Depression and anxiety were present in one-third of patients with recently diagnosed NSCLC. Depression and anxiety were associated with decreased HRQL scales, and depression was independently associated with treatment adherence and with poor prognosis.

No abstract

Pretherapeutic serum albumin level is a significant prognostic factor, which should be evaluated along with other well-defined prognostic factors in decisions concerning therapy for GC.

Nabilone is an adequate and safe therapeutic option to aid in the treatment of patients diagnosed with anorexia. Larger trials are necessary in order to draw robust conclusions in regard to its efficacy in lung cancer patients.

N-Nitroso compounds (NOC) are potent animal carcinogens and potential human carcinogens. The primary source of exposure for most individuals may be endogenous formation, a process that can be inhibited by dietary polyphenols. To estimate the risk of gastric cancer (GC) in relation to the individual and combined consumption of polyphenols and NOC precursors (nitrate and nitrite), a population-based case-control study was carried out in Mexico City from 2004 to 2005 including 257 histologically confirmed GC cases and 478 controls. Intake of polyphenols, nitrate and nitrite were estimated using a food frequency questionnaire. High intakes of cinnamic acids, secoisolariciresinol and coumestrol were associated with an 50% reduction in GC risk. A high intake of total nitrite as well as nitrate and nitrite from animal sources doubled the GC risk. Odds ratios around 2-fold were observed among individuals with both low intake of cinnamic acids, secoisolariciresinol or coumestrol and high intake of animal-derived nitrate or nitrite, compared to high intake of the polyphenols and low animal nitrate or nitrite intake, respectively. Results were similar for both the intestinal and diffuse types of GC. Our results show, for the first time, a protective effect for GC because of higher intake of cinnamic acids, secoisolariciresinol and coumestrol, and suggest that these polyphenols reduce GC risk through inhibition of endogenous nitrosation. The main sources of these polyphenols were pears, mangos and beans for cinnamic acids; beans, carrots and squash for secoisolariciresinol and legumes for coumestrol. ' UICCKey words: nitrate; nitrite; diet; polyphenols; gastric cancer In Mexico, gastric cancer (GC) rates show an increasing trend with time, 1 in contrast to other countries, and remains the 2nd leading cause of cancer mortality. 2 Nitrate and nitrite are precursors for the endogenous formation of N-nitroso compounds (NOC), which are carcinogenic in animals and, potentially, in humans. 3 Ingested nitrate is absorbed in the small intestine and 25% is excreted in the mouth, where oral bacteria reduce about 20% to nitrite (about 5% of ingested nitrate).In the acidic stomach, nitrite forms nitrous acid, which decomposes into various reactive nitrogen species (RNS). Nitrite and RNS react with nitrosatable compounds, mainly amines and amides, to form NOC. 4 The formation of NOC is inhibited by some antioxidants, such as polyphenols 5,6 and vitamins C and E. 4,7 For this reason, a low consumption of these inhibitors of NOC formation, (INC) together with a high consumption of nitrate and/or nitrite, results in an increase in the endogenous formation of NOC. 3 Contrasting with consistent results showing an increase in the risk of GC because of nitrite consumption, 8 the association with nitrate intake is less certain. Some investigators observed no association with nitrate consumption 9-16 ; whereas, others have observed a decrease in GC risk with increasing nitrate consumption. 17,18 These apparent contradictory results reflect the...

