tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Comparison of colorectal cancer location and metastasis site in patients aged 50 to 75 versus age 75 and older in community and academic practice.
Authors: Kafayat Adebukola Busari, Renee Williams, Jamie Huston, Darrel Gachette, Oliver Stewart, Kenneth Lee Meredith
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2021)

e15595 Background: Current guidelines recommend cessation of average risk colorectal cancer screening at age 75, after which a more individualized approach is endorsed. There is limited data on characteristics of colorectal cancer in patients over the age of 75. We aimed to determine if colorectal cancer site and metastasis is greater in the community vs academic setting in patients aged 50-75 compared to those age 75 or older. Methods: Data were analyzed from the National Cancer Database (NCDB) between 2010-2014. Results were divided into two categories (50-75 year old, &gt;75 year old) and included number of patients, site of cancer and site of metastasis. Patient characteristics and survival were compared with Mann-Whitney U, Pearson’s Chi-square, and the Kaplan-Meier method. Results: 167, 059 patients were included in the analysis. In the academic setting, group A (age 50-75) contained 36, 298 patients and group B (&gt;75) contained 13,253 patients. In the community setting, group A involved 77, 657 patients and group B, 39,851 patients. In the academic setting, group A identified 57.7% of cases involving the colon vs 42.3% involving the rectum. In group B, 71.4% cases involved the colon vs 28.6% involving the rectum. In the community setting, group A identified 64.4% of cases involving the colon compared to 35.6% involving the rectum. For group B, 76.2% of cases diagnosed were in the colon vs. 23.8% of cases involving the rectum. Overall, indicating a statistically significant increase seen in colon involvement in the older age group (&lt;0.001). In community and academic practice, there is a statistically significant increase in the cases involving metastasis for group A, compared to group B (p&lt;0.001) This is seen for specific sites as well, including bone, liver and lung, (p&lt; 0.001) but not brain involvement in academic practice. Conclusions: In this study, we found a statistically greater number of cases of involving metastasis in patients aged 50-75 compared to patients aged 75 and older in both academic and community practices. In both the academic and community setting, older patients demonstrated statistically greater involvement of the colon compared to patients aged 50-75. Overall, there were more cases of colon and rectal cancer for both age groups seen in the community setting compared to the academic setting.
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the wellbeing of international fellows training in hematology/oncology at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre (PMCC).
Authors: Carlos Stecca, Di Maria Jiang, Marie Alt, Mary Elliott, Nazanin Fallah-Rad, Glaucia Michelis, Srikala S. Sridhar
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2021)

11038 Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to significant disruptions across all levels of medical training. International fellows in subspecialty training programs are essential members of the frontline physician workforce, who may be facing additional and unique challenges being far away from their home country. We aimed to understand the impact of the pandemic on the wellbeing of current international fellows in the Hematology/Oncology training program. Methods: We conducted an online survey of 52 international fellows at the PMCC from July 6-August 10, 2020. There were 60 questions divided into 4 sections: demographics, wellbeing assessment using the validated Short Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS), fellowship specific questions (personal and professional) and coping strategies using the validated brief COPE scale. Results: Response rate was 46% (n = 24). Relevant demographics include: married (65%), male (54%), age between 31-35 years (48%), have children (48%), and home country from Asia (48%). Mean SWEMWBS score was 21, indicating lower overall wellbeing than the general population (23.6). Compared to pre-COVID-19, many reported a decline in their wellbeing (63%), sense of guilt for not being with their family (45%) or helping their country (41%), stress in personal relationships (26%), fatigue (50%), sleep disorders (38%) and loss of interest in daily activities (38%). Personal events were altered by almost 80% and 20% plans to extend their fellowship. According to the Brief-COPE scale, most fellows used more adaptive coping mechanisms (mean score 39.2) as opposed to maladaptive ones (mean score 21.8). Conclusions: The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected the overall wellbeing of international fellows. Understanding the specific challenges and coping mechanisms of international fellows may help Institutions develop better targeted strategies to promote their overall wellbeing, professional development and high-quality patient care during these unprecedented times.
Face-to-face GP consultations: avoiding digital exclusion of marginalised groups
Authors: Felicity A E Knights, Jessica Carter, Anna Deal, Sally Hargreaves
Journal: BMJ (2021)

The latest NHS England letter to general practices states that face-to-face appointments should be offered at patient request,12 which is a U-turn on the previous policy of total virtual triage during the pandemic and potentially conflates patient preference and clinical appropriateness.

