Molecular clustering on ctDNA improves the prognostic stratification of DLBCL patients compared to ctDNA levels.

Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) levels can help predict outcomes in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), but its integration with DLBCL molecular clusters remains unexplored. Using the LymphGen tool in 77 DLBCL with both ctDNA and tissue biopsy, a 95.8% concordance rate in molecular cluster assignment was observed, showing the reproducibility of molecular clustering on ctDNA.

Impact of successful secondary hyperparathyroidism treatment on cardiovascular morbidity in patients with chronic kidney disease KDIGO stages G3b-5.

Introduction: Chronic kidney disease is common, with a projected increase to 5.4 million people in need of kidney replacement therapy by 2030. As many as 61.

Quality of Life and Independent Factors Associated with Poor Digestive Function after Ivor Lewis Esophagectomy.

Transthoracic esophagectomy results in a radical change in foregut anatomy with multiple consequences for digestive physiology. The aim of this study was to identify factors associated with poor functional outcomes by assessing multiple dimensions of digestive performance and health-related quality of life (HRQL). Patients with cancer-free survival after Ivor Lewis esophagectomy were included.

Industry perspective on a holistic container closure integrity approach to parenteral combination products.

Biologics are being developed more and more as parenteral combination products with drug delivery devices. The maintenance of sterility is imperative for such medical devices throughout their life cycle. Therefore, the container closure integrity (CCI) should, preferably, be built into the overall process, and not just demonstrated during the final testing of the combination product.

Assessment of Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound (CEUS) and Computed Tomography (CT) diagnostic accuracy in the evaluation of challenging cystic renal masses.

Purpose: To assess the diagnostic accuracy of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and computed tomography (CT) within Bosniak IIF/III categories.

Methods: After cystic renal mass diagnosis by contrast-enhanced CT, all patients with Bosniak score ≥ II also underwent CEUS between March 2017 and March 2019. Their exams were retrospectively analyzed.

MLH1 Deficiency Down-Regulates TLR4 Expression in Sporadic Colorectal Cancer.

Patients with mismatch repair (MMR)-deficient colorectal cancer (CRC) have a more favorable prognosis than patients with tumors with intact MMR. In order to obtain further insights on the reasons for this different outcome, we investigated the interplay between MMR genes and TLR4/MyD88 signaling. The cancer genome atlas (TCGA) databases were selected to predict the differential expression of TLR4 in colon cancer and its correlation with MMR genes.

Could the infiltration of the thyroarytenoid muscle define the pT2 glottic carcinoma?

Background: The involvement of the thyroarytenoid (TA) muscle by glottic cancer may be related to an impaired vocal cord mobility, which is classified as cT2 disease. The primary endpoint was to evaluate the prognostic significance of TA muscle involvement in early glottic cancer treated with transoral laser microsurgery (TLM).

Methods: A review was conducted on a cohort of 209 patients consecutively treated with TLM for early glottic carcinoma.

Sclerosis of the arytenoid cartilage and glottic carcinoma: A clinical-pathological study.

Background: Given the relevance of any tumor invasion of the arytenoid cartilage or crico-arytenoid unit to the planning open partial horizontal laryngectomy (OPHL) for laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC), it is important to have a reliable radiological test to assess impairments of these structures.

Methods: We retrospectively compared the endoscopic, radiological, and pathological findings in patients with glottic LSCC who underwent OPHL.

Results: The endoscopic finding of a reduced (impaired or absent) vocal cord motility proved more sensitive, with better positive and negative predictive values, but less specific than the radiological finding of complete arytenoid sclerosis in detecting histologically assessable infiltration of the arytenoid cartilage.

Dysfunction in the mitochondrial Fe-S assembly machinery leads to formation of the chemoresistant truncated VDAC1 isoform without HIF-1α activation.

Biogenesis of iron-sulfur clusters (ISC) is essential to almost all forms of life and involves complex protein machineries. This process is initiated within the mitochondrial matrix by the ISC assembly machinery. Cohort and case report studies have linked mutations in ISC assembly machinery to severe mitochondrial diseases.

Partial thyroidectomy for papillary thyroid microcarcinoma: Is completion total thyroidectomy indicated?

Aim: Papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) is increasing in incidence. Despite its excellent clinical outcomes, there is still debate regarding which surgical approach is more appropriate for PTMC, procedures including hemithyroidectomy (HT), total thyroidectomy (TT), and completion thyroidectomy (CT) after initial HT and histopathologic examination confirming a PTMC. Here we report our experience in the surgical management of PTMC.

Human hepatocellular carcinomas with a periportal phenotype have the lowest potential for early recurrence after curative resection.

Unlabelled: Hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) exhibit a diversity of molecular phenotypes, raising major challenges in clinical management. HCCs detected by surveillance programs at an early stage are candidates for potentially curative therapies (local ablation, resection, or transplantation). In the long term, transplantation provides the lowest recurrence rates.

Colorectal polypoid lesions and expression of vascular endothelial growth factor in a consecutive series of endoscopic and surgical patients.

