Radiographic staging practices of newly diagnosed colorectal cancer vary according to medical specialty.

Background: Since 2008, multiple guidelines have endorsed incorporation of chest CT in the radiographic staging assessment of newly diagnosed colorectal cancer (CRC). Radiographic staging practices performed after CRC is detected have not been studied.

Objective: To evaluate radiographic staging practices for newly diagnosed CRC between gastroenterologists versus non-gastroenterologists.

Patient Non-adherence and Cancellations Are Higher for Screening Colonoscopy Compared with Surveillance Colonoscopy.

Background: A significant proportion of the eligible population is non-adherent to colonoscopy for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening.

Aims: To define the demographic and clinical variables associated with non-adherence and multiple cancellations to scheduled colonoscopy within 1 year in a CRC screening and adenomatous polyp surveillance population.

Methods: This was an observational cohort study of 617 consecutive patients scheduled to undergo colonoscopy at an outpatient academic tertiary care center for CRC screening or adenomatous polyp surveillance from January 2012 to September 2012.

Hepatitis B vaccination in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Aim: To determine the prevalence for hepatitis B virus (HBV) and HBV screening and vaccination practices for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Methods: This study is a retrospective, cross-sectional observational study. A retrospective chart review was performed in 500 patients who have been consecutively treated for IBD between September 2008 and January 2013 at the Rush University Medical Center Gastroenterology section.

Commonality and differences of methylation signatures in the plasma of patients with pancreatic cancer and colorectal cancer.

Profiling of DNA methylation status of specific genes is a way to screen for colorectal cancer (CRC) and pancreatic cancer (PC) in blood. The commonality of methylation status of cancer-related tumor suppressor genes between CRC and PC is largely unknown. Methylation status of 56 cancer-related genes was compared in plasma of patients in the following cohorts: CRC, PC and healthy controls.

Advanced adenoma detection rate is independent of nonadvanced adenoma detection rate.

Objectives: Adenoma detection rate (ADR) is the accepted rate marker in colonoscopy quality. Advanced adenomas detected at index colonoscopy, while less frequent than nonadvanced adenomas, carry greater risk for future advanced neoplasia during surveillance colonoscopy. This study aimed to determine the effect of the colonoscopist and other factors on advanced ADR and to define the correlation of advanced and nonadvanced ADRs among colonoscopists.

Endoscopic mis-sizing of polyps changes colorectal cancer surveillance recommendations.

Background: Adenomatous polyps greater than 1 cm are defined as advanced adenomas. Inaccurate size estimation can lead to inappropriate surveillance recommendations of colorectal adenomas.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the impact of endoscopic polyp mis-sizing on colorectal cancer surveillance recommendations.

DNA methylation patterns in blood of patients with colorectal cancer and adenomatous colorectal polyps.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening rates are currently suboptimal. Blood-based screening could improve rates of earlier detection for CRC and adenomatous colorectal polyps. In this study, we evaluated the feasibility of plasma-based detection of early CRC and adenomatous polyps using array-mediated analysis methylation profiling of 56 genes implicated in carcinogenesis.

Antioxidative and apoptotic properties of polyphenolic extracts from edible part of artichoke (Cynara scolymus L.) on cultured rat hepatocytes and on human hepatoma cells.

Cultured rat hepatocytes and human hepatoma HepG2 cells were used to evaluate the hepatoprotective properties of polyphenolic extracts from the edible part of artichoke (AE). The hepatocytes were exposed to H2O2generated in situ by glucose oxidase and were treated with either AE, or pure chlorogenic acid (ChA) or with the well known antioxidant, N, N'-diphenyl-p-phenilenediamine (DPPD). Addition of glucose oxidase to the culture medium caused depletion of intracellular glutathione (GSH) content, accumulation of malondialdehyde (MDA) in the cultures, as a lipid peroxidation indicator, and cell death.

Coffee: good, bad, or just fun? A critical review of coffee's effects on liver enzymes.

Coffee consumption is a regular part of daily life throughout the world. Research into the effects of coffee on human health is ongoing, but a recent study suggests that coffee and caffeine consumption can reduce the risk of elevated alanine aminotransferase activity in individuals at high risk for liver disease. This review will analyze the results of that study in light of the current literature.

