Response to programmed cell death protein 1 antibody in patients with Epstein-Barr virus-associated intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.

Aim: Epstein-Barr virus-associated intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (EBVaICC) has a distinct genomic profile and increased CD3 and CD8 T cells infiltration. However, the efficacy of immunotherapy in EBVaICC remains largely unknown. This study aimed to assess the efficacy of programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) antibody therapy in EBVaICC.

AGR2 and FOXA1 as prognostic markers in ER-positive breast cancer.

Background: The prognostic role of either forkhead box A1 (FOXA1) or anterior gradient 2 (AGR2) in breast cancer has been found separately. Considering that there were interplays between them depending on ER status, we aimed to assess the statistical interaction between AGR2 and FOXA1 on breast cancer prognosis and examine the prognostic role of the combination of them by ER status.

Methods: AGR2 and FOXA1 expression in tumor tissues were evaluated with tissue microarrays by immunohistochemistry in 915 breast cancer patients with follow up data.

Combined low levels of H4K16ac and H4K20me3 predicts poor prognosis in breast cancer.

Background: Results of previous studies about the prognostic roles of histone H4 lysine 16 acetylation (H4K16ac) and histone H4 lysine 20 trimethylation (H4K20me3) in breast cancer were inconsistent. Cellular experiments revealed the interplays between H4K16ac and H4K20me3, but no population study explored the interaction between them on the prognosis.

Methods: H4K16ac and H4K20me3 levels in tumors were evaluated by immunohistochemistry for 958 breast cancer patients.

Nomogram for predicting the biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer after neoadjuvant androgen deprivation therapy.

Background: A predictive model for biochemical recurrence (BCR) of prostate cancer (PCa) after neoadjuvant androgen deprivation therapy (nADT) has not been established. This study was aimed at determining multiparameter variables that could be used to construct a nomogram to predict the post-nADT BCR of PCa.

Methods: Overall, 43 radical prostatectomy specimens from PCa patients who had undergone nADT were collected.

Survival is associated with repressive histone trimethylation markers in both HR-positive HER2-negative and triple-negative breast cancer patients.

About 30% of patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive breast cancers and up to 50% of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive patients develop progression due to treatment resistance, highlighting the need for more differentiated tumor classifications within the breast cancer molecular subtype to optimize the therapies. We aim to examine the roles of histone modification markers. The levels of common repressive histone markers, histone H3 lysine 9 trimethylation (H3K9me3), histone H3 lysine 27 trimethylation (H3K27me3), and histone H4 lysine 20 trimethylation (H4K20me3), in tumors were evaluated by immunohistochemistry for 914 breast cancer patients.

Clinicopathologic features, tumor immune microenvironment and genomic landscape of EBV-related and EBV-unrelated poorly differentiated nonkeratinizing squamous cell carcinoma of the thymus.

Objectives: Knowledge regarding thymic EBV-related poorly differentiated nonkeratinizing squamous cell carcinoma (PDNKSCC), also known as lymphoepithelial carcinoma (LEC), is extremely limited due to its rarity.

Materials And Methods: This multi-institutional study enrolled 85 patients with thymic PDNKSCC. DNA in situ hybridization was performed to evaluate the EBV status of all 85 cases.

Association of Enolase-1 with Prognosis and Immune Infiltration in Breast Cancer by Clinical Stage.

Purpose: Enolase-1 (ENO1) plays a key role in malignancies. Previous studies on the association between ENO1 expression and breast cancer prognosis had yielded inconsistent results. In the present study, we assessed the prognostic effect of ENO1 in breast cancer using Guangzhou Breast Cancer Study (GZBCS) cohort with full consideration of the potential confounders and the modification effects.

Association of H3K9me3 with breast cancer prognosis by estrogen receptor status.

Background: Cellular experiments revealed that a decreased histone H3 lysine 9 trimethylation (H3K9me3) level was associated with the upregulation of oncogenes in breast cancer cells. Moreover, the role of H3K9me3 in breast cancer was closely associated with estrogen receptor (ER) status. Therefore, we aimed to examine the prognostic value of H3K9me3 on breast cancer by ER status.

