Globalization of clinical research in oncology: Status, challenges, and future directions.

Purpose: Cancer is the second-leading cause of death worldwide, and its burden is increasing around the world, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Yet, cancer research has historically been conducted primarily in high-income countries (HICs).

Methods: In this review, we describe the results of our literature search into the current state of international cancer trials, including the benefits, challenges, limitations, and ethical concerns regarding the international conduct of HIC-led trials.

Prognostic Value of "Basal-like" Morphology, Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes and Multi-MAGE-A Expression in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

"Basal-like" (BL) morphology and the expression of cancer testis antigens (CTA) in breast cancer still have unclear prognostic significance. The aim of our research was to explore correlations of the morphological characteristics and tumor microenvironment in triple-negative breast carcinomas (TNBCs) with multi-MAGE-A CTA expression and to determine their prognostic significance. Clinical records of breast cancer patients who underwent surgery between January 2017 and December 2018 in four major Croatian clinical centers were analyzed.

IMPACT OF BODY COMPOSITION ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF PREMENOPAUSAL PATIENTS WITH EARLY STAGE BREAST CANCER DURING CHEMOTHERAPY.

Body composition has been studied relatively recently as part of oncology trials in different types of tumors. There are numerous studies that define the impact of chemotherapy side effects on the quality of life (QoL) of breast cancer patients, however, there are few studies that analyze the impact of body composition on the QoL of premenopausal patients in the course of cytotoxic treatment. The study was performed on a sample of premenopausal patients treated with neoadjuvant or adjuvant AC chemotherapy for early-stage breast cancer at Day Hospital of the Department of Medical Oncology, University Hospital for Tumors in Zagreb.

Immune response to anti-SARS-CoV-2 prime-vaccination in patients with cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Purpose: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the immune response to anti-SARS-CoV-2 prime-vaccination in patients with cancer.

Methods: We performed a systematic literature search using PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library until 28/09/2021, and conference proceedings from ASCO and ESMO 2021 annual meetings. We screened for observational or interventional studies including subjects ≥ 16 years old with cancer diagnosis who were vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2.

Anthracyclines in the treatment of early breast cancer friend or foe?

Standard chemotherapy for early breast cancer consists generally of an anthracycline - taxane - based regimen, preferably in sequence. Anthracyclines are among the most active cytotoxic drugs against breast cancer. Nevertheless, benefits attained by the use of the more potent anthracycline schedules must be balanced against increased short - and long - term toxicity, and treatment options must be individualized for each patient.

Prognostic Significance of Lymphocyte Infiltrate Localization in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

High infiltration by tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) is associated with favorable prognosis in different tumor types, but the clinical significance of their spatial localization within the tumor microenvironment is debated. To address this issue, we evaluated the accumulation of intratumoral TILs (itTILs) and stromal TILs (sTILs) in samples from 97 patients with early triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) in the center (sTIL central) and periphery (sTIL peripheral) of tumor tissues. Moreover, the presence of primary and secondary lymphoid aggregates (LAs) and the expression levels of the cancer testis antigen (CTA), NY-ESO-1, and PD-L1 were explored.

Difference in Estimation of Side Effects of Chemotherapy between Physicians and Patients with Early-Stage Breast Cancer: The Use of Patient Reported Outcomes (PROs) in the Evaluation of Toxicity in Everyday Clinical Practice.

Knowledge about the patient's experience and perception of side effects and their impact on daily life is crucial for the adequate planning of interventions to provide the highest attainable levels of quality of life during oncology treatment. We conducted a study on consecutive samples of 69 early breast cancer patients treated with four cycles of neoadjuvant or adjuvant anthracycline-based chemotherapy. Patients completed the questionnaire about side effects experienced after the previous cycle of chemotherapy.

OXALIPLATIN INDUCED PULMONARY FIBROSIS: A CASE REPORT.

