Survival of patients with deficient mismatch repair metastatic colorectal cancer in the pre-immunotherapy era.

Background: Metastatic colorectal cancer patients with deficient mismatch repair (dMMR mCRC) benefit from immunotherapy. Interpretation of the single-arm immunotherapy trials is complicated by insignificant survival data during systemic non-immunotherapy. We present survival data on a large, comprehensive cohort of dMMR mCRC patients, treated with or without systemic non-immunotherapy.

To dive or not to dive with bleomycin: a practical algorithm.

Background: Bleomycin is used in the treatment of different cancers, but possible side effects of interstitial pneumonitis and fibrosis are associated with increased concentrations of oxygen. Therefore, clinicians are reluctant to declare young people fit for scuba diving after bleomycin treatment, because scuba divers might be exposed to high partial pressures of oxygen.

Methods: Based on a survey, 16 patients treated with bleomycin for either testicular/germ cell cancer or Hodgkin's disease were evaluated according to an algorithm to assess their fitness to dive.