Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is one of the most aggressive primary tumors of the central nervous system. It is associated with a very poor prognosis, with up to half of patients failing to survive the first year after diagnosis. It develops from glial tissue and belongs to the adult-type diffuse glioma group according to the WHO classification of 2021. Therapy for patients with GBM is currently based on surgical resection, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy, but despite many efforts, there has been minimal progress in tumor management. The most important chemotherapeutic agent in the treatment of this tumor is temozolomide (TMZ), a dacarbazine derivative that presents alkylating activity. It is usually administered to patients concurrently with radiation therapy after surgical resection of the tumor, which is defined as the Stupp protocol. Temozolomide demonstrates relatively good efficacy in therapy, but it could also present with several side effects. The resistance of GBM to the drug is currently the subject of work by specialists in the field of oncology, and its use in various regimens and patient groups may bring therapeutic benefits in the future. The aim of this review paper is to summarize the relevance of TMZ in the treatment of GBM based on recent reports.

Medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) is an uncommon neuroendocrine tumor that originates from the parafollicular C cells in the thyroid. Unlike the more common papillary carcinoma, MTC tends to progress more aggressively and is prone to metastasis that is often unresponsive to chemotherapy. The main therapeutic approaches for MTC include surgical intervention and pharmacological treatments. Recent years have seen significant progress, particularly in the pharmacological management of MTC. This review aims to examine the diagnostic and treatment strategies for MTC, incorporating the latest findings. A thorough search was conducted in databases such as PubMed, PubMed Central, and Google Scholar, using keywords related to MTC, its molecular and imaging diagnostics, thyroidectomy, and systemic pharmacotherapy. Only articles published in English were considered, and abstracts were reviewed for relevance. The selected articles primarily included original research studies and meta-analyses. A total of 39 articles were included for detailed analysis. This mini-review highlights the diagnostic techniques for MTC and emphasizes the importance of biomarker-level testing. In particular, calcitonin shows a strong correlation with tumor progression. The standard treatment for MTC includes total thyroidectomy accompanied by cervical lymph node dissection. In certain cases, systemic therapy, particularly with tyrosine kinase (TK) inhibitors, is also indicated. Ongoing research is investigating innovative treatments such as gene therapy and the inhibition of tumor mitochondrial metabolism. MTC is a fast-growing neuroendocrine tumor that requires comprehensive surgical treatment. When surgery is not feasible, therapies that target different stages of tumor carcinogenesis are employed. The development of new pharmacological agents continues to improve treatment outcomes.

Because of ambiguous and widely debated observations concerning the incidence, trend, and management of TC, we performed this analysis. We drew attention to some events, such as “cancer screening activity”, introduction of noninvasive follicular neoplasm with papillary-like nuclear features (NIFTP) to TC types, possibility of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) active surveillance (AS), occurrence of personalized medicine in TC management, and, finally, COVID-19 pandemic time. Because of the opinion that all changes have been made mostly by PTC, we compared it to the remaining types of TC in terms of incidence, clinical and pathological characteristics, and treatment. We analyzed patients treated in a single surgical center in eastern Europe (Poland). The prevalence of TC significantly increased from 5.15% in 2008 to 13.84% in 2015, and then significantly decreased to 1.33% in 2022 when the COVID-19 pandemic lasted (p < 0.0001). A similar trend was observed for PTC, when the incidence significantly increased to 13.99% in 2015 and then decreased to 1.38% in 2022 (p < 0.0001). At that time, the NIFTP category was introduced, and observation of PTMC began. The prevalence of FTC and MTC also increased until 2015 and then decreased. Significant differences in age, types of surgery, necessity of reoperation, and pTNM between PTCs and other types of TCs were observed. The average age was significantly lower in PTC patients than in patients with the remaining types of TC (p < 0.0001). Four milestones, including NIFTP introduction, the possibility of PTMC AS, personalized cancer medicine, and the COVID-19 pandemic, may have influenced the general statistics of TC.

