Efficacy of Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation in Early to Mid-stage Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients in the Era of Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

BACKGROUND: Recent advancements in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for staging have highlighted the critical question of the need for prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) in managing early to mid-stage small cell lung cancer (SCLC). This study assesses the impact of PCI on overall survival (OS) and intracranial control among patients with stage I-IIB SCLC. METHODS: Data from 148 stage I-IIB SCLC patients treated with thoracic radiation therapy (TRT) at two centers were examined. Patients were categorized based on PCI administration: 63 received PCI, while 85 did not. All underwent pretreatment MRI, achieving at least a partial response to therapy. A 1:1 propensity score matching analysis corrected for potential biases. RESULTS: Propensity scores were generated to 116 patients, considering patient demographics, disease progression, and treatment methods. Death was included as a competing risk. The 3-year brain metastases (BM) occurrence rate was significantly higher in patients who did not receive PCI (30.0%) compared to those who did (14.8%), however, the difference was not statistically significant (No PCI vs. PCI, hazard ratio [HR]: 2.08, 95% CI [0.93-4.55], P = .07). No significant effect of PCI on OS was observed [PCI vs. No PCI, HR: 0.80, 95% CI (0.45-1.43), P = .45]. A subgroup analysis of stage IIB patients showed a significant increase in BM risk and mortality for those not receiving PCI (No PCI vs. PCI, BM risk HR: 5.85, 95% CI: 1.83-18.87, P = .003; mortality HR: 2.78, 95% CI: 1.14-6.67, P = .02), with less pronounced effects in stages I-IIA. CONCLUSION: With modern MRI-based screening, PCI may markedly benefit stage IIB SCLC patients by reducing BM and improving OS after initial sensitive treatment. This benefit does not appear to extend to stage I-IIA patients.

Comparative analysis of the clinical effects of different thoracoscopic resection in the treatment of Stage I Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Objective: To compare and analyze the clinical effects of thoracoscopic lobectomy and segmentectomy in stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Method: This was a retrospective study. Eighty patients with stage I NSCLC treated in Cangzhou People's Hospital from December 2019 to January 2022 were randomly divided into the segmentectomy group and lobectomy group, with 40 cases in each group. Further comparative analysis was carried out focusing on perioperative indexes, maximum ventilation volume (MVV), forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1), VAS score of postoperative pain and complications. Result: There was no significant difference in the number of dissected lymph nodes and extubation time between the two groups (p>0.05). The operation time was longer, while intraoperative blood loss was less and the stay of stay in hospital was shorter in the segmentectomy group significantly than those in the lobectomy group (p<0.05). Furthermore, no significant difference was observed in MVV%, FVC% and FEV1% between the two groups before operation (p>0.05). Meanwhile, the segmentectomy group had evidently lower VAS scores at 1 d, 3 d and 5 d postoperatively than those in the lobectomy group (p<0.05). Besides, there was a much lower total incidence of complications in the segmentectomy group than that in the lobectomy group (p<0.05). Conclusion: Compared with lobectomy, thoracoscopic segmentectomy is more effective in the treatment of stage I NSCLC, with less bleeding and mild pain, which can alleviate pulmonary function injury and reduce postoperative complications that is conducive to the improved prognosis of patients.

The impact of tumor size on the prognosis and chemotherapy efficacy in stage I/II colon cancer patients.

