Publications by authors named "Meagher M"

Purpose: Preoperative C-reactive protein (CRP) is a valuable prognostic biomarker in nonmetastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (nmccRCC). Incorporation of CRP into prognostic models may improve the prediction of oncologic outcomes. Herein, we aimed to develop and validate prognostic nomograms and an integrated software incorporating preoperative CRP level in nmccRCC.

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Background And Objective: Our aim was to determine the clinical characteristics, temporal trends, and survival outcomes for sarcomatoid-dedifferentiated renal cell carcinoma (sRCC), as sRCC has historically had poor prognosis and a contemporary cohort has not been well characterized in a population-based study.

Methods: Data for 302 630 RCC cases from 2010 to 2019 were extracted from the National Cancer Data Base, of which 4.1% (12 329) were sRCC.

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Background: C-reactive protein (CRP) is a prognostic biomarker for clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). However, there may be potential racial heterogeneity in distribution and prognostic impact of CRP level. We investigated potential racial differences in distribution and prognostic impact of preoperative CRP among Asian (AS), African American (AA), and Caucasian (CAUC) patients with non-metastatic ccRCC (nmccRCC).

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  • This study aimed to analyze how common surgically induced chronic kidney disease (CKD-S) is in patients with upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) after they undergo radical nephroureterectomy (RNU), focusing on survival outcomes.* -
  • Researchers looked at data from 1,862 patients and found that 34.7% developed CKD-S3a and 39.6% developed CKD-S3b after surgery, with older age, lower preoperative kidney function, and certain chemotherapy treatments linked to higher risks of developing CKD-S3b.* -
  • The study revealed that while CKD-S3b patients had worse overall survival rates (59% over 5 years), CK
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  • - The study analyzed genomic and transcriptomic data from 138 germ cell tumors to find out why some tumors resist treatment with cisplatin, a common chemotherapy drug.
  • - They focused on specific genetic mutations (like KRAS, TP53, and KIT) and patterns in gene copies that might contribute to this resistance, observing that certain mutations were more common in primary tumors compared to metastatic ones.
  • - The research found that tumors with platinum-resistant alterations had lower transcriptomic scores linked to sensitivity to cisplatin, indicating a possible connection between these genetic changes and treatment resistance.
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  • - The study aimed to create a preoperative tool called NODESAFE to predict nodal involvement (NI) in patients with localized renal cell carcinoma (RCC) before surgery, addressing the ongoing debate about the need for lymphadenectomy.
  • - Researchers conducted a multicenter analysis of 3,308 RCC patients who had primary surgical resections, excluding those with clinical metastasis, using a stepwise logistic regression model to identify significant predictive factors for NI, achieving an AUC of 0.89 in validation.
  • - The final NODESAFE model included factors like hypertension, tumor size, and CRP levels, demonstrating high sensitivity (83.9%) and specificity (86.1%), which could enhance clinical decision-making
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  • This study examines how the Mayo Adhesive Probability (MAP) score and body mass index (BMI) affect kidney function decline after patients undergo robotic assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN).
  • A total of 258 patients were analyzed over a median follow-up of 33 months, revealing that a higher MAP score and increased BMI are correlated with a greater risk of developing chronic kidney disease stage 3 (CKD-S3).
  • The findings suggest that higher MAP scores and obesity can negatively impact long-term kidney function, indicating a need for careful monitoring before surgery in at-risk patients.
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  • In a study of 4011 patients who had unilateral cT1a-b renal mass treated with partial nephrectomy, researchers aimed to explore how a surgeon's experience affects surgical outcomes, specifically acute kidney injury (AKI) and kidney function a year post-surgery.
  • Previously, it was known that complications and ischemia times improved with surgeon experience, but there was limited data on long-term kidney function.
  • The findings revealed no significant association between surgical experience and AKI or recovery of kidney function in either laparoscopic or robot-assisted techniques, suggesting other factors may play a more crucial role in these outcomes.
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Deer tick virus (DTV), also known as Powassan virus lineage II, is a rising health concern due to increased recognition as a cause of human encephalitis. Since European tick-borne encephalitis virus persists in nature in enzootic foci (i.e.

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Purpose: The aim of this project was to characterize the incidence of men's health disorders, specifically focusing on the incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED) and testosterone deficiency (TD) in a large, nationwide study of testicular cancer (TC) survivors treated in a centralized health care system.

Materials And Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of US veterans diagnosed with TC from 1990 to 2021. These veterans were compared with an age-matched and race-matched control group of US veterans without a diagnosis of TC.

