Comparison of two schedules of hypo-fractionated radiotherapy in locally advanced head-and-neck cancers.

Aim: In India, more than 70% patients present as locally advanced head-and-neck cancers (LAHNC), with poor performance status and are suitable candidates for palliative radiotherapy (RT) aimed at symptom relief. This prospective study aims to compare two different short course hypo-fractionated RT regimens in patients of LAHNC at a regional cancer centre of north-west India.

Materials And Methods: A total of 70 patients of LAHNC were randomized to receive palliative RT in two groups of 35 each.

Nitrogen dioxide and asthma emergency department visits in California, USA during cold season (November to February) of 2005 to 2015: A time-stratified case-crossover analysis.

Nitrogen dioxide (NO) is responsible for aggravating respiratory diseases, particularly asthma. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between NO exposure and asthma emergency department (ED) visits during the cold season (November-February) in five populated locations (Sacramento, San Francisco, Fresno, Los Angeles, and San Diego) of California from 2005 to 2015 (1320 Days). Conditional logistic regression models were used to obtain the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) associated with a 5 ppb increase in NO concentration for the 19,735 ED visits identified.

Implant Placement into the Nasopalatine Foramen: Considerations from Anatomical and Surgical Point of View.

Implant placement is a challenge in the anterior maxilla if the available bone is reduced and esthetics is challenging. The ideal implant position should be considered in all three dimensions: mesiodistal, apicocoronal, and orofacial. This article includes a review and a case report for the anatomical and clinical perspective of implant placement in nasopalatine foramen (near incisal canal).

Customized Implant Full-Mouth Rehabilitation: A Biomechanical Depiction.

The rationale for implant full-mouth rehabilitation is believed to present the better quality of life to the older population. This type of modalities preserves the soft and hard tissue of oral cavity. It is also helpful to check the temporomandibular joint disease.

A cast partial obturator with hollow occlusal shim and semi-precision attachment.

A maxillofacial patient's quality of life is distorted and social integration becomes difficult. An obturator is a maxillofacial prosthesis used to close a congenital or acquired tissue defect, primarily of the hard palate and/or contiguous alveolar/soft-tissue structures. Subsequently, it restores the esthetics, speech, and function.

A 2D Panoramic Surgical Stent Imaging: Complete Arch Mandibular Implant Fixed Prosthesis along with Bar Supported Maxillary over Denture.

Successful rehabilitation of a patient should restore function, esthetic, and speech by prosthesis. Treatment modalities vary from patient to patient. Semi-precision attachments and implants offer several advantages over the traditional approach.

Analysis of outcomes and prognostic factors of acute lymphoblastic leukemia patients treated by MCP841 protocol: A regional cancer center experience.

Background: A dramatic improvement in the survival of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patients in the last three decades has been observed. MCP 841 protocol is an old but effective tool with tolerable toxicities. The objective of this study was to estimate the relapse-free survival of ALL patients treated uniformly with MCP 841 protocol on the basis of various prognostic factors.

Pros and Cons of Adding of Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy to Standard Concurrent Chemoradiotherapy in Cervical Cancer: A Regional Cancer Center Experience.

Background: The present study summarizes the results of treatment in the form of disease-free survival and overall survival in bulky stage IB2 and locally advanced (stages II-IVA) squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix. The treatment has been given in the form of NACT followed by CCRT in one arm and CCRT in the other arm.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective study analyzed 713 cervical cancer patients who were treated at our center during 2007 and 2008; out of 713 patients, data of 612 patients have been compared.

Induction Chemotherapy Followed by Concurrent Chemoradiation in the Management of Different Stages of Cervical Carcinoma: 5-year Retrospective Study.

Aim: The data of survival for Indian cervical cancer patients treated by indigenous modifications of the protocol are scarce. The objective of this retrospective study was to analyze the efficacy and tolerability in patients of cervical carcinoma treated by neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by concurrent chemoradiation.

Materials And Methods: Three hundred and thirty two cases of squamous cell carcinoma of cervix who received 3 cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed concurrent chemoradiation were retrospectively analyzed for overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and local pelvic control rate.

Metronomic therapy with oral 6-mercaptopurine in elderly acute myeloid leukemia: A prospective pilot study.

Introduction: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in elderly patients differs biologically from that in younger patients and is known to have unfavorable chromosomal rearrangements, higher resistance, and lower tolerance to chemotherapy. In such circumstances, instead of giving full-blown chemotherapy, palliative metronomic chemotherapy (MCT) could be a treatment option.

Patients And Methods: We performed a prospective pilot study of old AML patients (age >60 years) not amenable to curative treatment.

High Ligation of Inferior Mesenteric Artery in Left Colonic and Rectal Cancers: Lymph Node Yield and Survival Benefit.

During surgery for colorectal cancer, the inferior mesenteric artery (IMA) may be ligated either directly at the origin of the IMA from the aorta (high ligation) or at a point just below the origin of the left colic artery (low ligation). Sixty patients of left colonic and rectal cancer undergoing elective curative surgery in 2007 and 2008 were selected for this observational study. The resected lymph nodes were grouped into three levels: along the bowel wall (D1), along IMA below left colic (D2), and along the IMA and its root (D3).

HMB-45 negative multifocal malignant perivascular epithelioid cell tumor of the soft tissue responding to sirolimus: First case report from India.