Background: The impact of tumor size on the survival and chemotherapy reponse of early-stage colon cancer remains unclear. Our study explored the effect of tumor size on overall survival (OS) and postoperative chemotherapy efficacy in patients with stage I/II colon cancer. Methods: Stage I/II colon cancer patients from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database and a China center were extracted as two cohorts respectively. X-tile program was adopted to acquire optimal cutoff points of tumor size (16mm and 49mm). Harrell's concordance index (c-index) and time-dependent receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) were used to indicate discrimination ability of prognostic factors. Results: Overall, 104,908 and 168 stage I/II postoperative colon cancer patients from SEER database and a China center were eligible, respectively. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that large tumor size was associated with poor OS in two cohorts. The effect of tumor size on OS gradually decreased as the T stage increased both before PSM (c-index 0.535 for T1N0M0 and 0.506 for T4N0M0, p<0.05) and after PSM (c-index 0.543 for T1N0M0, p<0.05; c-index 0.543 for T4N0M0, p>0.05). Stratified analyses showed that chemotherapy improved the OS rate by 9.5% (chemotherapy vs. non-chemotherapy: 83.5% vs. 73.0%) or 12.8% (chemotherapy vs. non-chemotherapy: 85.7% vs. 72.9%) before and after PSM in T2N0M0 patients with tumor size >49 mm, but not in T1N0M0. The survival benefit provided by chemotherapy for T2N0M0 patients with large tumor was also validated in the Chinese cohort. Conclusions: Large tumor size was a risk factor for stage I/II colon cancer, especially for T1N0M0. Tumor size could serve as a complementary factor guiding postoperative chemotherapy for T2N0M0 patients.

Assessing the prognostic value of KRAS mutation combined with tumor size in stage I-II non-small cell lung cancer: a retrospective analysis.

Background: KRAS mutation status is a well-established independent prognostic factor in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), yet its role in early-stage disease is unclear. Here, we investigate the prognostic value of combining survival data on KRAS mutation status and tumor size in stage I-II NSCLC. Methods: We studied the combined impact of KRAS mutational status and tumor size on overall survival (OS) in patients with stage I-II NSCLC. We performed a retrospective study including 310 diagnosed patients with early (stage I-II) NSCLCs. All molecularly assessed patients diagnosed with stage I-II NSCLC between 2016-2018 in the Västra Götaland Region of western Sweden were screened in this multi-center retrospective study. The primary study outcome was overall survival. Results: Out of 310 patients with stage I-II NSCLC, 37% harbored an activating mutation in the KRAS gene. Our study confirmed staging and tumor size as prognostic factors. However, KRAS mutational status was not found to impact OS and there was no difference in the risk of death when combining KRAS mutational status and primary tumor size. Conclusions: In our patient cohort, KRAS mutations in combination with primary tumor size did not impact prognosis in stage I-II NSCLC.

Efficacy and Safety of thermal ablation for Patients With stage I non-small cell lung cancer.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to measure the safety and efficacy of thermal ablation, including radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and microwave ablation (MWA), for patients with stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The databases PubMed was searched from inception to November 2023 to identify relevant studies. Statistical analyses were performed with R version 3. 6. 3. RESULTS: Thirty-three studies involving 1400 patients were finally included. According to our study, the incidence of patients with stage I NSCLC who were older than 60 years old was 98 % (95 % CI [94-100 %]); the lesions were mostly located in RUL (Right Upper Lobe) and LUL (Left Upper Lobe), and the incidence of the two sites was 29 % (95 % CI [23-35 %]) and 27 % (95 % CI [21-33 %]), respectively; the types of lung cancers mainly included adenocarcinoma, squamous carcinoma, and large-cell lung cancer, of which adenocarcinoma accounted for the largest proportion of 63 % (95 % CI [56-70 %]); the causes of death were mainly categorized into cancer-related (57 %, 95 %CI[40-74 %]) and noncancer-related (40 %, 95 %CI [23-58 %]); the common complications in the postoperative period were pneumothorax and pain, with the incidence of 33 % (95 %CI[24-44 %]) and 33 % (95 %CI[19-50 %]), and the rate of the postoperative complications in MWA was slightly higher than those in RFA; the local recurrence rate was 23 % (95 %CI[17-29 %]) and the distant recurrence rate was 18 % (95 %CI[7-32 %]); the pooling result showed the rate of 1-, 2-, 3-, and 5-year survival rate were 96 %, 81 %, 68 %, and 42 %, the Cancer-specific survival (CSS) rates at 1, 2, 3, and 5 years were 98 %, 88 %, 75 %, and 58 %, Disease-free survival (DFS) rates at 1, 2, 3, and 5 years were 87 %, 63 %, 57 %, and 42 %, there were no significant differences existed between the RFA group and MWA group in survival rate, CSS and DFS. CONCLUSION: Ablation therapy is safe and effective for stage I NSCLC patient. MWA and RFA have comparable efficacy, safety, and prognosis, which could be recommended for patients with stageⅠNSCLC, especially for patients who cannot tolerate open surgery.

