Raising awareness of alcohol as a modifiable risk factor for breast cancer: A randomized controlled trial comparing the efficacy of accessing an interactive website with a non-interactive website.

Background: Alcohol consumption is a potentially modifiable risk factor for breast cancer (BC). Reducing alcohol consumption within the daily amount at low-risk for alcohol-related consequences (daily alcohol threshold) may contribute to preventing BC new cases. However, most women are unaware of risk factors for BC, the daily alcohol threshold, and how to measure alcohol use.

Prediction of Response to Anti-Angiogenic Treatment for Advanced Colorectal Cancer Patients: From Biological Factors to Functional Imaging.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a leading tumor worldwide. In CRC, the angiogenic pathway plays a crucial role in cancer development and the process of metastasis. Thus, anti-angiogenic drugs represent a milestone for metastatic CRC (mCRC) treatment and lead to significant improvement of clinical outcomes.

Immunotherapy and Cancer: The Multi-Omics Perspective.

Immunotherapies have revolutionized cancer treatment approaches. Because not all patients respond positively to immune therapeutic agents, it represents a challenge for scientists who strive to understand the mechanisms behind such resistance. In-depth exploration of tumor biology, using novel technologies such as omics science, can help decode the role of the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) in producing a response to the immune blockade strategies.

Understanding the User's Point of View: When the Doctor Gets Sick with Cancer and Seeks Help.

Background: When physicians confront a serious personal illness, they may discover that the transition to the "sick" role is challenging and not easy. We conducted a qualitative study in which a group of doctors with cancer (DP) was compared with a group of patients with cancer, not doctors (NDP) but with a degree of education, qualifications, and a professional role comparable to that of a doctor.

Objectives: The main objective was to evaluate the effect of the diagnosis and the treatment of cancer on both the patient's personal and professional life.

Circulating tumour DNA in gastrointestinal cancer in clinical practice: Just a dream or maybe not?

The evaluation of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) is increasingly integrated into the management of diagnosis and treatment of gastrointestinal cancer as it represents an innovative and minimally invasive biomarker that could allow us to reach clinical needs not met yet in randomized clinical trials. Recent research provided an interesting overview of the role of circulating tumor DNA in gastric, biliary, liver, pancreatic, and colorectal cancer. Data regarding upper gastrointestinal tumors are currently not practice changing.

HE4 Tissue Expression as A Putative Prognostic Marker in Low-Risk/Low-Grade Endometrioid Endometrial Cancer: A Review.

Low-grade stage I endometrioid endometrial carcinomas should have an excellent prognosis, but a small subset of these cancers can relapse. The search for putative immunohistochemical prognostic markers for relapse in low-risk/low-grade endometrioid endometrial cancers remains open. Among the candidate molecules that may implicate the roles of immunohistochemical risk markers, we focused our attention on human epididymis protein 4 (HE4) after a review of the literature.

How to improve metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma patients' selection: Between clinical trials and the real-world.

As underlined in the minireview by Blomstrand , given the poor prognosis and the paucity of data on a therapeutic sequence in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), additional randomized controlled trials and real-world evidence studies addressing current and novel regimens are needed. The real-world outcomes of first-line chemotherapy regimens such as FOLFIRINOX and gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel are thoroughly reviewed and seem to be largely generalizable in a real-world context. Regarding second-line chemotherapy, the key question about the optimal sequence of regimens remains uncertain.

The Difficult Task of Diagnosing Depression in Elderly People with Cancer: A Systematic Review.

Background: Depression is a common psychiatric problem in the elderly and oncology patients. In elderly people with cancer, depression has a peculiar phenomenology. It has a significant impact on the quality of life.

An Overview of the International Literature on Health-Related Quality of Life, Mental Health and Psychosocial Issues in People with Cancer.

Background: Cancer is one of the most important leading causes of death worldwide. Early detection, screening and diagnosis have been demonstrated to significantly improve patients' survival rates and increase awareness of the benefit of prompt therapies and healthy lifestyles. In this context, Health-related Quality of Life (HRQoL) and several psychosocial difficulties are of relevance as prognostic factors for the trajectory of the diseases of people living with cancer.

The Quality of Life of People with Solid Cancer is Less Worse than Other Diseases with better Prognosis, Except in the Presence of Depression.

Background: Suffering from Solid Cancer (SC) may adversely impact the Health-related Quality of Life (H-QoL). The aims of this study are to measure the H-QoL in a sample of people suffering from SC and to clarify the role of the co-occurrence of depressive episodes. Results were compared with a healthy control group and with groups of other disorders.

Moderate Exercise Improves Cognitive Function in Healthy Elderly People: Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Physical activity in the elderly is recommended by international guidelines to protect against cognitive decline and functional impairment.

Objective: This Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) was set up to verify whether medium-intensity physical activity in elderly people living in the community is effective in improving cognitive performance.

Design: RCT with parallel and balanced large groups.

PAX8 Positivity, Abnormal p53 Expression, and p16 Negativity in a Primary Endometrial Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Primary endometrial squamous cell carcinoma (PESCC) is a rare entity. As the clinicopathologic features and the immunophenotype have not been completely defined yet, here we report our experience and review of the literature on this topic. A 73-yr-old nulliparous woman presented with pelvic pain and vaginal bleeding.

Alcohol Consumption Is a Modifiable Risk Factor for Breast Cancer: Are Women Aware of This Relationship?

