Pathology and imaging of hepatocellular neoplasms: are findings from Asian populations applicable to non-Asian groups?
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BACKGROUND: The aim of this trial was to compare the outcome achieved with neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy to that achieved with radiotherapy alone for patients with locoregionally advanced undifferentiated or poorly differentiated nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) meeting one of the following criteria: Ho's T3 disease, Ho's N2-N3 disease, or lymph node size > or =3 cm. METHODS: Between September 1989 and August 1993, 334 patients were enrolled in the study, with equal numbers of patients randomized to the neoadjuvant chemotherapy arm (CT arm) and the radiotherapy arm (RT arm). Neoadjuvant chemotherapy consisting of 2-3 cycles of cisplatin (60 mg/m2 on Day 1) and epirubicin (110 mg/m2 on Day 1) followed by radiotherapy was given to the CT arm. For radiotherapy, a dose of 66-74 gray (Gy) (median, 71 Gy) was delivered to the primary tumor and 60-76 Gy (median, 66 Gy) to the neck. Two hundred eighty-six eligible patients completed the treatment and were evaluable for treatment response (134 in the CT arm, 152 in the RT arm). All patients were included in the survival analysis based on the intention to treat. The median follow-up was 30 months for the whole cohort and 41 months for the surviving patients. RESULTS: Analysis of the 334 patients based on the intention to treat showed no significant difference in relapse free survival (RFS) or overall survival (OS) between the 2 treatment arms (3-year RFS rate: 48% in the CT arm vs. 42% in the RT arm, P = 0.45; 3-year OS rate: 78% vs. 71%, P = 0.57). In an efficacy analysis based on only the 286 evaluable patients, a trend of improved RFS favoring the CT arm was observed (3-year RFS rate: 58% vs. 46%, P = 0.053), with again no significant difference in OS (3-year OS rate: 80% vs. 72%, P = 0.21). In the subgroup of 49 patients with bulky neck lymph nodes >6 cm, improved RFS (3-year RFS rate: 63% vs. 28%, P = 0.026) and OS (3-year OS rate: 73% vs. 37%, P = 0.057) were observed, favoring the CT arm. CONCLUSIONS: This multicenter randomized study did not demonstrate any benefit with the addition of cisplatin-epirubicin neoadjuvant chemotherapy for patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma; therefore routine administration of neoadjuvant chemotherapy to this target group cannot be recommended. Although the overall incidence of recurrence was reduced with the addition of chemotherapy in the efficacy analysis, the overall survival was not affected. A more effective chemotherapy regimen, the selection of an appropriate target group, and the use of an alternative strategy for combining chemoradiotherapy should be explored in future trials.
OBJECTIVE: Investigate the prevalence of low serum albumin levels (<3.2 g/L) and decreased arm muscle area percentiles and arm fat area percentiles in Asian patients compared with non-Asian patients treated with dialysis. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study in which serum albumin and anthropometric measurements were averaged over 6 months, and compared between patients of Asian ethnicity and patients of non-Asian ethnicity. SETTING: Eight outpatient dialysis facilities. SUBJECTS: Ninety-seven Asian and 513 non-Asian patients treated with hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis. RESULTS: Height, weight, and body mass index were significantly lower in Asians compared with non-Asians (P <.001). Protein catabolic rate was significantly greater in Asian (1.17 +/- 0.29 g/kg) compared with non-Asian (0.97 +/- 0.28 g/kg) women (P <.001). Asian men (3.30 g/dL) and women (3. 26 g/dL) had lower serum albumin compared with non-Asian men (3.35 g/dL; P =.057) and women (3.34 g/dL; P =.040). The proportion of patients with serum albumin <3.2 g/dL was greater for both Asian women (35%) (P <.040) and men (30%) than non-Asian women (25%) and men (20%). After adjusting for important covariates, serum albumin remained significantly different between Asian and non-Asian patients (P <.05). The proportion below the fifth percentile for arm muscle area was significantly greater for both Asian men (54%) and women (19%) compared with non-Asian men (24%) and women (8%). Proportions of Asian and non-Asian women below the 10th and 5th percentile for arm fat area were similar. However, Asian men (54%) had a significantly greater fat depletion than non-Asian men (26%). CONCLUSION: Mean serum albumin was significantly lower in Asian patients on dialysis than in non-Asians. Muscle stores were depleted in Asian men and women compared with non-Asians, and fat stores were depleted in Asian men. Based on this study, Asian dialysis patients would seem to be at higher nutritional risk than non-Asians, particularly Asian men. Further research is needed to assess factors that affect serum albumin and mortality in Asian dialysis patients, and standards need to be developed to further assess anthropometric measurements in this population.
