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Objectives: To evaluate the effect of procalcitonin-guided management on the duration of antibiotic therapy in critically ill cancer patients with sepsis., Design: Randomized, controlled, single-blinded trial., Setting: A comprehensive multidisciplinary cancer hospital in Jordan., Patients: Adults with cancer treated in the ICU who were started on antibiotics for suspected infection, met the SEPSIS-3 criteria, and were expected to stay in the ICU greater than or equal to 48 hours., Interventions: Patients were randomized to the procalcitonin-guided or standard care (SC) arms. All patients had procalcitonin measured daily, up to 5 days or until ICU discharge or death. For the procalcitonin arm, a procalcitonin-guided algorithm was provided to guide antibiotic management, but clinicians were allowed to override the algorithm, if clinically indicated. In the SC arm, ICU clinicians were blinded to the procalcitonin levels., Measurements and Main Results: Primary outcome was time to antibiotic cessation. We also evaluated the number of antibiotic-free days at 28 days, hospital discharge, or death, whichever came first, and antibiotic defined daily doses (DDDs). We enrolled 77 patients in the procalcitonin arm and 76 in the SC arm. Mean age was 58 ± 14 (sd) years, 67% were males, 74% had solid tumors, and 13% were neutropenic. Median (interquartile range [IQR]) Sequential Organ Failure Assessment scores were 7 (6-10) and 7 (5-9) and procalcitonin concentrations (ng/mL) at baseline were 3.4 (0.8-16) and 3.4 (0.5-26), in the procalcitonin and SC arms, respectively. There was no difference in the median (IQR) time to antibiotic cessation in the procalcitonin and SC arms, 8 (4-11) and 8 (5-13), respectively (p = 0.463). Median (IQR) number of antibiotic-free days were 20 (17-24) and 20 (16-23), (p = 0.484) and total DDDs were 1541.4 and 2050.4 in the procalcitonin and SC arms, respectively., Conclusions: In critically ill cancer patients with sepsis, procalcitonin-guided management did not reduce the duration of antibiotic treatment., Competing Interests: The authors have disclosed that they do not have any potential conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of the Society of Critical Care Medicine.)

Background: Breast cancer, particularly triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), poses a significant global health burden. Chemotherapy was the mainstay treatment for TNBC patients until immunotherapy was introduced. Studies indicate a noteworthy prevalence (0.2% to 18.6%) of mismatch repair protein (MMRP) deficiency in TNBC, with recent research highlighting the potential of immunotherapy for MMRP-deficient metastatic breast cancer. This study aims to identify MMRP deficiency in TNBC patients using immunohistochemistry., Methods: A retrospective cohort study design was used and included TNBC patients treated between 2015 and 2021 at King Hussein Cancer Center. Immunohistochemistry was conducted to assess MMRP expression., Results: Among 152 patients, 14 (9.2%) exhibited deficient MMR (dMMR). Loss of PMS2 expression was observed in 13 patients, 5 of whom showed loss of MLH1 expression. Loss of MSH6 and MSH2 expression was observed in one patient. The median follow-up duration was 44 (3-102) months. Despite the higher survival rate (80.8%, 5 years) of dMMR patients than of proficient MMR patients (62.3%), overall survival did not significantly differ between the two groups., Conclusion: Approximately 9% of TNBC patients exhibit dMMR. dMMR could be used to predict outcomes and identify patients with TNBC who may benefit from immunotherapy., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interestsThe authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Background and Objectives : Human papillomavirus (HPV) was previously investigated in lung cancer with wide inter-geographic discrepancies. p16 INK4a has been used as a surrogate for detecting high-risk HPV (HR-HPV) in some cancer types. This study assessed the evidence of HPV in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) among Jordanian patients, investigated the expression of p16 INK4a , and evaluated its prognostic value and association with HPV status. Materials and Methods : The archived samples of 100 patients were used. HPV DNA detection was performed by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). p16 INK4a expression was assessed by immunohistochemistry (IHC). The Eighth American Joint Committee on Cancer protocol (AJCC) of head and neck cancer criteria were applied to evaluate p16 INK4a positivity considering a moderate/strong nuclear/cytoplasmic expression intensity with a distribution in ≥75% of cells as positive. Results : HPV DNA was detected in 5% of NSCLC cases. Three positive cases showed HR-HPV subtypes (16, 18, 52), and two cases showed the probable HR-HPV 26 subtype. p16 INK4a expression was positive in 20 (20%) NSCLC cases. None of the HPV-positive tumors were positive for p16 INK4a expression. A statistically significant association was identified between p16 INK4a expression and the pathological stage ( p = 0.029) but not with other variables. No survival impact of p16 INK4a expression was detected in NSCLC cases as a group; however, it showed a statistically significant association with overall survival (OS) in squamous cell carcinoma (SqCC) cases ( p = 0.033). Conclusions : This is the first study to assess HPV and p16 INK4a expression in a Jordanian population. HPV positivity is rare in NSCLC among a Jordanian subpopulation. P16 INK4a reliability as a surrogate marker for HPV infection in lung cancer must be revisited.

