Intracranial germ cell tumors: a single-institution experience.

Background And Objectives: Intracranial germ cell tumors (GCTs) are not a common disease. We reviewed the experience of a single institution to determine the variables that affect treatment outcome.

Design And Setting: A retrospective review of patients with the diagnosis of intracranial germ cell tumors treated in a single institution (KFSHRC) during the period from March 1985 to December 2007.

Improved survival with combined chemo-radiotherapy in primary central nervous system lymphoma.

Background: Primary CNS lymphoma (PCNSL) is an aggressive primary brain tumor. Cranial irradiation alone rarely results in long-term disease control or prolonged survival. We retrospectively analyzed data on the effect of adding high-dose methotrexate (HDMTX) prior to whole brain irradiation (WBI).

Extraskeletal Ewing's sarcoma family of tumours in adults: analysis of 57 patients from a single institution.

Aims: Extraskeletal Ewing's sarcoma (EES) is a rare form of soft tissue sarcoma. The aim of the present study was to assess the outcome and the prognosis of adult patients presenting with EES treated with multi-modality therapy.

Materials And Methods: All EES patients older than 15 years referred to our institution between January 1995 and December 2004 were reviewed.

High-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplant in adolescent patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Fifty-eight adolescent patients with relapsed or primary refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma underwent high-dose chemotherapy (HDC) and autologous SCT (ASCT). The median age at ASCT was 17 years (range 14-21). The disease had relapsed in 24 patients (41%) and was refractory to initial chemotherapy in 34 (59%).

High-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplantation for Hodgkin's lymphoma in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia: King Faisal specialist hospital and research center experience.

We report our experience with high-dose chemotherapy (HDC) and autologous SCT (ASCT) in 66 patients out of 113 (113 patients out of 153 had complete analysis) with primary refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma (PR-HL) who received salvage chemotherapy followed by BEAM as HDC. Median age at ASCT was 23 years. Before salvage chemotherapy, stages I:II:III:IV were 2:21:14:29, bulky disease 27%, involvement of mediastinum 79%, spleen 26% and extranodal site 47%; 92% had ESHAP (etoposide, methylprednisolone, high-dose cytarabine, cisplatin) as salvage.

Morphologic, immunphenotypic and clinical discriminators between T-cell/histiocyte-rich large B-cell lymphoma and lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma.

Background: Features of T-cell/histiocyte rich large B-cell lymphoma (THRLBCL) overlap with those of lymphocyte predominant Hodgkin lymphoma (LPHL). The two lymphomas may represent a spectrum of the same disease, and differentiation between the two can sometimes be difficult. We looked at histomorphologic, immunophenotypic and clinical information that may help differentiate the two entities.

T-cell/histiocyte-rich B-cell lymphoma: Clinical presentation, management and prognostic factors: report on 61 patients and review of literature.

T-cell/histiocyte-rich B-cell lymphoma (TC/HRBCL) is a rare subtype of diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (DLBCL) with characteristic morphologic and immunophenotypic features, often misdiagnosed as Hodgkin's lymphoma and peripheral T-cell lymphoma. Few and conflicting clinical data are available in the literature addressing optimal treatment, prognosis and outcome. We retrospectively reviewed all patients diagnosed and managed at our institution between 1995 and 2004 diagnosed with T-cell-rich-B-cell lymphoma by WHO criteria.

Primary refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma: outcome after high-dose chemotherapy and autologous SCT and impact of various prognostic factors on overall and event-free survival. A single institution result of 66 patients.

We report our experience with high-dose chemotherapy (HDC) and autologous SCT (ASCT) in 66 patients with primary refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma (PR-HL) who received salvage chemotherapy followed by BEAM as HDC. Median age at ASCT was 23 years. Before salvage chemotherapy, stages I:II:III:IV were 2:21:14:29, bulky disease 27%, involvement of mediastinum 79%, spleen 26% and extranodal site 47%, 92% had ESHAP as salvage.

Metaplastic carcinoma of the breast clinical presentation, treatment results and prognostic factors.

Metaplastic carcinoma of the breast (MCB) is a rare form of cancer containing mixture of epithelial and mesenchymal elements in variable combinations. Few and conflicting clinical data are available in the literature addressing optimal treatment modalities, prognosis and outcome. A retrospective study was conducted to review all patients with MCB diagnosed and treated at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center between 1994-2004.

ESHAP + fixed dose G-CSF as autologous peripheral blood stem cell mobilization regimen in patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large cell and Hodgkin's lymphoma: a single institution result of 127 patients.

