Modified neoadjuvant clinicopathological risk stratification as a prognostic score in early and locally advanced triple-negative breast cancer.

Background: Triple-negative subtype is an aggressive breast cancer with inferior survival. Pathological complete remission (pCR) is a good surrogate endpoint for survival among patients receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT). We attempted to validate the clinical pathological score (CPS) with a modified risk grouping among Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients receiving NACT at our center.

Evaluation of change in tumor stiffness measured by acoustic radiation force impulse imaging for early prediction of response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer.

Objectives: In this study, the role of change in tumor stiffness between pre- and post-two cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) measured by Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse (ARFI) imaging for predicting the response to NACT in breast cancer was analyzed.

Methods: Fifty-two adult women with biopsy-proven locally advanced breast cancer and early-stage breast cancer who received NACT followed by either modified radical mastectomy or breast conservation surgery were included in the study. Tumor stiffness represented by shear wave velocity (SWV) in meter per second by ARFI imaging was measured before and after two cycles of NACT.

Dosimetric comparison between interstitial brachytherapy and volumetric-modulated arc therapy for tumor bed boost in breast cancer.

Purpose: To dosimetrically compare high-dose-rate interstitial brachytherapy (HDR-BT) with volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) for tumor bed boost, following breast conservative treatment.

Material And Methods: 50 patients with early-stage breast cancer who underwent breast conservation surgery, followed by either HDR-BT ( = 25) of 15 Gy in 6 fractions over a period of 3 days, or VMAT dose of 16 Gy in 8 fractions ( = 25) for tumor bed boost, were retrospectively reviewed. All patients received whole breast irradiation of 46 Gy in 23 fractions.

Polymorphisms of T- cell leukemia 1A gene loci are not related to the development of adjuvant letrozole-induced adverse events in breast cancer.

Letrozole, an aromatase inhibitor (AI), is the first-line adjuvant drug for treating hormone receptor-positive (HR+) breast cancer in postmenopausal women. However, harmful adverse events (AEs) and significant differences in drug response among individuals remain a significant problem in clinical application. Current evidence suggests that the observed individual variation in the treatment outcomes of AI is conferred by genetic variants.

Neuromucormycosis of Posterior Tibial Nerve: A Rare Presentation of Mucormycosis.

Opportunistic fungal infections are known to occur in immunocompromised patients. Mucormycosis is one of the most common opportunistic fungal infections with significant mortality rates. In this article, we present a case of an adult female, a known diabetic who presented with fever and pus discharge from the amputation site of toes in the left foot with blackening of the foot.

An evidence of group discussion and problem-solving skills in MBBS freshers: Implications and applications.

Teachers need to follow adult learning principles and students need to have discussion and problem-solving skills for the use of active learning methods in classroom. We aimed to find out whether MBBS freshers had group discussion and problem-solving skills. A free group discussion session for problem-solving using adult learning principles was held during the foundation course for MBBS freshers.

Malignant phyllodes tumor with liposarcomatous differentiation: Diagnosed on cytology.

Phyllodes tumor (PT) accounts for less than 1% of all primary tumors of the breast and 2% to 3% of all fibroepithelial lesions. We report a case of heterologous liposarcomatous elements in a malignant PT of the breast on Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) and later confirmed by histopathological examination. A 58-years-old woman presented with a huge breast mass for which FNAC was done.

Lateral Thoracodorsal Flap Revisited: An Underappreciated Workhorse.

Background: Although, the lateral thoracodorsal flap is a well described technique, its utility seems to be lost in the ever evolving world of oncoplastic breast surgery. This study reviews the technique, its indications and limitations and the advantage of this technique.

Methods: Between January 2016 and January 2018, data from 7 consecutive patients who underwent partial breast mastectomy with lateral thoracodorsal flap were enrolled.

Association of CYP19A1 gene variations with adjuvant letrozole-induced adverse events in South Indian postmenopausal breast cancer cohort expressing hormone-receptor positivity.

Purpose: Musculoskeletal adverse events (MS-AEs) and vasomotor symptoms (VMSs) are the major side-effects of newer generation non-steroidal aromatase inhibitor (AI), letrozole. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in CYP19A1 gene coding for the enzyme aromatase are related to AI treatment-associated adverse drug reactions. Therefore, we aimed to determine whether SNPs in the CYP19A1 gene are associated with adjuvant letrozole-induced 'specific' AEs in postmenopausal hormone receptor-positive (HR+) breast cancer patients.

