Hanging drop deformity of the nose

Abstarct  A chondroid syringoma causing disfigurement of the nasal tip is reported. It is a rare tumour which had to be approched with careful thought for cosmesis     

The influence of flexed-knee gait on the energy cost of walking in children

There is ah understanding that walking with flexed knees contributes to the increased energy cost of walking found in children with neurological conditions. To determine the influence of flexed-knee gait on energy cost of walking in a group of children without neurological abnormality, the gait patterns of 10 normal children were studied using a Vicon system and standard marker set. A telemetric system (Cosmed K2) was then used to measure the oxygen cost of walking of the same children. The tests were repeated restricting the subjects' knee extension bilaterally, using hinged braces, set to 0, 15, 30, and 45° of flexion. Although the braces themselves caused a significant increase in O₂ cost (mL/kg/m) (P<0.05), due to a decrease in walking speed, no further significant increase in oxygen cost was demonstrated regardless of the degree of knee flexion imposed, despite a significant increase in measured hip flexion and ankle dorsiflexion at the 45° of knee flexion setting (P<0.05). We propose that moderate flexed-knee gait does not of itself cause an increase in the energy cost of walking and that other factors present in the physically disabled child are likely to be implicated.     

Continuous infusional combination chemotherapy in inflammatory breast cancer: a phase II study

Despite the introduction of systemic chemotherapy, inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) remains a disease with a poor prognosis. We performed this phase II study to evaluate the efficacy of infusional chemotherapy as initial treatment in patients with IBC. Fifty-four patients with newly diagnosed IBC were offered infusional chemotherapy and 34 accepted. The schedule consisted of continuous infusional ECF (bolus epirubicin and cisplatin, substituted by carboplatin or cyclophosphamide in some patients) plus continuous 5-FU, given three weekly for six cycles. Following chemotherapy patients went on to have surgery and/or radiotherapy. The chemotherapy was well tolerated and resulted in an overall response rate of 79% with 35% of patients achieving a complete clinical response. The median response duration, time to progression and overall survival were 12 months (4-89+ months), 12 months (4-89+ months) and 23 months (7-89+ months), respectively. Patients had a 5 year disease free and overall survival of 11% and 29%, respectively. Infusional ECF is well tolerated and achieves a high clinical response rate in patients with IBC, but survival results do not appear to be superior to those achieved with conventional bolus chemotherapy schedules.     

Experiences of adolescents with cancer from diagnosis to post-treatment: a scoping review

Adolescence is a turbulent time of transition. Facing a serious health issue such as cancer during this time can be challenging and confusing. This study presents a scoping review of 33 research articles including quantitative, qualitative, mixed method, and reviews focused on the experiences of adolescents throughout the cancer journey. Extracted themes across studies identified individual, interpersonal, and environmental aspects of adolescents’ experiences in each stage of this trajectory. Implications for these findings are discussed including a need for early diagnosis and treatment of adolescent cancers and developmentally appropriate clinical supports.