Pathologists use certain terminologies to communicate uncertainty in pathology reports. The message conveyed in pathology reports may be interpreted differently by clinicians leading to possible miscommunication. We aimed to compare the interpretation and impact of uncertainty phrases between pathologists and clinicians. A survey with examples of uncertain diagnoses containing ("suspicious for", "indefinite for", "favor", "cannot exclude", "suggestive of", "compatible with", "cannot rule out", "highly suspicious for" and "consistent with") was sent to pathologists and clinicians. For each diagnosis, participants assigned a level of certainty from 1 to 10 and were asked whether they would recommend treatment based on such phraseology. Thirty-six responses (from 7 pathologists, 10 surgeons, 8 pediatric oncologists, 8 medical oncologists, 2 radiation oncologists and 1 diagnostic radiologist) were received. Pathologists had a narrower range of uncertainty compared to clinicians. Wide variation between both groups was seen for all phrases except "compatible with" and "highly suspicious for". 'Indefinite for' showed the lowest mean of certainty (4.67 for pathologists; 4.00 for clinicians) whereas 'consistent with' had the highest (8.83 for pathologists and 9.38 for clinicians). There was a significant difference in the degree of certainty between both groups for "compatible with" (7.83 for pathologists and 9.06 for clinicians, p  = .009). For treatment decisions, pathologists and clinicians agreed on initiating treatment when "consistent with" and "compatible with" were used and gave variable responses for the other terms. They proposed opposing treatment recommendations for "favor". Pathologists and clinicians varied in interpretation of uncertainty phrases which may impact treatment., (© 2024 The Authors.)

Background: Cancer patients are at higher risk of serious complications of COVID-19. Few studies evaluated the impact of COVID-19 on cancer patients in low- and middle-income countries. Our study aims to evaluate the outcomes of COVID-19 infection in cancer patients treated at our institution.  Methods: Medical records of patients with a positive COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) between April 2020 and October 2020 were reviewed. Fisher's exact test and logistic regression analysis were employed to correlate various variables with mortality. Survival estimates were generated using the Kaplan-Meier method., Results: A total of 317 patients were included, with a median age was 55 years (range: 19-88). 82 (25.9%) had hematological neoplasms while the remainder had solid cancers. At the time of infection, 220 (69.4%) had active cancer, and 99 (31.2%) had received systemic anticancer treatment (SACT) within four weeks. Hospitalization was required for 101 (31.8%), 17 (5.3%) were admitted to the ICU and 50 (15.8%) died. Among patients with active cancer, SACT was delayed or discontinued in 140 (63.6%) patients.  In the entire patient cohort, low albumin (p=<0.001) and leucocytosis (p=<0.001) correlated with mortality within six months of COVID-19 infection. The six-month mortality rate in patients with active cancer was significantly higher in patients with hypertension (p=0.024), no recent SACT (0.017), hematological cancer (p=0.029), low albumin (p=<0.001), leucocytosis (p=0.002) and lymphocyte count of less than 500/µL (p=0.004). Recent chemotherapy was associated with better 6-month survival rates (78.8% vs 89.9%, p=0.012) in patients with active cancer, patients with solid cancers (95.9% vs 82.2%, p=0.006) and was non-inferior in patient with hematological neoplasms (72% vs 65.4%, p=0.519).  Conclusion: COVID-19 infection in our cancer patients was associated with significant morbidity and mortality and adversely affected their treatment. The decision to delay or discontinue SACT should be individualized, considering other risk factors for mortality., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright © 2023, Al-rabi et al.)

