Journal of Cancer and Allied Specialties
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Infantile T-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: a Case Report
Full text linkIntroduction: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common malignancy in children, with a male predominance. Pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia is usually of B-cell lineage; T-cell leukemia is uncommon and extremely rare under one year of age. Mixed-lineage leukemia gene rearrangement is the best-known hallmark of infantile leukemia and is a poor prognostic indicator. While multi-agent high dose chemotherapy remains the first line of treatment for pediatric T-ALL, there are numerous side effects of these regimens, and most patients undergo relapse. Due to the rarity of the disease, treatment protocols for infantile T-ALL have not been established to date. Clinical description: We present a case of a 7-month-old Pakistani male that presented with fever and cough and was subsequently diagnosed with T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. T-ALL was diagnosed on flow cytometry. Due to poor prognosis, the patient was assigned palliative care. Practical implications: Management of infantile leukemia has yet to be studied in-depth. With a lack of clear treatment guidelines, the approach towards these patients remains challenging. Further research and clinical trials in this area of study are paramount to improving clinical outcomes for these young patients
Efficacy of Chemotherapy for Locally Advanced and Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer: A real life experience and outcome from a tertiary referral centre.
Full text linkIntroduction: To report response rate, progression-free survival and overall survival in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer treated with different available chemotherapeutic regimens over ten years. Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective observational study. All patients with locally advanced and metastatic pancreatic cancer at Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Lahore, Pakistan, from January 2008 to December 2017 were studied. Data were collected from the hospital information system. The characteristics and outcomes of all the patients were analyzed. Progression-free survival and overall survival were also estimated. Kaplan Meier curves and Log-rank test were applied, and SPSS version 20 was used for data analysis. Results: Eighty-seven (87) subjects with a median age of 56 years (range 21-76) were included. Sixty-two (71%) subjects were male. The most common tumor location was the head of the pancreas in 46(53%) of all the subjects. Sixty-three (72%) subjects had elevated CA-19.9 values. About 47(54%) subjects had locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPC), and 40(46%) subjects had metastatic pancreatic cancer (MPC). Chemotherapy regimens used were FOLFIRINOX in 23(26%), gemcitabine-based 66(65%) and capecitabine-based in 8 (9%) of the subjects. One (1%) subject had a complete response (CR), 12(14%) had a partial response (PR), 10 (11%) had stable disease, and 59(68%) of the subjects had progressive disease (PD). The objective response rate (ORR) was 15%, and the disease control rate (DCR) was 26%. In MPC, the ORR was 10%, DCR was 18%, and tumor progression was seen in 72% of the patients, while in LAPC, the ORR was 19.1, DCR 34% and tumor progression was documented in 64% of the patients, respectively. The FOLFIRNOX chemotherapy regimen had better ORR, DCR and lesser number of progressions as compared to Gemcitabine and Capecitabine based chemotherapy regimens. The Median PFS of the whole group was 32-weeks, and the median OS was 54-weeks. The PFS was significantly higher for LAPC (39 weeks) as compared to the MPC group (25 weeks) (p=0.028). There was no statistically significant difference between the OS of these 2 groups (p=0.451). In addition, PFS was significantly higher with FOLFIRINOX chemotherapy as compared to the other chemotherapy regimens. Regarding OS, there was no statistically significant difference among all chemotherapy regimen groups (p=0.267). Conclusion: Based on our results, FOLFIRINOX remained the most effective chemotherapy regimen despite the dose modifications and toxicities in all groups, indicating that modified FOLFIRINOX could be considered as a first-line regimen in south East Asian population
Outcomes of Advanced Retinoblastoma Treated with Local Salvage Treatment; a Retrospective Case Series.
