B-cell lymphoma-associated hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis: A case report

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a life-threatening condition characterized by an exaggerated but dysregulated immune response resulting in hyperinflammation, with a potential for progression to multiple organ dysfunction and failure. Infectious diseases, inflammatory disorders, malignancies and immunodeficiency syndromes are known triggers of HLH in adults. The present study reported the case of a middle-aged man with HLH triggered by B-cell lymphoma who was successfully treated with dexamethasone; etoposide, prednisone, vincristine, cyclophosphamide, hydroxy-doxorubicin and rituximab chemotherapy; and multiple intrathecal methotrexate with a good outcome.     

Extreme chromosome 17 copy number instability is a prognostic factor in patients with gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma: A retrospective cohort study

Gastric and esophageal cancers frequently show genomic instability and aneuploidy. Chromosomal copy number instability (CIN) is a form of genomic instability that exerts pleiotropic effects on cellular biology and is a source of genetic heterogeneity in a population of cells. CIN results in cell‐to‐cell variation in chromosome copy number which can be detected and quantified by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). CIN is a biomarker associated with differential response to a number of chemotherapy compounds. We quantified chromosome 17 copy number instability (CIN‐17) in 348 gastroesophageal adenocarcinomas by centromeric FISH in cases that were tested for HER2 amplification. We evaluated the association between CIN‐17 and clinical outcome after surgical and nonsurgical treatment. CIN‐17 was detected in 45.4% (158/348) and extreme CIN‐17 in 28.4% (99/348). Extreme CIN‐17 had no association with outcome in surgically treated patients. However, in patients treated with conventional radiation and/or chemotherapy, extreme CIN‐17 was associated with 55% reduction in overall mortality (hazard ratio, 0.448; 95% confidence interval, 0.263–0.763) after adjusting for age and clinical stage at diagnosis. Extreme CIN‐17 is detected in over a quarter of gastroesophageal adenocarcinomas and is a favorable prognostic marker in patients treated nonoperatively.     

Medication Use Quality and Safety in Older Adults: 2019 Update

Improving the quality of medication use and medication safety are important priorities for prescribers who care for older adults. The objective of this article was to identify four exemplary articles with this focus in 2019. We selected high-quality studies that moved the field of research forward and were not merely replication studies. The chosen articles cover domains related to aspects of suboptimal prescribing and medication safety. The first study used a nationally representative sample of Medicare beneficiaries to examine the continuation of medications with limited benefit in patients admitted for cancer and non-cancer diagnoses in hospice (domain: potentially inappropriate medications). The second study, a retrospective cohort study of older adults in Ontario, Canada, assessed the association between prescribing oral anticoagulants in an emergency department relative to not prescribing anticoagulants in the emergency department and their persistence at 6 months (domain: underuse of medications). The third study, a cluster randomized trial in Quebec, Canada, evaluated the effect of conducting electronic medication reconciliation on several outcomes including adverse drug events and medication discrepancies (domain: medication safety). Lastly, the fourth study, a retrospective study using national inpatient and outpatient Veteran Health Administration combined with clinical and Medicare Claims data, examined the effects of intensification of antihypertensive medications on older adults' likelihood for hospital re-admission and other important clinical outcomes (domain: medication safety). Collectively, this review succinctly highlights pertinent topics related to promoting safe use of medications and promotes awareness of optimizing older adults' medication regimens.