Ultra-hypofractionated versus conventionally fractionated radiotherapy for prostate cancer (HYPO-RT-PC): patient-reported quality-of-life outcomes of a randomised, controlled, non-inferiority, phase 3 trial.

BACKGROUND: The HYPO-RT-PC trial compared conventionally fractionated radiotherapy with ultra-hypofractionated radiotherapy in patients with localised prostate cancer. Ultra-hypofractionation was non-inferior to conventional fractionation regarding 5-year failure-free survival and toxicity. We aimed to assess whether patient-reported quality of life (QOL) differs between conventional fractionation and ultra-hypofractionation up to 6 years after treatment in the HYPO-RT-PC trial. METHODS: HYPO-RT-PC is a multicentre, open-label, randomised, controlled, non-inferiority, phase 3 trial done in 12 centres (seven university hospitals and five county hospitals) in Sweden and Denmark. Inclusion criteria were histologically verified intermediate-to-high-risk prostate cancer (defined as T1c-T3a with one or two of the following risk factors: stage T3a; Gleason score ≥7; and prostate-specific antigen 10-20 ng/mL with no evidence of lymph node involvement or distant metastases), age up to 75 years, and WHO performance status 0-2. Participants were randomly assigned (1:1) to conventional fractionation (78·0 Gy in 39 fractions, 5 days per week for 8 weeks) or ultra-hypofractionation (42·7 Gy in seven fractions, 3 days per week for 2·5 weeks) via a minimisation algorithm with stratification by trial centre, T-stage, Gleason score, and prostate-specific antigen. QOL was measured using the validated Prostate Cancer Symptom Scale (PCSS) and European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality-of-Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) at baseline, the end of radiotherapy, months 3, 6, 12, and 24 after radiotherapy, every other year thereafter up to 10 years, and at 15 years. The primary endpoint (failure-free survival) has been reported elsewhere. Here we report QOL, a secondary endpoint analysed in the per-protocol population, up to 6 years after radiotherapy. The HYPO-RT-PC trial is registered with the ISRCTN registry, ISRCTN45905321. FINDINGS: Between July 1, 2005, and Nov 4, 2015, 1200 patients were enrolled and 1180 were randomly assigned (conventional fractionation n=591, ultra-hypofractionation n=589); 1165 patients (conventional fractionation n=582, ultra-hypofractionation n=583) were included in this QOL analysis. 158 (71%) of 223 patients in the conventional fractionation group and 146 (66%) of 220 in the ultra-hypofractionation group completed questionnaires at 6 years. The median follow-up was 48 months (IQR 25-72). In seven of ten bowel symptoms or problems the proportion of patients with clinically relevant deteriorations at the end of radiotherapy was significantly higher in the ultra-hypofractionation group than in the conventional fractionation group (stool frequency [p<0·0001], rush to toilet [p=0·0013], flatulence [p=0·0013], bowel cramp [p<0·0001], mucus [p=0·0014], blood in stool [p<0·0001], and limitation in daily activity [p=0·0014]). There were no statistically significant differences in the proportions of patients with clinically relevant acute urinary symptoms or problems (total 14 items) and sexual functioning between the two treatment groups at end of radiotherapy. Thereafter, there were no clinically relevant differences in urinary, bowel, or sexual functioning between the groups. At the 6-year follow-up there was no difference in the incidence of clinically relevant deterioration between the groups for overall urinary bother (43 [33%] of 132 for conventional fractionation vs 33 [28%] of 120 for ultra-hypofractionation; mean difference 5·1% [95% CI -4·4 to 14·6]; p=0·38), overall bowel bother (43 [33%] of 129 vs 34 [28%] of 123; 5·7% [-3·8 to 15·2]; p=0·33), overall sexual bother (75 [60%] of 126 vs 59 [50%] of 117; 9·1% [-1·4 to 19·6]; p=0·15), or global health/QOL (56 [42%] of 134 vs 46 [37%] of 125; 5·0% [-5·0 to 15·0]; p=0·41). INTERPRETATION: Although acute toxicity was higher for ultra-hypofractionation than conventional fractionation, this long-term patient-reported QOL analysis shows that ultra-hypofractionation was as well tolerated as conventional fractionation up to 6 years after completion of treatment. These findings support the use of ultra-hypofractionation radiotherapy for intermediate-to-high-risk prostate cancer. FUNDING: The Nordic Cancer Union, the Swedish Cancer Society, and the Swedish Research Council.