Modern era systemic therapies: Expanding concepts of cure in early and locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Cure of cancer is a sensitive and multidimensional concept that is challenging to define, difficult to assert at the individual patient level, and often surrounded by controversy. The notion of cure in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has changed and continues to evolve with improvements in diagnosis and treatment. Targeted and immune therapies have recently entered the treatment landscape of stage I-III NSCLC. While some initial pivotal trials of such agents failed to improve survival, recently approved epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors (in EGFR-mutated NSCLC) and immune checkpoint inhibitors have shown delays in disease recurrence or progression and unprecedented survival gains compared to previous standards of care. Additional data is now emerging supporting the benefit of treatment strategies based on alternation-matched targeting (anaplastic lymphoma kinase [ALK] inhibition in ALK-altered disease) and immune checkpoint inhibition in stage I-III NSCLC. Similar to previous developments in the treatment of early and locally advanced NSCLC, it is expected that statistically significant and clinically meaningful trial-level benefits will translate into real-world benefits, including improvements in cure measures. Parallel advances in molecular testing (e.g., circulating tumor DNA analyses) are also allowing for a deeper and more comprehensive characterization of disease status and treatment response. Given the impact that curative-intent treatments have on survival, it is critical that various stakeholders, including clinicians and patients, are aware of new opportunities to pursue cure in stage I-III NSCLC.

Atrial septal interventions during and after hybrid stage I palliation of hypoplastic left heart syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Hybrid stage I palliation (HS1P) is an alternative approach for initial palliation in hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) patients. Unlike surgical stage I palliation where atrial septectomy is routinely performed, atrial septal intervention (ASI) during HS1P is variable. In this study, we described our experience with ASI in single ventricle (SV) patients who underwent HS1P and identified factors associated with need for ASI after HS1P. METHODS: Data were retrospectively collected for all HLHS patients who underwent HS1P at our center over the past 12 years. We evaluated ASIs performed during the HS1P (intra-HS1P ASI) and ASIs performed during the period from HS1P to the subsequent surgical stage, either interval Norwood stage I or comprehensive stage II (post-HS1P ASI). Patient factors and procedural data were compared to identify factors associated with undergoing post-HS1P ASI and the impact of ASI on patient outcomes was evaluated. RESULTS: Of 50 SV patients included, 23 (46%) underwent intra-HS1P ASI and 26 (52%) underwent post-HS1P ASI. Need for post-HS1P ASI was lower among patients who had an intra-HS1P ASI as compared to those who did not (30% vs. 70%; p = 0.005). There were no significant differences in short or Midterm outcomes between patients who underwent intra-HS1P ASI or post-HS1P ASI and their counterparts. CONCLUSIONS: ASI is common both during and after HS1P but is generally well tolerated and type of ASI does not significantly impact overall patient outcomes. Our findings suggest that the current approach of individualizing management of ASI in the HS1P population is effective and safe.

EGFR mutation testing, treatment and survival in stage I-III non-small cell lung cancer: CancerLinQ Discovery database retrospective analysis.

Aim: To describe real-world biomarker testing, treatment and survival in stage IA-IIIC non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods: Electronic records of USA-based patients in the CancerLinQ Discovery® database with stage IA-IIIC NSCLC (diagnosed between 2014 and 2018) were screened; a curated cohort of 14,452 records was identified for further analysis. Results: Of 3121 (21.6%) patients who had EGFR testing, 493 (15.8%) were EGFR-mutation positive. Of 974 patients who underwent surgical resection, 513 (52.7%) received adjuvant therapy. A quarter of patients with EGFR-mutation positive NSCLC received targeted adjuvant therapy. Conclusion: Approximately a fifth of patients underwent EGFR testing; biomarker testing is important to ensure optimal outcomes for patients with stage I-III NSCLC.

