Article
Oncology
Nazi Nejat, Amir Rahbarian, Fatemeh Mehrabi, Fatemeh Rafiei
Summary: This study investigated the prevalence of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use among cancer patients in Iran. The findings showed that 44.3% of the 320 participants were using CAM. Most patients used CAM to improve their physical condition and used it alongside conventional medical treatments. Common CAM treatments included visiting holy places, practicing yoga, engaging in prayer therapy, and using medicinal plants and special diets.
JOURNAL OF CANCER RESEARCH AND CLINICAL ONCOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Pediatrics
Bjorn Vos, Jan Peter Rake, Arine Vlieger
Summary: Pediatric use of complementary and alternative medicine is common in the Netherlands, but the risks associated with it are largely unknown. A 3-year survey found relatively few cases of adverse events, mostly caused by delaying or stopping conventional treatment. It is important for parents, pediatricians, and CAM providers to be vigilant for both direct and indirect adverse events in children using CAM, especially in infants.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PEDIATRICS
(2021)
Article
Integrative & Complementary Medicine
Dana C. Mora, Miek C. Jong, Sara A. Quandt, Thomas A. Arcury, Agnete E. Kristoffersen, Trine Stub
Summary: This study aims to explore the clinical experiences and perceptions of pediatric oncology experts, conventional healthcare providers, and complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) providers regarding the use of supportive care, including CAM, among children and adolescents with cancer. The findings show that most participants have extensive clinical experience and mainly treat children and adolescents with leukemia who experience adverse effects of cancer treatment. Various modalities, such as acupuncture, massage, music, and play therapy, are frequently used to improve the well-being and alleviate symptoms of the patients.
BMC COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE AND THERAPIES
(2023)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Hongmin Chu, Seunghwan Moon, Jeongsu Park, Seongjun Bak, Youme Ko, Bo-Young Youn
Summary: The development of artificial intelligence in complementary and alternative medicine has been rapidly advancing. This systematic scoping review identified three main categories of AI usage in CAM, including acupuncture treatment, tongue and lip diagnoses, and herbal medicine. Future research should focus on verifying and validating these AI models through large-scale clinical trials.
FRONTIERS IN PHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Integrative & Complementary Medicine
Dana C. Mora, Grete Overvag, Miek C. Jong, Agnete E. Kristoffersen, Debbie C. Stavleu, Jianping Liu, Trine Stub
Summary: This systematic review and meta-analysis study demonstrates that complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), including acupuncture and hypnosis, is effective in reducing chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in children and young adults. However, more rigorous trials and long-term effects should be investigated before recommending acupuncture and hypnosis for clinical use.
BMC COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE AND THERAPIES
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Belay Erchafo, Lonsako Abute, Tegegn Tedesse, Tagesse Sedoro, Aregash Mecha
Summary: Despite the increasing availability of modern medicine, a significant proportion of the global population still relies on complementary and alternative medicine. This study examined the knowledge, attitude, and practice of healthcare professionals towards complementary and alternative medicine in South Ethiopia and identified associated factors. The findings revealed a low level of knowledge, attitude, and practice of complementary and alternative medicine among healthcare professionals.
Article
Oncology
Jennifer A. Belsky, Joseph Stanek, Micah A. Skeens, Cynthia A. Gerhardt, Melissa J. Rose
Summary: Many children undergoing chemotherapy experience uncontrolled side effects and desire improved supportive care options. After being educated about osteopathic manipulative treatments (OMT), clinicians, caregivers, and patients showed interest in utilizing OMT as a supportive care option during chemotherapy.
SUPPORTIVE CARE IN CANCER
(2021)
Article
Integrative & Complementary Medicine
Ahmed A. Albassam, Mohammad Ruhal Ain, Sami N. Alanazi, Yazed Alruthia, Khalid M. Alkharfy
Summary: In Saudi Arabia, 90% of pediatric patients' parents use complementary and alternative medicine, with natural products being the most commonly used. Family and friends are the primary source of advice for CAM use, and most parents are highly satisfied with using CAM for their children.
JOURNAL OF HERBAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Review
Chemistry, Medicinal
Reza Rajabalizadeh, Mahboobeh Ghasemzadeh Rahbardar, Hossein Hosseinzadeh
Summary: This article reviews the potential effects of several herbal medicines and their preparations on reducing chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) and calls for further high-quality research to confirm their clinical effectiveness and safety.
