Anupam Kumar Asthana

Carcinoma of the gallbladder presenting as scalp tumour

Carcinoma of the gallbladder is characterized by rapid tumour growth associated with lymphatic and local tumour invasion. The peritoneum, GIT and lungs are common sites of seeding. Distant metastasis to bone rarely occurs. Here we document a case of silent gallbladder carcinoma presenting as scalp tumour with improved survival.

Clinical significance of cumulative biological effective dose and overall treatment time in the treatment of carcinoma cervix

The purpose of this retrospective study is to report the radiotherapy treatment response of, and complications in, patients with cervical cancer on the basis of cumulative biologic effective dose (BED) and overall treatment time (OTT). Sixty-four (stage II - 35/64; stage III - 29/64) patients of cervical cancer were treated with combination of external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) and low dose rate intracavitary brachytherapy (ICBT). The cumulative BED was calculated at Point A (BED10); and bladder, rectal reference points (BED2,5) using the linear-quadratic BED equations. The local control (LC) rate and 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate in patients of stage II were comparable for BED10 <84.5 and BED10 >84.5 but were much higher for BED10 >84.5 than BED10 <84.5 (P< 0.01) in stage III patients. In the stage II patients, The LC rate and 5-year DFS rate were comparable for OTT <50 days and for OTT >50 days but were much higher in stage III patients with OTT < 50 than OTT >50 days (P< 0.001). It was also observed that patients who received BED2.5 <105 had lesser rectal (P< 0.001) and bladder complications than BED2.5 >105. Higher rectal complication-free survival (CFSR) rate, bladder complication-free survival (CFSB) rate and all-type late complication-free survival rate were observed in patients who received BED2.5 < 105 than BED2.5 >105. A balanced, optimal and justified radiotherapy treatment schedule to deliver higher BED10 (>84.5) and lower BED2.5 (< 105) in lesser OTT (< 50 days) is essential in carcinoma cervix to expect a better treatment outcome in all respects.

Audit of cancer patients from eastern Uttar Pradesh (UP), India: a university hospital based two year retrospective analysis.

BACKGROUND A retrospective analysis of all cancer patients attending the radiotherapy outpatient department (OPD) of a single unit during the period of January 2005 till December 2006 was conducted to know the geographical distribution and incidence of the most common cancers, their stage of presentation, treatment compliance among the patients and follow-up. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 4,484 patients were registered in the Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University during the period of January 2005- December 2006; of which 1,975 registered in an individual unit were included for the retrospective analysis. RESULTS Most of the patients hailed from the various districts of UP and Bihar. Females outnumbered males with a ratio of 1.33:1. Females mostly belonged to the age group of 40-59 years; whilst males were a decade older. Major cancer sites in females were cervix and breast followed by head and neck. Leading cancer sites in males were head and neck, brain, bone, soft tissue and lung. Most of the cases presented in advanced stage of disease (74%). Squamous cell carcinoma was the most common histopathology (56%). A significant proportion of patients defaulted after undergoing preliminary investigations (16%). Only 53.9% of females and 58.5% of males took treatment out of which 68% and 63% completed the prescribed treatment. Compliance with follow-up was poor. CONCLUSIONS The outcome of this study will significantly help us to define region specific strategies needed for cancer management in eastern Uttar Pradesh.

Pleomorphic Adenoma of the Parotid Gland Metastasizing to the Scapular Region : A Case Report

BACKGROUND Metastasizing pleomorphic adenoma (MPA) is a rare, incompletely understood enigmatic entity having the histologic appearance of benign pleomorphic adenoma and clinically malignant behavior. We report a case of MPA of the parotid gland that metastasized to the scapular region 6 years after the appearance of the primary lesion in the left parotid gland. CASE A 35-year-old woman presented with a palpable soft to firm mass of 3-cm diameter in the left scapular region that was slightly mobile over the underlying structures and a small swelling at the operated site of the parotid region. The patient had a prior history of surgical removal of recurrent pleomorphic adenoma of the left parotid salivary gland. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) smears of both sites demonstrated the 3 components (i.e., stromal, mesenchymal and epithelial) of benign pleomorphic adenoma with benign features. The diagnosis was MPA. CONCLUSION The appearance of a mass lesion or subcutaneous nodule with a prior history of pleomorphic adenoma should alert for the possibilities of metastatic carcinoma, metastatic carcinosarcoma and MPA. With well-established cytomorphology of pleomorphic adenoma, FNAC remains the investigation method of choice for metastatic workup of a case of locally recurrent pleomorphic adenoma.