A study investigating how many patients with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) had mutations in a protein called EGFR and which treatments they received in routine clinical practice: The treatment recommended by medical experts for stage IA­IIIA non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is surgical removal of the growth (tumor). Patients with stage II or III, and some with stage IB disease, are recommended to receive treatment with medications such as chemotherapy or oral cancer treatments after surgery (adjuvant treatment). In some lung cancers, there are mutations in a protein called EGFR. Osimertinib, a drug that blocks the activity of mutated EGFR on cancer cells, reducing their growth and spread, is recommended as an adjuvant treatment for patients with EGFR-mutated, stage IB­IIIA NSCLC. This study aimed to understand how many patients with stage I­III NSCLC have tumors with EGFR mutations, and which treatments patients received in everyday clinical practice, before new medicines such as osimertinib (that treat EGFR-mutated NSCLC) were recommended. We looked at anonymous data from 14,452 patients with stage I­III NSCLC treated at cancer clinics in the USA between 2014 and 2018. We found that 3121 (21.6%) patients had an EGFR mutation test and 493 (15.8%) had EGFR-mutation positive NSCLC. Of patients who had surgery to remove the tumor, 55% received adjuvant therapy (treatment after surgery). It is important to perform EGFR mutation testing in patients with stage IB­IIIA NSCLC so that patients with EGFR-mutation positive NSCLC can receive appropriate treatment.

Beyond the surface: Does stage I-II endometriosis impact fertility? Exploring the challenges of mild disease.

Endometriosis is one of the most common gynecologic conditions that women face throughout their lives. Despite advances in technology, diagnosis and treatment of this relapsing and remitting condition is still challenging for many women. This review focuses on literature pertaining to minimal/mild (stage I/II) endometriosis and its impact on fertility. The effectiveness of medical interventions to improve infertility and obstetric outcomes in both natural and assisted reproductive technologies cycles remains debated. The recent ESHRE guidelines suggests that operative laparoscopy could be considered for rASRM stage I/II endometriosis as it improves ongoing pregnancy rates.

A Real-World Assessment of Stage I Lung Cancer Through Electronic Nose Technology.

INTRODUCTION: Electronic nose (E-nose) technology has reported excellent sensitivity and specificity in the setting of lung cancer screening. However, the performance of E-nose specifically for early-stage tumors remains unclear. Therefore, the aim of our study was to assess the diagnostic performance of E-nose technology in clinical stage I lung cancer. METHODS: This phase IIc trial (NCT04734145) included patients diagnosed with a single greater than or equal to 50% solid stage I nodule. Exhalates were prospectively collected from January 2020 to August 2023. Blinded bioengineers analyzed the exhalates, using E-nose technology to determine the probability of malignancy. Patients were stratified into three risk groups (low-risk, [<0.2]; moderate-risk, [≥0.2-0.7]; high-risk, [≥0.7]). The primary outcome was the diagnostic performance of E-nose versus histopathology (accuracy and F1 score). The secondary outcome was the clinical performance of the E-nose versus clinicoradiological prediction models. RESULTS: Based on the predefined cutoff (<0.20), E-nose agreed with histopathologic results in 86% of cases, achieving an F1 score of 92.5%, based on 86 true positives, two false negatives, and 12 false positives (n = 100). E-nose would refer fewer patients with malignant nodules to observation (low-risk: 2 versus 9 and 11, respectively; p = 0.028 and p = 0.011) than would the Swensen and Brock models and more patients with malignant nodules to treatment without biopsy (high-risk: 27 versus 19 and 6, respectively; p = 0.057 and p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: In the setting of clinical stage I lung cancer, E-nose agrees well with histopathology. Accordingly, E-nose technology can be used in addition to imaging or as part of a "multiomics" platform.

