Prospective imaging comparison of anatomic delineation with rapid kV cone beam CT on a novel ring gantry radiotherapy device.

Introduction: A kV imager coupled to a novel, ring-gantry radiotherapy system offers improved on-board kV-cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) acquisition time (17-40 seconds) and image quality, which may improve CT radiotherapy image-guidance and enable online adaptive radiotherapy. We evaluated whether inter-observer contour variability over various anatomic structures was non-inferior using a novel ring gantry kV-CBCT (RG-CBCT) imager as compared to diagnostic-quality simulation CT (simCT).

Materials/methods: Seven patients undergoing radiotherapy were imaged with the RG-CBCT system at breath hold (BH) and/or free breathing (FB) for various disease sites on a prospective imaging study.

Oncology Trainee Perceptions of the Prior Authorization Process: A National Survey.

Purpose: The medical trainee perspective regarding the prior authorization process has not been previously assessed. Here we evaluate the perceptions of radiation and medical oncology trainees regarding the prior authorization process and its effect on their training and patient care.

Methods And Materials: A 12-question, nonincentivized, electronic national survey of radiation and medical oncology trainees at all Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education accredited oncology programs was conducted.

Radiation-Induced Brachial Plexopathy in Patients With Breast Cancer Treated With Comprehensive Adjuvant Radiation Therapy.

Purpose: Our purpose was to describe the risk of radiation-induced brachial plexopathy (RIBP) in patients with breast cancer who received comprehensive adjuvant radiation therapy (RT).

Methods And Materials: Records for 498 patients who received comprehensive adjuvant RT (treatment of any residual breast tissue, the underlying chest wall, and regional nodes) between 2004 and 2012 were retrospectively reviewed. All patients were treated with conventional 3 to 5 field technique (CRT) until 2008, after which intensity modulated RT (IMRT) was introduced.

Concurrent paclitaxel and radiation therapy for the treatment of cutaneous angiosarcoma.

Introduction: We compared clinical outcomes in patients with cutaneous angiosarcoma receiving concurrent paclitaxel-based chemoradiotherapy (CRT) vs. other modalities (Non-CRT).

Materials And Methods: Patients with non-metastatic cutaneous angiosarcoma diagnosed from 1998 to 2018 at two institutions were identified.

Impact of invasive nodal staging on regional and distant recurrence rates after SBRT for inoperable stage I NSCLC.

Purpose/objectives: Before definitive stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for presumably node-negative, early-stage NSCLC, many patients are staged with PET/CT alone. In patients undergoing PET/CT prior to SBRT, the role of invasive nodal staging (INS) with endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) or mediastinoscopy is uncertain. We sought to characterize the impact of nodal staging modality on outcomes.

Predictors of Distant Metastases in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Without Pathologic Complete Response After Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy.

Background: Pathologic complete response (pCR) after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) predicts decreased distant metastasis. However, most patients do not experience pCR, and other risk factors for distant metastasis after NAC are poorly characterized. This study investigated factors predictive of distant metastasis in TNBC without pCR after NAC.

Single fraction high-dose-rate brachytherapy as monotherapy for low and intermediate risk prostate cancer: toxicities and early outcomes from a single institutional experience.

Purpose: High-dose-rate brachytherapy (HDR-BT) delivered in a single fraction as monotherapy is a potential treatment modality for low- and intermediate-risk prostate cancer (LIR-PC); however, outcome data with this technique remain limited. Here we describe our institutional HDR monotherapy experience and report the efficacy and toxicity of this treatment.

Material And Methods: LIR-PC patients who received a definitive single fraction HDR-BT during 2013-2017 were retrospectively identified.

Clinical outcomes and toxicity of proton beam radiation therapy for re-irradiation of locally recurrent breast cancer.

Purpose: Repeat radiation therapy (RT) using photons/X-rays for locally recurrent breast cancer results in increased short and long-term toxicity. Proton beam RT (PBRT) can minimize dose to surrounding organs, thereby potentially reducing toxicity. Here, we report the toxicity and clinical outcomes for women who underwent re-irradiation to the chest wall for locally recurrent breast cancer using PBRT.

Associations of Early Medicaid Expansion With Insurance Status and Stage at Diagnosis Among Cancer Patients Receiving Radiation Therapy.

Purpose: Medicaid expansion in 2014 is associated with improved insurance coverage and stage at diagnosis in cancer patients. However, little is known about the effect of early Medicaid expansions in 2010 to 2011 on outcomes in radiation therapy recipients. The objective of this study was to estimate the effect of early Medicaid expansion on insurance status and stage at diagnosis among radiation therapy recipients.

Repeat stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for salvage of isolated local recurrence after definitive lung SBRT.

Purpose: Optimal management of isolated local recurrences after stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for early non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is unknown and literature describing repeat SBRT for in-field recurrences after initial SBRT are sparse. We investigate the safety and efficacy of salvage SBRT for isolated local failures after initial SBRT for NSCLC.

Methods/materials: Patients receiving SBRT for isolated local recurrence after initial SBRT for early NSCLC were identified using a prospective registry.

Radiation therapy dose de-escalation compared to standard dose radiation therapy in definitive treatment of HPV-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: Despite existing evidence that human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) has a favorable prognosis compared to HPV-negative OPSCC, randomized studies have yet to report the effect of de-escalating radiation therapy (RT) dose for definitive treatment. The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of dose de-escalated RT (DDRT) vs. standard dose RT (SDRT) in patients with HPV-positive OPSCC.

