Rational application of gefitinib in NSCLC patients with sensitive EGFR mutations based on pharmacokinetics and metabolomics.

Gefitinib has been available in the market for 20 years, but its pharmacokinetic mechanism of response is little known. In this study, we examined the pharmacokinetic and metabolomic profiles in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with sensitive EGFR mutations. A total of 216 advanced NSCLC patients were enrolled, and administered gefitinib at the standard dosage of 250 mg/day, which was established in heterogeneous subjects with non-sensitive mutations.

Plasma microRNA profiling in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients reveals miR-548q and miR-483-5p as potential biomarkers.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs), which play a role in tumorigenesis, may also serve as diagnostic or prognostic biomarkers. However, studies on human miRNA profiles in plasma from nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients are in their infancy. Here, we used microarrays to perform systematic profiling of human miRNAs in plasma from NPC patients.

HOTAIR, a prognostic factor in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, inhibits WIF-1 expression and activates Wnt pathway.

Long non-coding RNAs (LncRNAs) have been recently found to be pervasively transcribed in the genome and critical regulators of the epigenome. HOTAIR, as a well-known LncRNA, has been found to play important roles in several tumors. Herein, the clinical application value and biological functions of HOTAIR were focused and explored in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).

Quantitative association of tobacco smoking with the risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a comprehensive meta-analysis of studies conducted between 1979 and 2011.

Over the years, many studies have attempted to establish a link between tobacco smoking and an increased risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), but their results have been inconsistent. To clarify this link, we first conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis to integrate the findings of epidemiologic studies from the last half-century. The methodology used for this study followed the checklist proposed by the Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (MOOSE) Group.

Developing genetic epidemiological models to predict risk for nasopharyngeal carcinoma in high-risk population of China.

To date, the only established model for assessing risk for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) relies on the sero-status of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). By contrast, the risk assessment models proposed here include environmental risk factors, family history of NPC, and information on genetic variants. The models were developed using epidemiological and genetic data from a large case-control study, which included 1,387 subjects with NPC and 1,459 controls of Cantonese origin.

Pretreatment lifestyle behaviors as survival predictors for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: Lifestyle behaviors have been widely reported to influence the survival of patients with head and neck cancer. However, the relationship between pretreatment lifestyle behaviors and survival among patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is unclear.

Methods: A prospective cohort study was designed to determine the relationship between lifestyle behaviors and survival in 1,533 NPC patients recruited from October 2005 to October 2007.

Alcohol and tea consumption in relation to the risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma in Guangdong, China.

To investigate whether alcohol and tea consumption has an etiological association with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) in a high-incident population, a large scale case-control study was conducted. The study included 2846 individuals in Guangdong Province, China, with 1387 newly diagnosed cases of NPC and 1459 frequency-matched controls. Exposure histories of alcohol and tea consumption were obtained via personal interviews.

Traditional Cantonese diet and nasopharyngeal carcinoma risk: a large-scale case-control study in Guangdong, China.

Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is rare in most parts of the world but is a common malignancy in southern China, especially in Guangdong. Dietary habit is regarded as an important modifier of NPC risk in several endemic areas and may partially explain the geographic distribution of NPC incidence. In China, rapid economic development during the past few decades has changed the predominant lifestyle and dietary habits of the Chinese considerably, requiring a reassessment of diet and its potential influence on NPC risk in this NPC-endemic area.