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    <recommendedItem id="20100101_19_459"
                     title="Murtha Dead at 77"
                     score="0.013"
                     href="http://www.medpagetoday.com/Washington-Watch/Washington-Watch/tb/18388?impressionId=1265753708407"
                     
      &lt;p&gt;Representative John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), 77, long-time chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, died yesterday afternoon from complications following a planned laparoscopic cholecystectomy, according to a statement from the congressman&apos;s office.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;He had been admitted to the intensive care unit at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington on Jan. 31, days after surgeons at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., accidentally nicked his intestine during the operation, according to a report in &lt;em&gt;The Washington Post&lt;/em&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In that same report, Rep. Bob Brady (D-Pa.), a close friend of Murtha&apos;s, said the congressman developed an infection and fever.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Citing a request for privacy from the Murtha family and patient privacy laws, a spokesperson for the National Naval Medical Center declined to provide information on the operation.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In a statement, Virginia Hospital Center said Murtha died &quot;despite aggressive critical care interventions.&quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;According to the American College of Surgeons, risks of laparoscopic cholecystectomy include bleeding, infection, injury to the bile duct, liver injury, numbness, hernia at the incision site, anesthesia complications, and puncture of the intestine.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Death is extremely rare in healthy individuals, occurring in no more than one per 1,000 patients, according to the college.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;A 2009 Cochrane Review comparing laparoscopic versus open cholecystectomy for patients with symptomatic cholecystolithiasis found no difference in mortality in 38 trials. No patients died in the laparoscopic group and only 0.09% died in the open group.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Severe complications were reported in 2.2% of the laparoscopic patients and 6.8% of the open patients.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Murtha had recently become the longest serving member of Congress in Pennsylvania state history.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;First elected in 1974, Murtha, a former Marine, was the first Vietnam War combat veteran to serve in Congress, and he served as an advocate for the military throughout his career. He was also a prominent critic of the Iraq War.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Murtha is survived by his wife, Joyce, and three children.&lt;/p&gt;

    </recommendedItem>
    <recommendedItem id="20100101_19_402"
                     title="Minimally Invasive Surgery Takes Toll on MDs, Poll Shows (CME/CE)"
                     score="0.011"
                     href="http://www.medpagetoday.com/Surgery/GeneralSurgery/tb/18306?impressionId=1265753708407"
                     
      &lt;p&gt;Four out of five surgeons agree: Laparoscopic procedures cause substantial discomfort and pain for the surgeons who perform them.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;More than 80% of surgeons completing an online questionnaire reported pain or stiffness in the hands, neck, back, or legs after performing minimally invasive surgeries, according to Adrian Park, MD, of the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, and colleagues.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;For most symptoms, the strongest predictor was high case volume, the researchers reported online in the &lt;em&gt;Journal of the American College of Surgeons&lt;/em&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Park and colleagues warned of &quot;an impending epidemic&quot; of occupational injuries among clinicians specializing in minimally invasive surgeries, as such procedures become more common.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&quot;Now, especially in the face of an impending shortage of general surgeons in the U.S., the last thing that we as a society can afford is surgical careers shortened by occupationally related symptoms and conditions,&quot; they asserted.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The researchers recommended more research into the ergonomics of laparoscopic surgery, as well as better implementation of existing guidelines meant to reduce injuries associated with the awkward postures and long surgical times often required with these procedures.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&quot;That research must more clearly and emphatically define the ergonomic impact of minimally invasive surgery on the practicing surgeon (then set about improving it) is now all too painfully clear,&quot; Park and colleagues concluded.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The researchers invited some 2,000 board-certified members of the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (of which Park is currently secretary) to complete the online survey.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The response rate was 14.4%, with 317 surgeons identified as actively and regularly involved in laparoscopic practices participating.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Of these, 272 reported experiencing physical symptoms or discomfort that they believed were the result of performing minimally invasive procedures.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This rate of reported symptoms is markedly higher than that found in earlier studies and surveys, in which the prevalences were in the range of 15% to 60%, Park and colleagues noted.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;They speculated that the current survey, as the most recent, may better reflect the accumulation of injuries over time as surgeons&apos; careers doing minimally invasive surgery have grown longer.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Fortunately, they found, symptoms were generally not persistent. Only 10.8% of respondents indicated that pain or discomfort continued beyond the immediate aftermath of surgery.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The largest class of symptoms were those occurring during surgery, with 20.8% of surgeons saying they had symptoms only during procedures and 27.8% reporting symptoms both during and immediately after surgery.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Another 22.4% indicated that symptoms occurred only immediately after surgery and not persistently.