Browsing by Subject "ADULT SURVIVORS"
Now showing items 1-8 of 8
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(2021)Background: The majority of childhood cancer survivors (CCSs) have been exposed to cardiotoxic treatments and often present with modifiable cardiovascular risk factors. Our aim was to evaluate the value of left ventricular (LV) longitudinal strain for increasing the sensitivity of cardiac dysfunction detection among CCSs. Methods: We combined two national cohorts: neuroblastoma and other childhood cancer survivors treated with anthracyclines. The final data consisted of 90 long-term CCSs exposed to anthracyclines and/or high-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem cell rescue and followed up for > 5 years and their controls (n = 86). LV longitudinal strain was assessed with speckle tracking (Qlab) and LV ejection fraction (EF) by three-dimensional echocardiography (3DE). Results: Of the CCSs, 11% (10/90) had abnormal LV longitudinal strain (i.e., < -17.5%); of those, 70% (7/10) had normal 3DE LV EF. Multivariable linear model analysis demonstrated that follow-up time (p = 0.027), sex (p = 0.020), and BMI (p = 0.002) were significantly associated with LV longitudinal strain. Conversely, cardiac risk group, hypertension, age, cumulative anthracycline dose or exposure to chest radiation were not. Conclusion: LV longitudinal strain is a more sensitive method than LV EF for the detection of cardiac dysfunction among CCSs. Therefore, LV longitudinal strain should be added to the screening panel, especially for those with modifiable cardiovascular risk factors.
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(2016)Purpose: Childhood cancer survivors are at risk for developing metabolic syndrome (MetS), which subsequently leads to cardiovascular morbidity and excess mortality. Our aim was to investigate the purchases of medications associated with MetS among 7551 early onset cancer patients compared to siblings. Methods: Our nationwide Finnish population-based registry study analyzed the drug purchase of medication among early onset cancer patients diagnosed with cancer below the age of 35 years between 1994 and 2004 compared to siblings by linkage to the drug purchase registry, allowing for a maximal follow-up of 18 years. Results: The hazard ratios (HRs) for purchasing antihypertensives and diabetes drugs were higher after both childhood (HR 4.6, 95% CI 3.1-7.0; HR 3.0, 95% 1.5-6.1) and young adulthood (YA) cancer (HR 1.5, 95% CI 1.3-1.8; HR 1.6, 95% CI 1.1-2.2) compared to siblings. The HRs for purchasing lipid-lowering drugs were elevated both after childhood (HR 4.3,95% CI 0.9-19.5) and YA cancer (HR 1.6, 95% CI 1.04-2.5), but only reached significance in YA cancer patients. Among specific cancer diagnosis groups, highest HR values for antihypertensives were found in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) (HR 6.1, 95% CI 3.7-10.3) and bone tumor (HR 4.3, 95% CI 1.9-9.4), and YA ALL (HR 4.8, 95% CI 3.1-7.0) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML) (HR 3.4, 95% CI 2.5-5.1) patients. Moreover, childhood ALL (HR 6.3, 95% CI 2.7-14.8), AML (HR 7.6, 95% CI 1.9-24.5) and central nervous system (CNS)-tumor (HR 3.5, 95% CI 1.3-9.2) and YA ALL (HR 3.7, 95% CI 1.2-9.5) patients showed the strongest likelihood of purchasing diabetes drugs compared to siblings. Conclusion: The purchase of medications associated with MetS was increased after early onset cancer and highly dependent on the age at cancer diagnosis and the cancer diagnosis. Prevention strategies are imperative for reducing potentially life-threatening cardiovascular complications after early onset cancer. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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(2018)Purpose Long-term side effects of the treatments are common in survivors of irradiated pediatric brain tumors. Ionizing radiation in combination with surgery and chemotherapy during childhood may reduce vertebral height and bone mineral density (BMD), and cause growth failure. The aim of this study was to evaluate the late consequences of tumor treatments on vertebrae in survivors of childhood brain tumors. Methods 72 adult survivors (mean age 27.8 years, standard deviation 6.7) of irradiated childhood brain tumor were studied by spinal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for vertebral abnormalities from the national cohort of Finland. Patients were treated in five university hospitals in Finland between the years 1970 and 2008. Subject height and weight were measured and body mass index (BMI) was calculated. The morphology and height/ depth ratio of the vertebrae in the middle of the kyphotic thoracic curvature (Th8) and lumbar lordosis (L3) were examined. Vertebrae were analyzed by Genant's semiquantative (SQ) method and spinal deformity index (SDI) was calculated. BMD was measured by using dual X-ray absorptiometry. Results 4.2% (3/72) of the patients had undiagnosed asymptomatic vertebral fracture and 5.6% (4/72) of patients had radiation- induced decreased vertebral body height. Male patients had flatter vertebrae compared with females. Patient age at the time of irradiation, BMI and irradiation area correlated to vertebral morphology differentially in males and females. BMD had no association with the vertebral shape. Patients who had received craniospinal irradiation were shorter than the general population. Conclusion Childhood brain tumor survivors had a high number of vertebral abnormalities in young adulthood. Irradiation was associated with abnormal vertebral morphology and compromised final height. Male gender may predispose vertebrae to the side effects of irradiation.
