Abstract. Treatment with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and cisplatin (PF regimen) remains the most frequently used chemotherapy for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). The aim of the present study was to assess the efficacy and safety of pemetrexed/cisplatin (PP regimen) as definitive treatment compared with PF. A total of 60 patients with locally advanced, unresectable SCC of the esophagus receiving concomitant chemoradiotherapy were recruited in this study; of those patients, 29 received four cycles (two concomitant and two post-radiotherapy) of the PF regimen (arm A, cisplatin 25 mg/m 2 /day i.v. on days 1-3 plus 5-FU 800 mg/m 2 /24 h by continuous infusion on days 1-5) and 31 received four cycles of the PP regimen (arm B, cisplatin 25 mg/m 2 /day i.v. on days 1-3 plus pemetrexed 500 mg/m 2 on day 1). All the patients in both arms received a total radiation dose of 59.6 Gy. The two arms were well-matched for age, gender, Karnofsky performance status, TNM stage, tumor location and length. The overall response rate was 89.7% in arm A vs. 93.5% in arm B (P>0.05). The median overall survival was 26.1 months [95% confidence interval (CI): 15.3-36.8 months] in arm A vs. 28.7 months (95% CI: 9.4-48.0 months) in arm B (P>0.05). Severe esophagitis occurred in 31.0% (9/29) of the patients in arm A vs. 12.9% (4/31) of the patients in arm B; the difference was statistically significant (P= 0.036). Grade 3/4 leukopenia and thrombocytopenia occurred in 4 (13.8%) and 1 (3.4%) patients, respectively, in arm A vs. 12 (38.7%) and 6 (19.4%) patients, respectively, in arm B; the differences were statistically significant (P=0.029 and 0.041, respectively). Therefore, chemoradiotherapy with the PP regimen achieved therapeutic results comparable with those of the PF regimen; in terms of toxicity, the incidence of hematological toxicity was higher and that of esophagitis was lower with the PP regimen.
The relationship of bladder cancer with the presence of X-ray cross-complementing group 3(XRCC3) genetic polymorphism Thr241Met has been reported with inconsistent results. The objective of this study was to quantitatively evaluate the association between this polymorphism and bladder cancer susceptibility. A comprehensive research was conducted through PubMed, Medline, Embase, and Web of Science databases up to Aug. 20, 2013. Pooled odds ratio and 95 % confidence interval were calculated using a fixed or random effects model. Statistical analysis was performed with Stata 12.0 software. Of the 18 case-control studies selected for this meta-analysis, a total of 5,667 bladder cancer cases and 7,609 controls were included. The combined results based on all studies suggested that XRCC3 Thr241Met was associated with bladder cancer risk under homozygote and recessive models. When stratifying for ethnicity, significant association was found in Caucasians under homozygote and recessive models. This meta-analysis suggests that XRCC3 Thr241Met polymorphism is a risk factor for bladder cancer risk. However, further well-designed studies are required to confirm our findings.
Background
Ureteric stricture is a common and salvaging complications after renal transplantation. Two treatment methods are usually used, retrograde ureteral stent placement and percutaneous nephrostomy. The former has a higher failure rate, the latter has a great risk. Therefore, a safe and reliable treatment is needed.
Case presentation
A technique of retrograde insertion of ureteral stent was established, which was applicable in three transplant recipients with post-transplant ureteral stenosis, and the data was retrospectively recorded. The patients are 2 men and 1 woman, ages 44, 27 and 32 years. These patients underwent a total of five times of retrograde insertion of ureteral stent between 2018 and 2019. None of these patients had any postoperative complication, but all patients had complete recovery from oliguric status within two weeks.
Conclusions
The retrograde ureteric stent insertion by percutaneous suprapubic access to the bladder (RUS-PSAB) was demonstrated feasibility and safety in a case series with short-term follow-up. However, larger prospective studies are needed.
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