Full text linkIntroduction: Retinoblastoma (RB) is the most common intraocular malignancy arising from the developing retina and occurs in approximately one of every 15,000–20,000 births. With the introduction of the intraarterialchemotherapy (IAC), the 5-year overall survival of children with RB is 99%, though in low- and middle-income countries, it rarely exceeds 35% due to limited resources and lack of expertise. The aim of this study was to determine the outcome of local salvage in advanced RB. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on children diagnosed with advanced RB that had local salvage therapy along with systemic chemotherapy from January 2015 to January 2018 at Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Lahore, Pakistan. Results: Fifteen patients were included in the study, among these 10 were male. The median age of presentation was 20 months (range 2–40 months). Among participants, 11 patients had bilateral RB. Fourteen patients received local control along with systemic chemotherapy. Relapse disease was seen in 12 patients and 2-year disease-free survival (DFS) was 20%. Conclusion: The results of the present study suggest that centres lacking the resources for IAC should treat advance cases of RB with an upfront or early enucleation
Skin Metastasis in Breast Cancer Patients; a Case Series
Full text linkIntroduction: Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women. It frequently metastasizes to bones, lungs and liver. Although rare, skin metastasis may also take place. It may also be the presenting feature of initial or recurrent breast cancer. The assessment of recurrent metastatic disease involving skin after mastectomy can be challenging because of the benign-appearing clinical presentation. The purpose of this caseseries was to explore the clinical and radiological presentation of skin metastasis in patients of breast cancer. Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective case series of breast cancer patients with skin lesions on chest and abdomen at the time of initial presentation, or post-treatment such as, after mastectomy or breast conservation therapy; who underwent various radiological investigations including mammography, ultrasoundscan, computed tomography (CT) scan and magnetic resonance imaging from 1 May 2018 to 30 September 2019 at Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Pakistan. Results: A total of eightcases were identified, out of which seven were females. The most common presentation consisted of the presence of metastatic nodules which were seen in 62.5% (five out of eight) of the patients. Other features consisted of erythematous or plaque-like skin thickening on clinical examination, increased density with indistinct margins seen on a mammogram and diffuse oedematous changes in the skin with small irregular mass or infiltration into subcutaneous tissues were visualised on ultrasound and CT studies. Conclusion: Skin metastasis from breast cancer most commonly presents as nodules, although rarely they may present as plaques or diffuse skin thickening. Awareness of diverse manifestations of skin metastasis is of utmost importance in early diagnosis and management
Notice of Retraction
Full text linkThe journal of Cancer & Allied Specialties will be retracting the clinical case-report “Diagnostic Dilemma of a Diaphragmatic Hernia” by Salman Yahya, Sonia Zafar, and Hafsa Babar
Tele-Oral Oncology: Reinvigorating Telemedicine in Oral Cancer Care
Full text linkIntroduction: In recent years, we have witnessed significant growth in the employment of technological advancements in health-care practices. These advancements have increased the practicality and utility oftelemedicine applications. The aim of this focused review is to provide in-depth insights into the current state of telemedicine in oral oncology. Observations: Tele-oral oncology (TOO) is a rapidly emerging field andhas provided new opportunities to transform oral cancer care into the 22nd century. This review will explore topics related to TOO as they pertain to consultation, oral cancer management in underserved areas, patienteducation and e-learning applications. Conclusion and Relevance: The utilisation of TOO is hindered by many challenges and this review addresses the potential limitations that prevent the integration of TOO in routine oral cancer care. A working model that circumvents the potential shortcomings of TOO is also proposed
Effectiveness of Nerve Blocks for Management of Head and Neck Cancer Associated Neuropathic Pain Disorders; a Retrospective Study
Full text linkIntroduction: A portion of patients with head and neck cancer (HNC)-associated pain may not experience relief in symptoms with non-invasive modalities. A nerve block is a procedure in which a local anesthetic agent is injected along the nerve track to preferentially block sensory transmission. The literature on the effectiveness of nerve blocks in the management of HNC-related pain is limited. