Axitinib versus placebo as an adjuvant treatment of renal cell carcinoma: results from the phase III, randomized ATLAS trial.

Background: The ATLAS trial compared axitinib versus placebo in patients with locoregional renal cell carcinoma (RCC) at risk of recurrence after nephrectomy. Patients and methods: In a phase III, randomized, double-blind trial, patients had >50% clear-cell RCC, had undergone nephrectomy, and had no evidence of macroscopic residual or metastatic disease [independent review committee (IRC) confirmed]. The intent-to-treat population included all randomized patients [≥pT2 and/or N+, any Fuhrman grade (FG), Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group status 0/1]. Patients (stratified by risk group/country) received (1 : 1) oral twice-daily axitinib 5 mg or placebo for ≤3 years, with a 1-year minimum unless recurrence, occurrence of second primary malignancy, significant toxicity, or consent withdrawal. The primary end point was disease-free survival (DFS) per IRC. A prespecified DFS analysis in the highest-risk subpopulation (pT3, FG ≥ 3 or pT4 and/or N+, any T, any FG) was conducted. Results: A total of 724 patients (363 versus 361, axitinib versus placebo) were randomized from 8 May 2012, to 1 July 2016. The trial was stopped due to futility at a preplanned interim analysis at 203 DFS events. There was no significant difference in DFS per IRC [hazard ratio (HR) = 0.870; 95% confidence interval (CI) : 0.660-1.147; P = 0.3211). In the highest-risk subpopulation, a 36% and 27% reduction in risk of a DFS event (HR; 95% CI) was observed per investigator (0.641; 0.468-0.879; P = 0.0051), and by IRC (0.735; 0.525-1.028; P = 0.0704), respectively. Overall survival data were not mature. Similar adverse events (AEs; 99% versus 92%) and serious AEs (19% versus 14%), but more grade 3/4 AEs (61% versus 30%) were reported for axitinib versus placebo. Conclusions: ATLAS did not meet its primary end point; however, improvement in DFS per investigator was seen in the highest-risk subpopulation. No new safety signals were reported. Trial registration number: NCT01599754.

Prostate cancer treatment ascertained from several sources: analysis of disagreement and error.

BACKGROUND: Treatment data for prostate cancer can be obtained from a variety of sources. Each of these sources has its own strengths and weaknesses and is subject to error. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a population-based cohort of 319 prostate cancer patients, data on treatment were obtained from five sources: two patient interviews at 6 and 12 months after diagnosis, primary caregiver interviews, physician questionnaires, and medical records. Inter-reporting agreement and accuracy of reporting (compared with medical records) were assessed. Multivariate analyses examined patient, caregiver, and physician characteristics as determinants of reporting error. RESULTS: The agreement among different reporting methods was generally good to excellent for prostatectomy and brachytherapy (kappa range 0.70-0.90) and fair to good (kappa range 0.35-0.75) for external beam radiation and hormonal treatment. Compared with medical records, the interview- and questionnaire-based data collection methods were more accurate for prostatectomy and brachytherapy than for external beam radiation and hormonal therapy. Using medical records as the 'gold standard', patient and caregiver interviews at 6 months after the diagnosis had higher sensitivity and specificity than other reporting sources. CONCLUSION: Interviews of prostate cancer patients and caregivers are useful alternatives to medical record abstraction, particularly if carried out during, or soon after, treatment.

Intratumor C-reactive protein as a biomarker of prognosis in localized renal cell carcinoma.