Docetaxel Versus Surveillance After Radical Radiotherapy for Intermediate- or High-risk Prostate Cancer-Results from the Prospective, Randomised, Open-label Phase III SPCG-13 Trial.

BACKGROUND: Docetaxel combined with androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) has improved patient survival for advanced prostate cancer (PCa). OBJECTIVE: This randomised trial aimed to evaluate whether six courses of docetaxel improved biochemical disease-free survival (BDFS) after radical radiotherapy (RT) for intermediate- or high-risk PCa patients. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A total of 376 patients were randomised in this multinational phase III study, and received either six cycles of adjuvant docetaxel 75 mg/m2 every 3 wk without continuous prednisone (arm A, n = 188) or surveillance (arm B, n = 188) after RT (NTC006653848). Neoadjuvant/adjuvant ADT was mandatory for all the patients. The primary endpoint was rising prostate-specific antigen (PSA) ≥2 ng/ml above the nadir PSA value. Intermediate- or high-risk PCa was defined as T2 with a Gleason score (GS) of 4 + 3, PSA > 10; T2, GS 8-10, ≤ 70 ng/ml; or any T3. The patients were followed for 5 yr by assessing PSA levels every 3 mo for 2 yr and every 6 mo thereafter. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The study power was 89% to detect a difference in BDFS between groups, and the sample size calculation accounted for the T2/T3 distribution, where a 12%/15% difference in BDFS was assumed for the T2/T3 patients. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: All six cycles were completed in 147 (78%) of the patients in arm A. The median age was 67 yr in both treatment groups, 75% had T3 disease, and 47% had GS 8-10. The median follow-up was 59 mo (range 1-111 mo). The primary endpoint was observed for 58 patients in arm A (docetaxel) and for 57 patients in arm B (surveillance). The Kaplan-Meier analysis showed no difference in the BDFS curves (p = 0.6) between the treatment groups. The 5-yr estimated biochemical progression rates were 31% for arm A and 28% for arm B. Febrile neutropenia occurred in 16% of the docetaxel patients. No deaths were related to the docetaxel treatment. There were 43 deaths during the trial, including 20 in arm A and 23 in arm B, of which nine and seven, respectively, were due to PCa. The hazard ratio from Cox multivariate analysis for PSA progression of arm A (docetaxel) versus arm B (surveillance) was 1.14 (95% confidence interval 0.79-1.64, p = 0.5). CONCLUSIONS: Adjuvant docetaxel without prednisone did not improve BDFS after radical RT with ADT for intermediate- or high-risk PCa. PATIENT SUMMARY: We compared six cycles of adjuvant docetaxel given after radical external radiotherapy plus androgen deprivation therapy to surveillance in intermediate- and high-risk localised prostate cancer. We found no overall benefit in this setting.

Ultra-hypofractionated versus conventionally fractionated radiotherapy for prostate cancer: 5-year outcomes of the HYPO-RT-PC randomised, non-inferiority, phase 3 trial.