Development of an electronic radiation oncology patient information management system

The quality of patient care is critically influenced by the availability of accurate information and its efficient management. Radiation oncology consists of many information components, for example there may be information related to the patient (e.g., profile, disease site, stage, etc.), to people (radiation oncologists, radiological physicists, technologists, etc.), and to equipment (diagnostic, planning, treatment, etc.). These different data must be integrated. A comprehensive information management system is essential for efficient storage and retrieval of the enormous amounts of information. A radiation therapy patient information system (RTPIS) has been developed using open source software. PHP and JAVA script was used as the programming languages, MySQL as the database, and HTML and CSF as the design tool. This system utilizes typical web browsing technology using a WAMP5 server. Any user having a unique user ID and password can access this RTPIS. The user ID and password is issued separately to each individual according to the persons job responsibilities and accountability, so that users will be able to only access data that is related to their job responsibilities. With this system authentic users will be able to use a simple web browsing procedure to gain instant access. All types of users in the radiation oncology department should find it user-friendly. The maintenance of the system will not require large human resources or space. The file storage and retrieval process would be be satisfactory, unique, uniform, and easily accessible with adequate data protection. There will be very little possibility of unauthorized handling with this system. There will also be minimal risk of loss or accidental destruction of information.

Experience of wireless local area network in a radiation oncology department

The aim of this work is to develop a wireless local area network (LAN) between different types of users (Radiation Oncologists, Radiological Physicists, Radiation Technologists, etc) for efficient patient data management and to made easy the availability of information (chair side) to improve the quality of patient care in Radiation Oncology department. We have used mobile workstations (Laptops) and stationary workstations, all equipped with wireless-fidelity (Wi-Fi) access. Wireless standard 802.11g (as recommended by Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE, Piscataway, NJ) has been used. The wireless networking was configured with the Service Set Identifier (SSID), Media Access Control (MAC) address filtering, and Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) network securities. We are successfully using this wireless network in sharing the indigenously developed patient information management software. The proper selection of the hardware and the software combined with a secure wireless LAN setup will lead to a more efficient and productive radiation oncology department.

Workload modeling for teletherapy unit

AIMS This study aims to derive a radiotherapy workload model using a prospectively collected dataset of patient and treatment information from a teletherapy treatment unit. MATERIALS AND METHODS Information about all individual radiotherapy treatment was collected for two weeks from the Phoenix unit in our department. This information included diagnosis, treatment site, treatment time, fields per fraction, technique, use of blocks and wedges. Data were collected for two weeks (10 working days) in January 2008. During this time, 45 patients were treated with 450 fractions of external beam radiotherapy in Phoenix unit. RESULTS The mean fraction duration, irradiation time and setup time were 9.55 minutes, 1.84 minutes and 7.66 minutes respectively. A mathematical workload model was derived using the average fraction duration time, total irradiation time and setup time of different types of treatment. A simple software program (Workload Calculation Chart) was also constructed in Microsoft Excel using the derived algorithm. The model based software program was tested and applied for one year and found that it can be used effectively to describe workload of teletherapy unit. CONCLUSION Proposed methodology for workload modeling of teletherapy unit and the workload calculation software is very effective to quantitatively plan/calculate the optimal workload which will satisfy both the patient care administrator and radiation therapy technologists.

