Quality of clinical practice guidelines in Japan remains low: A cross-sectional meta-epidemiological study.

Objectives: We aimed to evaluate the characteristics, quality, and related factors of the Japanese Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs) published in recent years.

Study Design And Setting: In this cross-sectional, meta-epidemiological study, we conducted a Google search for CPGs published by 30 Japanese medical societies that are the basis for training specialties between 2018 and 2019. We used the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research & Evaluation II (AGREE II) tool and the Reporting Items for practice Guidelines in HealThcare (RIGHT) statement to evaluate the quality.

Efficacy of Metformin in Patients With Breast Cancer Receiving Chemotherapy or Endocrine Therapy: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Background: Previous studies have suggested that metformin might improve survival outcomes in patients with breast cancer. However, findings on the efficacy of metformin with chemotherapy or endocrine therapy are inconsistent.

Objective: To clarify the efficacy of metformin with chemotherapy or endocrine therapy in breast cancer patients according to the treatment setting, including neoadjuvant, adjuvant, and metastasis/recurrence.

Meta-analysis of the efficacies of amiodarone and nifekalant in shock-resistant ventricular fibrillation and pulseless ventricular tachycardia.

Amiodarone (AMD) and nifekalant (NIF) are used in the treatment of ventricular fibrillation or tachycardia; however, only few studies have been conducted on their efficacies. Therefore, a meta-analysis was conducted. Relevant sources were identified from PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Igaku Chuo Zasshi.

Triplet therapy with afatinib, cetuximab, and bevacizumab induces deep remission in lung cancer cells harboring EGFR T790M in vivo.

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have changed the treatment strategy for EGFR-mutant lung cancers; however, resistance usually occurs due to a secondary mutation, T790M, in EGFR. Combination therapy using afatinib and cetuximab has had good results in lung tumors harboring EGFR mutations in clinical trials. The effect of bevacizumab, an antivascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) antibody, combined with EGFR-TKIs has also been investigated.

Ganglioside inserted into PEGylated liposome attenuates anti-PEG immunity.

Despite the clinical introduction of a vast number of polyethylene glycol (PEG)-conjugated therapeutics, conjugated PEG is also known for an unfortunate inclination toward immunogenicity. Immunogenicity of PEG, manifested by the robust production of anti-PEG IgM, is known to compromise the therapeutic efficacy and/or reduce the tolerance of PEGylated therapeutics. In the present study, we inserted ganglioside into the membrane of PEGylated liposome (PL) to prepare ganglioside-modified PEGylated liposomes (G-PL), and investigated its efficacy in attenuating the anti-PEG IgM response against PL.

Correlation of plasma crizotinib trough concentration with adverse events in patients with anaplastic lymphoma kinase positive non-small-cell lung cancer.

Background: Crizotinib, an ATP-competitive receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor of both anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) and the hepatocyte growth factor receptor, commonly causes several adverse events (AEs). The clinical utility of measuring the plasma concentration of crizotinib in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has not been fully elucidated. The aim of this study was to evaluate the variability in the crizotinib trough concentration and its relationship with the occurrence of AEs in NSCLC patients.

Alternate-day Treatment with Crizotinib for Drug-induced Esophagitis and Liver Damage in a Patient with EML4-ALK Fusion Gene-positive Lung Adenocarcinoma.

A 44-year-old woman who was diagnosed with anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive lung adenocarcinoma developed brain metastases, multiple spinal metastases and meningeal dissemination. Crizotinib was administered after the failure of first-line chemotherapy. Esophagitis and liver damage were induced by the twice-daily administration of crizotinib at 250 mg and 200 mg, respectively.