EUROPEAN ONCOLOGICAL DISEASE – VOLUME 2 ISSUE 1- SUMMER 2006

One of the major challenges in cancer research in Europe resides in promoting ‘translational research’. This is a term that is frequently used, but closer scrutiny reveals that like much scientific jargon it is often employed indiscriminately – very often just in order to sound innovative, or to attract research funding – and this by […]

The delivery of modern oncology has become very complex, with a heavy reliance on technology, not only for the accurate diagnosis of the patient, but also for the delivery of the agreed treatment. It is essential that physicians understand what they are doing in their practice and how they are doing it; for this to […]

Tumour markers are substances that can be measured in blood, tumour tissue or other body fluid and that aid cancer detection and/or management. Tumour markers are potentially useful in screening for early cancer (e.g. prostatespecific antigen (PSA) in prostate cancer), aiding diagnosis (tumour markers almost never replace histopathology for the primary diagnosis of cancer), determining […]

In order to reduce the uncertainties and artefacts induced by respiratory motion during computed tomography (CT) scanning, several groups have developed respiratory correlated acquisition techniques. By retrospectively sorting images obtained from an axial or helical CT scan using an external respiratory signal, a four-dimensional (4-D) CT dataset is obtained containing 3-D CT images at multiple […]

Radiotherapy, however, has many advantages in this setting, including the preservation of anatomy and avoidance of surgery, which is particularly useful in elderly patients who may be unsuitable for general anaesthetic or those on anticoagulants. The spectrum of cancers treated by radiotherapy is wide and includes lentigo maligna, lentigo maligna melanomas, Kaposi’s sarcoma, cutaneous T-cell […]

The bottom line is that CR is cheaper than DR. CR technology However, there are many other reason for converting. The CR format is filmless, and image capture is accomplished by a digital recording plate that replaces the film in the standard cassette. This means that darkrooms and associated chemicals also become obsolete. A reader […]

Radiofrequency (RF) is a sinusoidal current with a frequency of 400 to 500KHz. When delivered through electrodes inserted in tissues, it can heat the tissues through ionic agitation and produce coagulation necrosis when temperature rises to 60°C. RF ablation has achieved impressive results in the treatment of unresectable liver primary cancer and metastases. This has […]

The on-board imager (OBI) has been in routine clinical use at the Karolinska University Hospital since June 2004. The OBI consists of a diagnostic X-ray tube and a kV flat panel imager, which are both mounted on robotic arms and designed for three main functions – orthogonal radiographs for three-dimensional (3-D) patient set-up, CB kVCT […]

Among locoregional therapies, transcatheter arterial chemoembolisation (TACE) is a minimally invasive approach for palliative treatment of unresectable HCC that, despite its heterogeneity and variations, has been proven to control symptoms and prolong survival. This article will present some classic concepts that define this popular procedure and some future models of advancement for this technique. Classic […]

However, despite significant research efforts over the past 20 years, with literally hundreds of thousands of research publications relating to prognostic and predictive markers of response, relatively few predictive or pharmacodiagnostic assays are internationally accepted as of value in patient management and treatment selection. For example, in breast cancer only two pharma-codiagnostic tests are currently […]

Two of these trials have been carried out in the USA and are the North American Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP) B31 and the North Central Cancer Treatment Group (NCCTG) N9831 trials. The first one is a two-arm trial comparing four courses of doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide (AC) followed by four courses of three […]

The implant procedure as popularised in Seattle is a two-stage technique involving an initial planning transrectal ultrasound scan. The ultrasound images generated of the prostate are digitised to produce a three-dimensional (3-D) computerised model of the prostate, urethra and rectum. The precise number and position of the seeds required are then calculated to ensure coverage […]

Materials and Methods One hundred and eighteen patients were selected for HIFU treatment of a histologically documented local recurrence after radiotherapy. All patients showed a biochemical recurrence according to the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) criteria. No patients had metastases on bone scan, abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan and/or pelvic magnetic resonance […]

Since the 1980s, however, there have been major shifts in the incidence rates by histologic type that gradually diminish male/female differences in histology. Among men, the incidence rates of squamous cell carcinoma and small cell carcinoma have decreased, while the incidence rate of adenocarcinoma has steadily increased and has even surpassed squamous cell carcinoma in […]

General Considerations Available treatment options for brain metastasis include focal (i.e. surgery and radiosurgery) and non-focal (whole-brain radiotherapy and chemotherapy) treatment modalities. In spite of numerous randomised trials, the optimal timing and patient selection for each of these treatment modalities remains contentious. This controversy seems to derive from two main issues: the first is related […]

To improve early detection of bladder cancer, as well as to monitor treatment response and tumour recurrence, bladder tumour markers are critical. An ideal bladder cancer test would be non-invasive, highly sensitive and specific, inexpensive, easy to perform and yield highly reproducible results. The validity of a tumour marker test can be expressed as sensitivity, […]

Combination Chemotherapy with Purine Analogues Fludarabine has been evaluated in a variety of combination regimens. One of the most promising and most thoroughly studied combinations is fludarabine plus cyclophosphamide (FC).3 In preliminary, non-comparative trials, the overall response rates did not appear to be better than with fludarabine alone, but the addition of cyclophosphamide appeared to […]

The detection of epidemiological shifts requires frequent monitoring and surveillance, particularly at centres treating large numbers of patients, as institutional differences can be substantial. For example, in recent years, some hospitals have experienced an increase of infections caused by multidrug-resistant gram-negative bacilli, such as Acinetobacter species or Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, and gram-positive cocci with increasing resistance […]

To date, antibodies directed towards the CD20 antigen have dominated the field of mAb therapy and RIT of lymphoma. CD20 is highly expressed on mature B-cells and present on 95% of B-cell lymphomas.8,99 131I labelled Tositumomab (Bexxar™) and 90Y labelled ibritumomab tiuxetan (Zevalin®) are highly promising therapies with significantly increased overall and complete response rates […]

Over 130 HPV types have been identified, and approximately 40 of these cause genital infections. Infection with low-risk types, such as 6 and 11, may cause anogenital warts. Vertical transmission of lowrisk HPV types from mother to neonate may cause recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP), which are warts in the upper airway of young children. Approximately […]

Pain Management Strategies Common non-invasive strategies include oral, rectal and transdermal administration of analgesics, whereas intranasal and nebulised applications are not customary in Germany. Invasive and destructive measures such as chordotomy and neurolysis are now very rare in cancer pain therapy, and the indication and execution of these measures should therefore be limited to specialists. […]