Evaluating the impact of the degree of extranodal extension on outcomes in locally advanced oral cavity cancer.

Background: Evaluate whether extranodal extension (ENE) extent impacts outcomes in patients with oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OCSCC).

Methods: From an institutional database, patients with OCSCC and pathologic ENE who received adjuvant treatment were included. Surgical slides were reviewed to confirm ENE extent.

Immunotherapy response in patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck with cranial nerve involvement.

Background: Metastatic or locally advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) can be treated with immunotherapy (IO). Cranial nerve involvement (CNI) is uncommon in cSCC and is a poor prognostic factor. Our aim is to describe how patients with CNI respond to IO monotherapy and/or as an adjunct to RT.

Comparison of real-world outcomes following immunotherapy in recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma with outcomes of randomized controlled trials.

Objectives: Evaluate outcomes of patients with recurrent or metastatic (R/M) head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) treated with immunotherapy (IO).

Methods: Among patients with R/M HNSCC treated with IO in this retrospective single-institution cohort, Cox regression was used to compare overall survival (OS) for those with platinum-refractory disease and those treated in the first-line setting with OS from KEYNOTE-040/048, respectively. Multivariable Cox regression was used to identify predictors of OS.

Association of Treatment Strategies and Tumor Characteristics With Overall Survival Among Patients With Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer: A Single-Institution 21-Year Experience.

Importance: Survival outcomes for anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC), the most aggressive subtype of thyroid cancers, have remained poor. However, targeted therapies and immunotherapies present new opportunities for treatment of this disease. Evaluations of survival outcomes over time with new multimodal therapies are needed for optimizing treatment plans.

External validation of the SAVED score for venous thromboembolism risk stratification in patients with multiple myeloma receiving immunomodulatory drugs.

Selective patients with multiple myeloma (MM) receiving immunomodulatory drugs (IMiD) are at high risk for venous thromboembolism (VTE). The SAVED score is a VTE risk prediction model recently incorporated into the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines. Using retrospective data from 501 MM patients with new IMiD initiation between 2010 and 2019, we performed the first independent external validation of this model.

Epstein-Barr virus-associated smooth muscle tumors in immunocompromised patients: Six case reports.

Background: Epstein-Barr virus associated smooth muscle tumor (EBV-SMT) is a rare oncological entity. However, there is an increasing incidence of EBV-SMTs, as the frequency of organ transplantation and immunosuppression grows. EBV-SMT diagnosis relies on histopathology and immunochemical staining to distinguish it from post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD).

Lymphocyte Depletion Rate as a Biomarker of Radiation Dose to Circulating Lymphocytes During Fractionated Partial-Body Radiation Therapy.

Purpose: Radiation causes exponential depletion of circulating lymphocyte populations; in turn, radiation-induced lymphopenia is associated with worse survival for many solid tumors, possibly owing to attenuated antitumor immune responses. Identifying reliable and reproducible methods of calculating the radiation dose to circulating immune cells may facilitate development of techniques to reduce the risk and severity of radiation-induced toxic effects to circulating lymphocytes.

Methods And Materials: Patient-specific lymphocyte loss rates were derived from a clinical data set including 684 adult patients with solid tumors.

Trends in Female Authorship in Major Journals of 3 Oncology Disciplines, 2002-2018.

Importance: Gender disparity exists among authors of the oncology literature.

Objective: To quantify trends in authorship by gender within a comprehensive data set of Medline-indexed oncology articles in medical journals with high impact factors.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This cross-sectional study used Medline citations to examine archives of research journals from 3 disciplines in the oncology literature.

Patient-Specific Lymphocyte Loss Kinetics as Biomarker of Spleen Dose in Patients Undergoing Radiation Therapy for Upper Abdominal Malignancies.

Purpose: Radiation therapy (RT)-induced lymphopenia (RIL) is linked with inferior survival in esophageal and pancreatic cancers. Previous work has demonstrated a correlation between spleen dose and RIL risk. The present study correlates spleen dose-volume parameters with fractional lymphocyte loss rate (FLL) and total percent change in absolute lymphocyte count (%ΔALC) and suggests spleen dose constraints to reduce RIL risk.

A framework for modeling radiation induced lymphopenia in radiotherapy.

Introduction: Associations between radiation-induced lymphopenia (RIL) and survival have been extensively reported. However, the immune system is not considered as an organ-at-risk (OAR) in radiotherapy. This study aimed to develop the framework of an immune OAR model that may be utilized to predict and minimize RIL.

Comprehensive Analysis of the Kinetics of Radiation-Induced Lymphocyte Loss in Patients Treated with External Beam Radiation Therapy.

Radiation-induced lymphopenia (RIL) is associated with worse survival in patients with solid tumors, as well as lower response rates to checkpoint inhibitors. While single-fraction total-body irradiation is known to result in exponential decreases in the absolute lymphocyte count (ALC), the kinetics of lymphocyte loss after focal fractionated exposures have not previously been characterized. In the current study, lymphocyte loss kinetics was analyzed among patients undergoing focal fractionated radiotherapy for clinical indications.

Melting of size-selected gallium clusters with 60-183 atoms.

Heat capacities have been measured as a function of temperature for size-selected gallium cluster cations with between 60 and 183 atoms. Almost all clusters studied show a single peak in the heat capacity that is attributed to a melting transition. The peaks can be fit by a two-state model incorporating only fully solid-like and fully liquid-like species, and hence no partially melted intermediates.