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Progression-free Survival
Progression-free survival (PFS) is "the length of time during and after the treatment of a disease, such as cancer, that a patient lives with the disease but it does not get worse". In oncology, PFS usually refers to situations in which a tumor is present, as demonstrated by laboratory testing, radiologic testing, or clinically. Similarly, "disease-free survival" is the length of time after patients have received treatment and have no detectable disease. Time to progression (TTP) does not count patients who die from other causes but is otherwise a close equivalent to PFS (unless there are many such events). The FDA gives separate definitions and prefers PFS. Background PFS is widely used as a surrogate endpoint in oncology. The definition of "progression" generally involves imaging techniques (plain radiograms, CT scans, MRI, PET scans, ultrasounds) or other aspects: biochemical progression may be defined on the basis of an increase in a tumor marker (such as CA125 for epitheli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oncology
Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis, and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's Etymology, etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ónkos''), meaning "tumor", "volume" or "mass". Oncology is focused on the diagnosis of cancer in a person, therapy (e.g., surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and other modalities), monitoring of patients after treatment, palliative care of people with advanced-stage cancers, Ethics, ethical questions surrounding cancer care, Screening (medicine), screening of patients, and the study of cancer treatments through clinical research. An oncologist typically focuses on a specialty area in cancer treatment, such as surgery, Radiation therapy, radiation, gynecology, gynecologic oncology, geriatrics, geriatric oncology, pediatrics, pediatric oncology, and various organ-specific disciplines (breast, brain, liver, among others). The exp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer is the neoplasm, uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system below the bladder. Abnormal growth of the prostate tissue is usually detected through Screening (medicine), screening tests, typically blood tests that check for prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels. Those with high levels of PSA in their blood are at increased risk for developing prostate cancer. Diagnosis requires a prostate biopsy, biopsy of the prostate. If cancer is present, the pathologist assigns a Gleason score; a higher score represents a more dangerous tumor. Medical imaging is performed to look for cancer that has spread outside the prostate. Based on the Gleason score, PSA levels, and imaging results, a cancer case is assigned a cancer staging, stage 1 to 4. A higher stage signifies a more advanced, more dangerous disease. Most prostate tumors remain small and cause no health problems. These are managed with active surveillance of prostate cancer, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Medical Journal
''The BMJ'' is a fortnightly peer-reviewed medical journal, published by BMJ Publishing Group Ltd, which in turn is wholly-owned by the British Medical Association (BMA). ''The BMJ'' has editorial freedom from the BMA. It is one of the world's oldest general medical journals. Previously called the ''British Medical Journal'', the title was officially shortened to ''BMJ'' in 1988, and then changed to ''The BMJ'' in 2014. The current editor-in-chief of ''The BMJ'' is Kamran Abbasi, who was appointed in January 2022. History The journal began publishing on 3 October 1840 as the ''Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal'' and quickly attracted the attention of physicians around the world through its publication of high-quality original research articles and unique case reports. The ''BMJ''s first editors were P. Hennis Green, lecturer on the diseases of children at the Hunterian School of Medicine, who also was its founder, and Robert Streeten of Worcester, a member of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
McNamara Fallacy
The McNamara fallacy (also known as the quantitative fallacy), named for Robert McNamara, the US Secretary of Defense from 1961 to 1968, involves making a decision based solely on quantitative observations (or metrics) and ignoring all others. The reason given is often that these other observations cannot be proven. This quote by Daniel Yankelovich originally referred to McNamara's ideology during the two months that he was president of Ford Motor Company, but has since been interpreted to refer to his attitudes during the Vietnam War. Examples in warfare Vietnam War The McNamara fallacy is often considered in the context of the Vietnam War, in which he attempted to reduce war to a mathematical model. One example arose in an early 1962 conversation between US Air Force Brigadier General Edward Lansdale and McNamara. Lansdale reportedly told McNamara, who was trying to develop a list of metrics to allow him to scientifically follow the progress of the war, that he needed t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Journal Of Clinical Oncology
