Complementary acupuncture treatment and reduced risk of sudden sensorineural hearing loss in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients: a retrospective, nested case-control study.

Purpose: Hearing loss is a frequently observed comorbidity in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Accumulating evidence demonstrated that acupuncture can safely manage cancer and its treatment-related symptoms, but its effect in minimizing the likelihood of experiencing sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL) has not been established. So this work aimed to determine the risk of SSHL among NPC persons with or without acupuncture use.

Long-term follow-up of cancer and catastrophic diseases in hematopoietic stem cell donors: a comprehensive matched cohort study.

Hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation, using either bone marrow (BM) or peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC), is a well-established therapy for various hematologic and non-hematologic diseases. However, the long-term health outcomes after HSC donation remain a major concern for several potential donors. Thus, we aimed to conduct a matched cohort study of 5003 unrelated donors (1099 BM and 3904 PBSC) and randomly selected 50,030 matched controls based on age, sex, and resident area from the donor registry between 1998 and 2018.

Ultrasensitive Upconversion Nanoparticle Immunoassay for Human Serum Cardiac Troponin I Detection Achieved with Resonant Waveguide Grating.

Selective detection of biomarkers at low concentrations in blood is crucial for the clinical diagnosis of many diseases but remains challenging. In this work, we aimed to develop an ultrasensitive immunoassay that can detect biomarkers in serum with an attomolar limit of detection (LOD). We proposed a sandwich-type heterogeneous immunosensor in a 3 × 3 well array format by integrating a resonant waveguide grating (RWG) substrate with upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs).

Molecular subtypes of breast cancer predicting clinical benefits of radiotherapy after breast-conserving surgery: a propensity-score-matched cohort study.

Background: Based on the molecular expression of cancer cells, molecular subtypes of breast cancer have been applied to classify patients for predicting clinical outcomes and prognosis. However, further evidence is needed regarding the influence of molecular subtypes on the efficacy of radiotherapy (RT) after breast-conserving surgery (BCS), particularly in a population-based context. Hence, the present study employed a propensity-score-matched cohort design to investigate the potential role of molecular subtypes in stratifying patient outcomes for post-BCS RT and to identify the specific clinical benefits that may emerge.

Peptidylarginine Deiminase Type 2 Predicts Tumor Progression and Poor Prognosis in Patients with Curatively Resected Biliary Tract Cancer.

(1) Background: PADI2 is a post-translational modification (PTM) enzyme that catalyzes citrullination, which then triggers autoimmune disease and cancer. This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of peptidylarginine deiminase 2 (PADI2) protein expression in biliary tract cancer (BTC) patients. (2) Methods: Using immunohistochemistry, the PADI2 protein expression in BTC tissues was analyzed.

IL-6 induces haptoglobin expression through activating STAT3 in human head and neck cancer.

Objective: Haptoglobin (Hp) is an acute-phase protein secreted by the liver; its concentration increases rapidly during infection, inflammation, and tumor formation. It has been reported that the level of Hp α alleles is altered in the serum of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), and the cellular level of Hp is strongly associated with the recurrence rate of HNSCC in patients. In the present study, the regulated mechanism of Hp expression was explored.

A complex of novel protease inhibitor, ovostatin homolog, with its cognate proteases in immature mice uterine luminal fluid.

A predominant gelatinolytic enzyme with approximately 26 kDa was observed in gelatin zymogram of immature mice uterine luminal fluid (ULF). Size exclusion analysis revealed that the native size of this enzyme was close to that of human α-macroglobulin (α-MG), a 725 kDa protein. This large protease was isolated by a series of chromatographic steps on the Sephacryl S-400 and DEAE-Sepharose columns.

Surgical resection of metachronous hepatic metastases from gastric cancer improves long-term survival: A population-based study.

Introduction: Hepatic metastases are diagnosed synchronously in 3-14% of patients with gastric cancer, and metachronously in up to 37% of patients following ''curative" gastrectomy. Most patients who have gastric cancer and hepatic metastasis are traditionally treated with palliative chemotherapy. The impact of liver resection is still controversial.