PHYTOTHERAPY RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Shiyan Yan, Mingjun Xu, Xuan Zou, Zhiyi Xiong, Hewen Li, Jingwen Yang, Wenchao Cao, Ziqiong Zhu, Cunzhi Liu
Summary: This study evaluated the effect of combining acupuncture with ondansetron versus ondansetron alone for prophylaxis of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) in high-risk women. The results showed that acupuncture combined with ondansetron was more effective in reducing the incidence of postoperative nausea compared to ondansetron alone, but did not have a significant impact on vomiting. This suggests that acupuncture combined with ondansetron is a more effective multimodal prophylaxis approach.
UNITED EUROPEAN GASTROENTEROLOGY JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Alexandra M. Walsh, Jennifer Hess, Melissa Rees, Cynthia Wetmore, Vinay Vadiya
Summary: Chemotherapy can cause nausea and vomiting, affecting patients' quality of life. A new dashboard was created to help healthcare providers manage antiemetic regimens more effectively for pediatric oncology patients.
SUPPORTIVE CARE IN CANCER
(2021)
Article
Integrative & Complementary Medicine
Abdul Rahman Jazieh, Khadega A. Abuelgasim, Husam Ardah, Mohammad Alkaiyat, Omar B. Da'ar
Summary: This study evaluated the trends of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use among cancer patients, showing significant changes in CAM use over the decade, reflecting major societal and cultural changes in the beliefs towards cancer treatment.
BMC COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE AND THERAPIES
(2021)
Review
Dermatology
Elizabeth Tkachenko, Jean-Phillip Okhovat, Priya Manjaly, Kathie P. Huang, Maryanne M. Senna, Arash Mostaghimi
Summary: This study identified various complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies for the treatment of alopecia areata (AA), including essential oil aromatherapy, topical garlic, and oral glucosides of peony with compound glycyrrhizin. Hypnosis and mindfulness psychotherapy showed low-quality evidence for improvement of psychologic and quality of life outcomes. Adverse events were rare and mild for all therapies evaluated.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF DERMATOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Integrative & Complementary Medicine
Emmanuelle Luethi, Manuel Diezi, Nadia Danon, Julie Dubois, Jerome Pasquier, Bernard Burnand, Pierre-Yves Rodondi
Summary: The study conducted in a Swiss pediatric hematology-oncology center found a high prevalence of CAM use among pediatric oncology patients, with different trends of use during treatment and post-treatment. Some patients did not discuss CAM with their oncologists.
BMC COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE AND THERAPIES
(2021)
Article
Obstetrics & Gynecology
Alexandra Adamietz, Alexander Boosz, Andreas Mueller, Daniela Hornung, Katharina Trunk, Matthias W. Beckmann, Ralf Dittrich, Carolin C. Hack
Summary: This study found that the majority of women with endometriosis are interested in using CAM methods, but only a minority have detailed knowledge about it. Nevertheless, a majority of the patients had used at least one CAM method to relieve symptoms associated with the disease, with exercise being the most frequently used method.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS & GYNECOLOGY AND REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Oncology
Alissa Groenendijk, Harm van Tinteren, Yilin Jiang, Ronald R. de Krijger, Gordan M. Vujanic, Jan Godzinski, Christian Rube, Jens-Peter Schenk, Carlo Morosi, Kathy Pritchard-Jones, Reem Al-Saadi, Sucheta J. Vaidya, Arnauld C. Verschuur, Gema L. Ramirez-Villar, Norbert Graf, Beatriz de Camargo, Jarno Drost, Daniela Perotti, Marry M. Van den Heuvel-Eibrink, Jesper Brok, Filippo Spreafico, Annelies M. C. Mavinkurve-Groothuis
Summary: This study retrospectively evaluated the rescue treatment and survival of patients with relapsed Wilms tumor (WT) after receiving vincristine and actinomycin-D treatment. The results showed that there was no significant difference in event-free survival and overall survival between patients treated with VAD regimens and those treated with more intensive regimens.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CANCER
(2022)
Article
Oncology
William Mifsud, Rhoikos Furtwaengler, Christian Vokuhl, Ellen D'Hooghe, Kathy Pritchard-Jones, Norbert Graf, Gordan M. Vujanic
