Long-Term Results of NRG Oncology/RTOG 0321: A Phase II Trial of Combined High Dose Rate Brachytherapy and External Beam Radiation Therapy for Adenocarcinoma of the Prostate.

Purpose: To report the long-term outcome of patients with prostate cancer treated with external beam radiation therapy and high dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy from a prospective multi-institutional trial conducted by NRG Oncology/RTOG.

Methods And Materials: Patients with clinically localized (T1c-T3b) prostate cancer without prior history of transurethral resection of prostate or hip prosthesis were eligible for this study. All patients were treated with a combination of 45 Gy in 25 fractions from external beam radiation therapy and one HDR implant delivering 19 Gy in 2 fractions.

Utility of the ACE Inhibitor Captopril in Mitigating Radiation-associated Pulmonary Toxicity in Lung Cancer: Results From NRG Oncology RTOG 0123.

Objectives: The primary objective of NRG Oncology Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 0123 was to test the ability of the angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor captopril to alter the incidence of pulmonary damage after radiation therapy for lung cancer; secondary objectives included analyzing pulmonary cytokine expression, quality of life, and the long-term effects of captopril.

Materials And Methods: Eligible patients included stage II-IIIB non-small cell lung cancer, stage I central non-small cell lung cancer, or limited-stage small cell. Patients who met eligibility for randomization at the end of radiotherapy received either captopril or standard care for 1 year.

Validation of a Predictive Model for Survival in Patients With Advanced Cancer: Secondary Analysis of RTOG 9714.

Background: The objective of this study was to validate a simple predictive model for survival of patients with advanced cancer.

Methods: Previous studies with training and validation datasets developed a model predicting survival of patients referred for palliative radiotherapy using three readily available factors: primary cancer site, site of metastases and Karnofsky performance score (KPS). This predictive model was used in the current study, where each factor was assigned a value proportional to its prognostic weight and the sum of the weighted scores for each patient was survival prediction score (SPS).

Phase II trial of combined high-dose-rate brachytherapy and external beam radiotherapy for adenocarcinoma of the prostate: preliminary results of RTOG 0321.

Purpose: To estimate the rate of late Grade 3 or greater genitourinary (GU) and gastrointestinal (GI) adverse events (AEs) after treatment with external beam radiotherapy and prostate high-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy.

Methods And Materials: Each participating institution submitted computed tomography-based HDR brachytherapy dosimetry data electronically for credentialing and for each study patient. Patients with locally confined Stage T1c-T3b prostate cancer were eligible for the present study.

Confirmatory factor analysis of brief pain inventory (BPI) functional interference clusters in patients with bone metastases.

To determine which of the previously proposed functional interference cluster models is most appropriate in patients with bone metastases and to determine if the cluster structures identified at baseline differed between responders and non-responders following palliative radiotherapy. METHODS: The confirmatory test data set consists of breast and prostate cancer patients treated with palliative radiotherapy between May 2003 to January 2007. Worst pain and functional interference scores were assessed using Brief Pain Inventory at baseline, 4, 8 and 12 weeks post radiation treatment.

Functional interference clusters in cancer patients with bone metastases: a secondary analysis of RTOG 9714.

Purpose: To explore the relationships (clusters) among the functional interference items in the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) in patients with bone metastases.

Methods: Patients enrolled in the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) 9714 bone metastases study were eligible. Patients were assessed at baseline and 4, 8, and 12 weeks after randomization for the palliative radiotherapy with the BPI, which consists of seven functional items: general activity, mood, walking ability, normal work, relations with others, sleep, and enjoyment of life.

Clinical observations and seven-and-one-half-year follow-up of patients using an integrative holistic approach for treating chronic sinusitis.

Context: Despite the widespread popularity of alternative medical approaches to respiratory and allergic disorders, there is a lack of scientific substantiation of their benefits.

Objective: Assessment of the therapeutic benefit of an integrative holistic approach to the treatment of chronic sinusitis.

Design: Patients began a 5-month program consisting of 5 evening sessions of 2 hours each in October of 1999.

Can physicians accurately predict survival time in patients with metastatic cancer? Analysis of RTOG 97-14.

Purpose: To determine if physician prediction of survival duration (PSD) is accurate for patients with metastatic breast or prostate cancer.

Methods: Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 9714 (RTOG 9714) was a randomized comparison of radiotherapy schedules for treatment of bone metastases. The treating physician assigned a baseline Karnofsky Performance Score (KPS) and predicted survival duration at study entry.

Randomized trial of short- versus long-course radiotherapy for palliation of painful bone metastases.

Background: Radiation therapy is effective in palliating pain from bone metastases. We investigated whether 8 Gy delivered in a single treatment fraction provides pain and narcotic relief that is equivalent to that of the standard treatment course of 30 Gy delivered in 10 treatment fractions over 2 weeks.

Methods: A prospective, phase III randomized study of palliative radiation therapy was conducted for patients with breast or prostate cancer who had one to three sites of painful bone metastases and moderate to severe pain.

Hypophosphatemic vitamin D-resistant rickets, precocious puberty, and the epidermal nevus syndrome.

Background: The association of multisystem pathologic conditions and epidermal nevi, known as the epidermal nevus syndrome, includes disorders of bone, central nervous system, eye, kidney, vasculature, body symmetry, and skin. Rarely, vitamin D-resistant rickets has been observed in association with this syndrome. Precocious puberty is another rare finding associated with epidermal nevus syndrome, having been observed in 3 patients.

Upper extremity atrophy associated with a giant congenital melanocytic nevus.

Persistent limb atrophy in association with a giant congenital melanocytic nevus is described. This association has not been reported previously.

Calciphylaxis in three patients with end-stage renal disease.

Background: Calciphylaxis is a rare and life-threatening condition of progressive cutaneous necrosis secondary to small- and medium-sized vessel calcification seen almost exclusively in patients with end-stage renal disease and hyperparathyroidism. Two patients had bullous lesions preceding their ulcerative lesions, an unusual presentation of this entity. One patient also had penile involvement that, to our knowledge, has not been described previously.

Blue vitiligo.

The progression of vitiligo and postinflammatory hyperpigmentation simultaneously in a patient with AIDS led to the appearance of a blue color on much of the patient's skin. The blue coloration subsequently resolved with follicular repigmentation typical of resolving vitiligo. We believe this is the first reported case of "blue vitiligo.

Dyskeratosis congenita or chronic graft-versus-host disease? A diagnostic dilemma in a child eight years after bone marrow transplantation for aplastic anemia.

A 12-year-old boy had striking reticulate hyperpigmentation of the neck and upper chest, dystrophic nails, patchy alopecia, and a white streak on the buccal mucosa. He was diagnosed as having chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) based on clinical findings, skin biopsy findings, and his history of a bone marrow transplantation for aplastic anemia eight years earlier. Dyskeratosis congenita (DC) was not a diagnostic consideration, although the clinical findings and history of aplastic anemia made it a compelling possibility.

Infantile generalized pustular psoriasis associated with lytic lesions of the bone.

Generalized pustular psoriasis is rare in children, especially in those less than 1 year of age. Lytic lesions of the bone have been reported in children with psoriasis, but are rare. We describe an infant with the clinical and histopathologic features of generalized pustular psoriasis that began in the first few weeks of life.

Three parallel linkage groups of human acidic keratin genes.

Two regions of human genomic DNA, each containing several keratin genes, were isolated and partially sequenced. The keratin genes are inactive, having suffered deleterious mutations. Both regions contain at least four keratin genes arranged in a head-to-tail orientation including a pseudogene for keratin K#16.