The ''Journal of Clinical Oncology'' is a peer-reviewed medical journal published 3 times a month by ASCO Publications. It covers research on all aspects of clinical oncology. The journal was established in 1983 and the editor-in-chief is Jonathan W. Friedberg ( University of Rochester). History In 1981 Emil Frei III proposed that the American Society of Clinical Oncology should publish an official journal. The first issue was published on January 1, 1983, containing 70 pages of research and an editorial by the then editor-in-chief, Joseph Bertino. Bertino was succeeded by George P. Canellos in 1987. In 1998, a Spanish language edition of the journal started quarterly publication, followed by a Chinese language edition. Currently there are 10 international editions. Daniel Haller became editor-in-chief in 2001 and during his tenure the journal moved from its publisher Grune & Stratton to in-house publication by society staff. Stephen A. Cannistra was editor-in-chief from 201 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Institute For Health And Clinical Excellence
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department of Health and Social Care. As the national health technology assessment body of England, it is responsible for judging the cost-effectiveness of medicines and making them available on the NHS through reimbursement, with its judgements informing decisions in Wales and Northern Ireland. It also provides a range of clinical guidance to the NHS in England and Wales, which are considered by Northern Ireland. History Organisational history It was set up as the National Institute for Clinical Excellence in 1999, and on 1 April 2005 joined with the Health Development Agency to become the new National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (still abbreviated as NICE). Following the Health and Social Care Act 2012, NICE was renamed the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on 1 April 2013 reflecting its new responsibilities for social ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Randomized Controlled Trials
A randomized controlled trial (or randomized control trial; RCT) is a form of scientific experiment used to control factors not under direct experimental control. Examples of RCTs are clinical trials that compare the effects of drugs, surgical techniques, medical devices, diagnostic procedures, diets or other medical treatments. Participants who enroll in RCTs differ from one another in known and unknown ways that can influence study outcomes, and yet cannot be directly controlled. By randomly allocating participants among compared treatments, an RCT enables ''statistical control'' over these influences. Provided it is designed well, conducted properly, and enrolls enough participants, an RCT may achieve sufficient control over these confounding factors to deliver a useful comparison of the treatments studied. Definition and examples An RCT in clinical research typically compares a proposed new treatment against an existing standard of care; these are then termed the 'exper ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clinical Endpoint
Clinical endpoints or clinical outcomes are outcome measures referring to occurrence of disease, symptom, sign or laboratory abnormality constituting a target outcome in clinical research trials. The term may also refer to any disease or sign that strongly motivates withdrawal of an individual or entity from the trial, then often termed a ''humane (clinical) endpoint''. The primary endpoint of a clinical trial is the endpoint for which the trial is powered. Secondary endpoints are additional endpoints, preferably also pre-specified, for which the trial may not be powered. Surrogate endpoints are trial endpoints that have outcomes that substitute for a clinical endpoint, often because studying the clinical endpoint is difficult, for example using an increase in blood pressure as a surrogate for death by cardiovascular disease, where strong evidence of a causal link exists. Scope In a general sense, a clinical endpoint is included in the entities of interest in a trial. The re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Food And Drug Administration
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food safety, tobacco products, caffeine products, dietary supplements, Prescription drug, prescription and Over-the-counter drug, over-the-counter pharmaceutical drugs (medications), vaccines, biopharmaceuticals, blood transfusions, medical devices, electromagnetic radiation emitting devices (ERED), cosmetics, Animal feed, animal foods & feed and Veterinary medicine, veterinary products. The FDA's primary focus is enforcement of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C). However, the agency also enforces other laws, notably Section 361 of the Public Health Service Act as well as associated regulations. Much of this regulatory-enforcement work is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epithelial Ovarian Cancer
Surface epithelial-stromal tumors are a class of ovarian neoplasms that may be benign or malignant. Neoplasms in this group are thought to be derived from the ovarian surface epithelium (modified peritoneum) or from :wikt:ectopic, ectopic endometrial or fallopian tube (tubal) tissue. Tumors of this type are also called ovarian adenocarcinoma. This group of tumors accounts for 90% to 95% of all cases of ovarian cancer; however is mainly only found in postmenopausal women with the exception of the United States where 7% of cases occur in women under the age of 40. Serum CA-125 is often elevated but is only 50% accurate so it is not a useful tumor marker to assess the progress of treatment. 75% of women with epithelial ovarian cancer are found within the advanced-stages; however younger patients are more likely to have better prognoses than older patients. Classification Epithelial-stromal tumors are classified on the basis of the epithelial cell type, the relative amounts of epithe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
