Procalcitonin and C-Reactive Protein/Procalcitonin Ratio as Markers of Infection in Patients With Solid Tumors.

The roles of procalcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP) in febrile cancer patients is currently unclear. Our aim was to assess these in febrile patients with solid tumors and to identify cut-off values for ruling out infection. We retrospectively evaluated patients with solid tumors admitted to hospital due to fever.

Cetuximab is efficient and safe in patients with advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma: a retrospective, multicentre study.

There is no standard of care for unresectable cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC). Chemotherapy, alone or combined with radiotherapy, is commonly used mostly as palliative treatment; moreover, its poor safety profile limits its use most of the time, especially in elderly patients. Thus, alternative options are needed.

Short-course daptomycin lock and systemic therapy for catheter-related bloodstream infections: a retrospective cohort study in cancer patients with surgically implanted devices.

Purpose: Few in vivo studies have been reported describing efficacy and duration of antibiotic lock therapy (ALT) with daptomycin (DPT) for long-term catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSI) due to coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS). We retrospectively analysed the efficacy of short-course ALT with DPT in combination with systemic treatment (ST) for CoNS-associated CRBSI in our hospital.

Methods: Patients admitted for CoNS-associated CRBSI and treated with DPT as ALT and ST were retrospectively analysed.

Visceral leishmaniasis due to Leishmania infantum with renal involvement in HIV-infected patients.

Background: We describe histological, clinical findings and outcomes of renal involvement during Leishmania infantum infection in four HIV-infected patients in South France and North Italy hospital settings.

Cases Presentation: Four HIV-infected Caucasian patients (age 24-49) performed renal biopsy during episodes of visceral leishmaniasis. They presented severe immunosuppression, frequent relapses of visceral leishmaniasis during a follow-up period of several years and partial or complete recovery of renal function after anti-parasitic treatment.

Final results of ERASME-4: a randomized trial of first-line docetaxel plus either capecitabine or epirubicin for metastatic breast cancer.

Objective: To assess the efficacy of capecitabine plus docetaxel (XT) versus epirubicin plus docetaxel (ET) as first-line therapy for metastatic breast cancer (MBC).

Patients And Methods: Patients with no prior chemotherapy for MBC were randomized to 3-weekly cycles of either XT (capecitabine 1,000 mg/m(2) twice daily, days 1-14; docetaxel 75 mg/m(2), day 1) or ET (epirubicin 75 mg/m(2), day 1; docetaxel 75 mg/m(2), day 1). The primary endpoint was non-progression rate 6 months after randomization.