Patient Perceptions of Specialist Palliative Care Intervention in Surgical Oncology Care.

INTRODUCTION: Surgical oncology patients have a high symptom burden and increased risk of morbidity. The aim of palliative care is to evaluate and treat the patient in a holistic manner focusing on the unique attributes of each patient. This goal-concordant approach could help surgical patients cope with the stress and uncertainty that often accompany serious illness and surgery, improving overall outcomes. This qualitative analysis sought to explore whether unmet specialist palliative care or end-of-life needs exist in this population. METHODS: Qualitative interviews were completed with a subset of participants in a randomized, controlled trial of a specialist palliative care intervention for patients undergoing abdominal oncologic surgery. The interview guide sought to elicit respondents' perceptions of palliative care and end-of-life needs perioperatively and postoperatively. Recurring themes were identified by two independent coders. RESULTS: Analysis of 47 interview transcripts revealed few serious concerns about end-of-life issues, however appreciation for the supportive presence offered by palliative care was present. Among participants who received specialist palliative care, many found the intervention helpful, but few were able to articulate issues that the intervention improved. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest low levels of unmet palliative care needs among this population, which is consistent with the results of the parent trial. Targeting patients with a higher symptom burden perioperatively may allow for improved symptom management and better adherence to the treatment plan postoperatively, as well as be a more focused use of specialist palliative care clinicians' efforts.

PARC: a phase I/II study evaluating the safety and activity of pegylated recombinant human arginase BCT-100 in relapsed/refractory cancers of children and young adults.

Background: The survival for many children with relapsed/refractory cancers remains poor despite advances in therapies. Arginine metabolism plays a key role in the pathophysiology of a number of pediatric cancers. We report the first in child study of a recombinant human arginase, BCT-100, in children with relapsed/refractory hematological, solid or CNS cancers. Procedure: PARC was a single arm, Phase I/II, international, open label study. BCT-100 was given intravenously over one hour at weekly intervals. The Phase I section utilized a modified 3 + 3 design where escalation/de-escalation was based on both the safety profile and the complete depletion of arginine (defined as adequate arginine depletion; AAD <8µM arginine in the blood after 4 doses of BCT-100). The Phase II section was designed to further evaluate the clinical activity of BCT-100 at the pediatric RP2D determined in the Phase I section, by recruitment of patients with pediatric cancers into 4 individual groups. A primary evaluation of response was conducted at eight weeks with patients continuing to receive treatment until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Results: 49 children were recruited globally. The Phase I cohort of the trial established the Recommended Phase II Dose of 1600U/kg iv weekly in children, matching that of adults. BCT-100 was very well tolerated. No responses defined as a CR, CRi or PR were seen in any cohort within the defined 8 week primary evaluation period. However a number of these relapsed/refractory patients experienced prolonged radiological SD. Conclusion: Arginine depletion is a clinically safe and achievable strategy in children with cancer. The RP2D of BCT-100 in children with relapsed/refractory cancers is established at 1600U/kg intravenously weekly and can lead to sustained disease stability in this hard to treat population. Clinical trial registration: EudraCT, 2017-002762-44; ISRCTN, 21727048; and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03455140.

Histone H3-wild type diffuse midline gliomas with H3K27me3 loss are a distinct entity with exclusive EGFR or ACVR1 mutation and differential methylation of homeobox genes.

