Felicity Evison

Cutaneous Lymphoma International Consortium Study of Outcome in Advanced Stages of Mycosis Fungoides and Sézary Syndrome: Effect of Specific Prognostic Markers on Survival and Development of a Prognostic Model

PURPOSE Advanced-stage mycosis fungoides (MF; stage IIB to IV) and Sézary syndrome (SS) are aggressive lymphomas with a median survival of 1 to 5 years. Clinical management is stage based; however, there is wide range of outcome within stages. Published prognostic studies in MF/SS have been single-center trials. Because of the rarity of MF/SS, only a large collaboration would power a study to identify independent prognostic markers. PATIENTS AND METHODS Literature review identified the following 10 candidate markers: stage, age, sex, cutaneous histologic features of folliculotropism, CD30 positivity, proliferation index, large-cell transformation, WBC/lymphocyte count, serum lactate dehydrogenase, and identical T-cell clone in blood and skin. Data were collected at specialist centers on patients diagnosed with advanced-stage MF/SS from 2007. Each parameter recorded at diagnosis was tested against overall survival (OS). RESULTS Staging data on 1,275 patients with advanced MF/SS from 29 international sites were included for survival analysis. The median OS was 63 months, with 2- and 5-year survival rates of 77% and 52%, respectively. The median OS for patients with stage IIB disease was 68 months, but patients diagnosed with stage III disease had slightly improved survival compared with patients with stage IIB, although patients diagnosed with stage IV disease had significantly worse survival (48 months for stage IVA and 33 months for stage IVB). Of the 10 variables tested, four (stage IV, age > 60 years, large-cell transformation, and increased lactate dehydrogenase) were independent prognostic markers for a worse survival. Combining these four factors in a prognostic index model identified the following three risk groups across stages with significantly different 5-year survival rates: low risk (68%), intermediate risk (44%), and high risk (28%). CONCLUSION To our knowledge, this study includes the largest cohort of patients with advanced-stage MF/SS and identifies markers with independent prognostic value, which, used together in a prognostic index, may be useful to stratify advanced-stage patients.

Role of fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET)-computed tomography (CT) in the staging of bladder cancer

To determine whether to use 18F‐fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) scans in the preoperative staging of bladder cancer (BC).

Removal of all ovarian tissue versus conserving ovarian tissue at time of hysterectomy in premenopausal patients with benign disease: study using routine data and data linkage

Objective To conduct a nationwide study of associations between removal of all ovarian tissue versus conservation of at least one ovary at the time of hysterectomy and important health outcomes (ischaemic heart disease, cancer, and all cause mortality). Study design and setting Retrospective analysis of the English Hospital Episode Statistics database linked to national registers of deprivation indices and of deaths. Participants 113 679 patients aged 35-45 who had had a hysterectomy for benign conditions between April 2004 and March 2014. Exposures Bilateral ovarian removal versus no removal or unilateral ovarian removal (ovarian conservation). Main outcome measures Hospital admissions for ischaemic heart disease, cancer, or attempted suicide; deaths, overall and from heart disease, cancer, or suicide. Statistical adjustments were made using Cox regression and propensity score matching for potential confounders. Results A third of patients had bilateral ovarian removal. Patients in the ovarian conservation group were less likely to be admitted for ischaemic heart disease after hysterectomy than were those in the bilateral removal group (adjusted hazard ratio 0.85, 95% confidence interval 0.77 to 0.93; P=0.001). They were also less likely to have a cancer related post-hysterectomy admission (adjusted hazard ratio 0.83, 0.78 to 0.89; P<0.001). A significant difference in all cause mortality was also seen: 0.60% (456/76 581) of patients with ovarian conservation compared with 1.01% (376/37 098) of patients with bilateral removal. Again, this difference in favour of ovarian conservation was significant (adjusted hazard ratio 0.64, 0.55 to 0.73; P<0.001). Fewer deaths related specifically to heart disease (adjusted hazard ratio 0.50, 0.28 to 0.90; P=0.02) and to cancer (0.54, 0.45 to 0.65; P<0.001) occurred in the ovarian conservation group than in the bilateral removal group. No significant difference between groups was found relating to suicide (attempted or completed). The results after propensity score matching were essentially unchanged. Conclusion Patients who had ovarian conservation had a significantly lower hazard of all cause mortality compared with those who had bilateral ovarian removal and also had lower death rates from ischaemic heart disease and cancer. Consistent with this observation, admissions to hospital for both ischaemic heart disease and cancer were also lower in the ovarian conservation group than in the bilateral removal group. Although removal of both ovaries protects against subsequent development of ovarian cancer, premenopausal women should be advised that this benefit comes at the cost of an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and of other (more prevalent) cancers and higher overall mortality.

