A Convergence-Based Framework for Cancer Drug Resistance.

Non-compliance has received significant attention in medicine, yet few studies have examined its correlates in autologous hematopoietic SCT (AHSCT) patients. This study examined predictors of non-compliance in a sample of 151 AHSCT patients treated in an outpatient setting. Before AHSCT, participants completed a validated measure of mood and retrospective chart reviews were conducted to assess non-compliance during AHSCT, defined as refusal of oral hygiene, prescribed exercise programs, oral nutrition and/or prescribed medications. We found 121 patients (80%) were non-compliant with an aspect of the AHSCT regimen on 1 or more days; mean percentage of non-compliant days was 16.6 (s.d. 15.6). Men were more likely than women to be non-compliant (P<0.05); as were participants with an elevated depression score (P<0.05). Stepwise regression models identified significant predictors of non-compliance: gender, depression, global distress and nausea and vomiting severity (P-values all <0.01). Further analysis revealed that the interaction of the psychological variables with gender was a more robust predictor of non-compliance (P<0.001). For outpatient AHSCT, our findings suggest the need to broaden conceptualizations of risk factors for non-compliance and the importance of assessing patient barriers to compliance to ensure optimal treatment outcome.

Predictors of non-compliance in autologous hematopoietic SCT patients undergoing out-patient transplants.

Chemotherapy and surgery for operable NSCLC.

To describe the pattern of recurrence in resected pN1 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and to identify factors predicting an increased risk of locoregional recurrence (LR) or distant metastasis (DM) to define a selected population who may benefit from postoperative radiotherapy (PORT). 285 patients with resected pN1 NSCLC were identified. Patients with positive surgical margins, undergoing neoadjuvant treatment or PORT, were excluded. LR was defined as first event of recurrence at the surgical bed, ipsilateral hilum or mediastinum, and other sites were considered as DM. Kaplan–Meier actuarial estimates of overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), freedom from LR (FFLR) and freedom from DM (FFDM) in different subgroups were compared with the log-rank test. Multivariate analysis was calculated. 202 patients met the inclusion criteria, 24 % received adjuvant chemotherapy. The median follow-up was 39 months. The total number of recurrences was 118 (64.4 %): 44 (24 %) and 74 (40.4 %) for LR and DM, respectively. Five-year OS and PFS rates were 39.2 and 33.3 %, respectively. Extra capsular extension (ECE) (RR 2.10, p = 0.01) and lymph nodal ratio (LNR) >0:15 (RR 1.68, p = 0.015) were associated with a worse PFS. ECE and LNR >0.15 were significantly related to a worst FFLR (RR 3.04 and 4.42, respectively), and adenocarcinoma to an unfavorable FFDM (RR 1.97, p = 0.013). Nodal factors as high LNR and ECE can predict an increased risk of worse FFLR and PFS. Prospective data on selected patients, treated with modern radiotherapy techniques, need to be collected to re-evaluate the role of radiotherapy.

Resected pN1 non-small cell lung cancer: recurrence patterns and nodal risk factors may suggest selection criteria for post-operative radiotherapy

Purpose: To evaluate the compliance of patients who underwent complete resection of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with adjuvant chemotherapy. Materials and Methods: Between January 2004 and May 2006, patients who underwent a complete resection for NSCLC were referred to oncologists for adjuvant chemotherapy. Three or 4 cycles of platinum-based adjuvant chemotherapy was then performed according to the protocol or the preference of the oncologists. Results: Two hundred and thirty-two patients were enrolled in this study. The median age of the study group was 60.9 years and 76.7 % of the patients enrolled were male. 34.9%, 28.8% and 36.2% of the patients were in stage IB, II and III respectively. In addition, 142 of the patients (61.2%) completed all planned cycles, whereas 65 patients (28%) received no therapy. The causes of start failure for adjuvant chemotherapy consisted of decreased postoperative performance status (n=39), refusal (n=13) and distant metastasis at the initial follow-up (n=2). The causes of cessation during adjuvant chemotherapy included the occurrence of severe adverse effects (n=12), aggravation of the disease with newly developed metastasis (n=4) and others (n=6). The mortality related to the adjuvant chemotherapy was 1.3 % (n=3), all of the fatalities were due to pneumonia and sepsis. Univariate analysis showed that age, postoperative complications and pathologic staging were the significant factors that determined whether the adjuvant chemotherapy was completed. Multivariate analysis demonstrated statistically significant differences in compliance when age and pathologic staging were considered. Conclusion: Adjuvant chemotherapy for completely resected NSCLC was performed with satisfactory compliance in approximately 60% of the patients included in this study, and age plays an important role in the compliance of adjuvant chemotherapy. Elderly subsets will be examined to help determine the effect of age on compliance and outcome. In addition, the medical oncologist tended to complete the adjuvant chemotherapy for more advanced cases of lung cancer than for stage IB lung cancer. (J Lung Cancer 2007;6(2):78󰠏 84)

Wang Jie

Papers

Compliance with Post-Operative Adjuvant Chemotherapy in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer in Clinical Trial JBR.10

Acquired Resistance of Lung Adenocarcinomas to Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors Is Associated with T790M Mutation in the EGFR Kinase Domain