Oxaliplatin is part of the standard chemotherapy regimens for treating colorectal carcinoma. Pulmonary fibrosis is a serious but rare side effect of oxaliplatin treatment, which resulted in patient death in more than half of the reported cases. The precise pathophysiological mechanism of this phenomenon has not been clarified yet.

Influence of Ile655Val polymorphism on trastuzumab-induced cardiotoxicity in early-stage HER2 positive breast cancer.

Trastuzumab has improved the prognosis of HER2 positive breast cancer, but cardiotoxicity remains a concern. We aimed to identify risk factors for trastuzumab-induced cardiotoxicity, with an emphasis on the HER2 Ile655Val single nucleotide polymorphism. This single-center case-control study included 1056 patients with early-stage HER2 positive breast cancer that received adjuvant trastuzumab.

CHARACTERISTICS AND PROGNOSIS OF TRIPLE-NEGATIVE BREAST CANCER PATIENTS: A CROATIAN SINGLE INstitution RETROSPECTIVE COHORT STUDY.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) occurs in around one-sixth of all breast cancer (BC) patients, with the most aggressive behavior and worst prognosis of all BC subtypes. It is a heterogeneous disease, with specific molecular characteristics and natural dynamics of early recurrence and fast progression. Due to the lack of biomarkers or any valid treatment targets, it can only be treated with classic cytotoxic chemotherapy.

UNCOMMON SIDE EFFECTS OF SUNITINIB THERAPY IN A PATIENT WITH METASTATIC RENAL CELL CANCER: CASE REPORT.

- Sunitinib is an orally administered multikinase inhibitor. This therapy can provoke uncommon side effects such as pancytopenia, tumor lysis syndrome, cardiac disorders, thromboembolic incidents, intestinal perforation, pancreatitis, acute renal failure, etc. We report a case of a 63-year-old female admitted to the hospital due to abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and elevated blood pressure.

Association of Breast Cancer Symptoms with Patients' Quality of Life and Depression; A Croatian Cross-Sectional Study.

Aim: To find out which symptoms are the most associated with a breast cancer patients' quality of life (QoL) and depression.

Subjects And Methods: We performed this cross-sectional study from February to April 2015 at the Department of Medical Oncology, University Hospital for Tumors, Zagreb University Hospital Center "Sestre milosrdnice", Zagreb, Croatia on the sample of 147 breast cancer patients. Primary outcomes were EORTC QLQ-C30 version 3.

Rapid hair depigmentation in patient treated with pazopanib.

Pazopanib is multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor used for the treatment of metastatic renal cell carcinoma. Hair colour change is a common side effect of pazopanib therapy which usually develops gradually during few months of therapy. We report a case of the patient who developed multiple pazopanib side effects followed by rapid overnight hair and eyebrow depigmentation after only few weeks of therapy.

[CANCER PATIENTS FOLLOW-UP – CROATIAN SOCIETY OF MEDICAL ONCOLOGY CLINICAL GUIDELINES Part I: breast cancer, uterine cancer, cervical cancer, ovarian cancer].

Treatment of oncological patients must be based upon multidisciplinary approach, and takes place in specialized oncological centers. By the end of a specific oncological treatment further follow-up is managed mostly by the ­oncologists, but the role of the general practitioners becomes more important every day and therefore should be precisely defined. Nowadays, most of the existing follow-up guidelines are not based on prospective studies, but on the experts ­opinion of a particular oncological center or specialists.

CANCER PATIENTS FOLLOW-UP – CROATIAN SOCIETY OF MEDICAL ONCOLOGY CLINICAL GUIDELINES Part I: breast cancer, uterine cancer, cervical cancer, ovarian cancer.

Treatment of oncological patients must be based upon multidisciplinary approach, and takes place in specialized oncological centers. By the end of a specifi c oncological treatment further follow-up is managed mostly by the oncologists, but the role of the general practitioners becomes more important every day and therefore should be precisely defi ned. Nowadays, most of the existing follow-up guidelines are not based on prospective studies, but on the experts opinion of a particular oncological center or specialists.