Subject Index Vol. 52, 2008

Analytical and Quantitative Cytology and Histology: Volume 29, Number 6 (December 2007), 2008; 52:114–116 Analytical and Quantitative Cytology and Histology: Volume 30, Number 1 (February 2008), 2008;52: 255–258 Analytical and Quantitative Cytology and Histology: Volume 30, Number 2 (April 2008), 2008;52: 373–376 Analytical and Quantitative Cytology and Histology: Volume 30, Number 3 (June 2008), 2008;52:505– 508 Analytical and Quantitative Cytology and Histology: Volume 30, Number 4 (August 2008), 2008;52: 631–634 Analytical and Quantitative Cytology and Histology: Volume 30, Number 5 (October 2008), 2008;52: 736–738 Acid-fast bacilli Role of Modified Bleach Method in Staining of Acid-Fast Bacilli in Lymph Node Aspirates. (Gangane et al), 2008;52:325–328 Adenocarcinoma CK5/6 in Effusions: No Difference Between Mesothelioma and Pulmonary and Nonpulmonary Adenocarcinoma. (Dejmek), 2008;52: 579–583 Cytology of Pseudomyxoma Peritonei Associated with Well-Differentiated Appendiceal Adenocarcinoma. (Siddaraju et al), 2008;52:391–394 (Letter) Diagnosis of Linitis Plastica–Type Gastric Adenocarcinoma by Endoscopic Ultrasound-Guided Fine Needle Aspiration: A Case Report. (Carter et al), 2008;52:725–728 Improved Identification of Malignant Cells in Serous Effusions Using a Small, Robust Panel of Antibodies on Paraffin-Embedded Cell Suspensions. (Grefte et al), 2008;52:35–44 Adenocarcinoma, clear cell Clear Cell Carcinoma in a Background of Endometriosis: Case Report of a Finding in a Midline Abdominal Scar 5 Years After a Total Abdominal Hysterectomy. (Rust et al), 2008;52: 475–480 Adenoma Cytologic Features of Pulmonary Alveolar Adenoma. (González et al), 2008;52:739–740 (Letter) Adenoma, microcytic Preoperative Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology Diagnosis of Microcystic Adenoma of the Pancreas: Fact or Fiction? A Report of 2 Cases. (Fitzhugh et al), 2008;52:240–246 Adenoma, pleomorphic Chondromyxoid Fibroma of the Mandible: A Diagnostic Pitfall on Aspiration Cytology of Parotid. (Daneshbod and Khademi), 2008;52:636–638 (Letter) Fine Needle Aspiration Biopsy of Pleomorphic Adenoma and Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma of the Lacrimal Gland. (Siddaraju et al), 2008;52:515– 517 (Letter) Adenoma, pleomorphic metastazing Pleomorphic Adenoma of the Parotid Gland Metastasizing to the Scapular Region: A Case Report. (Ghosh et al), 2008;52:733–735 Adnexa Cytologic Features of Primary Malignant Tumors of Skin and Adnexae. (Prayaga et al), 2008;52: 702–709 Adolescent Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology of Breast Masses in Children and Adolescents: Experience with 1,404 Aspirates. (Kapila et al), 2008;52:681–686 Adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma Diagnostic Considerations in Prolymphocytes in Pleural Fluid: A Case Report. (Anand et al), 2008; 52:251–254 Africa Into Africa: Cytology for One World. (Kaminsky), 2008;52:399 Alcian blue Cytology of Pseudomyxoma Peritonei Associated with Well-Differentiated Appendiceal Adenocarcinoma. (Siddaraju et al), 2008;52:391–394 (Letter) Analytical and Quantitative Cytology and Histology

