Three Molecular Developmental Pathways of Remnant Pancreatic Cancer after Resection: A Nationwide Project Study of Japan Pancreas Society.

Objective: This study aimed to clarify the molecular mechanism of remnant pancreatic cancer (PC) development after primary PC resection.

Summary Background Data: Molecular mechanisms of the development of remnant PCs following primary PC resection are largely unknown.

Methods: Forty-three patients undergoing remnant PC resection after primary PC resection between 2001 and 2017 at 26 institutes were retrospectively analyzed.

Conversion surgery for initially unresectable locally advanced biliary tract cancer: A multicenter collaborative study conducted in Japan and Korea.

Background: Although surgical resection is the only curative treatment for biliary tract cancer, in some cases, the disease is diagnosed as unresectable at initial presentation. There are few reports of conversion surgery after the initial treatment for unresectable locally advanced biliary tract cancer. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of conversion surgery in patients with initially unresectable locally advanced biliary tract cancer.

Short-term serial circulating tumor DNA assessment predicts therapeutic efficacy for patients with advanced pancreatic cancer.

Purpose: We investigated the potential clinical utility of short-term serial KRAS-mutated circulating cell-free tumor DNA (ctDNA) assessment for predicting therapeutic response in patients undergoing first-line chemotherapy for advanced pancreatic cancer.

Methods: We collected 144 blood samples from 18 patients with locally advanced or metastatic cancer that were undergoing initial first-line chemotherapy of gemcitabine plus nab-paclitaxel (GEM plus nab-PTX). Analysis of KRAS-mutated ctDNA was quantified by digital droplet polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) as mutant allele frequency (MAF).

Days of the week and 90-day mortality after esophagectomy: analysis of 33,980 patients from the National Clinical Database.

Purpose: The effect of the days of the week on the short-term outcomes after elective surgeries has been suggested; however, such data on esophagectomies remain limited. This study aimed to investigate the association between the day of the week and mortality rates after elective esophagectomy using a large-scale clinical database in Japan.

Methods: The data of elective esophagectomies, registered in the National Clinical Database in Japan, for esophageal cancer treatment between 2012 and 2017 were analyzed.

Histone methyltransferase SUV420H1/KMT5B contributes to poor prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has a high rate of recurrence and poor prognosis, even after curative surgery. Multikinase inhibitors have been applied for HCC patients, but their effect has been restricted. This study aims to clarify the clinical impact of SUV420H1/KMT5B, one of the methyltransferases for histone H4 at lysine 20, and elucidate the novel mechanisms of HCC progression.

Virtual Reality Images of the Home Are Useful for Patients With Hospital-Based Palliative Care: Prospective Observational Study With Analysis by Text Mining.

Background: Malignancy patients who need long-term hospitalization can feel loneliness affecting their quality of life. The global COVID-19 pandemic has caused visiting restrictions that could mean patients who might be missing out on family support and palliative care, therefore, need to adapt and change. We used virtual reality (VR) technology with the aim of reducing feelings of loneliness among these patients.

Randomized controlled trial comparing cosmetic results of midline incision versus off-midline incision for specimen extraction in laparoscopic colectomy.

Purpose: A notable advantage of laparoscopic colorectal surgery is that only a small incision at the extraction site is necessary, which is considered to be cosmetically beneficial. Meanwhile, the optimal extraction site for the resected specimen in laparoscopic colectomy is controversial in terms of cosmetic benefit. This randomized controlled trial compares midline and off-midline extraction sites in laparoscopic colectomy in patients with colon cancer, with consideration of cosmetic benefits as the primary endpoint.

Radiographic duodenal invasion is associated with poor prognosis and early recurrence in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Background: The prognostic impact of radiographic duodenal invasion (rDI) of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) has yet to be fully elucidated. This retrospective study aimed to investigate the prognostic and clinicopathological significance of rDI in patients with PDAC after pancreatoduodenectomy (PD).

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 223 consecutive patients with resectable (R) and borderline resectable (BR)-PDAC that underwent up-front PD between 2002 and 2018.

Laparoscopic reconstruction in McKeown esophagectomy is a risk factor for postoperative diaphragmatic hernia.

Diaphragmatic hernia is a very rare but high-risk complication after esophagectomy. Although there are many studies on the Ivor Lewis esophagectomy procedure for diaphragmatic hernia, there are fewer studies on the McKeown procedure. The present study aimed to estimate the incidence of diaphragmatic hernia after esophagectomy, describing its presentation and management with the McKeown procedure.

