The influence of body mass index on the tolerability and effectiveness of full-weight-based paclitaxel chemotherapy in women with early-stage breast cancer.

Purpose: To investigate the influence of body mass index (BMI) on the tolerability and effectiveness of full-weight-based paclitaxel chemotherapy in early breast cancer patients.

Methods: Early-stage breast cancer patients who received (neo)adjuvant weekly paclitaxel 80 mg/m chemotherapy were included in this retrospective study. Patients were divided into three groups based on their BMI: lean, overweight, and obese.

Concurrent chemo-endocrine treatment for early hormone-positive breast cancer: a no-go???

Purpose: Endocrine therapy is one of the cornerstones of early breast cancer treatment. While this medication could be initiated on the day of diagnosis, it is often postponed until after completion of surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. This practice is based on preclinical data suggesting an antagonistic effect between endocrine therapy and cytostatic agents, and on the interpretation of clinical trials comparing concurrent versus sequential use of tamoxifen and chemotherapy.

Comparison of toxicity and effectiveness between fixed-dose and body surface area-based dose capecitabine.

Background: Capecitabine is generally dosed based on body surface area (BSA). This dosing strategy has several limitations; however, evidence for alternative strategies is lacking. Therefore, we analyzed the toxicity and effectiveness of fixed-dose capecitabine and compared this strategy with a BSA-based dose of capecitabine in a large set of patients.

Pretreatment serum uracil concentration as a predictor of severe and fatal fluoropyrimidine-associated toxicity.

Background: We investigated the predictive value of dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) phenotype, measured as pretreatment serum uracil and dihydrouracil concentrations, for severe as well as fatal fluoropyrimidine-associated toxicity in 550 patients treated previously with fluoropyrimidines during a prospective multicenter study.

Methods: Pretreatment serum concentrations of uracil and dihydrouracil were measured using a validated LC-MS/MS method. The primary endpoint of this analysis was global (any) severe fluoropyrimidine-associated toxicity, that is, grade ⩾3 toxicity according to the NCI CTC-AE v3.

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma with MYC gene rearrangements: Current perspective on treatment of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma with MYC gene rearrangements; case series and review of the literature.

In the past decade, patients with newly diagnosed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) were treated with R-CHOP (rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisone) therapy. Standard treatment is now changing as a result of deeper understanding of underlying biologic differences of such lymphomas. One of the most powerful predictors of an adverse outcome on R-CHOP therapy is the presence of a MYC gene rearrangement (MYC+ lymphoma).