Patient-Reported Quality of Life Before and After Chemoradiation for Intact Pancreas Cancer: A Prospective Registry Study

PurposeOur purpose was to determine the effect of chemoradiotherapy (CRT) on patient-reported quality of life (QOL) for patients with intact pancreas cancer.Methods and MaterialsWe reviewed a prospective QOL registry for patients with intact, clinically localized pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma treated with CRT between June 2015 and November 2018. QOL was assessed pre-CRT (immediately before CRT, after neoadjuvant chemotherapy) and at the completion of CRT with the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Hepatobiliary (FACT-Hep) and its component parts: FACT-General (FACT-G) and hepatobiliary cancer subscore (HCS). A minimally important difference from pre-CRT was defined as ≥ 6, 5, and 8 points for FACT-G, HCS, and FACT-Hep, respectively.ResultsOf 157 patients who underwent CRT, 100 completed both pre- and post-CRT surveys and were included in the primary analysis. Median age at diagnosis was 65 years (range, 23-90). National Comprehensive Cancer Network resectability status was resectable (3%), borderline resectable (40%), or locally advanced (57%). Folinic acid, 5-fluorouracil, irinotecan, and oxaliplatin (FOLFIRINOX) (75%) or gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel (42%) were given for a median of 6 cycles (range, 0-42) before CRT. Radiation therapy techniques included 3-dimensional conformal (22%), intensity modulated photon (55%), and intensity modulated proton (23%) radiation therapy to a median dose of 50 Gy (range, 36-62.5). Concurrent chemotherapy was most commonly capecitabine (82%). Sixty-three patients (63%) had surgery after CRT. The mean decline in FACT-G, HCS subscale, and FACT-Hep from pre- to post-CRT was 3.5 (standard deviation [SD], 13.7), 1.7 (SD 7.8), and 5.2 (SD 19.4), respectively. Each of these changes were statistically significant, but did not meet the minimally important difference threshold. Pancreatic head tumor location was associated with decline in FACT-Hep. Nausea was the toxicity with the greatest increase from pre- to post-CRT by both physician-assessment and patient-reported QOL.ConclusionsFor patients with intact pancreatic adenocarcinoma, modern CRT is well tolerated with minimal decline in QOL during treatment.     

Ileocolic Intussusception Caused by a Giant Ulcerating Lipoma of Bauhin’s Valve: an Unusual Cause of Intestinal Obstruction in the Adult

We report a case of intestinal obstruction in a 73-year-old woman caused by ileocolic intussusception. The underlying cause was a giant submucosal ulcerating lipoma (6?×?3.3?×?3.8 cm) extending from the superior mucosal lip of Bauhin’s valve. Abdominal ultrasonography showed a pathognomonic target-like mass appearing as multiple concentric rings. CT scan confirmed the diagnosis. Because of apparent obstruction, a laparotomy with right hemicolectomy and ileocolic anastomosis was performed. Lipomas most frequently occur in the cecum and ascending colon where they represent the most common submucosal mesenchymal tumor. They typically occur in elderly women with an incidence that varies from 0.15 to 0.56 %. Pain, rectal bleeding, and obstruction are typical symptoms. When faced with an intussusception in children, reduction with air per rectum can be performed. In adults, however, malignant cell spreading and seeding is of big concern. Since approximately 20–50 % of all underlying causes are malignant, explorative surgery is favored in adults.     

Attachment to Caregivers and Type 1 Diabetes in Children

Attachment is a behavioral and physiological system, which enables individual’s dynamic adaptation to its environment. Attachment develops in close interaction between an infant and his/her mother, plays an important role in the development of the infant’s brain, and influences the quality of interpersonal relationships throughout life.Security of attachment is believed to influence individual response to stress, exposing insecurely organized individuals to deregulated autonomic nervous system and exaggerated hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal activity, which, in turn, produces increased and prolonged exposure to stress-hormones. Such stress responses may have considerable implications for the development of diverse health-risk conditions, such as insulin resistance and hyperlipidemia, shown by numerous studies.Although the mechanisms are not yet fully understood, there is compelling evidence highlighting the role of psychological stress in the development of type 1 diabetes (T1D). One of the possible contributing factors for the development of T1D may be the influence of attachment security on individual stress reactivity. Thus, the suggestion is that insecurely attached individuals are more prone to experience increased and prolonged influence of stress hormones and other mechanisms causing pancreatic beta-cell destruction.The present paper opens with a short overview of the field of attachment in children, the principal attachment classifications and their historic development, describes the influence of attachment security on individual stress-reactivity and the role of the latter in the development of T1D. Following is a review of recent literature on the attachment in patients with T1D with a conclusion of a proposed role of attachment organization in the etiology of T1D.     

Secondary haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis: Experience from the Uppsala University Hospital

Background. Haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a rare clinical syndrome characterized by fever, hepatosplenomegaly, cytopenia, and progressive multiple-organ failure. HLH in adults is often secondary to autoimmune diseases, cancer, or infections in contrast to familial HLH. Treatment of secondary HLH is directed against the triggering disease in addition to immunosuppressive therapy, the latter commonly according to the HLH-2004 protocol.Methods. We conducted a retrospective study to identify triggering diseases, disease-specific and immunosuppressive therapy administered, and prognosis in adult patients with secondary HLH. Patient data were collected from October 2010 to January 2015.Results. Ten adult patients with secondary HLH were identified. Seven were men, and the median age at diagnosis was 62 years. Five cases were triggered by malignant disease and five by infection. The median patient fulfilled five of the eight HLH-2004 diagnostic criteria. All patients fulfilled the criteria fever, cytopenia, and ferritin >500 µg/L. Median time from hospital admission to HLH diagnosis was 20 days. Four patients received immunosuppressive therapy according to the HLH-2004 protocol. The prognosis was dismal, especially for the patients with malignancy-associated HLH, of whom all died.Conclusion. HLH should be suspected in patients who present with fever, cytopenia, and ferritin >500 µg/L. Secondary HLH has a dismal prognosis. None of the patients with HLH triggered by malignancy survived. Achieving remission of the triggering disease seems to be important for a favourable outcome as, in all surviving patients, the haemophagocytic syndrome resolved after remission of the underlying infection.     

Radiotherapy-specific interprofessional learning through simulation

IntroductionInterprofessional learning (IPL) is a vital aspect of training in radiation oncology professions, yet is rarely delivered to those professionals who work most closely together in clinical practice. Scenario-based learning using simulation facilities provides a unique opportunity to facilitate this learning and this project aimed to determine the impact and value of this initiative.MethodsSmall groups comprising post-graduate diploma pre-registration therapeutic radiographers, medical physics trainees and radiation oncology registrars were challenged with 4 plausible and challenging radiotherapy scenarios within an academic simulation centre. Pre- and post-event completion of the “Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale” measured impact and a Likert-style survey gathered feedback from participants.ResultsThe session increased participants' teamwork and collaboration skills as well as strengthening professional identities. Participants reported high levels of enjoyment related to collaborative working, communication and observing other professionals deploying their technical skills and specialist knowledge.ConclusionAlthough beneficial, simulated scenarios offering equal opportunities for engagement across the professions are challenging to plan and timetabling issues between the 3 groups present significant difficulties. The safe environment and unique opportunity for these groups to learn together was particularly well received and future oncology-specific simulated scenario sessions are planned with larger cohorts.Implications for practiceSimulated scenario training can be used to improve team working across the radiotherapy interprofessional team and may have wider use in other specialist interdisciplinary team development.