Perivascular epithelioid cell tumor (PEComa) is a group of sarcomas that exhibit a myomelanocytic phenotype and possess a unique cell type in the perivascular epithelioid cell. Traditionally HMB-45 immunoreactivity is the first criteria required to consider a tumor to be PEComa. We report a case of multifocal PEComa with negative HMB-45 marker.

Astroblastoma of cerebrum: A rare case report and review of literature.

Astroblastoma is a rare neuroepithelial primary brain tumor of uncertain origin. They form 0.45-2.

Sociodemographic Parameters of Esophageal Cancer in Northwest India: A Regional Cancer Center Experience of 10 Years.

Background: Despite various advances in the treatment of Esophageal Cancer (EC), being one of the least responsive tumors to cancer therapy, the overall prognosis remains poor. Therefore, it is significant to understand various sociodemographic factors associated with EC to find out various schemes for primary prevention of the disease.

Materials And Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of medical records of the EC patients registered in the regional cancer center of northwest India from January 2003 to December 2012.

Analysis of patterns of palliative radiotherapy in north west India: a regional cancer center experience.

Background: Palliative radiotherapy (PRT) is the eventual requirement in 30-50% of all cancer patients. PRT is primarily aimed to relieve pain and prevent/treat collapse or fracture in case of bone metastasis, to reduce edema in patients with cranial metastasis, and to control distressing symptoms of rapid primary growth. An audit of PRT planned in a busy cancer center can help in the characterization of the requirements of the patients and the formulation of institutional policies.

Cancer related fatigue: A ubiquitous problem yet so under reported, under recognized and under treated.

Background: Cancer related fatigue (CRF) is a problem that is highly under reported, under recognized and thus, under treated. About 80% of patients receiving chemotherapy/radiotherapy experience CRF, making it the most common side effect of cancer treatment. Functional assessment of chronic illness therapy fatigue (FACIT-F) version-4 is a 13 item questionnaire that has been used to measure the level of fatigue of cancer patients during their daily activities over the past 7 days.

Addition of magnetic resonance imaging to computed tomography-based three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy planning for postoperative treatment of astrocytomas: Changes in tumor volume and isocenter shift.

Introduction: Postoperative radiotherapy is the current gold standard treatment in astrocytomas. Computed tomography (CT)-based radiotherapy planning leads to either missing of the tumor volume or underdosing. The aim of this prospective study was to study the changes in tumor volume on addition of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to CT-based three-dimensional radiotherapy treatment planning of astrocytomas.

Comparison of single versus multiple fractions for palliative treatment of painful bone metastasis: first study from north west India.

Background: Bone metastasis is a usual cause of pain in advanced cancer. Conventional radiation schedules require larger hospital stay and thus are not suitable for patients with poor general condition. This prospective observational study aims to compare the pain-relieving efficacy of different radiation fractionation schedules, i.

Comparative analysis of cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in head and neck cancer and carcinoma cervix during concurrent chemoradiotherapy.

Background: Cisplatin is widely used as radio sensitizer in head and neck cancer (HNC) and carcinoma cervix (CaCx). This study aims to see comparative nephrotoxicity of cisplatin in HNC and in CaCx without obstructive uropathy treated by concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT).

Materials And Methods: Fifty patients of HNC and 50 patients of CaCx stage II/III without obstructive uropathy were included in this study.

Double primary malignancies: a clinical & pathological analysis report from a regional cancer institute in India.

Background: Patients which have diagnosed with a cancer, have a life time risk for developing another de novo malignancy depending on various inherited, environmental and iatrogenic risk factors. Cancer victims could survive longer due to settling treatment modalities, and then would likely develop a new metachronous malignancy.This article aims to report our observed trend of increasing, in prevalence of both synchronous and metachronous second primary malignancy, among the cancer victims, and to review the relevant literature.

Diagnosis of post-radiotherapy local failures in nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a prospective institutional study.

Background: This prospective study was conducted to evaluate and compare the efficacies of nasopharyngoscopy and CT scan in the diagnosis of local failure of external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) for nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Methods: Total 52 patients of histopathologically proven nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with external beam radiotherapy (EBRT), were included in this study. For every patient computed tomography (CT), nasopharyngoscopy and nasopharyngeal biopsies were performed 3 months after completion of EBRT.

Analysis of sociodemographic parameters of patients admitted in a newly established palliative care center in a regional cancer institute of north-west India.

Background: After 4 months of the establishment of palliative care center (PCC) in our institute, we present an audit of the sociodemographic parameters of admitted patients. Such an audit can help to recognize the lacuna in the management and thus help to identify the specific requirements of cancer patients that might be overlooked in a busy cancer center.

Materials And Methods: A total of 234 patients were admitted in our PCC since its inception in October 2013.

Allele frequency of ABO blood group antigen and the risk of esophageal cancer.

Background: ABO blood group and risk of squamous cell carcinoma of esophagus have been reported by many studies, but there is no discipline that had provided association with the genotype and gene frequency by population statics.

Methods: We conducted a case-control study on 480 patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus and 480 noncancer patients. ABO blood group was determined by presence of antigen with the help of monoclonal antibody.

A case of CD68 negative histiocytic sarcoma of axilla masquerading as metastatic breast cancer.

Histiocytic sarcoma is a malignant proliferation of cells showing morphological and immunophenotypic features of mature tissue histiocytes. Most of the cases in the literature have reported CD68 positivity. We report a case of histiocytic sarcoma whose presentation mimicked a metastatic breast cancer.