Publications by authors named "Bhanu Prasad Venkatesulu"

Purpose: Intraprostatic recurrence (IRR) of prostate cancer after radiation therapy is increasingly identified. Our objective was to review the literature to determine the optimal workup for identifying IRR, the management options, and practical considerations for the delivery of re-irradiation as salvage local therapy.

Methods: We performed a systematic review of available publications and ongoing studies on the topics of IRR, with a focus on salvage re-irradiation.

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The treatment landscape for localized and regional prostate cancer includes active surveillance, radiation therapy (RT), and radical prostatectomy (RP). Population-based studies comparing RP to radiation reveal conflicting results due to methodological flaws. This systematic review and pooled analysis of studies aim to compare cause-specific survival (CSS), overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS) and toxicity outcomes, comparing RP to RT in the management of prostate cancer.

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Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of radiotherapy (RT) to oligoprogressive metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of 23 patients with metastatic NSCLC on maintenance systemic therapy, developed oligoprogression (1 to 5 sites), and all oligoprogressive sites amenable to and treated with RT. The primary endpoints included progression-free survival (PFS) and median time to start next-line therapy (MTT).

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Purpose: Our purpose was to report the clinical and dosimetric attributes of patients with large unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) undergoing proton or photon radiation therapy.

Methods And Materials: We retrospectively analyzed the outcomes and dosimetric indices of 159 patients with >5 cm nonmetastatic HCC who underwent definitive radiation therapy using either protons (N = 105) or photons (N = 54) between 2014 and 2018. Additional photon plans were performed in the 105 proton-treated patients using the same dose prescription criteria for intragroup dosimetric comparison.

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Background: Liver tumors are commonly encountered in oncology. The study aimed to assess the impact of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-guided stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) (MRgSBRT) on disease-related outcomes and the toxicity profile.

Methods: Patients who received MRgSBRT from 2019 to 2021 for primary and metastatic liver tumors were included in this analysis.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to determine if postoperative chemoradiotherapy (POCRT) leads to better outcomes than postoperative radiotherapy (PORT) alone for patients with high-risk salivary gland carcinoma (SGC).
  • A total of 411 patients were analyzed, with results showing that POCRT significantly improved overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) for those with nodal metastasis, compared to PORT alone.
  • POCRT also improved locoregional control (LRC) rates in patients with residual tumors after surgery, highlighting its effectiveness for specific subgroups like those with adenoid cystic carcinoma (AdCC).
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  • Doctors use special scans like CT and MRI to help with prostate cancer treatment.
  • They created a computer program called PxCGAN that makes fake MRI images from CT scans to help when they can't use MRI.
  • Tests showed that these fake MRIs (sMRI) are just as good at showing the prostate as real MRIs (rMRI), which helps doctors treat patients better.
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  • Malignant gliomas, the most prevalent type of primary malignant brain tumors, are often treated with surgery followed by chemoradiation, but radiation can lead to a dangerous drop in circulating lymphocytes, linked to worse survival outcomes.
  • A systematic review of 19 studies and a meta-analysis of 12 revealed that patients with severe lymphopenia had a significantly higher risk of death (HR = 2.19) and a mean survival reduction of nearly 7 months compared to those without severe lymphopenia.
  • Factors such as photon therapy, larger radiation treatment areas, higher doses to the brain and hypothalamus, and being female were found to increase the risk of developing severe lymphopenia.
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There are limited data regarding the optimal management of patients with pelvic node-positive, but non-metastatic, bladder cancer. Increasing data demonstrate that this is a distinct clinical entity with outcomes bridging between bladder-confined muscle-invasive bladder cancer and metastatic advanced bladder cancer. Guidelines and staging systems have formalized the need to incorporate the unique considerations of management of pelvic node-positive bladder cancer.

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Background: Radiation-related lymphopenia has been associated with suboptimal tumor control rates leading to inferior survival outcomes. To date, no standardized dose constraints are available to limit radiation dose to resident and circulating lymphocyte populations. We undertook this systemic review of the literature to provide a synopsis of the dosimetric predictors of radiation-related lymphopenia in solid malignancies.

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Purpose: Ensuring high quality, evidence-based radiation therapy for patients with cancer is of the upmost importance. To address this need, the Veterans Affairs (VA) Radiation Oncology Program partnered with the American Society for Radiation Oncology and established the VA Radiation Oncology Quality Surveillance program. As part of this ongoing effort to provide the highest quality of care for patients with rectal cancer, a blue-ribbon panel comprised of rectal cancer experts was formed to develop clinical quality measures.

