Effectiveness and Safety of Bronchial Thermoplasty in the Treatment of Severe Asthma with Smoking History: A Single-Center Experience.

Introduction: Bronchial thermoplasty (BT) improves asthma-related quality of life and decreases the number of asthma exacerbations. However, the effectiveness of BT in the treatment of severe asthma with smoking history is unclear because previous studies have excluded patients with smoking history of more than 10 pack-years.

Objective: The aim of the study was to clarify the effectiveness and safety of BT for severe asthma with smoking history.

Negative impact of anorexia and weight loss during prior pirfenidone administration on subsequent nintedanib treatment in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Background: Current clinical practice guidelines for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) conditionally recommend use of pirfenidone and nintedanib. However, an optimal treatment sequence has not been established, and the data of treatment sequence from pirfenidone to nintedanib are limited. This study aimed to evaluate safety, tolerability and efficacy of nintedanib switched from pirfenidone in patients with IPF.

Low body surface area predicts hepatotoxicity of nintedanib in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

After the commercialization of nintedanib in Japan, a high incidence of hepatotoxicity resulting in treatment interruption was noted in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) patients treated with nintedanib in our hospital. This study aimed to clarify the risk factors for hepatotoxicity of nintedanib. Sixty-eight consecutive cases of IPF newly treated with nintedanib at a dose of 150 mg twice daily from September 2015 to September 2016 were enrolled: 46 patients (67.

Pathologically Proven Spontaneous Remission of IgG4-related Retroperitoneal Fibrosis.

Some forms of idiopathic retroperitoneal fibrosis (RF) have recently been considered to be a part of the spectrum of immunoglobulin G4 (IgG4)-related disease. This case report is the first description of a spontaneous remission in a patient with pathologically proven IgG4-related RF. Although the pathogenesis and long-term disease behavior of IgG4-related RF remains unknown, we believe that an initial assessment consisting of only careful monitoring might be one important strategy, especially in asymptomatic IgG4-related RF patients without nephropathy, while carefully monitoring these patients for the risk of recurrence.

Isolated Brain Metastases as the First Relapse After the Curative Surgical Resection in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Patients With an EGFR Mutation.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to clarify the incidence and disease behavior of brain metastases (BM) without extracranial disease (ie, isolated BM) as the first relapse after curative surgery in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, analyzed according to epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation status.

Patients And Methods: A review of the medical charts of consecutive NSCLC patients diagnosed between 2005 and 2016 with BM as the first relapse after curative surgery was performed.

Results: Among 1191 patients evaluated for EGFR mutation status, 28 patients who met the inclusion criteria were divided into 2 groups: EGFR mutation group (16 patients) and wild type group (12 patients).