Biodegradable tracheal stents: our ten-year experience with adult patients.

Background: Biodegradable (BD) stents made from polydioxanone have been used only in human airways. These stents combine the advantages of classical tracheal stents, and fewer side effects are expected due to their biocompatibility and their time-limited presence in airways. However, new clinical consequences have arisen.

The role of thoracic surgery in the management of complicated acute and post-acute COVID-19 pneumonia (PASC).

Introduction: COVID-19 is considered a respiratory virosis in its classic form, although it may present with heterogeneous symptoms. Thoracic complications occur in a small percentage of patients. Our objective was to evaluate existing experience with this disease and its thoracic manifestations and to determine the real-world status of care of these patients.

Tertiary lymphoid structures and B cells determine clinically relevant T cell phenotypes in ovarian cancer.

Intratumoral tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) have been associated with improved outcome in various cohorts of patients with cancer, reflecting their contribution to the development of tumor-targeting immunity. Here, we demonstrate that high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC) contains distinct immune aggregates with varying degrees of organization and maturation. Specifically, mature TLSs (mTLS) as forming only in 16% of HGSOCs with relatively elevated tumor mutational burden (TMB) are associated with an increased intratumoral density of CD8 effector T (T) cells and TIM3PD1, hence poorly immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI)-sensitive, CD8 T cells.

CCL2, CCL8, CXCL12 chemokines in resectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Background: Complex networks of chemokines are part of the immune reaction targeted against tumor cells. Chemokines influence cancer growth. It is unclear whether the concentrations of chemokines at the time of NSCLC (non-small cell lung cancer) diagnosis differ from healthy controls and reflect the extent of NSCLC.

Resting End-Tidal Carbon Dioxide Predicts Respiratory Complications in Patients Undergoing Thoracic Surgical Procedures.

Background: Ventilatory efficiency (V˙e/V˙co slope [minute ventilation to carbon dioxide output slope]) has been shown to predict morbidity and mortality in lung resection candidates. Patients with increased V˙e/V˙co during exercise also exhibit an increased V˙e/V˙co ratio and a decreased end-tidal CO at rest. This study hypothesized that ventilatory values at rest predict respiratory complications and death in patients undergoing thoracic surgical procedures.