Mixed sex cord-stromal tumors, which consist of poorly differentiated Sertoli cells and Leydig cells and juvenile granulosa cell tumor tissue, are extremely rare. Most of these tumors are unilateral and stage I at the time of diagnosis; nonetheless, according to the available relevant English-language literature, these tumors maintain a malignant potential. We herein report a case involving a 15-year-old girl diagnosed with a mixed sex cord-stromal tumor (gynandroblastoma with juvenile granulosa cell tumor component). Left salpingo-oophorectomy was initially performed, and the diagnosis of a juvenile granulosa cell tumor was established. Right salpingo-oophorectomy was performed 1 year later, at which time the specimen showed a different growth pattern involving epithelioid cells and tubules, resembling a Sertoli-Leydig cell tumor. Immunohistochemical staining was performed and the specimen was compared with that obtained 1 year earlier. We concluded that the tumors were linked and most likely constituted a gynandroblastoma (mixed form of sex cord-stromal tumor). Although this is an extremely uncommon ovarian tumor, it should be considered when diverse tumor morphology is identified. Bilateral metachronous involvement of the ovaries is possible. The grade of the Sertoli-Leydig cell component may influence the prognosis of such a tumor.

Background: Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), a promising therapeutic target, can be mutated, amplified, or overexpressed in different malignancies, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Although these alterations showed adverse prognostic effects in many cancers, their clinical significance in NSCLC is controversial. This study primarily assessed the prevalence of HER2 protein expression in NSCLC among Jordanian patients. In addition, the possible association between HER2 protein expression and clinicopathological variables was evaluated., Methods: A total of 100 surgically resected NSCLC cases treated at King Hussein Cancer Center (KHCC) between 2009 and 2021 were examined for HER2 protein expression using immunohistochemistry (IHC). The American Society of Clinical Oncology/College of American Pathologists (ASCO/CAP) guidelines for breast cancer were applied to interpret the results with a final score ranging from 0 to 3+, considering a score of 3 + as overexpression. Additionally, a separate subset of patients was tested for HER2 gene mutation. Fisher's exact test was used to assess the association between HER2 scores and the other variables. Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate survival., Results: Of the 100 cases, Her2 overexpression (score 3+) was detected in 2 cases (2%), score 2 + in 10 cases (10%), score 1 + in 12 cases (12%), and score 0 in 76 cases (76%). The two positive cases were one adenocarcinoma and one squamous cell carcinoma; both patients were elderly male smokers. No significant association was identified between Her2 expression and age, gender, smoking, histological subtype, grade, stage, tumor size, and lymph node status. Our findings also showed no association between Her2 expression and survival; however, advanced tumor stages and positive lymph node metastasis were significantly associated with poor overall survival. All cases tested for the Her2 mutation were negative., Conclusions: Her2 overexpression is uncommon in NSCLC among the Jordanian population. However, when the same scoring criteria are used, the rates are similar to other results found in Asian cohorts. Due to our study's relatively small sample size, a larger one is required to investigate the prognostic value and the molecular associations between the different Her2 alterations., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Objectives: We aimed to study the outcomes, severity, and seroconversion post SARS-CoV-2 infection in immunocompromised children and adolescents treated at our center., Method: For this observational study, all pediatric patients who had COVID-19 infection from Sep-22-2020 to Nov-10-2021were identified by reviewing our laboratory records. Their charts were reviewed to determine clinical severity and outcome. Blood samples were drawn for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody assay. Serious COVID-19 infection (SVI) was defined if the patient had moderate, severe, or critical illness. A cutoff of 100 U/mL anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies was used to categorize low and high titer seroconversion., Results: We identified 263 pediatric patients with COVID-19; most (68%) were symptomatic: 5% had severe or critical infection, 25% were hospitalized, 12 required respiratory support, 12 were admitted to the ICU, and five patients (2%) died. Multivariable analysis revealed several factors that predict SVI: Age above 12 years (p=0.035), body mass index above 95 th percentile (p=0.034), comorbid conditions (p=0.025), absolute neutrophil count ≤500(p=0.014) and absolute lymphocyte count ≤300 (p=0.022). Levels of anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike antibodies were obtained for 173 patients at a median of 94 days (range, 14-300) after PCR diagnosis; of them 142 (82%) patients seroconverted; the lowest seroconversion rate was observed in patients with hematological malignancies (79%). Our univariable model showed that the following factors were predictive of low titer: lower ANC, p=0.01; hematologic malignancy, p=0.023; receiving steroids in the last 14 days, p=0.032; time since last chemotherapy or immunosuppressive therapy less than 30 days, p=0.002; and being on active chemotherapy in the last 3 months prior to infection, p<0.001., Conclusions: SARS-CoV-2 antibodies developed in most immunocompromised patients with COVID-19 infection in our study. Mortality was relatively low in our patients. Our univariable and multivariable models showed multiple variables that predict severity of infections and antibody response post COVID-19 infection. These observations may guide choice of active therapy during infection and the best timing of vaccination in this high-risk population., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Abu Shanap, Sughayer, Alsmadi, Elzayat, Al-Nuirat, Tbakhi and Sultan.)