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Purpose: Ensuring high quality, evidence-based radiation therapy for patients is of the upmost importance. As a part of the largest integrated health system in America, the Department of Veterans Affairs National Radiation Oncology Program (VA-NROP) established a quality surveillance initiative to address the challenge and necessity of providing the highest quality of care for veterans treated for cancer.

Methods And Materials: As part of this initiative, the VA-NROP contracted with the American Society for Radiation Oncology to commission 5 Blue Ribbon Panels for lung, prostate, rectal, breast, and head and neck cancers experts.

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Radiotherapy (RT) of colorectal cancer (CRC) can prime adaptive immunity against tumor-associated antigen (TAA)-expressing CRC cells systemically. However, abscopal tumor remissions are extremely rare, and the postirradiation immune escape mechanisms in CRC remain elusive. Here, we found that irradiated CRC cells used ATR-mediated DNA repair signaling pathway to up-regulate both CD47 and PD-L1, which through engagement of SIRPα and PD-1, respectively, prevented phagocytosis by antigen-presenting cells and thereby limited TAA cross-presentation and innate immune activation.

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Aim: Salivary duct carcinoma (SDC) is a rare and aggressive malignancy. The optimal treatment protocols are debated.

Methodology: A systematic search and individual patient data analysis of published cases of SDC was performed.

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In the modern era, cervical cancer treatment has become more multidisciplinary in nature. Accurate and precise staging based on clinical and radiographic findings, as well as identification of pathologic and molecular risk factors, may alter treatment recommendations. Additionally, the body of evidence guiding optimal treatment recommendations continues to grow.

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Article Synopsis
  • Pancreatic cancer has a very low 5-year survival rate (5-10%) and radiation therapy is used to enhance treatment effectiveness, but may lead to a drop in lymphocyte counts which is linked to poorer outcomes.
  • A systematic review of nine studies found that severe lymphopenia after radiation significantly increases the risk of death, with a pooled hazard ratio of 2.33 and a mean overall survival (OS) decrease of 6.80 months for affected patients.
  • It suggests that limiting radiation exposure to the spleen can help mitigate severe lymphopenia and improve survival rates, highlighting the need for further validation through prospective studies.
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Background: The impact of radiation-related lymphopenia on clinical outcomes has been reported in various solid malignancies such as high grade gliomas, head and neck cancers, thoracic malignancies and gastro-intestinal malignancies but its impact is not clearly known in the context of common genito-urinary (GU) malignancies.

Methodology: To better understand the effect of radiation-associated lymphopenia in prostate and bladder cancer, we undertook this systematic review of clinical studies that have studied radiation-related lymphopenia in GU malignancies. A systematic methodology search of PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane library resulted in 2125 abstracts.

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Background: . Tumours of the eyelid are a rare subgroup of neoplasms with varied histology and inherent differences in clinical behaviour. Surgery is the standard of care, and adjuvant radiation therapy (RT) is given in the presence of features suggesting a high risk of local recurrence.

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Background: Cancer patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have been reported to have double the case fatality rate of the general population.

Methods: A systematic search of PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Central was done for studies on cancer patients with COVID-19. Pooled proportions were calculated for categorical variables.

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Background: Despite the modern advances in treatment techniques, the survival of locally advanced lung cancer patients continues to remain poor. Circulating lymphocytes have an important role to play in local immune response to RT as well as immune checkpoint inhibitors, and radiation related lymphopenia has been associated with inferior survival in various tumors.

Methods: We undertook this systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the literature on risk and impact of lymphopenia in thoracic tumors.

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Background: Breast cancer patients often receive cardiotoxic drugs such as anthracyclines (ANT) and Trastuzumab. Numerous trials have tested angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEi), angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB), and beta-blockers (BB) as monotherapy or in combination to reprogram cardiac function dynamics in these patients, but no clear conclusions have been reached thus far, due to evident heterogeneity in the design of clinical studies.

Methods: This PRISMA-guided systematic review and meta-analysis assessed a pooled effect estimate of the potential benefit/harm of ACEi/ARB/BB in breast cancer patients treated with ANT ± Trastuzumab.

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Breast cancer is the most common malignancy among women worldwide. The current COVID-19 pandemic represents an unprecedented challenge leading to care disruption, which is more severe in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) due to existing economic obstacles. This review presents the global perspective and preparedness plans for breast cancer continuum of care amid the COVID-19 outbreak and discusses challenges faced by LMIC in implementing these strategies.

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There are numerous ongoing studies assessing treatment options for preventing, treating, and managing complications of coronavirus disease-2019 disease. The objective of this study was to do a systematic review and critical appraisal of the ongoing clinical trials with an aim to provide insight into the various interventions tested, clinical rationale, geographical distribution of the trials as well as the endpoints assessed in the studies. ClinicalTrials.

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