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of nerve blocks in management of breakthrough HNC-associated trigeminal or cervical neuropathic pain disorders. Materials and Methods: A retrospective chart review of patients who underwent a nerve block or infiltration procedure in the regions of head and neck for management of breakthrough HNC-associated trigeminal or cervical neuropathic pain disorders in the Orofacial Pain Medicine clinic, Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, between November 2018 and November 2019 was completed. Information regarding demographics, diagnosis, and pain characteristics was extracted and reviewed. The Fisher-exact test and Mann-Whitney U test were used for analysis between independent and dependent variables. Results: A total of 27 participants were included in the investigation, of which 66.7 % were males. The average pre-procedure pain score was 6.85 ± 2.54. Following intervention, 81.5 % of the participants experienced greater than 75 % relief in pain for longer than 48 hours. The mean immediate post-procedure pain score was 0.26 ± 1.02 and the average duration of relief was 6.10 ± 6.50 weeks. The significant effect of nerve blocks was found to be statistically associated with the concurrent use of amitriptyline (p = 0.017). Conclusion: Nerve blocks, as an adjunctive therapy to pharmacologic treatment, can provide significant relief to patients with breakthrough HNC-associated trigeminal and cervical neuropathic pain disorders. However, the duration of relief experienced by the participants is inconsistent. The beneficial effect of nerve blocks appears to be more common in patients that were concurrently using amitriptyline
Retracted: Histopathological Correlation Between Prostatic Adenocarcinoma in Transrectal Ultrasound Guided Biopsies and Radical Prostatectomy Specimens
Full text linkIntroduction: Differences in Gleason grade in transrectal ultrasonography (TRUS) biopsies and radical prostatectomy (RP) specimens are well documented in literature. Keeping in view the limitations of Gleason grading system, Epstein JI grade group system was introduced. Various other parameters also have a significant role in predicting the pathological stage, extraprostatic extension, status of surgical margins and metastatic disease in regional lymph nodes. RP is performed at limited centres in Pakistan. Till date, no comparison of the histopathological findings in 12-core TRUS and RP specimens had been performed at the national level. Our study is aimed at generating local data in this context. Materials and Methods: This was a crosssectional study and non-probability consecutive sampling was performed. It was conducted at Histopathology Department, Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad, from January 2008 to December 2014. Gleason scores of 20 RP specimens were compared to Gleason scores of TRUS biopsies of same patients. Concordance in Gleason score and grade groups with laterality, perineural invasion was also studied. Results: Out of 20 RP cases, 40% (n = 8) had a Gleason score of 6, 30% (n = 6) had score 7, 20% (n = 4) had score 8 and 15% (n = 3) had score 9. Compared to the TRUS biopsy, RP Gleason score was concordant in 11 cases (55%), higher in 7 cases (35%) and lower in 2 cases (10%). TRUS involvement was unilateral in 10 cases (50%) and bilateral in 10 cases (50%). However, bilateral involvement of RP specimen was seen in 14 cases (70%) and unilateral in 6 cases (30%). Thus, better tumour yield was observed in RP specimens i.e., bilateral involvement in RP specimens was found in additional 5 cases (25%). Perineural involvement was higher in RP specimen i.e., 12 cases (60%), compared to 5 cases (25%) in TRUS biopsies. Its concordance was significantly higher in those with Gleason score of equal to or more than 7 (83%) and low in score less than score 7 (17%). Conclusion: When comparing RP to initial TRUS biopsies, Gleason score was upgraded in 35% and downgraded in 10% of cases. Bilateral involvement in 25% of cases of RP specimens was underestimated as unilateral involvement in TRUS biopsies. Perineural involvement with high Gleason score was also seen. 
Notice of Retraction
Full text linkThe Journal of Caner & Allied Specialties will be retracting "Histopathological Correlation Between Prostatic Adenocarcinoma in Transrectal Ultrasound Guided Biopsies and Radical Prostatectomy Specimens" by Muhammad Faisal and Hina Tariq
Pulmonary Haemosiderosis Secondary to Hereditary Haemochromatosis; a Case Report
Full text linkIntroduction: Hereditary haemochromatosis (HH) is an autosomal recessive disease of increased intestinal absorption of iron, leading to accumulation in tissues which may progress to organ damage, most commonly in the liver. Iron deposition in the liver can lead to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Other common manifestations of haemochromatosis include diabetes, bronzing of the skin, arthropathy and cardiomyopathy. Here, we describe a case of pulmonary haemosiderosis secondary to HH. Case Description: A 49-year-old male with no medical history or family history of iron overload presented with fatigue, shortness of breath and chest pain after a recent finding of elevated ferritin. The patient was found to have biallelic C282Y mutations of the human homeostatic iron regulator protein (HFE) protein and after further workup with laboratory tests and imaging was diagnosed with HH with secondary pulmonary haemosiderosis. The patient is receiving twice weekly phlebotomies and has had an overall improvement in his symptoms. Practical Implications: The presentation of haemochromatosis can vary widely depending on the severity of iron overload and the presence of conditions that predispose organ dysfunction. Pulmonary haemosiderosis is a very rare manifestation of HH. This report illustrates the various manifestations of this disease and provides insight into this rare presentation to improve the diagnosis of this disease.