SSTR2 is a prognostic factor and a promising therapeutic target in glioma.

Gliomas are the most prevalent primary malignant central nervous system tumors among all tumors occurring in the brain and spinal cord. The poor outcome of glioma requires the discovery of novel biomarkers with potential therapeutic value. Somatostatin receptor subtype 2 (SSTR2) represents a diagnostic biomarker and potential therapeutic target in many cancers, such as meningioma and neuroendocrine tumors (NETs).

Association between somatic RET mutations and clinical and genetic characteristics in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer.

Background: Rearranged during transfection (RET) is a targetable oncogene. RET fusions have been reported in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). However, RET mutations in mCRC are less studied.

Prognostic value of glutaminase 1 in breast cancer depends on H3K27me3 expression and menopausal status.

Glutaminase 1 (GLS) is a therapeutic target for breast cancer; although GLS inhibitors have been developed, only a few subjects responded well to the therapy. Considering that the expression of histone H3 lysine 27 trimethylation (H3K27me3) and menopausal status was closely linked to GLS, we examined the effects of H3K27me3 and menopausal status on GLS to breast cancer prognosis. Data for 962 women diagnosed with primary invasive breast cancer were analyzed.

α-Fetoprotein mRNA in situ hybridisation is a highly specific marker of hepatocellular carcinoma: a multi-centre study.

Background: Pathologic diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) can be challenging in differentiating from benign and non-hepatocytic malignancy lesions. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential utility of α-fetoprotein (AFP) mRNA RNAscope, a sensitive and specific method, in the diagnosis of HCC.

Methods: Three independent retrospective cohorts containing 2216 patients with HCC, benign liver lesions, and non-hepatocytic tumours were examined.

Time-varying effects of FOXA1 on breast cancer prognosis.

Purpose: Results of previous studies on the associations between Forkhead box A1 (FOXA1) expression in breast cancer tissues and the prognosis varied depending on the follow-up durations. The present study would investigate whether there is a time-varying effect of FOXA1 in breast cancer tissues on the prognosis.

Methods: FOXA1 expressions were evaluated in 1041 primary invasive breast tumors with tissue microarrays by immunohistochemistry.

IL13RA2 is overexpressed in malignant gliomas and related to clinical outcome of patients.

Objective: To study the expression of IL13RA2 in gliomas and to analyze its correlation with clinicopathological/molecular features, immune cell infiltration and prognostic significance.

Methods: mRNA expression data for IL13RA2 were downloaded and analyzed from two open access datasets (TCGA & CGGA). IL13RA2 protein expression was examined by immunohistochemistry.

LGALS3 Is a Poor Prognostic Factor in Diffusely Infiltrating Gliomas and Is Closely Correlated With CD163+ Tumor-Associated Macrophages.

Glioma, the most common brain tumor, is a heterogeneous group of glia-derived tumors, the majority of which have characteristics of diffuse infiltration and immunosuppression. The LGALS protein family is a large class of sugar-binding proteins. Among them, LGALS3 has been reported to promote tumor development and progression in some cancers.

L1CAM High Expression Associates with Poor Prognosis in Glioma but Does Not Correlate with C11orf95-RELA Fusion.

The latest WHO guideline of CNS tumor defined a RELA fusion-positive ependymoma type with extremely poor prognosis, and the expression of L1CAM was correlated well with the presence of RELA fusion. However, the L1CAM protein expression in large sample gliomas other than ependymoma, its relationship with the RELA gene and its prognostic significance remained unknown. We examined the expression of L1CAM in 565 glioma cases (WHO grade I-IV).

Comparison of Mismatch Repair Status Between Primary and Matched Metastatic Sites in Patients With Colorectal Cancer.

