The Pre-Fibroscan and Fibroscan Era: A Comparative Study of Histologic Diagnosis of Liver Biopsies.

Background: The advancement in non-invasive methods for diagnosing and characterizing liver disease has achieved significant success. One such methods, FibroScan, combines non-invasiveness, rapidity, painlessness, and reproducibility. However, its accuracy and value are limited in many clinical settings.

A novel Na1.5-dependent feedback mechanism driving glycolytic acidification in breast cancer metastasis.

Solid tumours have abnormally high intracellular [Na]. The activity of various Na channels may underlie this Na accumulation. Voltage-gated Na channels (VGSCs) have been shown to be functionally active in cancer cell lines, where they promote invasion.

Biomarker Analyses Investigating Disease Biology and Associations with Outcomes in the JAVELIN Merkel 200 Trial of Avelumab in Metastatic Merkel Cell Carcinoma.

Purpose: Avelumab (anti-PD-L1) became the first approved treatment for metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma (mMCC) based on results from the phase II JAVELIN Merkel 200 trial. In this study, we report exploratory biomarker analyses from the trial.

Patients And Methods: Patients with mMCC (n = 88) with or without prior first-line chemotherapy received avelumab 10 mg/kg every 2 weeks.

Intra-prostatic tumour evolution, steps in metastatic spread and histogenomic associations revealed by integration of multi-region whole-genome sequencing with histopathological features.

Background: Extension of prostate cancer beyond the primary site by local invasion or nodal metastasis is associated with poor prognosis. Despite significant research on tumour evolution in prostate cancer metastasis, the emergence and evolution of cancer clones at this early stage of expansion and spread are poorly understood. We aimed to delineate the routes of evolution and cancer spread within the prostate and to seminal vesicles and lymph nodes, linking these to histological features that are used in diagnostic risk stratification.

Safety and efficacy of primaquine in patients with malaria from South Asia: a systematic review and individual patient data meta-analysis.

Background: The optimal dosing of primaquine to prevent relapsing malaria in South Asia remains unclear. We investigated the efficacy and safety of different primaquine regimens to prevent relapse.

Methods: A systematic review identified efficacy studies from South Asia published between 1 January 2000 and 23 August 2021.

The Reality of Antimicrobial Resistance and Antibiotic Usage Data in Asia: The CAPTURA Experience.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR), particularly in low- and middle-income countries, is threatening to undermine advances in health and development. Scarce technical and human resources in these countries limit the collection of quality AMR data for evidence-based decision-making. The CAPTURA consortium, funded by the Fleming Fund, was implemented across 7 countries in the South and Southeast Asian region.

CAPTURA Regional Workshop Proceedings (28-30 June 2022, Virtual).

In response to the global threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), the Capturing Data on Antimicrobial Resistance Patterns and Trends in Use in Regions of Asia (CAPTURA) project worked with microbiology laboratories, pharmacies, and local governments in South Asia and Southeast Asia to expand the volume of historical and current data available on AMR and antimicrobial use and to identify gaps in data and areas for quality improvement. When the CAPTURA project completed its country-level engagement in the first half of 2022, the consortium brought together local, regional, and global AMR stakeholders for a virtual regional workshop to review data outputs from the project and share strategies to inform national and regional efforts to combat AMR. This paper summarizes the main topics presented in the workshop held from 28 to 30 June 2022.

Using Automatic Item Generation to Create Multiple-Choice Questions for Pharmacy Assessment.

Objective: Automatic item generation (AIG) is a new area of assessment research where a set of multiple-choice questions (MCQs) are created using models and computer technology. Although successfully demonstrated in medicine and dentistry, AIG has not been implemented in pharmacy. The objective was to implement AIG to create a set of MCQs appropriate for inclusion in a summative, high-stakes, pharmacy examination.

Effect of adherence to primaquine on the risk of Plasmodium vivax recurrence: a WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance Network systematic review and individual patient data meta-analysis.

Background: Imperfect adherence is a major barrier to effective primaquine radical cure of Plasmodium vivax. This study investigated the effect of reduced adherence on the risk of P. vivax recurrence.