Nonetheless, the rapid shift to physical closure of surgeries, digital appointments, and virtual or form-based online triage presented challenges for marginalised patient groups, who …
Apatinib plus paclitaxel versus placebo plus paclitaxel as second-line therapy in patients with gastric cancer with peritoneal carcinomatosis: A double-blind, randomized phase II trial.
Authors: Fenghua Wang, Chao Ren, Jianying Xu, Zhiqiang Wang, Ming-ming He, Miaozhen Qiu, Ying Jin, Huiyan Luo, Feng Wang, Yuhong Li, Qiong Tan, Rong Zhang, Ruihua Xu
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2021)

e16022 Background: Individuals with gastric cancer who present with peritoneal metastasis (PM) have poor prognosis. VEGF and VEGFR-2-mediated angiogenesis can increase vascular permeability, mesothelial cell permeability and promote peritoneal metastasis and ascites formation. This study assessed whether apatinib, a small-molecule VEGFR-2 tyrosine kinase inhibitor, in combination with paclitaxel would improve survival in patients with gastric cancer with PM as second-line therapy. Methods: This was a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind phase 2 trial. Recruitment of the trial was stopped after 44 patients due to poor accrual. Patients aged 18 years or older with gastric adenocarcinoma with PM and disease progression after first-line chemotherapy (platinum plus fluoropyrimidine) were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive apatinib or placebo 500 mg oral once daily plus paclitaxel 80 mg/m2 intravenously on days 1, 8, and 15 of a 28-day cycle. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS). Secondary endpoints included overall survival (OS), overall response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR) and safety profiles. Results: Between January 2017 and January 2019, 44 patients were randomly assigned to treatment (21 in Paclitaxel/apatinib group while 23 in Paclitaxel/placebo group). Median PFS was significantly longer in apatinib plus paclitaxel group than in placebo plus paclitaxel group (4.67 months [95% CI, 3.90 to 9.13 months] vs 4.07 months [95% CI, 1.93 to 5.00 months]; hazard ratio 0.46 [95% CI, 0.22 to 0.97]; P=0.037). There was no significant difference between the two groups in median OS (8.57 months vs. 9.03 months; P=0.85), ORR (19.0% vs. 4.3%; P=0.290) and DCR (76.2% vs. 52.2%, P=0.098). Apatinib group showed a higher incidence of proteinuria (38.1% vs. 4.3%; P=0.016), while no significant difference was found in the incidence of grade 3 or higher drug-related adverse events. Conclusions: Compared with placebo plus paclitaxel, the combination of apatinib with paclitaxel as second-line therapy significantly improved median PFS with an acceptable safety profile in patients with gastric cancer with peritoneal metastasis. Clinical trial information: NCT03144843. [Table: see text]
Thermal Ablation of Colorectal Cancer Metastases Leads to Activation of Individual Cancer-Specific T Cell Immunity
Authors: Sebastian Haen, Bianca Nussbaum, Daniel Johannes Kowalewski, Guenter Jaeger, Philippe Pereira, Stephan Clasen, Bence Sipos, Ingmar Koenigsrainer, Stefan Beckert, Silvia Wagner, Olaf H. Riess, Alfred Koenigsrainer, Stefan Stevanovic, Lothar Kanz, Hans-Georg Rammensee, Markus W. Loeffler, Cecile Gouttefangeas
Journal: Blood (2017)
Integrative structural variant and breakpoint detection using optical genome mapping in a patient with a transformed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma from chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
Authors: Jiachi Wang, Andy Pang, Karl Hong, Jill Lai, Dipa Roychoudhury, Joyce L Murata-Colllins
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2021)

