Predictive Value of Preoperative Endoscopic Ultrasound (EUS) After Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Locally Advanced Esophagogastric Cancer - Data From a Randomized German Phase II Trial.

Purpose: The role of EUS before or after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (nCTX) in advanced esophagogastric cancer (EGC) is still unclear. The phase II NEOPECX trial evaluated perioperative chemotherapy with or without panitumumab in this setting. The aim of this sub-study was to investigate the prognostic value of EUS-guided preoperative staging before and after nCTX.

Complex motion series performance differs between previously untreated patients with Parkinson's disease and controls.

Motor behaviour in patients with Parkinson's disease is determined with instrumental tests and rating procedures. Results mirror impairment of an individual patient. Objectives were to determine the associations between two kinds of motion series and rating scores in previously untreated 64 patients and to compare outcomes to controls.

Long-term Occupational Consequences for Families of Children With Type 1 Diabetes: The Mothers Take the Burden.

Objective: To investigate the occupational and financial consequences for parents following the onset of type 1 diabetes in their child.

Research Design And Methods: A questionnaire assessing occupational and financial situations before and in the first year after the onset of diabetes was distributed to all families with a child ≤14 years of age at diagnosis with a diabetes duration of at least 12 months in nine German pediatric diabetes centers.

Results: Data of 1,144 children (mean age at diagnosis 6.

Ketogenic diets consumed during radio-chemotherapy have beneficial effects on quality of life and metabolic health in patients with rectal cancer.

Purpose: Interest in ketogenic diets (KDs) as complementary nutritional treatments for cancer patients is rising, although some skepticism about their safety exists. We, therefore, studied the effects of KDs on quality of life and blood parameters in rectal cancer patients undergoing radio-chemotherapy.

Methods: EORTC-QLQ30 questionnaire scores and different metabolic and hormonal blood parameters were obtained prior to, in the middle of and at the end of radiotherapy within the KETOCOMP study (ClinicalTrials.

Microcirculation in Patients with Takotsubo Syndrome-The Prospective CIRCUS-TTS Study.

The pathophysiology of Takotsubo syndrome (TTS) is incompletely understood. A sympathetic overdrive with coronary microvascular dysfunction might play a central role. The aim of our study was to assess the status of the systemic microcirculation (MC) of patients with TTS, compared to patients with myocardial infarction (MI) and healthy subjects.

Vitamin D Resistance as a Possible Cause of Autoimmune Diseases: A Hypothesis Confirmed by a Therapeutic High-Dose Vitamin D Protocol.

Vitamin D (cholecalciferol) is a secosteroid and prohormone which is metabolized in various tissues to the biologically most active vitamin D hormone 1,25(OH)D (calcitriol). 1,25(OH)D has multiple pleiotropic effects, particularly within the immune system, and is increasingly utilized not only within prophylaxis, but also within therapy of various diseases. In this context, the latest research has revealed clinical benefits of high dose vitamin D therapy in autoimmune diseases.

Low Carb and Ketogenic Diets Increase Quality of Life, Physical Performance, Body Composition, and Metabolic Health of Women with Breast Cancer.

Breast cancer (BC) patients often ask for a healthy diet. Here, we investigated a healthy standard diet (SD), a low carb diet (LCD), and a ketogenic diet (KD) for BC patients during the rehabilitation phase. KOLIBRI was an open-label non-randomized one-site nutritional intervention trial, combining inpatient and outpatient phases for 20 weeks.

A ketogenic diet consumed during radiotherapy improves several aspects of quality of life and metabolic health in women with breast cancer.

Background & Aims: Ketogenic diets (KDs) have been proposed as complementary nutritional treatments for cancer patients. Because it is important to gain knowledge about the safety of KDs adopted during cancer therapy, we studied the effects of KDs on quality of life and blood parameters in women with early-stage breast cancer undergoing radiotherapy.

Methods: A total of 29 patients consuming a KD were compared to 30 patients consuming their standard diet (SD) with respect to EORTC-QLQ30 questionnaire scores and different metabolic and hormonal blood parameters that were obtained prior to, in the middle of and at the end of radiotherapy.

Long-Term Results of Dose-Intensified Fractionated Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) for Painful Spinal Metastases.

Purpose: To report long-term outcome of fractionated stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for painful spinal metastases.

Methods And Materials: This prospective, single-arm, multicenter phase 2 clinical trial enrolled 57 patients with 63 painful, unirradiated spinal metastases between March 2012 and July 2015. Patients were treated with 48.

The Epistemology of a Positive SARS-CoV-2 Test.

