scholarly journals Implementation of Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy for the Treatment of Oligometastatic Cancer in Canada

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Diksha Kumar ◽  
Danielle MacDougall

The aim of this Environmental Scan is to identify and describe the use of stereotactic ablative radiotherapy in Canada, the systems in place to manage the treatment of patients with oligometastatic cancer, and the barriers and facilitators to the implementation of this treatment. The findings are based on a literature review, 22 survey responses from stakeholders, and email- and video call-based follow-up consultations with select stakeholders. Ten Canadian jurisdictions were represented by the survey respondents, who were primarily radiation oncologists. Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy for the treatment of oligometastatic cancer is currently being accessed in all Canadian provinces as a standard treatment option. Centres are primarily treating oligometastases in the lungs, bones (non-spine), lymph nodes, spine, and liver. Some cancer care centres have the capacity for stereotactic ablative radiotherapy to treat localized primary tumours but do not treat oligometastatic sites. There is a variation in patient selection criteria and treatment guidelines across Canadian jurisdictions, with most facilities following institutional guidance for the processes required for patient prioritization and treatment. There is a lack of standardized consensus guidelines with common criteria. Reported facilitators for the implementation of stereotactic ablative radiotherapy for the treatment of oligometastatic cancer include access to dedicated equipment and teams. Reported barriers to its implementation include the lack of standardized patient selection and treatment guidelines, and constraints in equipment and staff resources (including time).

Author(s):  
Anshuman Bansal ◽  
Fereidoun Abtin

This chapter details the indications, uses, and techniques of using percutaneous cryoablation to treat lung tumors. The chapter reviews the role of ablative therapy for primary lung cancers as well as metastatic disease to the lung. It reviews the basic physical principles of cryoablation and the advantages of percutaneous cryoablation compared to other percutaneous heat-based ablative modalities. Patient selection criteria and post-ablation follow-up protocols are discussed. The chapter reviews procedural considerations, including choice of anesthesia, patient positioning, probe trajectory, and post-procedural recovery. It also details techniques that can be used to minimize and treat complications as well as tips for treating more challenging lesions.


1973 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 297-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
David S. Palframan

A family placement service program wherein stabilized mental patients are placed with families to whom they are not related is described. The service is located south of Paris, France, and is likely to be adaptable to the areas adjacent to any large city. Family recruitment and patient selection criteria are described and the role of the social worker-psychiatrist team is reviewed. The families and patients appear to function best when a situation of mutual need exists. The patient population and the therapeutic results over a brief follow-up period are described statistically.


BMJ Open ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (11) ◽  
pp. e016667 ◽  
Author(s):  
Herng-Ching Lin ◽  
Sudha Xirasagar ◽  
Cha-Ze Lee ◽  
Chung-Chien Huang ◽  
Chao-Hung Chen

ObjectiveGastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) is a common comorbidity among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). While GORD has been attributed to the antirheumatic medications, no studies of human cohorts have investigated a link between GORD and RA. This study investigates whether GORD is associated with a subsequent RA diagnosis over a 5-year follow-up using a population-based dataset.SettingTaiwanParticipantsWe used data from the Taiwan Longitudinal Health Insurance Database. The study group consisted of 13 645 patients with an ambulatory claim showing a GORD diagnosis. We used propensity score matching to select 13 645 comparison patients (one per study patient with GORD).InterventionWe tracked each patient’s claims over a 5-year period to identify those who subsequently received a diagnosis of RA. Cox proportional hazard (PH) regression modelling was used for analysis.ResultsOver 5-year follow-up, RA incidence rate per 1000 person-years was 2.81 among patients with GORD and 0.84 among the comparison group. Cox PH modelling showed that GORD was independently associated with a 2.84-fold increased risk of RA (95% CI 2.09 to 3.85) over 5-year follow-up, after adjusting for the number of ambulatory care visits within the year following the index date (to mitigate surveillance bias).ConclusionsWe observed that GORD might associate with subsequent RA occurrence. Because current treatment guidelines for RA emphasise early diagnosis and prompt treatment, the observed association between GORD and RA may help acquaint clinicians to patients with GORD with higher RA risk and facilitate early diagnosis and treatment.


