A European consensus conference on endometrial carcinoma was held in 2014 to produce multi-disciplinary evidence-based guidelines on selected questions. Given the large body of literature on the management of endometrial carcinoma published since 2014, the European Society of Gynaecological Oncology (ESGO), the European SocieTy for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO), and the European Society of Pathology (ESP) jointly decided to update these evidence-based guidelines and to cover new topics in order to improve the quality of care for women with endometrial carcinoma across Europe and worldwide.

https://ijgc.bmj.com/content/ijgc/31/1/12.full.pdf

ESGO/ESTRO/ESP guidelines for the management of patients with endometrial carcinoma.

‘Long COVID-19’ can affect different body systems. At present, avascular necrosis (AVN) as a sequalae of ‘long COVID-19’ has yet not been documented. By large-scale use of life-saving corticosteroids in COVID-19 cases, we anticipate that there will be a resurgence of AVN cases. We report a series of three cases in which patients developed AVN of the femoral head after being treated for COVID-19 infection. The mean dose of prednisolone used in these cases was 758 mg (400–1250 mg), which is less than the mean cumulative dose of around 2000 mg steroid, documented in the literature as causative for AVN. Patients were symptomatic and developed early AVN presentation at a mean of 58 days after COVID-19 diagnosis as compared with the literature which shows that it generally takes 6 months to 1 year to develop AVN post steroid exposure.

https://casereports.bmj.com/content/bmjcr/14/7/e242101.full.pdf

Avascular necrosis as a part of 'long COVID-19'.

Breast cancer is a global health problem being the most common cancer of women in both developed and under-developed countries. Public and individual awareness can play a vital role in the prevention, early diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. However evidence is sparse on awareness and practice of breast cancer screening methods used among women of reproductive age in Ethiopia. The present study was designed to determine factors associated with breast cancer screening awareness and practices of women in Addis Ababa. A facility based cross-sectional study was conducted among women who came for maternal and child health care services to selected public health centers. The participants were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. Following data collection, data entry and analysis was done using Epi-Info version 7and SPSS Version 21 respectively. Cross tabulation of each independent variable with the dependent variable with their 95% confidence interval was done and those variables associated at binary logistic regression with a significance level of 0.2 were entered into multiple logistic regression. About half (53%) of women have heard about breast cancer and 35.5% of women are aware of at least one breast cancer screening method. Among those who are informed about breast cancer screening, 97% indicated that screening improves the chance of survival. Among the common screening methods; self-breast examination, clinical-breast examination and mammographic examination were practiced by 24.3%, 7.6% and 3.8% of respondents, respectively. Women who had high level of income were about 3 times more likely to be aware about breast cancer screening methods, [AOR = 2.5; 95%CI (1.04–-5.91)], while women who attended secondary and tertiary school were 2 and 4 times more likely to practice breast cancer screening methods [AOR = 2.46; 95% CI (1.12–-5.38)] and [AOR = 4.00; 95% CI(1.48–-10.86)] respectively. This study has showed that self-reported breast cancer screening coverage is low. About two-thirds of women had no information about breast cancer screening methods.

/pdf/factors-associated-with-breast-cancer-screening-awareness-4o2by5qyyh.pdf

Factors associated with breast cancer screening awareness and practices of women in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Sarcomas are a rare malignancy of mesenchymal tissues, comprizing a plethora of unique subtypes, with more than 60 types. The sheer heterogeneity of disease phenotype makes this a particularly difficult cancer to treat. Radiotherapy, chemotherapy and surgery have been employed for over three decades and, although effective in early disease (stages I-II), in later stages, where metastatic tumors are present, these treatments are less effective. Given the spectacular results obtained by cancer immunotherapy in a variety of solid cancers and leukemias, there is now a great interest in appliying this new realm of therapy for sarcomas. The widespread use of immunotherapy for sarcoma relies on immuno-profiling of subtypes, immunomonitoring for prognosis, preclinical studies and insight into the safety profile of these novel therapies. Herein, we discuss preclinical and clinical data highlighting how immunotherapy is being used in soft tissue sarcoma and bone sarcomas.

https://jitc.bmj.com/content/jitc/9/2/e001580.full.pdf

Immunotherapy for sarcomas: new frontiers and unveiled opportunities

Early diagnosis is a key determinant of breast cancer prognosis and survival. More than half of breast cancer cases are diagnosed at an advanced stage in Ethiopia, and the barriers to early diagnosis in this country are not well understood. We aimed to identify the perceived barriers to early diagnosis of breast cancer from the perspective of patients and health care providers in south and southwestern Ethiopia. A qualitative study was conducted from March to April 2018 using in-depth interviews of breast cancer patients and breast cancer health care providers from six public hospitals located in urban and rural areas of south and southwestern Ethiopia. All participants provided verbal consent before participating. A thematic analysis was performed using Open Code 4.02. Twelve breast cancer patients and thirteen health care providers were included in the study. Patient and health-system related barriers to early diagnosis of breast cancer were identified. Patient-related barriers were lack of knowledge and awareness of breast cancer, belief in traditional medicine and religious practices for treatment, and lack of social and financial support to seek care at a medical facility. Health-system related barriers were misdiagnosis of breast cancer, long distance to referral facilities, high cost of diagnostic services, long waiting time for diagnostic tests, and lack of screening and diagnostic tests in local facilities. Early diagnosis of breast cancer is affected by multiple barriers in south and southwestern Ethiopia. Awareness campaigns and education about the disease, prevention, and early detection are needed to increase early diagnosis of breast cancer. Opportunities exist to improve early diagnosis and timely treatment in rural areas.

/pdf/perceived-barriers-to-early-diagnosis-of-breast-cancer-in-2jhtyxa6cy.pdf

Perceived barriers to early diagnosis of breast Cancer in south and southwestern Ethiopia: a qualitative study.

PurposeNoncommunicable diseases, prominently cancer, have become the second leading cause of death in the adult population of Ethiopia. A population-based cancer registry has been used in Addis Ababa (the capital city) since 2011. Availability of up-to-date estimates on cancer incidence is important in guiding the national cancer control program in Ethiopia.MethodsWe obtained primary data on 8,539 patients from the Addis Ababa population-based cancer registry and supplemented by data on 1,648 cancer cases collected from six Ethiopian regions. We estimated the number of the commonest forms of cancer diagnosed among males and females in Ethiopia and computed crude and age-standardized incidence rates.ResultsFor 2015 in Ethiopia, we estimated that 21,563 (95% CI, 17,416 to 25,660) and 42,722 (95% CI, 37,412 to 48,040) incident cancer cases were diagnosed in males and females, respectively. The most common adult cancers were: cancers of the breast and cervix, colorectal cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, leukemia,...

https://ascopubs.org/doi/pdfdirect/10.1200/JGO.17.00175

Biniam Tsegaye

Papers

Estimates of Cancer Incidence in Ethiopia in 2015 Using Population-Based Registry Data.