Diffuse midline gliomas (DMG) harbouring H3K27M mutation are paediatric tumours with a dismal outcome. Recently, a new subtype of midline gliomas has been described with similar features to DMG, including loss of H3K27 trimethylation, but lacking the canonical H3K27M mutation (H3-WT). Here, we report a cohort of five H3-WT tumours profiled by whole-genome sequencing, RNA sequencing and DNA methylation profiling and combine their analysis with previously published cases. We show that these tumours have recurrent and mutually exclusive mutations in either ACVR1 or EGFR and are characterised by high expression of EZHIP associated to its promoter hypomethylation. Affected patients share a similar poor prognosis as patients with H3K27M DMG. Global molecular analysis of H3-WT and H3K27M DMG reveal distinct transcriptome and methylome profiles including differential methylation of homeobox genes involved in development and cellular differentiation. Patients have distinct clinical features, with a trend demonstrating ACVR1 mutations occurring in H3-WT tumours at an older age. This in-depth exploration of H3-WT tumours further characterises this novel DMG, H3K27-altered sub-group, characterised by a specific immunohistochemistry profile with H3K27me3 loss, wild-type H3K27M and positive EZHIP. It also gives new insights into the possible mechanism and pathway regulation in these tumours, potentially opening new therapeutic avenues for these tumours which have no known effective treatment. This study has been retrospectively registered on clinicaltrial.gov on 8 November 2017 under the registration number NCT03336931 ( https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03336931 ).

Increasing spatial frequency of S-cone defined gratings reduces their visibility and brain response more than for gratings defined by L-M cone contrast.

Chromatic sensitivity reduces as spatial frequency increases. Here, we explore the behavioural and neuronal responses to chromatic stimuli at two spatial frequencies for which the difference in sensitivity will be greater for S-cone than L-M stimuli. Luminance artefacts were removed using the Random Luminance Modulation (RLM) technique. As expected, doubling the spatial frequency increased the detection threshold more for S-cone than for isoluminant L-M gratings. We then used fMRI to measure the cortical BOLD responses to the same two chromatic stimuli (S and L-M) at the same two spatial frequencies. Responses were measured in six visual areas (V1, V2, V3, V3a, hV4, TO1/2). We found a significant interaction between spatial frequency in V1, V2 and V4 suggesting that the behaviourally observed increase in contrast threshold for high spatial frequency S-cone stimuli is reflected in these retinotopic areas. Our measurements show that neural responses consistent with psychophysical behaviour in a colour detection task can be observed as early as primary visual cortex.

Improving Medical and Nurse Practitioner Student Confidence and Clinical Skill in Advance Care Plan Development: A Multidisciplinary Mentorship Model.

BACKGROUND: Advance care planning (ACP) is an integral aspect of patient-centered care, however medical (MD) and Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (AGACNP) students receive minimal education on how to facilitate ACP discussions and ultimately feel uncomfortable having these discussions with patients.1-4 The aim of this project was to increase MD and AGACNP students' perceived ability and confidence in leading ACP conversations through an ACP educational program called the Letter Project Pilot (LPP). METHODS: The LPP consisted of faculty-supervised interactions in the inpatient setting during which students were able to lead ACP discussions with patients by guiding them through an advance directive worksheet that was structured in the format of a letter. Student participants were recruited from the MD and AGACNP programs associated with the academic medical center. Patients were recruited from inpatient medicine and geriatrics units at the academic medical center. At the end of the 3-month pilot, a voluntary, anonymous REDCap survey was used to evaluate 2 primary outcomes of interest:1) the association of the LPP pilot on perceived ACP skills, and 2) the perceived impact of the LPP pilot on ACP in future practice. RESULTS: Students perceived that their experiences positively enhanced their current ACP skills and their ability to have ACP conversations in their future practice. CONCLUSION: The results support that the LPP is a scalable, cost-effective project that increases students' perceived ability and confidence in leading ACP conversations.

Advance Care Planning in Chronically Ill Patients With an Episodic Disease Trajectory in the Acute Care Setting: A Quality Improvement Project.

