Publications by authors named "Ibrahim Al-Bakir"

Introduction: The evolving landscape of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) necessitates refining colonoscopic surveillance guidelines. This study outlines methodology adopted by the British Society of Gastroenterology (BSG) Guideline Development Group (GDG) for updating IBD colorectal surveillance guidelines.

Methods And Analysis: The 'Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation' (GRADE) approach, as outlined in the GRADE handbook, was employed.

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Article Synopsis
  • Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) face an increased risk of colorectal cancer (CRC), which is heightened for those with low-grade dysplasia (LGD).
  • A study involving 122 patients revealed that the burden of somatic copy number alterations (CNAs) in LGD lesions can significantly predict future cancer development, outperforming traditional clinical risk factors.
  • The research suggests that measuring CNAs in LGD lesions is a cost-effective method for assessing CRC risk, allowing for better management of high-risk patients while reducing unnecessary treatments for those at low risk.
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Article Synopsis
  • Colonoscopic surveillance is important for patients with colonic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) due to their higher risk of colorectal cancer (CRC), and a new prediction model has been developed for assessing this risk.
  • The study analyzed data from 6 cohorts across North America and Europe, including 3731 patients, to create and validate this model using predictive variables and a statistical approach known as Cox proportional hazards modeling.
  • The model showed good accuracy in predicting advanced colorectal neoplasia (aCRN) over 5-10 years, but further research is needed to validate its effectiveness across different populations and to determine how it impacts surveillance strategies.
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Due to their increased cancer risk, patients with longstanding inflammatory bowel disease are offered endoscopic surveillance with concomitant histopathologic assessments, aimed at identifying dysplasia as a precursor lesion of colitis-associated colorectal cancer. However, this strategy is beset with difficulties and limitations. Recently, a novel classification criterion for colitis-associated low-grade dysplasia has been proposed, and an association between nonconventional dysplasia and progression was reported, suggesting the possibility of histology-based stratification of patients with colitis-associated lesions.

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Patients with longstanding extensive colitis are at an increased risk of developing colorectal cancer (CRC), and are therefore enrolled into colonoscopy screening programmes with the aim of detecting pre-cancerous dysplastic change. However, current surveillance programs face multiple limitations relating to low levels of patient enrolment, missed lesions resulting in interval cancers, and uncertainties in the management of dysplasia. Patient counselling regarding the endoscopic and surgical management options of dysplastic lesions can prove particularly challenging, due to the variable risk of progression to cancer.

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Clinical archives of patient material near-exclusively consist of formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE) blocks. The ability to precisely characterise mutational signatures from FFPE-derived DNA has tremendous translational potential. However, sequencing of DNA derived from FFPE material is known to be riddled with artefacts.

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Background And Aims: Alterations in body composition are common in inflammatory bowel disease [IBD] and have been associated with differences in patient outcomes. We sought to consolidate knowledge on the impact and importance of body composition in IBD.

Methods: We performed a systematic search of MEDLINE, EMBASE and conference proceedings by combining two key research themes: inflammatory bowel disease and body composition.

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Objective: Patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) diagnosed with low-grade dysplasia (LGD) have increased risk of developing advanced neoplasia (AN: high-grade dysplasia or colorectal cancer). We aimed to develop and validate a predictor of AN risk in patients with UC with LGD and create a visual web tool to effectively communicate the risk.

Design: In our retrospective multicentre validated cohort study, adult patients with UC with an index diagnosis of LGD, identified from four UK centres between 2001 and 2019, were followed until progression to AN.

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Objective: Genomics and personalised medicine are increasingly relevant for patients with gastroenterological conditions. We aim to capture the current state of genomics training in gastroenterology to review current understanding, clinical experience and long-term educational needs of UK trainees.

Design And Setting: A web-based nationwide survey of all UK gastroenterology specialty trainees was conducted in 2017.

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Whether the nom de guerre is Mathematical Oncology, Computational or Systems Biology, Theoretical Biology, Evolutionary Oncology, Bioinformatics, or simply Basic Science, there is no denying that mathematics continues to play an increasingly prominent role in cancer research. Mathematical Oncology-defined here simply as the use of mathematics in cancer research-complements and overlaps with a number of other fields that rely on mathematics as a core methodology. As a result, Mathematical Oncology has a broad scope, ranging from theoretical studies to clinical trials designed with mathematical models.

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Patients with inflammatory bowel disease have an increased risk of developing colorectal cancer, and this risk is related to disease duration, extent, and cumulative inflammation burden. Carcinogenesis follows the principles of Darwinian evolution, whereby somatic cells acquire genomic alterations that provide them with a survival and/or growth advantage. Colitis represents a unique situation whereby routine surveillance endoscopy provides a serendipitous opportunity to observe somatic evolution over space and time in a human organ.

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Objective: IBD confers an increased lifetime risk of developing colorectal cancer (CRC), and colitis-associated CRC (CA-CRC) is molecularly distinct from sporadic CRC (S-CRC). Here we have dissected the evolutionary history of CA-CRC using multiregion sequencing.

Design: Exome sequencing was performed on fresh-frozen multiple regions of carcinoma, adjacent non-cancerous mucosa and blood from 12 patients with CA-CRC (n=55 exomes), and key variants were validated with orthogonal methods.

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Objective: Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a dynamic disease with its severity continuously changing over time. We hypothesised that the risk of colorectal neoplasia (CRN) in UC closely follows an actuarial accumulative inflammatory burden, which is inadequately represented by current risk stratification strategies.

Design: This was a retrospective single-centre study.

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Optimizing the management of colorectal cancer (CRC) risk in IBD requires a fundamental understanding of the evolutionary process underpinning tumorigenesis. In IBD, clonal evolution begins long before the development of overt neoplasia, and is probably accelerated by the repeated cycles of epithelial wounding and repair that are characteristic of the condition. Here, we review the biological drivers of mutant clone selection in IBD with particular reference to the unique histological architecture of the intestinal epithelium coupled with the inflammatory microenvironment in IBD, and the unique mutation patterns seen in IBD-driven neoplasia when compared with sporadic adenomas and CRC.

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Background And Study Aims: EndoClot is a novel topical hemostatic powder approved for use in non-variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding. This study examines its impact as rescue therapy in the management of gastrointestinal bleeding for which standard endoscopic therapy failed to achieve hemostasis.

Methods: This observational study covered a 24-month period.

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Background. Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) is noninvasive and accurate for diagnosing intra common bile duct stones (ICSs). However, given limited access, routine utilisation for investigating all patients with gallstone disease is neither practical nor cost-effective.

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Otelixizumab is a chimeric CD3 antibody that has been genetically engineered to remove the glycosylation site in the Fc domain. This limits its ability to bind to complement or Fc receptors and reduces the risk of adverse clinical reactions due to cytokine release. In a trial for treatment of type 1 diabetes, a short treatment with otelixizumab resulted in a reduced requirement for insulin lasting at least 18 months.

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