Albumin-To-Alkaline Phosphatase Ratio as a New Early Predictive Marker of Axillary Response in Breast Cancer Patients Undergoing Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy: A Pilot Study.

The Albumin-to-Alkaline Phosphatase ratio (AAPR) is an easily applicable and cost-effective marker investigated as an outcome predictor in solid cancers. Preliminary evidence in breast cancer suggests that a low AAPR correlates with a poor response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in primary tumors. However, data regarding the axillary response are lacking.

A New Easy-to-Perform Flow Cytometry Assay for Determining Bacterial- and Viral-Infection-Induced Polymorphonuclear Neutrophil and Monocyte Membrane Marker Modulation in Febrile Patients.

We developed a flow cytometry (FC) assay enabling the rapid and accurate identification of bacterial and viral infections using whole blood samples. The streamlined flow cytometry assay is designed to be user-friendly, making it accessible even for operators with limited experience in FC techniques. The key components of the assay focus on the expression levels of specific surface markers-CD64 on polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) as a marker for bacterial infection, and CD169 on monocytes (MO) for viral infection.

A case of tuberculous and Listeria-associated lymphadenitis in a migrant from Mexico.

Tuberculous lymphadenitis is one of the most common extrapulmonary manifestation of tuberculosis. Lymphadenitis due to Listeria monocytogenes is rarely described. We present a case of a 59-year-old woman from Mexico presented to the Emergency Department with a 2-week history of erythematous and painful swelling in the right retromandibular area.

Factors influencing 5-year persistence to adjuvant endocrine therapy in young women with breast cancer.

Purpose: Although younger age has been negatively associated with persistence to adjuvant endocrine therapy (ET), factors contributing to non-persistence remain poorly understood. We assessed factors associated with non-persistence to ET and described the 5-year trajectories of quality of life (QoL) and symptoms in young women (≤40 years) with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer (BC).

Methods: We retrieved data on clinical characteristics and non-persistence from the medical annual records in the European cohort of the "Helping Ourselves, Helping Others: The Young Women's BC Study" (IBCSG 43-09 HOHO).