Economic evaluation of a randomized clinical trial of hospital versus telephone follow-up after treatment for breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: This was an economic evaluation of hospital versus telephone follow-up by specialist nurses after treatment for breast cancer. METHODS: A cost minimization analysis was carried out from a National Health Service (NHS) perspective using data from a trial in which 374 women were randomized to telephone or hospital follow-up. Primary analysis compared NHS resource use for routine follow-up over a mean of 24 months. Secondary analyses included patient and carer travel and productivity costs, and NHS and personal social services costs of care in patients with recurrent breast cancer. RESULTS: Patients who had telephone follow-up had approximately 20 per cent more consultations (634 versus 524). The longer duration of telephone consultations and the frequent use of junior medical staff in hospital clinics resulted in higher routine costs for telephone follow-up (mean difference pound 55 (bias-corrected 95 per cent confidence interval (b.c.i.) pound 29 to pound 77)). There were no significant differences in the costs of treating recurrence, but patients who had hospital-based follow-up had significantly higher travel and productivity costs (mean difference pound 47 (95 per cent b.c.i. pound 40 to pound 55)). CONCLUSION: Telephone follow-up for breast cancer may reduce the burden on busy hospital clinics but will not necessarily lead to cost or salary savings.

Osteosarcoma: experience of the Tata Memorial Hospital, Bombay, India.

This is a report on the management of 210 patients with biopsy-proven OS seen at the Tata Memorial Hospital, Bombay, India from January 1985 to December 1988. The treatment administered to these patients reflects the constraints experienced in cancer management by developing nations. The small number of patients who received neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy showed the highest survival figures of 30% at 5 years. In the context of the developing countries, limitations of affordability of optimum chemotherapy and the lack of adequate monitoring and support facilities warrant modifications in the currently recommended therapy schedule to suit indigenous needs.

Metachronous bilateral adrenal metastases following curative treatment for colorectal carcinoma.

A delayed, metachronous presentation of bilateral adrenal metastases following colorectal cancer has never previously been reported. We describe the case of a 68-year-old man who underwent curative surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy for a locally invasive sigmoid adenocarcinoma, only to be diagnosed with metachronous bilateral adrenal metastasis necessitating further resection and chemotherapy. We discuss the literature surrounding this pathology and highlight the importance of continual, vigilant radiological surveillance of the adrenal glands after curative treatment of colorectal carcinoma with or without subsequent adrenal metastasis.

Dysgerminoma of the ovary: review of 27 cases.

Twenty-seven patients with pure dysgerminoma were seen at the Tata Memorial Hospital, Bombay, between January 1980 and December 1984. Of the 10 patients in stage I, 2 patients underwent a unilateral salpingoophorectomy (USO) and were kept under observation without any adjuvant therapy, while the remaining patients received adjuvant treatment following surgery. All of the 6 patients in stage II and 4 of 7 in stage III had total abdominal hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (TAHBSO) followed by postoperative radiotherapy. One patient presented in stage IV and 3 patients presented with recurrence after previous definitive treatment undertaken at other institutions. The disease free, as well as the overall survival, at 108 months, for the 24 cases primarily treated at this institution, is 81% and 88% respectively, and, for patients in stages I and II, 100% (Kaplan-Meier estimation). The need for controlled clinical trials to devise optimal therapy in the early clinical stages and use of chemotherapy for advanced stages of this highly curable entity are stressed.

Endobronchial brachytherapy: a preliminary experience.

Fourteen patients with malignant airway obstruction were treated with a placement of a flexible nylon catheter for low dose rate manual afterloading Iridium 192 endobronchial brachytherapy using a flexible fibreoptic bronchoscope. Eight patients had obstructive pneumonitis at initial presentation, while 6 cases were recurrences after previous external irradiation. Six evaluable patients of the former group had complete or partial reinflation of lung and were followed by external radiotherapy. Of the latter group, 3 were evaluable and had moderate to good palliation of their symptoms. No complication was observed. The technique is simple and safe with good patient compliance. Further evaluation is indicated to assess its role in the locoregional management of lung cancer.

Extramedullary plasmacytoma of the head and neck region: clinicopathological correlation in 25 cases.

Extramedullary plasmacytomas (EMP) of head and neck are rare tumours. Between 1972 and 1993, 25 cases of EMP of head and neck were seen at our institute. The clinical and pathological features and response to treatment are presented. At initial presentation, 23 (92%) patients presented with disease confined to a single extramedullary site only and two patients had in addition clinical involvement of cervical lymph nodes. All except these two patients received radiotherapy to the primary site only as initial treatment. Initial primary control of local disease was obtained in 16 of 24 (67%) patients treated with radical intent. With salvage treatment of further radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy, local disease control was achieved in 21 of 24 (88%) patients. One patient was treated with palliative intent. Conversion to multiple myeloma was seen in two patients (8%). Pathologically, the tumours were classified into low, intermediate and high grade, which correlated closely with outcome. This classification has been used for the first time in extramedullary plasmacytomas and is based on the multiple myeloma grading criteria devised by Bartl et al (1987). Fifteen of eighteen (83%) low-grade tumours and only one of six (17%) intermediate- and high-grade tumours were locally controlled after primary radiotherapy. This is statistically significant for local control (P= 0.0019) but not for overall survival (P= 0.12). The median survival and 5-year overall survival is 68 months and 58.9% respectively. We recommend consideration of adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with higher grade disease.

Primary lymphoma of bone: experience of 39 cases at the Tata Memorial Hospital, India.

Primary lymphoma of bone (PLB) is an uncommon clinical entity and a rare presentation of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. At the Tata Memorial Hospital, over a period of 10 years from 1976 to 1985, 39 cases with a diagnosis of PLB were seen. Twenty-seven cases completed the prescribed treatment and were evaluable for treatment response. Eight patients (21%) presented in clinical stage I (E), four patients (10%) in stage II (E), and 27 patients (69%) in stage IV (E). All of the evaluable patients except two were treated with combination chemotherapy, which consisted of cyclophosphamide, vincristine, and prednisolone in 18 patients, and seven patients received Adriamycin in addition. The majority of patients received six courses of chemotherapy extending over 8 to 12 months. External radiotherapy was given to all except one patient, who had surgery as local treatment. Five patients had generalised relapse, one of which had in addition a local relapse. Five were resistant to treatment. Overall and disease-free survival by Kaplan-Meier method at 60 months are 66% and 56%, respectively.