Journal of the National Cancer Institute
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J. Natl. Cancer Inst. · Apr 2005
Review Meta AnalysisRecombinant human erythropoietin and overall survival in cancer patients: results of a comprehensive meta-analysis.
Anemia associated with cancer and cancer therapy is an important clinical and economic factor in the treatment of malignant diseases. ⋯ Erythropoietin treatment may reduce the risk for blood transfusions and improve hematologic response in cancer patients. However, our favorable survival outcome is in contrast to two large (N = 351 and 939) recently published randomized controlled trials in which erythropoietin-treated patients had statistically significantly worse survival than untreated patients. Possible reasons for the disparity with our results include differences in study population and design, higher target hemoglobin levels and higher risk of thromboembolic complications, and concerns that erythropoietin may stimulate tumor growth.
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J. Natl. Cancer Inst. · Apr 2005
Sequence variants in Toll-like receptor gene cluster (TLR6-TLR1-TLR10) and prostate cancer risk.
Chronic inflammation plays an important role in several human cancers and may be involved in the etiology of prostate cancer. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are important in the innate immune response to pathogens and in cross-talk between innate immunity and adaptive immunity. Our previous finding of an association of TLR4 gene sequence variants and prostate cancer risk provides evidence for a role of TLRs in prostate cancer. In this study, we investigated whether sequence variants in the TLR6-TLR1-TLR10 gene cluster, residing within a 54-kb region on 4p14, were associated with prostate cancer risk. ⋯ The observed multiple associated SNPs at the TLR6-TLR1-TLR10 gene cluster were dependent and suggest the presence of a founder prostate cancer risk variant on this haplotype background. The TLR6-TLR1-TLR10 gene cluster may play a role in prostate cancer risk, although further functional studies are needed to pinpoint the disease-associated variants in this gene cluster.
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J. Natl. Cancer Inst. · Mar 2005
Meta AnalysisRisk of cardiac death after adjuvant radiotherapy for breast cancer.
Women with breast cancer who are treated with adjuvant radiation have a decreased risk of local recurrence but an increased risk of mortality from ischemic heart disease. Patients with left-sided breast tumors receive a higher dose of radiation to the heart than patients with right-sided tumors. Because radiation techniques have improved over time, we investigated whether the risk of death from ischemic heart disease after adjuvant breast radiotherapy decreased over time. ⋯ Risk of death from ischemic heart disease associated with radiation for breast cancer has substantially decreased over time.
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J. Natl. Cancer Inst. · Mar 2005
Ethnicity and breast cancer: factors influencing differences in incidence and outcome.
The lower breast cancer incidence in minority women and the higher breast cancer mortality in African American women than in white women are largely unexplained. The influence of breast cancer risk factors on these differences has received little attention. ⋯ Differences in breast cancer incidence rates between most racial/ethnic groups were largely explained by risk factor distribution except in African Americans. However, breast cancers in African American women more commonly had characteristics of poor prognosis, which may contribute to their increased mortality after diagnosis.