BACKGROUND: Hypofractionated radiotherapy for prostate cancer has gained increased attention due to its proposed high radiation-fraction sensitivity. Recent reports from studies comparing moderately hypofractionated and conventionally fractionated radiotherapy support the clinical use of moderate hypofractionation. To date, there are no published randomised studies on ultra-hypofractionated radiotherapy. Here, we report the outcomes of the Scandinavian HYPO-RT-PC phase 3 trial with the aim to show non-inferiority of ultra-hypofractionation compared with conventional fractionation. METHODS: In this open-label, randomised, phase 3 non-inferiority trial done in 12 centres in Sweden and Denmark, we recruited men up to 75 years of age with intermediate-to-high-risk prostate cancer and a WHO performance status between 0 and 2. Patients were randomly assigned to ultra-hypofractionation (42·7 Gy in seven fractions, 3 days per week for 2·5 weeks) or conventional fractionated radiotherapy (78·0 Gy in 39 fractions, 5 days per week for 8 weeks). No androgen deprivation therapy was allowed. The primary endpoint was time to biochemical or clinical failure, analysed in the per-protocol population. The prespecified non-inferiority margin was 4% at 5 years, corresponding to a critical hazard ratio (HR) limit of 1·338. Physician-recorded toxicity was measured according to the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) morbidity scale and patient-reported outcome measurements with the Prostate Cancer Symptom Scale (PCSS) questionnaire. This trial is registered with the ISRCTN registry, number ISRCTN45905321. FINDINGS: Between July 1, 2005, and Nov 4, 2015, 1200 patients were randomly assigned to conventional fractionation (n=602) or ultra-hypofractionation (n=598), of whom 1180 (591 conventional fractionation and 589 ultra-hypofractionation) constituted the per-protocol population. 1054 (89%) participants were intermediate risk and 126 (11%) were high risk. Median follow-up time was 5·0 years (IQR 3·1-7·0). The estimated failure-free survival at 5 years was 84% (95% CI 80-87) in both treatment groups, with an adjusted HR of 1·002 (95% CI 0·758-1·325; log-rank p=0·99). There was weak evidence of an increased frequency of acute physician-reported RTOG grade 2 or worse urinary toxicity in the ultra-hypofractionation group at end of radiotherapy (158 [28%] of 569 patients vs 132 [23%] of 578 patients; p=0·057). There were no significant differences in grade 2 or worse urinary or bowel late toxicity between the two treatment groups at any point after radiotherapy, except for an increase in urinary toxicity in the ultra-hypofractionation group compared to the conventional fractionation group at 1-year follow-up (32 [6%] of 528 patients vs 13 [2%] of 529 patients; (p=0·0037). We observed no differences between groups in frequencies at 5 years of RTOG grade 2 or worse urinary toxicity (11 [5%] of 243 patients for the ultra-hypofractionation group vs 12 [5%] of 249 for the conventional fractionation group; p=1·00) and bowel toxicity (three [1%] of 244 patients vs nine [4%] of 249 patients; p=0·14). Patient-reported outcomes revealed significantly higher levels of acute urinary and bowel symptoms in the ultra-hypofractionation group compared with the conventional fractionation group but no significant increases in late symptoms were found, except for increased urinary symptoms at 1-year follow-up, consistent with the physician-evaluated toxicity. INTERPRETATION: Ultra-hypofractionated radiotherapy is non-inferior to conventionally fractionated radiotherapy for intermediate-to-high risk prostate cancer regarding failure-free survival. Early side-effects are more pronounced with ultra-hypofractionation compared with conventional fractionation whereas late toxicity is similar in both treatment groups. The results support the use of ultra-hypofractionation for radiotherapy of prostate cancer. FUNDING: The Nordic Cancer Union, the Swedish Cancer Society, and the Swedish Research Council.

Three-year Safety of Radium-223 Dichloride in Patients with Castration-resistant Prostate Cancer and Symptomatic Bone Metastases from Phase 3 Randomized Alpharadin in Symptomatic Prostate Cancer Trial.

