Impact of prior cancer on the overall survival of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Purpose: Prior cancer history is an important exclusion criterion from clinical trials and may decrease their generalizability. This study aimed to investigate the impact of prior cancer on the prognosis of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma and to describe their characteristics.

Materials And Methods: Data of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma diagnosed between 2010 and 2015 were collected from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 alleviates pulmonary artery hypertension through inhibition of focal adhesion kinase expression.

Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is an important therapeutic target in pulmonary artery hypertension (PAH); however, the mechanism of its activation remains unknown. The present study aimed to investigate whether angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) could regulate FAK and alleviate PAH in a rat model of PAH established with a single administration of monocrotaline followed by continuous hypoxia treatment. In the current study, right ventricular pressure, body weight and the right ventricular hypertrophy index were measured, and hematoxylin-eosin staining was performed on lung tissues to determine whether the modeling was successful.

Pseudo toxicity abatement effect of norfloxacin and copper combined exposure on Caenorhabditis elegans.

The coexistence of antibiotics and heavy metals may result in complex ecotoxicological effects on living organisms. In this work, the combined toxic effects of norfloxacin (NOR) and copper (Cu) on Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) were investigated due to the highly possible co-pollution tendency.

Single-Use Digital Flexible Ureteroscopes as a Safe and Effective Choice for the Treatment of Lower Pole Renal Stones: Secondary Analysis of a Randomized-Controlled Trial.

To compare the efficacy and safety of a single-use digital flexible ureteroscope (FURS) and a reusable FURS for the treatment of lower pole stones (LPS) smaller than 20 mm. We analyzed the data of 49 patients with LPS from our previous multicenter, randomized, open-label clinical trial in four hospitals in China. All patients underwent FURS for LPS with a single-use FURS ZebraScope™ (trial group) or a reusable FURS URF-V (control group).

The competence of village clinicians in the diagnosis and management of childhood epilepsy in Southwestern China and its determinants: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Due to lack of neurologists in low- and middle-income countries, communities of patients living with epilepsy are calling for task-shifting of diagnosis and management from physicians to paramedical providers in the primary health care systems to narrow the huge treatment gap. Evidence to guide this work has been limited. This study assesses the competence of village clinicians (VC)- mostly paramedical providers- in the diagnosis and management of a presumptive case of childhood epilepsy and its determinants.

Y-Box Binding Protein 1 Regulates Angiogenesis in Bladder Cancer via miR-29b-3p-VEGFA Pathway.

Angiogenesis plays a vital role in the development of bladder cancer (BC). The Y-box-binding protein 1 (YB-1) is a well-known oncoprotein which is closely related to angiogenesis of tumors, but the relationship and mechanism of YB-1 and angiogenesis in BC remain unclear. Based on 56 clinical BC specimens, this study found that high expression of YB-1 samples demonstrated a higher expression of vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) than those of YB-1 low expression.

Predicting Severe Radiation Esophagitis in Patients With Locally Advanced Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Receiving Definitive Chemoradiotherapy: Construction and Validation of a Model Based in the Clinical and Dosimetric Parameters as Well as Inflammatory Indexes.

Objective: Radiation esophagitis (RE) is common in patients treated with radiotherapy (RT) for locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). We aim to construct a nomogram predicting the severe RE (grade ≥2) in patients with ESCC receiving definitive chemoradiotherapy (dCRT).

Materials And Methods: Logistic regression was performed to evaluate the risk factors in predicting RE.

Comprehensive Analysis of Regulatory Network for LINC00472 in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma.

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) accounts for about 2% to 3% of adult malignancies, and clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is the most common and aggressive type of kidney cancer. It accounts for 75% of all kidney tumors. Although new targeted drugs continue to appear, they are still not suitable for all patients.

GREB1L overexpression correlates with prognosis and immune cell infiltration in lung adenocarcinoma.

GREB1L is a protein-coding gene that is an important paralog of GREB1. However, its effects in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) have not been determined. Thus, we evaluated the prognostic value of GREB1L in LUAD using bioinformatics approaches.

Atorvastatin Enhances Inhibitory Effects of Irradiation on Tumor Growth by Reducing MSH2 Expression Both in Prostate Cancer Cells and Xenograft Tumor Models.

Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) is the fourth most common tumor in males.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate effects of atorvastatin (AS) on PCa cells proliferation and clarify the associated mechanisms.

Methods: PCa cell lines were cultured and treated with irradiation (IR) (4 Gy), AS (6 μg/ml), transfected with Bcl-2 siRNA, and then divided into different groups.

Prognostic value of preoperative inflammation-based predictors in patients with bladder carcinoma after radical cystectomy.

Aims: Emerging evidence has related inflammation-based biomarkers to numerous carcinomas, including bladder carcinoma (BC). However, the role of inflammatory biomarkers in the prognosis of BC remains inconclusive. This study aimed to compare preoperative plasma fibrinogen (PF) and other inflammatory biomarkers such as the platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), lymphocyte-monocyte ratio (LMR), C-reactive protein (CRP) level, and serum albumin level to predict the prognosis of patients with BC.

Endarterectomy for Pulmonary Embolism in a Woman With Unilateral Absence of a Pulmonary Artery.

