Smoking cessation before diagnosis and survival in early stage non-small cell lung cancer patients.

Smoking cessation decreases the risk of lung cancer. However, little is known about how smoking cessation affects lung cancer survival. We examined the association between smoking cessation and overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) in 543 early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients.

Uncommon primary tracheal tumors.

Background: Primary tracheal tumors other than adenoid cystic or squamous cell carcinoma are uncommon and have a heterogeneous histologic appearance. The experience regarding their treatment and long-term outcome is limited, and alternatives to segmental tracheal resection, including endoscopic treatment or radiation, continue to be explored.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed of uncommon tracheal tumors among 360 primary tracheal tumors seen over 40 years, excluding adenoid cystic and squamous cell carcinoma.

Mechanical ventilation and air leaks after lung biopsy for acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Background: Open lung biopsy in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) may provide a specific etiology and change clinical management, yet concerns about complications remain. Persistent air leak is the most common postoperative complication. Risk factors in this setting are not known.

Transthoracic Heller myotomy for esophageal achalasia: analysis of long-term results.

Background: Swallowing deteriorates over time in some patients after transthoracic esophagomyotomy for achalasia. The causes of decline are poorly understood.

Methods: We report a retrospective analysis of transthoracic esophagomyotomy for achalasia.

CXCR3 and its ligands in a murine model of obliterative bronchiolitis: regulation and function.

Lung transplantation remains the only effective therapy for patients with end-stage lung disease, but survival is limited by the development of obliterative bronchiolitis (OB). The chemokine receptor CXCR3 and two of its ligands, CXCL9 and CXCL10, have been identified as important mediators of OB. However, the relative contribution of CXCL9 and CXCL10 to the development of OB and the mechanism of regulation of these chemokines has not been well defined.

Molecular analysis of fluoroquinolone-resistant Salmonella Paratyphi A isolate, India.

Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi A is increasingly a cause of enteric fever. Sequence analysis of an Indian isolate showed a unique strain with high-level resistance to ciprofloxacin associated with double mutations in the DNA gyrase subunit gyrA (Ser83-->Phe and Asp87-->Gly) and a mutation in topoisomerase IV subunit parC (Ser80-->Arg).

Deep-seated resistance in relapsed paratyphoid fever.

We describe a case of relapsed paratyphoid fever in which the isolate had reduced susceptibility to ciprofloxacin due to a rare mutation within the gyrA gene. 18fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography scanning identified deep-seated infection including unsuspected aortitis and highlights the utility of novel imaging techniques to improve our understanding and treatment of this disease.

Pathogenic T-cell recruitment into the airway in human disease.

Effector T cells significantly contribute to inflammatory diseases. These cells are recruited into tissue, where they orchestrate an inflammatory response that can either protect against infection or sometimes stimulate human disease. The recruitment of T cells into tissue from the blood and lymphoid compartments is an active process controlled by chemokines and the chemokine receptors expressed on distinct effector T-cell subsets.

Salmonella paratyphi A rates, Asia.

Little is known about the causes of enteric fever in Asia. Most cases are believed to be caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi and the remainder by S. Paratyphi A.

Genotypes and haplotypes of matrix metalloproteinase 1, 3 and 12 genes and the risk of lung cancer.

The MMPs (matrix metalloproteinases) are a family of secreted zinc metalloproteases that degrade the collagens of the extracellular matrix important in tissue remodeling and repair during development and inflammation. We investigated the associations between polymorphisms of MMP-1 (-1607 1G/2G, rs1799750), MMP-3 (-1171 5A/6A, rs3025058), and MMP-12 (-82AG, rs2276109, and 1082A/G, rs652438) and the risk of lung cancer in 2014 Caucasian lung cancer patients and 1323 healthy controls. The results were analyzed using logistic regression models, adjusting for covariates.

Tracheal compression caused by straight back syndrome, chest wall deformity, and anterior spinal displacement: techniques for relief.

Background: Straight back syndrome and other causes of extreme narrowing of the space between sternal notch and vertebrae can cause critical tracheal obstruction. Additional points of compression may result from the brachiocephalic artery and from anterior vertebral displacement.

Methods: Individualized surgical maneuvers are necessary to correct all points of obstruction.

Predictors of recurrence in thymic tumors: importance of invasion, World Health Organization histology, and size.

Objective: This study sought to define predictors of recurrence after resection of thymic tumors.

Methods: A single-institution retrospective study was performed of 179 patients who underwent resection of a thymic tumor from 1972 through 2003.

Results: Resection was complete in 90% (161/179) of patients.

Dietary iron, zinc, and calcium and the risk of lung cancer.

Background: Iron, zinc, and calcium are all involved in the metabolism of reactive oxygen species and may compete with each other for similar binding sites. Dietary intakes of these micronutrients have been associated with altered risks of colorectal, breast, and prostate cancers.

