A novel PIK3CA hot-spot mutation in breast cancer patients detected by HRM-COLD-PCR analysis.

Background: The PI3K protein is involved in the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway. Deregulation of this pathway through PIK3CA mutation is common in various tumors. The aim of this work is to identify hotspot mutation at exons 9 and 20 in Tunisian patients with sporadic or hereditary breast cancer.

Intramedullary spinal cord metastasis from breast cancer: an ambiguous entity.

Intramedullary spinal cord metastasis (IMSC) from solid tumors is rare. In this report, we describe the case of a patient treated at our center for breast cancer with intramedullary spinal cord metastases without bone and brain metastases or meningitis. Management of the disease remains challenging even with recent advances in the treatment of metastatic breast cancer.

Prognostic factors of male breast cancer: A monocentric experience.

Background: Male breast cancer (MBC) is a rare malignancy presenting only 1% of all breast cancer. The purpose of this study was to analyze clinical and pathological prognostic factors of MBC.

Methods: This is a retrospective study including 32 men diagnosed and treated for a primary breast cancer at the department of medical oncology in Sfax between 2005 and 2020.

Prognostic factors in inflammatory breast cancer: A single-center study.

Background: Previous studies have shown that poor prognostic indicators of inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) include younger age at diagnosis, poorer tumor grade, negative estrogen receptor, lesser degree of pathological response in the breast and lymph nodes.

Methods: This is a retrospective study conducted over a period of 12 years between January 2008 and December 2019 at the medical oncology department at Habib Bourguiba University Hospital in Sfax. We included in this study women with confirmed IBC.

The management of retroperitoneal sarcoma: The experience of a single institution and a review of the literature.

Objectives: Retroperitoneal sarcomas (RPSs) are rare mesenchymal tumors. The objective of this study was to discuss the different clinical, therapeutic and prognostic aspects of RPS in our institution.

Methods: This was a retrospective study conducted at the Department of Medical Oncology in the Habib Bourguiba University Hospital in Sfax, including 19 patients who were treated for RPSs between 1999 and 2016.

Predominance of the Rare EGFR Mutation p.L861Q in Tunisian Patients with Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma.

Objectives: Several new cancer therapies targeting signaling pathways involved in the growth and progression of cancer cells were developed as personalized medicine. Our study aimed to identify epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations for TKI treatment in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) Tunisian patients. Methods: Analysis of the TKI sensitivity mutations in exons 18 to 21 of the EGFR gene and exon 15 of the B-raf gene was performed in 79 formalin fixed-paraffin embedded (FFPE) NSCLC samples using pyrosequencing.

The Identification by Exome Sequencing of Candidate Genes in -Negative Tunisian Patients at a High Risk of Hereditary Breast/Ovarian Cancer.

(1) Background: Germline variants in genes explain about 20% of hereditary breast/ovarian cancer (HBOC) cases. In the present paper, we aim to identify genetic determinants in -negative families from the South of Tunisia. (2) Methods: Exome Sequencing (ES) was performed on the lymphocyte DNA of patients negative for mutations from each Tunisian family with a high risk of HBOC.

Localized stomach cancer: Perioperative or postoperative approach? A meta-analysis of phase III studies.

Background And Aim: Despite the development and standardization of surgical techniques in the treatment of localized gastric adenocarcinoma, the loco-regional and metastatic recurrence rate remains high. A combined radiochemotherapeutic regimen (the MacDonald regimen) as well as perioperative chemotherapy allows a significant improvement in the survival of patients with localized gastric adenocarcinoma with a reduction in the recurrence rate compared to surgery alone. The purpose of this review is to specify the best therapeutic approach in the treatment of localized gastric cancer.

Prognostic factors and treatment of relapsed osteosarcoma: A monocentric Tunisian retrospective study.

Background: This study aimed to explore the treatment modalities of relapsed osteosarcoma, treatment results, and prognostic factors.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of patients treated for relapsed osteosarcoma between 2005 and 2019. Patient survival was compared according to age, performance status, time to relapse, and surgical treatment at the relapse.

[Concomitant radiotherapy and trastuzumab: Rational and clinical implications].

The HER2 receptor (Human Epidermal Growth Receptor 2) is a transmembrane receptor with tyrosine kinase activity that is over-expressed in 25-30 % of breast carcinomas. Its activation is associated with an exaggeration of cell proliferation with an increase in repair capacity resulting in increased radioresistance. On cardiac tissues, HER2 receptor activation plays a cardio-protective role.

Novel and recurrent BRCA1/BRCA2 germline mutations in patients with breast/ovarian cancer: a series from the south of Tunisia.

