HLA-G 3'UTR Polymorphisms Impact the Prognosis of Stage II-III CRC Patients in Fluoropyrimidine-Based Treatment.

An important hallmark of CRC is the evasion of immune surveillance. HLA-G is a negative regulator of host's immune response. Overexpression of HLA-G protein in primary tumour CRC tissues has already been associated to worse prognosis; however a definition of the role of immunogenetic host background is still lacking.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors: report of an audit and review of the literature.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs), tumors characterized by c-KIT mutations, are the most frequent mesenchymal tumors of the digestive tract. The stomach is the most commonly involved site. Localization, size and mitotic rate are reliable predictors of survival and the two milestones of GISTs treatment are surgery and imatinib.

Treatment of breast cancer in older women.

Background: Breast carcinoma management in the elderly often differs from the management in younger women and there is considerable controversy about what constitutes appropriate cancer care for older women. This controversy is reflected in the persistence of age-dependent variations in care over time, with older women being less likely to receive definitive care for breast cancer. There has been a significant increase in the last years in the number of studies conducted in older patients with breast cancer.

The role of UGT1A1*28 polymorphism in the pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of irinotecan in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer.

Purpose: UGT1A1*28 polymorphism has been associated with decreased glucuronidation of SN38, the active metabolite of irinotecan. This could increase toxicity with this agent.

Patients And Methods: In a prospective study, 250 metastatic colorectal cancer patients were treated with irinotecan, fluorouracil, and leucovorin as first-line treatment.

Insight into the treatment of cancer in older patients: developments in the last decade.

In the last decades there has been an increased interest in the treatment of elderly cancer patients and a change in attitude of both clinicians and their patients has occurred. Drugs are now available that might be considered "elderly-friendly" and the enormous advances in surgical procedures and supportive treatments over the recent years have enabled adverse effects to be minimized. A Geriatric Assessment is increasingly used as a tool to define those patients who are more suitable for aggressive chemotherapy or, on the contrary, palliative treatment.