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The advent of effective chemo-radiotherapy has made Hodgkin Disease (HD) a highly curable malignancy, but the great improvement in survival rates allowed the observation in long-term survivors of several treatment complications. Secondary malignancies are the most serious complications and breast cancer (BC) represents the most common solid tumor among female survivors. The aim of our analysis is to describe the clinico-pathological characteristics and management of BC occurred after HD treatment. Between 1960 and 2003, 2,039 patients were treated for HD at the Department of Radiotherapy-Oncology of the Florence University. In this study we considered 1,538 patients on whom a minimum follow up of 6 months had been obtained. Of these, 725 were women. The most represented histological subtype was nodular sclerosis (50.6%). Supradiaphragmatic alone or with subdiaphragmatic complementary extended field radiotherapy was delivered to 83.1% of patients while supradiaphragmatic involved field radiotherapy was delivered to 10.7% of patients. Concerning the characteristics and incidence of BC, we focused our analysis exclusively on the female group. We found that BC occurred in 39, with an overall incidence of 5.4%. The mean interval after Hodgkin treatment was 19.5 years (SD ± 9.0). The median age of BC diagnosis was 50.8 years (SD ± 13.3) while the median age of Hodgkin diagnosis was 31.2 years (SD ± 14.5). Thirty-seven women received mediastinal irradiation. We observed a decreasing trend of the secondary BC incidence with increasing age of Hodgkin treatment with the maximum incidence registered in women treated at age 20 or younger. In Our Institute we perform a whole life follow up and recommend that annual mammography begins 10 years after HD treatment or, in any case, not later than age 40. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a significant difference in the extent of treatment offered to the elderly with breast cancer; in the United States, while 98% of patients less than 65 years of age receive standard treatment, 81% of those older than 65 years were treated according to protocol. This study's goal was to evaluate disease-specific survival and local-regional recurrence in breast cancer patients more than 65 years of age at diagnosis. A total of 1500 patients with invasive breast carcinoma were treated consecutively from May 1971 to July 2002 at the University of Florence, Florence, Italy. All patients were more than 65 years of age. The median age was 70.6 years (range 65.1-87.3 years).The median follow-up was 8.7 years (range 1-30 years). The crude probability of survival (or relapse occurrence) was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and survival (or relapse occurrence) comparisons were carried out using Cox proportional hazard regression models. The Cox regression model by stepwise selection showed as independent prognostic factors for disease-specific survival (DSS), the occurrence of a local relapse (p < 0.0001), pN status (p < 0.0001), the type of surgery (p < 0.0001), and the use of radiotherapy (p < 0.0006) and chemotherapy (p = 0.01). For local disease-free survival (LDFS), the Cox regression model by stepwise selection showed that mastectomy (p < 0.0001), histotype (p < 0.0001), pN status (p < 0.0001), and pT status (p = 0.001) were the only independent prognostic factors. Age was not a prognostic factor for DSS nor LDFS. We suggest treating patients with appropriate treatment for their prognostic factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The best-fit method was applied to data of calf basal resting and reactive hyperemia blood flow, recorded at 4-hr, intervals during a day in 15 patients with intermittent claudication. The mathematical-statistical analysis suggests existence of a circadian rhythm of calf blood flow, which has early evening peaks and a nocturnal trough with a nadir occurring after midnight and before 4 a.m. This rhythm displays marked similarities to those of all other circulatory values. It is hard to decide whether or not the mechanism of rhythm has an independent endogenous origin. It is known that many of the circulatory variables are interrelated and that some are clearly related to other circadian rhythms. Perhaps the rhythmic reduction of limb blood flow, which begins during the night, is the mechanism underlying the nocturnal pain of subjects with limb ischemia by peripheral arterial disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]