Centralisation of radical cystectomies for bladder cancer in England, a decade on from the 'Improving Outcomes Guidance' : the case for super centralisation

To analyse the impact of centralisation of radical cystectomy (RC) provision for bladder cancer in England, on postoperative mortality, length of stay (LoS), complications and re‐intervention rates, from implementation of centralisation from 2003 until 2014. In 2002, UK policymakers introduced the ‘Improving Outcomes Guidance’ (IOG) for urological cancers after a global cancer surgery commission identified substantial shortcomings in provision of care of RCs. One key recommendation was centralisation of RCs to high‐output centres. No study has yet robustly analysed the changes since the introduction of the IOG, to assess a national healthcare system that has mature data on such institutional transformation.

Acute kidney injury and post-reperfusion syndrome in liver transplantation

In the past decades liver transplantation (LT) has become the treatment of choice for patients with end stage liver disease (ESLD). The chronic shortage of cadaveric organs for transplantation led to the utilization of a greater number of marginal donors such as older donors or donors after circulatory death (DCD). The improved survival of transplanted patients has increased the frequency of long-term complications, in particular chronic kidney disease (CKD). Acute kidney injury (AKI) post-LT has been recently recognized as an important risk factor for the occurrence of de novo CKD in the long-term outcome. The onset of AKI post-LT is multifactorial, with pre-LT risk factors involved, including higher Model for End-stage Liver Disease score, more sever ESLD and pre-existing renal dysfunction, either with intra-operative conditions, in particular ischaemia reperfusion injury responsible for post-reperfusion syndrome (PRS) that can influence recipient’s morbidity and mortality. Post-reperfusion syndrome-induced AKI is an important complication post-LT that characterizes kidney involvement caused by PRS with mechanisms not clearly understood and implication on graft and patient survival. Since pre-LT risk factors may influence intra-operative events responsible for PRS-induced AKI, we aim to consider all the relevant aspects involved in PRS-induced AKI in the setting of LT and to identify all studies that better clarified the specific mechanisms linking PRS and AKI. A PubMed search was conducted using the terms liver transplantation AND acute kidney injury; liver transplantation AND post-reperfusion syndrome; acute kidney injury AND post-reperfusion syndrome; acute kidney injury AND DCD AND liver transplantation. Five hundred seventy four articles were retrieved on PubMed search. Results were limited to title/abstract of English-language articles published between 2000 and 2015. Twenty-three studies were identified that specifically evaluated incidence, risk factors and outcome for patients developing PRS-induced AKI in liver transplantation. In order to identify intra-operative risk factors/mechanisms specifically involved in PRS-induced AKI, avoiding confounding factors, we have limited our study to “acute kidney injury AND DCD AND liver transplantation”. Accordingly, three out of five studies were selected for our purpose.

Outcomes After Weekend Admission for Deceased Donor Kidney Transplantation: A Population Cohort Study

Background Outcomes for weekend hospital admissions or emergency procedures have become a topical and controversial issue for the UK National Health Service. Deceased-donor kidney transplantation is frequently performed at weekends and evidence for its relative safety are lacking. Methods We undertook a population-based cohort analysis, obtaining data from every deceased-donor kidney-alone transplant procedure performed in England between January 2003 and December 2014. Data were extracted from Hospital Episode Statistics, with linkage to the Office for National Statistics to create a comprehensive dataset for mortality, rehospitalization and kidney allograft failure/rejection for weekend (defined as Friday to Sunday) versus weekday transplantation. Results Data were extracted for 12 902 deceased-donor kidney alone transplants performed in all 19 English transplant centres between 2003 and 2014. Based on initial &khgr;2 tests, no significant difference was observed when comparing weekend versus weekday transplantation in 30-day (0.9% vs 1.2%; P = 0.126) or 1-year mortality (3.7% vs 3.8%; P = 0.788), 1-year kidney allograft failure/rejection (16.7% vs 16.8%; P = 0.897), delayed graft function (29.97% vs 29.36%; P = 0.457) or 1-year risk for readmission (63.5% vs 63.3%; P = 0.774). In a Cox regression model, transplantation at the weekend was not associated with any increased risk for 1-year mortality, rehospitalization, or allograft failure/rejection. Conclusions Deceased-donor kidney transplants performed at the weekend do not have inferior short-term outcomes on the basis of 1-year risk for rehospitalization, mortality, or allograft failure/rejection. Our data are reassuring for patients and professionals alike, but may also provide speculative insight into models of care that attenuate the weekend effect.