e19511 Background: The finding of complex karyotypes has been a clinically significant finding in cancers of advanced stage or during cancer progression. Conventional cytogenetic and FISH analyses have been limited by the low-resolution of chromosomes and the number of FISH probes which can be implemented in one assay. Recent study revealed the potential of using optical genome mapping to decipher the architecture of cancer genome at nucleotide level. Methods: Karyotyping, FISH and optical genome mapping of bone marrow specimen. Results: We reported on a 63-year-old female with chronic lymphocytic leukemia for nine years and transformed to diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). The karyotype revealed a hypodiploid chromosomal complement: 42,X,-X,der(2)t(2;?;8)(p25;?;q11.2),t(2;9)(q3?5;p2?2),der(4)t(4;?;8)(p16;?;q11.2)t(4;15)(q35;q15),-8,-15,dic(17;21)(p11.2;p11.2),der(18)t(8;18)(q21.2;p11.32)[12]/46,XX[8]. FISH analysis showed loss of TP53, monosomy 8 with 3-5 copies of the Myc genes. Optical genome mapping analysis revealed 12 insertions, 29 deletions, 8 duplications, 6 intrachromosomal translocations and 12 interchromosomal translocations. Whole genome analysis identified multiple gains of 2p, 8p and 8q, losses of 9p, 15q and 17p. The breakpoints of two unbalanced translocation and one complex chromosomal rearrangement have been narrowed down to nucleotide resolution: ogm[GRCh37] t(2;9)(q34;p21.2) g.[chr2:211,281,003::chr9:26,532,620], ogm t(2;8)(p25.3;p23.3) g.[chr2:15,924::chr8:215,177] and ogm der(4)t(8q24.3→8q21.13→2p24.2→2q34→4p15.2→4q34.3→15q15.1) g.[chr8:80,461,191::chr2:18,079,530→chr2:211,274,379::chr4:26,381,729→chr4:180,989,408::chr15:42,404,514]. Conclusions: Integrative analysis using conventional cytogenetic and molecular cytogenomic methodologies unveil the complex architectural alterations of caner genome. The resolution achieved by optical genome mapping would potentially lead to discovery of carcinogenic mechanisms, new fusion genes, prognostic and therapeutic markers.
The impact of colorectal cancer screening on incidence and stage IV disease in the Netherlands.
Authors: Myrtle F Krul, Marloes AG Elferink, Niels FM Kok, Evelien Dekker, Iris Lansdorp-Vogelaar, Gerrit A. Meijer, Iris D Nagtegaal, Theo JM Ruers, Monique E van Leerdam, Koert FD Kuhlmann
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2021)

3531 Background: Population-based screening for colorectal cancer (CRC) aims to decrease incidence and mortality due to precancerous polyp removal, early detection and early treatment of CRC. In the Netherlands, phased introduction of a biennial fecal immunochemical hemoglobin test started in 2014 for individuals aged 55-75. This evaluation of the national data focuses on the initial effect of CRC screening on incidence and stage distribution and the impact on stage IV disease. Methods: All CRC patients diagnosed in the Netherlands between 2009 and 2018 were selected from the Netherlands Cancer Registry (NCR). Patients were linked to the Dutch national pathology registry (PALGA) to identify screen-detected tumors. Results: The NCR identified 137,717 CRC patients between 2009 and 2018. The incidence within screening age (55-75 yr) of all CRC stages showed an initial peak after introduction of screening in 2014, followed by a continuous decrease for all stages. CRC incidence outside the screening age did not show these explicit changes between 2009 and 2018. In 2018, the incidence of stage IV CRC within screening age was lower than the level at the start of the screening program. Stage distribution within screening age shifted towards earlier stages in the screening period (2014-2018) compared to the period before screening (2009-2012) (stage I: 31% vs. 18%, stage II: 22% vs. 26%, stage III: 29% vs. 31%, Stage IV: 18% vs. 25%, respectively). In the period 2014-2018 and within screening age, the ratio of screen-detected and symptom-detected tumors was highest in stage I (47%:53%) and lowest in stage IV (9%:91%). Screen-detected compared to symptom-detected stage IV patients diagnosed in the period 2014-2018 and within screening age had more frequently single organ metastases (74.5% vs 57.4%, p &lt; 0.001), higher resection rate of the primary tumor (57.5% vs. 41.3%; p &lt; 0.001) and higher local treatment rate of metastases (40.0% vs. 23.4% p &lt; 0.001). The median overall survival of screen-detected stage IV patients was significantly longer than that of symptom-detected stage IV patients (31.0 months (95% CI: 27.7 – 34.3) vs. 15.0 months (95% CI: 14.5 – 15.5), p &lt; 0.001). Conclusions: The initial results of the introduction of CRC screening in the Netherlands showed a favorable trend on CRC incidence and stage distribution. Screen-detected patients with stage IV disease had less extensive disease, resulting in better treatment options and improved survival.
Sociodemographics, lifestyle determinants, and viral infections in patients with head and neck cancer undergoing radiotherapy in Taiwan: A prospective cohort study.
Authors: Kevin Sheng-Kai Ma, Jasmine Tan, Angel Alfonso Velarde Lopez
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2021)