2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (Supplement_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
R Kavsur ◽  
C Iliadis ◽  
C Metze ◽  
M Spieker ◽  
V Tiyerili ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Recent studies indicate that careful patient selection is key for the percutaneous edge-to-edge repair via MitraClip procedure. The MIDA Score represents a useful tool for patient selection and is validated in patients with degenerative mitral regurgitation (MR). Aim We here assessed the potential benefit of the MIDA Score for patients with functional or degenerative MR undergoing edge-to-edge mitral valve repair via the MitraClip procedure. Methods In the present study, we retrospectively included 520 patients from three Heart Centers undergoing MitraClip implantation for MR. All parameters of the MIDA Score were available in these patients, consisting of the 7 variables age, symptoms, atrial fibrillation, left atrial diameter, right ventricular systolic pressure, left-ventricular end-systolic diameter, left ventricular ejection fraction. According to the median MIDA-Score of 9 points, patients were stratified in to a high and a low MIDA Score group and association with all-cause mortality was evaluated. Moreover, MR was assessed in echocardiographic controls in 370 patients at discharge, 279 patients at 3-months and 222 patients at 12 months after MitraClip implantation. Results During 2-years follow-up after MitraClip implantation, 69 of 291 (24%) patients with a high MIDA Score and 25 of 229 (11%) patients with a low MIDA Score died. Kaplan-Meier analysis and log rank test showed inferior rates of death in patients with a low score (p<0.001) and multivariate cox regression revealed an odds ratio of 0.54 (0.31–0.95; p=0.032) regarding 2-year survival in this group. Moreover, one point increase in the MIDA Score was associated with a 1.18-fold increase in the risk for mortality (1.02–1.36; p=0.025). Comparing patients with a high MIDA Score and patients with a low score, post-procedural residual moderate/severe MR tended to be more frequent in patients with a high MIDA Score at discharge (53% vs 43%; p=0.061), 3-months (50% vs 40%; p=0.091) and significantly at 12-months follow-up (52% vs 37%; p=0.029). Conclusion The MIDA Mortality Risk Score remained its predictive ability in patients with degenerative or function MR undergoing transcatheter edge-to-edge mitral valve repair. Moreover, a high MIDA score was associated with a higher frequency of post-procedural residual moderate/severe MR, indicating a lower effectiveness of this procedure in these patients. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: None


2020 ◽  
pp. bjophthalmol-2020-317406
Author(s):  
Bruna Melchior ◽  
Carlos Gustavo De Moraes ◽  
Jayter S Paula ◽  
George A Cioffi ◽  
Christopher A Girkin ◽  
...  

AimsTo investigate if eyes presenting intraocular pressure (IOP) within the limits of current guideline-driven target IOP indeed experience slow rates of glaucomatous visual field (VF) progression.MethodsA total of 8598 24-2 VF tests from 603 eyes from the African Descent and Glaucoma Evaluation Study with manifest glaucoma were included. The sample was split into three groups based on baseline VF mean deviation (MD): G1 (better than −5.0 dB), G2 (−5.0 to −10 dB) and G3 (worse than −10 dB). We investigated the relationship between existing target IOP guidelines and rates of MD progression in these groups.ResultsFor stable eyes, the medians and IQR of the mean follow-up IOP were G1=15.0 mmHg (IQR: 13.1 to 17.7), G2=13.2 mmHg (IQR: 11.6 to 14.3) and G3=11.9 mmHg (IQR: 10.1 to 13.8) (p<0.01). When considering the mean follow-up IOP within the limits proposed by current guidelines, the median MD slopes were: −0.20 dB/y (IQR: −0.43 to −0.02) for G1<21 mmHg, −0.19 dB/y (IQR: −0.51 to −0.01) for G2<18 mmHg and −0.15 dB/y (IQR: −0.47 to 0.05) for G3<15 mmHg (p=0.63). There were no significant differences between racial groups.ConclusionIn a sample of patients with manifest glaucoma, despite substantial variability between eyes, adherence to treatment guidelines helped slow the rates of global VF progression at various stages of disease.Trial registration numberclinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00221923.


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