Neighborhood location and nutritional resources as a risk factor for congenital heart disease in the fetus.

Background: Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common birth defect, influenced by maternal health, environmental conditions, and genetics. Maternal health and nutrition, particularly maternal diabetes, is a modifiable risk factor for development of CHD in the fetus. However, the importance of food access during pregnancy on the development of CHD remains unknown.

Can a prostate biopsy be safely deferred on PI-RADS 1,2 or 3 lesions seen on pre-biopsy mp-MRI?

Introduction: Multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging (mp-MRI) is currently used to triage patients with suspected prostate cancer, before deciding on prostate biopsies. In our study, we evaluated normal and equivocal pre-biopsy mp-MRIs to see whether it is safe to avoid biopsy with such findings.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted at a district general hospital in the UK between August 2017 and July 2018.

Protocol for the TRANSLATE prospective, multicentre, randomised clinical trial of prostate biopsy technique.

Objectives: Primary objectives: to determine whether local anaesthetic transperineal prostate (LATP) biopsy improves the detection of clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa), defined as International Society of Urological Pathology (ISUP) Grade Group ≥2 disease (i.e., any Gleason pattern 4 disease), compared to transrectal ultrasound-guided (TRUS) prostate biopsy, in biopsy-naïve men undergoing biopsy based on suspicion of csPCa.

Sodium channels and the ionic microenvironment of breast tumours.

Cancers of epithelial origin such as breast, prostate, cervical, gastric, colon and lung cancer account for a large proportion of deaths worldwide. Better treatment of metastasis, the main cause of cancer deaths, is therefore urgently required. Several of these tumours have been shown to have an abnormally high concentration of Na ([Na ]) and emerging evidence points to this accumulation being due to elevated intracellular [Na ].

Disparities in colorectal cancer time-to-treatment and survival time associated with racial and economic residential segregation surrounding the diagnostic hospital, Georgia 2010-2015.

Purpose: To evaluate patient-level colorectal cancer outcomes in relation to residential income and racial segregation and composition of the neighborhood surrounding the diagnosing hospitals, and characterize presence of cancer-relevant diagnosis and treatment modalities that might contribute to these associations.

Methods: We utilized Georgia state cancer registry data (2010-2015), matching diagnosis information to hospital technology provided by the American Hospital Association and spatial information to the US Census. We modeled time-to-treatment and survival time, using Cox proportional hazards models, stratified by segregation.

Wild bees respond differently to sampling traps with vanes of different colors and light reflectivity in a livestock pasture ecosystem.

Wild bees are important pollinators and monitoring their abundance and diversity is necessary to develop conservation protocols. It is imperative to understand differences in sampling efficiency among different trap types to help guide monitoring efforts. This study used a new vane trap design to collect bees in a livestock pasture ecosystem and examined the impact of six different vane colors on wild bee sampling.

Transmission dynamics and vaccination strategies for Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus in Afghanistan: A modelling study.

Background: Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) is a highly pathogenic virus for which a safe and effective vaccine is not yet available, despite being considered a priority emerging pathogen. Understanding transmission patterns and the use of potential effective vaccines are central elements of the future plan against this infection.

Methods: We developed a series of models of transmission amongst livestock, and spillover infection into humans.

Differentiating Black and Hispanic: outcome differences of segregated communities and police shootings in the USA, 2015-2020.

Background: Police shootings are unevenly spatially distributed, with substantive spikes throughout the USA. While minorities are disproportionately the victims of police force, social or structural factors associated with this distribution are not well understood. The objective of this work was to evaluate police shootings in relation to victim race or ethnicity and residential segregation and racial diversity.

A Review of High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound in Urology.

This review provides an introduction to high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) and reviews its historical and current use in urological surgery. Current and historical literature (1927-2020), including that describing trials and review articles in the medical and ultrasonic literature, has been reviewed, using Pub Med and Cochrane search engines. HIFU is currently one of a number of treatments for prostate cancer, both as a primary treatment that can be repeated, and as a salvage treatment post-radiotherapy.