10553 Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV) screening has been implemented to monitor both cervical cancer and head and neck cancer. In this prospective cohort study, we determined sociodemographic, behavioral, and infectious etiology for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) in Taiwan using data collected from an anonymous sexually transmitted infections screening program. Methods: An anonymous sexually transmitted infections screening program was conducted at a medical center during 2016, in which sociodemographic characteristics including gender, age, marital status, education level, and occupation; medical history regarding underlying comorbidities and history of receiving HPV and other vaccines; lifestyle determinants including betel quid chewing, drug using, and sexual behaviors, were inquired. Blood, anal swab, and penile swab samples were collected to determine viral infections using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). With PCR, 37 HPV genotypes were detected. Regular follow-ups were made for patients enrolled in the screening program until end of 2020, during which all suspected malignancies were recorded upon referrals to oncologists. From this prospective cohort, odds ratios (ORs) of HNSCC for sociodemographic, lifestyle, and infectious variables were derived with logistic regression (R version 4.0.1). P &lt; 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 376 patients were enrolled. Most patients were men (n = 372), with a median age of 27 years. There were 124 (32.98%) HPV-positive patients and 78 (20.74%) HIV-positive patients. Among HPV-positive patients, 20 (25.64%) were of high-risk genotypes. During the follow-up, 44 patients developed HNSCC and all received radiotherapy. Multivariate analysis revealed that patients who were single (OR = 1.43, 95% CI = 1.12-1.83, P = 0.01) or widowed (OR = 2.47, 95% CI = 1.88-3.25, P &lt; 0.001) had higher risk of HNSCC than patients who were married. Patients aged 51-60 (OR = 2.93, 95% CI = 2.10-4.09, P &lt; 0.001) and over 60 (OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 1.45-2.47, P &lt; 0.001) presented higher risks of HNSCC, compared with those aged below 20. Patients addicted to betel quid chewing had high HNSCC risk (OR = 1.29, 95% CI = 1.11 – 1.50, P &lt; 0.001). However, patients with HPV infections did not present with higher HNSCC risks (OR = 0.925, 95% CI = 0.852 – 1.003, P = 0.058). Conclusions: In this prospective cohort study, the elderly, unmarried patients, and patients addicted to betel quid chewing, presented with high HNSCC incidence. On the contrary, the association between HPV infection and HNSCC was insignificant. As both betel nut-chewing and HPV infection could be prevented, we advocate for comprehensive screening and patient education for HNSCC prevention.
Racial differences in geriatric assessment (GA) impairments, health-related quality of life (HRQOL), and body composition in older adults with gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies: Results from the Cancer and Aging Resilience Evaluation (CARE) registry.
Authors: Grant Richard Williams, Chen Dai, Carson Foster, Mustafa Al-Obaidi, Christian Harmon, Kirsten A. Nyrop, Olumide B. Gbolahan, Smita Bhatia, Smith Giri
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2021)