OBJECTIVES: To compare the prevalence of asthma, hay fever and atopy in Asian immigrants in Melbourne with that in Australian-born non-Asians and Australian-born Asians, and to investigate the association of these conditions with atopic status, length of stay in Australia and IgE levels in Asian immigrants. DESIGN: We performed a cross-sectional study by telephone interviews, using standard questionnaire items on respiratory and allergic symptoms. A random sample of 636 recent Asian immigrants of ethnic Chinese origin, 109 Australian-born Asians and 424 Australian-born non-Asians were selected from the 1991 Melbourne Telephone Directory, using a presumptive surname list. Skin tests to determine atopic status were performed on 269 Asian immigrants and 167 of these also had serum levels of total and specific IgE estimated. RESULTS: In the under 20 years age group the prevalence of wheeze or asthma ever was higher in Australian-born non-Asians and Australian-born Asians than in Asian immigrants (P < 0.001), and the prevalence of hay fever was higher in Asian immigrants and Australian-born Asians than in Australian-born non-Asians. In those older than 20 years, hay fever was almost twice as common in Asian immigrants as in Australian-born non-Asians (P < 0.001 for 20-40 years age group; P < 0.01 for > 40 years). The prevalence of hay fever and, to a lesser degree, asthma in Asian immigrants increased significantly with length of stay in Australia, independent of age at arrival, sex and atopic status (trend test: P < 0.001 for hay fever; P = 0.05 for asthma). Atopy was more common in Asian immigrants and Australian-born Asians than in Australian-born non-Asians (P < 0.001) and was very strongly associated with both hay fever and asthma, irrespective of length of stay. Pollen and mite sensitivities were more common in Asian subjects (twice as common for Asian-born and 1.5 times for Australian-born) than non-Asian subjects (P < 0.01). Among Asian immigrants, elevated total IgE level (> 100 IU/mL) was strongly associated with a history of hay fever (P < 0.01) and wheeze or asthma ever (P < 0.05), atopy (P < 0.001) and the presence of specific IgE antibodies to grass pollen, dust mite, cockroach and Ascaris antigens (P < 0.05 for all). CONCLUSION: We found substantial differences in the prevalence of asthma, hay fever and atopy between Asian immigrants, Australian-born Asians and non-Asians. The prevalence of hay fever and asthma in Asian immigrants was strongly associated with length of stay in Australia, suggesting that environmental factors are important in the pathogenesis of these diseases.
Asians in the United Kingdom surpass the already high mortality from coronary artery disease seen in Caucasians. In the present study, the angiographic features of consecutive series of 87 Caucasians, 83 British Asian and 30 Asian patients in India with coronary artery disease were assessed. Blood samples at fasting and after ingestion of 75 g of dextrose were taken to assess the extent of diabetes. Fasting blood samples were also taken for measurement of cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride. Coronary angiograms were scored by two independent observers who were blinded to the patients' ethnic origin. The Asians were younger than the Caucasians, but did not differ in their body mass index, systolic or diastolic blood pressure or in cigarette consumption. Lipids were similar apart from Indian Asians having lower cholesterol than British Asians, and Caucasians having lower triglyceride than Asians. There were more diabetics in Asians than in Caucasians. Asians in Britain wait longer than Caucasians and Asians in India from onset of angina to undergoing coronary angiography. The presence of triple vessel disease was not significantly different (P = 0.19) in the three groups, that is, 38%, 43% and 27% in Caucasians, British Asians and Indian Asians, respectively. The geometric mean coronary score was 26.3 (C.I. 22.6-30.6), 25.3 (C.I. 21.8-29.4), and 25.2 (C.I. 19.6-32.5) in Caucasians, British Asians and Indian Asians, respectively. This difference was not significant (P = 0.92). Total number of lesions more than three were similar, that is, in 25% Caucasian, 41% British Asian and 40% Indian Asian patients (P < 0.10). British Asians had less proximal disease (P = 0.0002), and Indian Asians less distal disease (P = 0.003) compared to Caucasians. Non-discrete (long) lesions were more prevalent in Asians than Caucasians (P = 0.0005) The total number of lesions more than three in diabetic Asians was significantly more than in the non-diabetic, 71% versus 31% in British Asians (P = 0.002) and 90% versus 15% in Indian Asians (P= 0.0001). The relationship between diabetes and long lesions in both British and Indian Asians was highly significant (P < 0.00001 and P < 0.001, respectively). Thus severity and extent of coronary disease is no different in Asians as compared to Caucasians. Diabetes is perhaps responsible for the more diffuse disease seen in Asians.