Summary: The study analyzed the outcomes of patients with stage I Wilms tumors with focal and diffuse anaplasia, revealing that patients with focal anaplasia had comparable outcomes to other intermediate-risk Wilms tumor patients, while those with diffuse anaplasia showed good outcomes with more intensive chemotherapy. No group received radiotherapy.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CANCER
(2022)
Article
Oncology
M. E. Madeleine van Der Perk, Nicholas G. Cost, Annelies M. E. Bos, Robert Brannigan, Tanzina Chowdhury, Andrew M. Davidoff, Najat C. Daw, Jeffrey S. Dome, Peter Ehrlich, Norbert Graf, James Geller, John Kalapurakal, Kathleen Kieran, Marcus Malek, Mary F. McAleer, Elizabeth Mullen, Luke Pater, Angela Polanco, Rodrigo Romao, Amanda F. Saltzman, Amy L. Walz, Andrew D. Woods, Marry M. van den Heuvel-Eibrink, Conrad V. Fernandez
Summary: The risk of infertility in childhood Wilms tumor patients is low but increases with intensification of treatment. Timely discussion of fertility preservation options is important, and early discussion of the impact of therapy on fertility is recommended. Current fertility preservation methods for childhood Wilms tumor patients are still considered experimental.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CANCER
(2022)
Review
Oncology
Thomas J. Jackson, Herve J. Brisse, Kathy Pritchard-Jones, Kayo Nakata, Carlo Morosi, Takahara Oue, Sabine Irtan, Gordan Vujanic, Marry M. van den Heuvel-Eibrink, Norbert Graf, Tanzina Chowdhury
Summary: The International Society of Paediatric Oncology Renal Tumour Study Group advocates preoperative chemotherapy for children with Wilms tumour, while other countries often choose to perform biopsies on some children with renal tumors to determine specific treatment plans.
PEDIATRIC BLOOD & CANCER
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Pengbo Beck, Barbara Selle, Lukas Madenach, David T. W. Jones, Christian Vokuhl, Apurva Gopisetty, Arash Nabbi, Ines B. Brecht, Martin Ebinger, Jenny Wegert, Norbert Graf, Manfred Gessler, Stefan M. Pfister, Natalie Jaeger
Summary: Pediatric renal cell carcinomas (RCC) differ from their adult counterparts in histologic subtypes, clinical characteristics, and outcome. Whole-exome and transcriptome sequencing analyses revealed limited genomic overlap between pediatric RCC and adult RCC, even within the same histologic subtype. Recurrent somatic mutations in genes not previously reported in RCC were detected, and papillary pediatric RCCs exhibited distinct genomic subtypes compared to MiT-RCC and adult RCC.
Article
Hematology
Lisa Eisenberg, Christian Brossette, Jochen Rauch, Andrea Grandjean, Hellmut Ottinger, Jurgen Rissland, Ulf Schwarz, Norbert Graf, Dietrich W. Beelen, Stephan Kiefer, Nico Pfeifer, Amin T. Turki
Summary: This study developed machine learning models to predict mortality and cytomegalovirus reactivation after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation. The models integrated baseline patient data and time-dependent laboratory measurements, providing accurate risk predictions in a 21-day time window.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HEMATOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Oncology
Kasra Mirzaie, Anna Burns-Gebhart, Marcel Meyerheim, Annette Sander, Norbert Graf
Summary: The ability of individuals to regulate their emotions is closely tied to mental health, and serious illnesses like cancer pose a significant burden on these coping mechanisms, especially for young patients. Understanding the emotional world and perceptions of patients is important for their well-being and support, and technological advancements provide new opportunities for data collection. This article provides an overview of current strengths and weaknesses in digital aids for capturing emotional dynamics and symptom changes in cancer patients.
Article
Oncology
Clemens-Magnus Meier, Rhoikos Furtwaengler, Dietrich von Schweinitz, Raimund Stein, Nils Welter, Stefan Wagenpfeil, Leo Kager, Jens-Peter Schenk, Christian Vokuhl, Patrick Melchior, Jorg Fuchs, Norbert Graf
Summary: The study reveals that diffuse anaplasia and metastatic disease, especially those without complete remission after chemotherapy, are two risk factors for poor outcomes in Wilms tumor patients with vena cava thrombus.
