Exploratory Study of NPC-0501 Trial: Optimal Cisplatin Dose of Concurrent and Induction/Adjuvant Chemotherapy for Locoregionally Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.

Purpose: The current recommendation for patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is cisplatin-based induction chemotherapy (IC) or adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) plus concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CRT). However, data on the optimal platinum doses for each phase of combined regimens are lacking.

Experimental Design: 742 patients with NPC in the NPC-0501 trial treated with CRT plus IC/AC and irradiated with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) were analyzed.

Dietary Pattern at 18-Month Post-Diagnosis and Outcomes of Breast Cancer Among Chinese Women with Early-Stage Breast Cancer.

Background: Evidence of the association between dietary pattern and outcomes of breast cancer was limited in Asian women, including Chinese.

Patients And Methods: A prospective cohort study was initiated among Chinese breast cancer patients to investigate lifestyle habits and outcomes of breast cancer. At each follow-up, validated food frequency questionnaires (FFQ) were used to assess patients' dietary intake.

Savoring moderates the association between cancer-specific physical symptoms and depressive symptoms.

Background: This study investigated the associations of savoring with cancer-specific physical symptoms, psychological distress, and psychological well-being and the moderating effect of savoring in the associations between physical symptoms and psychological outcomes among cancer patients.

Methods: A total of 263 Chinese adults recently diagnosed with cancer (mean time since diagnosis = 43.72 days, SD = 38.

Psychological detachment and savoring in adaptation to cancer caregiving.

Background: Recovery experience including psychological detachment from caregiving and savoring positive moments in life could be complementary coping processes for cancer caregivers. This study aims to examine the nature of their associations with caregiving burden and anxiety and depressive symptoms among Chinese cancer caregivers in Hong Kong.

Methods: A total of 155 Chinese caregivers of recently diagnosed cancer patients (mean time since diagnosis = 42.

Clinical utility of plasma Epstein-Barr virus DNA and ERCC1 single nucleotide polymorphism in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of the excision repair cross-complementing group 1 (ERCC1) gene has been linked with sensitivity to platinum and radiation. The authors hypothesized that the ERCC1 genotype for the SNPs cytosine-to-thymine substitution at codon 118 (C118T) and cytosine-to-adenine substitution at codon 8092 (C8092A) is prognostic in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) who receive either radiotherapy (RT) or cisplatin plus RT.

Methods: The authors tested their hypothesis using biomarker screening samples from the Hong Kong NPC Study Group 0502 trial, which was a prospective, multicenter clinical trial that used post-RT plasma Epstein-Bar virus (EBV) DNA (pEBV) levels to screen patients with high-risk NPC for adjuvant chemotherapy.

A comprehensive dosimetric evaluation of using RapidArc volumetric-modulated arc therapy for the treatment of early-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential benefits of using triple-arc volumetric-intensity modulated arc radiotherapy (RapidArc (RA)) for the treatment of early-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). A comprehensive evaluation was performed including plan quality, integral doses, and peripheral doses. Twenty cases of stage I or II NPC were selected for this study.

Safety and efficacy of first-line bevacizumab with chemotherapy in Asian patients with advanced nonsquamous NSCLC: results from the phase IV MO19390 (SAiL) study.

Introduction: First-line treatment with bevacizumab combined with chemotherapy has been shown to improve outcomes in patients with advanced, nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSNSCLC) in phase III clinical trials. SAiL (MO19390), an open-label, multicenter, single-arm study, evaluated the safety and efficacy of first-line bevacizumab-based treatment in clinical practice. This report presents the results of a preplanned subanalysis of Asian patients enrolled in SAiL.

A new approach to computing normal tissue complication probability of an intensity-modulated radiotherapy treatment with stereotactic radiotherapy boost of nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a case study.

We attempted to develop a method to compute the normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) of various critical organs from combined intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and stereotactic radiotherapy (SRT) boost treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), with the aid of a nonlinear image registration method. The SRT's planning computed tomography (CT) of a NPC patient treated with IMRT was warped to the IMRT's planning CT using a nonlinear image registration. Because CT and dose were inherently in-register, the entire dose distribution could be deformed using the same deformation field derived from the two CT sets.

A new dose-volume-based Plan Quality Index for IMRT plan comparison.

Background And Purposes: To develop a dose-volume-based Plan Quality Index for IMRT plans.

Materials And Methods: This study used a H(ealthy) Tissue Conformity Index to describe the overall plan conformity, a M(erit) function to describe the target coverage and a P(enalty) function to evaluate doses to critical organs. The Euclidean distance (PQI) between (H, M, P) and (1,1,1) represented the quality of a treatment plan.

Preliminary results of radiation dose escalation for locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Purpose: To study the safety and efficacy of dose escalation in tumor for locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods And Materials: From September 2000 to June 2004, 50 patients with T3-T4 NPC were treated with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT). Fourteen patients had Stage III and 36 patients had Stage IVA-IVB disease.

Survival outcome of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma with first local failure: a study by the Hong Kong Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Study Group.

Background: The purpose of this article is to report the overall survival (OS) outcome of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) with local failure who received salvage treatment and to identify prognostic factors for OS.

Methods: Between January 1996 and December 2000, 2915 patients received primary radiotherapy (RT) with or without chemotherapy for nonmetastatic NPC. At a median follow-up of 3.

Intensity-modulated radiotherapy for early-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a prospective study on disease control and preservation of salivary function.

Background: Xerostomia is a uniform complication after radiotherapy (RT) for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Dosimetric studies suggested that intensity-modulated RT (IMRT) can spare part of the parotid glands from high-dose radiation. Disease control and salivary function after IMRT for early-stage NPC was studied prospectively.

Concurrent and adjuvant chemotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a factorial study.

Purpose: To study the efficacy of concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CRT) and adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Patients And Methods: Patients with Ho's stage T3 or N2/N3 NPC or neck node > or = 4 cm were eligible. Patients were randomly assigned to have radiotherapy (RT) or CRT with uracil and tegafur and to have AC or no AC after RT/CRT.

Treatment outcome for synchronous locoregional failures of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: To review the outcome and evaluate the prognostic factors in the treatment of synchronous locoregional failures of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods: We reviewed the records of 43 patients with synchronous locoregional failures of NPC who received salvage treatment or chemotherapy between November 1986 and January 2001. The recurrent disease was stage II in 61%, stage III in 30%, and stage IV in 9%.