Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Childhood Cancers (childhood + cancers)
Selected AbstractsReview of Research Studies That Evaluated the Impact of Treatment for Childhood Cancers on Neurocognition and Behavioral and Social Competence: Nursing ImplicationsJOURNAL FOR SPECIALISTS IN PEDIATRIC NURSING, Issue 2 2000Julia Challinor ISSUES AND PURPOSE. Given the increasing incidence of childhood cancer, increasing survivor rates, and documented incidence of sequelae, nurses need evidence on which to base interventions for families at risk. The authors review and critique research studies that evaluated the impact of treatment for childhood cancers. Implications for nursing practice are discussed. CONCLUSIONS. Research to evaluate the effects of treatment on neurocognition and behavioral and social competency of children with cancer has produced conflicting results. Most studies found deleterious effects on all three areas associated with childhood cancer treatment. Some studies, however, found no differences between childhood cancer survivors and children on therapy compared to normative data or healthy controls. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS. Knowledge of the short-and long-term impact of treatment for childhood cancer on neurocognition and behavioral and social competence allows nurses to design interventions that mitigate neurocognitive effects, decrease behavioral problems, and improve social competence. [source] The pediatric preclinical testing program: Description of models and early testing results,PEDIATRIC BLOOD & CANCER, Issue 7 2007Peter J. Houghton PhD Abstract Background The Pediatric Preclinical Testing Program (PPTP) is an initiative supported by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to identify novel therapeutic agents that may have significant activity against childhood cancers. The PPTP has established panels of childhood cancer xenografts and cell lines to be used for in vivo and in vitro testing. These include panels for Wilms tumor, sarcomas (rhabdomyosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, and osteosarcoma), neuroblastoma, brain tumors (glioblastoma, ependymoma, and medulloblastoma), rhabdoid tumors (CNS and renal), and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Here, we describe the characteristics of the in vivo tumor panels and report results for the in vivo evaluation of two standard agents, vincristine and cyclophosphamide. Procedures Solid tumors were grown subcutaneously in immune-deficient mice and tumor dimensions were measured weekly. ALL xenografts were inoculated intravenously and human CD45-positive cells were enumerated weekly. Results Vincristine-induced objective responses in 6 of 24 (25%) and cyclophosphamide-induced objective responses in 18 of 28 (64%) solid tumor models. Comparable assessments of high levels of activity for these two agents were obtained using a tumor growth delay (TGD) measure. Both agents induced regressions in each of the ALL models evaluated. Conclusions We have established 51 solid tumor and 10 ALL in vivo models. The models identify vincristine and cyclophosphamide as having broad-spectrum activity. The PPTP tumor panels appear to generally recapitulate the activity of these agents against specific childhood cancers and to have the potential for identifying novel agents having significant clinical activity. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2007;49:928,940. Published 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Role of heat treatment in childhood cancers: Distinct resistance profiles of solid tumor cell lines towards combined thermochemotherapyPEDIATRIC BLOOD & CANCER, Issue 5 2005Anette Debes PhD Abstract Background Since information on the efficacy of hyperthermia in combination with chemotherapy on pediatric tumors is limited, we performed a systematic analysis on the synergistic effects of a combined application of heat and chemotherapy on 20 tumor cell lines derived from patients with neuroblastomas, Ewing tumors, germ cell tumors (GCT), and osteosarcomas. Methods Cisplatin (cDDP), a cross-linking agent, and etoposide (VP-16), a topoisomerase II inhibitor, were examined either alone or in combination with heat (42°C, 43°C) by using the XTT-assay 1. Results Our data demonstrate that heat stress at 43°C for 1 hr, but not at 42°C, leads to a notable cytotoxic effect on the different tumor cells. The comparison of mean survival fractions reveals values between 62% for neuroblastoma cells and 76% for Ewing tumor cells. Analyzing the sensitivity to chemotherapy alone, our results show that cDDP (5 ,g/ml) reduces cell growth to 47% in Ewing tumor cells, to 61% in