Chemotherapy-Induced Neuropathy and Diabetes: A Scoping Review

Breast cancer insights from Northern Israel: a comprehensive analysis of survival rates among Jewish and Arab women

This study investigates breast cancer survival rates between 2000 and 2022 in northern Israel, focusing on ethnicity, socioeconomic status, age at diagnosis, and the Charlson Comorbidity Index. Analyzing data from Clalit Health Services, we studied 8,431 breast cancer patients (6,395 Jewish, 2,036 Arab). We compared five- and ten-year survival rates across different demographics. Ethnicity showed a minor impact on survival (OR 1.12, 95% CI: 0.93 - 1.35). Socioeconomic status had a significant effect, with a higher level of improving survival (OR 2.50, 95% CI: 2.04 - 3.08). Age was crucial; women 18-39 had better survival than 60-100, but no significant difference was found between the 18-39 and 40-59 age groups [OR (CI 0.90 - 1.53, p = 0.231)]. For the Charlson Comorbidity Index, women with scores of 3-10 showed lower survival compared to scores of 0 and 1-2. There was a notable improvement in five-year survival rates among patients aged 18-59 diagnosed from 2009-2018 (90.7%) compared to 2000-2008 (86.9%) (p = 0.0046), but not in patients aged 60-100. The study highlights that socioeconomic status, age, and comorbidity scores are significant in determining survival rates for breast cancer. The improvement in survival rates for younger patients diagnosed more recently reflects advancements in treatment and care. This research provides valuable insights into the factors affecting breast cancer survival rates, underscoring the role of socioeconomic status, age, and comorbidities while also highlighting the progress in breast cancer treatment over recent years.

Role of Palliative Care in the Supportive Management of AL Amyloidosis-A Review

Light chain amyloidosis is a plasma-cell disorder with a poor prognosis. It is a progressive condition, causing worsening pain, disability, and life-limiting complications involving multiple organ systems. The medical regimen can be complex, including chemotherapy or immunotherapy for the disease itself, as well as treatment for pain, gastrointestinal and cardiorespiratory symptoms, and various secondary symptoms. Patients and their families must have a realistic awareness of the illness and of the goals and limitations of treatments in making informed decisions about medical therapy, supportive management, and end-of-life planning. Palliative care services can thus improve patients' quality of life and may even reduce overall treatment costs. Light chain (AL) amyloidosis is a clonal plasma cell disorder characterized by the excessive secretion of light chains by an indolent plasma cell clone that gradually accumulates in vital organs as amyloid fibrils and leads to end-organ damage. With progressive disease, most patients develop diverse clinical symptoms and complications that negatively impact quality of life and increase mortality. Complications include cardiac problems including heart failure, hypotension, pleural effusions, renal involvement including nephrotic syndrome with peripheral edema, gastrointestinal symptoms leading to anorexia and cachexia, complex pain syndromes, and mood disorders. The prognosis of patients with advanced AL amyloidosis is dismal. With such a complex presentation, and high morbidity and mortality rates, there is a critical need for the establishment of a palliative care program in clinical management. This paper provides an evidence-based overview of the integration of palliative care in the clinical management of AL amyloidosis as a means of reducing ER visits, rehospitalizations, and in-hospital mortality. We also discuss potential future collaborative directions in various aspects of clinical care related to AL amyloidosis.

Incidence and risk factors for developing chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain in 500 cancer patients: A file-based observational study

OBJECTIVE

To define the incidence and risk factors for developing chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain (CINP).

METHODS

Retrospective, file-based analysis on cancer patients who received any type of conventional chemotherapy and for whom neurological evaluation was asked to reveal the extent of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neurotoxicity (CIPN) with or without CINP. CINP was assessed by means of the PI-NRS and Douleur Neuropathique-4 questionnaire. The total neuropathy score-clinical version graded the severity of CIPN.

