In a nutshell This article presents updated guidelines on treating non-small cell lung cancer patients with adjuvant (following surgery) chemotherapy or radiation. The authors provide recommendations on when to use adjuvant therapy based primarily on disease stage. Some background Cancer patients who have tumors removed by surgery often undergo...
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In a nutshell The authors evaluated the benefits of preventive radiation therapy in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have high risk of developing brain metastases (spreading of cancer from the lungs to the brain). Some background NSCLC is the most common type of lung cancer, accounting for 85% of all lung cancers. In...
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In a nutshell This paper studied the safety and effectiveness of treatment with a unique form of paclitaxel (Taxol) and trastuzumab (Herceptin) in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 positive breast cancer. Some background Chemotherapy is widely used before surgery in breast cancer to reduce the size of the tumour before surgical...
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In a nutshell This paper studied the impact of endocrine therapy on sexual function in postmenopausal patients with breast cancer. Some background Endocrine therapy is used in the treatment of hormone receptor positive early breast cancer. Hormone receptor positive breast cancer is cancer which has an abundant presence of the estrogen or...
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In a nutshell This study evaluated the use of progesterone receptor status as an independent predictor of disease prognosis in patients with early breast cancer. Some background Most breast cancer cells grow in response to female hormones, such as progesterone and estrogen. Cancer response to these growth stimuli not only directs treatment...
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In a nutshell This study evaluated the sexual and anorectal (the final part of the large bowel) functions after rectal cancer removal and radiotherapy. Some background The rectum is the lowest part of the large intestine, located behind the urinary bladder and nearby the nerves and structures that control sexual function. Usually, patients who...
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In a nutshell This study examined the effects of noninvasive image-guided breast brachytherapy using the Accuboost device. Some background Following surgery, high dose radiotherapy is often directed at the tumor bed to ensure the destruction of any remaining cancer cells and prevent cancer recurrence (often referred to as a...
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In a nutshell This study investigated the effect of lateral pelvic lymph node dissection on survival of rectal cancer patients. Some background Removal of the lymph nodes in the area surrounding lower rectal cancer (lateral pelvic lymph node dissection or LPND) is often performed during surgery to remove the cancer. LPND is usually performed if...
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In a nutshell This study analyzed the occurrence of distance metastasis (the spread of the cancer to distant organs) in early stage breast cancer patients after breast conservation therapy (BCT). This study also showed the pattern of spread to these distant organs. Some background Early-stage...
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In a nutshell This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of radiation treatment (RT) given after breast-conserving surgery. The main findings are that RT leads to a dramatic drop in cancer recurrences and a moderately improved survival rate 15 years after the operation. Some background Breast-conserving surgery (BCS) involves the removal of...
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In a nutshell This study compared survival rates for two surgical strategies in treating invasive breast cancer. The main finding was that the targeted Sentinel Lymph Node Dissection (SLND) procedure was just as effective as the traditional Axillary Lymph Node Dissection (ALND) surgery. Some background Lymph from the breast drains...
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In a nutshell In this study chemotherapy and Tamoxifen were compared to Tamoxifen alone as complementary treatments after surgery for breast cancer. The main finding was that better results are obtained by adding chemotherapy. Some background Tamoxifen is a drug used for tumors which require the female hormone estrogen to grow. It...
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