Long-term requirement for pacemaker implantation after cardiac valve replacement surgery

BACKGROUND The risk of permanent pacemaker implantation (PPI) after cardiac valve replacement surgery is thought to be highest in the postoperative period. Long-term risks are uncertain. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to determine rates and timing of PPI after cardiac valve replacement surgery. METHODS We compared PPI rates of patients undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR; n = 111,674), mitral valve replacement (MVR; n = 18,402), AVR + MVR (n = 5166), AVR + MVR + tricuspid valve replacement (TVR; n = 114), or coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG) without valve replacement (n = 249,742). RESULTS Over a period of 14 years (median 3.9 years; interquartile range 1.1-7.4 years), cumulative PPI rates were 3.07-7.6 times higher (P < .001 for all) than after CABG, depending on the number of valves replaced. PPI risks after AVR were higher that those after MVR (hazard ratio [HR] 1.22; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.16-1.28), AVR + MVR (HR 1.52; 95% CI 1.40-1.65), and AVR + MVR + TVR (HR 2.22; 95% CI 1.40-3.53), independent of known confounders. Cumulative PPI hazard rates from the postoperative period to 10 years after surgery increased after AVR (4.22%-14.4%), MVR (4.38%-15.6%), AVR + MVR (5.59%-18.3%), and AVR + MVR + TVR (7.89%-25.9%) (P < .001 for all). Age, male sex, emergency admission, and preexisting diabetes mellitus, renal impairment, and heart failure were independent predictors of PPI (P < .001 for all). CONCLUSION Valve replacement surgery was associated with a long-term risk of PPI. This was particularly high after dual and triple valve replacements. Age, male sex, emergency admission, and preexisting diabetes mellitus, heart failure, and renal impairment were independent predictors of PPI.

A Comparison of Mortality Following Emergency Laparotomy Between Populations From New York State and England

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to compare mortality following emergency laparotomy between populations from New York State and England. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Mortality following emergency surgery is a key quality improvement metric in both the United States and UK. Comparison of the all-cause 30-day mortality following emergency laparotomy between populations from New York State and England might identify factors that could improve care. METHODS Patient demographics, in-hospital, and 30-day outcomes data were extracted from Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) in England and the New York Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System (SPARCS) administrative databases for all patients older than 18 years undergoing laparotomy for emergency open bowel surgery between April 2009 and March 2014. The primary outcome measure was all-cause mortality within 30 days of the index laparotomy. Mixed-effects logistic regression was performed to model independent demographic variables against mortality. A one-to-one propensity score matched dataset was created to compare the odd ratios of mortality between the 2 populations. RESULTS Overall, 137,869 patient records, 85,286 (61.9%) from England and 52,583 (38.1%) from New York State, were extracted. Crude 30-day mortality for patients was significantly higher in the England compared with New York State [11,604 (13.6%) vs 3633 (6.9%) patients, P < 0.001]. Patients undergoing emergency laparotomy in England had significantly higher risk of mortality compared with those in New York State (odds ratio 2.35, confidence interval 2.24-2.46, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION The risk of mortality at 30 days is higher following emergency laparotomy in England as compared with New York State despite similar patient groups.

Influence of day of surgery on mortality following elective colorectal resections.

The aim of this study was to investigate whether the increased mortality previously identified for surgery performed on Fridays was apparent following major elective colorectal resections and how this might be affected by case mix.

A population-based study of the impact of dialysis on mortality in multiple myeloma

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