PURPOSE: Serum C-reactive protein has been shown to have prognostic value in localized and metastatic renal cell carcinoma. However, the prognostic value of intratumor C-reactive protein remains unknown. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 95 patients with resected, clinically localized (T1-T4N0M0) clear cell renal cell carcinoma were followed postoperatively. Intratumor C-reactive protein expression was assessed in surgical specimens using immunohistochemical analysis. Patients were categorized by staining intensity into low risk (staining 0 to 1), intermediate risk (staining 2) and high risk (staining 3) groups. Kaplan-Meier and multivariate Cox regression analyses were used to examine overall survival across patient and disease characteristics. Variables examined in multivariate Cox regression analysis included T stage, Fuhrman nuclear grade, tumor size, preoperative serum C-reactive protein and intratumor C-reactive protein staining. RESULTS: Followup extended up to 46 months with a mean (SD) of 29.8 (11.0) months. Twelve patients (12.6%) died during followup. Of all tumors 49.5%, 25.3% and 25.3% were graded by intratumor C-reactive protein staining as low risk (0 to 1), intermediate risk (2) and high risk (3), respectively. After controlling for variables significant on univariate analysis, patients in the high risk (3) group experienced a 27-fold increased risk of overall mortality compared to those in the low risk (0-1) group (HR 27.767, 95% CI 1.488-518.182). After adjusting for tumor staining, preoperative serum C-reactive protein was not a significant predictor of overall survival (p = 0.741). CONCLUSIONS: Intratumor C-reactive protein may be a robust biomarker of prognosis in patients with localized renal cell carcinoma.

Postoperative better than preoperative C-reactive protein at predicting outcome after potentially curative nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVES: Preoperative C-reactive protein (CRP) predicts metastasis and mortality in localized renal cell carcinoma (RCC). However, the predictive potential of after resection of localized RCC remains unclear. Therefore, we assessed the absolute ability of postoperative CRP to predict metastases and mortality as a continuous variable. METHODS: Patients with clinically localized (T1-T3N0M0) clear-cell RCC were followed for 1 year postoperatively. Metastases were identified radiologically and mortality by death certificate. Univariate and multivariate binary logistic regression analyses examined 1 year relapse-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) across patient and disease characteristics. RESULTS: Of the 110 patients in this study, 16.4% developed metastases and 6.4% died. Mean (SD) postoperative CRP for patients who did and did not develop metastases were 69.06 (73.55) mg/L and 5.27 (7.80), respectively. Mean (SD) postoperative CRP for patients who did and did not die were 89.31 (69.51) mg/L and 10.88 (30.32), respectively. In multivariate analysis, T-stage (OR: 12.452, 95% CI: 2.889-53.660) and postoperative CRP ((B: .080, SE: .025; P < .001) were significant predictors of RFS. T-Stage (OR: 11.715; 95% CI: 1.102-124.519) and postoperative CRP (B: .017; SE: .007; P < .001) were also significant predictors of OS. After adjusting for postoperative CRP, preoperative CRP was not predictive of these outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative, not preoperative, CRP is the better predictor of metastasis and mortality following nephrectomy for localized RCC. Clinicians should consider absolute postoperative CRP to identify high-risk patients for closer surveillance or additional therapy. Predictive algorithms should consider incorporating postoperative CRP as a continuous variable to maximize predictive ability.

Absolute preoperative C-reactive protein predicts metastasis and mortality in the first year following potentially curative nephrectomy for clear cell renal cell carcinoma.

PURPOSE: C-reactive protein is an inflammatory biomarker associated with tumor burden and metastasis in renal cell carcinoma. Recent studies suggest that preoperative C-reactive protein predicts metastasis and mortality after nephrectomy for localized renal cell carcinoma. However, these studies dichotomized C-reactive protein (typically 10 mg/l or greater vs less than 10 mg/l). Considering the continuous range of C-reactive protein (less than 1 mg/l to greater than 100 mg/l) we assessed the ability of absolute preoperative C-reactive protein to predict metastases and mortality as a continuous variable. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with clinically localized (T1-T3N0M0) clear cell renal cell carcinoma were followed for 1 year postoperatively. Metastases were identified radiologically and mortality was determined by death certificate. Univariate and multivariate binary logistic regression analyses examined 1-year relapse-free survival and overall relative survival across patient and disease characteristics. RESULTS: Of the 130 patients in this study metastases developed in 24.6% and 10.8% of the patients died. Mean (SD) preoperative C-reactive protein for patients in whom metastases did and did not develop was 89.17 (74.17) and 9.16 (30.62) mg/l, respectively. Mean preoperative C-reactive protein for patients who did and did not die was 102.61 (77.32) and 19.52 (46.10) mg/l, respectively. On multivariate analysis SSIGN score (p <0.001) and preoperative C-reactive protein (B 0.027, SE 0.003, p <0.001) were significant predictors of relapse-free survival, and preoperative platelets (p = 0.009) and preoperative C-reactive protein (B 0.011, SE 0.008, p <0.001) were significant predictors of overall relative survival. CONCLUSIONS: Absolute preoperative C-reactive protein is a robust predictor of metastasis and mortality after nephrectomy for localized renal cell carcinoma. Clinicians should consider absolute preoperative C-reactive protein to identify high risk patients for closer surveillance or additional therapy. In addition, predictive algorithms and models of metastasis should consider incorporating C-reactive protein as a continuous variable to maximize predictive ability.

