Publications by authors named "Ya-Hsuan Chang"
Article Synopsis
- Lung cancer is a major global health issue, being the second most common cancer and the top cause of cancer-related deaths, with a notable rise in cases among nonsmokers.
- Air pollution, particularly fine particulate matter (PM2.5), is identified as a significant risk factor for lung cancer in nonsmokers, leading to harmful effects like oxidative stress and genetic changes that can promote cancer progression.
- The review emphasizes the need for prevention, early detection, and targeted therapies, advocating for a collaborative effort in research, public health policy, and clinical practice to effectively address the impact of air pollution on lung cancer.
Introduction: Neuroblastoma is a pediatric malignancy with heterogeneous clinical outcomes. Our aim was to identify prognostic genetic markers for patients with neuroblastoma, who were treated with the Taiwan Pediatric Oncology Group (TPOG) neuroblastoma N2002 protocol, to improve risk stratification and inform treatment.
Methods: Our analysis was based on 53 primary neuroblastoma specimens, diagnosed pre-chemotherapy, and 11 paired tumor relapse specimens.
Objectives: With the increasing popularity of CT screening, more cases of early-stage lung cancer are being diagnosed. However, 24.5% of stage I non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients still experience treatment failure post-surgery.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe lack of expression of terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT) is frequently associated with KMT2A-rearranged subtype of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). However, this association has not been investigated extensively in the Asian population. A retrospective analysis of TdT expression in pediatric B-cell ALL (B-ALL) was performed in patients treated using the Taiwan Pediatric Oncology Group (TPOG) ALL 2002 and 2013 protocols.
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- In Taiwan, a study called TALENT is examining the effectiveness of low-dose CT (LDCT) screening for lung cancer in never-smokers who have other risk factors, as nearly 60% of such patients are diagnosed at advanced stages.
- The study involved 17 medical centers and included individuals aged 55-75 who met specific eligibility criteria, like having never smoked or having a very limited smoking history, and certain risk factors for lung cancer.
- Preliminary results from a 1-year follow-up after the initial LDCT screenings were analyzed, focusing on the detection rates of lung cancer and using various statistical methods to evaluate the outcomes.
Gut dysbiosis has been identified as a crucial factor of Alzheimer's disease (AD) development for apolipoprotein E4 (APOE4) carriers. Inulin has shown the potential to mitigate dysbiosis. However, it remains unclear whether the dietary response varies depending on sex.
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- About 20% of stage I lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients experience relapse post-surgery, with a lack of in-depth molecular studies to understand tumor characteristics.
- Researchers conducted whole exome sequencing and other analyses on 113 Taiwanese patients to identify molecular features linked to relapse-free survival (RFS), validating their findings with a separate group of Caucasian patients.
- The study discovered specific gene mutations and microRNA expressions associated with poor RFS, highlighting the potential for better prognostic tools and precision treatment options for stage I LUAD patients.
Article Synopsis
- Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths globally, and Taiwan has implemented several health policies since 1997, such as anti-smoking campaigns and low-dose CT screenings, to improve lung cancer survival rates.
- Research analyzed national cancer data from 1994 to 2020 and clinical characteristics of over 17,000 patients from 2006 to 2019, revealing a decrease in lung cancer mortality rates and significant improvements in 5-year survival rates.
- The findings indicate that early detection through LDCT screening has led to a shift towards diagnosing lung cancer at earlier, more treatable stages, thereby enhancing patient survival rates.
Article Synopsis
- The study examines how a family history of lung cancer affects screening for the disease using low-dose computed tomography (LDCT), following participants over multiple years.
- A total of 1,102 participants were enrolled, and the overall lung cancer detection rate was 4.5%, with higher rates observed in families with multiple lung cancer cases and among never-smokers.
- The findings suggest that having a maternal relative with lung cancer significantly increases the risk, highlighting the need for further research through randomized controlled trials to determine if LDCT screening can reduce mortality in this high-risk group.
Article Synopsis
- Osimertinib (OSI) is a targeted cancer treatment that helps lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients with specific mutations in the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR).
- The combination of OSI with immune checkpoint inhibitors (a type of cancer treatment) may lead to a higher risk of interstitial lung disease (ILD), but the underlying reasons are not yet clear.
- A study found that OSI therapy activates dendritic cells (DCs), which are important in the immune response, suggesting that this activation could increase immune-related side effects when OSI is used alongside other immunotherapies.
Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) targeting PD-L1 immunotherapy are state-of-the-art treatments for advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the treatment response of certain patients with NSCLC is unsatisfactory because of an unfavorable tumor microenvironment (TME) and poor permeability of antibody-based ICIs. In this study, we aimed to discover small-molecule drugs that can modulate the TME to enhance ICI treatment efficacy in NSCLC in vitro and in vivo.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFParticulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) is a risk factor for lung cancer.