AZD2014 Radiosensitizes Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma by Inhibiting AKT/mTOR Axis and Inducing G1/G2/M Cell Cycle Arrest.

Background: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is one of the most common malignant neoplasms in Taiwan. Activation of the mTOR signaling pathway has been linked to decreased radiation responsiveness in human oral cancer, thus it limits efficacy of radiotherapy. To address this question, we investigated the effect of AZD2014, a novel small molecular ATP-competitive inhibitor of mTORC1 and mTORC2 kinase, as a radiosensitizer in primary OSCC and OSCC-derived cell line models.

RAD001 enhances the radiosensitivity of SCC4 oral cancer cells by inducing cell cycle arrest at the G2/M checkpoint.

Background: Inhibition of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) kinase enhances the radiosensitivity of some cancer cells. We investigated the effect of RAD001, an mTOR inhibitor, on irradiated oral cancer cell lines.

Materials And Methods: Clonogenic assays were performed to determine the radiosensitivity of SCC4 and SCC25 cells after treatment with RAD001.

Prognostic significance of flow cytometric residual disease, dysregulated neutrophils/monocytes, and hematogones in adult acute myeloid leukemia in first remission.

Fifty-one consecutive non-M3 acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients who had achieved morphologic complete remission (mCR) after induction chemotherapy were enrolled in the present study. Three characteristics of bone marrow (BM) composition analyzed by flow cytometry were combined to determine the prognostic impact. A standardized panel of reagents was used to detect residual disease of aberrant myeloid progenitor cells (RD), identify neutrophils/monocytes with dysregulated immunophenotype (dysregulated neutro/mono) and quantify the appearance of CD34(+) B-progenitor-related cluster (hematogones) simultaneously in post-induction BM of adult AML patients.

Resveratrol downregulates interleukin-6-stimulated sonic hedgehog signaling in human acute myeloid leukemia.

IL-6 and sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling molecules are considered to maintain the growth of cancer stem cells (CSCs). Resveratrol, an important integrant in traditional Chinese medicine, possesses certain antitumor effects. However, the mechanisms on regulating acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are unclear.

RAD001-mediated STAT3 upregulation and megakaryocytic differentiation.

RAD001 is currently used as an immunosuppressant and anticancer drug. Megakaryocyte (MK) differentiation includes development from pluripotent stem cells to proliferation and differentiation toward MK formation and platelet maturation. Our preliminary assay showed that RAD001 might stimulate MK differentiation; however, the exact regulatory mechanisms needed to be elucidated.

Infectious complications in head and neck cancer patients treated with cetuximab: propensity score and instrumental variable analysis.

Background: To compare the infection rates between cetuximab-treated patients with head and neck cancers (HNC) and untreated patients.

Methodology: A national cohort of 1083 HNC patients identified in 2010 from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database was established. After patients were followed for one year, propensity score analysis and instrumental variable analysis were performed to assess the association between cetuximab therapy and the infection rates.

Metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma in the tympanic membrane.

Primary tympanic membrane cancer is very rare; metastatic cancer to the tympanic membrane is extremely rare and presents diagnostic challenges. We report a case of metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma in the tympanic membrane. The presenting symptom was hearing loss.

Rituximab-induced late-onset neutropenia in newly diagnosed B-cell lymphoma correlates with Fc receptor FcγRIIIa 158(V/F) polymorphism.

Rituximab is a commonly utilized treatment agent for B-cell lymphoma. Late onset neutropenia (LON) has been identified as a complication associated with rituximab, primarily in conjunction with hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Scant data exists regarding rituximab-related LON outside the spectrum of HSCT, including newly-diagnosed lymphoma.

Detection of Hpdel in healthy individuals and cancer patients in Taiwan.

Background: We investigated the genotypic distribution of Hp(del) in healthy subjects and cancer patients in Taiwan.

Methods: Blood samples were collected from 244 randomly selected healthy Taiwanese volunteers and 737 patients with various cancers. Samples were analyzed for the haptoglobin (Hp) gene, and the presence of the Hp(del) allele was determined from genomic DNA by an Hp(del)-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method.