Neoadjuvant chemoradiation is associated with decreased lymph node ratio in borderline resectable pancreatic cancer: A propensity score matched analysis.

Background: Lymph node ratio (LNR) and margin status have prognostic significance in pancreatic cancer. Herein we examined the pathologic and clinical outcomes in patients with borderline resectable pancreatic cancer (BRPC) following neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) and pancreaticoduodenectomy.

Methods: Patients who underwent treatment between January 1, 2012 and June 30, 2017 were included.

Pathologic tumor response to neoadjuvant therapy in borderline resectable pancreatic cancer.

Background: Previous studies have demonstrated the prognostic significance of pathologic tumor response in pancreatic adenocarcinoma following neoadjuvant therapy (NAT). The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of significant pathologic response to NAT in borderline resectable pancreatic cancer (BRPC), and association of NAT regimen and other clinico-pathologic characteristics with pathologic response.

Methods: Patients with BRPC who underwent NAT and pancreatic resection between January 2012 and June 2017 were included.

Utilization of Quality Improvement Methodology to Standardize Communication of Outside Hospital Transfers in a General Surgery Program.

Objective: There is no standardized method of communication regarding the arrival of outside hospital (OSH) transfers at our institution. We utilized quality improvement methodologies to enhance sign-out, benefiting both resident workflow and patient care.

Design: A dynamic census log of pending OSH transfers was created.

Diagnostic Laparoscopy Prior to Neoadjuvant Therapy in Pancreatic Cancer Is High Yield: an Analysis of Outcomes and Costs.

Background: There is currently no standardized regimen for management of borderline resectable pancreatic cancer (BRPC), and treatment includes varying sequences of surgery, chemotherapy, and/or radiation. This study examines the diagnostic yield and cost of performing staging diagnostic laparoscopy (SDL) prior to neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) in BRPC.

Methods: Sequential patients treated for BRPC between January 2010 and October 2013 were included.

Frailty predicts risk of life-threatening complications and mortality after pancreatic resections.

Background: To assess the effect of frailty on morbidity and mortality after partial pancreatectomy.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of National Surgical Quality Improvement Project from 2005-2010 was conducted. A modified frailty index was created based on previously validated methodology.

Absence of a Periampullary Mass on Cross-sectional Imaging Delays Diagnosis and Time to Pancreatoduodenectomy But Does Not Impair Outcome.

Background: The aim of this study was to assess whether the lack of a radiological mass in patients with periampullary malignancies led to protracted diagnosis, delayed resection, and an inferior outcome.

Methods: The departmental database was interrogated to identify all patients undergoing pancreatoduodenectomy during the period 2000-2014. The absence of a mass on cross-sectional and endoscopic ultrasound was noted.

Predicting early mortality in resectable pancreatic adenocarcinoma: A cohort study.

Background: Survival after surgical resection for pancreatic cancer remains poor. A subgroup of patients die early (<6 months), and understanding factors associated with early mortality may help to identify high-risk patients. The Khorana score has been shown to be associated with early mortality for patients with solid tumors.

Short- and long-term costs of laparoscopic colectomy are significantly less than open colectomy.

Background: The financial impact of laparoscopic colectomy remains poorly defined. We report the short-term costs of laparoscopic colectomy (LC) as compared with open colectomy (OC) in a high-volume tertiary care hospital, and are the first to incorporate the costs of late, colectomy-related complications in an analysis of long-term costs.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of patients undergoing elective laparoscopic (n = 76) or open (n = 162) colon resection between January 2004 and December 2006 was performed.

Overexpression of PDGF-BB decreases colorectal and pancreatic cancer growth by increasing tumor pericyte content.

We hypothesized that overexpression of PDGF-BB in colorectal cancer (CRC) and pancreatic cancer cells would result in increased pericyte coverage of ECs in vivo, rendering the tumor vasculature more resistant to antiangiogenic therapy. We stably transfected the cDNA for the PDGF-B into HT-29 human CRC and FG human pancreatic cancer cells. Surprisingly, when HT-29 or FG parental and transfected cells were injected into mice (subcutaneously and orthotopically), we observed marked inhibition of tumor growth in the PDGF-BB-overexpressing clones.

Upregulation of neuropilin-1 by basic fibroblast growth factor enhances vascular smooth muscle cell migration in response to VEGF.