High-risk features associated with recurrence in stage I lung adenocarcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: There is a lack of knowledge regarding the use of prognostic features in stage I lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD). Thus, we investigated clinicopathologic features associated with recurrence after complete resection for stage I LUAD. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of patients with pathologic stage I LUAD who underwent R0 resection from 2010 to 2020. Exclusion criteria included history of lung cancer, induction or adjuvant therapy, noninvasive or mucinous LUAD, and death within 90 days of surgery. Fine and Gray competing-risk regression assessed associations between clinicopathologic features and disease recurrence. RESULTS: In total, 1912 patients met inclusion criteria. Most patients (1565 [82%]) had stage IA LUAD, and 250 developed recurrence: 141 (56%) distant and 109 (44%) locoregional only. The 5-year cumulative incidence of recurrence was 12% (95% CI, 11%-14%). Higher maximum standardized uptake value of the primary tumor (hazard ratio [HR], 1.04), sublobar resection (HR, 2.04), higher International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer grade (HR, 5.32 [grade 2]; HR, 7.93 [grade 3]), lymphovascular invasion (HR, 1.70), visceral pleural invasion (HR, 1.54), and tumor size (HR, 1.30) were independently associated with a hazard of recurrence. Tumors with 3 to 4 high-risk features had a higher cumulative incidence of recurrence at 5 years than tumors without these features (30% vs 4%; P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Recurrence after resection for stage I LUAD remains an issue for select patients. Commonly reported clinicopathologic features can be used to define patients at high risk of recurrence and should be considered when assessing the prognosis of patients with stage I disease.

Local vs radical resection of stage I-III rectal cancer in very elderly patients: an exact matched analysis of the National Cancer Database.

BACKGROUND: Treatment of elderly patients with cancer is challenging as they can be overtreated with respect to frailty or undertreated because of advanced age. Maintaining a good quality of life is essential for this population. This study aimed to assess the difference in overall survival and short-term outcomes according to the extent of rectal cancer resection in patients aged ≥80 years. METHODS: In this retrospective cohort study, very elderly patients with stage I-III rectal cancer aged ≥80 years were identified from the National Cancer Database (2004-2019). Patients were divided into 2 groups: radical resection and local excision. The groups were matched using exact matched analysis for clinical T and N stage, tumor size, and neoadjuvant treatment. The main outcome measures were overall survival, hospital stay, 30-day unplanned readmissions, and short-term mortality. RESULTS: A total of 9634 patients were included (local excision = 2710; radical resection = 6924). After matching, 1106 patients were included in each group with a median follow-up of 49.9 and 51.7 months, respectively. The radical resection group had statistically significantly longer overall survival than did the local excision group (60 vs 57.2 months, P = .026). Local excision was associated with shorter length of stay (1 vs 7 days. P < .001), lower 30-day mortality (odds ratio: 0.43; 95% CI: 0.25-0.75, P = .003), lower 90-day mortality (odds ratio: 0.47, 95% CI: 0.32-0.68, P < .001), and lower 30-day readmission (odds ratio: 0.49, 95% CI: 0.33-0.74, P < .001). A subgroup analysis of matched patients with cTis-T2 and N0 tumors who underwent curative surgery revealed similar results. CONCLUSION: Radical resection of rectal cancer in very elderly patients has a modest survival benefit, whereas local excision has lower odds of readmission and short-term mortality.

Analysis of risk factors for postoperative recurrence of stage I colorectal cancer: a retrospective analysis of a large population.

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer worldwide. Patients diagnosed with stage I CRC typically do not require postoperative adjuvant treatment. However, postoperative recurrence is present in at least 40% of patients with CRC and often occurs in those with stage I disease. This study aimed to elucidate the current status of recurrence and clinicopathological characteristics in patients with stage I CRC. Methods: Data of indicated patients were obtained from 18 registries in Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER). The multivariable Fine-Gray regression model was used to identify the mortality risk of patients. Disparities in survival were analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves. Logistic regression was employed to identify factors associated with recurrent risk overestimation. Results: Our study indicated a recurrence rate of 15.04% (1,874/12,452) in stage I CRC cases. Notably, we identified race, age, T stage, and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels as independent risk factors for tumor recurrence, substantially impacting prognosis. Furthermore, gender, race (Black), age (>65 years), elevated CEA levels, and refusal or unknown status regarding radiotherapy significantly correlated with an adverse prognosis in patients with stage I CRC. Conclusions: We identified certain key clinicopathological features of patients with stage I CRC and demonstrated the survival benefits of radiotherapy, offering a new perspective on stage I CRC follow-up and treatment recommendations.