Objective/background: Lymphoma is a common human cancer that shows a variable geographic incidence worldwide. It is the fourth most common cancer in Jordan. Systemic reports of descriptive epidemiology on lymphoma from the Middle East are limited., Methods: A nationwide multi-institutional retrospective study was conducted covering all major hospitals and laboratories that provide diagnostic services. We collected data on all cases diagnosed with lymphoma between 2014 and 2019. The included variables were patients' age, gender, anatomic site, and the histologic type according to the World Health Organization classification system., Results: A total of 4189 cases were diagnosed with lymphoma. There was a statistically significant gender difference (p < .05), as 57.5% of patients were males. The peak incidence occurred at age 25-55 years. There were 1,652 (39%) cases of Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) and 2,537 (61%) of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), where nodular sclerosis (67%) and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (53%) were the most common subtypes, respectively. The average age-adjusted incidence rates per 100,000 population were 8.01 for all lymphomas, 4.33 for NHL, and 3.16 for HL and all remained stable over the 6 years., Conclusion: HL is the most common lymphoma in Jordan, with a percentage higher than most of reported studies in Asian and Western countries. It also shows a unimodal distribution of age-specific incidence rates, with a single peak in young adults. The incidence rate of HL is higher than Eastern countries but comparable to the West. In contrast, NHL demonstrates a lower incidence rate than Western countries but a similar distribution of subtypes, as mature T/natural killer-cell lymphomas were rare., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Viral cause of sporadic breast cancer (SBC) has been suggested based on the experimental murine model of mammary tumor caused by mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), and human papillomavirus (HPV). While some studies have demonstrated the presence of viral sequences of MMTV, HPV, and EBV in breast cancer cells, others failed. These contradictions may be attributed to the geographical distribution of breast cancer incidence and/or technical variations. In the current study, we aimed to investigate the correlation of MMTV, HPV, and EBV infections with the development of breast cancer in Jordanian patients., Methods: One hundred SBC tissue samples were subjected to laser capture microdissection for the selection of tumor cells populations. Fluorescence polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to detect the presence of the MMTV env-like sequences. Real-time PCR was used for HPV and EBV detection, and EBV was further confirmed by chromogen in situ hybridization (CISH)., Results: Mouse mammary tumor virus, HPV, and EBV were detected in SBC in 11%, 21%, and 23%, respectively. Only 3 of 52 (5.7%) positive cases demonstrated multiple virus infections. However, 49 of 52 (94%) of the positive cases revealed the presence of 1 type of viral sequences. Consequently, 52% of the studied breast cancer cases were infected with at least 1 type of the aforementioned viruses., Conclusions: The current cohort suggests that MMTV, HPV, and EBV have a potential role in the development of breast cancer and adding more reasons to proceed with the quest of a possible viral origin of breast cancer., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interests:The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article., (© The Author(s) 2020.)

