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We sought to determine the predictive value of the systemic inflammation score (SIS) for radiation-induced trismus (RIT) and osteoradionecrosis of the jaw (ORNJ) in locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LA-NPC) patients treated with concurrent chemoradiotherapy (C-CRT). LA-NPC patients (n= 188) who underwent C-CRT and pre- and post-C-CRT oral examinations from August 2010 to January 2022 were included. The three-tiered SIS groups were created using the serum albumin and lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) measures obtained on the first day of C-CRT: SIS-0: Albumin ≥ 40 g/dL and LMR ≥ 4.44); SIS-1: Albumin < 40 g/dL and LMR < 4.44 or albumin ≥ 0 g/dL and LMR ≥ 4.44; and SIS-2: Albumin < 40 g/dL and LMR <4.44. The primary objective was to ascertain whether there were irrefutable associations between pretreatment SIS groups and the respective post-C-CRT RIT and ORNJ rates. RIT and ORNJ were diagnosed in 33 (17.6%) and 21 (11.1%) patients, respectively. There were 12 (32.4%), 13 (12.7%), and 18 (45.0%) cases diagnosed with RIT in the respective SIS-0, SIS-1, and SIS-2 groups (p< 0.001). Similarly, there were 1 (2.7%), 11 (9.9%), and 9 (22.5%) cases with ORNJ diagnoses in the corresponding SIS groups (p< 0.001). The multivariate analysis's findings revealed that the SIS grouping was an independent predictor of RIT (p< 0.001) and ORNJ incidence rates (p< 0.001). Our study's findings indicate that the novel pretreatment SIS grouping is a dependable biomarker-based system, which can accurately predict the rates of RIT and ORNJ in LA-NPC patients who receive definitive C-CRT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose. We retrospectively evaluated the impact of percent positive axillary nodal involvement on the therapeutic outcomes in patients with non-metastatic breast cancer receiving postmastectomy radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Materials and methods. Between January 1994 and December 2002, the medical records of 939 eligible non metastatic breast carcinoma patients were analyzed. Chest wall radiotherapy was indicated in case of positive surgical margin, tumor size equal or more than 4 cm, skin-fascia invasion. Lymphatic irradiation was applied for more than three metastatic axillary lymph nodes, incomplete axillary dissection (<10 lymph nodes), extracapsular extension or perinodal fat tissue invasion. A total dose of 50 Gy was given to chest wall and lymph node regions with 2 Gy daily fractions. Statistical analyses were performed by Kaplan-Meier method, Log-rank test and Cox's regression analysis. Results. The median follow-up for all patients alive was 62 months. The 5-year overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) for entire cohort were 81%, and 65%, respectively. Univariate analysis for OS revealed significance for tumour size (≤5 cm vs. >5cm, p<0.001), metastatic nodal involvement (0 vs. 1-3 vs. >4 LN, p<0.001), percent positive nodal involvement ([metastatic nodes/total nodes removed]×100; 0 vs.≤25% vs. 26-50% vs. >50%, p<0.001), surgical margin status (negative vs. positive, p=0.05), and hormonal treatment (present vs. absent, p=0.03). DFS had similarly significance for age (≤40 years vs. >40 years, p=0.006), tumour size (0.02), metastatic nodal involvement (p<0.001), percent positive nodal involvement (p<0.001), and perinodal invasion (present vs. absent, p=0.01). Multivariate analysis revealed significance for tumour size, percent positive nodal involvement, hormonal treatment, and surgical margin status for OS. Age and percent positive nodal involvement were found to be significant for DFS. Conclusion. Percent positive nodal involvement was found to be a significant prognostic factor for survival in all end-points. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We read the study conducted by Joseph and colleagues with great interest, which investigated the loco-regional control, disease-specific survival (DSS), overall survival (OS), and treatment-related complications in 163 oral cancer (OC) patients treated with radiotherapy (RT) or chemo-RT (CRT) for close resection margins (CRMs).The study results offer valuable insights into the role of RT/CRT in OC patients with CRMs, but two concerns must be addressed to interpret the outcomes rigorously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The document is a letter to the editor commenting on a study conducted by Kittichet et al. on the long-term efficacy and side effects of pilocarpine in preventing and treating radiation-induced xerostomia (RIX) in head and neck cancer patients. The study found that pilocarpine was effective in preventing and treating RIX, with the preventive treatment group showing better outcomes than the treatment group. However, the letter raises concerns about the disparity in tumor distribution and radiation therapy modalities between the two groups, suggesting that further analysis based on tumor locations and radiation techniques would enhance our understanding of pilocarpine's effectiveness. The authors of the letter have no conflicts of interest to disclose. [Extracted from the article]

Purpose. To evaluate the predictive potency of a novel index combining the pan‐immune‐inflammatory index and hemoglobin levels (PIV/Hb) for the prevalence of radiation‐induced trismus (RIT) in patients with locally advanced nasopharyngeal cancer (LA‐NPC) receiving concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT). Methods. Data from 228 LA‐NPC patients were retrospectively examined. Maximum mouth openings (MMO) were measured to confirm the presence of RIT, defined as MMOs ≤35 mm. Complete blood test results from the first day of CCRT were used to calculate PIV/Hb levels. A potential relationship between pretreatment PIV/Hb and the RIT status was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Results. Post‐CCRT RIT was diagnosed in 20.2% of the patients. The ROC curve analysis determined 68.4 g/dL as the ideal PIV/Hb cutoff that effectively divided patients into two distinct groups (area under the curve: 94.7%; specificity: 86.4%; sensitivity: 87.4%). RIT was significantly more prevalent in the PIV/Hb > 68 group than in the PIV/Hb < 68 group (58.8% vs. 3.8%; P < 0.001). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that a pre‐CCRT PIV > 68 was independently associated with significantly higher rates of RIT. Conclusion. Higher pretreatment levels of the novel PIV/Hb index predict increased RIT rates following definitive CCRT for LA‐NPCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Objectives: The objective of this study was to assess the connection between the systemic inflammation response index (SIRI) values and failure patterns of patients with IDH wild-type glioblastoma (GB) who underwent radiotherapy (RT) with FLAIR-based gross tumor volume (GTV) delineation. Methods: Seventy-one patients who received RT at a dose of 60 Gy to the GTV and 50 Gy to the clinical target volume (CTV) and had documented recurrence were retrospectively analyzed. Each patient's maximum distance of recurrence (MDR) from the GTV was documented in whichever plane it extended the farthest. The failure patterns were described as intra-GTV, in-CTV/out-GTV, distant, and intra-GTV and distant. For analytical purposes, the failure pattern was categorized into two groups, namely Group 1, intra-GTV or in-CTV/out-GTV, and Group 2, distant or intra-GTV and distant. The SIRI was calculated before surgery and corticosteroid administration. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to determine the optimal SIRI cut-off that distinguishes between the different failure patterns. Results: Failure occurred as follows: intra-GTV in 40 (56.3%), in-CTV/out-GTV in 4 (5.6%), distant in 18 (25.4%), and intra-GTV + distant in 9 (12.7%) patients. The mean MDR was 13.5 mm, and recurrent lesions extended beyond 15 mm in only seven patients. Patients with an SIRI score ≥ 3 demonstrated a significantly higher incidence of Group 1 failure patterns than their counterparts with an SIRI score < 3 (74.3% vs. 50.0%; p = 0.035). Conclusions: The present results show that using the SIRI with a cut-off value of ≥3 significantly predicts failure patterns. Additionally, the margin for the GTV can be safely reduced to 15 mm when using FLAIR-based target delineation in patients with GB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• PMRT may be avoided after PST in some patients with complete pathological response. • When PST transforms cN1 disease to SLN negative, axillary treatment must be defined. • Hypofractionation is an option in patients with immediate breast reconstruction. • Whole breast irradiation can be omitted in selected DCIS patients. • Therapy de-escalation is advisable in low-risk early-stage