Aims: Despite alcohol consumption being a dose-dependent risk factor for breast cancer, a recent study conducted in the UK found <20% of women attending breast screening programmes were aware of this relationship and proposed proper information campaigns need to be conducted. We aimed to investigate the awareness of this relationship among a related sample of Italian women to evaluate whether similar information campaigns should also be conducted in Italy.

Methods: The questionnaire used by the UK study was translated into Italian, slightly modified for the Italian context, validated and submitted to a sample of Italian women.

Active elderly and health-can moderate exercise improve health and wellbeing in older adults? Protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Aging is marked by a progressive rise in chronic diseases with an impact on social and healthcare costs. Physical activity (PA) may soothe the inconveniences related to chronic diseases, has positive effects on the quality of life and biological rhythms, and can prevent the decline in motor functions and the consequent falls, which are associated with early death and disability in older adults.

Methods: We randomized 120 over-65 males and females into groups of similar size and timing and will give each either moderate physical activity or cultural and recreational activities.

The association between Major Depressive Disorder and premature death risk in hematologic and solid cancer: a longitudinal cohort study.

Background: the aim was to verify the association between Major Depressive Disorders (MDD) and the risk of premature death in people with oncological diseases, and to collect evidence about the causality of a possible association from a longitudinal perspective.

Design And Methods: it is a cohort study lasting 9 months, involving people with solid or hematologic cancers. The assessment was conducted by an ad hoc form to collect socio-demographic and clinical-oncological data, the PHQ-9 to screen MDD (cut-off ≥10) and the SF-12 to evaluate HRQoL.

Health Related Quality of Life in Patients with Onco-hematological Diseases.

Background: HRQoL is generally conceptualized as a broad multidimensional construct that refers to patients' perceptions of the impact of disease and its treatment on their physical, psychological, and social functioning and well-being. Little is known in patients with onco-hematological cancer in comparison with the general population and other chronic diseases.

Objective: We assessed HRQoL in patients diagnosed with haematological cancers in comparison with the general population and other chronic diseases.

Sense of coherence and physical health-related quality of life in Italian chronic patients: the mediating role of the mental component.

Objective: To examine the relationship between sense of coherence (SOC) and physical health-related quality of life in patients with chronic illnesses by focusing on the mediating role of the mental component of quality of life.

Design: Cross-sectional survey design.

Setting: Secondary care; three departments of an Italian university hospital.

Dietary fats and cardiovascular health: a summary of the scientific evidence and current debate.

This narrative review summarises the main studies of the role of the different fatty acids in coronary heart disease (CHD) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and the current scientific debate on dietary recommendations. Reduction and substitution of the saturated fatty acids (SFAs) with the polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are still the main dietary recommendation to prevent CHD and CVD. In the last few years, however, the strength of the scientific evidence underlying this dietary advice has been questioned.

Regorafenib-induced hypothyroidism and cancer-related fatigue: is there a potential link?

Objective: Thyroid dysfunction has been reported during Regorafenib (Reg) administration, but no detailed study is presently available.

Design: Prospective, observational cohort study. Patients with documented metastatic colorectal cancer and progression of disease during or within 3 months after the last standard therapy, with no evidence and history of previous thyroid disease were enrolled.

Position paper of the Italian Association of Medical Oncology on early palliative care in oncology practice (Simultaneous Care).

One of the priorities of personalized medicine regards the role of early integration of palliative care with cancer-directed treatments, called simultaneous care. This article, written by the Italian Association of Medical Oncology (AIOM) Simultaneous and Continuous Care Task Force, represents the position of Italian medical oncologists about simultaneous care, and is the result of a 2-step project: a Web-based survey among medical oncologists and a consensus conference. We present the opinion of more than 600 oncologists who helped formulate these recommendations.

[Therapeutic decisions and treatment with sorafenib in hepatocellular carcinoma: final analysis of GIDEON study in Italy].

Introduction: Sorafenib, an oral multikinase inhibitor, is the only targeted agent approved for the treatment of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after demonstration to increase overall survival compared to placebo in two randomized phase III study. GIDEON (Global Investigation of therapeutic DEcisions in HCC and Of its treatment with sorafeNib) is the largest, global, non-interventional, prospective study of patients with uHCC (n>3200) treated with sorafenib in real-life clinical practice conditions. Here we report the final analysis of safety and efficacy in the Italian cohort of patients.

Long-term protective effects of the angiotensin receptor blocker telmisartan on epirubicin-induced inflammation, oxidative stress and myocardial dysfunction.

Chronic inflammation, oxidative stress and the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) play a significant role in chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity (CTX). Telmisartan (TEL), an antagonist of the angiotensin II type-1 receptor, was found to reduce anthracycline (ANT)-induced CTX. We carried out a phase II placebo (PLA)-controlled randomized trial to assess the possible role of TEL in the prevention of cardiac subclinical damage induced by epirubicin (EPI).

Phase II study of vinorelbine/cetuximab in patients with recurrent/metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck progressing after at least two chemotherapy regimens.

The aim of the present study was to identify a potentially effective new treatment regimen for patients with recurrent and/or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck in disease progression after at least two previous chemotherapy regimens. The "novel" regimen was Cetuximab administered weekly plus Vinorelbine on days 1, 8, 15 every 28days. The regimen was administered to patients with recurrent and/or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck previously treated with surgery, radiotherapy or both and progressing after at least two chemotherapy regimens.