Pulmonary Mycobacterium malmoense Infection in a Patient with Non-small Cell Lung Cancer, Systemic Sclerosis, and Interstitial Pneumonia: A Case Report and Brief Review of the Literature.

A 69-year-old man with systemic sclerosis and interstitial pneumonia presented with an abnormal shadow in the right upper lung lobe. A thoracoscopic needle biopsy was performed on the right upper lobe lesion, and Mycobacterium malmoense was identified by 16S rRNA and rpoB gene sequencing. Surgical treatment was performed to obtain a radical cure, and lung squamous cell carcinoma and M.

Frequency and Significance of Body Weight Loss During Immunochemotherapy in Patients with Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Limited data are available on the frequency and significance of body weight loss during cancer therapy. This study investigated the frequency of patients who experienced body weight loss during immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) plus chemotherapy for advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and the impact of weight loss on treatment outcomes. Using the clinical data of 370 patients with NSCLC who received a combination of ICI and chemotherapy at 13 institutions, this study investigated the frequency of body weight loss > 5% during treatment and determined the impact of body weight loss on patient outcomes.

En Bloc Right Upper Bilobectomy For a Patient With Incomplete Minor Fissure and Multiple Anomalies of the Right Superior Pulmonary Vein.

Variations in the anomaly of the right superior pulmonary vein can lead to perioperative complications if misunderstood. Additionally, incomplete fissures increase the complexity of performing pulmonary anatomical resection. Therefore, accurate preoperative anatomical assessment using three-dimensional computed tomography is crucial for ensuring safe surgery.

Prospective multicenter surveillance study of branch-duct intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm of the pancreas; risk of dual carcinogenesis.

Background: The natural history of branch-duct intraductal papillary mucinous cystic neoplasms (BD-IPMNs) in the pancreas remains unclear. This study aimed to answer this clinical question by focusing on the development of concomitant pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas (cPDAC).

Methods: The Japan Pancreas Society conducted a prospective multicenter surveillance study of BD-IPMN every six months for five years.

Effectiveness and Safety of Vertebral Body Stenting for Acute Spinal Compression Fractures due to Primary Osteoporosis: A Multicenter Prospective Clinical Study.

Introduction: Segmental spinal deformity results from vertebral compression fracture (VCF) and progressive collapse of the fractured vertebral body (VB). The VB stenting (VBS) system comprises a balloon-assisted, expandable, intrasomatic, metal stent that helps maintain the restored VB during balloon removal and cement injection, which minimizes cement leakage. We performed a prospective, multicenter, clinical trial of the VBS system in Japanese patients with acute VCF owing to primary osteoporosis.

Treatment selection in the clinical practice of systemic lupus erythematosus: Results from the Kyushu Collagen Disease Network for Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (KCDN-SLE) registry.

Objectives: This study aimed to describe the treatment selection for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) using data from the Kyushu Collagen Disease Network for SLE (KCDN-SLE) registry, a multicentre prospective registry in Japan.

Methods: This study used data from patients registered between August 2022 and November 2023. Clinical characteristics, purpose of agent initiation, other candidate agents, and short-term efficacy and safety were evaluated.

Impact of the Coexisting Coronary Artery Disease on Five-Year Outcomes in Lower Extremity Artery Disease Patients Without Chronic Limb-Threatening Ischemia.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is often noted in patients with lower-extremity artery disease (LEAD). However, the effects of CAD on patients with LEAD have not been clearly investigated. In this study, to investigate the effect of CAD on patients with LEAD without chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI), we compared the five-year clinical outcomes of patients with and without CAD.

Impact of anti-human IgG hinge peptide antibodies on identification of patients with early seronegative rheumatoid arthritis.

Objectives: The early diagnosis of seronegative rheumatoid arthritis (SNRA), characterised by the absence of rheumatoid factor and anti-citrullinated antibody, involves a greater challenge compared to seropositive RA (SPRA). This study aimed to assess the discriminatory potential of anti-human IgG hinge antibodies (AHAs) for patients with early SNRA.

Methods: DMARDs-naive patients with SPRA (n=43), SNRA (n=21), and non-RA (n=49), with disease duration < 2 years, were included.

A Case of Tension Subcutaneous Emphysema Treated With Minimally Invasive Open-Window Thoracostomy Using a Wound Protector/Retractor and Three-Sided Taping.

Subcutaneous emphysema is a common complication of thoracic surgery. Tension subcutaneous emphysema that causes airway obstruction is rare but life-threatening. This report presents a patient who developed tension subcutaneous emphysema after recurrent secondary pneumothorax surgery which was treated with minimally invasive open-window thoracostomy.

Perspectives on surgical treatment for thymic epithelial tumors: a narrative review.

Background And Objective: Thymic epithelial tumors are relatively rare; thus, mostly retrospective studies and a few prospective randomized controlled trials have been conducted on the treatment and the biomarkers, with no standard therapy established. Indications for extended thymectomy, robot-assisted thoracic surgery, and multidisciplinary treatment are controversial. Here, we considered the prospects of surgical treatment and the possibility of immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) treatment for thymic epithelial tumors.

