Liver cirrhosis is a risk-factor for Pneumocystis jirovecii associated mortality.

Background: Pneumocystis jirovecci pneumonia (PCP) is a life threating disease in immunodeficient patients. Liver cirrhosis itself can lead to immunodefiency, however little is known if Pneumocystis jirovecci infection affects the outcome of patients with liver cirrhosis.

Aim: We aimed to assess the predictors for Pneumocystis jirovecci-associated mortality in patients with Pneumocystis jirovecci infection treated at intensive care units.

The road to a world-unified approach to the management of patients with gastric intestinal metaplasia: a review of current guidelines.

Objective: During the last decade, the management of gastric intestinal metaplasia (GIM) has been addressed by several distinct international evidence-based guidelines. In this review, we aimed to synthesise these guidelines and provide clinicians with a global perspective of the current recommendations for managing patients with GIM, as well as highlight evidence gaps that need to be addressed with future research.

Design: We conducted a systematic review of the literature for guidelines and consensus statements published between January 2010 and February 2023 that address the diagnosis and management of GIM.

Low-cost and clinically applicable copy number profiling using repeat DNA.

Background: Somatic copy number alterations (SCNAs) are an important class of genomic alteration in cancer. They are frequently observed in cancer samples, with studies showing that, on average, SCNAs affect 34% of a cancer cell's genome. Furthermore, SCNAs have been shown to be major drivers of tumour development and have been associated with response to therapy and prognosis.

Myths and misconceptions in the management of infection.

The discovery of infection in 1984 revolutionised the management of several common upper gastrointestinal diseases. However, some of the clinical practices that were adopted following discovery of this organism have become less appropriate over the intervening years. This article discusses five 'myths and misconceptions' that we believe have now emerged and which we argue need re-evaluation.

The Role of Microbiota in Gastrointestinal Cancer and Cancer Treatment: Chance or Curse?

The gastrointestinal (GI) tract is home to a complex and dynamic community of microorganisms, comprising bacteria, archaea, viruses, yeast, and fungi. It is widely accepted that human health is shaped by these microbes and their collective microbial genome. This so-called second genome plays an important role in normal functioning of the host, contributing to processes involved in metabolism and immune modulation.

Cost-effectiveness modelling of use of urea breath test for the management of -related dyspepsia and peptic ulcer in the UK.

Objective: Clinical data comparing diagnostic strategies in the management of -associated diseases are limited. Invasive and noninvasive diagnostic tests for detecting infection are used in the clinical care of patients with dyspeptic symptoms. Modelling studies might help to identify the most cost-effective strategies.

The complexity of cancer origins at the gastro-oesophageal junction.

Chronic acid-biliary reflux and Helicobacter pylori infection are instrumental environmental drivers of cancer initiation and progression in the upper gastrointestinal tract. Remarkably, although these environmental carcinogens are quite dissimilar, the tumour progression cascade these carcinogens engender is highly comparable. For this reason, studies of malignant progression occurring at the anatomic borderland between the oesophagus and the stomach have traditionally lumped junctional adenocarcinomas with either oesophageal adenocarcinoma or gastric adenocarcinoma.

Helicobacter pylori induced gastric carcinogenesis - The best molecular model we have?

Gastric carcinogenesis can be described as a consequence of multilevel molecular alterations that is triggered by a cascade of events. Historically, diet and environmental factors have been identified to substantially contribute to carcinogenesis before the discovery of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori).

Biopsy Sampling in Upper Gastrointestinal Endoscopy: A Survey from 10 Tertiary Referral Centres Across Europe.

Background: Guidelines give robust recommendations on which biopsies should be taken when there is endoscopic suggestion of gastric inflammation. Adherence to these guidelines often seems arbitrary. This study aimed to give an overview on current practice in tertiary referral centres across Europe.

EpiCO (epirubicin, cyclophosphamide and vincristine) as treatment for extrapulmonary high-grade neuroendocrine neoplasms.

High-grade neuroendocrine neoplasms (NEN) comprise a rare entity. Due to the lack of randomized controlled trials, therapy recommendations were mainly extrapolated from its pulmonary analogue, small cell lung cancer and mostly validated in small retrospective case series. The multicentric Nordic NEC Study of gastro-entero-pancreatic (GEP) and cancer of unknown primary (CUP) high-grade neuroendocrine neoplasms showed a significant disease control upon treatment with etoposide and platinum-based chemotherapies 1.

Feasibility of combined screening for upper gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma risk by serology and Cytosponge testing: the SUGAR study.

Aims: Aim was to assess the feasibility of serum markers to identify individuals at risk for gastro-oesophageal adenocarcinoma to reduce the number of individuals requiring invasive assessment by endoscopy.

Methods: Blood samples from 56 patients with Barrett's oesophagus and 202 non-Barrett controls who previously took part in a trial assessing the accuracy of the Cytosponge for Barrett's oesophagus were assessed for serum pepsinogen (PG) 1 and 2, gastrin-17, trefoil factor 3 (TFF3) and infection.

Results: PG1 was pathological (<50 ng/mL) in 26 patients (10.

Management of immune related adverse events induced by immune checkpoint inhibition.

In recent years, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) were successfully introduced to cancer therapy and these drugs have already become essential for the treatment of various non-curable tumors. Compared to conventional chemotherapy or tyrosine kinase inhibitors, ICIs generally exhibit a favorable side effect profile further promoting their increasing prescription rate. However, increasing use of these substance made clear that ICI induced activation of the immune system may also lead to immune-related adverse events (irAEs).

Transcriptomic profiling reveals three molecular phenotypes of adenocarcinoma at the gastroesophageal junction.

Cancers occurring at the gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) are classified as predominantly esophageal or gastric, which is often difficult to decipher. We hypothesized that the transcriptomic profile might reveal molecular subgroups which could help to define the tumor origin and behavior beyond anatomical location. The gene expression profiles of 107 treatment-naïve, intestinal type, gastroesophageal adenocarcinomas were assessed by the Illumina-HTv4.

The Rationale and Efficacy of Primary and Secondary Prevention in Adenocarcinomas of the Upper Gastrointestinal Tract.

While the primary risk factor for oesophageal adenocarcinoma (OAC) and its precursor lesion Barrett's oesophagus (BO) is gastro-oesophageal reflux, the infection with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is the dominant risk factor for gastric cancer. Reduction of reflux by dietary measures and proton pump inhibitors has some merits in OAC prevention, and the chemopreventive effect of Aspirin and statins is being widely investigated; however, improved outcome in OAC occurs primarily as the result of secondary prevention.

Immune activation by DNA damage predicts response to chemotherapy and survival in oesophageal adenocarcinoma.

Objective: Current strategies to guide selection of neoadjuvant therapy in oesophageal adenocarcinoma (OAC) are inadequate. We assessed the ability of a DNA damage immune response (DDIR) assay to predict response following neoadjuvant chemotherapy in OAC.

Design: Transcriptional profiling of 273 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded prechemotherapy endoscopic OAC biopsies was performed.