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Cancer is one of the most common causes of death all over the World (Rahib et al. in Cancer Res 74(11):2913-2921, 2014; Silbermann et al. in Ann Oncol 23(Suppl 3):iii15-iii28, 2012). It is crucial to diagnose this disease early by effective screening methods and also it is very important to acknowledge the community on various aspects of this disease such as the treatment methods and palliative care. Not only the oncologists but every medical doctor should be educated well in dealing with cancer patients. Previous studies suggested various opinions on the level of oncology education in medical schools (Pavlidis et al. in Ann Oncol 16(5):840-841, 2005). In this study, the perspectives of medical students on cancer, its treatment, palliative care, and the oncologists were analyzed in relation to their educational status. A multicenter survey analysis was performed on a total of 4224 medical school students that accepted to enter this study in Turkey. After the questions about the demographical characteristics of the students, their perspectives on the definition, diagnosis, screening, and treatment methods of cancer and their way of understanding metastatic disease as well as palliative care were analyzed. The questionnaire includes questions with answers and a scoring system of Likert type 5 (absolutely disagree = 1, completely agree = 5). In the last part of the questionnaire, there were some words to detect what the words "cancer" and "oncologist" meant for the students. The participant students were analyzed in two study groups; "group 1" (n = 1.255) were phases I and II students that had never attended an oncology lesson, and "group 2" (n = 2.969) were phases III to VI students that had attended oncology lessons in the medical school. SPSS v17 was used for the database and statistical analyses. A value of p < 0.05 was noted as statistically significant. Group 1 defined cancer as a contagious disease (p = 0.00025), they believed that early diagnosis was never possible (p = 0.042), all people with a diagnosis of cancer would certainly die (p = 0.044), and chemotherapy was not successful in a metastatic disease (p = 0.003) as compared to group 2. The rate of the students that believed gastric cancer screening was a part of the national screening policy was significantly more in group 1 than in group 2 (p = 0.00014). Group 2 had a higher anxiety level for themselves or their family members to become a cancer patient. Most of the students in both groups defined medical oncologists as warriors (57% in group 1 and 40% in group 2; p = 0.097), and cancer was reminding them of "death" (54% in group 1 and 48% in group 2; p = 0.102). This study suggested that oncology education was useful for the students' understanding of cancer and related issues; however, the level of oncology education should be improved in medical schools in Turkey. This would be helpful for medical doctors to cope with many aspects of cancer as a major health care problem in this country. C1 [Oktay, Esin; Turan, Merve; Barutca, Sabri] Adnan Menderes Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Aydin, Turkey. [Levent, Mustafa] Sitki Kocman Univ, Dept Internal Med, Fac Med, Mugla, Turkey. [Gelincik, Hakan; Aktas, Gizem; Paydas, Semra] Cukurova Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Adana, Turkey. [Yumuk, Fulden] Marmara Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Istanbul, Turkey. [Koral, Lokman] Onsekiz Mart Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Canakkale, Turkey. [Arpaci, Erkan] Sakarya Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Sakarya, Turkey. [Keser, Murat; Yavuzsen, Tugba] Dokuz Eylul Univ, Dept Med Oncolog, Fac Med, Izmir, Turkey. [Alkan, Ali; Senler, Filiz Cay] Ankara Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Ankara, Turkey. [Karci, Ebru; Karadurmus, Nuri] Gulhane Mil Med Acad, Dept Med Oncol, Ankara, Turkey. [Degirmencioglu, Serkan; Yaren, Arzu] Pamukkale Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Denizli, Turkey. [Uyeturk, Ummugul] Abant Izzet Baysal Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Bolu, Turkey. [Cabuk, Devrim] Kocaeli Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Izmit, Turkey. [Avci, Nilufer] Balikesir Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Balikesir, Turkey. [Toprak, Omer] Balikesir Univ, Dept Internal Med, Fac Med, Balikesir, Turkey. [Ergen, Arzu; Sahinler, Ismet] Istanbul Univ, Cerrahpasa Fac Med, Dept Radiat Oncol, Istanbul, Turkey. [Urvay, Semiha] Cumhuriyet Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Sivas, Turkey. [Bayman, Evrim] Osmangazi Univ, Dept Radiat Oncol, Fac Med, Eskisehir, Turkey. [Petekkaya, Emine] Beykent Univ, Dept Anat, Fac Med, Istanbul, Turkey. [Nayir, Erdinc] Mersin Medicalpark Hosp, Dept Med Oncol, Mersin, Turkey. [Ozyilkan, Ozgur] Baskent Univ, Dept Med Oncol, Fac Med, Ankara, Turkey. [Tanriverdi, Ozgur] Mugla Sitki Kocman Univ, Fac Med, Dept Med Oncol, Mugla, Turkey.

