Using loans is an effective solution for the investment and construction of energy works in general and power plants in particular, especially for developing countries. In economic and financial studies of the project investment preparation stage, the options of using capital and paying interest...

Hydrogen production technology from wind energy is one of the feasible methods to shift dependence on fossil fuels to clean energy in the near future. In Vietnam, the government is also developing policies and regulations to promote the development of the hydrogen industry. However, hydrogen...

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of first-line pembrolizumab monotherapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in real-world clinical practice in Vietnam. Methods: We performed a multicenter retrospective cohort study of patients with locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC who received first-line pembrolizumab monotherapy in Vietnam between January 2018 and August 2024. The primary endpoints were progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and safety profile. Results: A total of 73 patients were included, with a median age of 69 years (range, 47–92). Most patients had good performance status (ECOG PS 0–1, 75.3%) and high PD-L1 expression (TPS ≥ 50%, 86.3%). The overall response rate was 60.3%, and the disease control rate was 79.5%. Median PFS was 11.3 months (95% CI, 6.9–15.8), and median OS was 25.4 months (95% CI, 20.8–30.0). Multivariate analysis identified never-smoking status (HR 3.14, 95% CI 1.16–8.50; p = 0.024), squamous histology (HR 4.09, 95% CI 1.18–14.17; p = 0.026), and low PD-L1 expression (TPS 1–49%) (HR 3.67, 95% CI 1.14–11.78; p = 0.029) as independent predictors of inferior overall survival. Immune-related adverse events, including pneumonitis, hepatitis, nephritis, fever, skin reactions, and myositis, were mostly mild and manageable, with grade 3 toxicity occurring in only 4.2% of patients. Better survival was observed in patients with high PD-L1 expression and non-squamous histology. However, the association with non-squamous histology should be interpreted with caution due to the very small number of squamous cases. Conclusions: First-line pembrolizumab monotherapy demonstrated favorable effectiveness and acceptable safety in patients with advanced NSCLC in real-world clinical practice in Vietnam. Clinical outcomes were particularly favorable in patients with high PD-L1 expression, non-squamous histology, and a history of smoking. Nevertheless, the survival benefit associated with non-squamous histology should be interpreted cautiously, given the limited number of patients with squamous histology. These findings support the use of pembrolizumab monotherapy in selected patient populations within resource-limited settings.

The optimal adjuvant chemotherapy for high-risk Stage II colon cancer remains debated. In Vietnam, capecitabine monotherapy is often chosen for its convenience and tolerability. In this retrospective study, 96 high-risk Stage II (pT3-4,N0,M0)patients underwent R0 resection at Vietnam National Cancer Hospital (2016 – 2019) and received capecitabine (1,250 mg/m² twice daily on days 1 – 14 of a 21-day cycle) for eight cycles. After a median follow-up of 60.6 months (range: 22 – 79), 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) was 89.5% and overall survival (OS) was 91.1%. In multivariate Cox analysis, lymphovascular/perineural invasion independently predicted poorer 5-year DFS (HR = 5.21; 95% CI: 1.02 – 26.55; p = 0.047), while both pathologic Stage IIC (pT4b) (HR = 6.98; 95% CI: 0.88 – 55.06; p = 0.009) and lymphovascular/perineural invasion (HR = 5.21; 95% CI: 1.02 – 26.55; p = 0.027) were independent predictors of worse 5-year OS. Grade ≥ 3 toxicities were uncommon: hand–foot syndrome (5.2%), diarrhea (2.1%), and hematologic events (4.2%); three patients (3.1%) discontinued therapy due to adverse events.These findings indicate that adjuvant capecitabine provides favorable 5-year DFS and OS in high-risk Stage II colon cancer. Patients with lymphovascular/perineural invasion or pT4b status may benefit from intensified approaches.

This study evaluated clinical characteristics, treatment outcomes, and CNS relapse patterns in patients with breast-involved diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), a rare extranodal presentation with limited real-world data. We conducted a retrospective study on 33 consecutive patients with newly diagnosed breast-involved DLBCL treated from 2019 to 2024. All patients received R-CHOP. Baseline CNS screening—including neurological examination, fundoscopy, brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis—was routinely performed. High-dose methotrexate (HD-MTX) was offered as CNS prophylaxis after completion of systemic therapy based on multidisciplinary team evaluation and clinician–patient shared decision-making according to institutional treatment protocols. Median age was 52.6 years; 84.8% had ECOG 0. Non-GCB subtype predominated (84.8%), and Ki-67 >70% was present in 69.7%. The overall response rate was 90.9%, with 84.8% complete responses. At a median follow-up of 44 months, 5-year Overall Survival (OS) and Progression-Free Survival (PFS) were 84.8% and 66.7%. CNS relapse occurred in 4 of 6 patients (66.7%) without prophylaxis, all within 5–11 months after R-CHOP, whereas no CNS relapses were observed among prophylaxis recipients (p < 0.001), although this observation should be interpreted with extreme caution given the very small non-prophylaxis subgroup (n = 6), limited statistical power, and non-randomized treatment allocation. Exploratory analyses suggested that bulky disease was associated with inferior OS. R-CHOP achieved high response rates and favorable long-term outcomes in breast-involved DLBCL. The absence of CNS relapse among HD-MTX prophylaxis recipients, contrasted with a high relapse rate in those without prophylaxis, provides only a hypothesis-generating observation that requires confirmation in larger prospective studies; this warrants further investigation of the role of systemic CNS prophylaxis.