Methods: In this Massachusetts hospital-based case-control study of 923 patients with lung cancer and 1125 healthy controls, we studied the associations between dietary iron, zinc, and calcium intake and the risk of lung cancer.

Vitamin D is associated with improved survival in early-stage non-small cell lung cancer patients.

Vitamin D may inhibit the development and progression of a wide spectrum of cancers. We investigated the associations of surgery season and vitamin D intake with recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival in 456 early-stage non-small cell lung cancer patients. The data were analyzed using log-rank test and Cox proportional hazards models.

Effect of deletion or overexpression of the 19-kilodalton lipoprotein Rv3763 on the innate response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

The 19-kDa lipoprotein of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is an important target of the innate immune response. To investigate the immune biology of this antigen in the context of the whole bacillus, we derived a recombinant M. tuberculosis H37Rv that lacked the 19-kDa-lipoprotein gene (Delta19) and complemented this strain by reintroduction of the 19-kDa-lipoprotein gene on a multicopy vector to produce Delta19::pSMT181.

Use of paired serum samples for serodiagnosis of typhoid fever.

Using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay we demonstrate that, in adult patients with typhoid fever, the sensitivity of a serological test based on the detection of anti-lipopolysaccharide immunoglobulin G is increased when used with paired serum samples taken 1 week apart.

Detection of Vi-negative Salmonella enterica serovar typhi in the peripheral blood of patients with typhoid fever in the Faisalabad region of Pakistan.

The synthesis and transportation proteins of the Vi capsular polysaccharide of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (serovar Typhi) are encoded by the viaB operon, which resides on a 134-kb pathogenicity island known as SPI-7. In recent years, Vi-negative strains of serovar Typhi have been reported in regions where typhoid fever is endemic. However, because Vi negativity can arise during in vitro passage, the clinical significance of Vi-negative serovar Typhi is not clear.

A non-glycosaminoglycan-binding variant of CC chemokine ligand 7 (monocyte chemoattractant protein-3) antagonizes chemokine-mediated inflammation.

A non-glycosaminoglycan (GAG)-binding variant of the pleiotropic chemokine CCL7 was generated by mutating to alanine the basic (B) amino acids within an identified (44)BXBXXB(49) GAG-binding motif. Unlike wild-type (wt) CCL7, the mutant sequence had no affinity for heparin. However, the mutant retained a normal affinity for CCR1, CCR2b, and CCR3, and produced a normal calcium flux in mononuclear leukocytes.

BLT1-mediated T cell trafficking is critical for rejection and obliterative bronchiolitis after lung transplantation.

Leukotriene B4 is a lipid mediator that recently has been shown to have potent chemotactic activity for effector T lymphocytes mediated through its receptor, BLT1. Here, we developed a novel murine model of acute lung rejection to demonstrate that BLT1 controls effector CD8+ T cell trafficking into the lung and that disruption of BLT1 signaling in CD8+ T cells reduces lung inflammation and mortality in the model. In addition, we used BLT1-deficient mice and a BLT1 antagonist in two tracheal transplant models of lung transplantation to demonstrate the importance of BLT1 for the recruitment of T cells into tracheal allografts.

Tracheoplasty for expiratory collapse of central airways.

Background: Severe central airway obstruction due to expiratory collapse occurs with malacia of intrathoracic trachea and main bronchi, often with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Bronchoscopically observed, it is confirmed by inspiratory-expiratory computerized tomographic chest scans. Prior attempts at surgical stabilization have not given dependable results.

Polyphenol associated-DNA adducts in lung and blood mononuclear cells from lung cancer patients.

The formation of smoking induced-DNA adducts is a critical factor in the induction of human lung cancer. As derivates of benzene and polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are important compounds of tobacco smoke, in DNA isolated from human lung and blood mononuclear cells (MNCs) from 38 lung cancer patients, we used the (32)P-postlabeling assay to detect polyphenol associated DNA adducts. Two DNA adducts were detected in blood MNCs and lung tissue that co-chromatographed with DNA modifications from HL60 cells treated with combinations of benzene metabolites (e.

Indirect recognition of MHC class I allopeptides accelerates lung allograft rejection in miniature swine.

The role of indirect allorecognition in graft rejection is examined in two experiments using a swine lung transplantation model. First, two swine received class I mismatched grafts without immunosuppression; another two recipients were treated postoperatively with cyclosporine (CsA). These swine exhibited acute and chronic rejection, respectively.

Adjuvant radiation of stage III thymoma: is it necessary?

Background: The criteria for administration of adjuvant radiation therapy after thymoma resection remains controversial, and it is unclear whether patients with Masaoka stage III thymoma benefit from adjuvant radiation. The goal of this report was to determine whether or not this group benefits from radiation therapy in disease-specific survival and disease-free survival.

Methods: Case records of the Massachusetts General Hospital were retrospectively reviewed from 1972 to 2004.