Clinical characteristics of patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors in EGFR-mutant non-small cell lung cancer: CS-Lung-003 prospective observational registry study.

Purpose: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are ineffective against epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutant non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics of patients who were treated or not treated with ICIs, and of those who benefit from immunotherapy in EGFR-mutant NSCLC.

Methods: We analyzed patients with unresectable stage III/IV or recurrent NSCLC harboring EGFR mutations using a prospective umbrella-type lung cancer registry (CS-Lung-003).

Efficacy and Safety of Re-administration of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor-Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor (EGFR-TKI) After EGFR-TKI-Induced Interstitial Lung Disease (CS-Lung-005).

Purpose: This study investigated the safety and efficacy of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) re-administration after recovery from EGFR-TKI-induced interstitial lung disease (ILD).

Methods: This multicenter retrospective study collected data from consecutive advanced NSCLC patients who underwent EGFR-TKI re-administration after recovery from EGFR-TKI-induced ILD.

Results: Fifty-eight patients were registered.

Impacts of probiotics on the efficacies of immune checkpoint inhibitors with or without chemotherapy for patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer.

The relationships between the therapeutic effects of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) and the intestinal flora have attracted increasing attention. However, the effects of oral probiotics on the efficacies of ICIs used to treat non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remain unclear. We investigated the effects of probiotics on the efficacies of ICIs in patients treated with and without chemotherapy.

The obesity paradox in Japanese COVID-19 patients.

To investigate the effect of obesity on mortality and invasive respiratory care (IRC) in patients with COVID-19. We studied 1,105 patients for 34 months and collected data. The primary outcome was all-cause death at 29 days.

Application of first-generation high- and low-dose drug-coated balloons to the femoropopliteal artery disease: a sub-analysis of the POPCORN registry.

Background: Drug-coated balloons (DCBs) have significantly changed endovascular therapy (EVT) for femoropopliteal artery (FPA) disease, in terms of the expansion of indications for EVT for symptomatic lower extremity arterial disease (LEAD). However, whether there is a difference in the performance among individual DCBs has not yet been fully discussed. The present sub-analysis of real-world data from a prospective trial of first-generation DCBs compared the clinical outcomes between high- and low-dose DCBs using propensity score matching methods.

Optical frequency domain imaging of the scoring balloon elements shift.

Here, we report a case of endovascular treatment in which optical frequency domain imaging evaluated the scoring balloon elements shift when three inflations without shaft rotation performed with a scoring balloon.

Randomized phase II study of daily versus alternate-day administrations of S-1 for the elderly patients with completely resected pathological stage IA (tumor diameter > 2 cm)-IIIA of non-small cell lung cancer: Setouchi Lung Cancer Group Study 1201.

Background: It is shown that the postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) was associated with survival benefit in an elderly population. We aimed to analyze the feasibility and efficacy of alternate-day S-1, an oral fluoropyrimidine, for adjuvant chemotherapy in elderly patients with completely resected pathological stage IA (tumor diameter > 2 cm) to IIIA (UICC TNM Classification of Malignant Tumours, 7th edition) NSCLC.

Methods: Elderly patients were randomly assigned to receive adjuvant chemotherapy for one year consisting of either alternate-day oral administration of S-1 (80 mg/m2/day) for 4 days a week (Arm A) or a daily oral administration of S-1 (80 mg/m2/day) for 14 consecutive days followed by 7-day rest (Arm B).

Post-reconstruction Free Flap Complications After Oral Cancer Ablation.

Introduction: Microvascular free flap transfer is considered a standard reconstruction after the ablation of oral cancer. Although the success rate is high, flap complications occasionally occur. This study investigated the reasons for and local factors involved in complications of free flap transfer and explored how to salvage the flaps.

Endovascular Aortic Repair for Thoracic Aortic Compression Resulting From Chance Fracture of the Thoracic Spine.

Blunt aortic injury is a serious condition with a high mortality rate. Although rare, blunt aortic injury associated with spinal fracture has also been reported, and appropriate management of aortic disease is key to a good outcome. This report is a case of a 78-year-old man who was found to have a transverse fracture (Chance fracture) in the ninth thoracic vertebra, with a sharp bone fragment compressing the thoracic aorta.

The Effect of Pleural Effusion on Prognosis in Patients with Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Undergoing Immunochemotherapy: A Retrospective Observational Study.

Objectives: Combined immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy and chemotherapy has become the standard treatment for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Pleural effusion (PE) is associated with poor outcomes among patients with NSCLC undergoing chemotherapy. However, minimal data exists on PE for patients undergoing combined ICI and chemotherapy.

Sotrovimab use in Japanese inpatients with COVID-19: post-infusion adverse events.

Background: Sotrovimab neutralizing SARS-CoV-2 remained effective at the advent of B.1 lineage of the Omicron variant in outpatients. Primarily for hospitalized patients, however, the Japanese government regulated to administer this antibody agent.