RESULTS

The medical files of 500 chemotherapy-treated cancer patients were reviewed. Any grade chronic CIPN was disclosed in 343 (68.6%) patients and CINP in 127 (37%) of them, corresponding to an overall percentage of 25.4% among all 500 included patients. The logistic regression analysis identified as independent predictors for CINP development the presence of uncomplicated diabetes (OR: 2.17; p = .039) and grade 2-3 chronic CIPN (OR: 1.61; p < .001) as also the administration of combined paclitaxel plus cisplatin (reference variable), compared to oxaliplatin (OR: 0.18; p = .001) and taxanes (OR: 0.16; p < .001). The increased severity of acute OXAIPN was associated with CINP (OR: 4.51; p < .001). OXA-treated patients with persistent CINP presented a worst likelihood to improve after chemotherapy discontinuation, than patients receiving combined paclitaxel plus cisplatin (OR: 50; p < .001).

CONCLUSION

The incidence of CINP in our cohort was comparable to previous reports, with severities fluctuating upwards during chemotherapy and declined post-chemotherapy. Uncomplicated diabetes, the combined paclitaxel plus cisplatin treatment and the increased severity of acute oxaliplatin neurotoxicity mostly increase the risk for developing CINP. OXA-treated patients present less possibilities to recover from CINP after chemotherapy discontinuation, than other chemotherapies.

Diabetes management in cancer patients. An Italian Association of Medical Oncology, Italian Association of Medical Diabetologists, Italian Society of Diabetology, Italian Society of Endocrinology and Italian Society of Pharmacology multidisciplinary consensus position paper

Cancer management has significantly evolved in recent years, focusing on a multidisciplinary team approach to provide the best possible patient care and address the various comorbidities, toxicities, and complications that may arise during the patient's treatment journey. The co-occurrence of diabetes and cancer presents a significant challenge for health care professionals worldwide. Management of these conditions requires a holistic approach to improve patients' overall health, treatment outcomes, and quality of life, preventing diabetes complications and cancer treatment side-effects. In this article, a multidisciplinary panel of experts from different Italian scientific societies provide a critical overview of the co-management of cancer and diabetes, with an increasing focus on identifying a novel specialty field, 'diabeto-oncology', and suggest new co-management models of cancer patients with diabetes to improve their care. To better support cancer patients with diabetes and ensure high levels of coordinated care between oncologists and diabetologists, 'diabeto-oncology' could represent a new specialized field that combines specific expertise, skills, and training.

Does statin suppress oxaliplatin-induced peripheral neuropathy in patients with colorectal cancer? A single-center observational study

BACKGROUND

Oxaliplatin-induced peripheral neuropathy (OIPN) is a common and dose-limiting toxicity that markedly limits the use of oxaliplatin and affects quality of life. Statins have been shown to exert neuroprotective effects in preclinical settings. The aim of the present study was to clarify whether statins prevented OIPN in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) receiving adjuvant CAPOX therapy.

METHODS

We examined 224 patients who received adjuvant CAPOX therapy for CRC between July 2010 and December 2021 at our hospital. Patients were divided into "Statin" and "Non-statin" groups based on statin use. Details on and the adverse events of adjuvant CAPOX therapy were examined in association with statin use.

RESULTS

Thirty-one patients (14%) were treated with statins. There were no intergroup differences in the relative dose intensity or number of CAPOX cycles between the Statin and Non-statin groups. In total, 94% of patients in the Statin group and 95% of those in the Non-statin group developed OIPN (p=0.67). The severity of OIPN was similar between the two groups (p=0.89). The frequency of treatment delays in CAPOX did not significantly differ between the Statin and Non-statin groups (16% vs. 11%, p=0.45).

CONCLUSIONS

The efficacy of statins to attenuate OIPN during adjuvant CAPOX therapy was not apparent in the current study. Further studies are needed to confirm the present results.