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;About 15% chose &quot;nothing bothers me&quot; in the questionnaire.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Age appeared to be a factor in the incidence of some complaints, although the pattern was not what might be expected. In particular, hand pain was most common among surgeons younger than 40 and in those older than 60, whereas it was least frequent among surgeons in their 50s.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Park and colleagues did not report specific hazard ratios or correlation coefficients for case volume as a predictor of symptoms, but they indicated that it was associated with complaints more strongly than other factors such as age, career duration, gender, and height.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;About three-quarters of respondents attributed symptoms to instrument design. Some 40% indicated that operating room table setup and the display monitor location were also contributing factors.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;On the other hand, more than 180 respondents said they had slight or no awareness of published recommendations on surgical ergonomics, such as guidelines published last year in the journal &lt;em&gt;Surgical Endoscopy&lt;/em&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Among those reporting any level of knowledge about the guidelines, only 60% indicated that they had applied it in their practices, Park and colleagues indicated. But more than 90% of surgeons who said they had high awareness of ergonomic guidelines reported putting it to use.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The researchers said future studies should address other issues not covered adequately in the survey, such as the effects of different monitor positions and instrument designs, as well as whether surgeon discomfort during laparoscopic surgery leads to adverse patient outcomes.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Park and colleagues also suggested that similar research be conducted on open surgery.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;div style=&quot;float:left;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;border-color:#8dabbc;font-family:arial;font-size:12px;background-color:#DBE9F2;padding:5px;&quot;&gt;&lt;p&gt;No external funding for the study was reported.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;No potential conflicts of interest were reported.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;clear:both;&quot;&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
    </recommendedItem>
    <recommendedItem id="20100101_19_398"
                     title="ASCO GI: Gene Test, Nodes Predict Colon CA Recurrence Risk (CME/CE)"
                     score="0.011"
                     href="http://www.medpagetoday.com/MeetingCoverage/ASCOGI/tb/18301?impressionId=1265753708407"
                     
      &lt;p&gt;ORLANDO  --  An extended nodal examination and gene array test show promise for identifying patients at high risk of colorectal cancer recurrence in stage II disease, researchers reported at the Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Across the range of recurrence scores, examination of at least 12 nodes was associated with about a 5% absolute decrease in the three-year risk of recurrence in resected stage II colon cancers, compared with the same recurrence score and examination of fewer nodes.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Noting limitations of other tests and biomarkers developed to evaluate recurrence risk, the gene expression-derived recurrence score &quot;has a real chance to make its way into the clinical decision algorithm,&quot; said David Kerr, MD, of the University of Oxford in England.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Both recurrence score and number of nodes examined were independent predictors of recurrence risk, but investigators found no association or interaction between the two parameters of risk assessment.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&quot;The test gives us more information about individual patients about the likelihood of the cancer returning,&quot; said Kerr, who was an investigator in the study. &quot;I think the quality of the science underpinning it, the size of the sample, and the compelling statistics all combine to make this a potential winner.&quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Another study reported at the meeting showed few tumor-related genetic characteristics to distinguish stage II colon cancer from stage III.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Both studies involved use a 12-gene assay (Oncotype DX) validated for predicting recurrence risk in stage II colon cancer. Investigators in the QUASAR validation study used data from the trial to evaluate the prognostic value of nodal assessment combined with other parameters, including the 12-gene assay.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) clinical guidelines for stage II colon cancer include number of nodes examined as a prognostic factor, Richard Gray, PhD, of the University of Birmingham in England, and colleagues noted in a poster presentation.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Records for 657 stage II patients randomized to surgery alone showed that the median number of nodes examined was 10, including fewer than six nodes in 19% of patients and &amp;#8805;12 nodes in 37%. Risk of recurrence was more closely associated with examination of fewer than eight nodes versus more (HR 1.77, &lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt;&amp;lt;0.001) than with a cutoff point of 12 nodes (HR 1.38, &lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt;=0.065). &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;More nodes were examined in later than earlier years, the investigators found.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In a model that included recurrence score derived from the gene assay and the 12-node threshold recommended by NCCN, both factors proved to be independent predictors of recurrence risk (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt;=0.01, &lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt;=0.05). Similar results emerged from models that incorporated mismatch repair (or microsatellite instability) and T stage.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Across the range of recurrence scores, examination of &amp;#8805;12 nodes was associated with a 3% to 7% lower risk of recurrence compared with examination of fewer nodes (about 5% overall). The investigators concluded that both parameters should be included in assessment of recurrence risk after surgery for stage II colon cancer.