METRO1: A Phase I Study of Metronomic Chemotherapy in Adults with Advanced Refractory Solid Tumors.

Background: The present monocentric and prospective phase 1 study evaluated the safety of a metronomic chemotherapy in refractory tumors.

Patients And Methods: Patients with advanced solid cancer refractory to standard therapy received a combination of low-dose vinorelbine, cyclophosphamide and interferon-alpha. A dose escalation model with 3 levels was planned.

Azacitidine treatment for patients with myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia with chromosome 3q abnormalities.

Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) and myelodysplasia (MDS) with chromosome 3q abnormalities have a dismal outcome either untreated or with conventional treatments. Azacitidine (AZA) is now considered as the standard of care in high-risk MDS and oligoblastic AML patients. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of azacitine treatment in this cytogenetic subgroup.

Reduced-toxicity conditioning prior to allogeneic stem cell transplantation improves outcome in patients with myeloid malignancies.

The introduction of reduced intensity/toxicity conditioning regimens has allowed allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation to be performed in patients who were previously considered too old or otherwise unfit. Although it led to a reduction in non-relapse mortality, disease control remains a major challenge. We studied the outcome of 165 patients with acute myeloid leukemia (n=124) or myelodysplastic syndrome (n=41) transplanted after conditioning with fludarabine (30 mg/m(2)/day for 5 days), intravenous busulfan (either 260 mg/m(2): reduced intensity conditioning, or 390-520 mg/m(2): reduced toxicity conditioning), and rabbit anti-thymoglobulin (2.

Prognostic value of isolated tumor cells and micrometastases of lymph nodes in early-stage breast cancer: a French sentinel node multicenter cohort study.

To define the prognostic value of isolated tumor cells (ITC), micrometastases (pN1mi) and macrometastases in early stage breast cancer (ESBC). We conducted a retrospective multicenter cohort study at 13 French sites. All the eligible patients who underwent SLNB from January 1999 to December 2008 were identified, and appropriate data were extracted from medical records and analyzed.

Efficacy and safety of lenalinomide combined with rituximab in patients with relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

Initial clinical trials demonstrated that lenalidomide monotherapy has a significant activity against some subtypes of lymphoma, but in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) its activity is limited. The combination of lenalidomide with rituximab may be a promising therapeutic strategy. We retrospectively analyzed clinical outcomes in 17 patients with relapsed/refractory (R/R) DLBCL treated with lenalidomide, 25 mg/day for 21/28 days and rituximab, 375 mg/m(2) on day 7 of every lenalidomide cycle, for a maximum of 12 months.

Patients' self-assessment versus investigators' evaluation in a phase III trial in non-castrate metastatic prostate cancer (GETUG-AFU 15).

Background: Toxicity, which is a key parameter in the evaluation of cancer treatments, can be underestimated by clinicians. We investigated differences between patients and physicians in reporting adverse events of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) with or without docetaxel in a multicentre phase III trial in non-castrate metastatic prostate cancer.

Methods: The 385 patients included were invited to complete a 26-symptom questionnaire 3 and 6 months after the start of treatment, among which eighteen symptoms were also assessed by physicians, reported in medical records and graded using the Common Toxicity Criteria of the National Cancer Institute.

Assessment of prognostic scores in brain metastases from breast cancer.

Background: Breast cancer (BC) is the second most common cause of brain metastases (BM). Optimal management of BM from BC is still debated. In an attempt to provide appropriate treatment and to assist with optimal patient selection, several specific prognostic classifications for BM from BC have been established.

Large B-cell lymphomas in adolescents and young adults in comparison to adult patients: a matched-control analysis in 55 patients.

The aim of our study was to assess whether large B-cell lymphoma (LBCL) in adolescents and young adults (AYA) should be considered as a clinocopathological entity, and to evaluate the prognostic value of age. Fifty-five patients aged > 15-30 years were fully matched to 365 adult patients aged 31-65 years. We found a high incidence of primary mediastinal thymic LBCL subtype (33% vs.

Reassessment of scoring systems and prognostic factors for metastatic spinal cord compression.

Background Context: The incidence of metastatic spinal cord compression (MSCC) is increasing, paralleling increasing life expectancy of patients. However, management of MSCC and relevance of scoring systems remain controversial.

Purpose: The aims of our study were to analyze the feasibility and outcomes of spinal surgery, to identify prognostic factors for survival, and to assess the accuracy of scoring systems in patients with malignancies associated with MSCC.

SISH/CISH or qPCR as alternative techniques to FISH for determination of HER2 amplification status on breast tumors core needle biopsies: a multicenter experience based on 840 cases.

Background: Until now, FISH has been the gold standard technique to identify HER2 amplification status in ambiguous cases of breast cancer. Alternative techniques have been developed to increase the capacities of investigating HER2 amplification status. The aims of this multicenter study in a large series of breast cancer patients were to prospectively compare the level of performance of CISH, SISH, and qPCR alternative techniques on paraffin-embedded core biopsies with "gold standard FISH" for evaluation of HER2 amplification status.

Endomicroscopy in bile duct: Inflammation interferes with pCLE applied in the bile duct: A prospective study of 54 patients.

Background: The preoperative diagnosis of biliary stenosis is associated with low accuracy. As a consequence, probe-based confocal laser endomicroscopy (pCLE), an in-vivo histological imaging technique, was applied in the bile duct. The aim of this study was to establish whether previous inflammation of the bile duct affects confocal interpretation.