The optimal treatment for patients with stage I non-small cell lung cancer: minimally invasive lobectomy versus stereotactic ablative radiotherapy - a nationwide cohort study.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the Early-Stage LUNG cancer (ESLUNG) study was to compare outcomes after minimally invasive lobectomy (MIL) and stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) in patients with stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this retrospective cohort study, patients with clinical stage I NSCLC (according to TNM7), treated in 2014-2016 with MIL or SABR, were included. 5-year overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) were calculated and compared between patients treated with MIL and a propensity score (PS)-weighted SABR population with characteristics comparable to those of the MIL group. RESULTS: 1211 MIL and 972 SABR patients were included. Nodal upstaging occurred in 13.0 % of operated patients. 30-day mortality was 1.0 % after MIL and 0.2 % after SABR. After SABR, the 5-year regional recurrence rate (18.1 versus 14.2 %; HR 0.74, 95 % CI 0.58-0.94) and distant metastasis rate (26.2 versus 20.2 %; HR 0.72, 95 % CI 0.59-0.88) were significantly higher than after MIL, with similar local recurrence rate (13.1 versus 12.1 %; HR 0.90, 95 % CI 0.68-1.19). Unadjusted 5-year OS and RFS were 70.2 versus 40.3 % and 58.0 versus 25.1 % after MIL and SABR, respectively. PS-weighted, multivariable analyses showed no significant difference in OS (HR 0.89, 95 % CI 0.65-1.20) and better RFS after MIL (HR 0.70, 95 % CI 0.49-0.99). CONCLUSION: OS was not significantly different between stage I NSCLC patients treated with MIL and the PS-weighted population of patients treated with SABR. For operable patients with stage I NSCLC, SABR could therefore be an alternative treatment option with comparable OS outcome. However, RFS was better after MIL due to fewer regional recurrences and distant metastases. Future studies should focus on optimization of patient selection for MIL or SABR to further reduce postoperative mortality and morbidity after MIL and nodal failures after SABR.

Long-term survival outcomes and quality of life of image-guided proton therapy for operable stage I non-small cell lung cancer: A phase 2 study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: This study evaluated long-term efficacy, safety, and changes in quality of life (QOL) of patients after image-guided proton therapy (IGPT) for operable stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: This single-institutional prospective phase 2 study enrolled patients with operable histologically confirmed stage IA or IB NSCLC (7th edition of UICC). The prescribed dose was 66 Gy relative biological effectiveness equivalents (GyRBE) in 10 fractions for peripheral lesions, or 72.6 GyRBE in 22 fractions for central lesions. The primary endpoint was the 3-year overall survival (OS). The secondary endpoints included disease control, toxicity, and changes in QOL score. RESULTS: We enrolled 43 patients (median age: 68 years; range, 47-79 years) between July 2013 to January 2021, of whom 41 (95 %) had peripheral lesions and 27 (63 %) were stage IA. OS, local control, and progression-free survival rates were 95 % (95 % CI: 83-99), 95 % (82-99), and 86 % (72-94), respectively, at 3 years, and 83 % (66-92), 95 % (82-99), and 77 % (60-88), respectively, at 7 years. Four patients (9 %) developed grade 2, and one patient (2 %) developed grade 3 radiation pneumonitis. No other grade 3 or higher adverse events were observed. In the QOL analysis, global QOL remained favorable; however, approximately 40 % of patients reported dyspnea at 3 and 24 months. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that IGPT provides effective disease control and survival in operable stage I NSCLC, particularly for peripheral lesions. Moreover, toxicity associated with IGPT was minimal, and patients reported favorable QOL.

Involved-field radiotherapy in older patients with superficial thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: long-term outcomes and recurrence patterns.