BACKGROUND: In Alpharadin in Symptomatic Prostate Cancer (ALSYMPCA) trial, radium-223 versus placebo prolonged overall survival with favorable safety in castration-resistant prostate cancer patients with symptomatic bone metastases. Long-term radium-223 monitoring underlies a comprehensive safety and risk/benefit assessment. OBJECTIVE: To report updated ALSYMPCA safety, including long-term safety up to 3 yr after the first injection. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Safety analyses from phase 3 randomized ALSYMPCA trial included patients receiving ≥1 study-drug injection (600 radium-223 and 301 placebo). Patients (405 radium-223 and 167 placebo) entered long-term safety follow-up starting 12 wk after the last study-drug injection, to 3 yr from the first injection. Forty-eight of 405 (12%) radium-223 and 12/167 (7%) placebo patients completed follow-up, with evaluations every 2 mo for 6 mo, then every 4 mo until 3 yr. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: All adverse events (AEs) were collected until 12 wk after the last injection; subsequently, only treatment-related AEs were collected. Additional long-term safety was assessed by development of acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), aplastic anemia, and secondary malignancies. Data analysis used descriptive statistics. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: During treatment to 12 wk following the last injection, 564/600 (94%) radium-223 and 292/301 (97%) placebo patients had treatment-emergent AEs (TEAEs). Myelosuppression incidence was low. Grade 3/4 hematologic TEAEs in radium-223 and placebo groups were anemia (13% vs 13%), neutropenia (2% vs 1%), and thrombocytopenia (7% vs 2%). Ninety-eight of 600 (16%) radium-223 and 68/301 (23%) placebo patients experienced grade 5 TEAEs. Long-term follow-up showed no AML, MDS, or new primary bone cancer; secondary non-treatment-related malignancies occurred in four radium-223 and three placebo patients. One radium-223 patient had aplastic anemia 16 mo after the last injection. No other cases were observed. Limitations include short (3-yr) follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Final long-term safety ALSYMPCA analysis shows that radium-223 remained well tolerated, with low myelosuppression incidence and no new safety concerns. PATIENT SUMMARY: Updated Alpharadin in Symptomatic Prostate Cancer (ALSYMPCA) trial findings show that radium-223 remained well tolerated during treatment and up to 3 yr after each patient's first injection.

Differences in health related quality of life in the randomised ARTSCAN study; accelerated vs. conventional radiotherapy for head and neck cancer. A five year follow up.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Health related quality of life (HRQoL) was assessed in the randomised, prospective ARTSCAN study comparing conventional radiotherapy (CF) with accelerated radiotherapy (AF) for head and neck cancer. MATERIAL AND METHODS: 750 patients with squamous cell carcinoma (of any grade and stage) in the oral cavity, oro-, or hypopharynx or larynx (except T1-2, N0 glottic carcinoma) without distant metastases were randomised to either conventional fractionation (2 Gy/day, 5 days/week in 49 days, total dose 68 Gy) or accelerated fractionation (1.1+2.0 Gy/day, 5 days/week in 35 days, total dose 68 Gy). HRQoL was assessed with EORTC QLQ-C30, QLQ-H&N35 and HADS at baseline, at end of radiotherapy (eRT) and at 3 and 6 months and 1, 2 and 5 years after start of treatment. RESULTS: The AF group reported HRQoL was significantly lower at eRT and at 3 months for most symptoms, scales and functions. Few significant differences were noted between the groups at 6 months and 5 years. Scores related to functional oral intake never reached baseline. CONCLUSION: In comparison to CF, AF has a stronger adverse effect on HRQoL in the acute phase.

