The clinical characteristics of melanoma with BRAF V600R mutation: a case series study.

Currently, several targeted therapy regimens are approved as first-line treatment in V600E/K-mutant advanced and metastatic melanoma. Patients with the third most common pathologic variant in the BRAF gene, V600R, were not included in BRAF/MEK inhibitors clinical trials, so there is lack of information about the clinical characteristics and predictive value of this mutation in systemic therapy of unresectable disease. We retrospectively reviewed clinical BRAF mutation testing results and the records of melanoma patients at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics from 2011 to 2017. DNA from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tumor specimens were sequenced using a next-generation sequencing panel or dye terminator sequencing covering exon 15 of the BRAF gene. The study protocol was approved by the University of Iowa Institutional Review Board. Nine patients (5.3% of 168 cases with BRAF mutation) were found to have the V600R mutation. We report our experience in treatment of seven patients with V600R-mutant melanoma, whose clinical records were available for review. Four patients in our cohort received BRAF inhibitors. Three patients demonstrated partial objective response to BRAF/MEK targeted therapy. V600R-mutant melanoma accounts for a significant number of cases even in single-institution practices. We believe that testing for BRAF-mutation status should include rare variants of this mutation. From our experience, the high rate of ulceration, male predominance and advanced age at diagnosis are features of melanoma with V600R mutation, which are similar to those reported for V600K mutation. We observed objective response to BRAF/MEK inhibitors in three cases with V600R variant.

A case report and focused literature review of d-penicillamine and severe neutropenia: A serious toxicity from a seldom-used drug.

Prescribing d-penicillamine for Wilson's disease must be accompanied by vigilant monitoring, including a complete blood cell count with differential. For most, this should occur once or twice weekly during the first month of therapy and during periods of dose escalation, then every two weeks for six additional months, then monthly.

Quality-of-life outcomes in patients with advanced melanoma: A review of the literature.

For patients with metastatic melanoma, the emergence of immune checkpoint inhibitors and targeted BRAF and MEK inhibitors has markedly enhanced clinical outcomes compared with chemotherapy. However, these novel agents are also associated with unique sets of adverse events, and increased overall survival can lead to prolonged exposure to some novel agents. Therefore, clinical evaluation of these therapies has now included the analysis of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in addition to more traditional efficacy and safety outcomes as a measure of patient perception of benefit. The current review focuses on HRQoL outcomes in clinical trials of immune checkpoint inhibitors and targeted therapies in patients with advanced and metastatic melanoma to inform healthcare providers about patient perception of HRQoL as a new perspective in treatment decision making.

The use of serum hCG as a marker of tumor progression and of the response of metastatic urothelial cancer to systemic chemotherapy.

This case confirms the observation that urothelial carcinomas can secrete beta-hCG, and that beta-hCG can potentially be used as a marker of a patient's clinical response to treatment. Prospective studies are clearly warranted by these observations.