INTRODUCTION: Advance care planning (ACP) is a fluid discussion between patients and providers to define preferences for future medical care. In the acute care setting, ACP is limited due to lack of structured process for identifying persons who may benefit from ACP. This quality improvement (QI) project aimed to increase the frequency of ACP discussions and documentation of preferences by targeting geriatric patients with an episodic disease trajectory for ACP. METHODS: This project used an intervention and comparison group design to target English-speaking, geriatric adults at a large academic medical center with a diagnosis of NYHA class III/IV HF and/or GOLD criteria III/IV COPD for ACP discussions. The intervention group was compared to a group with a range of diagnoses who were approached in a non-systematic way. RESULTS: Thirteen (n = 13) participants completed all aspects of the QI project. Results showed a non-significant increase in the number of patients with a diagnosis of HF and/or COPD who participated in an ACP discussion when compared to the comparison group (n = 20, p = 0.131), as well as a non-significant increase in the number of ACP tools documented in the HER (53.8% compared to 30%) (x = 1.877, p = 0.171). CONCLUSION: While this project demonstrated non-significant statistical results in the incidence and documentation of an ACP tool, this project increased the number of ACP discussions had, which is clinically significant.

Growth hormone and targeted oncological agents: Are we stopping children with brain tumours from reaching their true height potential?

Children with low-grade gliomas have excellent long-term survival outcomes. The development of therapies targeted to the driver mutations along the Mitogen Activated Protein (MAP) kinase signalling pathway are providing long-term stability for many patients with these tumours. Given the frequency of these tumours residing within or near the suprasellar region, our patients commonly suffer from hormone deficiencies. In Australia, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme currently restricts growth hormone therapy to patients who are not being actively treated for cancer, including those receiving targeted therapies. This viewpoint hopes to facilitate an important discussion amongst our colleagues as to whether this should be changed to allow growth hormone to become available to children on chronic tumour suppressive therapy.

A pilot study of cystic fibrosis exacerbation response phenotypes reveals contrasting serum and sputum iron trends.

The cystic fibrosis (CF) community seeks to explain heterogeneous outcomes of pulmonary exacerbation (PEX) treatment. Serum and sputum inflammatory mediators may identify people with CF (PwCF) at risk for suboptimal responses. However, lack of an established association between response phenotypes and these mediators limits clinical application. In this pilot study, we prospectively characterized treatment response phenotypes by assessing health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) during PEX. We also measured lung function and iron-related biochemical parameters in serum and sputum. We classified subjects as sustained symptom-responders (SRs) or non-sustained symptom-responders (NSRs) based on the absence or presence, respectively, of worsened symptom scores after initial improvement. We used linear mixed models (LMMs) to determine whether trends in lung function, hematologic, serum, and sputum indices of inflammation differed between response cohorts. In 20 PwCF, we identified 10 SRs and 10 NSRs with no significant differences in lung function at PEX onset and treatment durations. SRs had better model-predicted trends in lung function than NSRs during PEX. Non-linear trends in serum and sputum iron levels significantly differed between SRs and NSRs. In adults with cystic fibrosis, PEX treatment response phenotypes may be correlated with distinctive trends in serum and sputum iron concentrations.

Improving paediatric advance care planning: Results of a learning needs analysis and simulation-based education programme.

AIM: To assess clinicians' experience, attitudes and confidence with advance care planning (ACP) at a quaternary paediatric referral centre using a learning-needs survey, and then apply this information to develop and examine the feasibility of simulation-based education for this topic. METHODS: An electronic learning-needs survey was distributed to medical, nursing and allied health clinicians from departments who provide primary care for children with life-limiting conditions. Results were incorporated into the design of a simulation-based education session which was piloted with the Royal Children's Hospital Oncology Department. RESULTS: A total of 157 learning-needs surveys were included in analysis, and included quantitative and qualitative responses from nursing, allied health, senior and junior medical staff from intensive care, general and subspecialty medical teams. Most (75.0%) participants had participated in ACP discussions previously. Only 40.1% of participants felt confident to assess appropriate timing of, and 45.2% felt adequately prepared to participate in ACP discussions. Barriers identified were both clinician and patient/parent related, including clinicians not knowing when to address issues (43.9%) or what to say (21.0%). Participants indicated that ACP discussions are most frequently initiated when death is clearly imminent. Following a pilot of simulation-based education with the oncology department, 90% of participants expressed confidence to participate in ACP discussions. CONCLUSIONS: Barriers to paediatric ACP, including lack of clinician training, continue to contribute to delayed conversations. Simulation-based education is a valuable and feasible educational tool that can increase clinicians' understanding and confidence in this area.