Mature results from a Swedish comparison study of conventional versus accelerated radiotherapy in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma - The ARTSCAN trial.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: This report contains the mature five-year data from the Swedish ARTSCAN trial including information on the influence of p16 positivity (p16+) for oropharyngeal cancers. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Patients with previously untreated squamous cell carcinoma without distant metastases of the oral cavity, oropharynx, larynx (except T1-2, N0 glottic cancers) and hypopharynx were included. Patients were randomised between accelerated fractionation (AF) (1.1Gy+2Gy per day, 5days/week for 4.5weeks, total dose 68Gy) and conventional fractionation (CF) (2Gy per day, 5days/week for 7weeks, total dose 68Gy). Human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated p16-expression was assessed retrospectively in tumour tissues from patients with oropharyngeal carcinoma. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in loco-regional control (LRC) between AF and CF (log-rank test p=0.75). LRC at 5years was 65.5% for AF and 64.9% for CF. Overall survival (OS) was similar in both arms (p=0.99). The estimated cancer specific survival (CSS) at 5years was 62.2% (AF) and 63.3% (CF) (p=0.99). 206 specimens were analysed for p16 with 153 specimens (74%) identified as p16+. P16 status did not discriminate for response to AF vs. CF with regard to LRC, OS or CSS. Patients with p16+ tumours had a statistically significant better overall prognosis compared with p16- tumours. CONCLUSION: This update confirms the results of the 2-year report. We failed to identify a positive effect resulting from AF with regards to LRC, OS and CSS. The addition of information on the HPV-associated p16 overexpression did not explain this lack of effect.

Two-year survival follow-up of the randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase II study of radium-223 chloride in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer and bone metastases.

BACKGROUND: This phase II randomized, placebo-controlled study was conducted to evaluate efficacy and safety of radium-223 in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) and painful bone metastases. Twelve- and 18-month survival results were reported previously. Here we report 24-month overall survival (OS) and safety data from the period 12 to 24 months after the first injection of study medication. METHODS: Patients with CRPC and bone pain were randomized 1:1 to receive 4 injections of radium-223 (50 kBq/kg [n = 33]) or placebo (n = 31) after external-beam radiotherapy; each injection was given every 4 weeks. Endpoints for this report were 24-month OS, long-term safety, and treatment-related adverse events (AEs) occurring in the 12- to 24-month period. RESULTS: After 24 months, 10 (30%) patients were alive in the radium-223 group compared with 4 patients (13%) in the placebo group. Patients who received at least 1 dose of study medication had a median OS of 65 weeks in the radium-223 group vs. 46 weeks in the placebo group (log-rank P = .056). The hazard ratio (HR) for OS, adjusted for baseline covariates, was 0.476 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.258-0.877; Cox regression P = .017). The most frequent cause of death for both arms was disease progression. There were no reports of treatment-related AEs or long-term hematologic toxicity during the 12- to 24-month follow-up. CONCLUSION: Radium-223 had a highly favorable safety profile, with no evidence of second malignancies at 24-month follow-up. The significant improvement in OS observed in patients receiving radium-223 vs. placebo suggests that treatment of bone disease with radium-223 has survival benefits.

Cloning, expression and purification of the luminal domain of spinach photosystem 1 subunit PsaF functional in binding to plastocyanin and with a disulfide bridge required for folding.

The photosystem 1 subunit PsaF is involved in the docking of the electron-donor proteins plastocyanin and cytochrome c6 in eukaryotic photosynthetic organisms. Here we report the expression, purification and basic characterization of the luminal domain of spinach PsaF, encompassing amino-acid residues 1-79. The recombinant protein was expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) using a pET32 Xa/LIC thioredoxin fusion system. The thioredoxin fusion protein contained a His6 tag and was removed and separated from PsaF through proteolytic digestion by factor Xa followed by immobilized metal affinity chromatography. Further purification with size-exclusion chromatography resulted in a final yield of approximately 6 mg PsaF from one liter growth medium. The correct identity after the factor Xa treatment of PsaF was verified by FT-ICR mass spectrometry which also showed that the purified protein contains an intact disulfide bridge between Cys residues 6 and 38. Secondary structure and folding was further explored using far-UV CD spectroscopy indicating a α-helical content in agreement with the 3.3 Å-resolution crystal structure of photosystem I. and a helix-coil transition temperature of 29 °C. Thermofluorescence studies showed that the disulfide bridge is necessary to keep the overall fold of the protein and that hydrophobic regions become exposed at 50-65 °C depending on the ionic strength. The described expression and purification procedure can be used for isotopic labeling of the protein and ¹5N-HSQC NMR studies indicated a slow or intermediate exchange between different conformations of the prepared protein and that it belongs to the molten-globule structural family. Finally, by using a carboxyl- and amine-reactive zero-length crosslinker, we have shown that the recombinant protein binds to plastocyanin by a specific, native-like, electrostatic interaction, hence, confirming its functionality.

