What do cancer patients experience of the simultaneous care clinic? Results of a cross-sectional study on patient care satisfaction.

Background: Veneto Institute of Oncology has activated a simultaneous care outpatient clinic (SCOC) in which cancer patients with advanced-stage cancer are evaluated by oncologist and palliative care specialists. This cross-sectional study investigated patients' perceptions of the quality of this service.

Materials And Methods: An ad-hoc self-administered questionnaire, developed by SCOC team, was used to assess the satisfaction of patients admitted at SCOC consultation.

HER2 expression and genOmic characterization of rESected brain metastases from colorectal cancer: the HEROES study.

Background: Little is known about prognostic factors of brain metastases (BM) from colorectal cancer (CRC). HER2 amplification/overexpression (HER2+) was previously described; its impact on prognosis remains uncertain.

Methods: In the translational study HEROES, extensive molecular analysis was performed on primary CRC (prCRC) and their matched resected BM by means of NGS comprehensive genomic profiling and HER2 status as assessed by immunohistochemical/ in situ hybridization.

Advanced Non-Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma Treatments and Survival: A Real-World Single-Centre Experience.

Background: Non-clear cell renal cell carcinoma (nccRCC) is a heterogeneous group of cancer. Treatment recommendations are extrapolated from ccRCC and lack solid evidence. Here, we review advanced nccRCC patients treated at our institute.

Actionable molecular alterations in newly diagnosed and recurrent IDH1/2 wild-type glioblastoma patients and therapeutic implications: a large mono-institutional experience using extensive next-generation sequencing analysis.

Background: Next-generation sequencing (NGS) panels enable the identification of alterations in cancer-related genes. This may guide a molecularly targeted strategy for the treatment of glioblastoma (GBM).

Material And Methods: We retrospectively analysed data obtained using FoundationOne®CDx in a large cohort of IDH1/2 wild-type GBM.

The role of nanoliposomal irinotecan plus fluorouracil/leucovorin in the continuum of care of patients with metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Background: The NAPOLI-I trial showed better outcome of nanoliposomal irinotecan (nal-IRI) plus 5-fluorouracil/leucovorin (5-FU/LV) compared to 5-FU/LV in patients with advanced pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cancer (advPDAC) progressed to gemcitabine-based therapy. This study aims to explore the real-world efficacy and safety of 5-FU/LV-nal-IRI.

Methods: This is a retrospective multicenter analysis including advPDAC patients receiving 5-FU/LV-nal-IRI after failure of gemcitabine-based therapy.

Patient Reported Outcomes, Paternity, Relationship, and Fertility in Testicular Cancer Survivors: Results from a Prospective Observational Single Institution Trial.

Purpose: Testicular cancer (TC) is the most common solid tumor in young adults. 95% of patients are cured, but they may experience late adverse effects (anxiety, fear of recurrence, and sexual dysfunction) with an impact on daily life. We attempted to assess Patient Reported Outcomes (PROMs), long-term sexual disorders, and difficulties in achieving fatherhood in a cohort of TC survivors, as well as their possible correlation with previous cancer treatments.

Simultaneous care in oncology: Assessment of benefit in relation to symptoms, sex, and age in 753 patients.

Background: Early activation of palliative care for patients with advanced cancer is central in the treatment trajectory. At the Veneto Institute of Oncology, a simultaneous-care outpatient clinic (SCOC) has been active since 2014, where patients are evaluated by an oncologist together with a palliative care team. Recently, we reported on consecutive patients admitted at SCOC from 2018 to 2021 in terms of appropriateness, process, and outcome indicators.

Cause of Death in Charred Bodies: Reflections and Operational Insights Based on a Large Cases Study.

Our study aims to demonstrate the experience of analyzing fully or partially charred corpses to offer a proper implementation protocol for determining the cause of death. In this study, we present a total of 103 cases obtained from the University of Rome La Sapienza and the University of Pisa archives. All cases were classified based on the extent and severity of burns using a visual method.

