Journal of the Chinese Medical Association : JCMA
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Cell-Free DNA as a prognostic and predictive biomarker in resectable distal common bile duct cancer.
Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) as an oncological biomarker has drawn much attention in recent years, but very limited effort has been made to investigate the prognostic values of cfDNA in distal common bile duct (CBD) cancer. ⋯ Circulating cfDNA levels play a significant role in predicting the prognosis and survival outcome for resectable distal CBD cancer. Furthermore, acting as a promising liquid biopsy, cfDNA could serve as a prognostic and predictive biomarker in combination with current conventional markers to improve diagnostic and prognostic efficacy.
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Cochlear implantation (CI) has long been the standard of care for patients with severe-to-profound hearing impairment. Yet the benefits of CI extend far beyond speech understanding, with mounting recent literature supporting its role in tinnitus abatement. However, those studies have uniformly analyzed the effects of tinnitus after the traditional 3-4 weeks waiting period between CI surgery and device activation. As many clinics are shifting these waiting intervals to become shorter (in some cases within 24 hours, little is known about tinnitus abatement very early in the postoperative period. The aim of this study was to compare preoperative and postoperative tinnitus handicaps in this unique but growing population of very early-activated patients. ⋯ On average, most patients with tinnitus will note a significant improvement in their tinnitus handicap when activated within 24 hours of CI. However, tinnitus does increase between surgery and 24 hours, most likely reflecting not only intracochlear changes, but modulation of the entire auditory pathway. Following this early rise, the tinnitus continues to abate over the following month. Patients with tinnitus may benefit from early activation, although should be counseled that they may experience an exacerbation during the very early postoperative period.