Publications by authors named "Suguru Muraoka"
Article Synopsis
- Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have improved cancer treatment outcomes but identifying effective biomarkers for patient selection is essential due to current markers like PD-L1 showing limited predictive accuracy.
- * This study analyzes blood-based factors, like neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and red cell distribution width (RDW), to predict benefits from ICI therapy using data from a Clinical Data Warehouse (CDW) and electronic medical records (EMR).
- * Results showed a significant correlation between high RDW and the likelihood of receiving fewer doses of the ICI pembrolizumab, highlighting its potential as a prognostic marker for predicting treatment efficacy.
Article Synopsis
- - Biologics, like benralizumab, are key treatments for severe asthma, but there's limited data on their effects in elderly patients (70+ years old).
- - A study analyzed 51 patients (22 elderly, 29 non-elderly) treated with benralizumab, showing significant reductions in asthma exacerbations for both groups during treatment.
- - The medication was well-tolerated in elderly patients, with a similar rate of discontinuation due to side effects compared to non-elderly patients.
Article Synopsis
- - The study investigates the link between HLA genotypes and the severity of COVID-19 in 209 Japanese patients, identifying how specific alleles correlate with severe respiratory cases over different epidemic periods (pre-Omicron and Omicron).
- - Significant associations were found, particularly with alleles HLA-DQA1*01:03 and HLA-DQB1*06:01, showing higher frequencies in severe COVID-19 cases compared to non-severe cases, primarily during the pre-Omicron period.
- - There was a strong correlation between the two significant alleles (r = 0.91), indicating they are often inherited together, and their presence in the severe group highlights potential genetic factors influencing COVID-19
Article Synopsis
- Benralizumab, an antibody for eosinophilic asthma, helps reduce flare-ups and reliance on corticosteroids, but its prescribing varies significantly across Japan’s 47 prefectures.
- A study using national insurance claim data found that higher average income correlates with increased benralizumab prescriptions, while correlations with physician density were weaker.
- The findings highlight that income is the most significant factor affecting access to advanced asthma treatments in Japan, suggesting that addressing financial barriers is crucial for improving patient care and outcomes.
Improved diagnostic accuracy with three lung tumor markers compared to six-marker panel.
Transl Lung Cancer Res
March 2024
Article Synopsis
- Research aimed to create a panel of fewer tumor markers for lung cancer diagnosis, balancing sensitivity with the risk of false positives.
- The study involved 1,733 patients and used logistic regression to identify three key markers (CEA, CYFRA, NSE) linked to lung cancer diagnosis.
- The three-marker panel demonstrated better diagnostic accuracy and reduced false positives compared to a panel that included all six tumor markers.
Article Synopsis
- Whole genome sequencing (WGS) can be used to predict drug resistance in tuberculosis either through a catalog-based method that identifies specific mutations or a noncatalog approach using advanced algorithms like machine learning.
- A systematic review analyzed 44 studies with nearly 17,000 specimens, revealing excellent test accuracy for isoniazid and rifampicin, very good accuracy for several other drugs, and good accuracy for a few more.
- Both catalog-based and noncatalog-based methods demonstrated similar effectiveness in predicting drug susceptibility using WGS results.
Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) remains a leading cause of death globally. Identifying the factors associated with mortality during hospitalization for TB is crucial for improving patient outcomes. This study aimed to investigate the potential risk factors, including T-SPOT.
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