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Cihan Papan, Katharina Reifenrath, Katharina Last, Andishe Attarbaschi, Norbert Graf, Andreas H. Groll, Johannes Huebner, Hans-Juergen Laws, Thomas Lehrnbecher, Johannes Liese, Luise Martin, Tobias Tenenbaum, Stefan Weichert, Simon Vieth, Ulrich von Both, Markus Hufnagel, Arne Simon
Summary: This study aims to evaluate the appropriate use of antimicrobials in pediatric cancer patients through a point-prevalence study and expert panel review. The results will inform interventions for internal guidelines and antimicrobial stewardship programs, and contribute to the integration of antimicrobial stewardship principles in pediatric oncology and hematology.
JMIR RESEARCH PROTOCOLS
(2022)
Article
Oncology
Gordan M. Vujanic, Norbert Graf, Ellen D'Hooghe, Tanzina Chowdhury, Christian Vokuhl, Reem Al-Saadi, Kathy Pritchard-Jones, Patrick Melchior, Rhoikos Furtwaengler
Summary: This study retrospectively analyzed the outcomes in patients with stage III Wilms' tumor due to positive resection margins (RM). The results showed that patients without viable tumor had better local-relapse-free survival (RFS) and event-free survival (EFS) compared to patients with viable tumor.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CANCER
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Ellen D'Hooghe, Rhoikos Furtwaengler, Tanzina Chowdhury, Christian Vokuhl, Reem Al-Saadi, Kathy Pritchard-Jones, Norbert Graf, Gordan M. Vujanic
Summary: This study analyzed the outcomes of patients with stage I epithelial type (ET-WT) or stromal type WT (ST-WT) treated with preoperative chemotherapy. The results showed that patients with stage I ET-WT or ST-WT had significantly better event-free survival compared to patients with other intermediate-risk WT. The study suggests that omission of postoperative chemotherapy could be considered for low-risk ET-WT or ST-WT patients.
Article
Oncology
Clemens-Magnus Meier, Rhoikos Furtwaengler, Marvin Mergen, Nils Welter, Patrick Melchior, Jens-Peter Schenk, Christian Vokuhl, Leo Kager, Sabine Kroiss-Benninger, Stefan Wagenpfeil, Norbert Graf
Summary: In the treatment of Wilms tumor, preoperative chemotherapy is followed by surgery. This study found that the time between chemotherapy and surgery does not affect the relapse and survival rates of patients with unilateral tumors. However, for bilateral tumors, it is important to perform surgery within 120 days to reduce the risk of relapse.
Article
Education & Educational Research
Marvin Mergen, Marcel Meyerheim, Norbert Graf
Summary: Digital learning is increasingly important in medical education. Virtual Reality (VR) has the potential to provide clinical competencies in a safe and immersive environment. A survey was conducted to assess the acceptance and potential of VR in medical education among students. The results showed that most students approved the integration of VR into their curriculum, with anatomy and surgery being the main use cases.
EDUCATION SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Cihan Papan, Katharina Reifenrath, Katharina Last, Andishe Attarbaschi, Norbert Graf, Andreas H. Groll, Johannes Huebner, Hans-Juergen Laws, Thomas Lehrnbecher, Johannes G. Liese, Luise Martin, Tobias Tenenbaum, Simon Vieth, Ulrich von Both, Gudrun Wagenpfeil, Stefan Weichert, Markus Hufnagel, Arne Simon
Summary: In this study, we assessed the usage of antimicrobials in pediatric hematology and oncology centers in Germany and Austria. We found a high prevalence of inappropriate antimicrobial use, with incorrect dosing and (de-)escalation/spectrum-related errors being the most common reasons. Furthermore, we identified febrile neutropenia diagnosis and antimicrobial stewardship programs as factors associated with a lower likelihood of inappropriate therapy.
LANCET REGIONAL HEALTH-EUROPE
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Georgios Politis, Stefan Wagenpfeil, Nils Welter, Marvin Mergen, Rhoikos Furtwaengler, Norbert Graf
Summary: Despite successful treatment outcomes, there are still many unanswered questions regarding Wilms tumor (WT). The influences and risk factors for tumorigenesis, as well as tumor aggressiveness and recurrence, are not fully understood. Parental age is considered a risk factor for childhood cancer, but our study showed that higher parental age is not correlated with the incidence of renal tumors in childhood.