Contributors Index Vol. 52, 2008

Abascal-Agorreta M (see Vera-Alvarez et al). 2008;52: 264–266 (Letter) Abdali K (see Shamsi et al). 2008;52:187–190 Abdul-Karim FW (see Farag et al). 2008;52:294–296 Abnet CC (see Pan et al). 2008;52:14–23 Abraham EK (see Ramadas et al). 2008;52:396–398 (Letter) Adán A (see Saro et al). 2008;52:87–90 Afarid M (see Mostaghni et al). 2008;52:597–601 Aisner S (see Fitzhugh et al). 2008;52:240–246 Akbulut M, Zekioglu O, Kapkac M, Erhan Y, Ozdemir N. Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology of Glycogen-Rich Clear Cell Carcinoma of the Breast: Review of 37 Cases with Histologic Correlation. 2008;52:65–71 Akbulut M, Zekioglu O, Ozdemir N, Kapkac M. Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology of Mammary Carcinoma with Choriocarcinomatous Features: A Report of 2 Cases. 2008;52:99–104 Aktepe F (see Tokyol et al). 2008;52:235–239 Al-Abbadi M (see Vella et al). 2008;52:377–378 (Letter) Al-Abbadi MA (see Feng et al). 2008;52:434–438 Al-Agha OM, Khader SN, Cajigas A, Blank W, Grafstein N, Seymour AW. Fine Needle Aspiration of Urethral Recurrence of Urothelial Carcinoma After Radical Cystectomy Presenting as a Perineal Mass: A Case Report. 2008;52:94–98 Al-Ayadhy B (see Kapila et al). 2008;52:681–686 Al-Mosawy FA (see Kapila et al). 2008;52:681–686 Al-Sebeih K (see Palmieri et al). 2008;52:691–696 Aledavud A (see Daneshbod et al). 2008;52:387–389 (Letter) Ales A (see Terčelj et al). 2008;52:584–590 Almeida JD, Lima CF, Brandão AAH, Cabral LAG. Evaluation of Staining Methods for Cytologic Diagnosis of Oral Lesions. 2008;52:697–701 Altay M (see Demir et al). 2008;52:309–312 Alvarez-Santín C. Endometrial Adenocarcinoma: Prevention and Early Diagnosis. 2008;52:748 (Book Review) Amadori PL (see Bonzanini et al). 2008;52:541–548 Amano S (see Komatsu et al). 2008;52:591–596 Ambaye AB (see Sherman et al). 2008;52:659–664 Anand M, Sharma S, Kumar R, Raina V. Diagnostic Considerations in Prolymphocytes in Pleural Fluid: A Case Report. 2008;52:251–254 Ang L-C (see Keith et al). 2008;52:260–263 (Letter) Angeloni C (see Maccallini et al). 2008;52:568–574 Anshu (see Gabhane et al). 2008;52:354–356 Anshu (see Gangane et al). 2008;52:325–328 Anshu (see Gangane et al). 2008;52:619–622 Antonelli C (see Maccallini et al). 2008;52:568–574 Apice G (see Fulciniti et al). 2008;52:612–618 Arabi MA (see Daneshbod et al). 2008;52:268–270 (Letter) Argüelles M (see González et al). 2008;52:490–494 Armbruster C, Bernhardt K, Setinek U. Pulmonary Tumorlet: A Case Report of a Diagnostic Pitfall in Cytology. 2008;52:223–227 Aron M (see Mathur et al). 2008;52:740–743 (Letter) Arora VK (see Mathur et al). 2008;52:740–743 (Letter) Arundhati (see Garbyal et al). 2008;52:204–206 Arundhati (see Ghosh et al). 2008;52:733–735 Ashfaq R (see Patino et al). 2008;52:718–720 Ashraf MJ (see Azarpira et al). 2008;52:220–222 Ashraf MJ, Azarpira N, Vasei M, Tavakol MH, Khademi B. Thyroid Paraganglioma: Diagnostic Pitfall in Fine Needle Aspiration Biopsy. 2008;52: 745–747 (Letter) Assiri AH (see Mokhtar et al). 2008;52:169–177 Asthana AK (see Ghosh et al). 2008;52:733–735 Athanassiadou P, Grapsa D. Value of Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography–Guided Brushings in Preoperative Assessment of Pancreaticobiliary Strictures: What’s New? 2008;52:24–34 Azarpira N (see Ashraf et al). 2008;52:745–747 (Letter) Azarpira N, Ashraf MJ, Shishegar M. Fine Needle Aspiration Findings in Angiofollicular Hyperplasia with Eosinophilia: A Case Report. 2008;52:220–222

Single agent methotrexate chemotherapy for head and neck cancers

Advanced head and neck cancer have poor prognosis inspite of aggressive local therapy. There is need to reduce bulk of the disease before definitive treatment. Fortyfour patients with locoregionally advanced squamous cell carcinoma were administered 4–6 weekly injections of Methotrexate 50mg intravenously before definitive radiotherapy. Six of fortyfour (13.64%) showed complete response, and 19/44 (43.18%) partial response to chemotherapy with overall response in 25/44 (56.82%) No response was seen in 36.36% and 6.81% had progression. 65.9% primary site and 61.5% secondary site showed response. In stage-Ill, 92.31% and in stage TV, 41.94% response was obtained. Patients with oropharyngeal tumours showed 66.7% response compared to 55% for oral and 44.4% for laryngeal tumour patients. Response was better in patients with good performance status and well differentiated tumours. Reactions during chemotherapy were minimal and tolerable. No hospital admission was necessary for this low cost, well tolerated chemotherapy schedule showing results comparable to costlier single agent or combination chemotherapy.