It has been suggested that Asian patients have reduced survival after liver transplantation because of greater recurrence of hepatitis B virus (HBV). We analyzed the outcome of Asian and non-Asian patients receiving transplants for chronic hepatitis B between May 1988 and March 1994. Baseline Child-Pugh score and United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) status, HBV recurrence, and survival were compared between the two groups. All but one patient received variable doses of hepatitis B immune globulin. Mean follow-up of surviving patients was 28 months (range, 3-71 months). Fifteen Asians and 20 non-Asians underwent transplantation. Six of 15 Asians (40%) and 4 of 20 non-Asians (20%) died during the study period. Although Asians had a lower 1-year survival than non-Asians (59% for Asians and 94% for non-Asians), the 5-year actuarial survival was not different (59% and 57% for Asians and non-Asians, respectively). The causes of death in 5 of 6 Asians were factors other than recurrent hepatitis B, and 4 of 5 deaths occurred within 60 days after transplantation. Eighty percent of Asian patients were Child-Pugh class C at referral, compared with 50% of non-Asians, and Asians were more likely to be status 1 at transplantation (40% vs. 10%; P < .05). By contrast, all four deaths in non-Asians occurred late and were secondary to recurrent HBV infection. Of patients surviving more than 60 days after transplantation, 7 of 11 Asians (64%) and 10 of 20 non-Asians (50%) developed recurrent HBV infection (NS). Late mortality attributable to HBV recurrence was lower but not significantly different in Asians (1 of 7 [14%]) than in non-Asians (4 of 10 [40%]). In summary, HBV recurrence and late HBV-related mortality in Asians and non-Asians is similar after liver transplantation for chronic hepatitis B. Late referral and more advanced chronic liver disease at the time of transplantation probably account for the lower 1-year survival of Asians after liver transplantation.
Although diabetes is more prevalent among Asian people, Asians with diabetes are anecdotally believed to receive a lesser standard of care, compared with non-Asians. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether Asian patients with diabetes in Sandwell receive an inferior standard of care in primary care compared with non-Asians. Standards were based on tests carried out, in compliance with Sandwell's Diabetes Local Clinical Guideline. Data were collected from records of 774 patients with diabetes in 14 Sandwell practices. Proportions were recorded of Asian patients receiving specified tests, compared with non-Asians. No significant differences were observed between Asians and non-Asians for checks on feet, eyes, body mass index (BMI), smoking or blood pressure. Significantly fewer Asians received an HbA1c check. The mean HbA1c value was higher in Asians. More Asian patients received a urine test than non-Asians. Asian patients generally had lower BMI values. When stratified by practice however, no significant differences between Asians and non-Asians were observed for any single check. No significant differences were found between the overall proportions of checks carried out between Asians and non-Asians. A wide variation was observed in the proportion of patients who had individual checks done, between practices. There were no systematic differences in the standard of care given to Asian and non-Asian patients. Practices varied a great deal in the extent to which they carry out, and record, checks on patients with diabetes. A possible explanation for the reason that no summary result showed a significant difference was due to the confounding effect of the practice: that general practices tended to treat all their patients--Asian and non-Asian--similarly. Nevertheless, general practitioners should therefore take steps to ensure that all patients with diabetes have these checks at recommended intervals.