WOS: 000376904300006, PubMed ID: 27097941, OBJECTIVE: Prostate cancer is among the most common cancers in males. Prostate cancer is androgen dependent in the beginning, but as time progresses, it becomes refractory to androgen deprivation treatment. At this stage, docetaxel has been used as standard treatment for years. Cabazitaxel has become the first chemotherapeutic agent which has been shown to increase survival for patients with metastatic Castrate Resistant Prostate Cancer (mCRPC) that progresses after docetaxel. Phase 3 TROPIC study demonstrated that cabazitaxel prolongs survival. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this study, we evaluated a total of 103 patients who took cabazitaxel chemotherapy for mCRPC diagnosis in 21 centers of Turkey, retrospectively. This study included patients who progressed despite docetaxel treatments, had ECOG performance score between 0-2, and used cabazitaxel treatment. Patients received cabazitaxel 25 mg/m(2) at every 3 weeks, and prednisolone 5 mg twice a day. RESULTS: Median number of cabazitaxel cures was 5.03 (range: 1-17). Cabazitaxel response evaluation detected that 34% of the patients had a partial response, 22.3% had stable disease and 32% had a progressive disease. Grade 3-4 hematological toxicities were neutropenia (28.2%), neutropenic fever (14.5%), anemia (6.7%), and thrombocytopenia (3.8%). In our study, median progression-free survival (PFS) was 7.7 months and overall survival (OS) was 10.6 months. CONCLUSIONS: This study reflects toxicity profile of Turkish patients as a Caucasian race. We suggest that cabazitaxel is a safe and effective treatment option for mCRPC patients who progress after docetaxel. Moreover, ethnicity may play important roles both in treatment response and in toxicity profile.

WOS: 000361421900007 PubMed ID: 26416041 Purpose: The presence of a pronounced tumor lymphocytic infiltrate (TLI) is deemed to reflect the presence of an immunoinflammatory response against the tumor and may thus have prognostic significance. We investigated the prognostic value of TLI detected in pathological specimens collected following neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) in patients with breast cancer. Methods: 100 consecutive patients with breast cancer (mean age 47.8 +/- 11.4 years) who were scheduled to undergo anthracycline- and/or taxane-containing NACT were enrolled. Specimens collected after NACT were scored with the 4-point Klintrup scoring criteria for the presence of TLI. Results: 60 patients had low-grade TLI and 40 high-grade TLI. Comparison of the patient population according to low-grade vs high-grade TLI revealed statistically significant difference both in terms of disease-free survival (DFS) (log rank=4.28, p

OBJECTIVE: Prostate cancer is among the most common cancers in males. Prostate cancer is androgen dependent in the beginning, but as time progresses, it becomes refractory to androgen deprivation treatment. At this stage, docetaxel has been used as standard treatment for years. Cabazitaxel has become the first chemotherapeutic agent which has been shown to increase survival for patients with metastatic Castrate Resistant Prostate Cancer (mCRPC) that progresses after docetaxel. Phase 3 TROPIC study demonstrated that cabazitaxel prolongs survival.

Introduction: The potential effects of serum albumin and albumin-globulin rate on survival were investigated in patients with gastric carcinoma. Materials and methods: The biochemical values of 204 patients under chemotherapy evaluation were obtained retrospectively from archive data. Albumin-globulin ratio values were calculated using albumin/total protein-albumin formula. The values of albumin- globulin ratio and albumin were categorized as 3 groups using receiver operating characteristic analysis and a descending order. Results: The calculated cut-off value for albumin-globulin ratio was 1.14: 34.4-79.7 by receiver operating characteristic. The median survival was 20.7 months (15.9-25.5), 20.1 months (15.1-25.1), 16 months (11.8-20.1 ), respectively in 1st, 2nd, 3rt groups for albumin-globulin ratio (p=0.46). The median overall survival was 18.3 months (12.3-24.2), 21.6 months (16.8-26.3), 18.01 months (13.5-22.4) in 1st, 2nd, 3rt groups for albumin, respectively (p=0.52). There were no statistical significant differences by Kaplan- Meier method for albumin-globulin ratio, albumin p > 0.05. The effects of clinicopathological and biochemical characteristics on mortality were assessed by Cox-proportional hazard regression analysis. The independent predictors of mortality were observed high grade, the presence of perineural invasion of the tumor, high nodal involvement (p:0.01, p:0.001, p:0.01), respectively. Conclusion: Albumin-globulin ratio and albumin values alone may not be useful parameters to predict mortality and survival in patients with gastric carcinoma.

