Rehabilitation Nursing Intervention Can Improve Dysphagia and Quality of Life of Patients Undergoing Radiotherapy for Esophageal Cancer

Factors affecting quality of life among patients with corrosive injury

This study aimed to investigate the factors influencing quality of life (QOL) among patients with corrosive injuries, considering the rising incidence of such cases, particularly in developing countries. Corrosive ingestion is a serious global public health problem and a common form of self-harm. This was a cross-sectional study using purposive sampling. A total of 82 patients with corrosive injuries who were admitted to the gastroenterology ward of a medical center in Taiwan between June 2018 and July 2020 completed the Perceived Stress Scale, Coping Strategy Scale, and World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale. We used an independent t-test and analysis of variance to examine the distribution and differences in demographic and disease characteristics, perceived stress, and the coping strategy scale. Multiple linear regression was then used to analyze the main predictors of QOL. The mean patient age was 58.2 (standard deviation = 2.4) years. A significant difference was observed between patients with a history of mental illness and perceived stress (P < .05). The patients were highly stressed and used emotional coping strategies to solve problems. Stress perception was significantly negatively correlated with overall QOL. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that a history of mental illness was a significant factor for overall QOL. The results of this study suggest that a history of mental illness significantly affects the QOL of patients with corrosive gastrointestinal injuries, and regular assessment and monitoring are essential.

Postoperative effect of sufentanil preemptive analgesia combined with psychological intervention on breast cancer patients

OBJECTIVES

To explore the postoperative effects of sufentanil preemptive analgesia combined with psychological intervention on breast cancer patients undergoing radical surgery.

METHODS

112 female breast cancer patients aged 18-80 years old who underwent radical surgery by the same surgeon were randomly divided into 4 groups, and there were 28 patients in each group. Patients in group A were given 10 µg sufentanil preemptive analgesia combined with perioperative psychological support therapy (PPST), group B had only 10 µg sufentanil preemptive analgesia, group C had only PPST, and group D were under general anesthesia with conventional intubation. Visual analogue scoring (VAS) was used for analgesic evaluation at 2, 12 and 24 h after surgery and compared among the four groups by ANOVA method.

RESULTS

The awakening time of patients in group A or B was significantly shorter than that in group C or D, and the awakening time in group C was significantly shorter than that in group D. Moreover, patients in group A had the shortest extubation time, while the group D had the longest extubation time. The VAS scores at different time points showed significant difference, and the VAS scores at 12 and 24 h were significantly lower than those at 2 h (P < 0.05). The VAS scores and the changing trend of VAS scores were varied among the four groups (P < 0.05). In addition, we also found that patients in group A had the longest time to use the first pain medication after surgery, while patients in group D had the shortest time. But the adverse reactions among the four groups showed no difference.

CONCLUSIONS

Sufentanil preemptive analgesia combined with psychological intervention can effectively relieve the postoperative pain of breast cancer patients.

Hyaluronic acid oligosaccharide-modified zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 nanoparticles loaded with oxaliplatin as a targeted drug-delivery system for colorectal cancer therapy

Aim: Exploring a nanoscale targeted drug-delivery system (DDS) for oxaliplatin (Oxa) to improve its therapeutic effect in colorectal cancer. Materials & methods: Nanoparticles were prepared using zeolitic imidazole framework-8 (ZIF-8) modified by hyaluronic acid oligosaccharide (oHA) as an Oxa carrier (oHA@ZIF-8@Oxa). After multiple characterizations, the therapeutic efficacy of the DDS was evaluated by cytotoxicity testing and a nude mouse tumor transplantation experiment in vivo. Results: The results of characterization showed the DDS was homogeneous in morphology and uniform in dispersion. The drug loading of Oxa was 11.82% and the encapsulation efficiency was 90.8%. The cytotoxicity test and in vivo experiments showed that oHA@ZIF-8@Oxa had a more significant anticolorectal cancer effect than free Oxa. Conclusion: This work offers a promising potential DDS for enhancing the anticolorectal cancer effect of Oxa.

Efficacy and Safety of Simultaneous Integrated Boost Intensity-Modulation Radiation Therapy Combined with Systematic and Standardized Management for Esophageal Cancer

Objective

To analyze and compare the efficacy and safety of simultaneous integrated boost intensity-modulation radiation therapy (SIB-IMRT) combined with systematic and standardized management for esophageal cancer.

Methods

From January 2012 to January 2019, 200 patients with esophageal cancer who received radical chemoradiotherapy in our hospital were treated with lymphatic drainage area radiation prevention combined with systematic and standardized management. According to difference in radiotherapy methods, the patients were divided into local lesion 92 patients treated with simultaneous integrated boost intensity-modulation radiation therapy (SIB-IMRT) combined with systematic standardized management (SIB-IMRT group), and late course boost intensity-modulation radiation therapy (LCB-IMRT) combined with systematic standardized management 108 patients (LCB-IMRT group). The short-term eficacy of the two groups were compared. The dose volume parameters of the organ in danger are evaluated based on the dose volume histogram. The related adverse reactions during chemoradiotherapy were compared between two groups. The local control rate and survival rate were compared between the two groups.

Results

The recent total effective rates of rats in the SIB-IMRT group and LCB-IMRT group were 95.65% and 90.74%, respectively, and there was no significant difference between the two groups (p > 0.05). The mean doses to left and right lung, heart and spinal cord in the SIB-IMRT group were significantly lower than that in the LCB-IMRT group (p < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions such as radiation esophagitis, radiation pneumonitis, radiation tracheitis, gastrointestinal reaction and bone marrow suppression between the SIB-IMRT group and LCB-IMRT groups (p > 0.05). The one-year and three-year overall survival rates in the SIB-IMRT group and LCB-IMRT groups were 82.61%, 42.39% and 77.78%, 34.26%, respectively, and the median survival times were 38 and 29 months, respectively. The local control rates in the SIB-IMRT group and LCB-IMRT group in one and three years were 84.78%, 56.52% and 75.93%, 41.67%, respectively. The 3-year local control rate in the SIB-IMRT group was higher than that in the LCB-IMRT group (p < 0.05), but there was no significant difference in the 1-and 3-year overall survival rates between the two groups (p > 0.05).

Conclusion

SIB-IMRT combined with systematic and standardized management in the treatment of esophageal cancer can reduce the amount of some organs at risk and improve the local control rate of the lesion.