Evolution in the Surgical Management of Gastric Cancer Peritoneal Metastases.

Despite therapeutic treatments and the growing utilization of multimodal therapies, gastric cancer (GC) remains a highly aggressive malignancy with high mortality worldwide. Much of the complexity in treating GC is due to the high incidence of peritoneal metastasis (PM), with mean overall survival typically ranging from 4 to 10 months. With current systemic therapy, targeted therapies, and immunotherapies continuing to remain ineffective for GC/PM, there has been a significant growing interest in intraperitoneal (IP) therapies for the treatment of GC/PM.

Colonic herniation through the foramen of Winslow-to close the defect or not?

Internal herniation through the foramen of Winslow (FoW) is a rare, life-threatening diagnosis. We present a case of intestinal obstruction due to herniation of the ileum, cecum, appendix, and ascending colon through the FoW. We reduced the herniation using a small colotomy and preserved the entirety of the bowel.

Prospects of the Surgical Management of Colorectal Peritoneal Metastasis.

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common malignancy with the propensity to metastasize. Common sites of metastasis include the liver, lung, and peritoneum with peritoneal metastases (PM) having the worst prognosis. Unfortunately, systemic chemotherapy is often less effective in the treatment of peritoneal metastases.

A molecularly engineered lectin destroys EGFR and inhibits the growth of non-small cell lung cancer.

Survival rates for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remain low despite the advent of novel therapeutics. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) targeting mutant epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in NSCLC have significantly improved mortality but are plagued with challenges--they can only be used in the small fraction of patients who have susceptible driver mutations, and resistance inevitably develops. Aberrant glycosylation on the surface of cancer cells is an attractive therapeutic target as these abnormal glycosylation patterns are typically specific to cancer cells and are not present on healthy cells.

The role of the histone H3 variant CENPA in prostate cancer.

Overexpression of centromeric proteins has been identified in a number of human malignancies, but the functional and mechanistic contributions of these proteins to disease progression have not been characterized. The centromeric histone H3 variant centromere protein A (CENPA) is an epigenetic mark that determines centromere identity. Here, using an array of approaches, including RNA-sequencing and ChIP-sequencing analyses, immunohistochemistry-based tissue microarrays, and various cell biology assays, we demonstrate that CENPA is highly overexpressed in prostate cancer in both tissue and cell lines and that the level of CENPA expression correlates with the disease stage in a large cohort of patients.

Ruxolitinib in adult patients with secondary haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis: an open-label, single-centre, pilot trial.

Background: Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis is a cytokine-driven inflammatory syndrome that is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. Overall survival in adult patients with secondary haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis remains suboptimal, and novel therapeutic strategies are needed. The phosphorylation-dependent activation of the Janus family kinases JAK1 and JAK2 are hallmarks of the final common pathway in this disease.

The American Society of Hematology (ASH) Medical Educators Institute: a Pilot Faculty Development Project for Hematology Educators.

Clinician educators at academic medical centers often lack the community, mentorship, and faculty development to support their missions around education scholarship and teaching. Inadequate support for clinician educators can lead to professional dissatisfaction and slowed academic advancement. In 2014, ASH conducted a needs assessment of medical school hematology course directors, hematology-oncology fellowship program directors, and other ASH members identified as educators to determine this community's desire for faculty development in medical education.

Determinants of hematology-oncology trainees' postfellowship career pathways with a focus on nonmalignant hematology.

Nonmalignant hematologic conditions are extremely prevalent and contribute significantly to the global burden of disease. The US health care system may soon face a shortage of specialists in nonmalignant hematology. We sought to identify factors that lead hematology-oncology fellows to pursue (or not to pursue) careers in nonmalignant hematology.

Competency-Based Medical Education in the Internal Medicine Clerkship: A Report From the Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine Undergraduate Medical Education Task Force.

As medical educators continue to redefine learning and assessment across the continuum, implementation of competency-based medical education in the undergraduate setting has become a focus of many medical schools. While standards of competency have been defined for the graduating student, there is no uniform approach for defining competency expectations for students during their core clerkship year. The authors describe the process by which an Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine task force developed a paradigm for competency-based assessment of students during their inpatient internal medicine (IM) clerkship.

ASRM standard embryo transfer protocol template: a committee opinion.

Standardization improves performance and safety. A template for standardizing the embryo transfer procedure is presented here with 12 basic steps supported by published scientific literature and a survey of common practice of SART programs; it can be used by ART practices to model their own standard protocol.

Technique to 'Map' Chromosomal Mosaicism at the Blastocyst Stage.