Grade migration in prostate cancer: an analysis using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registry.

To utilize the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registry to examine trends in grade assignment. Data from 411 325 patients from 1984 to 2003 were analyzed for grade migration and for cause-specific survival (CSS) as a function of grade. There has been a significant grade migration during the study period (P<0.001), principally from well-differentiated (WD) to moderately differentiated (MD) disease. Five-year CSS of MD and WD patients have converged, suggesting a decreasing role of grade as a prognostic factor. A grade migration from WD to MD assignment has occurred, suggesting that prognostic categorizations based on grade across eras may be difficult to interpret.

'Insignificant' prostate cancer on biopsy: pathologic results from subsequent radical prostatectomy.

'Insignificant' prostate cancer is defined as disease of virulence insufficient to threaten survival. In this review, which describes nine articles and two abstracts discussing almost 800 cases, we discuss the correlation of such 'insignificant' biopsy findings in the context of subsequent radical prostatectomy data. From our review, minimal disease on biopsy does not reliably predict minimal disease in the subsequent prostatectomy specimen, in terms of the size and grade of tumor, extracapsular extension or positive margins. Thus, reasoned accounting should be made of other data before undertaking a course of radiation therapy as monotherapy, particularly prostate-specific antigen kinetics and potential molecular markers.

Lack of survival benefit of post-operative radiation therapy in prostate cancer patients with positive lymph nodes.

Randomized data from SWOG 8794 and EORTC 22911 confirm the benefit of post-operative radiation therapy (RT) for selected patients with pT3 prostate cancer (CaP) after radical prostatectomy (RP). However, data regarding the potential benefit of RT for patients post-RP with positive lymph node (+LN) involvement are limited. We analyzed the Surveillance Epidemiology End Results (SEER) registry for population-based data on efficacy of post-operative RT for +LN patients after RP. As LN data have only been captured by SEER since 1988, we analyzed data for 1988-1992, with specific attention to 10-year relative survival (defined as observed survival divided by the survival of a gender-, age- and race-matched population cohort without disease). Specifically analyzed were data for 1921 patients with nonmetastatic prostate cancer who underwent surgery alone, or surgery followed by RT, and who had +LNs documented. SEER does not code the interval between surgery and RT, so the ratio of patients receiving salvage versus adjuvant therapy is unknown. Using follow-up data through 2002, post-diagnosis survival was examined by number of +LNs. There was no significant relative survival benefit for +LN patients receiving post-operative RT (chi(2)P=0.270). These data do not support routine use of post-operative RT for patients with +LNs in the surgical specimen.

Postchemotherapy ejaculatory azoospermia: fatherhood with sperm from testis tissue with intracytoplasmic sperm injection.

PURPOSE: To define the success of testis sperm extraction (TESE) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) in azoospermic men with a history of chemotherapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In a retrospective study, 23 men with ejaculatory azoospermia and a history of chemotherapy underwent TESE in a search for usable spermatozoa. In six patients cryopreserved tissue and in nine patients fresh tissue provided sperm for an ICSI cycle. Histologic analysis of the testis was performed in all patients. The presence or absence of sperm, fertilization rates with ICSI, and final outcomes of pregnancy were recorded. RESULTS: Spermatozoa were found on TESE in 15 (65.2%) of 23 men. On histopathology, the predominant pattern observed was Sertoli cell only (47.8%), followed by hypospermatogenesis (30.4%), mixed (17.4%), and late maturation arrest (4.3%). The fertilization rate was 65.2%, and ongoing/delivered pregnancies occurred in 30.8% of cycles. Six healthy boys and four healthy girls have been born to date. CONCLUSION: Men who are azoospermic and have had prior cytotoxic therapy make up a small subgroup of males with nonobstructive azoospermia. It is important to define and characterize this subgroup and better define their true fertility potential. Approximately two thirds of these men have retrievable testis sperm, which may be used with ICSI to have healthy offspring. This exciting avenue for paternity has heretofore not been available to such patients.