The Effects of Different Sources of Stuttering Disclosure on the Perceptions of a Child Who Stutters.

Purpose This study measured between-group differences in perceived speech skills and personality characteristics of a 12-year-old boy who stutters as a function of a factual stuttering disclosure statement, delivered by the boy who stutters, his "mother," or his "teacher." Method Two hundred seventeen college-aged adults were randomly assigned to one of four groups, including a control group (no stuttering disclosure) and three experimental groups (child disclosure, mother disclosure, and teacher disclosure). Participants in the control condition viewed a brief video of a 12-year-old boy who stutters. For the experimental conditions, participants viewed a brief factual stuttering disclosure video (delivered by the child, mother, or teacher), followed by the same minute-long video of a boy who stutters used in the control condition. Following the videos, participants completed surveys relative to their perception of the boy's speech skills and personality characteristics. Results Results support previous research citing benefits of stuttering disclosure. Significant between-group differences in both perceived speech skills and personality characteristics were observed when stuttering was disclosed by not only the child who stutters but also his teacher. When stuttering was disclosed by the mother, limited positive attitudinal differences were observed in speech skills; as a matter of fact, a number of personality characteristics were perceived more negatively as a function of stuttering disclosure by the mother. Conclusions While results were generally most positive when the boy disclosed his own stuttering, data from this study support the efficacy of verbal stuttering disclosure provided by a teacher as a means of improving perceptions associated with stuttering. Accordingly, data support the notion that children who stutter will experience an improved quality of life when taught effective self-disclosure strategies by both parents and professionals, and that professionals (but not necessarily parents) can effectively disclose their clients' stuttering during this mentorship and self-advocacy process.

Advance Care Planning in Chronically Ill Persons Diagnosed With Heart Failure or Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: An Integrative Review.

INTRODUCTION: Advance care planning (ACP) discussions help guide future medical care consistent with patient wishes. These discussions should be a part of routine care and should be readdressed frequently as a patient's medical condition changes. Limited literature exists supporting structured processes for identifying persons who may benefit from these conversations. The purpose of this integrative review was to understand whether targeting patients with episodic disease trajectories in the acute care setting will increase their willingness to participate in ACP discussions. METHODS: Using the Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence-Based Practice Model as a guideline, this integrative review focused on the research query "In the acute care setting, does targeting patients with heart failure or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease for ACP lead to increased willingness to participate in these discussions." Articles from 2009 to September 2019 were considered for review. RESULTS: Six articles met inclusion criteria for final analysis. Articles outside of the United States were excluded. Four themes emerged from the literature: (1) improved patient attitudes toward ACP, (2) effective communication surrounding care preferences, (3) strengthened connection between preferred and delivered care, and (4) increased patient involvement in ACP. CONCLUSION: Chronic diseases such as heart failure and COPD have a high symptom burden punctuated by exacerbations, making it difficult to know when introduction of ACP discussions would be most beneficial. Future research should focus on a deeper evaluation of when to introduce ACP conversations in this population and which ACP interventions are effective to facilitate these discussions.

Identifying Plasma Derived Extracellular Vesicle (EV) Contained Biomarkers in the Development of Chronic Neuropathic Pain.

