The homeless population during the COVID-19 syndemic: Inequities, practices of social resilience, and social reintegration strategies.

This paper analyses the amplification of social insecurity and the social misrecognition of the homeless during the COVID-19 syndemic. The research was carried out in the city of Bergamo (IT), which has been severely affected by the COVID-19 syndemic since the early months of 2020; the research was developed in two phases. The first one analyses the practices of social resilience activated during the COVID-19 syndemic by the socio-educational staff and the coordination figures who work in the support services.

The DNA index as a prognostic tool in hilar cholangiocarcinoma.

Background And Objectives: Due to the devastating prognosis of patients suffering from hilar cholangiocarcinoma (HCCA) valid prognostic factors are urgently needed to guide treatment decisions in a personalized concept. The aim of this study was to analyze the predictive value of the DNA index in a large single-center cohort of patients undergoing resection of HCCA.

Methods: A total of 154 patients who underwent resection of HCCA were included in this prospective study.

Ataxia-telangiectasia-mutated protein kinase levels stratify patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma into prognostic subgroups with loss being a strong indicator of poor survival.

Objectives: Recently, aberrations in the gene encoding for ataxia-telangiectasia-mutated (ATM) protein kinase have been reported for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas (PDAC). These findings argue that ATM deficiency may play a role during carcinogenesis. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the clinical relevance of ATM expression and ATM activation in PDAC.

Hedgehog pathway as a potential treatment target in human cholangiocarcinoma.

Background: Innovative treatment concepts targeting essential signaling pathways may offer new chances for patients suffering from cholangiocarcinoma (CCC). For that, we performed a systematic molecular genetic analysis concerning the Hedgehog activity in human CCC samples and analyzed the effect of Hh inhibition on CCC cells in vitro and in vivo.

Methods: Activation of the Hh pathway was analyzed in 50 human CCC samples using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR).

DNA index is a strong predictive marker in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma: the results of a five-year prospective study.

Purpose: Predictive markers for risk stratification among patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (IHC) are still lacking. Therefore, recent studies have focused on identifying the biological aspects of tumors that can provide more information about the tumor aggressiveness. The aim of this study was to prospectively evaluate the prognostic potential of the DNA index in patients undergoing liver resection for IHC.

DNA index as a strong prognostic factor in patients with adenocarcinoma of the pancreatic head: results of a 5-year prospective study.

Objectives: To improve the devastating prognosis of pancreatic cancer; the identification of reliable predictive factors is crucial. The aim of the present study was to prospectively assess the prognostic value of DNA index determined by image cytometry as an predictive factor in pancreatic head cancer.

Methods: The DNA ploidy and the DNA index of 61 patients were evaluated by DNA image cytometry and were found to be correlated, as well as standard histopathologic parameters, with patient survival.

Induction of bona fide regulatory T cells after liver transplantation - the potential influence of polyclonal antithymocyte globulin.

T-cell-depleting strategies are an integral part of immunosuppressive regimens used in the hematological and solid organ transplant setting. Besides prevention of alloreactivity, treatment with rabbit antithymocyte globulin (rATG) has been related to the induction of immunoregulatory T cells (Treg) in vitro and in vivo. To investigate Treg induced by rATG, we prospectively studied the effect of rATG induction therapy in liver-transplanted recipients in vivo (n = 28).

Postoperative complications deteriorate long-term outcome in pancreatic cancer patients.

Background: Different tumor-specific prognostic factors have been identified in recent years for patients who undergo surgery due to pancreatic head cancer, but the results often were inconsistent. Furthermore, the impact of postoperative complications on patient long-term survival has not been described.

Methods: The long-term outcome of 428 patients who underwent resection of pancreatic head cancer at our center during a 17-year period was evaluated.

Safety of liver resection and effect on quality of life in patients with benign hepatic disease: single center experience.

Background: Although liver resection has long been established for selected patients with benign hepatic disease, the success of surgical treatment of these patients cannot be evaluated exclusively through postoperative morbidity and mortality. Therefore, the aim of the study was to prove the safety of liver resection in the treatment of benign liver tumors and to evaluate the effect of surgical treatment on the patients' quality of life.

Methods: A total of 146 patients who underwent liver resection because of benign liver tumors were included in this study.

Traumatized liver grafts for organ donation? A single-center experience.

Because the number of patients on waiting lists increases each year, new strategies are urgently needed to expand the donor pool. The use of traumatized donor livers for orthotopic liver transplantation at a transplant center is described. After transplantation, no increased incidence of perioperative complications such as bleeding, bile leakage, or liver graft dysfunction were observed and the transplanted livers exhibited appropriate long-term function.

Safety of mycophenolate mofetil monotherapy in patients after liver transplantation.

Background: Due to the nephrotoxicity of calcineurin inhibitors (CNIs) mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) has become a promising immunosuppressive alternative in recent years. In several studies an improvement of renal function could be reached by introduction of MMF and withdrawal of CNIs but there is few known about the long-term effects of MMF on liver-, kidney- and bone marrow function.

Material And Methods: We therefore retrospectively reviewed 123 adult liver transplant patients who were successfully converted to MMF monotherapy without any acute rejection within the first three months of MMF monotherapy.

Nonresponse to pre-operative chemotherapy does not preclude long-term survival after liver resection in patients with colorectal liver metastases.

Background: Liver resection is the only curative treatment offering a chance of long-term survival in patients with colorectal liver metastases (CRM). Recent data indicated that liver resection in patients with tumor progression while receiving chemotherapy was associated with poor outcome. The aim of the study was to identify risk factors for poor outcome in patients with pre-operative chemotherapy of CRM.