The Prognostic Relevance of MRI Characteristics in Myxofibrosarcoma Patients Treated with Neoadjuvant Radiotherapy.

To improve local control, neoadjuvant radiotherapy (nRT) followed by surgery is the standard of care in myxofibrosarcoma (MFS) because of its infiltrative growth pattern. Nevertheless, local recurrence rates are high. Data on prognostic factors for poor clinical outcomes are lacking. This retrospective study thus investigates the prognostic relevance of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) characteristics before and after nRT in 40 MFS patients, as well as their association with disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). A vascular pedicle, defined as extra-tumoral vessels at the tumor periphery, was observed in 12 patients (30.0%) pre-nRT and remained present post-nRT in all cases. Patients with a vascular pedicle had worse DFS (HR 5.85; 95% CI 1.56-21.90; p = 0.009) and OS (HR 9.58; 95% CI 1.91-48.00; p = 0.006). An infiltrative growth pattern, referred to as a tail sign, was observed in 22 patients (55.0%) pre-nRT and in 19 patients (47.5%) post-nRT, and was associated with worse DFS post-nRT (HR 6.99; 95% CI 1.39-35.35; p = 0.019). The percentage of tumor necrosis estimated by MRI was increased post-nRT, but was not associated with survival outcomes. The presence of a tail sign or vascular pedicle on MRI could support the identification of patients at risk for poor clinical outcomes after nRT.

Local treatment in metastatic GIST patients: A multicentre analysis from the Dutch GIST Registry.

BACKGROUND: The added value of local treatment in selected metastatic GIST patients is unclear. This study aims to provide insight into the usefulness of local treatment in metastatic GIST by use of a survey study and retrospective analyses in a clinical database. METHODS: A survey study was conducted among clinical specialists to select most relevant characteristics of metastatic GIST patients considered for local treatment, defined as elective surgery or ablation. Patients were selected from the Dutch GIST Registry. A multivariate Cox-regression model for overall survival since time of diagnosis of metastatic disease was estimated with local treatment as a time-dependent variable. An additional model was estimated to assess prognostic factors since local treatment. RESULTS: The survey's response rate was 14/16. Performance status, response to TKIs, location of active disease, number of lesions, mutation status, and time between primary diagnosis and metastases, were regarded the 6 most important characteristics. Of 457 included patients, 123 underwent local treatment, which was associated with better survival after diagnosis of metastases (HR = 0.558, 95%CI = 0.336-0.928). Progressive disease during systemic treatment (HR = 3.885, 95%CI = 1.195-12.627) and disease confined to the liver (HR = 0.269, 95%CI = 0.082-0.880) were associated with worse and better survival after local treatment, respectively. CONCLUSION: Local treatment is associated with better survival in selected patients with metastatic GIST. Locally treated patients with response to TKIs and disease confined to the liver have good clinical outcome. These results might be considered for tailoring treatment, but should be interpreted with care because only specific patients are provided with local treatment in this retrospective study.

For the Many, Not the Few: Patient Empowerment.

Today's patients are more knowledgable than ever before and should be placed at the centre of their own healthcare decisions. Empowering the patient is, and always will be, a fundamental pillar of personalised medicine. Front-line healthcare professionals cannot treat a patient properly without taking into account his or her perceptions of value. They cannot treat a patient properly without taking into account that patient's lifestyle and, of course, they cannot treat a patient properly without creating equal access across the EU to the best possible treatments available. The authors of this article examine ways to enhance the empowerment of Europe's patients.