PURPOSE: An optimal radiotherapy field for superficial esophageal carcinoma is yet to be established. We evaluated the long-term outcomes and recurrence patterns of involved-field radiotherapy (IFRT) in older patients with superficial thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-four patients (49 men and 5 women; mean age, 77 [range: 66-90] years) who underwent IFRT for superficial thoracic ESCC between January 2003 and January 2019 were retrospectively reviewed. Concurrent chemotherapy was administered at the discretion of the attending physician. The primary endpoint was overall survival. The secondary endpoints were progression-free survival and complete response rate. RESULTS: The tumors were localized in the upper, middle, and lower thoracic esophagus in 2, 40, and 12 patients, respectively. All patients underwent IFRT using anteroposterior and anterior-posterior oblique opposed beams (off-cord). The prescribed total doses were 50.4, 59.4-61.2, and 66-70 Gy for 6, 40, and 8 patients, respectively. Concurrent chemotherapy was administered to 33 patients. The median follow-up duration was 57 months. The median overall survival was 115 months. The 5-year overall and progression-free survival rates were 71.7% and 60.1%, respectively. Forty-nine patients had a complete response at one month after IFRT (complete response rate: 90.7%). Twenty patients had recurrence; there were 13 in-field and 7 out-of-field recurrence cases. The radiation-related adverse events were generally mild. Grade 3 late toxicity was observed in one patient. CONCLUSIONS: The efficacy of IFRT was suggested to be comparable to that of standard treatments. Therefore, IFRT can be a promising approach for treating superficial ESCC in older adults, especially those with severe comorbidities.

Hybrid stage 1 palliation for HLHS: the experience of a tertiary center in a developing country.

Background: Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) accounts for 2.6% of congenital heart disease and is an invariably fatal cardiac anomaly if left untreated. Approximately 33,750 babies are born annually with HLHS in developing countries. Unfortunately, the majority will not survive due to the scarcity of resources and the limited availability of surgical management. Aim: To describe and analyze our experience with the hybrid approach in the management of HLHS in a developing country. Methods: We performed a retrospective single-center study involving all neonates born with HLHS over five years at the Children's Heart Center at the American University of Beirut. The medical records of patients who underwent the hybrid stage 1 palliation were reviewed, and data related to baseline characteristics, procedure details and outcomes were collected to describe the experience at a tertiary care center in a developing country. Results: A total of 18 patients were diagnosed with HLHS over a five-year period at our institution, with male to female ratio of 1:1. Of those, eight patients underwent the hybrid stage I procedure. The mean weight at the time of the procedure was 3.3 ± 0.3 kg with an average age of 6.4 ± 4 days. The mean hospital length of stay was 27.25 days, with an interquartile range of 33 days. The cohort's follow-up duration averaged 5.9 ± 3.5 years. The surgical mortality was zero. Only one mortality was recorded during the interstage period between stage I and II and was attributed to sepsis. Notably, all surviving patients maintained preserved and satisfactory cardiac function with good clinical status. Conclusion: Our limited experience underscores the potential of developing countries with proper foundations to adopt the hybrid procedure for HLHS, yielding outcomes on par with those observed in developed countries. This demonstrates the viability of establishing a more balanced global landscape for children with congenital heart disease.

Prognostic factors for relapse in patients with clinical stage I testicular non-seminoma: A nationwide, population-based cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Approximately 30% of patients with clinical stage I non-seminoma (CSI-NS) relapse. Current risk stratification is based on lymphovascular invasion (LVI) alone. The extent to which additional tumor characteristics can improve risk prediction remains unclear. OBJECTIVE: To determine the most important prognostic factors for relapse in CSI-NS patients. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Population-based cohort study including all patients with CSI-NS diagnosed in Denmark between 2013 and 2018 with follow-up until 2022. Patients were identified in the prospective Danish Testicular Cancer database. By linkage to the Danish National Pathology Registry, histological slides from the orchiectomy specimens were retrieved. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Histological slides were reviewed blinded to the clinical outcome. Clinical data were obtained from medical records. The association between prespecified potential prognostic factors and relapse was assessed using Cox regression analysis. Model performance was evaluated by discrimination (Harrell's C-index) and calibration. RESULTS: Of 453 patients included, 139 patients (30.6%) relapsed during a median follow-up of 6.3 years. Tumor invasion into the hilar soft tissue of the testicular hilum, tumor size, LVI and embryonal carcinoma were independent predictors of relapse. The estimated 5-year risk of relapse ranged from < 5% to > 85%, depending on the number of risk factors. After internal model validation, the model had an overall concordance statistic of 0.75. Model calibration was excellent. CONCLUSION AND RELEVANCE: The identified prognostic factors provide a much more accurate risk stratification than current clinical practice, potentially aiding clinical decision-making.