PEG2000-PLA-based nanoscale polymeric micelles reduce paclitaxel-related toxicity in beagle dogs

Nanoplatform-based drug delivery plays an important role in clinical practice. Polymeric micellar (Pm) nanocarriers have been demonstrated to reduce the toxicity of paclitaxel in rats and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. However, the underlying toxicological profile needs to be further illustrated. Here, we used beagles as study subjects and sought to further observe the toxicological profile of polymeric micellar paclitaxel (Pm-Pac) via acute toxicity tests and short-term and long-term toxicity tests. The results from the acute toxicity test indicated that the lethal dose of Pm-Pac in beagles was 20-30 mg/kg, and the acute toxicity-targeted organs were the digestive system and immuno-haematopoietic system. The short-term toxicity test suggested that paclitaxel-induced toxicity (peripheral neuropathy toxicity, haemopoietic toxicity, heart system toxicity, and so on) in beagles can be reduced when paclitaxel is delivered via the Pm delivery system. The long-term toxicity test suggested that Pm-Pac can reduce haemopoietic toxicity in beagles. Collectively, this study provides novel insight into the toxicological profile of Pm-Pac in healthy beagles and provides a potential basis for promising clinical combination strategies in the future.

SymptomGraph: Identifying Symptom Clusters from Narrative Clinical Notes using Graph Clustering

Patients with cancer or other chronic diseases often experience different symptoms before or after treatments. The symptoms could be physical, gastrointestinal, psychological, or cognitive (memory loss), or other types. Previous research focuses on understanding the individual symptoms or symptom correlations by collecting data through symptom surveys and using traditional statistical methods to analyze the symptoms, such as principal component analysis or factor analysis. This research proposes a computational system, SymptomGraph, to identify the symptom clusters in the narrative text of written clinical notes in electronic health records (EHR). SymptomGraph is developed to use a set of natural language processing (NLP) and artificial intelligence (AI) methods to first extract the clinician-documented symptoms from clinical notes. Then, a semantic symptom expression clustering method is used to discover a set of typical symptoms. A symptom graph is built based on the co-occurrences of the symptoms. Finally, a graph clustering algorithm is developed to discover the symptom clusters. Although SymptomGraph is applied to the narrative clinical notes, it can be adapted to analyze symptom survey data. We applied Symptom-Graph on a colorectal cancer patient with and without diabetes (Type 2) data set to detect the patient symptom clusters one year after the chemotherapy. Our results show that SymptomGraph can identify the typical symptom clusters of colorectal cancer patients' post-chemotherapy. The results also show that colorectal cancer patients with diabetes often show more symptoms of peripheral neuropathy, younger patients have mental dysfunctions of alcohol or tobacco abuse, and patients at later cancer stages show more memory loss symptoms. Our system can be generalized to extract and analyze symptom clusters of other chronic diseases or acute diseases like COVID-19.

Correlates of Taxane-Induced Neuropathy, an Electronic Health Record Based Observational Study

BACKGROUND

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is a common therapeutic complication affecting cancer patients' quality-of-life. We evaluated clinical characteristics, demographics, and lifestyle factors in association with CIPN following taxane treatment.

METHODS

Data were extracted from the electronic health record of 3387 patients diagnosed with a primary cancer and receiving taxane (i.e., paclitaxel or docetaxel) at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Neuropathy was assessed via a validated computer algorithm. Univariate and multivariate regression models were applied to evaluate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of CIPN-associated factors.

RESULTS

Female sex (OR = 1.28, 95% CI = 1.01-1.62), high body-mass index (BMI) (OR = 1.31, 95% CI = 1.06-1.61 for overweight, and OR = 1.49, 95% CI = 1.21-1.83 for obesity), diabetes (OR = 1.66, 95% CI = 1.34-2.06), high mean taxane dose (OR = 1.05, 95% CI = 1.03-1.08 per 10 mg/m2), and more treatment cycles (1.12, 95% CI = 1.10-1.14) were positively associated with CIPN. Concurrent chemotherapy (OR = 0.74, 95% CI = 0.58-0.94) and concurrent radiotherapy (OR = 0.77, 95% CI = 0.59-1.00) were inversely associated with CIPN. Obesity and diabetes both had a stronger association with docetaxel CIPN compared to paclitaxel, although interaction was only significant for diabetes and taxane (p = 0.019). Increased BMI was associated with CIPN only among non-diabetic patients (OR:1.34 for overweight and 1.68 for obesity), while diabetes increased CIPN risk across all BMI strata (ORs were 2.65, 2.41, and 2.15 for normal weight, overweight, and obese, respectively) compared to normal-weight non-diabetic patients (p for interaction = 0.039).

