Does caring for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer affect health-related quality of life of caregivers? A multicenter, cross-sectional study.

Purpose: Patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) mostly receive essential routine care and support from informal caregivers, who usually experience poorer health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The study aimed to evaluate the HRQoL and its predictors among informal caregivers of patients with advanced NSCLC in China.

Methods: We interviewed the adult caregiver population of patients with advanced NSCLC (stage IIIB~IV) in nine tertiary hospitals from multiple provinces in China between November 2020 and June 2021.

Measuring direct non-medical burden among patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer in China: is there a difference in health status?

Objective: This study was conducted to estimate the direct non-medical cost of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients and explore whether its associated factors vary by health status.

Methods: Data were obtained from 13 centers in five provinces for patients with advanced NSCLC in China. The direct non-medical cost of patients since the patients were diagnosed with NSCLC included the cost of transportation, accommodation, meal, hired caregiving, and nutrition.

Measuring the indirect cost associated with advanced non-small cell lung cancer: a nationwide cross-sectional study in China.

Purpose: This study was conducted to estimate the indirect cost of locally advanced and metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) without sensitizing EGFR and ALK alterations in China and explore the predictors from both patient and caregiver perspectives.

Methods: Data were obtained from a nationwide cross-sectional study for the patients with advanced NSCLC (stage IIIB-IV) and their caregivers. Indirect medical cost was estimated as health productivity loss based on self-reported income and loss of work time.

Successful Treatment of an Elderly Patient With Combined Small Cell Lung Cancer Receiving Anlotinib: A Case Report.

Combined small-cell lung cancer (C-SCLC) is a relatively rare subtype of SCLC and is defined by the combination of SCLC and any elements of non-small-cell lung carcinoma. Anlotinib is a novel oral multitarget tyrosine kinase inhibitor that led to significant improvements in progression-free survival and overall survival in third-line therapy of advanced SCLC in the ALTER1202 study. Antiangiogenic therapy with anlotinib in C-SCLC has not previously been reported.

Elevated levels of interleukin-35 and interleukin-37 in adult patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

Background: Systemic inflammation has a critical role in the pathogenesis of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Interleukin (IL)-35 and IL-37 have been identified as novel immune-modulating cytokines with anti-inflammatory activities in numerous types of inflammatory disease. The present study aimed to examine the serum levels of IL-35 and IL-37 in patients with OSA, and to investigate their associations with the severity of OSA.

Serum periostin and TNF-α levels in patients with obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome.

Purpose: Obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) may cause pulmonary diseases, and periostin plays an important role on the development of pulmonary diseases. In addition, periostin and pro-inflammatory cytokine TNF-α can regulate each other in vivo. This study aimed to observe the changes of serum periostin and TNF-α levels in patients with OSAHS compared with healthy volunteers and to investigate their correlation.

IL-22 Up-Regulates β-Defensin-2 Expression in Human Alveolar Epithelium via STAT3 but Not NF-κB Signaling Pathway.

Human β-defensin-2(HBD-2) is one of the two major vertebrate antimicrobial peptide families (α and β), which is highly expressed by proinflammatory induction in the lung and exhibit broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. We observed that IL-22 receptors high expressed on the membrane of A549 cells; HBD-2 mRNA was expressed in a time- and concentration-dependent manners in A549 cells when treated with IL-22; further studies demonstrated that HBD-2 expression was attenuated by AG490, but to JSH-23, inhibitors of p-STAT3 DNA binding and NF-κB/p65 subunit nuclear translocation, respectively. These results support that IL-22-mediated signalling pathway of HBD-2 gene expression involved STAT3 but not NF-κB in human alveolar epithelium.

Paeoniflorin upregulates β-defensin-2 expression in human bronchial epithelial cell through the p38 MAPK, ERK, and NF-κB signaling pathways.

Paeoniflorin (PF) is one of the principal components of peony, a plant widely used in traditional Chinese medicine for its anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects. Human β-defensin-2 (hBD-2) is an antimicrobial peptide that acts as the first line of defense against bacterial, viral, and fungal infections. This study aims to determine whether or not PF can regulate the expression of hBD-2 and its possible molecular mechanism in human bronchial epithelial cells (HBECs).