6537 Background: Despite recent cancer advances, racial disparities in outcomes persist. Our objective was to examine racial differences in GA impairments, HRQOL, and body composition metrics as a novel way to understand outcome disparities in older adults with GI malignancies. Methods: The CARE registry at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is an ongoing prospective cohort study that consecutively enrolls older adults (≥60y) with GI malignancies. The CARE registry utilizes a patient-reported GA that measures a broad range of aging-related health issues. HRQOL is measured using PROMIS Global-10. Computed-Tomography (CT) images are procured to measure skeletal muscle index (SMI) and skeletal muscle density (SMD) from the L3 cross-section. For this study, we examined the adjusted odds ratio (aOR) for racial differences in GA impairments, HRQOL, sarcopenia (defined as men BMI &lt; 25, SMI ≤43 cm 2 /m 2 ; men BMI ≥25, SMI &lt; 53 cm 2 /m 2 ; women SMI &lt; 41 cm 2 /m 2 ), and myosteatosis (defined as BMI &lt; 25, &lt; 41 Hounsfield Units [HU]; BMI ≥25, &lt; 33 HU), adjusting for age, sex, education, cancer type, cancer stage, and comorbidity. Results: We included 448 patients with GI malignancies, with self-reported race as White or Black, a completed GA and available CT imaging +/- 60 days of GA completion. Mean age at enrollment was 70±7.2y, 58% were male and 25% were Black. Primary cancer diagnoses included colorectal cancer (33%), pancreatic cancer (25%), and other GI malignancies (52%). Black participants had lower education (high school or &lt; 54% vs. 38%, p&lt; 0.01) and were less likely to be married (55% vs 71%, p&lt; 0.01). Black participants reported more limitations in activities of daily living (aOR = 2.0 (95% confidence level [CI] 1.01-3.9, p= 0.03) and frailty (aOR = 1.9, 95% CI 1.1-3.3, p= 0.02). Similarly, Black participants reported lower HRQOL (physical: β coefficient, -2.7; p= 0.03; mental: β coefficient, -2.4; p= 0.03). Conversely, Black participants were less likely to have sarcopenia (aOR = 0.5, 95% CI 0.3-0.9, p= 0.02) and myosteatosis (aOR = 0.12, 95% CI 0.02-0.8, p= 0.02). Conclusions: Differences in frailty, HRQOL, and body composition between Black and White participants present the first step towards understanding disparities in cancer outcomes amongst older adults.
U.S. budget impact analysis of biosimilar versus originator intravenous rituximab for the treatment of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) and microscopic polyangiitis (MPA).
Authors: Elizabeth James, Holly Trautman, Ali McBride, Azhar Choudhry, Stephen Thompson
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2021)

e18820 Background: Rituximab-abbs is an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody and an important immuno-oncology agent for the treatment of B-cell malignancies NHL (diffuse large B-cell lymphoma [DLBCL] and follicular lymphoma [FL]) and CLL. It is also indicated for patients with RA, GPA, and MPA. Rituximab-abbs was the first rituximab biosimilar approved in the US and is expected to reduce drug acquisition costs. This budget impact model (BIM) estimated the impact of replacing a share of originator rituximab (IV-R-REF) use with rituximab-abbs (IV-R-BIOSIM) for NHL (DLBCL and FL), CLL, RA, GPA, and MPA. The objective was to project incremental annual cost differences between IV-R-BIOSIM and IV-R-REF for a hypothetical 1-million-member US healthcare insured (Medicare) population. Methods: An illustrative BIM estimated changes in 1-year drug and administration costs for an increased IV-R-BIOSIM uptake from 17.5% to 22.0%. Values for epidemiology, market share distribution, drug dosing, administration, and costs were derived from scientific literature, product labels, and publicly available cost resources. Dosing was based on a mean patient body surface area of 1.8 m 2 . Annual dose counts per patient were: 10 untreated FL with maintenance; 8 untreated FL (without maintenance), relapsed/refractory FL, or untreated DLBCL; 6 CLL, and 4 for RA, GPA, or MPA. All treatments were assumed to infuse over 3 hours. Drug acquisition and administration costs were from 2020 Average Sales Price pricing file and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Physician Fee Schedule. Patient cost share was based on 2020 Medicare Part B 20% cost-share for office visits and drug products. Univariate sensitivity analyses were conducted. A scenario analysis was performed to project 2-year costs for extended FL maintenance treatment. Results: Estimated total annual plan incremental savings for a 1-million-member payer after the utilization shift were $312,379, equating to $0.31 per enrolled member per year (PMPY). Per-patient incremental drug cost savings with IV-R-BIOSIM for 1-year were $5,474–$12,924 (Table). The model was most sensitive to IV-R-REF cost and proportion of patients with RA. Conclusions: This analysis estimated annual savings of over $310,000 ($0.31 PMPY) for a 1-million-member US payer following a 4.5% utilization shift from IV-R-REF to IV-R-BIOSIM, demonstrating that IV-R-BIOSIM may confer considerable economic benefits vs originator rituximab.[Table: see text]