Medullary carcinoma of thyroid metastasis to breast: A cytological experience.

Medullary carcinoma of thyroid is a relatively uncommon malignancy, which can be sporadic and syndromic in nature. It commonly spreads to regional lymph nodes followed by spreading to distant sites. Breast is an uncommon site of metastasis of this malignancy.

Oral versus topical tamoxifen in cyclical mastalgia-A randomized controlled trial.

Mastalgia affects premenopausal in which cyclical mastalgia affects up to 40% of women. In approximately 8% of these women, pain will be severe and interfere with their normal activities. oral tamoxifen widely used in the treatment of mastalgia is associated with a wide range of side effects.

Uncommon complication of feeding jejunostomy: A case report.

Feeding jejunostomy is a common surgical procedure performed for patients who cannot take oral feeds. Although a minor procedure, it is not without complications. However, distal migration of the tube into the bowel is extremely rare.

Late Effects of Breast Cancer Treatment and Outcome after Corrective Interventions.

Purpose: To study the late toxicities of treatment and its impact on Breast cancer survivors among Indian patients. Materials and Methods: Our study recruited 152 curatively treated non metastatic carcinoma breast patients. The baseline demographic details, disease related and treatment related information were collected.

Medical students' perception of the educational environment in a tertiary care teaching hospital in India.

Background: The educational environment perceived by students has an impact on satisfaction with the course of study and academic achievement. We aimed to analyse the perceptions of medical students about their learning environment and to provide feedback to stakeholders involved in curriculum planning and execution.

Methods: We did a cross-sectional descriptive study at Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry using the Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM) questionnaire.

Evaluation of Estrogen and Progesterone Receptors and Her-2 Expression with Grading in the Fine-needle Aspirates of Patients with Breast Carcinoma.

Background: There has been a limited literature with regards to comparison between the pre-operative hormonal/Her-2 neu assessment by immunostaining on fine-needle aspiration (FNA) versus core needle biopsies (CNBs) and their correlation with grading of breast carcinoma.

Materials And Methods: Two hundred fifty FNAs and 201 CNBs from 252 patients with breast carcinoma were subjected immunocytochemical/histochemical (ICC/IHC) staining along with the grading by the Robinson cytologic and modified Scarff-Bloom-Richardson scoring systems, respectively. Depending on the material adequacy, IHC was also performed on cell blocks.

Low serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D levels are associated with aggressive breast cancer variants and poor prognostic factors in patients with breast carcinoma.

Objective: This study was conducted to assess the serum 25-hydroxy (OH) vitamin D levels in patients with breast cancer compared to healthy controls and to identify its association with aggressive breast cancer phenotypes.

Materials And Methods: Serum 25-OH vitamin D levels of 78 breast cancer patients and 78 matched healthy controls were estimated using ELISA. The cases and controls were matched with respect to age, menopausal status, parity, weight, height and co-morbidities.

Clinico-microbiological Profile of Septic Diabetic Foot with Special Reference to Anaerobic Infection.

Introduction Diabetic foot infections are a major cause of non-traumatic amputations. The role of anaerobes in the prognosis of these infections is particularly unclear. This study was conducted with the aim of correlating microbiological profiles with clinical outcomes in these diabetic foot ulcer patients.

Tamoxifen-induced hypertriglyceridemia causing acute pancreatitis.

Tamoxifen has both antagonistic and agonistic tissue-specific actions. It can have a paradoxical estrogenic effect on lipid metabolism resulting in elevated triglyceride and chylomicron levels. This can cause life-threatening complications like acute pancreatitis.

Polymorphic genetic variations of cytochrome P450 19A1 and T-cell leukemia 1A genes in the Tamil population.

Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) are anti-neoplastic drugs widely used for the treatment of endocrine responsive breast carcinoma in postmenopausal women. Drug disposition, efficacy and tolerability of these agents are influenced by germ-line polymorphisms in the sequence of the genes encoding CYP19A1 and TCL1A proteins. In the current work, we aimed to determine the haplotype structures, linkage disequilibrium (LD) patterns, and allele and genotype frequency distribution of pharmacologically important variants from two genes (CYP19A1 and TCL1A) in Tamil population and assessed their ethnic differences.