Publications by authors named "A Beeker"
Purpose: Advanced cancer patients may perceive their disease as an experience of contingency: a (sudden) disruption of the life-narrative evoking existential concerns such as loss of meaning and identity. The research project In Search of Stories aimed to investigate whether and how reading and discussing literary texts assisted participants in integrating their diagnosis as the experience of contingency into their life-narrative.
Methods: This qualitative study reports on interviews with 25 advanced cancer patients, who read a story from a curated collection of 10 literary texts.
Some fear of cancer recurrence is normal and may even be adaptive. However, high levels of anxiety may become problematic as it often results in for example sleeping problems, rumination, avoiding (incl. medical appointments) and/or physical complaints.
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- CDK4/6 inhibitors combined with endocrine therapy improve outcomes for patients with hormone-receptor positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer, but evidence comparing first-line and second-line use is limited.
- The phase 3 SONIA trial involved 1,050 patients and showed no significant overall benefit for using CDK4/6 inhibitors first-line compared to second-line (31.0 vs. 26.8 months median progression-free survival).
- Although first-line treatment led to longer duration of CDK4/6 therapy and more severe side effects, the quality of life was similar for both treatment timing, questioning the necessity for first-line CDK4/6 inhibitor usage in all cases.
Given the rarity of primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL), evaluations of different high-dose methotrexate-(HD-MTX)-based treatment regimens is sparse. This retrospective, multicenter study evaluates clinical characteristics and outcomes (progression-free, overall and disease-specific survival) after five HD-MTX-based polychemotherapeutic regimens and two consolidation therapies. 346 patients with histologically confirmed PCNSL, treated with ≥ 1 cycle HD-MTX-based strategies (≥3g/m/cycle) were included.
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- Haematology patients experiencing high-risk neutropenia are susceptible to bloodstream infections linked to mucosal barrier injuries, particularly during episodes of fever.
- A study involving 416 neutropenic haematology patients identified risk factors for these infections, noting that certain conditions like low MASCC scores and specific fungal colonizations significantly increased risk.
- Findings revealed that while low citrulline levels at fever onset correlated with candidaemia, they did not indicate the likelihood of bacterial infections; moreover, quinolone antibiotics appeared beneficial.