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(2016)Background: Childhood cancer has been associated with long-term risk of urinary tract diseases, but risk patterns remain to be comprehensively investigated. We analysed the lifetime risk of urinary tract diseases in survivors of childhood cancer in the Nordic countries. Methods: We identified 32,519 one-year survivors of childhood cancer diagnosed since the 1940s and 1950s in the five Nordic cancer registries and selected 211,156 population comparisons of a corresponding age, sex, and country of residence from the national population registries. To obtain information on all first-time hospitalizations for a urinary tract disease, we linked all study subjects to the national hospital registry of each country. Relative risks (RRs) and absolute excess risks (AERs) and associated 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for urinary tract diseases among cancer survivors were calculated with the appropriate morbidity rates among comparisons as reference. Results: We observed 1645 childhood cancer survivors ever hospitalized for urinary tract disease yielding an RR of 2.5 (95% CI 2.4-2.7) and an AER of 229 (95% CI 210-248) per 100,000 person-years. The cumulative risk at age 60 was 22% in cancer survivors and 10% in comparisons. Infections of the urinary system and chronic kidney disease showed the highest excess risks, whereas survivors of neuroblastoma, hepatic and renal tumours experienced the highest RRs. Conclusion: Survivors of childhood cancer had an excess risk of urinary tract diseases and for most diseases the risk remained elevated throughout life. The highest risks occurred following therapy of childhood abdominal tumours. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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(2020)There are many known endocrine complications after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) in childhood including increased risk of biochemical hypogonadism. However, little is known about sexuality in adulthood following childhood HSCT. In this multicenter study, sexual functions and possible risk factors were assessed comprehensively in two national cohorts (Finland and Denmark) of male adult survivors of childhood HSCT. Compared to a healthy control group (n= 56), HSCT survivors (n= 97) reported less sexual fantasies, poorer orgasms, lower sexual activity with a partner and reduced satisfaction with their sex life, even in the presence of normal erectile functions and a similar frequency of autoerotic acts. Of the HSCT survivors, 35% were cohabitating/married and 66% were sexually active. Risk factors for poorer self-reported sexual functions were partner status (not cohabitating with a partner), depressive symptoms, CNS and testicular irradiation. Sexual dysfunction increased by age in the HSCT group with a pace comparable to that of the control group. However, because of the lower baseline level of sexual functions in the HSCT group, they will reach the level of clinically significant dysfunction at a younger age. Hence, male survivors of childhood HSCT should be interviewed in detail about their sexual health beyond erectile functions.