The role of Ki-67 index in determining the prognosis and management of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs) has become more important yet presents a challenging assessment dilemma. Although the precise method of Ki-67 index evaluation has not been standardized, several methods have been proposed, and each has its pros and cons. Our study proposes an imaging semiautomated informatics framework [semiautomated counting (SAC)] using the popular biomedical imaging tool "ImageJ" to quantify Ki-67 index of the GEP-NETs using camera-captured images of tumor hotspots. It aims to assist pathologists in achieving an accurate and rapid interpretation of Ki-67 index and better reproducibility of the results with minimal human interaction and calibration. Twenty cases of resected GEP-NETs with Ki-67 staining that had been done for diagnostic purposes have been randomly selected from the pathology archive. All of these cases were reviewed in a multidisciplinary cancer center between 2012 and 2019. For each case, the Ki-67 immunostained slide was evaluated and five camera-captured images at 40 × magnification were taken. Prints of images were used by three pathologists to manually count the tumor cells. The digital versions of the images were used for the semiautomated cell counting using ImageJ. Statistical analysis of the Ki-67 index correlation between the proposed method and the MC revealed strong agreement on all the cases evaluates ( n = 20 ), with an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.993, "95% CI: 0.984 to 0.997." The results obtained from the SAC are promising and demonstrate the capability of this methodology for the development of reproducible and accurate semiautomated quantitative pathological assessments. ImageJ features are investigated carefully and accurately fine-tuned to obtain the optimal sequence of steps that will accurately calculate Ki-67 index. SAC is able to accurately grade all the cases evaluated perfectly mating histopathologists' manual grading, providing reliable and efficient solution for Ki-67 index assessment., (© 2019 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE).)

Background: Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) plays a fundamental role in determining the appropriate management for patients presenting with thyroid nodules., Aims: The aims of this study are to evaluate thyroid FNA test performance parameters through a cytohistological correlation., Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis of all thyroid FNAs received over a period of 18 months was carried out. The findings were compared to their subsequent definite diagnoses on surgical specimens as well as to their follow-up repeat FNA results. A total of 499 thyroid FNAs were collected and reviewed against The Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytopathology (TBSRTC). The percentage of each diagnostic category was calculated, and the implied risk of malignancy was determined by comparing the cytology results to their definite diagnoses obtained on the resection specimens. Analytical procedures were performed using Microsoft Excel., Results: Out of 499 thyroid FNAs, a benign interpretation was found in 273 patients (54.7%), atypia of undetermined significance in 81 (16.2%), follicular neoplasm in 20 (4%), suspicious for malignancy in 36 (7.2%), malignant in 32 (6.4%) and were nondiagnostic in 57 patients (11.4%). Only 101 patients (20.2%) underwent surgical resection and 47 (9.4%) underwent a follow-up FNA. After cytohistological correlation, FNA test performance, calculated by excluding the inadequate and undetermined categories revealed test sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic accuracy of 95.6%, 54.8%, and 78.9%, respectively. The positive predictive value was 75.4%, and the negative predictive value was 89.5%., Conclusions: Our results are comparable to those previously published figures. The rate of atypia of undetermined significance/follicular lesion of undetermined significance is higher than what is currently recommended in TBSRTC.

The purposes of this paper are to report the prevalence of breastfeeding to six months among women in Kuwait and to determine the factors that are associated with the duration of breastfeeding. A cohort of 373 women recruited from maternity wards in four hospitals in Kuwait city were followed from birth to 26 weeks postpartum. The association of any and full breastfeeding duration and predictor variables were explored using multivariate Cox's proportional hazards models. At six months, 39% of all infants were receiving some breast milk and only 2% of infants had been fully breastfed to 26 weeks. Women born in other Arab countries were less likely to discontinue breastfeeding than women born in Kuwait. Other factors positively associated with breastfeeding duration were level of maternal education, higher parity, infant being demand fed in hospital and a preference for breastfeeding on the part of the infant's father and maternal grandmother. The introduction of a pacifier before four weeks of age and the mother intending to return to work by six months were negatively associated with duration. These findings present a number of opportunities for prolonging breastfeeding duration in Kuwait.

