Non-COVID hospital admissions decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic and follow-up of people in the lung cancer risk group was delayed. There are not enough studies on the effects of the pandemic period on the diagnosis of lung cancer. In this study, it was aimed to determine the characteristics of patients diagnosed with lung cancer in the pre-pandemic and pandemic period and to investigate the effects of the pandemic on the diagnosis of lung cancer. Patients with newly diagnosed lung cancer 16 months before and after the detection of the first COVID-19 case were retrospectively analyzed for their characteristics at the time of diagnosis. Age, gender, pathological diagnosis, distant organ metastasis status, and also pathological stages at the time of diagnosis of the patients were analyzed. Two hundred forty-six patients were included in the study. One hundred forty-five of the patients were diagnosed in the pre-pandemic period and 101 during the pandemic period. Mean age of patients was 64.24 years and 91.87% were male. Pathological diagnosis distributions were similar in the pre-pandemic group and the pandemic period group. Distant organ metastases were present in 59.31% of the pre-pandemic group and 65.35% of the pandemic group. There was no significant difference in terms of the stages of the patients at the time of diagnosis. Number of patients diagnosed with lung cancer during the pandemic period was lower. The characteristics of the patients were similar. These results may have resulted from the decrease in applications to health institutions due to social isolation and fear of COVID-19 infection, and limitations in accessing health services.

Background: Lung cancer is a malignancy marked by low treatment response rates and poor survival outcomes, despite significant advancements in diagnostic and therapeutic approaches. This study aims to examine the impact of dietary habits and physical activity levels on chemotherapy response and survival in patients diagnosed with advanced-stage non-small cell lung cancer. Methods: Patients diagnosed with stage IV non-small cell lung cancer and scheduled to receive platinum-based chemotherapy as the initial treatment were included in the study. Sociodemographic and cancer-related characteristics were documented. At the beginning of treatment, the patients’ dietary habits and physical activity levels were evaluated using the “Mediterranean Diet Adherence Scale,” the “International Physical Activity Questionnaire,” and the “Food Consumption Frequency Form,” while their average daily step count was calculated. The study investigated the relationships between dietary habits and physical activity levels with treatment response, 6-month survival, progression-free survival, and chemotherapy-related side effects. Results: The study included a total of 37 patients, 35 of whom were male, with a mean age of 63.49 years. The 6-month survival rate among these patients was 81.1%. In terms of treatment response, 35.1% of patients experienced disease progression, 54.1% demonstrated partial regression, and 8.1% achieved complete regression. Notably, the 6-month survival rate was significantly higher in minimally physically active patients compared to inactive patients (p = 0.022). Furthermore, patients adhering to the Mediterranean diet exhibited a significantly higher 6-month survival rate compared to those who did not follow the diet (p = 0.019). High adherence to the Mediterranean diet was also associated with a significantly lower incidence of chemotherapy-related gastrointestinal side effects (p < 0.001). Conclusion: This study demonstrated that physical activity and adherence to the Mediterranean diet positively impact 6-month survival and reduce the incidence of chemotherapy-related side effects.

Background and Objectives: Nutritional impairment and systemic inflammation contribute to disease progression and poor outcomes in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). The geriatric-nutritional-risk-index (GNRI) and prognostic-nutritional-index (PNI) are practical markers reflecting both nutritional and immune status. In elderly COPD patients, malnutrition-related exacerbations often worsen quality of life and increase hospitalization. Identifying reliable predictors of exacerbation risk is therefore important for improving disease management. This study evaluated the association between GNRI, PNI and exacerbation frequency across different age groups in COPD. Materials and Methods: This multicenter retrospective study included 302 patients with COPD from 10 medical centers. All patients were classified as GOLD Group-E according to exacerbation history. Demographic characteristics, pulmonary function tests, Charlson-Comorbidity-Index (CCI), pharmacological treatments, dyspnea scores, and annual exacerbation frequency were obtained from hospital databases. Laboratory parameters including complete blood count, C-reactive protein, albumin, and total protein were recorded. GNRI, PNI, and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) were calculated to evaluate nutritional and inflammatory status. Results: The mean age of participants was 67.9 ± 9.6 years and 26.5% were female. Elderly patients had significantly higher CCI scores, longer disease duration, greater cumulative smoking exposure, and more frequent exacerbations than younger patients (p < 0.001). Pulmonary function parameters were significantly lower in the elderly group, while long-term oxygen therapy and nebulizer use were more common (p < 0.001). Baseline and exacerbation NLR levels were higher in elderly patients, whereas GNRI and PNI values were lower during both stable disease and exacerbation periods. Patients with more than four exacerbations per year had significantly higher NLR and lower GNRI values. Conclusions: Elderly COPD patients in GOLD Group-E demonstrate marked inflammatory and nutritional burden. Lower PNI values were independently associated with increased annual exacerbation frequency, while lower GNRI values were observed in patients with greater inflammatory and nutritional burden. Routine immune-nutritional assessment may improve risk stratification and help identify patients who could benefit from early multidisciplinary management.

Neurogenic pulmonary edema is a form of alveolar edema that results from an increased adrenergic response secondary to central nervous system injury. It is characterized by elevated catecholamine levels and increased pulmonary hydrostatic pressure. The causes of neurogenic pulmonary edema include traumatic brain injury, stroke, intracranial hemorrhage, acute hydrocephalus, meningitis, drug overdose, and epilepsy. Non-specific symptoms such as shortness of breath, cough, and pink frothy sputum may occur due to pulmonary edema. We present two cases of patients, aged 43 and 32, both diagnosed with epilepsy, who presented to the emergency department with respiratory complaints following epileptic seizures. Diagnostic evaluations confirmed neurogenic pulmonary edema, and clinical improvement was observed following symptomatic treatment.