Ejaculatory physiology and dysfunction.

The sequence of events encompassing ejaculation has been well described. Multiple disease processes can result in ejaculatory dysfunction. Evaluation and subsequent treatment of ejaculatory dysfunction is possible using behavioral, mechanical, and medical and surgical modalities. Further elucidation of ejaculation is now taking place at the molecular level.

Efficacy of once-daily tobramycin monotherapy for acute pulmonary exacerbations of cystic fibrosis: a preliminary study.

Our objective was to compare the efficacy, safety, and microbiology of once-daily intravenous (IV) tobramycin with conventional 8-hourly tobramycin/ceftazidime IV therapy for acute Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) pulmonary exacerbations in cystic fibrosis (CF). CF patients with PA-induced pulmonary exacerbations were allocated to receive either once-daily tobramycin (Mono) or conventional therapy with tobramycin/ceftazidime given 8-hourly (Conv). The two longitudinal groups received therapy in a double-blind, randomized manner over a period of 2 years. Tobramycin doses were adjusted to achieve a daily area under the time-concentration curve of 100 mg x hr/L in both groups. Results were assessed for both short-term changes (efficacy and safety after 10 days of IV antibiotics during acute exacerbations) and long-term changes (efficacy, safety, and sputum microbiology between study entry and exit). Pulmonary function tests (PFTs) on admission were similar in both groups. After 10 days of IV antibiotics, absolute mean improvements in percent of predicted PFTs were 12.8, 12.1, and 13.7 for forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV(1)), forced vital capacity (FVC), and forced expired flow between 25--75% of FVC (FEF(25--75%)) in the Conv group (n = 51 admissions) compared to 10.6, 9.9, and 10.6 in the Mono group (n = 47)(P<0.05 for all). Sixteen percent in the Conv group and 15% of patients in the Mono group did not respond to therapy by day 10. Long-term PFT patterns were similar for the Conv and Mono groups. The time between admissions did not differ. The Mono group showed a significant increase in tobramycin minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) against PA from study entry to study exit (P = 0.02, n = 27 strains); this failed to reach significance in the Conv group (P = 0.08, n = 25). There was no significant increase in the number of isolates, with MIC> or =8 mg/L in both groups. No short- or long-term changes in audiology or serum creatinine were found in either group. After 10 days of IV therapy, the urinary enzyme N-acetyl-beta-d-glucosaminidase/creatinine ratios increased in both groups (P0.05). This increase was greater in the Conv compared to the Mono group (P < 0.05). We conclude that this pilot study indicates once-daily tobramycin therapy to be as effective and safe as conventional 8-hourly tobramycin/ceftazidime therapy. Combination antibacterial therapy appears to offer no clinical advantage over once-daily tobramycin monotherapy. Tobramycin once-daily monotherapy is a potential alternative to conventional IV antibacterial therapy which deserves further investigation, including the impact on susceptibility of PA to tobramycin.

Repeated dose inhaled budesonide versus placebo in the treatment of croup.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the efficacy and tolerance of 12-hourly dosing with 2 mg 4 mL-1 of inhaled budesonide versus placebo in patients admitted to hospital with moderate/severe croup. METHOD: Eighty-two children hospitalised with croup received either 2 mg 4 mL-1 of budesonide or placebo 12 hourly (maximum four doses) via Ventstream nebuliser in a randomised, double-blind manner. Croup scores were performed at 0, 2, 6, 12, 24, 36 and 48 h from initial nebulisation whilst the patient remained hospitalised. Follow-up assessments were made 1 and 3 days after discharge. RESULTS: Improvement was observed in the budesonide group over the 12-h dosing interval when compared to placebo (P = 0.04). Time to attain a significant clinical improvement was superior in the budesonide group (P = 0.01). Three days after discharge seven of 32 placebo-treated patients and one of 34 budesonide-treated patients had sought further medical follow-up (P = 0.02). CONCLUSION: Twelve-hourly dosing with inhaled budesonide significantly improved symptoms of croup as well as decreased relapse rates when compared with placebo.