Antiplatelet agents: current drugs and future trends.

Antiplatelet drugs in clinical use are discussed in terms of their mechanisms of action and the relevancy of that to the physiology of platelets and the pathophysiology of arterial thrombosis. Current clinical usage is outlined in detail for each drug. Experimental antiplatelet drugs also are discussed.

Central obesity and elevated liver enzymes.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is commonly associated with obesity, a growing epidemic worldwide. A new large, population-based investigation has shown a statistically significant association between central adiposity and elevated liver enzymes. This finding adds to the growing research specifically linking central adiposity, and more specifically, visceral adiposity, with adverse health effects.

Hypovitaminosis D-induced pain.

Vitamin D deficiency is a problem of considerable magnitude that has reemerged as a major public health issue in the United States and several other developed countries. Vitamin D plays a crucial role in calcium homeostasis in the body. Hypovitaminosis D leads to osteomalacia and increased risk of fractures, especially in the elderly.

A therapeutic approach to wean total parenteral nutrition in the management of short bowel syndrome: three cases using nocturnal enteral rehydration.

Short bowel syndrome is characterized by severe dehydration and malnutrition and requires total parenteral nutrition (TPN). Prolonged TPN has serious complications. Caloric requirements can be met orally but oral fluid replacement is problematic.

New support for branched-chain amino acid supplementation in advanced hepatic failure.

Nutritional supplementation with branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) has been a topic of considerable debate for more than two decades. Several studies have demonstrated that supplementation with BCAA is associated with improvement of the catabolic state commonly seen in people with cirrhosis, whereas other studies have showed an improvement in portosystemic encephalopathy in patients with liver disease. Some studies have also shown there to be no benefit in BCAA supplementation in advanced cirrhosis.

A critical interaction: leptin and ghrelin.

Continuing research has increased our understanding of regulatory factors involving appetite, food intake, and energy metabolism. There appears to be a complex interaction among insulin, leptin, and ghrelin. A new study explored these interactions and indicates that leptin may regulate ghrelin levels and affect body weight changes.

Finding a place for immunonutrition.

The role of certain nutrients that seem to have pharmacologic effects on immune and inflammatory parameters has been studied over the last two decades. This area of research is called immunonutrition. A recent study administered a combination of immunonutrients perioperatively in well nourished gastrointestinal cancer patients undergoing elective surgery.

The Metabolic Syndrome: where are we and where do we go?

The Metabolic Syndrome, also known as Syndrome X, refers to a constellation of atherosclerotic risk factors, including insulin resistance, hyperinsulinemia, dyslipidemia, essential hypertension, and abdominal obesity. We review four major published studies involving animals and humans that may be linked together in a unified hypothesis and justify a comprehensive approach in the treatment of this ever-increasing syndrome.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: pathogenesis and the role of antioxidants.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) includes a wide spectrum of liver injury ranging from simple steatosis to steatohepatitis, fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Whereas simple steatosis has a benign clinical course, steatohepatitis is a recognized cause of progressive liver fibrosis and can develop into cirrhosis. NAFLD and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) are the two most common chronic liver diseases in United States general population with a prevalence of 20% and 3%, respectively.

Effects of soybean extract on morphology and survival of Caco-2, SW620, and HT-29 cells.

Soybean consumption may be beneficial to prevention of certain human cancers. Low incidence of colon cancer in Asian countries is associated with consumption of soybean products. A limited number of human and animal studies suggested that soybean consumption might prevent colon cancer; other studies did not support this conclusion.

Mortality in patients with celiac disease.

Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder triggered by ingestion of gluten-containing foods. Epidemiologic studies dating from the 1950s established its association with gastrointestinal malignancies, particularly small bowel lymphoma. Corrao et al.

Does vitamin C intake slow the progression of gastric cancer in Helicobacter pylori-infected populations?

Vitamin C's role in the prevention of disease and malignancy has been studied over the last several decades. Vitamin C intake has been shown to have an inverse relationship with gastric cancer. Recent follow-up studies on high-risk populations suggest that ascorbic acid, the reduced form of vitamin C, protects against gastric cancer, for which H.