Colorectal cancer incidence in patients undergoing screening protocols is decreasing because of the higher rate of discovered preneoplastic colonic lesions; however, adenomatous polyps may not always be removable endoscopically and surgery may still be necessary. The aim of this study was to assess the vascular endothelial growth factor expression in the different steps of colorectal carcinogenesis to explore its potential role as a marker of malignancy in polypoid lesions. A total of 92 subjects with colonic adenoma or cancer who underwent screening colonoscopy or surgery were prospectively enrolled.

De novo HAPLN1 expression hallmarks Wnt-induced stem cell and fibrogenic networks leading to aggressive human hepatocellular carcinomas.

About 20% hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) display wild-type β-catenin, enhanced Wnt signaling, hepatocyte dedifferentiation and bad outcome, suggesting a specific impact of Wnt signals on HCC stem/progenitor cells. To study Wnt-specific molecular pathways, cell fates and clinical outcome, we fine-tuned Wnt/β-catenin signaling in liver progenitor cells, using the prototypical Wnt ligand Wnt3a. Cell biology assays and transcriptomic profiling were performed in HepaRG hepatic progenitors exposed to Wnt3a after β-catenin knockdown or Wnt inhibition with FZD8_CRD.

Generation of Mice with Hepatocyte-Specific Conditional Deletion of Notum.

Background: Fine tuning of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway is essential for the proper development and function of the liver. Aberrant activation of this pathway is observed in 20%-40% of hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC). Notum encodes a secreted Wnt deacylase that inhibits Wnt activity and thereby restricts the zone of activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling.

A kinome siRNA screen identifies HGS as a potential target for liver cancers with oncogenic mutations in CTNNB1.

Background: Aberrant activation of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway is a major and frequent event in liver cancer, but inhibition of oncogenic β-catenin signaling has proven challenging. The identification of genes that are synthetically lethal in β-catenin-activated cancer cells would provide new targets for therapeutic drug design.

Methods: We transfected the parental HuH6 hepatoblastoma cell line with a doxycycline-inducible shRNA against CTNNB1 (gene coding for β-catenin) to obtain an isogenic cell line pair with or without aberrant β-catenin signaling.

Mismatch repair gene defects in sporadic colorectal cancer enhance immune surveillance.

Background: There is evidence that colorectal cancers (CRC) with DNA mismatch repair deficiency (MMR-D) are associated with a better prognosis than the generality of large bowel malignancies. Since an active immune surveillance process has been demonstrated to influence CRC outcome, we investigated whether MMR-D can enhance the immune response in CRC.

Patients And Methods: A group of 113 consecutive patients operated for CRC (42 stage I or II and 71 with stage III or IV) was retrospectively analyzed.

Sensory neuropathy hampers nociception-mediated bone marrow stem cell release in mice and patients with diabetes.

Aims/hypothesis: Upon tissue injury, peripheral sensory neurons release nociceptive factors (e.g. substance P [SP]), which exert local and systemic actions including the recruitment of bone marrow (BM)-derived haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) endowed with paracrine pro-angiogenic properties.

Primary Synovial Sarcoma (SS) of the digestive system: a molecular and clinicopathological study of fifteen cases.

Background: Recently a few cases of synovial sarcoma (SS) of the abdominal viscera have been reported, raising awareness about the potential for confusion between this entity and KIT-negative gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). We report the clinicopathological, immunophenotypical and molecular features of fifteen more SS occurring in the stomach (8 cases), epigastric region (one case), small intestine (one case), large intestine (three cases), involving both the terminal ileum and the caecum (one case) and liver (one case).

Methods: Immunostains for SMA, DESMIN, CD34, CD117, S100, EMA, CK AE1/3, TLE1, CD56, CD99, BCL2, DOG1 were performed.

Obesity is a risk factor for multifocal disease and recurrence after colorectal cancer surgery: a case-control study.

Background: Several studies have demonstrated that obesity is a risk factor for colorectal cancer (CRC), but few data are available regarding its role in multifocal disease and postoperative recurrence. The present study aimed to assess the role of obesity as a risk factor for multifocal disease and postoperative recurrence in patients with CRC.

Patients And Methods: The records of 940 consecutive patients with CRC admitted to three surgical centres between January 2006 and January 2011 were retrospectively analysed.

MGMT promoter methylation and correlation with protein expression in primary central nervous system lymphoma.

The O (6)-methylguanine-DNA-methyltransferase (MGMT) gene encodes for a DNA repairing enzyme of which silencing by promoter methylation is involved in brain tumorigenesis. MGMT promoter methylation represents a favorable prognostic factor and has been associated with a better response to alkylating agents in glioma and systemic lymphoma. Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) is a rare and aggressive extranodal malignant lymphoma.

A novel LKB1 isoform enhances AMPK metabolic activity and displays oncogenic properties.

The LKB1 tumor suppressor gene encodes a master kinase that coordinates the regulation of energetic metabolism and cell polarity. We now report the identification of a novel isoform of LKB1 (named ΔN-LKB1) that is generated through alternative transcription and internal initiation of translation of the LKB1 mRNA. The ΔN-LKB1 protein lacks the N-terminal region and a portion of the kinase domain.

Prognostic significance of circulating and endothelial progenitor cell markers in type 2 diabetic foot.

Objective. We studied circulating precursor cells (CPC) in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) with neuropathic foot lesions with or without critical limb ischemia and relationships between endothelial precursor cells (EPC) and peripheral neuropathy. Methods and Subjects.