Assessment of Depression and Adherence to Guideline-Directed Medical Therapies Following Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.

Importance: Depression is associated with increased risk of primary and secondary cardiovascular events. Medication adherence may play an essential role.

Objective: To evaluate the association of depression and 12-month adherence to guideline-directed medical therapies (eg, antiplatelet agents, β-blockers, renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors [ie, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers], and statins) following percutaneous coronary intervention.

Natural history, clinical course and predictors of interval time from initial diagnosis to development of subsequent NSCLC brain metastases.

Purpose: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) brain metastases are associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. During recent years, accompanying dramatic improvements in systemic disease control, NSCLC brain metastases have emerged as an increasingly relevant clinical problem. However, optimal surveillance practices remain poorly defined.

Single institution validation of a modified graded prognostic assessment of patients with breast cancer brain metastases.

Aim: The number of breast cancer brain metastases is a prognostic clinical variable in the modified graded prognostic assessment (GPA) Index for breast cancer.

Patients & Methods: We retrospectively gathered data from 127 breast cancer patients who underwent radiation therapy for brain metastasis. Patients were stratified by both breast GPA and modified breast GPA scores, and survival was determined using the Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox proportional hazards model.

Breast cancer subtype and stage are prognostic of time from breast cancer diagnosis to brain metastasis development.

Breast cancer brain metastasis (BCBM) is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Patients with breast cancer risk factors associated with rapid development of BCBM could potentially benefit from early brain metastasis screening. We retrospectively reviewed all BCBM patients treated with brain radiotherapy at our institution from 1997 to 2015.

Whole-brain Irradiation Field Design: A Comparison of Parotid Dose.

Whole-brain radiation therapy (WBRT) plays an important role in patients with diffusely metastatic intracranial disease. Whether the extent of the radiation field design to C1 or C2 affects parotid dose and risk for developing xerostomia is unknown. The goal of this study is to examine the parotid dose based off of the inferior extent of WBRT field to either C1 or C2.