Research into potentially novel biomarkers for chronic pain development is lacking. microRNAs (miRNAs) are attractive candidates as biomarkers due to their conservation across species, stability in liquid biopsies, and variation that corresponds to a pathologic state. miRNAs can be sorted into extracellular vesicles (EVs) within the cell and released from the site of injury. EVs transfer cargo molecules between cells thus affecting key intercellular signaling pathways. The focus of this study was to determine the plasma derived EV miRNA content in a chronic neuropathic pain rat model. This was accomplished by performing either spinal nerve ligation (SNL; n = 6) or sham (n = 6) surgery on anesthetized male Sprague-Dawley rats. Mechanosensitivity was assessed and plasma derived EV RNA was isolated at baseline (BL), day 3, and 15 postnerve injury. EV extracted small RNA was sequenced followed by differentially expressed (DE) miRNAs and gene target enrichment/signaling pathway analysis performed using R packages and TargetScan/Ingenuity pathway analysis (IPA), respectively. Seven of the DE miRNAs were validated by Reverse Transcription-quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR). The data indicated that SNL rats displayed a time-dependent threshold reduction in response to evoked stimuli from day 3 to day 15 postnerve injury. The data also revealed that 22 and 74 miRNAs at day 3 and 15, respectively, and 33 miRNAs at both day 3 and 15 were uniquely DE between the SNL and sham groups. The key findings from this proposal include (1) the majority of the DE EV miRNAs, which normally function to suppress inflammation, were downregulated, and (2) several of the plasma derived DE EV miRNAs reflect previously observed changes in the injured L5 nerve. The plasma derived DE EV miRNAs regulate processes important in the development and maintenance of neuropathic pain states and potentially serve as key regulators, biomarkers, and targets in the progression and treatment of chronic neuropathic pain. PERSPECTIVE: This article describes the DE miRNA content of plasma derived EVs, comparing neuropathic pain to normal conditions. This data indicates that EV miRNAs may be important in nociception and may also serve as biomarkers for chronic pain. These results encourage further research on EV miRNAs in chronic neuropathic pain sufferers.

The application of CRISPR-Cas for single species identification from environmental DNA.

We report the first application of CRISPR-Cas technology to single species detection from environmental DNA (eDNA). Organisms shed and excrete DNA into their environment such as in skin cells and faeces, referred to as environmental DNA (eDNA). Utilising eDNA allows noninvasive monitoring with increased specificity and sensitivity. Current methods primarily employ PCR-based techniques to detect a given species from eDNA samples, posing a logistical challenge for on-site monitoring and potential adaptation to biosensor devices. We have developed an alternative method; coupling isothermal amplification to a CRISPR-Cas12a detection system. This utilises the collateral cleavage activity of Cas12a, a ribonuclease guided by a highly specific single CRISPR RNA. We used the target species Salmo salar as a proof-of-concept test of the specificity of the assay among closely related species and to show the assay is successful at a single temperature of 37°C with signal detection at 535 nM. The specific assay, detects at attomolar sensitivity with rapid detection rates (<2.5 hr). This approach simplifies the challenge of building a biosensor device for rapid target species detection in the field and can be easily adapted to detect any species from eDNA samples from a variety of sources enhancing the capabilities of eDNA as a tool for monitoring biodiversity.

Altered Stool Microbiota of Infants with Cystic Fibrosis Shows a Reduction in Genera Associated with Immune Programming from Birth.