The management of stage I Non-Small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in Ontario: A Population-Based study of patterns of care and Stereotactic Ablative Body radiotherapy (SABR) utilization from 2010 to 2019.

BACKGROUND: Stereotactic Ablative Body Radiotherapy (SABR) is the standard of care for medically inoperable patients with Stage I NSCLC. The adoption of SABR and its association with cancer outcomes requires characterization. AIM: We described the management of biopsy-proven Stage I NSCLC with SABR, surgery, non-SABR curative radiotherapy (RT) and observation in Ontario, Canada, between 2010 and 2019. Temporal and geographic trends in practice and survival outcomes were analyzed. METHODS: This was a retrospective population-based cohort study conducted by linking electronic radiotherapy (RT) records to a population-based cancer registry. RESULTS: A total of 12,065 patients were identified, 61.7 % underwent surgery, 17.9 % received SABR, 8.6 % received non-SABR curative RT and 11.7 % were observed. Between 2010 and 2019, the utilization of surgery decreased (63.8 % to 49.9 %, p < 0.0001), while SABR use increased (7.5 % to 24.4 %, p < 0.0001), non-SABR curative RT use increased (6.7 % to 9.6 %, p < 0.0014) and patients observed decreased (14.4 % to 12.0 %, p < 0.0001). Substantial variation in practice exists across Ontario. Two- yr CSS improved for the entire cohort (81.9 % to 85.0 %, p < 0.0001). While there was improvement in 2 yr CSS for surgical patients (92.1 %% to 95.7 %, p < 0.001), survival for patients who received SABR, Non-SABR curative RT and observation remained stable. CONCLUSION: There has been an increase in SABR utilization and a reduction in surgical utilization with a corresponding increased survival of stage I patients in Ontario between 2010 and 2019. Substantial differences in practice patterns exist across health regions, suggesting the need for strategies to improve access to SABR in many jurisdictions.

Clinicopathological Impact of High Preoperative CA19-9 in Early-stage Colorectal Cancer: A Single-center Retrospective Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND/AIM: This study examined the clinical significance of very high preoperative carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) levels in patients with early-stage colorectal cancer (CRC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinicopathological data of patients who underwent curative resection for primary CRC (c-Stage I-III) between 2004 and 2022 in our facility. The patients were classified into three groups according to the preoperative CA19-9 level: normal (≤37.0 U/ml), high (>37.0 to ≤100.0 U/ml), and very high (>100.0 U/ml). RESULTS: Of 971 patients, 885 (91.1%), 67 (6.9%), and 19 (2.0%) had normal, high, and very high CA19-9 levels, respectively. Overall survival (very high vs. normal: p<0.0001, very high vs. high: p=0.01) and recurrence-free survival (very high vs. normal: p<0.0001, very high vs. high: p=0.18) were significantly worse in the very high group. On multivariate analysis including TNM stage, very high preoperative CA19-9 levels were independently associated with worse overall (odds ratio=4.54; 95% confidence interval=2.03-10.16; p=0.0002) and recurrence-free survival (odds ratio=3.49; 95% confidence interval=1.82-6.69; p=0.0002). CONCLUSION: High preoperative CA19-9 levels were associated with poor survival in early-stage CRC. Careful intraoperative observation and close follow-up might be necessary.