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The second study examined the 12-gene assay&apos;s ability to distinguish stage II from stage III colon cancer. Investigators evaluated the assay, pathologic markers, and expression of 375 different genes in 634 patients with stage II disease and 844 with stage III colon cancer.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The data showed minimal differences in gene expression between the two stages of colon cancer.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Five of the 375 genes differed significantly in their expression in stage II versus stage III cancer (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt;&amp;lt;0.05). Two tumor characteristics differed by stage, as stage II colon cancer was more likely to be mismatch repair-deficient (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt;=0.04) and have mucinous histology (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt;=0.007).&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The data also showed significant interaction of grade and stage (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt;=0.005), and borderline significance for interactions of stage with T-stage, mismatch repair, and mucinous histology, reflecting prognostic value in stage II but not stage III disease.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Overall, investigators in this second study found a &quot;striking similarity between stages for the recurrence score and the vast majority of genes analyzed.&quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;div style=&quot;float:left;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;border-color:#8dabbc;font-family:arial;font-size:12px;background-color:#DBE9F2;padding:5px;&quot;&gt;&lt;p&gt;The studies were supported by Genomic Health.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Investigators in the studies included employees of Genomic Health.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;clear:both;&quot;&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
    </recommendedItem>
    <recommendedItem id="20100101_19_307"
                     title="Good Results in Poor-Risk Rectal Cancer (CME/CE)"
                     score="0.004"
                     href="http://www.medpagetoday.com/HematologyOncology/ColonCancer/tb/18169?impressionId=1265753708407"
                     
      &lt;p&gt;Patients with high-risk rectal cancer had high response and three-year survival rates on a regimen of preoperative chemotherapy, followed by standard chemoradiation and then surgical resection, according to results of a multicenter study.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Three-fourths of patients had objective responses to neoadjuvant chemotherapy, increasing to 89% after chemoradiation, researchers reported online in &lt;em&gt;The Lancet Oncology&lt;/em&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Additionally, 97% of patients who underwent surgery had microscopically clear surgical margins. At three years, 83% of patients remained alive, including almost 70% who were progression free.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&quot;Intensification of systemic therapy with neoadjuvant combination chemotherapy before standard treatment is feasible in poor-risk, potentially operable rectal cancer, with acceptable safety and promising long-term outcomes,&quot; David Cunningham, MD, of the Royal Marsden Hospital in Sutton, England, and co-authors concluded.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&quot;Future development of this multidisciplinary treatment strategy in randomized trials is warranted.&quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Although surgery remains the primary and potentially curative therapy for localized rectal cancer, local recurrence rates as high as 40% have been reported with conventional resection.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The introduction of standardized surgery and total mesorectal excision reduced local recurrence rates to less than 10%, which has been associated with improved survival, the authors noted.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Preoperative radiotherapy and then chemoradiation further reduced the risk of local recurrence, but did not improve overall survival compared with surgery alone.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Combination chemotherapy has led to higher response rates and progression-free survival compared with monotherapy for patients with advanced rectal cancer, the authors continued. Adjuvant chemotherapy containing oxaliplatin (Eloxatin) also has improved outcomes in resected colon cancer.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Given that oxaliplatin-fluoropyrimidine combinations have become a preferred standard, investigators designed a clinical trial of high-risk rectal cancer to investigate preoperative treatment with oxaliplatin and capecitabine (Xeloda).&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;A previous report involving the first 77 patients enrolled in the trial showed substantial tumor regression, rapid improvement in symptoms, and a high rate of clear surgical margins (&lt;em&gt;J Clin Oncol&lt;/em&gt; 2006; 24: 668-74).&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Nine treatment-related cardiac events occurred in eight of the 77 patients, prompting a protocol amendment to exclude patients with a recent history of clinically significant cardiac problems.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The updated results comprised 105 patients, and only one cardiac event occurred after the change in eligibility criteria, the authors wrote.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;All of the patients had MRI-defined, poor-risk but nonmetastatic rectal cancer. Patients received four cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy over 12 weeks, followed by chemoradiotherapy consisting of a total radiation dose of 54 Gy administered over six weeks, plus daily capecitabine.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;After total mesorectal excision, patients received 12 weeks of adjuvant capecitabine.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The primary endpoint was pathologic complete response, and median follow-up was 55 months.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Radiologically confirmed response rates were 74% after neoadjuvant chemotherapy and 89% after chemoradiation. Of 97 patients who had surgery, 93 had microscopically clear margins, and 21 of 105 patients had pathologic complete responses.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Three-year progression-free and overall survival were 68% and 83%, respectively. Among patients who had surgery, three-year, relapse-free survival was 74%.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&quot;Our findings show the feasibility of neoadjuvant chemotherapy with capecitabine and oxaliplatin before chemoradiotherapy and total mesorectal excision, which accord with the initial results of this study,&quot; the authors declared.