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- Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) can disrupt gut bacteria diversity, leading to reduced beneficial metabolites, affecting overall health and recovery.
- This study explored whether prebiotic inulin could prevent gut dysbiosis and improve recovery in young mice after a closed head injury (CHI).
- Results showed that inulin reduced harmful bacteria, increased beneficial short-chain fatty acids, and protected brain structures related to memory and cognition following injury.
Mercaptopurine intolerance is an adverse effect of mercaptopurine administration in pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). NUDT15 variants have emerged as major determinants of mercaptopurine intolerance, especially in the Asian population. Two variants, c.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAccumulating evidence suggests that gut microbes modulate brain plasticity the bidirectional gut-brain axis and play a role in stroke rehabilitation. However, the microbial species alterations associated with stroke and their correlation with functional outcome measures following acute stroke remain unknown. Here we measure post-stroke gut dysbiosis and how it correlates with gut permeability and cognitive functions in 12 stroke participants, 18 controls with risk factors for stroke, and 12 controls without risk factors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMicroRNA (miRNA) expression is reportedly associated with clinical outcomes in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Here, we aimed at investigating whether miRNA expression is associated with clinical outcomes in pediatric ALL patients treated with the Taiwan Pediatric Oncology Group (TPOG) protocols. The expression of 397 miRNAs was measured using stem-loop quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction miRNA arrays in 60 pediatric ALL patients treated with TPOG-ALL-93 or TPOG-ALL-97 VHR (very high-risk) protocols.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) has been shown to acutely alter the gut microbiome diversity and composition, known as dysbiosis, which can further exacerbate metabolic and vascular changes in the brain in both humans and rodents. However, it remains unknown how mTBI affects the gut microbiome in the chronic phase recovery (past one week post injury). It is also unknown if injury recovery can be improved by mitigating dysbiosis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Medulloblastoma (MB) is commonly classified into four molecular groups, that is, WNT, SHH, group 3, and group 4, for prognostic and therapeutic purposes.
Methods: Here we applied immunohistochemistry (IHC) and RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) for the molecular classification of MB, and utilized multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) to determine chromosomal alterations and specific gene amplifications.
Results: We retrospectively enrolled 37 pediatric MB patients.
Background: Immune checkpoint blockade therapy represents an extraordinary advance in lung cancer treatment. It is important to determine the expression of immune checkpoint genes, such as programmed cell death 1 (PD1) and programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PDL1), to develop immunotherapeutic strategies. The aim of this study was to explore the association between PD1 and PDL1 gene expression and prognoses and outcomes in lung cancer.
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- ENO1 (α-enolase) expression is linked to poor survival and prognosis in lung cancer, with higher levels found in metastatic cell lines and tumors.
- Reducing ENO1 expression decreases cancer cell growth and invasion, while increasing ENO1 boosts these properties and promotes tumor growth and metastasis.
- The study identifies the role of ENO1 in activating HGFR and Wnt signaling pathways, and presents a chimeric anti-ENO1 antibody (chENO1-22), which may effectively reduce cancer cell invasion and improve survival outcomes in lung cancer models.
The development of a new generation of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) has improved the treatment response in lung adenocarcinomas. However, acquired resistance often occurs due to new epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations. In particular, the C797S mutation confers drug resistance to T790M-targeting EGFR TKIs.
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- The study aimed to investigate how inulin, a prebiotic fiber, affects the metabolism and brain health in mice with different human APOE genetic variants (ϵ3 and ϵ4).
- Young mice were fed either inulin or a control diet for 16 weeks, and various analyses were performed to assess gut microbiome diversity, metabolic changes, and blood-brain barrier integrity.
- Results showed that inulin positively influenced gut bacteria and metabolites in both mouse types, but led to different metabolic changes in ϵ3 vs. ϵ4 mice, indicating that their genetic backgrounds could affect how nutrients are processed and their potential neuroprotective effects.
Article Synopsis
- * The most frequently mutated gene was NOTCH1 (70.31%), followed by FAT1, FAT3, and FBXW7, showing mutation rates higher than previously documented for some of these genes.
- * Notably, mutations in NOTCH1/FBXW7 and RAS/PTEN germline were associated with improved 5-year survival rates for patients, suggesting their potential as prognostic markers.
Article Synopsis
- Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most prevalent form of dementia, characterized by β-amyloid plaques and tau tangles, with brain metabolic deficits being a key predictor of disease severity.
- A metabolomics analysis of brain tissue from 158 older adults revealed distinct biochemical profiles associated with AD based on factors like apolipoprotein E genotype and disease stage, indicating metabolic processes vary significantly between healthy and AD-affected brains.
- The study found that different metabolites, particularly in gray and white matter, are critical in distinguishing AD severity and could inform targeted lifestyle and dietary strategies to reduce AD risk in early disease stages.