Peripheral T-cell lymphomas: analysis of histology, staging and response to treatment of 208 cases at a single institution.

Peripheral T-cell lymphomas are characterized by a poor clinical outcome. We retrospectively analyzed 208 adults treated in our institution between 2000 and 2011. Median age at diagnosis was 55 years.

Androgen-deprivation therapy alone or with docetaxel in non-castrate metastatic prostate cancer (GETUG-AFU 15): a randomised, open-label, phase 3 trial.

Background: Early chemotherapy might improve the overall outcomes of patients with metastatic non-castrate (ie, hormone-sensitive) prostate cancer. We investigated the effects of the addition of docetaxel to androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) for patients with metastatic non-castrate prostate cancer.

Methods: In this randomised, open-label, phase 3 study, we enrolled patients in 29 centres in France and one in Belgium.

Two days of antithymocyte globulin are associated with a reduced incidence of acute and chronic graft-versus-host disease in reduced-intensity conditioning transplantation for hematologic diseases.

Background: The optimal combination of fludarabine, busulfan, and antithymocyte globulin (ATG) for reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC) transplantation has not been established. ATG plays a pivotal role in the prevention of graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), but it is associated with a higher relapse rate and an elevated incidence of infections when high doses are used.

Methods: The authors retrospectively compared 2 different doses of ATG combined with fludarabine and busulfan in 229 adult patients who underwent transplantation at their institution.

Protein expression, survival and docetaxel benefit in node-positive breast cancer treated with adjuvant chemotherapy in the FNCLCC-PACS 01 randomized trial.

Introduction: The PACS01 trial has demonstrated that a docetaxel addition to adjuvant anthracycline-based chemotherapy improves disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival of node-positive early breast cancer (EBC). We searched for prognostic and predictive markers for docetaxel's benefit.

Methods: Tumor samples from 1,099 recruited women were analyzed for the expression of 34 selected proteins using immunohistochemistry.

Non sentinel node involvement prediction for sentinel node micrometastases in breast cancer: nomogram validation and comparison with other models.

Purpose: The risk of non sentinel node (NSN) involvement varies in function of the characteristics of sentinel nodes (SN) and primary tumor. Our aim was to determine and validate a statistical tool (a nomogram) able to predict the risk of NSN involvement in case of SN micro or sub-micrometastasis of breast cancer. We have compared this monogram with other models described in the literature.

Outcome of high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome after azacitidine treatment failure.

Purpose: Azacitidine (AZA) is the current standard of care for high-risk (ie, International Prognostic Scoring System high or intermediate 2) myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), but most patients will experience primary or secondary treatment failure. The outcome of these patients has not yet been described.

Patients And Methods: Overall, 435 patients with high-risk MDS and former refractory anemia with excess blasts in transformation (RAEB-T) were evaluated for outcome after AZA failure.

Capecitabine after anthracycline and taxane exposure in HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer patients: response, survival and prognostic factors.

Background: Capecitabine is a widely accepted option in pre-treated metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients. However, little is known about specific activity in molecularly defined subgroups of patients. Here, response, survival and prognostic factors were examined in a prospectively characterized cohort of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) negative MBC patients receiving capecitabine following anthracycline and taxane failure.

High expression of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase in the tumour is associated with medullary features and favourable outcome in basal-like breast carcinoma.

Medullary breast cancer (MBC) is a basal-like breast carcinoma (BLBC) with a favourable outcome, whereas nonmedullary BLBC has a poor prognosis. Tumour infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) are present in both MBC and BLBC. We hypothesized that the immunosuppressive enzyme indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) could modulate the TILs effects among these tumours and explain their different outcomes.

Once-weekly liposomal amphotericin B for prophylaxis of invasive fungal infection after graft-versus-host disease in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: a comparative retrospective single-center study.

Background And Objectives: The liposomal formulation of amphotericin B (LAmB) has been shown to cause few and mild infusion-related reactions, while achieving high plasma and tissue concentrations compared with conventional amphotericin B. We investigated the efficacy and safety of high-dose LAmB (7.5 mg/kg once weekly) prophylaxis of fungal infections in allogeneic stem-cell transplanted (allo-SCT) patients with graft-versus-host disease (GvHD).

Predictive factors of tumor response after neoadjuvant chemoradiation for locally advanced rectal cancer.

Purpose: Neoadjuvant chemoradiation followed by surgery is the standard of care for locally advanced rectal cancer. The aim of this study was to correlate tumor response to survival and to identify predictive factors for tumor response after chemoradiation.

Methods And Materials: From 1998 to 2008, 168 patients with histologically proven locally advanced adenocarcinoma treated by preoperative chemoradiation before total mesorectal excision were retrospectively studied.

Improved outcome of patients with low- and intermediate-risk cytogenetics acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in first relapse with gemtuzumab and cytarabine versus cytarabine: results of a retrospective comparative study.

Background: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in first relapse is associated with a poor outcome even when treated with intermediate- to high-dose cytarabine (IHDAraC). Gemtuzumab ozogamycin (GO) used as a single agent has clinical activity in relapsed and refractory AML. Various combination regimens of GO have been developed, but few data are available regarding their efficacy compared with IHDAraC-based regimens.