Search results for "CANCER PATIENTS"
showing 10 items of 42 documents
Switching from oxycodone to methadone in advanced cancer patients
2012
The aim of this study was to prospectively evaluate the outcomes and the conversion ratio of switching from oxycodone to methadone in advanced cancer patients admitted to an acute palliative care unit.A prospective study was carried out on a cohort of consecutive sample of patients receiving oxycodone, who were switched for different reasons mainly because of an inconvenient balance between analgesia and adverse effects. An initial conversion ratio between oxycodone and methadone was 3.3:1. Intensity of pain and symptoms associated with opioid therapy were recorded, and a distress score (DS) was also calculated as a sum of symptom intensity. A successful switching was considered when the in…
The frequency of alcoholism in patients with advanced cancer admitted to an acute palliative care unit and a home care program
2015
Abstract Context Cancer patients with a history of alcoholism may be problematic. The frequency of alcoholism among patients with advanced cancer has never been reported in Italy or other European countries. Objectives The aim of this prospective study was to determine the frequency of alcoholism, assessed with a simple and validated instrument, among patients with advanced cancer who were referred to two different palliative care settings: an acute inpatient palliative care unit (PCU) of a comprehensive cancer center in a metropolitan area and a home care program (HCP) in a territorial district, localized in the mountains of Italy. Methods A consecutive sample of patients admitted to an in…
Opioid switching in patients with advanced cancer followed at home. A retrospective analysis.
2013
Abstract CONTEXT: Opioid switching has been found to improve opioid responsiveness in different conditions. However, data on opioid switching performed at home are almost nonexistent, despite the fact that most patients are followed at home. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this retrospective survey was to determine frequency, indications, usefulness, and safety of opioid switching when treating advanced cancer-related pain in patients followed at home. METHODS: A retrospective review of data from patients with advanced cancer followed at home by three home care teams for a period of two years was performed. Patients who had their opioids switched were selected. Reasons for switching opioid doses and…
Alla ricerca della sicurezza e della qualità: il modello di miglioramento dell'Oncologia Medica nel Policlinico Universitario di Palermo
2015
[In search of safety and quality: the improvement model proposed by the Oncology Department of the Palermo University] Over the past 20 years the field of oncology has product therapeutic innovations that have radically changed the prognosis of the most prevalent malignancies, since introduction of so-called targeted molecular agents. As a result of these changes, also the management of cancer patients has become more complex requiring technologies and skills that involve many professionals (medical oncologists, biologists, molecular geneticists, surgeons, pathologists, radiologists, nurses and psychologists), each engaged in a different stage of the disease, with the common goal of ensurin…
Breakthrough pain in oncology: A longitudinal study
2010
Abstract Context Existing studies on breakthrough pain (BP) have reported different prevalence rates because of different settings, populations, and assessment methods. These studies have used cross-sectional designs, and the relationship of BP with analgesic treatment has not been evaluated. Objectives The aim of this study was to longitudinally assess BP in cancer patients admitted to oncology units. Methods A consecutive sample of patients admitted to oncology centers was selected. At admission (T0), three months after admission (T3), and six months after admission (T6), data on background pain and BP were recorded. BP was assessed in terms of its intensity, duration, number of episodes,…
Osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) risk in breast cancer patients after zoledronic acid treatment
2010
The importance of adoption of recommendations for ONJ prevention strategy will notably grow for zoledronic acid in the next future, in view of possible further enlargement of its indications (even with different timing and schedules) in breast cancer patients without bone metastases (such as in adjuvant and neo-adjuvant settings, and in hormonotherapy-induced osteopenia
Definition and estimation of osteonecrosis of jaw (ONJ), and optimal duration of antiresorptive treatment in bone metastatic cancer patients: supplem…
2017
To the Editor, In their recent article, Stopeck et al. [1] concluded that denosumab confirms its known safety profile even after longterm exposure, or after switching to it from zoledronic acid, and that osteonecrosis of jaws (ONJ) rates increased with increasing exposure to antiresorptives, consistent with previous reports. This is based on the open label extension phase of two phase 3 studies in patients with breast and prostate cancer with bone metastases who were randomized to receive denosumab or zoledronic acid (ZA) [2, 3]. The patients were offered open-label denosumab for up to an additional 2 years after the results of the primary analysis, favorable for denosumab on several aspect…
Theoretical perspectives upon the return to work of cancer patients: The difficult path of integration in the organization
2015
Abstract The present article follows an in-depth analysis of several relevant articles and major findings concerning the return to work of cancer patients, in various situations, from a manager and patient point of view, putting into discussion the effects and consequences of different factors that may influence the well-being of the patient at work and impact the organizational life. The concepts of returning to work and integration are scarcely analysed throughout the scholarly literature in the case of employees diagnosed with cancer, due to several reasons presented in the paper: from the complex topic of investigation that many studies fail to approach in terms of confidentiality, tech…
Percorsi di riflessione etica sul valore umano ed educativo della sofferenza. Alcune definizioni operative
2011
La concezione personalistica cristiana permette una corretta visione antropologi- ca ed etica che fonda le riflessioni delle scienze umane (sociologia, psicologia, pedagogia, scienze della comunicazione) che vogliono analizzare le situazioni in cui versano il paziente oncologico terminale, i suoi familiari e coloro che si occupano dell’attività di assistenza clinico-sanitaria, sociale e volontaria. Se- condo tale concezione, la “persona” è un’unità inscindibile di corpo, psiche e spirito, di sesso maschile e femminile, destinata a una dimensione trascendente e ultraterrena dell’essere. La persona ammalata di cancro, in questa visione, non può essere ridotta a mero agglomerato psicofisico, a…
In vivo manipulation of Vgamma9Vdelta2 T cells with zoledronate and low-dose interleukin-2 for immunotherapy of advanced breast cancer patients.
2010
The potent anti-tumour activities of gamma delta T cells have prompted the development of protocols in which gamma delta-agonists are administered to cancer patients. Encouraging results from small Phase I trials have fuelled efforts to characterize more clearly the application of this approach to unmet clinical needs such as metastatic carcinoma. To examine this approach in breast cancer, a Phase I trial was conducted in which zoledronate, a V gamma 9V delta 2 T cell agonist, plus low-dose interleukin (IL)-2 were administered to 10 therapeutically terminal, advanced metastatic breast cancer patients. Treatment was well tolerated and promoted the effector maturation of V gamma 9V delta 2 T …