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  • This study compares outcomes of radical nephrectomy (RN) versus partial nephrectomy (PN) for treating sarcomatoid renal cell carcinoma (sRCC) using a large national database from 2004 to 2019.
  • The analysis found that patients receiving PN had better overall survival rates, particularly in early-stage tumors (cT1 and cT3), although factors like age and tumor characteristics influenced the likelihood of receiving PN.
  • The results suggest that PN can be a viable option for certain patients without compromising outcomes, but disparities in care exist based on income and insurance status, affecting survival rates.
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Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a common, severe genetic blood disorder. Current pharmacotherapies are partially effective and allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is associated with immune toxicities. Genome editing of patient hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) to reactivate fetal hemoglobin (HbF) in erythroid progeny offers an alternative potentially curative approach to treat SCD.

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Powassan virus lineage II or deer tick virus (DTV) is a rare but increasingly reported human infection in the United States transmitted by Ixodes scapularis ticks. The virus is thought to be maintained in environmental foci that are optimal for tick and vertebrate reservoirs, but details on DTV ecology are poorly understood. We investigated DTV tick infection rates and reservoir host abundance in a focus of consistent DTV activity in Maine, USA.

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Background: Despite the rise in gender-affirming care, our understanding of prostate cancer (PCa) in transgender women (TGW) remains in its infancy. Health disparities and lack of PCa awareness and screening are possible barriers to providing quality care for this population. In addition, the implication of hormonal manipulation for the aggressiveness of PCa in TGW is yet to be determined.

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Objective: To evaluate predictive ability of a novel combined index, Charlson comorbidity index and C-reactive protein (CCI-CRP), for outcomes in renal cell carcinoma (RCC), and compare predictive outcomes with of CCI-CRP to its separate components and to the UCLA integrated staging system (UISS).

Patients And Methods: We retrospectively analyzed INMARC registry of RCC patients. Receiver Operator Characteristics (ROC) analysis was fitted to identify threshold defining low-CRP (LCRP) and high-CRP (HCRP).

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Over the years, several imaging techniques have been used in the diagnosis and management of testicular cancer. We compartmentalize disease stages into preorchiectomy, stage 1, initial stage 2 and 3 and postchemotherapy stage 2 and 3. We then elaborate on various imaging modalities that are relevant to each of these stages.

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Objective: Stage migration in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) has led to an increasing proportion of diagnosed small renal masses. Emerging knowledge regarding heterogeneity of RCC histologies and consequent impact on prognosis led us to further explore outcomes and predictive factors in surgically-treated T1a RCC.

Methods: The INMARC database was queried for T1aN0M0 RCC.

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  • Deterioration of kidney function can lead to higher mortality rates, and it's unclear how different surgical options (partial nephrectomy [PN] vs. radical nephrectomy [RN]) for large renal masses impact long-term kidney health.
  • A study analyzing data from 23 institutions showed that patients undergoing PN experienced significantly lower rates of acute kidney injury (AKI) and better recovery of kidney function at one year compared to those undergoing RN.
  • The findings suggest that avoiding RN, when possible, is beneficial for preserving kidney function and reducing the risk of serious complications related to kidney health after surgery.
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Background: To evaluate relationship between histological subtypes of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and preoperative c-reactive protein (CRP).

Patients And Methods: We queried the International Marker Consortium for Renal Cancer database for patients affected by RCC. Patients were classified according to their histology: benign tumors, clear cell (cc) RCC, chromophobe (ch) RCC, papillary (p) RCC, and variant histology (vh) RCC; and according to CRP (mg/L): low CRP ≤5 and high CRP >5.

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Background And Objective: The role of cytoreductive nephrectomy (CN) in the treatment of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) has been called into question on the basis of clinical trial data from the tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) era. Comparative analyses of CN for patients treated with immuno-oncology (IO) versus TKI agents are sparse. Our objective was to compare CN timing and outcomes among patients who received TKI versus IO therapy.

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Background: Non-canonical WNT family (WNT5A pathway) signaling via WNT5A through ROR1 and its partner, ROR2, or Frizzled2 (FZD2) is linked to processes driving tumorigenesis and therapy resistance. We utilized a large dataset of urothelial carcinoma (UC) tumors to characterize non-canonical WNT signaling through WNT5A, ROR1, ROR2, or FZD2 expression.

Methods: NextGen Sequencing of DNA (592 genes or WES)/RNA (WTS) was performed for 4125 UC tumors submitted to Caris Life Sciences.

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: to investigate the impact of age on renal function deterioration after robotic-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN) focusing on a decline to moderate and severe forms of chronic kidney disease (CKD). : This is a single center prospective analysis of patients who underwent RAPN. The outcomes include the development of de novo CKD-S 3a [estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) < 60 mL/min/1.

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Introduction: The role of local definitive therapy in addition to systemic treatment in clinically positive regional lymph node (cN+) bladder cancer is yet to be determined. Herein, we sought to investigate the role of radical cystectomy (RC) in management of patients with cN+ bladder cancer at US Veterans Health Administration Facilities.

Methods: We identified patients diagnosed with cN+ bladder cancer between 2000-2017 using the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Informatics and Computing Infrastructure (VINCI).

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