Previous work from our group indicated an association between the gastrointestinal microbiota of infants with cystic fibrosis (CF) and airway disease in this population. Here we report that stool microbiota of infants with CF demonstrates an altered but largely unchanging within-individual bacterial diversity (alpha diversity) over the first year of life, in contrast to the infants without CF (control cohort), which showed the expected increase in alpha diversity over the first year. The beta diversity, or between-sample diversity, of these two cohorts was significantly different over the first year of life and was statistically significantly associated with airway exacerbations, confirming our earlier findings. Compared with control infants, infants with CF had reduced levels of Bacteroides, a bacterial genus associated with immune modulation, as early as 6 weeks of life, and this significant reduction of Bacteroides spp. in the cohort with CF persisted over the entire first year of life. Only two other genera were significantly different across the first year of life: Roseburia was significantly reduced and Veillonella was significantly increased. Other genera showed differences between the two cohorts but only at selected time points. In vitro studies demonstrated that exposure of the apical face of polarized intestinal cell lines to Bacteroides species supernatants significantly reduced production of interleukin 8 (IL-8), suggesting a mechanism whereby changes in the intestinal microbiota could impact inflammation in CF. This work further establishes an association between gastrointestinal microbiota, inflammation, and airway disease in infants with CF and presents a potential opportunity for therapeutic interventions beginning in early life.IMPORTANCE There is growing evidence for a link between gastrointestinal bacterial communities and airway disease progression in CF. We demonstrate that infants with CF ≤1 year of age show a distinct stool microbiota versus that of control infants of a comparable age. We detected associations between the gut microbiome and airway exacerbation events in the cohort of infants with CF, and in vitro studies provided one possible mechanism for this observation. These data clarify that current therapeutics do not establish in infants with CF a gastrointestinal microbiota like that in healthy infants, and we suggest that interventions that direct the gastrointestinal microbiota closer to a healthy state may provide systemic benefits to these patients during a critical window of immune programming that might have implications for lifelong health.

Psychological interventions potentially useful for increasing conscientiousness.

Conscientiousness is commonly conceptualized as a personality trait that reflects tendencies to be disciplined, goal oriented, self-controlled, responsible to others, hardworking, orderly, and rule following. Higher levels of conscientiousness reliably predict a host of desirable life outcomes, including longevity and better health throughout the life span. Given the consistently positive relationship of conscientiousness to desirable behaviors and outcomes, there is considerable enthusiasm for researching interventions to improve conscientiousness. The goals of the current review are twofold: (a) to provide an overview of several existing cognitive-behavioral, metacognitive, and cognitive remediation interventions with the potential to influence conscientiousness and (b) to present several suggestions, related to sample selection, intervention components, and sources of support and motivation, for adapting these interventions to promote healthy aging in the general population. As research continues to progress, new psychological interventions may be developed to effectively target conscientiousness and related constructs, ultimately promoting desirable behaviors and outcomes associated with higher levels of this personality trait. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

A Retrospective Review of Patients With Acute Stroke With and Without Palliative Care Consultations.

Despite advances in stroke care, patients continue to incur significant disability, are at risk for future events, and are inconsistently comanaged with palliative care (PC) specialty teams. The purpose of this study was to review patients with stroke admitted to our institution, comparing patients with and without PC consultation. We retrospectively reviewed medical record data of all patients with stroke admitted to our neurosciences ICU (NICU) in July 2014 to June 2015 with and without PC consultation. Review focused on stroke type, patient demographics, median days to discharge and death, and posthospitalization discharge. Of 463 patients admitted to the NICU with a stroke diagnosis, 27% (125/463) had (PC) consultation. A higher percentage of the patients with PC consult presented with hemorrhagic stroke than those without PC consult (38% vs 21%, P < .001). Patients with PC consult had longer median days to discharge and death ( P < .001) and a higher percentage of mortality (32% vs 11%). Of the 301 patients without PC consult who discharged (89.1%), 36.5% discharged to inpatient rehab while 10% discharged to a skilled nursing facility. In comparison, of the patients with PC consultation who discharged alive (41.1%), 15.7% discharged to inpatient rehab whereas 39% discharged to skilled nursing ( P < .001). The uncertainty of which patients with stroke benefit most from specialty PC is highlighted in that although sicker patients are referred to PC, a substantial portion (41%) of these patients discharge alive, of which 39.2% discharged to skilled nursing. Future research should focus on which patients with stroke would benefit from specialty PC.

Use of bevacizumab as a single agent or in adjunct with traditional chemotherapy regimens in children with unresectable or progressive low-grade glioma.