Background: Differences between the features of primary cancer and matched metastatic cancer have recently drawn attention in research. This study investigated the concordance in microsatellite instability (MSI) and mismatch repair (MMR) status between primary and corresponding metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC).

Methods: Consecutive patients with metastatic CRC who had both primary and metastatic tumors diagnosed at our institution in January 2008 through December 2016 were identified.

A novel model of controlling PD-L1 expression in ALK anaplastic large cell lymphoma revealed by CRISPR screening.

The success of programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/PD-L1-based immunotherapy highlights the critical role played by PD-L1 in cancer progression and reveals an urgent need to develop new approaches to attenuate PD-L1 function by gaining insight into how its expression is controlled. Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALK ALCL) expresses a high level of PD-L1 as a result of the constitutive activation of multiple oncogenic signaling pathways downstream of ALK activity, making it an excellent model in which to define the signaling processes responsible for PD-L1 upregulation in tumor cells. Here, using clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas9 library screening, we sought a comprehensive understanding of the molecular effectors required for PD-L1 regulation in ALK ALCL.

Perivascular cell coverage of intratumoral vasculature is a predictor for bevacizumab efficacy in metastatic colorectal cancer.

Purpose: Tumor vessels supported by perivascular cells have been implicated in the failure of some anti-angiogenic agents. The relationship between perivascular cell coverage (PC) and bevacizumab efficacy in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) was analyzed.

Patients And Methods: A total of 284 consecutive mCRC patients who received first-line chemotherapy with or without bevacizumab from 2007-2014 in Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Center were analyzed.

Systemic neutrophil lymphocyte ratio and mismatch repair status in colorectal cancer patients: correlation and prognostic value.

Mismatch repair-deficient (dMMR) colorectal cancer (CRC) is associated with increased local immune response as compared with mismatch repair-proficient (pMMR) CRC. We evaluated the relationship between MMR status and systemic inflammatory factors, including neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and C-reactive protein (CRP). We also assessed the prognostic value of these parameters.

Association of low skeletal muscle index with increased systematic inflammatory responses and interferon γ-induced protein 10 levels in patients with colon cancer.

Background: Skeletal muscle depletion is a prognostic factor in patients with cancer. Here, we evaluated the association between the skeletal muscle index (SMI) and local and systemic responses in patients with colon cancer.

Patients And Methods: We analyzed the relationships of the SMI with neutrophil, lymphocyte, monocyte, and platelet counts; the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio; albumin levels; and C-reactive protein levels in a cohort of 561 patients, and with the circulating levels of 39 cytokines in a cohort of 125 patients.

Comparison of immunological characteristics between paired mismatch repair-proficient and -deficient colorectal cancer patients.

Background: Currently, mismatch repair-deficient (dMMR) status is a promising candidate for targeted immune checkpoint inhibition therapy in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients, however, the potential immunological mechanism has not yet been well clarified and some other predictors need to be excavated as well.

Methods: We collected 330 CRC patients by the match of mismatch repair-proficient (167) and dMMR (163), explored the relationship between MMR status and some important immune molecules including MHC class I, CD3, CD4, CD8, CD56, programmed death-1 and programmed death ligand-1, and investigated the risk factors for dMMR status as well as low MHC class I expression. The Pearson Chi square test was used for analyzing the associations between clinicopathological and immune characteristics and MMR status, and two categories logistic regression model was used for univariate and multivariate analysis to predict the odds ratio of risk factors for dMMR status and low MHC class I expression.

An increased number of negative lymph nodes is associated with a higher immune response and longer survival in colon cancer patients.

Background: The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship among the number of negative lymph nodes (LNs), the local and systemic immune response, and survival in patients with colon cancer.

Patients And Methods: One thousand one hundred and fifty-seven patients with colon cancer who underwent surgery at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center between 2009 and 2014 were included. We examined negative LNs in relation to the local and systemic immune response, including percentage carcinoma, neutrophil and lymphocyte infiltration, Crohn's-like reaction, neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, platelets, and C-reactive protein (CRP).