to independent stoma management and the variables that affect this has not been well studied. We conducted a prospective case series to analyse this. METHODS: A total of 107 consecutive colorectal surgery patients undergoing stoma formation at two separate large metropolitan hospitals, one private funded and the other government funded, were enrolled in a prospective case series. The primary outcome evaluated was independent management of stoma at discharge from hospital. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the factors associated with achieving independent stoma management at discharge. RESULTS: The median length of stay was 9 days (range: 4-71). In our study, 71% of patients achieved self-care at the time of discharge from hospital (76/107 patients). The median length of time taken to achieve independent management of a stoma was 7 days (interquartile range: 6-9). Factors associated with increased chance of independent management of stoma at discharge included younger age, male, preoperative siting and treatment in a public hospital. CONCLUSION: Our study supports that preoperative stoma education in combination with post-operative stoma education is superior to post-operative stoma education alone. Interestingly, treatment in a private hospital is associated with a higher likelihood of failure to achieve independent stoma management at discharge. This is unexpected and not explained by our data.