Predictors of Locoregional Recurrence After Failure to Achieve Pathologic Complete Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Background: This study evaluated factors predictive of locoregional recurrence (LRR) in women with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy who do not experience pathologic complete response (pCR).

Methods: This is a single-institution retrospective review of women with TNBC treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation therapy in 2000 through 2013. LRR was estimated between patients with and without pCR using the Kaplan-Meier method.

Treatment response as predictor for brain metastasis in triple negative breast cancer: A score-based model.

Background: Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) has worse prognosis than other subtypes of breast cancer, and many patients develop brain metastasis (BM). We developed a simple predictive model to stratify the risk of BM in TNBC patients receiving neo-adjuvant chemotherapy (NAC), surgery, and radiation therapy (RT).

Methods: Patients with TNBC who received NAC, surgery, and RT were included.

Clinical outcomes and patterns of care in the treatment of carcinosarcoma of the breast.

Purpose: Carcinosarcoma of the breast is a rare yet highly aggressive tumor accounting for <1% of all breast cancers, for which guidance on optimal management and prognosis are sparse. The purpose of this study was to investigate population-based treatment patterns and overall survival (OS) outcomes in patients with this diagnosis.

Materials And Methods: We queried the National Cancer Database for patients diagnosed with carcinosarcoma of the breast.

Treatment of T3N0 non-small cell lung cancer with chest wall invasion using stereotactic body radiotherapy.

Objectives: Chest wall invasion (CWI) is observed in 5% of localized non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The role of stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) in these patients is unknown. We investigate the safety and efficacy of SBRT in patients with T3N0 NSCLC due to CWI.

Patterns of care and survival outcomes for laryngeal small cell cancer.

Background: To determine practice patterns and outcomes of laryngeal small cell cancer (LSCC) across the United States.

Methods: Patients with LSCC were identified in the National Cancer Database. Overall survival (OS) was compared with Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox regression.

Induction chemotherapy in the treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma: Clinical outcomes and patterns of care.

The role of induction chemotherapy in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) remains controversial. The primary aim of this study was to use the National Cancer Database to evaluate the patterns of care of induction chemotherapy in NPC and its impact on overall survival (OS). Patients with NPC from 2004 to 2014 were obtained from the NCDB.

Stereotactic radiosurgery and immunotherapy in melanoma brain metastases: Patterns of care and treatment outcomes.

Purpose: Preclinical studies have suggested that radiation therapy (RT) enhances antitumor immune response and can act synergistically when administered with immunotherapy. However, this effect in melanoma brain metastasis is not well studied. We aim to explore the clinical effect of combining RT and immunotherapy in patients with melanoma brain metastasis (MBM).

Use of extracranial radiation therapy in metastatic melanoma patients receiving immunotherapy.

Purpose: Explore the patterns of use of extracranial radiation therapy (RT) in metastatic melanoma patients receiving immunotherapy, its potential association with OS, the impact of the site and timing of RT on clinical outcomes when combined with immunotherapy.

Materials And Methods: Patients with extracranial metastatic melanoma who received immunotherapy with or without extracranial RT from 2004 to 2013 were obtained from the National Cancer Database. Multivariable Cox regression analysis was used to evaluate factors associated with overall survival (OS).

Long-term outcomes of APBI via multicatheter interstitial HDR brachytherapy: Results of a prospective single-institutional registry.

Purpose: Long-term outcome reports of accelerated partial-breast irradiation (APBI) are limited. Here, we report the 10-year outcomes of APBI delivered using multicatheter interstitial implant (ISI) brachytherapy.

Methods And Materials: Patients with early-stage breast cancer treated with APBI via ISI brachytherapy were enrolled in a prospective registry.

Antibiotrophs: The complexity of antibiotic-subsisting and antibiotic-resistant microorganisms.

Widespread overuse of antibiotics has led to the emergence of numerous antibiotic-resistant bacteria; among these are antibiotic-subsisting strains capable of surviving in environments with antibiotics as the sole carbon source. This unparalleled expansion of antibiotic resistance reveals the potent and diversified resistance abilities of certain bacterial strains. Moreover, these strains often possess hypermutator phenotypes and virulence transmissibility competent for genomic and proteomic propagation and pathogenicity.

Bioremediation: a genuine technology to remediate radionuclides from the environment.

Radionuclides in the environment are a major human and environmental health concern. Like the Chernobyl disaster of 1986, the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011 is once again causing damage to the environment: a large quantity of radioactive waste is being generated and dumped into the environment, and if the general population is exposed to it, may cause serious life-threatening disorders. Bioremediation has been viewed as the ecologically responsible alternative to environmentally destructive physical remediation.

Emergence of Antibiotic-Producing Microorganisms in Residential Versus Recreational Microenvironments.

Aims: To identify novel antibiotic-producing microbial strains with unprecedented pertinence. We hypothesize that site-specific soil samples will contain a variety of antibiotic-producing species (APS) with diverse specificity of molecular elements.

Place And Duration Of Study: Laboratory of Microbiology, Division of Biological and Health Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Bradford, PA-16701, USA, between August 2010 and May 2011.

Ultraviolet-radiation-resistant isolates revealed cellulose-degrading species of Cellulosimicrobium cellulans (UVP1) and Bacillus pumilus (UVP4).

Among extremophiles, microorganisms resistant to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) have been known to produce a variety of metabolites (i.e., extremolytes).