The purpose of this study was to identify a technique that allows for comprehensive chromosome screening (CCS) of individual cells within human blastocysts along with the approximation of their location in the trophectoderm relative to the inner cell mass (ICM). This proof-of-concept study will allow for a greater understanding of chromosomal mosaicism at the blastocyst stage and the mechanisms by which mosaicism arises. One blastocyst was held by a holding pipette and the ICM was removed.

Optimizing the post-graduate institutional program evaluation process.

Background: Reviewing program educational efforts is an important component of postgraduate medical education program accreditation. The post-graduate review process has evolved over time to include centralized oversight based on accreditation standards. The institutional review process and the impact on participating faculty are topics not well described in the literature.

For Residents and Fellows: What to Look for in a Laboratory Research Mentor.

Preparing for a laboratory or research-based career in academic medicine involves learning and acquiring a broad set of knowledge, skills, and experiences that facilitate the transition from trainee to faculty member. It also involves identifying and cultivating solid mentor/mentee relationships in the laboratory environment. It is well known that different skill sets and mentoring approaches are necessary for those pursuing laboratory-based research as compared with those needed for clinical practice and patient-oriented research.

The effect of an intense mentoring program on junior investigators' preparation for a patient-oriented clinical research career.

Problem: There is a recognized need to translate scientific discoveries to patient-oriented clinical research (POCR). Several obstacles interfere with the successful recruitment and retention of physicians for POCR careers.

Approach: The American Society of Hematology developed a yearlong educational and mentoring experience, the Clinical Research Training Institute (CRTI), for early-career physician-scientists from multiple institutions throughout the United States and Canada pursuing POCR careers.

Human Endogenous Retrovirus Type K (HERV-K) Particles Package and Transmit HERV-K-Related Sequences.

Unlabelled: Human endogenous retroviruses (HERV) make up 8% of the human genome. While the youngest of these retroviruses, HERV-K(HML-2), termed HK2, is able to code for all viral proteins and produce virus-like particles, it is not known if these virus particles package and transmit HK2-related sequences. Here, we analyzed the capacity of HK2 for packaging and transmitting HK2 sequences.

Preclinical Medical Student Hematology/Oncology Education Environment.

To better prepare medical students to care for patients in today's changing health-care environment as they transition to continuing their education as residents, many US medical schools have been reviewing and modifying their curricula and are considering integration of newer adult learning techniques, including team-based learning, flipped classrooms, and other active learning approaches (Assoc Am Med Coll. 2014). Directors of hematology/oncology (H/O) courses requested an assessment of today's H/O education environment to help them respond to the ongoing changes in the education content and environment that will be necessary to meet this goal.

Challenges in Measuring Benefit of Clinical Research Training Programs--the ASH Clinical Research Training Institute Example.

The American Society of Hematology developed the Clinical Research Training Institute (CRTI) to address the lack of training in patient-oriented research among hematologists. As the program continues, we need to consider metrics for measuring the benefits of such a training program. This article addresses the benefits of clinical research training programs.

Blastocyst euploidy and implantation rates in a young (<35 years) and old (≥35 years) presumed fertile and infertile patient population.

Objective: To examine the relationship between blastocyst euploidy and implantation rates in a presumed fertile patient population.

Design: Retrospective analysis.

Setting: Private IVF clinic.

Comparison of aneuploidy, pregnancy and live birth rates between day 5 and day 6 blastocysts.

Comprehensive chromosome screening is typically used for aneuploidy analysis of blastocysts. It is believed that either day of blastocyst development is acceptable. Euploidy rates and outcomes were examined between day 5 and day 6 blastocysts in two studies.

Genomic flexibility of human endogenous retrovirus type K.

Unlabelled: Human endogenous retrovirus type K (HERV-K) proviruses are scattered throughout the human genome, but as no infectious HERV-K virus has been detected to date, the mechanism by which these viruses replicated and populated the genome remains unresolved. Here, we provide evidence that, in addition to the RNA genomes that canonical retroviruses package, modern HERV-K viruses can contain reverse-transcribed DNA (RT-DNA) genomes. Indeed, reverse transcription of genomic HERV-K RNA into the DNA form is able to occur in three distinct times and locations: (i) in the virus-producing cell prior to viral release, yielding a DNA-containing extracellular virus particle similar to the spumaviruses; (ii) within the extracellular virus particle itself, transitioning from an RNA-containing particle to a DNA-containing particle; and (iii) after entry of the RNA-containing virus into the target cell, similar to canonical retroviruses, such as murine leukemia virus and HIV.