Publications by authors named "James Wu"

Background: Cancer is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in southeast Asia. We aimed to present and interpret cancer incidence and mortality statistics in the 11 constituent countries of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Viet Nam to inform research priorities, health services, and cancer policy.

Methods: The number of new incident cases and deaths for all cancers combined and for leading cancers were extracted from the GLOBOCAN 2022 database developed by the International Agency for Research on Cancer for the 11 countries in southeast Asia.

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Objectives: We describe the completion of the National Comprehensive Care Network's distress thermometer (DT) survey for multiple myeloma (MM), quantify, and identify factors influencing distress score.

Methods: We assessed DT completion for MM patients' first consultation at an academic center between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2022. Multivariate logistic regression was conducted to identify factors associated with survey completion and distress.

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Background: The utility of prophylactic ipsilateral central neck dissection in papillary thyroid carcinoma presenting with clinically/sonographically apparent lymph node metastases isolated to the lateral neck is unclear. The study assessed whether prophylactic central neck dissection was associated with improved recurrence-free survival.

Methods: Single-center retrospective cohort study of patients undergoing thyroidectomy and lateral neck dissection for initial treatment of papillary thyroid carcinoma with clinically/sonographically apparent lymph node metastases isolated to the lateral neck from 2006 to 2022.

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Background: Neck ultrasound (US) and serum thyroglobulin (Tg) measurements are mainstays of long-term differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) surveillance. Given the high sensitivity of serum Tg, we aimed to assess the utility of neck US in DTC patients who underwent total thyroidectomy and have undetectable serum Tg.

Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort analysis of DTC patients who underwent a total thyroidectomy at our institution (2010-2023) and received US-guided fine needle aspiration (FNA) during their surveillance.

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Background: The elderly population in the United States is rapidly expanding. Older patients over age 65 with acute cholecystitis may face greater perioperative risk compared to younger patients undergoing urgent laparoscopic cholecystectomy. We aimed to characterize trends in utilization and outcomes of inpatient cholecystectomy across the United States stratified by age.

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Background: Patients residing in rural and frontier areas experience worse thyroid cancer outcomes than those in urban areas. This novel qualitative study sought the perspectives of rural surgeons to identify practical measures that could mitigate the disparities in thyroid cancer care between rural and urban contexts.

Methods: We contacted general and head and neck surgeons at all of California's Critical Access Hospitals (n = 35), which are remote, rural hospitals, and requested self-referral to our study through the American College of Surgeons.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study examines thyroid tumors with isolated RAS mutations, comparing their oncologic outcomes to tumors with isolated BRAF mutations using comprehensive molecular testing.
  • A total of 368 patients with Bethesda III-VI thyroid nodules were reviewed, revealing that 14% had isolated RAS mutations, with a 46% malignancy rate but no instances of structural recurrence after 5 years.
  • The findings suggest that isolated RAS-mutated tumors have lower aggressive characteristics, indicating that thyroid lobectomy may be an adequate treatment option for these patients.
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Context: BRAF V600E mutation is the most common genetic driver of papillary thyroid cancer (PTC), where it is found with various allele frequency (AF), reflecting the proportion of cells carrying the mutant and wild-type gene alleles.

Objective: To determine whether BRAF V600E AF can improve prognostication and inform initial surgical management of PTC.

Design: Retrospective cohort study (2016-2019).

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Higher center and surgeon volume correspond to better outcomes for patients with thyroid cancer. This study aims to investigate how a hospital's safety-net burden, the proportion of a hospital's patients who are insured by state Medicaid plans or are uninsured, influences the outcomes of high-volume (HV) surgeons. We performed a retrospective cohort study of all patients who underwent surgery for thyroid cancer in California from 1999 to 2017.

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Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), a common complication of diabetes mellitus, is primarily characterized by damage to Schwann cells caused by oxidative stress under hyperglycemic conditions. Recently, we demonstrated the ability of coumarin-rich Maxim. to alleviate DPN in ovariectomized diabetic mice.

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Acquired hemophilia A (AHA) is an autoimmune bleeding disorder that is caused by factor VIII (FVIII) autoantibodies with high morbidity and mortality due to bleeding and complications from immunosuppression (IST). To address the real-world implications of the FVIII mimetic antibody, emicizumab, and the role of IST, we retrospectively collected de-identified data on 62 patients with AHA who were treated off-label with emicizumab for a median of 10 weeks at 12 US-based hemophilia treatment centers. Most patients (95.

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The poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine) (PMPC)-modified, silicone hydrogel, contact lens (CL) material has previously been demonstrated to have a lubricious, antifouling and ultra-soft surface. This study provides confirmatory identification of the outer polymer structures on this CL surface as branched PMPC structures. It further aims to understand their role in providing enhanced tribological performance via fluid confinement.