Early identification and treatment of nutritional deficiencies can lead to improved outcomes in the quality of life (QoL) and survival of patients with nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Noninvasive techniques are needed to evaluate changes in body composition as part of determining nutritional status. The aim of the study was to evaluate the association of nutritional parameters in health-related quality of life (HRQL) and survival in patients with advanced NSCLC. Chemotherapy-naïve patients with advanced NSCLC with good performance status Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) 0-2 were included prospectively in the study. We evaluated inflammatory parameters such as C-reactive protein, platelet/lymphocyte index, neutrophil/lymphocyte index, serum interleukin (IL)-6, and tumor necrosis factor-α, and nutritional variables such as body mass index (BMI) and serum albumin levels. Bioelectrical impedance analysis including phase angle was obtained before cisplatin-based chemotherapy was started. HRQL was assessed by application of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ)-C30 and QLQ-LC13 instruments at baseline. Overall survival (OS) was calculated with the Kaplan-Meier method and analyzed with log-rank and Cox proportional hazard models. One hundred nineteen patients were included. Mean BMI was 24.8 ± 4.5 kg/m(2), average weight loss of patients was 8.4%, and median phase angle was 5.8°. Malnutrition measured by subjective global assessment (SGA), weight loss >10%, BMI >20 was associated with lower HRQL scales. Patients with ECOG 2, high content serum IL-6, lower phase angle, and malnutrition parameters showed lower OS; however, after multivariate analysis, only ECOG 2 [Hazard ratio (HR), 2.7; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 1.5-4.7; P = 0.001], phase angle ≤5.8° (HR = 3.02; 95% CI: 1.2-7.11; P = 0.011), and SGA (HR = 2.7; 95% CI, 1.31-5.5; P = 0.005) were associated with poor survival. Patients were divided into low-, intermediate-, and high-risk groups according to regression coefficients; OS at 1 yr was 78.4, 53, and 13.8%, respectively. Malnutrition is associated with low HRQL and is an independent prognostic factor in advanced NSCLC. The results warrant prospective trials to evaluate the impact of different nutritional interventions on HRQL and survival.

BACKGROUNDParotid gland carcinoma is an infrequent tumor, and series that report on these neoplasms are relatively scarce in the literature. The objective of the current study was to identify prognostic factors in patients with parotid gland carcinoma and to develop a method for defining the probability of recurrence.METHODSPatients with parotid gland carcinoma who were treated at the authors' institution from January 1981 through December 2004 and who completed treatment constituted the study group. Disease‐free survival was calculated by using the Kaplan‐Meier method. Logistic regression analysis was employed to define the recurrence‐associated prognostic factors.RESULTSOne hundred twenty‐seven patients were included (64 men and 63 women); their mean age was 53 years. Mucoepidermoid carcinoma was diagnosed in 34.6% of patients, adenoid cystic was diagnosed in 15.7% of patients, adenocarcinoma was diagnosed in 14.3% of patients, and acinic cell carcinoma was diagnosed in 9.4% of patients. The median disease‐free survival was 8.3 years (95% confidence interval [95% CI], 4.3–12.2 years). Logistic regression analysis confirmed tumor classification, facial nerve palsy, grade of tumor differentiation, patient age, and surgical margins as recurrence‐associated factors (P < .00001). Using this model, 3 postoperative risk groups were defined—high‐risk, intermediate‐risk, and low‐risk—that had recurrence frequencies of 71.4%, 43.1%, and 8.8%, respectively (P = .0001). The 5‐year disease‐free survival rates for these groups were 18.7%, 53.9%, and 99.9%, respectively (P = .00001).CONCLUSIONSIn this study, the authors identified several significant prognostic factors. Consequently, they have proposed a prognostic score categorization that allows for a straightforward calculation of the risk of recurrence for a given patient that may help to define therapeutic strategies, target patient counseling, and design future trials. Cancer 2007. © 2007 American Cancer Society.

Table. Pathological Features and Molecular Profile of Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer Pathological features Molecular profile Poor differentiation Microsatellite stability Mucinous tumors More likely to exhibit LINE-1 hypomethylation and TP53 sequence variations Signet-ring morphology Less frequently harbor KRAS, BRAF V600E, and APC sequence variations Perineural/venous invasion Promoter methylation of CpG islands Abbreviations: APC, adenomatous polyposis coli; BRAF, B-Raf; KRAS, K-Ras; LINE-1, long interspersed nuclear elements; TP53, tumor protein 53.