BackgroundSoft tissue sarcomas (STSs) are rare malignant tumors of embryogenic mesoderm origin. Primary thoracic STSs account for a small percentage of all STSs and limited published information is available. This study aimed to identify the prognostic factors for thoracic STSs and evaluate the disease's clinical outcomes. MethodsThe medical records of 109 patients with thoracic STSs who were treated between 2003 and 2013 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients' survival rates were analyzed and potential prognostic factors evaluated. ResultsThe median follow-up period was 29 months (range: 1-121 months). STSs were most frequently localized on the chest wall (n = 42; 38.5%) and lungs (n = 42; 38.5%). The most common histological types were malignant fibrous histiocytoma (n = 23; 21.1%), liposarcoma (n = 17; 15.6%), and leiomyosarcoma (n = 16; 14.7%). The median survival time of all patients was 40.3 months (95% confidence interval, 14.22-66.37 months), with one and five-year survival rates of 93.4% and 63.5%, respectively. Univariate analysis of all groups revealed that metastatic stage, unresectability, tumor diameter of >10cm, tumor location other than the chest wall, and grade 3 diseases were predictable of poor survival. However, only grade 3 diseases and tumor location other than the chest wall were confirmed by multivariate analysis as poor prognostic factors. ConclusionsPrimary thoracic STSs are rarely seen malignant tumors. Our results indicated that patients with low-grade tumors and those localized on the chest wall often experienced better survival outcomes.

Aging of population affects all aspects of the society ranging from the healthcare to welfare systems, public finances, family life and LTC issues, as well. Turkey’s population is younger than that of European countries. However, the ageing population is growing rapidly in Turkey As a result of the increase in the aging population, health expenditure and long-term care services needs have swiftly increased, and this increase, as well as becoming a noteworthy situation, has posed a serious threat to Turkey, including the ones having an extremely powerful social security system, for the future. In Turkey, currently there is no long-term care insurance system. The elderly are usually taken care of within their own family. Long-term care infrastructure are extremely scarce. At the same time, home care and social care are least developed in Turkey, with the scarce public supplies being rationed by quantity and treated as last resort options by families and private providers. Public and private support for long-term care for older persons still is not visible and at national level it is often a non-issue. However, in recent years, quite important steps are being taken for long-term care to innovative implemantations has been witnessed. We will point out some good practices about long-term care for older people in Turkey.

Brain metastasis in colorectal cancer is highly rare. In the present study, we aimed to determine the frequency of brain metastasis in colorectal cancer patients and to establish prognostic characteristics of colorectal cancer patients with brain metastasis. In this cross-sectional study, the medical files of colorectal cancer patients with brain metastases who were definitely diagnosed by histopathologically were retrospectively reviewed. Brain metastasis was detected in 2.7 % (n = 133) of 4,864 colorectal cancer patients. The majority of cases were male (53 %), older than 65 years (59 %), with rectum cancer (56 %), a poorly differentiated tumor (70 %); had adenocarcinoma histology (97 %), and metachronous metastasis (86 %); received chemotherapy at least once for metastatic disease before brain metastasis developed (72 %), had progression with lung metastasis before (51 %), and 26 % (n = 31) of patients with extracranial disease at time the diagnosis of brain metastasis had both lung and bone metastases. The mean follow-up duration was 51 months (range 5-92), and the mean survival was 25.8 months (95 % CI 20.4-29.3). Overall survival rates were 81 % in the first year, 42.3 % in the third year, and 15.7 % in the fifth year. In multiple variable analysis, the most important independent risk factor for overall survival was determined as the presence of lung metastasis (HR 1.43, 95 % CI 1.27-4.14; P = 0.012). Brain metastasis develops late in the period of colorectal cancer and prognosis in these patients is poor. However, early screening of brain metastases in patients with lung metastasis may improve survival outcomes with new treatment modalities.