Neuropilin-1 (NRP-1) is a co-receptor for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). During neovascularization, vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and pericytes modulate the function of endothelial cells. Factors that mediate NRP-1 in human VSMCs (hVSMCs) remain to be elucidated.

Vascular endothelial growth factor receptors: expression and function in solid tumors.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and its family members are important mediators of tumor angiogenesis. The multiple functions of the VEGF are mediated through complex and selective interactions between the ligands, their high-affinity tyrosine kinase receptors, and co-receptors (neuropilins). While these receptors are historically described as being exclusively expressed on endothelial cells, emerging evidence has documented expression of these receptors on a number of nonendothelial cells, including tumor cells.

Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 promotes migration and invasion in pancreatic carcinoma cell lines.

Background: Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 (VEGFR-1) is one of three receptor tyrosine kinases for VEGF, a key regulator of angiogenesis in cancer. Although VEGFRs initially were believed to be expressed exclusively on endothelial cells (ECs), recent studies have demonstrated the presence of VEGFR-1 on non-EC types. The authors hypothesized that VEGFR-1 is present and functional in pancreatic carcinoma cells, contributing to the malignant phenotype.

Neuropilin-1 suppresses tumorigenic properties in a human pancreatic adenocarcinoma cell line lacking neuropilin-1 coreceptors.

Neuropilin-1 (NRP-1) was first described as a coreceptor implicated in neuronal guidance that bound members of the semaphorin/collapsin family. NRP-1 is also expressed in endothelial cells and is believed to promote angiogenesis by acting as a coreceptor with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) receptor 2. Recent studies suggest that NRP-1 can function through both a VEGF-dependent and VEGF-independent fashion.

Expression and function of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 on human colorectal cancer cells.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is associated with tumor angiogenesis and poor prognosis in human colorectal cancer (CRC). VEGF receptor-1 (VEGFR-1 or Flt-1) is a high-affinity receptor for VEGF and is typically considered specific to endothelial cells. Here we report the expression and function of VEGFR-1 in CRC cell lines.

ZD6474, a vascular endothelial growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor with additional activity against epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase, inhibits orthotopic growth and angiogenesis of gastric cancer.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) have been strongly implicated in the growth and metastasis of gastric cancer. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of ZD6474, an inhibitor of inhibitor of VEGF receptor (VEGFR) tyrosine kinase with additional activity against EGF receptor (EGFR), on tumor growth and angiogenesis in an orthotopic model of gastric cancer. In vitro, ZD6474 inhibited human umbilical vascular endothelial cell and TMK-1 human gastric tumor cell proliferation in a dose-dependent fashion.

Role of hypoxia-inducible factor 1alpha in gastric cancer cell growth, angiogenesis, and vessel maturation.

Background: Hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1), a heterodimer comprising the oxygen-regulated subunit, HIF-1alpha, and HIF-1beta, mediates transcription of the gene for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Overexpression of HIF-1alpha is associated with tumor angiogenesis and tumor cell proliferation and invasion. We examined the effects of inhibiting HIF-1alpha activity on angiogenesis and human gastric cancer growth in vivo.

The role of endogenous heme synthesis and degradation domain cysteines in cellular iron-dependent degradation of IRP2.

Iron regulatory protein 2 (IRP2) is a mammalian cytosolic iron-sensing protein that regulates expression of iron metabolism proteins, including ferritin and transferrin receptor 1. IRP2 is ubiquitinated and degraded by the proteasome in iron-replete cells but is relatively stable in iron-depleted cells. Recent work has shown that IRP2 contains a unique 73-amino-acid domain that binds iron in vitro and undergoes iron-dependent oxidation and cleavage (J.

Angiopoietin-1 inhibits vascular permeability, angiogenesis, and growth of hepatic colon cancer tumors.

Angiopoietin (Ang)-1 and -2 are critical regulators of embryonic and postnatal neovascularization. Ang-1 activates the endothelial cell-specific tyrosine kinase receptor Tie-2, which in turn leads to enhanced endothelial cell survival and stabilization. The effects of Ang-1 on tumor angiogenesis remain controversial; although we have previously demonstrated that Ang-1 overexpression in colon cancer cells leads to a decrease in s.