The 3D isodose structure-based method for clinical dose distributions comparison in pretreatment patient-QA.

Introduction: Before the approval of any Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy or Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy treatment plan, quality assurance (QA) tests are needed to reveal potential errors such as an inaccurate calculation of the dose distribution, the failure of the record-and-verify system, or the delivery system of the linear accelerator. Currently, the method adopted to compare the measured dose distribution with the treatment planning system TPS calculated dose distribution is gamma analysis. However, gamma analysis has been shown to be ineffective for the clinical evaluation of treatment plans.

Brentuximab vedotin as salvage treatment in Hodgkin lymphoma naïve transplant patients or failing ASCT: the real life experience of Rete Ematologica Pugliese (REP).

Brentuximab vedotin (BV) shows a high overall response rate (ORR) in relapsed/refractory (R/R) Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) after autologous transplant (ASCT). The aim of this multicenter study, conducted in nine Hematology Departments of Rete Ematologica Pugliese, was to retrospectively evaluate the efficacy and safety of BV as salvage therapy and as bridge regimen to ASCT or allogeneic transplant (alloSCT) in R/R HL patients. Seventy patients received BV.

RAS testing of liquid biopsy correlates with the outcome of metastatic colorectal cancer patients treated with first-line FOLFIRI plus cetuximab in the CAPRI-GOIM trial.

Background: Liquid biopsy is an alternative to tissue for RAS testing in metastatic colorectal carcinoma (mCRC) patients. Little information is available on the predictive role of liquid biopsy RAS testing in patients treated with first-line anti-EGFR monoclonal antibody-based therapy.

Patients And Methods: In the CAPRI-GOIM trial, 340 KRAS exon-2 wild-type mCRC patients received first-line cetuximab plus FOLFIRI.

Immediate-type hypersensitivity reaction to Mannitol as drug excipient (E421): a case report.

Allergic reactions to mannitol have been reported rarely, despite its widespread use as a drug and as a food excipient. This is the first case report in which oral mannitol induces an immediate type hypersensitivity as a drug excipient, in a 42 year old man affected by rhinitis to olive tree pollen. Unusual and undervalued risk factors for mannitol hypersensitivity are examined.

Comparison between an Acrylic Splint Herbst and an Acrylic Splint Miniscrew-Herbst for Mandibular Incisors Proclination Control.

Aim. The aim of this study is to compare dental and skeletal effects produced by an acrylic splint Herbst with and without skeletal anchorage for correction of dental class II malocclusion. Methods.

Carcinogenesis of pancreatic adenocarcinoma: precursor lesions.

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma displays a variety of molecular changes that evolve exponentially with time and lead cancer cells not only to survive, but also to invade the surrounding tissues and metastasise to distant sites. These changes include: genetic alterations in oncogenes and cancer suppressor genes; changes in the cell cycle and pathways leading to apoptosis; and also changes in epithelial to mesenchymal transition. The most common alterations involve the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene, the HER2 gene, and the K-ras gene.

Penetration of prulifloxacin into sinus mucosa of patients undergoing paranasal sinus elective endoscopic surgery.

The aim of this study was to assess the concentration of ulifloxacin, the active metabolite of prulifloxacin, in sinuses mucosa and plasma of patients with chronic rhinosinusitis, requiring sinus elective endoscopic surgery. Thirty-nine patients (30 males, 9 females; age range 22-77 years) with chronic sinusitis were enrolled, 35 were treated with the investigational medication. Samples from four untreated patients were used to validate the analytical method, while four treated patients dropped out before surgery.

Which role for EGFR therapy in breast cancer?

EGFR and HER2 are highly expressed in 15-30% of breast cancer tissues. Therefore, EGFR and its downstream signaling pathways are promising anti-tumour targets. HER2 overexpression is often associated with estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) negativity, high histological grade, high rates of cell proliferation and lymph node involvement.

Dasatinib: an anti-tumour agent via Src inhibition.

Dasatinib (BMS-354825, Sprycel®) is an oral, multitargeted inhibitor of receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs), including BCR-ABL fusion protein, stem cell factor receptor (c-KIT), platelet-derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR), and Src family kinases (SFKs). Several early- and late-phase clinical trials for chronic myelogeneous leukaemia (CML) have demonstrated the direct inhibition of BCR-ABL fusion protein and SFKs, which led to dasatinib approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Union for the treatment of imatinib-resistant or -intolerant CML, and Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL). Phase III dose-optimization study was performed to compare different regimens, stating that dasatinib 100 mg once daily is now the recommended schedule for patients with chronic CML, and 140 mg once daily for patients with accelerated phase or myeloid or lymphoid blast phase CML, and for patients with Ph+ ALL until progression.

Bone marrow endothelial cells in multiple myeloma secrete CXC-chemokines that mediate interactions with plasma cells.

Bone marrow endothelial cells (EC) from patients with multiple myeloma (MM) were found to express and secrete higher amounts of the CXC-chemokines CXCL8/interleukin (IL)-8, CXCL11/interferon-inducible T-cell alpha chemoattractant (I-TAC), CXCL12/stromal cell-derived factor (SDF)-1alpha, and CCL2/monocyte chemotactic protein(MCP)-1 than EC from human umbilical vein (HUVEC), considered as a healthy counterpart. Paired plasma cells and several MM cell lines expressed cognate receptors of each chemokine to a variable extent. When cells were exposed to chemokines, CXCL8/IL-8 and CXCL12/SDF-1alpha stimulated their proliferation and all chemokines stimulated cell chemotaxis.