From 1996 to November 2004, 131 consecutive patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large cell lymphoma (DLCL) and Hodgkin's lymphoma (HD) received ESHAP as mobilization chemotherapy before autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplant (ASCT). Patients received fixed dose G-CSF 300 microg SC bid starting 24-36 h after finishing mobilizing ESHAP. In all, four patients failed mobilization and are excluded.

VIP (etoposide, ifosfamide, cisplatin) in adult patients with recurrent or refractory Ewing sarcoma family of tumors.

Despite the fact that Ewing sarcoma family of tumors (ET) is chemosensitive, long-term survival is extremely rare for patients with primary refractory or recurrent disease. There is no standard salvage chemotherapy regimen available in this context. In this study the authors reviewed their experience with the combination of etoposide, ifosfamide, and cisplatin in adult patients with recurrent or refractory disease.

Primary breast lymphoma.

Primary breast lymphoma (PBL) is a rare form of localized extranodal lymphoma. Few reports are available in the literature concerning its treatment and outcome. Of the 34 cases of PBL seen at our institution over a 25-year period, 20 consecutive cases were treated with CHOP or CHOP-like chemotherapy regimen and had adequate biopsy specimens for histological review.

A pilot trial of combination cisplatin, 5-fluorouracil and interferon-alpha in the treatment of advanced esophageal carcinoma.

Background/objectives: Based on the synergistic effect between cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), and between 5-FU and interferon-alpha, we conducted a trial to assess the response rate and toxicity of the combination of cisplatin, 5-FU and interferon-alpha in patients with advanced esophageal cancer.

Methods: Patients with locally advanced or metastatic squamous cell or adenocarcinoma of the esophagus were eligible. No prior chemotherapy or interferon were allowed.

HER-2/Neu overexpression does not predict response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy or prognosticate survival in patients with locally advanced breast cancer.

Data about the prognostic and predictive value of HER-2/neu overexpression in patients with locally advanced breast cancer (LABC) treated with primary chemotherapy is limited. Therefore, this retrospective study was performed to examine this issue. Fifty-four consecutive patients with LABC were prospectively managed using a uniform multimodality approach.

Primary breast lymphoma: a report of 20 cases.

Limited data are available concerning treatment and outcome of primary lymphoma of the breast (PLB), especially after CHOP (cyclophosphamide, hydroxydoxorubicin, vincristine, prednisone) chemotherapy. We retrospectively reviewed 20 consecutive cases of localized PLB seen at our institution over a 20 year period. All PLB were of B-cell origin: treatment was CHOP or a CHOP-like regimen in all patients.

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy plus conventional radiotherapy or accelerated hyperfractionation in stage III and IV nasopharyngeal carcinoma--a phase II study.

A prospective phase II trial was initiated in previously untreated patients with locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). The goal was to achieve improvement in locoregional control, disease-free interval and overall survival using induction chemotherapy and to compare conventional fractionation (CF) with an accelerated hyperfractionation (AHF) regimen. Fifty patients were treated (5 AJCC Stage III, 45 Stage IV) with induction chemotherapy consisting of two cycles of cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil.

Localized non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of Waldeyer's ring: clinical features, management, and prognosis of 130 adult patients.

Background: Waldeyer's ring (WR) is the primary site of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) involvement in approximately 5% to 10% of all lymphoma patients, and it accounts for more than half of all primary extranodal lymphomas of the head and neck. Materials and Methods A retrospective review was performed of 130 adult patients with localized (stages I and II) WR-NHL seen at a single institution over 18 years.

Results: Patients had a median age of 55 years, and the male-female ratio was 1:5:1.

Primary intestinal diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: clinical features, management, and prognosis of 66 patients.

Background: In Saudi Arabia, primary gastrointestinal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) is common. Recently we have reported one of the largest series of primary gastric (PG) diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLCL). This has prompted the analysis of another series of patients with primary intestinal DLCL to depict the clinical features and the outcome of that disease and to compare those with that for PG involvement.

Oligodendroglioma: an analysis of prognostic factors and treatment results.

This study, an analysis of variable prognostic factors affecting the treatment outcome for patients with oligodendroglioma, included a retrospective analysis of the medical charts of patients diagnosed with oligodendroglioma treated at our institution between 1975 and 1997. The endpoints analyzed were the progression-free survival (PFS), as well as the overall survival. The factors analyzed included extent of surgery, postoperative radiotherapy, pathologic grade, performance status, age, and sex.