breast cancer patients. We report on the second Assisi Think Tank Meeting (ATTM) on breast cancer which was held under the auspices of the European Society for RadioTherapy & Oncology (ESTRO). In discussing in-depth current evidence and practice it was designed to identify grey areas in diverse forms of the disease. It aimed at addressing uncertainties and proposing future trials to improve patient care. Before the meeting, three key topics were selected: 1) primary systemic therapy, mastectomy, breast reconstruction and post-mastectomy radiation therapy, 2) therapeutic options in ductal carcinoma in situ, and 3) therapy de-escalation in early stage breast cancer. Clinical practice in these areas was investigated by means of an online questionnaire. The time lapse period between the survey and the meeting was used to review the literature and on-going clinical trials. At the ATTM both were discussed in depth and research protocols were proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Propensity score matching (PSM) was used to investigate the prognostic value of a novel GLUCAR index [Glucose × (C-reactive protein ÷ albumin)] in unresectable locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LA-NPC) patients who received definitive concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT). Methods: The PSM analysis comprised 142 LA-PAC patients subjected to definitive CCRT. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was utilized to identify relevant pre-CCRT cutoffs that could effectively stratify survival results. The primary and secondary objectives were the correlations between the pre-CCRT GLUCAR measures and overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). Results: The ROC analysis revealed significance at 43.3 for PFS [area under the curve (AUC): 85.1%; sensitivity: 76.8%; specificity: 74.2%; J-index: 0.510)] and 42.8 for OS (AUC: 81.8%; sensitivity: 74.2%; specificity: 71.7%; J-index: 0.459). Given that these cutoff points were close, the standard cutoff point, 42.8, was selected for further analysis. Comparative survival analyses showed that pre-CCRT GLUCAR ≥ 42.8 (n = 71) measures were associated with significantly shorter median PFS (4.7 vs. 15.8 months; p < 0.001) and OS (10.1 vs. 25.4 months; p < 0.001) durations compared to GLUCAR < 42.8 measures (n = 71). The multivariate analysis results confirmed the independent significance of the GLUCAR index on PFS (p < 0.001) and OS (p < 0.001) outcomes. Conclusions: Elevated pre-CCRT GLUCAR levels are robustly and independently linked to significantly poorer PFS and OS outcomes in unresectable LA-PAC patients treated with definitive CCRT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate the value of the newly created GLUCAR index in predicting tooth extraction rates after concurrent chemoradiotherapy (C-CRT) in locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinomas (LA-NPCs). Methods: A total of 187 LA-NPC patients who received C-CRT were retrospectively analyzed. The GLUCAR index was defined as ′GLUCAR = (Fasting Glucose × CRP/Albumin Ratio) by utilizing measures of glucose, C-reactive protein (CRP), and albumin obtained on the first day of C-CRT. Results: The optimal GLUCAR cutoff was 31.8 (area under the curve: 78.1%; sensitivity: 70.5%; specificity: 70.7%, Youden: 0.412), dividing the study cohort into two groups: GLUCAR ˂ 1.8 (N = 78) and GLUCAR ≥ 31.8 (N = 109) groups. A comparison between the two groups found that the tooth extraction rate was significantly higher in the group with a GLUCAR ≥ 31.8 (84.4% vs. 47.4% for GLUCAR ˂ 31.8; odds ratio (OR):1.82; p < 0.001). In the univariate analysis, the mean mandibular dose ≥ 38.5 Gy group (76.5% vs. 54.9% for <38.5 Gy; OR: 1.45; p = 0.008), mandibular V55.2 Gy group ≥ 40.5% (80.3 vs. 63.5 for <40.5%, p = 0.004, OR; 1.30), and being diabetic (71.8% vs. 57.9% for nondiabetics; OR: 1.23; p = 0.007) appeared as the additional factors significantly associated with higher tooth extraction rates. All four characteristics remained independent predictors of higher tooth extraction rates after C-CRT in the multivariate analysis (p < 0.05 for each). Conclusions: The GLUCAR index, first introduced here, may serve as a robust new biomarker for predicting post-C-CRT tooth extraction rates and stratifying patients according to their tooth loss risk after treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]