CONCLUSIONS

Female sex, obesity, and diabetes are significantly associated with taxine-induced CIPN. Further research is needed to identify clinical and pharmacologic strategies to prevent and mitigate CIPN in at-risk patient populations.

Salivary gland cancers in elderly patients: challenges and therapeutic strategies

Salivary gland carcinomas (SGCs) are the most heterogeneous subgroup of head and neck malignant tumors, accounting for more than 20 subtypes. The median age of SGC diagnosis is expected to rise in the following decades, leading to crucial clinical challenges in geriatric oncology. Elderly patients, in comparison with patients aged below 65 years, are generally considered less amenable to receiving state-of-the-art curative treatments for localized disease, such as surgery and radiation/particle therapy. In the advanced setting, chemotherapy regimens are often dampened by the consideration of cardiovascular and renal comorbidities. Nevertheless, the elderly population encompasses a broad spectrum of functionalities. In the last decades, some screening tools (e.g. the G8 questionnaire) have been developed to identify those subjects who should receive a multidimensional geriatric assessment, to answer the question about the feasibility of complex treatments. In the present article, we discuss the most frequent SGC histologies diagnosed in the elderly population and the relative 5-years survival outcomes based on the most recent data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program. Moreover, we review the therapeutic strategies currently available for locoregionally advanced and metastatic disease, taking into account the recent advances in precision oncology. The synergy between the Multidisciplinary Tumor Board and the Geriatrician aims to shape the most appropriate treatment pathway for each elderly patient, focusing on global functionality instead of the sole chronological age.

Brentuximab-Induced Peripheral Neurotoxicity: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Manage an Emerging Challenge in Hodgkin Lymphoma Therapy

Brentuximab vedotin (BV) is an anti-CD30 antibody-drug conjugate approved to treat classical Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). BV-induced peripheral neurotoxicity (BVIN) is one of the greatest concerns for haematologists treating HL for several reasons. First, BVIN is highly frequent. Most patients receiving BV will experience some degree of BVIN, resulting in the primary reason for dose modification or discontinuation of HL therapy. Second, BV produces sensory, motor, and/or autonomic peripheral nerve dysfunction, which can present as severe, disabling forms of BVIN-predominantly motor-in some patients. Third, although largely reversible, BVIN may persist months or years after treatment and thereby become a major issue in HL survivorship. BVIN may, therefore, negatively affect the quality of life and work-life of often young patients with HL, in whom long-term survival is expected. Currently, the only strategy for BVIN includes dose adjustments and treatment discontinuation; however, this could interfere with LH therapy efficacy. In this setting, early recognition and adequate management of BVIN are critical in improving clinical outcomes. Careful neurologic monitoring may allow accurate diagnoses and gradation of ongoing forms of BVIN presentation. This review analysed current, available data on epidemiology, pathophysiology, patient- and treatment-related risk factors, clinical and neurophysiologic phenotypes, and management in patients with HL. Furthermore, this review specifically addresses limitations posed by BVIN assessments in clinical practice and provides skills and tools to improve neurologic assessments in these patients. Integrating this neurotoxic drug in clinical practice requires a multidisciplinary approach to avoid or minimise neurotoxicity burden in survivors of HL.

[Neurological symptoms associated with cancer treatment]

Die onkologische Behandlung ist biomarkerbasierter, molekular maßgeschneiderter und effektiver geworden. Aufbauend auf der zunehmenden Entschlüsselung zellbiologischer und molekularer Mechanismen steigt auch die Zahl zielgerichteter medikamentöser Therapien. Es steigt zudem die Zahl der Langzeitüberlebenden. Eine neuro(onko)logische Betreuung wird immer wichtiger, nicht nur wegen vermehrter direkter tumorbedingter Symptome – wie etwa der höheren Inzidenz einer Metastasierung in das Zentralnervensystem –, sondern weil im Zuge dieser modernen onkologischen systemischen Therapieformen ein breites Spektrum therapieassoziierter neurologischer Symptome auftritt, die einer sorgfältigen und raschen neurologischen/neuroonkologischen Evaluation und Therapiekonzeption bedürfen. Das Ziel dieses Artikels ist es, das Bewusstsein für die häufigsten therapieassoziierten neurologischen Symptome zu schärfen.