Summary: The Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) breast nomogram has been validated in different populations. In this study, the nomogram was validated for the first time in a Middle East population sample. Although our sample was found to have significant differences from the dataset from which the model was derived, the nomogram proved to be accurate in predicting non sentinel axillary lymph node metastasis. An attempt to use the proportions of involved sentinel lymph nodes instead of absolute numbers of positive and negative sentinel lymph nodes, yet using the same online calculator to predict the probability of non sentinel axillary lymph node metastasis, improved the accuracy, specificity, negative predictive value, and false negative rate., Background: Axillary clearance is the standard of care in patients with invasive breast cancer and positive sentinel lymph node biopsy. However, in 40-60% of patients, the sentinel lymph nodes are the only involved lymph nodes in the axilla. The Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) breast nomogram serves to identify a subgroup of patients with low risk of non sentinel lymph node (NSLN) metastasis, in whom axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) could be spared, and thereby, preventing the unwarranted associated morbidity., Methods: The MSKCC nomogram was applied on 91 patients who met the criteria. A modified predictive model was developed by substituting proportions of positive and negative SLN for their absolute numbers. The accuracy was assessed by calculating the area under the receiver-operator characteristic (ROC) curve., Results: The MSKCC nomogram achieved an area under the ROC curve of 0.76. The area under the curve for the modified predictive model was 0.81. The specificity, negative predictive value, and false negative were 30%, 71%, 20% (MSKCC model) and 55%, 84%, 17% (modified model) at 20% predicted probability cut-off values., Conclusion: Although differences existed in characteristics of our breast cancer population, and in the methods of sentinel lymph node metastasis detection, the MSKCC model proved to be accurate. An attempt to replace the number of positive and negative SLNs with proportions in the MSKCC model raised the accuracy but did not achieve statistical significance (p = 0.09)., Keywords: Breast cancer, Sentinel lymph node, Non sentinel lymph node, Axillary clearance, Predictive model.

Background and Objectives: The management of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) in developing countries is hindered by the paucity of clear protocols due in part to growing economic constraints and the lack of availability of expensive chemotherapeutic agents. We evaluated the deliverable treatment protocols and achievable outcomes for patients with GBM in a low-income country prior and subsequent to the worldwide adoption of temozolomide., Design and Setting: Retrospective case series., Patients and Methods: Charts of consecutive patients with a pathologic diagnosis of high-grade glioma diagnosed between January 2003 and December 2008 were retrospectively reviewed., Results: We identified 146 adult patients, including 105 males and 41 females between 19 and 81 years of age (median age, 51 years), with histologically confirmed high-grade glioma. All patients underwent craniotomy. Eighty-two patients were treated with radiotherapy and temozolomide, of whom 42 patients received temozolomide concurrent with radiation followed by adjuvant temozolomide; 40 patients received irradiation followed sequentially by 6 cycles of temozolomide. In 40 patients irradiation was utilized as a single modality treatment adjuvant to surgery. The follow-up ranged from 1 to 56 months (median, 9.4 months). The median survival for the whole cohort was 10.2 months. The median survival for the radiotherapy-alone group was 5.3 months and for combined radiotherapy/temozolomide was 14.8 months. Survival was similar in both concurrent and sequential groups. Temozolomide conferred a statistically significant survival benefit of 9 months compared with standard therapeutic modalities., Conclusions: The results compare favorably to those reported in developed nations. Current management of GBM in developing countries should include maximal surgical resection followed by radiotherapy/temozolomide whenever medically and/or financially feasible. Outcomes comparable to those obtained within the context of randomized trials can be expected in low-income settings if healthcare delivery is carefully planned. Our results indicate that concurrent and sequential regimens are equally effective in these patients.

