1,720,990 research outputs found

    Adjuvant treatment of colorectal cancer in the elderly : where do we come from and where are we going?

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    Objective: Colorectal cancer is the third most commonly reported cancer in the world and about 50% of patients are diagnosed over the age of 70 years. The authors discuss age-related changes in organ function, comorbidities and frailty in the elderly, and their impact on chemotherapy toxicity. Methods: The authors review data from observational studies and subgroup analyses of randomized clinical trials on adjuvant chemotherapy in elderly colorectal cancer patients. Results: Several large population-based studies suggest that adjuvant chemotherapy is offered less frequently to elderly patients, although in recent years the prescription patterns tended to significantly increase. In fact, data from retrospective analyses of randomized trials indicate that elderly stage III colorectal cancer patients may get similar clinical advantage from adjuvant treatment with fluoropyrimidines, although major comorbidities may substantially limit life expectancy and minimize the survival benefits. The use of oxaliplatin-based regimens needs to take into account the individual risk/benefit profile due to lack of unequivocal evidence of positive literature data. Conclusions: Adjuvant chemotherapy of colorectal cancer should be investigated by prospective trials specifically designed for the elderly. Fit elderly patients should be offered standard adjuvant treatments, while modified schedule, attenuated doses or even treatment omission can be offered to more frail patients

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    Variations on the Author

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    “Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship

    Rationale and protocol of RESORT, a randomized, open-label, multicenter phase II study to evaluate the efficacy of sorafenib in patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma after radical resection of the metastases

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    The introduction of targeted agents did not totally resolve the approach to the treatment of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) because complete response is rarely achieved. Recent findings seem to indicate that metastasectomy may improve survival. The RESORT study was designed to evaluate the additional clinical benefit of metastasectomy followed by sorafenib in a population of mRCC patients. With the aim of evaluating time to recurrence, 132 patients with mRCC who underwent radical resection of metastases at the time of recurrence after nephrectomy will be randomized to receive either sorafenib or best supportive care. Targeted treatment will be administered for up to 52 weeks or discontinued in the case of disease recurrence or unacceptable toxicity. Patients will be followed for a period of 36 months
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