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Article Synopsis
  • Autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (AHCT) has been a standard treatment for multiple myeloma (MM) for 40 years but is underused in racial and ethnic minority groups, despite the introduction of new therapies.* -
  • An institutional review of 1266 MM patients from 2012 to 2022 found overall AHCT utilization at 76%, but only 64.7% in non-Hispanic Black (NHB) patients compared to higher rates in other groups, highlighting significant racial disparities.* -
  • Key factors influencing AHCT utilization included patient age, health conditions, and caregiver support; while NHB utilization increased slightly over time, it still lagged behind non-Hispanic White
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Objectives: We introduced selpercatinib prior to radioactive iodine therapy prior to radioactive iodine therapy (RAI) for pediatric papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) to enhance the tumorical effects of RAI.

Case Presentation: PTC has an excellent prognosis but is commonly associated with local and distant metastases. Successful complete response to the current standard of care, thyroidectomy with lymph node resection and RAI, is achieved in only a small minority of cases with metastases.

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Composite solid polymer electrolytes (CSPEs) are safer alternatives to liquid electrolytes and excellent candidates for high-voltage solid-state batteries. However, interfacial instabilities between the electrodes and CSPEs are one of the bottlenecks in pursuing these systems. In this study, a cross-linked CSPE was synthesized based on polypropylene carbonate, polyethylene glycol methyl ether acrylate, polyethylene glycol diacrylate with additives including lithium bis(trifluoromethane)sulfonimide salt, and tantalum-doped lithium lanthanum zirconium oxide (LLZTO).

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Article Synopsis
  • * A new ternary eutectic electrolyte was developed, consisting of specific ionic liquids and aluminum chloride, achieving a high operational voltage (~3V) and impressive ionic conductivity (~8.3 mS.cm-1), even in extreme temperatures.
  • * The Al||graphene nanoplatelets battery shows high capacity performance, with significant charge retention at low temperatures, indicating that this electrolyte could greatly enhance energy storage systems suitable for varied climates.
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This study explores the impact of electrostatic interactions and hydrogen bonding on tear film stability, a crucial factor for ocular surface health. While mucosal and meibomian layers have been extensively studied, the role of electrolytes in the aqueous phase remains unclear. Dry eye syndrome, characterized by insufficient tear quantity or quality, is associated with hyperosmolality, making electrolyte composition an important factor that might impact tear stability.

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To quantify the clinical unmet need of r/r MCL patients who progress on a covalent Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor (BTKi), we conducted a systematic review to identify studies that reported overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), or response outcomes of patients who received a chemo(immunotherapy) ± targeted agent standard therapy (STx) or brexucabtagene autoleucel (brexu-cel) in the post-BTKi setting. Twenty-six studies (23 observational; three trials) reporting outcomes from 2005 to 2022 were included. Using two-stage frequentist meta-analyses, the estimated median PFS/OS for patients treated with an STx was 7.

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Introduction: Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR T) therapies have transformed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) treatment. It is important to better understand their use in Medicare Fee-for-Service (FFS) patients, who often differ from commercially insured populations in important ways.

Methods: We analyzed Medicare FFS claims data, focusing on the utilization patterns across three CAR T products-lisocabtagene maraleucel (liso-cel), tisagenlecleucel (tisa-cel), and axicabtagene autoleucel (axi-cel)-which are indicated for the treatment of DLBCL.

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Brexucabtagene autoleucel (brexu-cel) is an autologous anti-CD19 CAR T-cell therapy approved in the USA and European Union (EU) for adults with relapsed or refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (R/R B-ALL; aged ≥26 years in EU). Here, outcomes for patients with R/R B-ALL aged ≥26 years in ZUMA-3 treated with brexu-cel were compared with historical standard-of-care (SOC) therapy. After median follow-up of 26.

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Context: Use of artificial intelligence (AI) to predict clinical outcomes in thyroid nodule diagnostics has grown exponentially over the past decade. The greatest challenge is in understanding the best model to apply to one's own patient population, and how to operationalize such a model in practice.

Evidence Acquisition: A literature search of PubMed and IEEE Xplore was conducted for English-language publications between January 1, 2015 and January 1, 2023, studying diagnostic tests on suspected thyroid nodules that used AI.

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Background: Thyroid storm is a rare but potentially lethal manifestation of thyrotoxicosis. Guidelines recommend nonoperative management of thyroid storm, but thyroidectomy can be performed if patients fail medical therapy or need immediate resolution of the storm. Outcomes of thyroidectomy for management of thyroid storm remain ill-defined.

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Article Synopsis
  • * An indirect comparison study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of brexu-cel against pirtobrutinib, using patient data to account for various prognostic factors, including disease stage and prior treatments.
  • * Results indicated that brexu-cel led to significantly higher response rates and improved progression-free survival compared to pirtobrutinib, suggesting it might be a more effective treatment option for this patient population.
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