Two-year results from a Swedish study on conventional versus accelerated radiotherapy in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma--the ARTSCAN study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Studies on accelerated fractionation (AF) in head and neck cancer have shown increased local control and survival compared with conventional fractionation (CF), while others have been non-conclusive. In 1998 a national Swedish group decided to perform a randomised controlled clinical study of AF. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with verified squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity, oropharynx, larynx (except glottic T1-T2, N0) and hypopharynx were included. Patients with prior chemotherapy or surgery were excluded. Patients were randomised to either CF (2Gy/day, 5days/week for 7 weeks, total dose 68Gy) or to AF (1.1Gy+2.0Gy/day, 5days/week for 4.5weeks, total dose 68Gy). An extensive quality assurance protocol was followed throughout the study. The primary end point was loco-regional tumour control (LRC) at two years after treatment. RESULTS: The study was closed in 2006 when 750 patients had been randomised. Eighty-three percent of the patients had stages III-IV disease. Forty eight percent had oropharyngeal, 21% laryngeal, 17% hypopharyngeal and 14% oral cancers. There were no significant differences regarding overall survival (OS) or LRC between the two regimens. The OS at two years was 68% for AF and 67% for CF. The corresponding figures for LRC were 71% and 67%, respectively. There was a trend towards improved LRC for oral cancers treated (p=0.07) and for large tumours (T3-T4) (p=0.07) treated with AF. The AF group had significantly worse acute reactions, while there was no significant increase in late effects. CONCLUSION: Overall the AF regimen did not prove to be more efficacious than CF. However, the trend towards improved results in AF for oral cancers needs to be further investigated.

Secondary malignancies from prostate cancer radiation treatment: a risk analysis of the influence of target margins and fractionation patterns.

PURPOSE: This study explores the implications for cancer induction of treatment details such as fractionation, planning target volume (PTV) definition, and interpatient variations, which are relevant for the radiation treatment of prostate carcinomas. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Treatment planning data from 100 patients have been analyzed with a risk model based on the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation competition model. The risk model can account for dose heterogeneity and fractionation effects characteristic for modern radiotherapy. Biologically relevant parameters from clinical and experimental data have been used with the model. RESULTS: The results suggested that changes in prescribed dose could lead to a modification of the risks for individual organs surrounding the clinical target volume (CTV) but that the total risk appears to be less affected by changes in the target dose. Larger differences are observed for modifications of the margins between the CTV and the PTV because these have direct impact onto the dose level and dose heterogeneity in the healthy tissues surrounding the CTV. Interpatient anatomic variations also have to be taken into consideration for studies of the risk for cancer induction from radiotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: The results have shown the complex interplay between the risk for secondary malignancies, the details of the treatment delivery, and the patient heterogeneity that may influence comparisons between the long-term effects of various treatment techniques. Nevertheless, absolute risk levels seem very small and comparable to mortality risks from surgical interventions, thus supporting the robustness of radiation therapy as a successful treatment modality for prostate carcinomas.

Reconstructing the mitochondrial protein import machinery of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.

In Chlamydomonas reinhardtii several nucleus-encoded proteins that participate in the mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation are targeted to the organelle by unusually long mitochondrial targeting sequences. Here, we explored the components of the mitochondrial import machinery of the green alga. We mined the algal genome, searching for yeast and plant homologs, and reconstructed the mitochondrial import machinery. All the main translocation components were identified in Chlamydomonas as well as in Arabidopsis thaliana and in the recently sequenced moss Physcomitrella patens. Some of these components appear to be duplicated, as is the case of Tim22. In contrast, several yeast components that have relatively large hydrophilic regions exposed to the cytosol or to the intermembrane space seem to be absent in land plants and green algae. If present at all, these components of plants and algae may differ significantly from their yeast counterparts. We propose that long mitochondrial targeting sequences in some Chlamydomonas mitochondrial protein precursors are involved in preventing the aggregation of the hydrophobic proteins they carry.

Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) for glioblastoma multiforme: a phase II study evaluating a prolonged high-dose of boronophenylalanine (BPA).

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) for glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) using a novel protocol for the boronophenylalanine-fructose (BPA-F) infusion. PATIENT AND METHODS: This phase II study included 30 patients, 26-69 years old, with a good performance status of which 27 have undergone debulking surgery. BPA-F (900 mg BPA/kg body weight) was given i.v. over 6h. Neutron irradiation started 2h after the completion of the infusion. Follow-up reports were monitored by an independent clinical research institute. RESULTS: The boron-blood concentration during irradiation was 15.2-33.7 microg/g. The average weighted absorbed dose to normal brain was 3.2-6.1 Gy (W). The minimum dose to the tumour volume ranged from 15.4 to 54.3 Gy (W). Seven patients suffered from seizures, 8 from skin/mucous problem, 5 patients were stricken by thromboembolism and 4 from abdominal disturbances in close relation to BNCT. Four patients displayed 9 episodes of grade 3-4 events (WHO). At the time for follow-up, minimum ten months, 23 out of the 29 evaluable patients were dead. The median time from BNCT treatment to tumour progression was 5.8 months and the median survival time after BNCT was 14.2 months. Following progression, 13 patients were given temozolomide, two patients were re-irradiated, and two were re-operated. Patients treated with temozolomide lived considerably longer (17.7 vs. 11.6 months). The quality of life analysis demonstrated a progressive deterioration after BNCT. CONCLUSION: Although, the efficacy of BNCT in the present protocol seems to be comparable with conventional radiotherapy and the treatment time is shorter, the observed side effects and the requirement of complex infrastructure and higher resources emphasize the need of further phase I and II studies, especially directed to improve the accumulation of (10)B in tumour cells.

Comparison of three instrumental methods for the objective evaluation of radiotherapy induced erythema in breast cancer patients and a study of the effect of skin lotions.

A non-blinded three armed study of the effect of Aloe vera, Essex and no lotion on erythema was performed. The erythema is an effect of radiotherapy treatment in breast cancer patients. The study required testing of objective methods for measuring the erythema. The chosen experimental methods were Near Infrared Spectroscopy, Laser Doppler Imaging and Digital Colour Photography. The experimental setup was made in such a way that in parallel with testing the effect of the lotions there was also a test of the sensitivity of the instruments. Fifty women were selected consecutively to participate in the study. They were all subjected to treatment with high-energy electrons (9-20 MeV) after mastectomy, 2 Gy/day to a total dose of 50 Gy. Measurements were performed before the start of radiotherapy and thereafter once a week during the course of treatment. Aloe vera and Essex lotion were applied twice every radiation day in selected sites. The increase in skin redness could be monitored with all techniques with a detection limit of 8 Gy for Digital Colour Photography and Near Infrared Spectroscopy and 18 Gy for Laser Doppler Imaging. In clinical practice our recommendation is to use Digital Colour Photography. No significant median differences were observed between the pairs no lotion-Essex, no lotion-Aloe vera and Essex-Aloe vera for any of the techniques tested.

Bone-targeted radium-223 in symptomatic, hormone-refractory prostate cancer: a randomised, multicentre, placebo-controlled phase II study.