neuroblastoma cells, to 75% in GCT cells, and to 76% in osteosarcoma cells. Treatment with VP-16 (10 ,g/ml) decreases cell survival to mean values between 58% (neuroblastomas) and 77% (osteosarcomas). Simultaneous application of heat and chemotherapy enhances synergistically cDDP cytotoxicity in all tumor types tested, whereas the efficacy of VP-16 is only slightly influenced by additional application of hyperthermia. The cytotoxicity of cDDP (5 ,g/ml) can be increased by a factor of between 1.5 and 2.5 at 42°C and from 2.6 to 14.0 at 43°C. Furthermore, the results show that the sensitivity to heat (43°C) as well as the sensitivity to chemotherapy and combined thermochemotherapy varies considerably between cell lines of the same tumor group. Conclusions Simultaneous application of hyperthermia synergistically enhances the cytotoxicity of the alkylating agent cDDP, but not of the topoisomerase II inhibitor VP-16, in a defined spectrum of cell lines from different pediatric tumor entities. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Late cardiotoxicity after bolus versus infusion anthracycline therapy for childhood cancersPEDIATRIC BLOOD & CANCER, Issue 6 2003Monesha Gupta MBBS Abstract Objective To compare the long-term myocardial function of patients who had been treated with infusion anthracycline therapy (administered continuously over >24 hr, IG) versus bolus therapy (administered over <30 min, BG). Methods We selected 25 patients (BG) and 19 patients (IG) who had three or more years of disease free survival. We evaluated the echocardiograms for left ventricular shortening fraction (SF) obtained at baseline, within one year after the end of therapy (early follow-up), and on long-term follow-up. Results The mean anthracycline dose in the BG was 385 mg/m2 and in the IG was 345 mg/m2 (P,=,0.07). During therapy, one patient in BG and none in IG developed diminished SF. During early follow-up, five of the 22 patients in BG and one of the 17 patients in IG developed diminished SF (P,=,0.2). Of these five patients with diminished SF, three patients in BG and none in IG continued to have abnormally low SF long-term. At mean of 7 years, five of the 25 patients in BG and two of the 19 in IG had diminished SF on (P,=,0.7). Late left ventricular dilatation was seen in 8% in BG and 5% in IG (P,=,1.0). Conclusions At mean of 7 years after end of therapy, diminished cardiac function was seen in 20% of the patient who had received bolus anthracycline compared to 11% of patients who had received it via infusion. This difference did not prove to be statistically significant. Med Pediatr Oncol 2003;40:343,347. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Associations between leisure-time physical activity and health-related quality of life among adolescent and adult survivors of childhood cancersPSYCHO-ONCOLOGY, Issue 9 2010Raheem J. Paxton Abstract Objective: Survivors of childhood cancer are at an increased risk for reduced quality of life (QOL), yet few studies have explored factors associated with improving health-related QOL (HRQOL) in this population. We thus explored the relationship between physical activity (PA) and HRQOL among survivors of childhood cancer. Methods: A total of 215 survivors of childhood lymphoma, leukemia, and central nervous system cancers completed mailed surveys that elicited information regarding leisure-time PA (LTPA) measured in metabolic equivalents, HRQOL, and diagnostic and demographic factors. Correlations and adjusted regression models were used to explore the relationship between LTPA and HRQOL. Results: In the total sample, modest, yet significant linear associations were observed between LTPA and overall HRQOL (,=0.17, p<0.01), as well as each of the respective subscales (,=0.11,0.23 and p's<0.05 to <0.001). Among adolescent survivors of childhood cancer, LTPA was significantly associated with overall HRQOL (,=0.27), cancer worry (,=0.36), cognitive function (,=0.32), body appearance (,=0.29), and social function (,=0.27) (all p's<0.05). Among adult survivors of childhood cancer, LTPA was only significantly associated with physical function (,=0.28, p<0.001). Conclusions: Significant associations exist between LTPA and HRQOL; however, the association was stronger and observed in more domains for adolescent survivors of childhood cancer. More research is needed to determine the antecedents and consequences of PA in this population. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Multiple risk behaviors among smokers in the childhood cancer survivors study cohortPSYCHO-ONCOLOGY, Issue 9 2004Rita M. Butterfield The literature on health behaviors of young adult cancer survivors is very limited, and thus little is known about preventable risk factors in this population. This paper describes the prevalence of five behavioral risk factors among 541 young adult survivors of childhood cancers from the CCSS cohort who were identified as smokers and enrolled in a randomized controlled trial of a smoking cessation intervention. The relationship between presence of multiple risk factors and a number of smoking-related factors was examined. About 31% of the sample engaged in zero or one health-risk behavior in addition to smoking; 63% engaged in 2 or 3, and 6% engaged in 4 or 5. There were positive linear relationships between number of risk factors and smoking rate and nicotine dependence. Number of risk factors was not associated with self-efficacy for quitting, but was related to readiness to quit. This study demonstrated that childhood cancer survivors who smoke have a number of other risk factors for the development of preventable disease and the presence of these risks was associated with factors that decrease the likelihood of quitting smoking. Attention to other health behaviors may be an important strategy for helping smokers quit. In particular, helping childhood cancer survivors who smoke to reduce other risk behaviors might also encourage them to quit smoking. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] The impact of childhood cancer on the family: a qualitative analysis of strains, resources, and coping behaviorsPSYCHO-ONCOLOGY, Issue 6 2004Joän M. Patterson Clinical research has led to tremendous improvements in treatment efficacy for most childhood cancers; overall 5-year survival is now greater than 75%. Long-term consequences of cure (i.e. adverse medical and psychosocial effects) have only recently begun to emerge as a primary focus of clinical research, including studies of health-related quality of life among survivors. Usually lacking in such efforts, however, is consideration of the impact of the cancer experience on the family, and the influence that the family's response to cancer has on quality of life in the child. From this qualitative analysis of seven focus groups with 45 parents of children a year or more out of cancer treatment, we report those aspects of a child's cancer diagnosis, treatment, and recovery that parents perceived as particularly difficult for their family, and the resources and coping behaviors parents perceived as helpful to their family in dealing with and managing the cancer experience. Using the Family Adjustment and Adaptation Response theoretical model to organize the data, the domains of strains and resources were delineated into themes and sub-themes related to the cancer, child, family, health-care system, and community. Within a third domain, coping, sub-themes were identified within the themes of appraisal-focused, problem-focused, and emotion-focused coping behaviors. Integration of this information should serve to improve future studies of health-related quality of life among children who survive cancer. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Aetiology of childhood leukemiaBIOELECTROMAGNETICS, Issue S7 2005Tracy Lightfoot Abstract Leukemia is the most common cancer to affect children, accounting for approximately a third of all childhood cancers. The major morphological subtypes of leukemia, acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), and acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML), are characterized by chromosomal translocations involving over 200 genes including mixed lineage leukemia (MLL), TEL, and AML1. Chromosomal translocations involving the MLL gene at 11q23 are a common feature of infant acute leukemia, found in up to 80% of all cases, and there is strong evidence that rearrangements involving the MLL gene or the TEL-AML1 gene fusion can originate in utero. As with most other cancers, the mechanism by which leukemia arises is likely to involve gene-environment interactions. Accordingly, it is important to identify exposures that cause DNA damage and induce chromosome breaks which are inadequately repaired, ultimately leading to the initiation and disease progression. Exposures acting before birth and early in life has long been thought to be important determinants of leukemia, and the list of suspected chemical, physical, and biological agents continues to increase. Unfortunately, the evidence regarding the majority of suggested exposures is limited and often contradictory, and there are areas, which clearly warrant further investigation in order to further our understanding of the aetiology of childhood leukemia. Bioelectromagnetics Supplement 7:S5,S11, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] | ||||||||||