The degree of satisfaction and level of learning in male and female surgical residents: a nationwide questionnaire survey of graduating residents in Japan.

Purpose: Since 2002, the Japan Surgical Society has established a board certification system for surgeons to be certified for a specialty. Surgery remains a male-dominated field in Japan. This study aimed to clarify if the Japanese surgical residency training system is equally suitable for female and male residents.

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on gastroenterological surgeries in 2020: A study using the National Clinical Database of Japan.

Aim: This study aimed to investigate the effect of the coronavirus disease pandemic on the number of surgeries for gastroenterological cancer cases in Japan.

Methods: The data recorded in the National Clinical Database of Japan between 2018 and 2020 were utilized for this study. Five specific surgeries for primary cancers and surgery for acute diffuse peritonitis were considered the primary endpoints.

Elective colorectal cancer surgery in nonagenarians and postoperative outcomes.

Objectives: The population of very elderly patients is increasing, and nonagenarians have significantly higher mortality rates and poorer rates of survival than younger patients. Meanwhile, recent studies have shown colorectal cancer surgery in nonagenarian patients to be feasible regarding postoperative outcomes. This retrospective study aims to evaluate the postoperative outcomes of nonagenarians in the latest clinical settings.

Induced pluripotent stem cell-derived dendritic cell vaccine therapy genetically modified on the ubiquitin-proteasome system.

We previously reported that dendritic cells (DCs) transduced with the full-length tumor-associated antigen (TAA) gene induced TAA-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) to elicit antitumor responses. To overcome the issue of quantity and quality of DCs required for DC vaccine therapy, we focused on induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) as a new tool for obtaining DCs and reported efficacy of iPSCs-derived DCs (iPSDCs). However, in clinical application of iPSDC vaccine therapy, further enhancement of the antitumor effect is necessary.

B cell receptor repertoire analysis from autopsy samples of COVID-19 patients.

Neutralizing antibodies against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) are being developed world over. We investigated the possibility of producing artificial antibodies from the formalin fixation and paraffin-embedding (FFPE) lung lobes of a patient who died by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The B-cell receptors repertoire in the lung tissue where SARS-CoV-2 was detected were considered to have highly sensitive virus-neutralizing activity, and artificial antibodies were produced by combining the most frequently detected heavy and light chains.

Surgical Outcomes of Laparoscopic versus Open Hepatectomy for Left Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Propensity Score Analyses Using Retrospective Japanese and Korean Individual Patient Data.

Introduction: This study aimed to compare the prognostic impact of laparoscopic left hepatectomy (LLH) with that of open left hepatectomy (OLH) on patient survival after resection of left hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: Among the 953 patients who received initial treatment for primary HCC that was resectable by either LLH or OLH from 2013 to 2017 in Japan and Korea, 146 patients underwent LLH and 807 underwent OLH. The inverse probability of treatment weighting approach based on propensity scoring was used to address the potential selection bias inherent in the recurrence and survival outcomes between the LLH and OLH groups.

Validation of quantitative prognostic prediction using ADV score for resection of hepatocellular carcinoma: A Korea-Japan collaborative study with 9200 patients.

Background: A score derived from the concentrations of α-fetoprotein (AFP) and des-γ-carboxy prothrombin (DCP) and tumor volume (TV), called ADV score, has been shown to be prognostic of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) recurrence following hepatic resection (HR) or liver transplantation.

Methods: This multicenter, multinational validation study included 9200 patients who underwent HR from 2010 to 2017 at 10 Korean and 73 Japanese centers, and were followed up until 2020.

Results: AFP, DCP, and TV showed weak correlations (ρ ≤ .

Radiological Shape of the Tumor Predicts Progression and Survival in Resected Extrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma.

Background: The histological features and radiological shape of extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (eCCA) have not been widely studied in relation to prognosis. Multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) is thought to be useful in diagnosis of progress and tumor distribution; it can also show morphological differences (round, triangular, and square forms) at the tumoral obstruction sites. Histological types of eCCA may be revealed, with potential association with tumor growth and survival.

Features of T1 pancreatic cancer and validation of the eighth edition AJCC staging system definition using a Korean-Japanese joint cohort and the SEER database.

Background/purpose: Little is known about the features of T1 pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and its definition in the eighth edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging system needs validation. The aims were to analyze the clinicopathologic features of T1 PDAC and investigate the validity of its definition.

Method: Data from 1506 patients with confirmed T1 PDAC between 2000 and 2019 were collected and analyzed.