7th Biennial SGA Meeting -- AUG 24-28, 2003 -- Athens, GREECE, WOS: 000221378600282, The Neotethyan convergence system between the Eurasian plate and Tauride-Anatolide platform in NE and Central Turkey possess well-preserved igneous rocks characterizing different stages of convergence. The convergence system includes (1) Senonian pre-collision (subduction) (2) Late Cretaceous syn-collision and (3) post-collisional stages consisting of subdivisions such as (1) Late Cretaceous I-type, CALK hybrid magmatism (11) Late Cretaceous to Paleocene distensional-related, intracrustal A-type intrusives and (III) Middle-Upper Eocene post-collisional, extensional-related, A-type intrusives. The pre-, syn- and post-collisonal granitoids seem to be associated with their proper mineralization in terms of magma genesis and wall-rock maintained by different geodynamics. After amalgamation, sedimentation in Oligo-Miocene transpressional and Mio-Pliocene transtensional basins has induced the widespread sedimentary and volcano-sedimantary sequences accompanied the evaporite deposition in Central Turkey. The hydrothermal consequences of sequential convergence events are well recorded by temporarily and spatially associated mineral deposits in NE and Central Turkey., Soc Geol Appl

Cancer is one of the most common causes of death all over the World (Rahib et al. in Cancer Res 74(11):2913–2921, 2014; Silbermann et al. in Ann Oncol 23(Suppl 3):iii15–iii28, 2012). It is crucial to diagnose this disease early by effective screening methods and also it is very important to acknowledge the community on various aspects of this disease such as the treatment methods and palliative care. Not only the oncologists but every medical doctor should be educated well in dealing with cancer patients. Previous studies suggested various opinions on the level of oncology education in medical schools (Pavlidis et al. in Ann Oncol 16(5):840–841, 2005). In this study, the perspectives of medical students on cancer, its treatment, palliative care, and the oncologists were analyzed in relation to their educational status. A multicenter survey analysis was performed on a total of 4224 medical school students that accepted to enter this study in Turkey. After the questions about the demographical characteristics of the students, their perspectives on the definition, diagnosis, screening, and treatment methods of cancer and their way of understanding metastatic disease as well as palliative care were analyzed. The questionnaire includes questions with answers and a scoring system of Likert type 5 (absolutely disagree = 1, completely agree = 5). In the last part of the questionnaire, there were some words to detect what the words “cancer” and “oncologist” meant for the students. The participant students were analyzed in two study groups; “group 1” (n = 1.255) were phases I and II students that had never attended an oncology lesson, and “group 2” (n = 2.969) were phases III to VI students that had attended oncology lessons in the medical school. SPSS v17 was used for the database and statistical analyses. A value of p < 0.05 was noted as statistically significant. Group 1 defined cancer as a contagious disease (p = 0.00025), they believed that early diagnosis was never possible (p = 0.042), all people with a diagnosis of cancer would certainly die (p = 0.044), and chemotherapy was not successful in a metastatic disease (p = 0.003) as compared to group 2. The rate of the students that believed gastric cancer screening was a part of the national screening policy was significantly more in group 1 than in group 2 (p = 0.00014). Group 2 had a higher anxiety level for themselves or their family members to become a cancer patient. Most of the students in both groups defined medical oncologists as warriors (57% in group 1 and 40% in group 2; p = 0.097), and cancer was reminding them of “death” (54% in group 1 and 48% in group 2; p = 0.102). This study suggested that oncology education was useful for the students’ understanding of cancer and related issues; however, the level of oncology education should be improved in medical schools in Turkey. This would be helpful for medical doctors to cope with many aspects of cancer as a major health care problem in this country. © 2018, American Association for Cancer Education.

This study aimed to reveal the habits of using internet by cancer patients and their relatives to access health-related information and services in Turkey.An 18-item questionnaire survey was applied in cancer patients and their relatives.A total of 1106 patients (male, 37.3%, and female, 62.7%) and their relatives were included in the study. The responders had been using internet to obtain health information about oncological diseases, once a month (34.2%), 1-2 times a week (27.4%) or 2-3 times a month (21.9%). After diagnosis of cancer was made, participants more frequently (64.4%) investigated health-related issues, while 64.9% of them considered internet as an important search tool, and 16.7% of them had thought to give up cancer therapy under the influence of internet information. Some (33.1%) participants had used herbal medicine, and 16.7% of them had learnt these herbal products from internet. Still 12.7% of them had not questioned the accuracy of internet information, while 26.9% of them indicated that they had not shared the internet information about cancer with their physicians, and 13 % of them searched information in internet without asking their physicians.Cancer patients and their relatives showed a higher tendency to use health-related internet information which may mislead them, and can result in treatment incompliance. Health professionals should offer evidence-based information to the patients and their relatives through internet.

41st Annual Congress of the European-Society-for-Medical-Oncology (ESMO) -- OCT 07-11, 2016 -- Copenhagen, DENMARK, WOS: 000393912500588, European Soc Med Oncol, Turkish Oncology Group (TOG)