In pediatric low-grade gliomas not amenable to complete resection, various chemotherapy regimens are the mainstream of treatment. An excellent overall survival of these patients makes justification of the intensification of chemotherapy difficult and calls for the development of new strategies. Bevacizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody directed against Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), has been successfully used in combination with irinotecan in a number of adult and pediatric studies and reports. Fifteen patients at median age of 7 years old (range 3 months to 15 years) were treated with bevacizumab in combination with conventional low-toxicity chemotherapy. The majority had chiasmatic/hypothalamic and midline tumors, seven had confirmed BRAF pathway alterations including neurofibromatosis type 1 (2). Fourteen patients had more than one progression and three had radiotherapy. No deaths were documented, PFS at 11 and 15 months was 71.5% ± 13.9% and 44.7% ± 17.6% respectively. At the end of follow-up 40% of patients has radiologically stable disease, three patients progressed shortly after completion of bevacizumab and two showed mixed response with progression of cystic component. Rapid visual improvement was seen in 6/8 patients, resolution of endocrine symptoms in 2/4 and motor function improvement in 4/6. No relation between histology or BRAF status and treatment response was observed. Treatment-limiting toxicities included grade 4 proteinuria (2) and hypertension (2) managed with cessation (1) and pausing of therapy plus antihypertensives (1). In conclusion, bevacizumab is well tolerated and appears most effective for rapid tumor control to preserve vision and improve morbidity.

Cannabinoids: emerging evidence in use and abuse.

Despite current legal and medical controversies surrounding cannabinoids, it is a fact that emergency departments are seeing an increasing number of patients presenting with symptoms associated with the use of these drugs. This review outlines the pathophysiology of cannabinoids, the potential clinical findings associated with their use, and the current evidence for best-practice management of patients who present to the emergency department with signs of acute intoxication and chronic use. Differences between natural and synthetic cannabinoids are discussed, along with the latest evidence for diagnosing and managing patients presenting with the intractable vomiting of cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome.Emerging treatments for cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome are presented, including hot water bathing, early haloperidol administration, and topical capsaicin, in addition to an update on the legal status of medical cannabinoid substances.

Clinical and palliative care outcomes for patients of poor performance status treated with antiprogrammed death-1 monoclonal antibodies for advanced melanoma.

BACKGROUND: Antiprogrammed death-1 antibodies (anti-PD1) have response rates of 40% in metastatic melanoma. Patients with poor performance status (PS) were excluded from clinical trials, yet use of anti-PD1 is widespread in clinical practice. Literature regarding clinical and palliative care outcomes in patients with poor PS treated with anti-PD1 is lacking. METHODS: Retrospective review of outcomes for all patients with advanced melanoma treated with anti-PD1 between 2012 and June 2015 at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, a tertiary specialist cancer center in Australia. RESULTS: Between 2012 and 2015, 91 patients received anti-PD1: median age 63, 65% males, 77% elevated LDH>1xULN (37/48 patients). Fifty-eight patients had baseline ECOG PS of 0-1 (64%), 24 patients ECOG PS 2-3 (26%) and ECOG PS was not recorded in nine patients (10%). Median overall survival (OS) for the ECOG PS 0-1 group was 19.5 months and 1.8 months for ECOG PS 2-3 (HR 5.5; 95% CI, 9.1-50.3; P = 0.0001). Tumor response was 23/58 (39%) in ECOG PS 0-1, 2/16 (12%) in ECOG PS 2 and 0/8 in ECOG PS 3. Toxicity did not differ between different groups. ECOG PS 2-3 patients were more likely to be treated and hospitalized within the last month of life compared to ECOG PS 0-1 patients, RR 1.75 (95% CI, 1.04-2.56, P = 0.019) and RR 1.73 (95% CI, 1.10-2.16, P = 0.009), respectively. ECOG PS 2-3 patients were more likely to die in an acute hospital RR 2.68 (95% CI, 1.17-6.51, P = 0.016). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with poor baseline PS have a significantly lower OS and reduced response to anti-PD1. Further quality of life and palliative care research is needed.