Molecular Characteristics and Pretreatment Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio as Predictors of Durable Clinical Benefit from Immune Checkpoint Inhibition in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Background: Prior research in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has shown that tumors with specific driver mutations may be less likely to respond to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI). In this analysis, we evaluated the characteristics of patients with durable clinical benefit (DCB) to ICI compared to those with no durable clinical benefit (NDB), with emphasis on the role of molecular alterations in EGFR, ALK, and ROS1 and pretreatment neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR).

Methods: We retrospectively collected clinical characteristics and outcomes for patients who initiated ICI monotherapy for advanced NSCLC at Stanford University between April 2015 and May 2018.

Adhesive Bowel Obstruction Following Urologic Surgery: Improved Outcomes with Early Intervention.

Objective: To describe the long-term incidence of adhesive bowel obstruction following major urologic surgery, and the effect of early surgery on perioperative outcomes.

Methods: The Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project State Inpatient Databases for California and Florida (2006-2011) were used to identify major urologic oncologic surgery patients. Subsequent adhesive bowel obstruction admissions were identified and Kaplan-Meier time-to-event analysis was performed.

Complications of Recognized and Unrecognized Iatrogenic Ureteral Injury at Time of Hysterectomy: A Population Based Analysis.

Purpose: Ureteral injury represents an uncommon but potentially morbid surgical complication. We sought to characterize the complications of iatrogenic ureteral injury and assess the effect of recognized vs delayed recognition on patient outcomes.

Materials And Methods: Patients who underwent hysterectomy were identified in the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project California State Inpatient Database for 2007 to 2011.

A Case of Renal Metastasis of Uterine Leiomyosarcoma.

A 49-year-old woman with a distant history of uterine leiomyosarcoma underwent robotic-assisted laparoscopic partial nephrectomy for a 3.5 cm right renal mass, which was presumed to be a primary renal cell carcinoma. Surgical margins were negative, and the histologic analysis confirmed leiomyosarcoma.

Functional Comparison of Renal Tumor Enucleation Versus Standard Partial Nephrectomy.

Background: Tumor enucleation (TE) optimizes parenchymal preservation and could yield better function than standard partial nephrectomy (SPN), although data on this are conflicting.

Objective: To compare functional outcomes for TE and SPN strategies.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Patients managed with partial nephrectomy (PN) with necessary data for analysis of preservation of ipsilateral parenchymal mass (IPM) and global glomerular filtration rate (GFR) from two centers were included.

Postoperative Urinary Retention is an Independent Predictor of Short-Term and Long-Term Future Bladder Outlet Procedure in Men.

Purpose: Postoperative urinary retention is a common complication across surgical specialties. To our knowledge no literature to date has examined postoperative urinary retention as a predictor of long-term receipt of surgery for bladder outlet obstruction.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the records of inpatients who underwent nonurological surgery in California between 2008 and 2010.

Rates and Risk Factors for Opioid Dependence and Overdose after Urological Surgery.

Purpose: Effective pain management is a critical component of the perioperative process with opioids representing a mainstay of therapy. The opioid epidemic is a growing concern in the United States. The goal of this study was to quantify the risk of opioid dependence or overdose among patients undergoing urological surgery and to identify risk factors of opioid dependence or overdose.

Cost Analysis of Metallic Stents for Chronic Ureteral Obstruction: A Multicenter Study.

Introduction: Metallic and polymer ureteral stents are used to manage chronic ureteral obstruction. In general, metallic stents are more costly than polymer stents but they are changed less frequently. We examined the overall costs of using these stent types at 2 institutions.

Functional Implications of Renal Tumor Enucleation Relative to Standard Partial Nephrectomy.

Objective: To compare the surgical precision for optimizing nephron-mass preservation of tumor enucleation (TE) vs standard partial nephrectomy (SPN), with primary focus on functional outcomes. TE is presumed to optimize preservation of parenchymal mass and function but this has not yet been rigorously studied and quantified.

Materials And Methods: Robotic partial nephrectomy patients who had appropriate pre- and postoperative studies for analysis of parenchymal mass preservation specific to the operated kidney were included.

HSV-1 infection of human corneal epithelial cells: receptor-mediated entry and trends of re-infection.

Purpose: The human cornea is a primary target for herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) infection. The goals of the study were to determine the cellular modalities of HSV-1 entry into human corneal epithelial (HCE) cells. Specific features of the study included identifying major entry receptors, assessing pH dependency, and determining trends of re-infection.

Resistance to forgetting associated with hippocampus-mediated reactivation during new learning.

One of the reasons why we forget past experiences is because we acquire new memories in the interim. Although the hippocampus is thought to be important for acquiring and retaining memories, there is little evidence linking neural operations during new learning to the forgetting (or remembering) of earlier events. We found that, during the encoding of new memories, responses in the human hippocampus are predictive of the retention of memories for previously experienced, overlapping events.