Samples were provided by the Biobank of Andalusia (Collection Code: 19150007). The study was approved by the HUVN Ethics and Research Committee, and was conducted according to the Declaration of Helsinki.
Colorectal cancer is a tumor with increasing incidence which represents one of the first leading causes of death worldwide. Gene alterations described for colorectal cancer include genome instability (microsatellite and chromosomal instability), CpG islands methylator phenotype, microRNA, histone modification, protein biomarkers, gene mutations (RAS, BRAF, PI3K, TP53, PTEN) and polymorphisms (APC, CTNNB1, DCC). In this article, biomarkers with prognostic value commonly found in colorectal cancer will be reviewed.
Background Pirfenidone is currently the only agent approved for mild to moderate idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in adults. Purpose To evaluate the effect of pirfenidone in two patients who met the criteria for use. Materials and methods Follow-up of two cases of IPF in a Spanish hospital. The most common parameters used when monitoring IPF are functional vital capacity (FVC) and diffusing capacity or Transfer Factor of the Lung for Carbon Monoxide (TLCO). Results Patient 1 was diagnosed in 2008. Initial treatment: 20 months of prednisone. Changed treatment in 2009 to triple therapy with azathioprine, N-acetylcysteine (NAC) and prednisone. This regimen lasted 11 months, after which NAC was used in monotherapy. In 2012 a new regimen was started: pirfenidone, NAC and prednisone. This lasted until the end of the observation period. During treatment with corticosteroids, TLCO decreased from 83 to 41%, and FVC from 68 to 52%. With the triple therapy, TLCO changed from 41 to 32% and FVC increased slightly from 52 to 57%. During the treatment with NAC in monotherapy, TLCO values remained at 35% and FVC at 58%. Finally, with pirfenidone, TLCO stabilised between 31% and 34% and FVC remained between 50% and 51%. Patient 2 was diagnosed in 2007. Initial treatment: 19 months with triple therapy after which NAC remained in monotherapy for 24 months. Treatment with pirfenidone, NAC and prednisone began in 2012 and continued until the end of the observation period. With the triple therapy regimen, TLCO decreased from 50 to 44% and FVC remained constant (80%). During the NAC monotherapy period, TLCO values fluctuated around 43 to 42%, with a minimum of 31%. With pirfenidone TLCO ranged from 37 to 39%, and FVC remained at 91%. Conclusions Although the two patients clearly stabilised in breathing patterns, in both cases this stability had been reached previously with NAC monotherapy. The results indicated that pirfenidone did not provide evident benefits in the treatment of IPF and its use may not be cost effective. No conflict of interest.
Background Medulloblastoma is one of the most frequent malignant brain tumours in infancy. Conventional treatment is based on combined radiotherapy and chemotherapy after surgical resection of the tumour. The chemotherapy consists of combinations of various anticancer agents, including methotrexate. Methotrexate is administered in intravenous infusion at high doses combined with intrathecal injection at low doses. The use of fluorescence polarisation immunoassay (FPIA) to monitor blood methotrexate levels is widely validated, but there have been few studies on its application to analyse cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentrations of this drug. Purpose To analyse cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentrations of methotrexate by fluorescence polarisation immunoassay (FPIA) in patient with medulloblastoma. Materials and methods A 22-month-old female diagnosed with medulloblastoma underwent intensive chemotherapy. The regimen was three two-month courses of chemotherapy with methotrexate and other anticancer agents. The patient has received one complete course to date. In the first week, 2 mg of methotrexate were administered intraventricularly via Ommaya reservoir for four days, followed by intravenous cyclophosphamide for three days. In week 3, 2 mg of intraventricular methotrexate was administered in combination with a 24-h intravenous infusion of 2.7 g methotrexate and INTRAVENOUS infusion of vincristine on day 1 and was administered alone on day 2. The treatment in week 5 was identical to that in week 3. Finally, in week 7, the patient received 2 mg of intraventricular methotrexate daily for four days followed by intravenous carboplatin and etoposide for three days. Methotrexate CSF samples were drawn before the first intraventricular injection and at 24 h after each intraventricular administration. CSF methotrexate levels were determined by FPIA using an Abbot TDX analyser. Results CSF methotrexate levels were measured with the following results: week 1, day 1: 14.26 x 10 -6 M, day 2: 218 x 10 −6 M, day 3: 0.75 x 10 −6 M, day 4: 0.33 x 10 −6 M; week 3, day 1: 0.05 x 10 −6 M, day 2: 2.96 x 10 −6 M; week 5, day 1: 0.02 x 10 −6 M, day 2: 2.16 x 10 −6 M; week 7, day 1: 0 x 10 −6 M, day 2: 1.46 x 10 −6 M, day 3: 0.94 x 10 −6 M, and day 4: 1.07 x 10 −6 M; the mean value was 1.38x10−6 M. Values on day 1 of each cycle were obtained prior to the intraventricular injection and were determined solely to confirm the virtual absence of methotrexate before initiating the next intraventricular administration cycle; therefore, day 1 values were not considered in the calculation of the mean CSF concentration. Values on days 1 and 2 of week 1 were excluded from our analysis because the same route was used for the intrathecal injection and subsequent CSF sample extraction; therefore, the corresponding samples were contaminated. Conclusions FPIA proved to be a reliable method to measure CSF fluid methotrexate concentrations, within published ranges, although further studies are required to verify these findings.
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.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.