Unsolicited patient complaints among radiation, medical, and surgical oncologists.

Background: Unsolicited patient complaints (UPCs) about physician practices are nonrandomly associated with malpractice claims and clinical quality. The authors evaluated the distributions and types of UPCs associated with oncologists by specialty and assessed oncologist characteristics associated with UPCs.

Methods: This retrospective study reviewed UPCs associated with US radiation oncologists (ROs), medical oncologists (MOs), and surgical oncologists (SOs) from 35 health care systems from 2015 to 2018.

A Case Report of Malignant Eccrine Porocarcinoma Involving the Palm Requiring Surgical Excision and Free Flap Reconstruction.

BACKGROUND Eccrine porocarcinoma (EPC) was first described in 1963 as an epidermotropic eccrine carcinoma. Fifty years later, its etiology remains poorly understood. The infrequent nature of this disease merits further inquiry into its etiology, presentation, and standards of management.

A Recurrence of Bilateral Diffuse Sclerosing Lobular Hyperplasia of Breast: A Case Report.

Mammary sclerosing lobular hyperplasia is an uncommon benign fibroproliferative lesion of adolescent and young women, often of African American heritage with an incidence of ~3%. Patients generally complain of a palpable, painless, or slightly tender and well-defined lump in breast. Very rarely, this lesion may be bilateral and diffuse.

Selenium levels in human breast carcinoma tissue are associated with a common polymorphism in the gene for SELENOP (Selenoprotein P).

Selenium supplementation of the diets of rodents has consistently been shown to suppress mammary carcinogenesis and some, albeit not all, human epidemiological studies have indicated an inverse association between selenium and breast cancer risk. In order to better understand the role selenium plays in breast cancer, 30 samples of tumor tissue were obtained from women with breast cancer and analyzed for selenium concentration, the levels of several selenium-containing proteins and the levels of the MnSOD anti-oxidant protein. Polymorphisms within the genes for these same proteins were determined from DNA isolated from the tissue samples.

A hyperpigmented perianal nodule.

Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common cutaneous malignancy. Ultraviolet light is an important risk factor for the pathogenesis of BCCs; the vast majority are found in sun-exposed areas. BCCs occurring in the perianal or genital regions are seldom seen.

Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma responding serially to single-agent cetuximab.

Cetuximab (Erbitux) is a recombinant, chimeric monoclonal antibody that binds with high affinity to the extracellular ligand-binding domain of human epidermal growth factor receptor. We report a case of repeated responses to cetuximab in a patient with nonresectable squamous cell skin cancer having strong human epidermal growth factor receptor expression. Nonmelanoma skin cancer is the most common cancer in the US, with more than 1 million new cases detected annually, of which 20-25% are squamous cell carcinomas.

Osteosarcoma invading adrenal gland: rare cause of adrenal mass.

Adrenal gland metastasis from osteogenic sarcoma is extremely rare and is an atypical location for metastasis. Vascular hepatic exclusion techniques and the use of venovenous bypass with cardiac surgical techniques may be required to resect large adrenal masses that have invaded the inferior vena cava to achieve curative resection. The use of newer chemotherapeutic agents and aggressive surgical resection have prolonged the survival of patients with osteosarcoma.

A Phase I trial of TNFerade biologic in patients with soft tissue sarcoma in the extremities.

Purpose: TNFerade is a second-generation replication-deficient adenovector carrying a transgene encoding human tumor necrosis factor alpha under control of a radiation- induced promoter. The objective of this study was to assess the tolerance of combining TNFerade and radiation therapy in patients with soft tissue sarcomas of the extremity.

Experimental Design: TNFerade was administered in combination with single-daily fractionated radiation therapy in 14 patients with soft tissue sarcoma of the extremities.

Clinical node-negative thick melanoma.

Background: Patients with T4 N0 M0 melanoma are considered at high risk for having occult metastases, and adjuvant therapy is usually recommended.

Hypothesis: Long-term survival in patients with thick melanoma is not universally poor.

Design: A retrospective study.