Prospective Comparison of Geriatric Assessment and Provider's Assessment of Older Adults With Metastatic Breast Cancer in the Community.

Background: Geriatric assessment (GA) is recommended for evaluating fitness of an older adult with cancer. Our objective was to prospectively evaluate the gaps that exist in the assessment of older adults with metastatic breast cancer (OA-MBC) in community practices (CP).

Methods: Self-administered GA was compared to provider's assessment (PA) of patients living with MBC aged ≥65 years treated in CP Providers were blinded to the GA results until PA was completed.

Prognostic Significance of MUC-1 in Circulating Tumor Cells in Patients With Metastatic Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma.

Objectives: Development of targeted therapies for pancreatic cancer could be enhanced by a reliable method for noninvasive tumor cell assessment. In this pilot study, we isolated and phenotypically characterized circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer and explored their relationship to clinical outcome.

Methods: Peripheral blood from 50 patients was collected at treatment initiation and first disease evaluation for CTC enumeration and phenotyping by CellSearch® system.

Circulating tumor cells in colorectal cancer: past, present, and future challenges.

Recent advances in immunomagnetic separation and flow cytometry have made the detection and characterization of circulating tumor cells (CTC) a reality. This technology has already demonstrated prognostic significance in breast and prostate cancer. In the current review, we will review the historical and current data regarding the enumeration and identification of CTC in colorectal cancer.

Effect of melanoma on immune function in the regional lymph node basin.

Purpose: To determine if melanoma within the tumor microenvironment will result in immunosuppression within the draining lymph node as measured by down-regulation of T-cell receptor zeta (TCR zeta) expression.

Experimental Design: Patients with clinical stage I to III melanoma undergoing wide local excision and sentinel lymph node biopsy or therapeutic lymph node dissection were consented to have a portion of their lymph node sampled. Lymph nodes were classified as macroscopically involved (TI), microscopically involved (MI), noninvolved with positive wide excision (NI+), or noninvolved with negative wide excision (NI-).

Symptoms and signs of primary melanoma: important indicators of Breslow depth.

Background: Operative management of patients with cutaneous melanoma is guided primarily by the pathologic determination of Breslow depth. Differentiating early from more advanced melanoma is not always straightforward and may be complicated by pathologic misdiagnosis, inappropriate biopsy techniques, or poor specimen handling. Inconsistencies between the patient's history and the pathologist's interpretation may alert the physician to the possibility of misdiagnosis.