Malignant neoplasms, like non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), remain a major global health challenge. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, with over two million new cases and 1.8 million deaths annually. NSCLC accounts for approximately 85% of cases, underscoring its substantial public health impact. Advances in molecular biology have driven the development of new therapies beyond traditional treatments. Among them, mRNA-based immunoadjuvant therapies, like cancer vaccines, have emerged as promising utilities in NSCLC by triggering targeted immune responses. The aim of this paper is to review ongoing and completed studies on mRNA vaccines in NSCLC. The efficacy of mRNA vaccines in NSCLC relies on the identification of immunogenic tumor-specific antigens, frequently derived from genomic profiling databases. Completed clinical trials have assessed the safety and potential benefit of selected mRNA vaccines—such as CV9202—administered alone or in combination with radiotherapy or tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Ongoing studies are exploring the therapeutic potential of mRNA-based approaches targeting defined molecular alterations in NSCLC, particularly in conjunction with Programmed Death-Ligand 1 (PD-L1) immune checkpoint inhibitors to enhance antitumor immune responses. mRNA vaccines have emerged as a promising therapeutic option for NSCLC, with the potential to enhance immune responses and limit tumor progression, as demonstrated in ongoing clinical trials. They offer the possibility of personalized treatment with relatively few side effects. However, larger and long-term studies are required to fully confirm their safety and efficacy. Future research should aim to identify the most effective antigens, enhance stability, and refine delivery strategies to improve efficacy and personalization, while also addressing immune suppression within the tumor microenvironment.

Background/Objectives: The Lymph Node Ratio (LNR) index is the proportion of lymph nodes with present metastases to lymph nodes removed and examined. This is an additionally established parameter for predicting the prognosis of gastric cancer patients. The most popular cancer classification, TNM, describes only the number of affected lymph nodes. It can result in a negative overestimation of the prognosis of patients with gastric cancer if the number of nodes examined is relatively limited. Methods: In this study, we retrospectively analyzed 194 patients diagnosed with gastric cancer operated on between 2017 and 2021 at the Clinical Department of Oncological Surgery, University Centre of General and Oncological Surgery of the University Clinical Hospital in Wroclaw. In total, 133 patients underwent gastrectomy with D2 lymphadenectomy and 61 remaining patients had the resection procedure abandoned due to an unresectable lesion. The LNR index was calculated based on histopathological examination, and postoperative complications were assessed using the Clavien–Dindo (C-D) scale. Statistical analysis was performed regarding the dependence of LNR on the following patient characteristics: sex, age, TNM features, tumor stage, tumor location, performed procedure, chemotherapy application, C-D complication rate, and survival rate. Results: The value of the LNR index significantly depends on TNM features (p < 0.05), clinical tumor stage (p < 0.05), and patient survival (p < 0.05), while no statistically significant relationship with C-D complication rate was demonstrated. Conclusions: The LNR index is a relevant parameter in predicting prognosis and survival time in gastric cancer patients, but future studies on larger and differentiated groups of patients could further confirm its usefulness in the development of guidelines.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains one of the most aggressive malignancies, with 5-year survival rates consistently below 5% despite advances in surgery, chemotherapy, and targeted therapy. Worldwide, PDAC remains highly lethal, with 458,918 new cases and 432,242 deaths in 2018—about a 94% mortality-to-incidence ratio. The limited therapeutic efficacy is largely attributed to the pronounced heterogeneity of the disease, late clinical presentation, and the strongly immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. In recent years, mRNA-based vaccines encoding patient-specific neoantigens have emerged as a promising immunotherapeutic modality. By delivering tailored antigenic sequences, these vaccines are capable of eliciting potent cytotoxic T-cell responses against tumor-restricted epitopes, thereby enhancing tumor immunogenicity while minimizing off-target effects. This review summarizes the biological rationale underlying mRNA vaccination in PDAC, recent progress in preclinical and early clinical trials, and key obstacles related to antigen selection, delivery platforms, and the immunosuppressive stroma. The potential integration of neoantigen mRNA vaccines into multimodal therapeutic strategies, including immune checkpoint inhibition and chemotherapy, is also discussed, underscoring their prospective role in overcoming resistance mechanisms and improving clinical outcomes in PDAC. However, most current data come from early-phase trials, with long-term benefits yet unproven. Definitive conclusions on efficacy and survival await results from ongoing randomized studies expected by 2028–2029. Further progress in neoantigen identification, delivery systems, and combination strategies is crucial to fully harness mRNA vaccine potential in PDAC.