Purpose: We retrospectively examined the potential effect on overall survival (OS) of delaying radiotherapy to administer neoadjuvant therapy in unresected glioblastoma patients.

Patients And Methods: We compared OS in 119 patients receiving neoadjuvant therapy followed by standard treatment (NA group) and 96 patients receiving standard treatment without neoadjuvant therapy (NoNA group). The MaxStat package of R identified the optimal cut-off point for waiting time to radiotherapy.

Results: OS was similar in the NA and NoNA groups. Median waiting time to radiotherapy after surgery was 13 weeks for the NA group and 4.2 weeks for the NoNA group. The longest OS was attained by patients who started radiotherapy after 12 weeks and the shortest by patients who started radiotherapy within 4 weeks (12.3 vs 6.6 months) (P = 0.05). OS was 6.6 months for patients who started radiotherapy before the optimal cutoff of 6.43 weeks and 19.1 months for those who started after this time (P = 0.005). Patients who completed radiotherapy had longer OS than those who did not, in all 215 patients and in the NA and NoNA groups (P = 0.000). In several multivariate analyses, completing radiotherapy was a universally favorable prognostic factor, while neoadjuvant therapy was never identified as a negative prognostic factor.

Conclusion: In our series of unresected patients receiving neoadjuvant treatment, in spite of the delay in starting radiotherapy, OS was not inferior to that of a similar group of patients with no delay in starting radiotherapy.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12094-018-1883-7DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

neoadjuvant therapy
20
delay starting
12
starting radiotherapy
12
patients receiving
12
patients started
12
started radiotherapy
12
radiotherapy
10
patients
10
unresected glioblastoma
8
receiving neoadjuvant
8

Similar Publications

Treatment options for recurrent high-risk non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (HR NMIBC) and muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) are limited, highlighting a need for clinically effective, accessible, and better-tolerated alternatives. In this review we examine the clinical development program of TAR-200, a novel targeted releasing system designed to provide sustained intravesical delivery of gemcitabine to address the needs of patients with NMIBC and of those with MIBC. We describe the concept and design of TAR-200 and the clinical development of this gemcitabine intravesical system in the SunRISe portfolio of studies.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Therapeutic hurdles persist in the fight against lung cancer, although it is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Results are still not up to par, even with the best efforts of conventional medicine, thus new avenues of investigation are required. Examining how immunotherapy, precision medicine, and AI are being used to manage lung cancer, this review shows how these tools can change the game for patients and increase their chances of survival.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Soft-tissue sarcomas arising in the thigh may require total or subtotal compartmentectomy, with subsequent need for functional reconstruction with free functional muscle transfer (FFMT). We present our series, describing a new approach with chimeric propeller antero-lateral thigh-vastus lateralis (ALT-VL) free flap, which allows for independent muscle inset and soft tissue defect resurfacing.

Patient And Methods: A retrospective review of a prospectively maintained database was performed, analyzing all patients referred to Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy, between 2018 and 2023 for soft-tissue sarcomas of the thigh requiring wide excision and reconstruction with functional ALT-VL.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: In recent years, the incidence of pancreatic cancer has shown an obvious increasing trend worldwide and even causes a greater disease burden to the mankind. Due to the lack of effective early surveillance methods, patients are often in the middle to advanced stages of their disease at the time of detection, thus losing the opportunity for surgery. The currently available chemotherapy regimens are yet to be further improved to prolong patient survival.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!