Although the incidence of second primary cancer in patients with primary male breast cancer requires further study, male breast cancer survivors should probably undergo periodic screening for the early detection of second breast cancers and other adverse health effects.
Doxorubicin and ifosfamide are currently considered the cornerstones of treatment for advanced soft tissue sarcomas (STSs). Pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD) has been shown to have equivalent activity to doxorubicin and an improved toxicity profile. A review of the medical records of 11 patients with a variety of STSs treated with PLD was performed. The median age of the patients was 54.8 years. Of the 11 patients, seven received no earlier systemic therapy for their sarcoma. The initial dose per course was 40-60 mg/m2 every 4 weeks with dose reduction to 40 mg/m2 in the second or third cycle. A median of 11 cycles was given (range, two to 29 cycles). Treatment was generally well tolerated. We did observe some toxic effects as described earlier with PLD, including mild myelosuppression, skin toxicity and fatigue. No cardiotoxicity was observed. Of the 11 treated patients, six had a partial response, two had a best response of stable disease and three had progressive disease. All six patients with a partial response had an extended time to progression. To date, two patients continue on treatment (15 and seven cycles); one patient has stable disease 60 months after withdrawal of PLD (after eight cycles) and one patient had progression of disease 7 months after the withdrawal of therapy after 20 cycles. Of the two patients with stabilization of their disease, one had progression after 29 months and one continues on treatment for 6 months. PLD is active and safe for long-term treatment of metastatic STSs and may be important in maintaining response.
Indwelling central venous catheters and implantable port systems are widely used in the care of patients with cancer. Bevacizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody against vascular endothelial growth factor, significantly prolongs survival when added to intravenous 5-fluorouracil-based chemotherapy as first-line treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer. It has also been shown to be of value in a range of other malignant diseases. Some elements of the toxicity profile of bevacizumab, however, such as bleeding and impaired wound healing, could interfere with surgical procedures involved in the treatment of the diseases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible effect of bevacizumab in increasing the morbidity associated with an indwelling central venous access port in patients currently receiving the drug, or those who had received it in the preoperative run-up to surgery. An analysis of the medical records of 57 patients with a variety of cancers, who had received an indwelling central venous access port, either during the course of treatment with bevacizumab or in the 4-week period before the commencement of therapy was carried out, with particular emphasis on periprocedural complications. Eight of the patients also had diabetes mellitus. There were no instances of delay in wound healing, abnormal bleeding, or wound infection in any of the patients and no episodes of skin ulceration during bevacizumab treatment. Although this is a relatively small study, and no definitive conclusions can be drawn at this stage, our data suggest that an indwelling central venous access port insertion may be carried out shortly before or during bevacizumab treatment without increasing periprocedural morbidity.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.