BACKGROUND: The alpha-emitter radium-223 ((223)Ra) is a bone-seeking radionuclide studied as a new treatment for patients with bone metastases from hormone-refractory prostate cancer. We aimed to study mature outcomes from a randomised, multicentre, phase II study of (223)Ra. METHODS: Patients with hormone-refractory prostate cancer and bone pain needing external-beam radiotherapy were assigned to four intravenous injections of (223)Ra (50 kBq/kg, 33 patients) or placebo (31 patients), given every 4 weeks. Primary endpoints were change in bone-alkaline phosphatase (ALP) concentration and time to skeletal-related events (SREs). Secondary endpoints included toxic effects, time to prostate-specific-antigen (PSA) progression, and overall survival. All tests were done at a 5% significance level, based on intention to treat. FINDINGS: Median relative change in bone-ALP during treatment was -65.6% (95% CI -69.5 to -57.7) and 9.3% (3.8-60.9) in the (223)Ra group and placebo groups, respectively (p<0.0001, Wilcoxon ranked-sums test). Hazard ratio for time to first SRE, adjusted for baseline covariates, was 1.75 (0.96-3.19, p=0.065, Cox regression). Haematological toxic effects did not differ significantly between two groups. No patient discontinued (223)Ra because of treatment toxicity. Median time to PSA progression was 26 weeks (16-39) versus 8 weeks (4-12; p=0.048) for (223)Ra versus placebo, respectively. Median overall survival was 65.3 weeks (48.7-infinity) for (223)Ra and 46.4 weeks (32.1-77.4) for placebo (p=0.066, log rank). The hazard ratio for overall survival, adjusted for baseline covariates was 2.12 (1.13-3.98, p=0.020, Cox regression). INTERPRETATION: (223)Ra was well tolerated with minimum myelotoxicity, and had a significant effect on bone-ALP concentrations. Larger clinical trials are warranted to study (223)Ra on the prevention of SREs and on overall survival in patients with hormone-refractory prostate cancer. Bone-targeting properties of (223)Ra could also potentially be used for treating skeletal metastasis from other primary cancers.

Chlamydomonas reinhardtii: the model of choice to study mitochondria from unicellular photosynthetic organisms.

Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is a model organism to study photosynthesis, cellular division, flagellar biogenesis, and, more recently, mitochondrial function. It has distinct advantages in comparison to higher plants because it is unicellular, haploid, and amenable to tetrad analysis, and its three genomes are subject to specific transformation. It also has the possibility to grow either photoautotrophically or heterotrophically on acetate, making the assembly of the photosynthetic machinery not essential for cell viability. Methods developed allow the isolation of C. reinhardtii mitochondria free of thylakoid contaminants. We review the general procedures used for the biochemical characterization of mitochondria from this green alga.

REMOVED: Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) for glioblastoma multiforme: A phase 2 study evaluating a prolonged high dose of boronophenylalanine (BPA).

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Objective measurements of radiotherapy-induced erythema.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The development of acute radiation erythema is a common phenomenon among patients under-going radiotherapy treatment. Because of the absence of reliable objective classification methods, the degree of skin reaction can at present mainly be judged subjectively in the clinic. This has motivated the present preliminary study,concerning the first steps in the development of an objective method for skin reaction classification. METHODS: Three non-invasive techniques were used:near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy, laser Doppler perfusion imaging and digital photography. The NIR spectra were analysed with principal component analysis (PCA), and the results from the other two with traditional univariate methods. Measurements were made on breast cancer patients who had been exposed to different irradiation doses. A total of 28 breast cancer patients participated one to three times each; 12 were treated with photons at 4 or 6MeV and 16 were treated with high-energy electrons between 10 and 20 MeV to a maximum dose of 50 Gy. RESULTS: PCA of NIR spectra shows that information on radiation dose lies mainly in the first principal component. It is observed that the higher the dose the higher the score value. The results from the laser Doppler measurements show that in 79% of the cases the perfusion increases significantly with radiation dose. Analysis of the digital photography shows that a proposed skin redness index(SRI), increases with a higher radiation dose. However,the increase in most cases is not significant. By combining all data, correlation to radiation doses was seen for 74% of the patients who participated more than once. CONCLUSION: All three non-invasive methods correlate with the radiation dose but to various degrees. NIR spectroscopy, laser Doppler and a combination of the three techniques are the most promising methods for characterising erythema.