Simultaneous Care in Oncology: A 7-Year Experience at ESMO Designated Centre at Veneto Institute of Oncology, Italy.

Benefits of early palliative care referral in oncology are well-validated. At the Veneto Institute of Oncology-IRCCS, a simultaneous-care outpatient clinic (SCOC) has been active since 2014, where patients with advanced cancer are evaluated by an oncologist together with a palliative care team. We prospectively assessed SCOC patients’ characteristics and SCOC outcomes through internal procedure indicators.

Impact of Wide Local Excision on Melanoma Patient Survival: A Population-Based Study.

Introduction: Promoting standardization and quality assurance (QA) in oncology on the strength of real-world data is essential to ensure better patient outcomes. Wide excision after primary tumor biopsy is a fundamental step in the therapeutic pathway for cutaneous malignant melanoma (CMM). The aim of this population-based cohort study is to assess adherence to wide local excision in a cohort of patients diagnosed with CMM and the impact of this recommended procedure on overall and disease-specific survival.

Malignant Melanoma: Direct Costs by Clinical and Pathological Profile.

Introduction: A number of studies have examined the impact of tumor stage on direct health care costs of patients with melanoma. This study aimed to investigate the association between the direct costs for melanoma and the patients' clinical and histological characteristics.

Methods: The present analysis included 1368 patients diagnosed with melanoma in 2017 in the Veneto Region (northeast Italy) and recorded in a regional population-based melanoma registry.

Cutaneous Melanoma in Alpine Population: Incidence Trends and Clinicopathological Profile.

Previous studies associated high-level exposure to ultraviolet radiation with a greater risk of cutaneous malignant melanoma (CMM). This study focuses on the changing incidence of CMM over time (from 1990 to 2017) in the Veneto region of Northeast Italy, and its Alpine area (the province of Belluno). The clinicopathological profile of CMM by residence is also considered.

Left atrial remodeling in heart failure: the role of sphericity index (the SPHERICAT-HF study).

Left atrial sphericity index (LASI) is an echocardiographic index easily obtained; its use in patients with heart failure (HF) has never been investigated so far. This single-centre study aimed to investigate the usefulness of LASI in an unselected cohort of patients hospitalized for acute HF, and its potential correlation with the amino-terminal portion of pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) levels and with New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class. Ninety-four consecutive HF patients underwent a transthoracic echocardiogram with a detailed study of the left atrium (LA) including LASI (calculated from the apical four-chamber view as the ratio between the transverse and longitudinal diameters), and blood tests (including NT-proBNP) on the same day.

Sex Differences in Cutaneous Melanoma: Incidence, Clinicopathological Profile, Survival, and Costs.

This study aims to provide a comprehensive overview of sex-related characteristics of cutaneous malignant melanoma (CMM), with special reference to its incidence, clinicopathological profile, overall survival, and treatment-related costs. This retrospective cohort study included all 1,279 CMM patients who were registered in 2015 in the Veneto Cancer Registry (a population-based registry including all 4,900,000 regional residents). The by-sex comparisons included tumor stage and site, histological subtype, and other clinical-pathological variables.

Prognosis for Cutaneous Melanoma by Clinical and Pathological Profile: A Population-Based Study.

Introduction: Among white people, the incidence of cutaneous malignant melanoma (CMM) has been increasing steadily for several decades. Meanwhile, there has also been a significant improvement in 5-year survival among patients with melanoma. This population-based cohort study investigates the five-year melanoma-specific survival (MSS) for all melanoma cases recorded in 2015 in the Veneto Tumor Registry (North-Est Italian Region), taking both demographic and clinical-pathological variables into consideration.

Finding the Victim of Abuse: A New Frontier of Physicians' Liability? Data From a Local Italian Experience on Minor Maltreatment.

Violence toward minors is a widespread phenomenon and effective programs are desperately needed to prevent it. Data from the literature showed that underreporting child/adolescents abuse has become a widespread phenomenon, exposing minors to additional harm from further potentially dangerous situations. It is proved that systematic screening and standardized procedures for minors presenting at emergency departments with the suspicion of abuse might increase the detection rate, reducing the risk of underreporting.

