Oral mucositis (OM) is a complication of head and neck cancer (HNC) therapy with negative impact on the quality of life. Although definitive treatment has not yet been established, there is interest towards the use of natural compounds owing to their few side effects. Curcumin has a variety of biological and pharmacological properties including anticancer and anti‐inflammatory effects. Aim The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of curcumin in the form of nanomicelle on OM in HNC patients receiving radiotherapy. Methods In this clinical trial, 32 HNC patients were allocated to case and control groups, and respectively received nanocurcumin or placebo during radiotherapy. Results We found a statistically significant difference in the severity of mucositis between the 2 groups at all visits. In contrast to the control‐group patients, who all developed OM in the 2nd week of radiotherapy, only 32% of the case group developed OM with no obvious oral or systemic side effects. Conclusion Our data show that nanomicelle curcumin is an effective agent in the prevention of OM or reducing its severity. Thus, the administration of nanocurcumin can be considered as a reasonable approach to hinder the development of OM in HNC patients requiring radiotherapy.

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Aberrant activation of receptor-tyrosine kinase c-Met/HGF pathway is shown to be associated with cell proliferation, invasion, metastasis and poor-prognosis in several tumor types, including upper gastrointestinal-malignancies. The interaction of c-Met with multiple signalling-pathways involved in tumorigenic-properties and invasive-phenotype has gained substantial attention, suggesting its role as an intriguing-target for cancer-therapy. In recent years, there have been considerable efforts in the development of effective c-Met inhibitors with potential clinical-applications and one of them, crizotinib (dual c-Met/ALK inhibitor), has recently been approved for lung-cancers with ALKrearrangement. However several important questions remain to be answered on the molecular mechanisms underlying the antitumor effects of crizotinib, as well as on its possible role in the treatment of different tumor types, including uppergastrointestinal- cancers. The aim of this review is to give an overview on critical role of the c-Met/HGF pathway in cancer, and the preclinical/clinical studies on c-Met inhibitors. There are accumulating evidences on therapeutic potential of c-Met inhibitors for the treatment of other malignancies, such as gastric and pancreatic cancers. However, further investigations are needed to identify determinants of the activity of c-Met inhibitors, through the analysis of genetic/ environmental alterations affecting c-Met and parallel pro-cancer pathways; mechanisms result in developing resistance to anti-c-Met agents; and selection of patients that might benefit from therapy. These studies will be essential to improve the selectivity/efficacy of future anticancer strategies of c-Met targeted-therapies in the treatment of upper gastrointestinal- cancers.

Background:Most women are diagnosed with breast cancer (BC) when they are still at the appropriate age for employment. The increasing survival rates of patients with BC call for more attention to their ability to return to work.Objectives:The aim of this study was to identify factors related to the return to work in Iranian women underwent BC treatment.Patients and Methods:A total of 175 women with BC, who met the inclusion criteria, were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. The subjects were recruited from four hospitals affiliated to Mashhad university of medical sciences. These hospitals are oncology referral centers in eastern Iran. All records of employed women with BC were studied in four hospitals of Mashhad city, Iran, during 2000 - 2010. The researchers designed a questionnaire, which consisted of questions regarding social/demographic, health/disease, and work characteristics. The questionnaires were completed through interviews. Data were analyzed using SPSS software, version 11.5.Results:The mean age of the patients at the time of interview was 44.3 ± 6.72 years. Mean age of “Return- to-work” group was 42.71 and “No return-to-work” group was 51.06. Most women (80%) were married. At the time of the interview, 80% had returned to work after a BC diagnosis. Older patients (OR = 0.796; 95% CI, 0.625 - 0.907, P = 0.002), and those with a great deal of work experience (OR = 0.861; 95% CI, 0.752 - 0.986, P = 0.030) were less likely to return to work. Also, women who had no pain or surgery scar (OR = 23.03; 95% CI, 4.53 - 117.02, P < 0.001) as well as those who had no lymphedema after the BC treatment were more likely to return to work (OR = 22.373; 95% CI, 4.04 - 23.892, P < 0.001).Conclusions:The results of this study show the factors related to the return-to-work after BC treatment in working women in Mashhad city, Iran. These predictors should be taken into account in order to improve the patient’s life quality.

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