Interaction between warfarin and Chinese herbal medicines.

In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the human body is divided into Yin and Yang. Diseases occur when the Yin and Yang balance is disrupted. Different herbs are used to restore this balance, achieving the goal of treatment.

A phase II trial of weekly i.v. KW-2170 in advanced castrate-resistant prostate cancer.

Aim: KW-2170 is a novel pyrazoloacridone derivative that intercalates nucleic acids. It has promising in vitro properties against prostate and other cancers and is active in vivo against doxorubicin-resistant cell lines. We wished to investigate its activity and toxicity profile in this Phase II trial in androgen independent prostate cancer.

Management of HER2-positive breast cancer in Asia: consensus statement from the Asian Oncology Summit 2009.

Patients with breast cancer positive for human epidermal growth-factor receptor type 2 (HER2) are an important subgroup for consideration in the Asian context. Rationally designed, anti-HER2 targeted agents that can substantially improve treatment outcomes have become commercially available, but are still too costly for some groups in developed countries and for underdeveloped and developing nations. This review discusses the available evidence for optimum management of HER2-positive early and advanced breast cancer, and how this evidence can be applied to Asian countries with different levels of health-care resources and economic development--using framework provided by the Breast Health Global Initiative.

Measurement properties of the Chinese language version of the functional assessment of cancer therapy-general in a Singaporean population.

Introduction: Health-related quality of life is an important aspect of health outcome. The assessment of it must be done by validated instruments. There is no published data on the validity, reliability and sensitiveness to change of the official Chinese translation of the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General (version 4; FACT-G).

Green tea, soy, and mammographic density in Singapore Chinese women.

There is increasing evidence from observational studies that breast cancer risk is inversely associated with soy and green tea consumption. We investigated the effects of these two dietary agents on mammographic density, a well-established biomarker for breast cancer risk, in a cross-sectional analysis of mammograms and validated food frequency questionnaires from 3,315 Chinese women in Singapore. Percent mammographic density (PMD) was assessed using a reproducible computer-assisted method.

Phase I/II study of gemcitabine with pegylated liposomal doxorubicin as first-line therapy in Asian women with metastatic breast cancer.

This was a single institution phase I/II study to determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) and efficacy of pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD) and gemcitabine in Asian women with metastatic breast cancer. PLD was administered on day 1 and gemcitabine on days 1 and 8 every 3 weeks at escalating doses from 25 mg/m(2) and 1000 mg/m(2) onwards respectively. The median age was 56 years with a median disease-free interval of 43 months.

Associations between soy, diet, reproductive factors, and mammographic density in Singapore Chinese women.

Although the evidence is not completely consistent, soy intake has been inversely associated with breast cancer risk, and the strongest results have been observed in certain Asian populations. To address this issue and to examine the association between mammographic density and reproductive factors in this population, we conducted a cross-sectional analysis of mammograms and validated food-frequency questionnaires from 380 Chinese women living in Singapore. Percent mammographic density, a biomarker for breast cancer risk, was assessed using a validated computer-assisted method.

Over-expression of c-erbB-2 correlates with nuclear morphometry and prognosis in breast carcinoma in Asian women.

Aim: We aimed to investigate the immunohistochemical expression of c-erbB-2 in invasive breast carcinoma in Asian women and its correlations with clinicopathological parameters and nuclear morphometry. Patients were followed up for disease relapse and overall survival, and the data were reviewed in conjunction with c-erbB-2 over-expression.

Methods: Paraffin sections from 321 invasive breast cancers were immunohistochemically stained with anti-human c-erbB-2 antibody using the streptavidin-biotin technique.

Gemcitabine and split-dose paclitaxel or docetaxel in metastatic breast cancer: a randomised phase II study.

Purpose: The purpose was to evaluate the activity and toxicity of split-dose paclitaxel or docetaxel in combination with gemcitabine in patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) who had previously received anthracyclines.

Patients And Methods: A total of 210 patients were randomly assigned to one of three treatment arms: gemcitabine 1,250 mg/m(2) Days 1 and 8 and paclitaxel 175 mg/m(2) as a 3-h infusion on Day 1 (GP1); gemcitabine 1,000 mg/m(2) Days 1 and 8 and paclitaxel 100 mg/m(2) as a 1-h infusion on Days 1 and 8 (GP2); gemcitabine 1,000 mg/m(2) Days 1 and 8 and docetaxel 40 mg/m(2) as a 1-h infusion on Days 1 and 8 (GD). Cycles were repeated every 3 weeks.

Quality of life scores differed according to mode of administration in a review of three major oncology questionnaires.

Objective: To assess whether scores on the three major quality-of-life questionnaires in oncology (FACT-G, FLIC, and EORTC QLQ-C30) are associated with modes of administration in a realistic clinical research setting.

Study Design And Setting: A heterogeneous sample of 1,265 cancer patients was recruited in Singapore. About one-fourth of the patients chose to have the interview administered by research staff; the rest self-completed the questionnaires.

Variability and sample size requirements of quality-of-life measures: a randomized study of three major questionnaires.

Purpose: To compare the variability and sample size requirements of the global quality-of-life (QOL) scores of the following three major QOL instruments: the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General (FACT-G), Functional Living Index-Cancer (FLIC), and European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality of Life Questionnaire C30 (EORTC QLQ-C30).

Patients And Methods: Cancer patients were randomly assigned to answer two of the three instruments using an incomplete block design (n = 1,268). The instruments were compared in terms of coefficient of variation, effect size in detecting a difference between patients with different performance status, and correlation coefficient between scores at baseline and follow-up.

A longitudinal study of pediatric body mass index values predicted health in middle age.

Background And Objective: To characterize the use of pediatric body mass index (BMI) to predict obesity, overweight, and diseases in middle age.

Methods: A longitudinal study of people born in a week in 1958 (n=12,327). The main outcome measures are obesity (BMI > or = 30) and overweight (BMI > or = 25) at age 33 and disease history self-reported at age 42.

The equivalence and difference between the English and Chinese versions of two major, cancer-specific, health-related quality-of-life questionnaires.

Background: English and Chinese are two of the most widely used primary languages in the world. Patients in many cancer centers have a variety of ethnic backgrounds and primary languages. The comparability of version 4 of the English and Chinese versions of the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General (FACT-G) and version 3 of the European Organization for the Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) have not been established.

Quick-FLIC--a short questionnaire for assessing quality of life of cancer patients.

Health-related quality of life instruments tend to include a great many items. This imposes a burden on the respondents as well as undermining response rate and data quality. In this study we developed a shortened version of the Functional Living Index-Cancer (FLIC), now called Quick-FLIC, and examined its measurement properties.

Age at diagnosis and the choice of survival analysis methods in cancer epidemiology.

A young age at diagnosis of cancer is often seen as an indicator of the aggressiveness of the tumor. However, empirical studies have shown conflicting results on the association between age at diagnosis and survival. There are two choices of time scale for a Cox regression model: time since diagnosis, and age.