Unilateral absence of a pulmonary artery is a very rare congenital cardiovascular malformation. In this report we present the case of a 31-year-old woman with unilateral absence of a pulmonary artery who developed chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension after multiple episodes of pulmonary embolism due to thrombophilia. Pulmonary thromboendarterectomy was performed, and the short-term outcome was satisfactory.

Myrtenol improves brain damage and promotes angiogenesis in rats with cerebral infarction by activating the ERK1/2 signalling pathway.

Context: Cerebral ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury has a high disability and fatality worldwide. Myrtenol has protective effects on myocardial I/R injury through antioxidant and anti-apoptotic effects.

Objective: This study investigated the effect of myrtenol on cerebral ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury and the underlying mechanism.

Circulating Tumor DNA Analyses Predict Disease Recurrence in Non-Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer.

Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) can be a prognostic biomarker for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC); however, targeted sequencing has not been performed to detect ctDNA in NMIBC. We applied targeted sequencing based on an 861-gene panel to determine mutations in tumor tissue DNA and plasma ctDNA in 82 NMIBC patients receiving transurethral resection (TUR) of bladder followed by immunotherapy. We detected 476 and 165 somatic variants in tumor DNA from 82 NMIBC patients (100%) and ctDNA from 54 patients (65.

GALNT2/14 overexpression correlate with prognosis and methylation: potential therapeutic targets for lung adenocarcinoma.

Objective: GALNT2/14 are members of the glycosyltransferase protein family, which initiate mucin-type O-glycosylation of peptides in the Golgi apparatus. However, the correlation between GALNT2/14 and disease prognosis and methylation in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) remains unclear. Thus, we sought to identify their potential values in LUAD.

Li-ESWT treatment reduces inflammation, oxidative stress, and pain via the PI3K/AKT/FOXO1 pathway in autoimmune prostatitis rat models.

Background: Due to limited data on the pathogenesis of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) and the suboptimal therapeutic effect, the development of new and effective treatment modalities was needed urgently. Low-intensity extracorporeal shock wave therapy (Li-ESWT) has been reported for the treatment of CP/CPPS. However, the underlying mechanism remains to be elucidated.

Inhibition of CXCR4 ameliorates hypoxia-induced pulmonary arterial hypertension in rats.

Pulmonary vascular remodeling due to aberrant proliferation and migration of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) is the main characteristic of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). CXCR4 is a specific stem cell surface receptor of cytokine CXCL12 which could regulate homing of hematopoietic progenitor cells and their mobilization. There is evidence that bone marrow-derived CXCR4 proangiogenic cell accumulation take an important part in the development of pulmonary arterial hypertension; however, the underlying mechanisms still remain unknown.

Spatially dependent hyper-Raman scattering in five-level cold atoms.

We demonstrate a scheme to control the spatially dependent hyper-Raman scattering based on electromagnetically induced transparency in a cold atomic system. By adjusting the different system parameters, one can effectively modulate the phase and intensity of the generated Raman field. Specifically, we show that electromagnetically induced transparency creates quantum interference, which results in greatly enhanced efficiency for the generated Raman field.

Disturbance-level-dependent post-disturbance succession in a Eurasian steppe.

Anthropogenic disturbances may decrease as we take measures to control them. However, the patterns and mechanisms of post-disturbance ecosystem succession have rarely been studied. Here we reported that disturbance level determined the importance of stochastic relative to deterministic changes in ecosystem components (plant community composition, soil microbial community composition, and soil physicochemical indices), and thus predefined the pattern of post-disturbance ecosystem succession.

Association of TERT gene polymorphisms with clinical benign prostatic hyperplasia in a Chinese Han population of the Northwest region.

Background: To investigate the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (rs10078761, rs12696304, rs2853669, rs16847897, rs2736100, rs10069690) of telomerase gene (TERT) and the risk clinical benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in a Chinese Han population of the Northwest region.

Methods: A total of 150 BPH patients and 150 healthy older males from the northwest Chinese Han population were included in this study. The sample size for this unmatched case-control study was estimated by the look-up table method.

Endoscopic transpapillary gallbladder drainage for management of acute cholecystitis with coagulopathy.

Acute cholecystitis is a common and frequently occurring disease, and laparoscopic cholecystectomy is the preferred treatment method. Percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage is regarded as the first-line palliative procedure for elderly patients with poor cardiopulmonary function who cannot tolerate general anesthesia. However, for patients with acute cholecystitis who are undergoing treatment with oral antithrombotics or who have abnormal coagulation mechanisms, endoscopic transpapillary gallbladder drainage may be a good choice.

FAM72 serves as a biomarker of poor prognosis in human lung adenocarcinoma.

FAM72A-D promote the self-renewal of neural progenitor cells. There is accumulating evidence that FAM72 promotes tumorigenicity. However, its effects in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) have not been determined.

Clinical significance of risk stratification of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma after neoadjuvant chemoradiation and surgery.

Objective: Nowadays, there were few studies reporting the risk stratification of patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) after neoadjuvant chemoradiation (NCRT) and surgery. We aimed to establish a simple risk stratification to help postoperative detection and adjuvant treatment.

Methods: We included 146 patients with locally advanced ESCC who received NCRT followed by esophagectomy.