Background: The incidence of breast cancer (BC) and/or ovarian cancer (OC) is increasing in Tunisia especially in young women and mostly those with family history. However, the spectrum of BRCA mutations remains little explored in Tunisian patients in particular in the southern region.

Methods: We sequenced the entire coding regions of BRCA1and BRCA2 genes using next generation sequencing (NGS) in 134 selected patients with BC and/or OC.

Identification of novel candidate genes by exome sequencing in Tunisian familial male breast cancer patients.

Male Breast Cancer (MBC) is a rare and aggressive disease that is associated with genetic factors. Mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 account for 10% of all MBC cases suggesting that other genetic factors are involved. The aim of the present study is to screen whole BRCA1 and BRCA2 exons using the Ampliseq BRCA panel in Tunisian MBC patients with family history.

Prognostic factors in metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Introduction: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma has the highest metastatic potential of all head and neck cancers. The survival time of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma has improved significantly in the last decades due to the use of combination of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, as well as advances in radiotherapy techniques. However, appropriately 30% of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma suffer a poor prognosis, mainly due to distant metastasis.

FOXA1 Expression in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma: Association with Clinicopathological Characteristics and EMT Markers.

The forkhead box (FOXA) family of transcription factors regulates gene expression and chromatin structure during tumorigenesis and embryonic development. Until now, the relationship between FOXA1 and the nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) has not yet been reported. Therefore, our purpose is to analyze the expression of FOXA1 in 56 NPC patients compared to 10 normal nasopharyngeal mucosae and to correlate the expression with the clinicopathological features.

Patterns of Failure in Patients With Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinomas of Unknown Primary Treated With Chemoradiotherapy.

Background: To evaluate the patterns of failure in patients treated for head and neck carcinoma of unknown primary and to discuss treatment practices concerning radiotherapy target volumes definition and dose prescription.

Methods: Eleven patients presenting a locoregional recurrence after head and neck carcinoma of unknown primary treatment with curative-intent radiochemotherapy performed between 2007 and 2017 in the departments of radiation oncology of 2 French cancer institutes. Images of the computed tomography scan or the magnetic resonance imaging performed at the time of the recurrence were fused with those of the simulation computed tomography scan to delimit a volume corresponding to the recurrence and to define the area of relapse compared to the volumes treated.

A Prospective Study About Trastuzumab-induced Cardiotoxicity in HER2-positive Breast Cancer.

Background: Trastuzumab improves therapeutic outcomes among patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive breast cancer (BC). However, it is associated with a risk of treatment-induced cardiotoxicity. The aims of this study were to determine the frequency of trastuzumab-induced cardiotoxicity (TIC) in Tunisian patients, to study the effects of trastuzumab on cardiac biomarkers and echocardiographic parameters using the speckle tracking technique and to identify risk factors of occurrence of TIC.

[Adaptive radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinomas: Where are we?].

Modern high-precision radiotherapy techniques have recently incorporated the notion of anatomical variations of the patient during treatment and have tried to adapt the treatment planning to them. Adaptive radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal tumors is starting to prove its benefit nowadays. His interest is constantly being evaluated.

Local and Lymph Node Relapse of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma: A Single-Center Experience.

Objectives: The study aimed to investigate the epidemiological and clinical characteristics as well as the therapeutic results in patients with locoregional (LR) relapse after treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients with local and/or regional recurrent NPC over 13 years (2003-2015).

Results: Twenty-five patients were treated for local or/and local-regional recurrence of NPC.

Dosimetric impact on changes in target volumes during intensity-modulated radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background And Purpose: To assess anatomic changes during intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and to determine its dosimetric impact.

Patients And Methods: Twenty patients treated with IMRT for NPC were enrolled in this study. A second CT was performed at 38 Gy.

3D segmentation of nasopharyngeal carcinoma from CT images using cascade deep learning.

In the paper, we propose a new deep learning-based method for segmenting nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) in the nasopharynx from three orthogonal CT images. The proposed method introduces a cascade strategy composed of two-phase manners. In CT images, there are organs, called non-target organs, which NPC never invades.

CD155 expression in human breast cancer: Clinical significance and relevance to natural killer cell infiltration.

Aims: CD155 is a ligand of the NK activating receptor DNAM-1, it has been described in a variety of human malignancies, but its expression in breast cancer remains unclear and poorly studied.

Main Methods: CD155 expression and NK cells infiltration were investigated in 158 patients with breast cancer by immunohistochemistry (IHC). Statistical analyses were performed to evaluate correlations of CD155 expression with clinical-pathological features, prognosis and tumor immunity.