Choosing non-pharmacological treatments for neuropathic pain in spinal cord injury: a qualitative study.

Purpose: The aims of this study were to explore (1) the considerations of people with spinal cord injury (SCI) in choosing to use non-pharmacological treatments (N-PTs) for neuropathic pain (NP), (2) which factors influence their decision and who is involved in this choice.

Materials And Methods: Eleven individuals with SCI and NP were interviewed. Interviews were transcribed verbatim, transcripts were analysed through thematic coding, following an inductive content analysis approach.

Trisomy 2q11.2-->q21.1 resulting from an unbalanced insertion in two generations.

In this communication, we describe two cases of proximal 2q trisomy (2q11.2--> q21.1) resulting from an interchromosomal insertion.

Combined assessment (aspiration cytology and mammography) of clinically suspicious breast masses.

We examined the safety and utility of the combined assessment of aspiration cytology and mammography in 705 women who had clinically suspicious or malignant palpable breast masses. Histological assessment confirmed 176 benign and 529 malignant lesions. There were no incorrect (false positive) diagnoses made in the 176 benign masses when combined assessment was used (specificity 1.

Case for conservative management of selected fibro-adenomas of the breast.

To assess the safety of a conservative approach to fibro-adenoma of the breast we prospectively studied 321 women with this clinical diagnosis, and performed aspiration cytology and excision biopsy. There was histological confirmation of fibro-adenoma in 217 (68 per cent), the remainder having various benign conditions and 4 (1.3 per cent) had carcinoma.

The effect of chemotherapy on the morphology of human breast carcinoma.

Between biopsy diagnosis and mastectomy 16 patients with carcinoma of the breast received at least three courses of chemotherapy. When the biopsies and the tumour in the mastectomy specimens were compared, an increase in nuclear size, pleomorphism, vacuolation/chromatin clumping and nucleolar prominence were seen in 14 cases. Cytoplasmic changes included accumulation of lipid.

Survival after local treatment for early breast cancer.

A 10-year survival rate of 82% was found in 517 women with early localized breast cancer (pathological stage T1-2N0M0) who had been treated with local therapy alone (total mastectomy and axillary clearance). Factors influencing survival were tumour size (T1 versus T2) and age; patients older than 50 years fared better than younger patients at 5 years but this advantage had disappeared at 10 years. Receptor status influenced disease-free survival, but not survival.

Angiosarcoma of the breast.

We report a case of the rare angiosarcoma of the breast, illustrating the not infrequent error of making the initial incorrect diagnosis of benign haemangioma and the subsequent relentless progression of the lesion despite mastectomy, external beam and interstitial radiotherapy, and chemotherapy.

Malignant tumours of the breast. Frequency distribution by age, race and stage at Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, 1971-1981.

During the 11-year period 1971 - 1981, 2215 new female patients with breast cancer were seen at the Groote Schuur Hospital Breast Clinic, Cape Town. The mean age at presentation of White patients was similar to that in most Western countries, but the disease was seen at an earlier age in Coloured and Black patients. Coloured and Black patients also presented with more advanced disease than White patients.

Breast cancer and hormone receptors: a preliminary report.

An assay is available to determine the presence or absence of oestrogen receptors in breast cancer cells. The presence of oestrogen receptors predicts a 60% response rate to empirical hormonal therapy, and the absence a 10% response rate. Early evidence suggests that the additional presence of other hormone receptors in breast cancer cells will improve this response rate.