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&quot;High radiological response rates to preoperative treatment were recorded, and the number of pathological complete responses surpassed the prespecified number needed to meet the primary objective of this trial.&quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;div style=&quot;float:left;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;border-color:#8dabbc;font-family:arial;font-size:12px;background-color:#DBE9F2;padding:5px;&quot;&gt;&lt;p&gt;The study was supported by England&apos;s National Health Service and sanofi-aventis.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Cunningham and co-author Niall Tebbutt disclosed relationships with Roche and sanofi-aventis.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Co-author Ian Chau disclosed relationships with Roche and sanofi-aventis.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Co-author Yu Jo Chua disclosed relationships with Roche and sanofi-aventis.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Co-author Gina Brown disclosed a relationship with sanofi-aventis.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;clear:both;&quot;&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
    </recommendedItem>
    <recommendedItem id="20100101_19_304"
                     title="&apos;Virtual&apos; Colon Scans Effective in Seniors (CME/CE)"
                     score="0.004"
                     href="http://www.medpagetoday.com/HematologyOncology/ColonCancer/tb/18164?impressionId=1265753708407"
                     
      Patients 65 and older are as suitable as younger individuals for CT colonography, said researchers conducting a large retrospective study.&lt;br&gt;
&lt;br&gt;Advanced neoplasias were detected with CT colonography  --  often called &quot;virtual colonoscopy&quot;  --  in older patients at more than double the rate in the general screening population, reported David H. Kim, MD, of the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wis., and colleagues in the February issue of &lt;em&gt;Radiology&lt;/em&gt;.&lt;br&gt;
&lt;br&gt;They found that 7.6% of older patients had advanced neoplasias, compared with 3.2% of all patients screened in the university&apos;s clinic (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt;&amp;lt;0.001).&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;On the basis of this and other findings in 577 individuals 65 and older versus the entire group of 3,120 patients undergoing the procedure, Kim and colleagues concluded that &quot;CT colonography performance is maintained in an older cohort.&quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&quot;Overall, the observations from this clinical experience confirm that CT colonography may be a valuable screening modality in the older population,&quot; they wrote.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;On the other hand, the study did not address several objections raised by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in its decision last year to deny Medicare coverage for the procedure. (See &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.medpagetoday.com/PublicHealthPolicy/Medicare/14186&quot; mce_href=&quot;http://www.medpagetoday.com/PublicHealthPolicy/Medicare/14186&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Medicare Finalizes Denial of Virtual Colonoscopy Coverage&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;CMS had pointed to relatively low sensitivity of CT colonography compared with optical colonoscopy in prospective trials, especially for small lesions.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The agency also determined that CT colonography increased the costs of positive findings, since abnormalities in the CT scans must be confirmed with optical colonoscopy. In addition, CMS said there was no evidence to support claims that the less invasive imaging procedure would be more acceptable to patients and therefore would raise screening rates.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The data analyzed by Kim and colleagues did not allow for calculations of false-negative rates or predictive values of positive or negative findings. Nor did the researchers report cost information.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Mean age of their older cohort was 69.2 (SD 3.8). The oldest was 79.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The researchers reported that 15.3% of the older patients were referred for optical colonoscopy on the basis of the CT results, compared with 7.9% of the overall screening group.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Less than 4% of positive findings were determined to be false with the optical procedure (3.6% for polyps 6 to 10 mm in diameter, 2.1% for larger lesions).&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Of the 59 advanced neoplasias identified in the older patients, all but three were at least 10 mm in size.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The scans also suggested abnormalities outside the colon in 89 (15.4%) patients. Of these, 45 received a full workup, which revealed substantial and previously unsuspected diagnoses in 21 cases  -- 18 were vascular aneurysms. The other three included one lung tumor, a femoral hernia, and a malrotation.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Kim and colleagues reported that no &quot;substantial complications&quot; such as perforations or major hemorrhage occurred in the older patients, either with the CT scan or follow-up colonoscopy.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;They also indicated that the ratio of large to small neoplasias was similar in the older patients compared with their CT screening group as a whole. Histologic and morphologic findings were similar as well.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The researchers cited the observational nature of the study, in which negative findings were not corroborated with optical colonoscopy, and its restriction to a single center as its main limitations.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;div style=&quot;float:left;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;border-color:#8dabbc;font-family:arial;font-size:12px;background-color:#DBE9F2;padding:5px;&quot;&gt;&lt;p&gt;No external funding for the study was reported.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Kim and one co-author reported relationships with Viatronix and Medicsight and are co-founders of a company called VirtuoCTC, which produces educational materials on CT colonography.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;clear:both;&quot;&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
    </recommendedItem>
</recommendedContent>