Conserved anterior boundaries of Hox gene expression in the central nervous system of the leech Helobdella.

Molecular developmental studies of fly and mouse embryos have shown that the identity of individual body segments is controlled by a suite of homeobox-containing genes called the Hox cluster. To examine the conservation of this patterning mechanism in other segmented phyla, we here describe four Hox gene homologs isolated from glossiphoniid leeches of the genus Helobdella. Based on sequence similarity and phylogenetic analysis, the leech genes Lox7, Lox6, Lox20, and Lox5 are deemed to be orthologs of the Drosophila genes lab, Dfd, Scr, and Antp, respectively. Sequence similarities between Lox5 and Antp outside the homeodomain and phylogenetic reconstructions suggest that the Antennapedia family of Hox genes (as defined by Bürglin, 1994) had already expanded to include at least two discrete Antp and Ubx/abdA precursors prior to the annelid/arthropod divergence. In situ hybridization reveals that the four Lox genes described in this study are all expressed at high levels within the segmented portion of the central nervous system (CNS), with variable levels of expression in the segmental mesoderm. Little or no expression was seen in peripheral ectoderm or endoderm, or in the unsegmented head region (prostomium). Each Lox gene has a distinct anterior expression boundary within one of the four rostral segments, and the anterior-posterior (AP) order of these expression boundaries is identical to that reported for the orthologous Hox gene products in fly and mouse. This finding supports the idea that the process of AP axis differentiation is conserved among the higher metazoan phyla with respect to the regional expression of individual Hox genes along that axis. One unusual feature of leech Hox genes is the observation that some genes are only expressed during later development -- beginning at the time of terminal cell differentiation -- whereas others begin expression at a much earlier stage, and their RNA ceases to be detectable shortly after the onset of expression of the 'late' Hox genes. The functional significance of this temporal disparity is unknown, but it is noteworthy that only the two 'early' Hox genes display high levels of mesodermal expression.

Homeobox genes in the Ctenophora: identification of paired-type and Hox homologues in the atentaculate ctenophore, Beroë ovata.

Homeobox-containing genes are a phylogenetically widespread family of transcription factors that can regulate cell fates during embryogenesis. Two distinct homeobox gene sequences are described for the atentaculate ctenophore Beroë, the first homeoboxes to be identified in this phylum. Beroë homeobox fragments were cloned in a survey of genomic DNA using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Parsimony, neighbor-joining, and maximum likelihood methods were used to infer the orthology of the ctenophore sequences to specific homeoboxes from higher metazoans including Drosophila, Caenorhabditis elegans, and humans. Cteno-paired appears most closely related to paired-typed homeoboxes. This is the first evidence of a paired-type homeobox in one of the so-called diploblastic animals. Cteno-Hoxl appears most closely related to members of the Hox class, particularly Antennapedia.

Isolation, characterization, and expression of Le-msx, a maternally expressed member of the msx gene family from the glossiphoniid leech, Helobdella.

The msx gene family is one of the most highly conserved of the nonclustered homeobox-containing genes. We have isolated an msx homolog (Le-msx) from the glossiphoniid leech, Helobdella robusta, and characterized its pattern of expression by whole mount in situ hybridization. In situ expression and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) data results show that Le-msx is a maternal transcript initially uniformly distributed in the cortex of immature oocytes that becomes asymmetrically localized to the polar regions of the uncleaved zygote. This is the earliest reported expression for the msx gene family and the first maternally expressed homeodomain-containing transcription factor reported in annelids. During embryonic development, Le-msx is expressed in all 10 embryonic stem cells and their segmental founder cell descendants. At midembryonic stages, Le-msx is expressed in the expanding germinal plate. Le-msx is confined to the central nervous system and nephridia at late (stage 9) stages and subsequently disappears from nephridia. In addition, we present a phylogenetic hypothesis for the evolution of the msx gene family, including the identification of a putative C. elegans msx homolog and the realignment of the sponge msx homolog to the NK class of homeodomain genes.