The incidence of multiple primary malignancies has increased over the past years secondary to the long-term survival of cancer patients due to improvements in the early detection and adequate treatment of cancer. We present a patient with eight primary malignant tumors and review the relevant literature. Our patient was a 59-year-old female with Crohn disease with an otherwise non-contributory medical history. Risk factors for multiple primary tumors were not detected in our patient. At a follow-up of 108 months from the time of diagnosis of the first malignancy, our patient was still alive. Similar long-term survival has been reported in the literature. Due to the realistic potential for long-term survival, we recommend aggressive treatment of these patients.

Background: Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended as the optimal way to feed infants for the first six months of life. While overall breastfeeding rates are high, exclusive breastfeeding is relatively uncommon among Middle Eastern women. The objective of this study was to identify the incidence of breastfeeding amongst women in the six governorates of Kuwait and the factors associated with the initiation of breastfeeding., Methods: A sample of 373 women (aged 17-47 years), recruited shortly after delivery from four hospitals in Kuwait, completed a structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify those factors independently associated with the initiation of breastfeeding., Results: In total, 92.5% of mothers initiated breastfeeding and at discharge from hospital the majority of mothers were partially breastfeeding (55%), with only 30% of mothers fully breastfeeding. Prelacteal feeding was the norm (81.8%) and less than 1 in 5 infants (18.2%) received colostrum as their first feed. Only 10.5% of infants had been exclusively breastfed since birth, the remainder of the breastfed infants having received either prelacteal or supplementary infant formula feeds at some time during their hospital stay. Of the mothers who attempted to breastfeed, the majority of women (55.4%) delayed their first attempt to breastfeed until 24 hours or more after delivery. Breastfeeding at discharge from hospital was positively associated with paternal support for breastfeeding and negatively associated with delivery by caesarean section and with the infant having spent time in the Special Care Nursery., Conclusions: The reasons for the high use of prelacteal and supplementary formula feeding warrant investigation. Hospital policies and staff training are needed to promote the early initiation of breastfeeding and to discourage the unnecessary use of infant formula in hospital, in order to support the establishment of exclusive breastfeeding by mothers in Kuwait.

The human IGF2 P3 and P4 promoters are highly active in a variety of human cancers. We here present an approach for patient oriented therapy of TCC bladder carcinoma by driving the diphtheria toxin A-chain (DT-A) expression under the control of the IGF2 P3 and P4 promoter regulatory sequences. High levels of IGF2 mRNA expression from P3, P4 or both promoters were detected in 18 TCC samples (n = 29) by ISH or RT-PCR. Normal bladder samples (n = 4) showed no expression from either promoter. The activity and specificity of the IGF2 P3 and P4 regulatory sequences were established in human carcinoma cell lines by means of luciferase reporter gene assay. These sequences were used to design DT-A expressing, therapeutic vectors (P3-DT-A and P4-DT-A). The activity of both was determined in cell lines (in vitro) and the activity of P3-DT-A was determined in a heterotopic animal model (in vivo). The treated cell lines highly responded to the treatment in a dose-response manner, and the growth rate of the developed tumors in vivo was highly inhibited (70%) after intratumoraly injection with P3-DT-A compared to non-treated tumors (P < 0.0002) or tumors treated by luciferase gene expressing LucP3 vector (P < 0.002).

One year after receiving a liver transplant and 2 months after treatment with high doses of steroids and monoclonal anti-CD3 for an episode of rejection, a 38-year-old woman developed a skin papule above the left medial malleolus. The papule, which at first had an annular shape, evolved into a pustule, ulcerated, drained, and assumed a crusted verrucous appearance. Multiple satellite papules appeared around the lesion, which was incompletely excised and thought to represent squamous cell carcinoma. Review of the histologic slides revealed pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia with multiple epidermal and dermal abscesses, pigmented hyphae, and yeast-like forms. Culture of material obtained at reexcision yielded a dematiaceous fungus that was identified as Exophiala pisciphila. No evidence of dissemination was found. This represents a unique report of human infection with this fungus, a well-recognized pathogen of fish. Except for the absence of sclerotic bodies, the clinicopathologic features resembled those of chromoblastomycosis rather than those of the subcutaneous cystic form of phaeohyphomycosis often associated with species of Exophiala.