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The purpose of this secondary analysis was to describe the prevalence of anxiety, depression, and perceived stress among women newly diagnosed with breast cancer and the impact of baseline and changes in anxiety on cognitive functioning following exercise and mind-body prehabilitation interventions. The sample consisted of 49 women with newly diagnosed breast cancer (stages I–III) who planned to undergo breast cancer surgery at two academic cancer centers. Participants were randomized to receive an exercise or mind-body prehabilitation intervention between the time of diagnosis and breast cancer surgery. Participants completed self-report measures of anxiety, depression (HADS), perceived stress, and cognitive functioning (EORTC-QLQ-C30) at study enrollment and prior to surgery (post-intervention). The relationships between change in cognitive functioning and change in anxiety among all participants were estimated using linear regression modeling. A significant proportion of women with newly diagnosed breast cancer had clinically significant anxiety (34.0%). Greater anxiety was moderately associated with worse cognitive functioning (r = –0.33) at baseline. Linear modeling found that changes in cognitive functioning and anxiety were inversely related: Each one-unit decrease in anxiety was associated with a two-unit improvement in cognitive function (p =.06). Anxiety was common in women with newly diagnosed breast cancer and was related to worse cognitive functioning. Assessment of anxiety at the time of diagnosis may allow for earlier anxiety management and subsequent improvement in cognitive functioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antifungal prophylaxis (AFP) is recommended for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients receiving the combination of venetoclax (VEN) and a hypomethylating agent (HMA), but the benefit of this practice is unclear. We identified 131 patients with newly diagnosed AML who received frontline VEN/HMA and evaluated the use of AFP and its association with invasive fungal infections (IFIs) and AML outcomes. Seventeen percent of our patients received AFP at any time. Overall incidence of any IFI ('possible,' 'probable,' or 'proven' infection, as defined by the European Mycoses Study Group) was 13%, and the incidence did not differ based on AFP use (p=.74). Median overall survival did not differ based on AFP use or lack thereof (8.1 vs. 12.5 months, respectively; p=.14). Our findings suggest that, at an institution where the incidence of fungal infections is low, there does not appear to be a role for AFP in newly diagnosed AML patients receiving VEN/HMA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bromodomain and extra-terminal (BET) proteins can drive carcinogenesis and therapy resistance. RO6870810 (RO) is a novel, small-molecule BET inhibitor. We conducted a study in 32 patients with relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia and hypomethylating agent–refractory myelodysplastic syndrome (NCT02308761). Pharmacodynamic assessments showed decreases in CD11b in peripheral blood mononuclear cells at RO concentrations above 120 ng/mL. Treatment emergent adverse events were generally mild and the most frequent were fatigue, injection site reactions, diarrhea, decreased appetite and nausea. There were no treatment-related deaths. Potential drug-related dose limiting toxicities included decreased appetite, congestive cardiac failure, hypertension, fatigue, increased conjugated bilirubin and increased gamma glutamyltransferase. One AML patient achieved complete remission after withdrawal from study. Eleven AML patients experienced SD. For AML, the median OS was 72.0 days. For MDS, two patients experienced SD. Further development of RO as monotherapy was discontinued due to lack of efficacy, but combinations with other agents are under consideration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A letter to the editor is presented regarding the case study of 35-year old nulliparous woman who was diagnosed with primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma during pregnancy.

Primary effusion lymphoma (PEL) is a rare lymphoma associated with Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), also known as human herpesvirus 8 (HHV8), and characterized by a malignant body cavity effusion without solid organ or nodal involvement. Prognostic factors in patients with PEL have not been systematically studied. We conducted a literature search for patients with HHV8-positive PEL to identify potential prognostic factors for survival. Our search identified 147 patients, among which 104 patients were HHV8-positive. The median overall survival was 9 months. The median age was 57 years with a male predominance (6:1). Pathologically, 33% of the patients expressed CD20 and 69% expressed CD30. Patients with PEL with > 1 body cavity involved had a median overall survival (OS) of 4 months compared with 18 months in patients with only one cavity involved ( p = 0.003). Additionally, in patients with one involved body cavity, pericardial involvement was associated with a longer median OS than pleural followed by peritoneal involvement (40, 27 and 5 months, respectively; p = 0.04). In conclusion, our study suggests that the number and location of body cavities involved are prognostic in patients with PEL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasmablastic lymphoma (PBL) is a distinct variant of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma initially described in HIV-positive patients. Several studies have reported the occurrence of PBL in HIV-negative patients, but comparative data are lacking. The goal of this study was to compare the characteristics of HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients with PBL. A MEDLINE search was undertaken through August 2009 for cases of PBL in HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients. Cases were identified and clinicopathological data were gathered. χ2 was used to compare categorical and t-test to compare continuous variables between groups. Calculated Kaplan-Meier survival estimates were compared using the log-rank test. Cox proportional-hazard regression was used for multivariate analysis. From 228 identified cases of PBL, 157 were HIV-positive and 71 HIV-negative. HIV-positive patients were younger, and more likely to be men, present with oral involvement, respond to chemotherapy, and express CD20, CD56, and EBV-encoded RNA than HIV-negative patients. In univariate analysis, age ≥60, advanced stage, bone marrow involvement, no chemotherapy, Ki-67 expression >80%, and HIV-negative status were associated with worse overall survival. In multivariate analysis, advanced stage and no chemotherapy were independent adverse prognostic factors. In conclusion, HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients with PBL have different clinicopathological characteristics, including a better response to chemotherapy and longer survival in HIV-positive patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]