We investigate the epistemological consequences of a positive polymerase chain reaction SARS-CoV test for two relevant hypotheses: (i) V is the hypothesis that an individual has been infected with SARS-CoV-2; (ii) C is the hypothesis that SARS-CoV-2 is the cause of flu-like symptoms in a given patient. We ask two fundamental epistemological questions regarding each hypothesis: First, how much confirmation does a positive test lend to each hypothesis? Second, how much evidence does a positive test provide for each hypothesis against its negation? We respond to each question within a formal Bayesian framework. We construe degree of confirmation as the difference between the posterior probability of the hypothesis and its prior, and the strength of evidence for a hypothesis against its alternative in terms of their likelihood ratio.

Face masks in radiation oncology clinics: based on evidence or source of mistakes?

We here express our concern about a general decree to let patients wear face masks in radiation oncology clinics. We believe that potential risks associated with wearing masks, such as the risk of confounding patients, outweigh any benefits of such a policy for which evidence of protection from COVID-19 is generally weak. For asymptomatic patients, wearing masks in addition to hygiene standards will not provide additional protection of others and should be cautioned against.

Alterations in inflammatory markers and clinical outcome after spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage - Preliminary results.

Objective: After an intracerebral hemorrhage, there is an immunological reaction, the specific mechanism of which is not fully understood, that seems to contribute to secondary brain injury. In this study, we investigated alterations of inflammatory markers in the blood and clinical outcome after an intracerebral hemorrhage.

Methods: Between July 2013 and February 2016, we performed a prospective study for which we recruited patients who had suffered an intracerebral hemorrhage.

Long-term results of multimodal peptide receptor radionuclide therapy and fractionated external beam radiotherapy for treatment of advanced symptomatic meningioma.

Background: The combination of somatostatin receptor-directed peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) in combination with external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) might prove a feasible treatment option in patients with advanced meningioma.

Patients And Methods: From May 2010 to May 2011, 10 patients with unresectable meningioma (6 × WHO grade I, 2 × WHO grade II, 2 × WHO grading not available) were treated with one cycle of PRRT followed by EBRT. Long-term toxicity and efficacy were assessed according to Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 5.

Two years' experience of implementing a comprehensive telemedical stroke network comprising in mainly rural region: the Transregional Network for Stroke Intervention with Telemedicine (TRANSIT-Stroke).

Background: Telemedicine improves the quality of acute stroke care in rural regions with limited access to specialized stroke care. We report the first 2 years' experience of implementing a comprehensive telemedical stroke network comprising all levels of stroke care in a defined region.

Methods: The TRANSIT-Stroke network covers a mainly rural region in north-western Bavaria (Germany).

Correlating Dose Variables with Local Tumor Control in Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy for Early-Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: A Modeling Study on 1500 Individual Treatments.

Background: Large variation regarding prescription and dose inhomogeneity exists in stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for early-stage non-small cell lung cancer. The aim of this modeling study was to identify which dose metric correlates best with local tumor control probability to make recommendations regarding SBRT prescription.

Methods And Materials: We combined 2 retrospective databases of patients with non-small cell lung cancer, yielding 1500 SBRT treatments for analysis.

Complementary and alternative medicine and musculoskeletal pain in the first year of adjuvant aromatase inhibitor treatment in early breast cancer patients.

Background: Patients with breast cancer (BC) show strong interest in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), particularly for adverse effects of adjuvant endocrine treatment - e.g., with letrozole.

Ketogenic diets in medical oncology: a systematic review with focus on clinical outcomes.

Preclinical data provide evidence for synergism between ketogenic diets (KDs) and other oncological therapies. The aim of this systematic review was to summarize data from clinical studies that have tested KDs along with other treatments used within medical oncology. The PubMed database was searched using the key words "ketogenic" AND ("cancer" OR "glioblastoma").

Kinesiology training in patients with Parkinson's disease: results of a pilot study.

Complementary therapies are an essential component of the treatment of patients with Parkinson's disease. They aim to ameliorate disease symptoms in conjunction with dopamine substitution. Kinesiology trains about the effective use of physical, mental and emotional skills.

Accelerated hyperfractionated radiochemotherapy with temozolomide is equivalent to normofractionated radiochemotherapy in a retrospective analysis of patients with glioblastoma.

Background: Current standard of treatment for newly diagnosed patients with glioblastoma (GBM) is surgical resection with adjuvant normofractionated radiotherapy (NFRT) combined with temozolomide (TMZ) chemotherapy. Hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy (HFRT) which was known as an option from randomized controlled trials before the temozolomide era has not been compared to the standard therapy in a randomized setting combined with TMZ.

Methods: Data of 152 patients with newly diagnosed GBM treated from 10/2004 until 7/2018 at a single tertiary care institution were extracted from a clinical database and retrospectively analyzed.