Sudden death in a case of recurrent Takotsubo syndrome.

Herein we report an unusual case of sudden death occurring in a 65 year old woman during a minor oral surgery. The subject, who had a medically treated anxiety, had a history of two reversible left ventricle dysfunction episodes consistent with recurrent Takotsubo Syndrome that had occurred seven and six years before, respectively. She also suffered from moderate, well treated post-menopausal systemic hypertension.

A multicenter randomized controlled trial of two group education programs for fatigue in multiple sclerosis: Short- and medium-term benefits.

Background: Fatigue occurs in 75%-95% of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and is frequently reported as the most disabling symptom. A multicomponent group program of six weekly 2-hour sessions, Fatigue: Take Control (FTC), was developed from an international MS fatigue management guideline.

Objective: To determine whether FTC is associated with greater improvements in fatigue than MS: Take Control (MSTC), a similarly structured general MS education program.

Forensic entomology and the estimation of the minimum time since death in indoor cases.

Eight cases that occurred indoors in which the insects played an important role in the mPMI estimation are presented. The bodies of socially isolated people and old people living alone were discovered in central Italy between June and November. mPMI ranged from a few days to several weeks.

Relationship of age and exercise performance in patients with heart failure: the HF-ACTION study.

Background: More than three fourths of patients with heart failure (HF) are 65 years and older, and older age is associated with worse symptoms and prognoses than is younger age. Reduced exercise capacity is a chief HF complaint and indicates poorer prognosis, especially among elderly persons, but the mechanisms underlying functional decline in older patients with HF are largely unknown.

Methods: Baseline cardiopulmonary exercise testing data from the HF-ACTION trial were assessed to clarify age effects on peak oxygen consumption (VO(2)) and ventilation-carbon dioxide production (VE/VCO(2)) slope.

Genotype probabilities of pairs of individuals for X-chromosome markers.

Background: The usual set of autosomal markers (A-STRs) available in commercial kits is often insufficient to discriminate between close relationships when only two subjects are available for analysis. X-chromosome markers (X-STRs) provide higher statistical power in special cases.

Study Design And Methods: Formulas are derived for the probabilities of all possible genotype pairs for X-STRs of any sex combination for seven common relationships.

Surface electromyographic activity of the submental muscles during swallow and expiratory pressure threshold training tasks.

The use of expiratory muscle strength trainers improves parameters related to pulmonary function, speech, and cough in both healthy and patient populations. Recently, it has been speculated that expiratory strength training may alter the force generation of muscles used during the swallow process. Specifically, the use of the trainer may result in increased activation of the submental muscle complex.

Expiratory muscle strength training in persons with multiple sclerosis having mild to moderate disability: effect on maximal expiratory pressure, pulmonary function, and maximal voluntary cough.

Objective: To determine the effect of expiratory muscle strength training (EMST) on maximal expiratory strength, pulmonary function, and maximal voluntary cough in persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) having mild to moderate disability.

Design: Before-after trial.

Setting: Assessments were completed in the privacy of the subject's home or exercise physiology laboratory.

Haplotypic structure of the X chromosome in the COGA population sample and the quality of its reconstruction by extant software packages.

Background: The haplotypes of the X chromosome are accessible to direct count in males, whereas the diplotypes of the females may be inferred knowing the haplotype of their sons or fathers. Here, we investigated: 1) the possible large-scale haplotypic structure of the X chromosome in a Caucasian population sample, given the single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) maps and genotypes provided by Illumina and Affimetrix for Genetic Analysis Workshop 14, and, 2) the performances of widely used programs in reconstructing haplotypes from population genotypic data, given their known distribution in a sample of unrelated individuals.

Results: All possible unrelated mother-son pairs of Caucasian ancestry (N = 104) were selected from the 143 families of the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism pedigree files, and the diplotypes of the mothers were inferred from the X chromosomes of their sons.