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(2019)While treatment for testicular cancer (TC) has become standardized after the 1980s with an associated significant improvement in patient survival, this has been accompanied by an increased risk of second primary cancers (SPCs). Patients were identified from the Swedish Cancer Registry spanning the years from 1980 to 2015, including 8788 individuals with primary TC and their SPCs. Relative risks (RRs) for SPC were calculated using the generalized Poisson regression model. SPCs were diagnosed in 9.4% of patients with TC and half of them were late onset cancers not common in the population in their 40s. Overall RR of SPCs (excluding second TC) was 1.30 (95%CI: 1.20-1.40), including high risks for seven solid cancers, non-Hodgkin lymphoma and leukemia. Second TC was the most common SPC and the RR of 17.19 (95%CI: 14.89-19.85) was the highest recorded. Cancers known to be fatal as first primary cancers were also fatal as SPC in TC patients. Survival at 30 years of follow-up was approximately 80% for TC patients without SPC but it decreased to 40% for patients with SPC. The unexpected finding that half of the identified SPCs were typical late onset cancers in the middle-aged population raises concerns that therapy may facilitate premature aging. The risks of SPC are clinically important for the long-term management of TC patients and the high-mortality calls for a future management strategy.
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(2019)Background Childhood cancer survivors have been reported to be vulnerable to psychiatric morbidities and risky health behavior. Suicides, substance abuse, accidents, and violence as causes of death can be regarded as an extreme manifestation of risky health behavior. In the current study, the authors studied the risk of suicide and other risky health behavior-related deaths among childhood cancer patients in Denmark, Finland, and Sweden. Methods Using linkage between national cancer, population, and cause-of-death registries, the authors investigated the causes of death in 29,285 patients diagnosed with cancer before age 20 years between 1971 and 2009 compared with a cohort of 146,282 age-matched, sex-matched, and country-matched population comparisons. Rate ratios (RRs) with 95% CIs were estimated using Poisson regression models, adjusting for demographic factors. Results The overall risk of dying of a risky health behavior was found to be increased among childhood cancer patients (RR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.06-1.47) when compared with population comparisons. The elevated risk was statistically significant among patients with central nervous system tumors (RR, 1.49; 95% CI, 1.08-2.05) and patients diagnosed at ages 5 to 9 years and 15 to 19 years (RR, 1.50 [95% CI, 1.01-2.24] and RR, 1.31 [95% CI, 1.03-1.67], respectively). The overall risk of suicide was found to be increased (RR, 1.37; 95% CI, 1.02-1.83), and statistically significantly so when patients were diagnosed between ages 15 and 19 years (RR, 1.61; 95% CI, 1.09-2.39). Conclusions Childhood cancer patients appear to have an increased risk of risky health behavior-related causes of death compared with the general population. The results of the current study suggest the importance of integrating psychosocial support into the follow-up care of these individuals.
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TEDDI : radiotherapy delivery in deep inspiration for pediatric patients - a NOPHO feasibility study (2018)Background: Radiotherapy (RT) delivered in deep inspiration breath-hold (DIBH) is a simple technique, in which changes in patient anatomy can significantly reduce the irradiation of the organs at risk (OARs) surrounding the treatment target. DIBH is routinely used in the treatment of some adult patients to diminish the risk of late effects; however, no formalized studies have addressed the potential benefit of DIBH in children. Methods/Design: TEDDI is a multicenter, non-randomized, feasibility study. The study investigates the dosimetric benefit of RT delivered in DIBH compared to free breathing (FB) in pediatric patients. Also, the study aims to establish the compliance to DIBH and to determine the accuracy and reproducibility in a pediatric setting. Pediatric patients (aged 5-17 years) with a tumor in the mediastinum or upper abdomen with the possible need of RT will be included in the study. Written informed consent is obligatory. Prior to any treatment, patients will undergo a DIBH training session followed by a diagnostic PET/CT-or CT-staging scan in both DIBH and FB. If the patient proceeds to RT, a RT planning CT scan will be performed in both DIBH and FB and two separate treatment plans will be calculated. The superior treatment plan, i.e. equal target coverage and lowest overall dose to the OARs, will be chosen for treatment. Patient comfort will be assessed daily by questionnaires and by adherence to the respiratory management procedure. Discussion: RT in DIBH is expected to diminish irradiation of the OARs surrounding the treatment target and thereby reduce the risk of late effects in childhood cancer survivors.
