Changes in gene expression of neo-squamous mucosa after endoscopic treatment for dysplastic Barrett's esophagus and intramucosal adenocarcinoma.

Background: Endoscopic therapy, including by radiofrequency ablation (RFA) or endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR), is first line treatment for Barrett's esophagus (BE) with high-grade dysplasia (HGD) or intramucosal cancer (IMC) and may be appropriate for some patients with low-grade dysplasia (LGD).

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the molecular effects of endotherapy.

Methods: mRNA expression of 16 genes significantly associated with different BE stages was measured in paired pre-treatment BE tissues and post-treatment neo-squamous biopsies from 36 patients treated by RFA (19 patients, 3 IMC, 4 HGD, 12 LGD) or EMR (17 patients, 4 IMC, 13 HGD).

Early studies on the safety and efficacy of thalidomide for symptomatic inflammatory bowel disease.

Background And Aim: Thalidomide is clinically effective in the treatment of graft versus host disease in bone marrow transplantation and aphthous ulceration in HIV infection. It appears to exert a selective effect on tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) production. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha is implicated in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).