Medicine
-
Observational Study
Impact of radiotherapy on circulating lymphocyte subsets in patients with esophageal cancer.
Radiotherapy (RT) can affect the immune function of patients with cancer. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of RT on lymphocyte and its subsets in patients with esophageal cancer (EC). All patients received RT with a mean dose of 5369 cGy (gray). ⋯ CD3+T cells after RT were significantly correlated with mean heart dose and heart V50. Our study identified that RT causes changes in lymphocyte subsets, and these changes may indicate differences in immune function between individuals. Radiotherapy plan should be designed to minimize normal tissue dose to reduce the impact on WBC and lymphocytes.
-
In this study, the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan was used to examine the recurrence and death risk for stage 0 colorectal cancer patients. We examined stage 0 colorectal cancer patients to identify factors causing recurrence and death. This is a retrospective study, and stage 0 colorectal cancer patients that are registered in the Taiwan Cancer Registry of the Health Promotion Administration in 2007 to 2012 were included. ⋯ In contrast, patients who underwent one (HR = 0.27, 95% CI: 0.10-0.71) and two or more colonoscopies (HR = 0.26, 95% CI: 0.10-0.70) within 2 years after surgery can reduce the risk of death from stage 0 colorectal cancer. In addition, the risk of recurrence is higher in patients who underwent colonoscopic polypectomy (HR = 2.07, 95% CI: 0.98-4.33) and patients with rectal cancer (HR = 2.74, 95% CI: 0.96-7.83), but these differences are not statistically significant (P > .05). From this study, we can see that age and comorbidity index increase the risk of recurrence and death for stage 0 colorectal cancer, while postoperative colonoscopy can decrease the risk of death.
-
Observational Study
A retrospective study of the relationship between the pathologic subtype and lymph node metastasis of lung adenocarcinomas of ≤3 cm diameter.
To analyze the relationship between pathologic subtype and lymph node metastasis for lung adenocarcinomas of ≤3 cm diameter. We retrospectively studied 384 patients with operable lung adenocarcinomas of ≤3 cm diameter that had been radically resected by lobectomy or anatomic segmentectomy with systematic nodal dissection, at the Fujian Medical University Union Hospital between March 2014 and March 2016. Lymph node metastasis pN1 + pN2 (pN+) was found in 2 of 104 (1.9%) patients with tumor diameter ≤1.0 cm, 12 of 159 (7.5%) patients with tumor diameter >1.0 cm but ≤2.0 cm, and 35 of 121 (28.9%) patients with tumor size >2.0 cm but ≤3.0 cm (P < .01). ⋯ AIS and MIA were not associated with lymph node metastasis; therefore, systematic nodal dissection may be unnecessary. The prevalence of lymph node metastasis rate was low for LEP, suggesting that systemic lymph node sampling is sufficient. In contrast, for other pathologic subtypes, including SOL and MIP, systematic lymph node dissection should be performed.
-
For the diagnosis of gastric adenosquamous carcinoma (ASC), discrepancies regarding a rational diagnostic proportion of the squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) component exist among different organizations. Our study aimed to evaluate the impact of the SCC component on the survival of gastric cancer patients and identify the optimal cutoff value for the SCC component necessary for diagnosing gastric ASC. Cases of gastric cancer with an SCC component were obtained from our center and from case reports and series extracted from Medline. ⋯ Furthermore, we identified the optimal cutoff for the SCC component as 35% (χ = 6.544, P = .011), which was subsequently validated in a Cox regression model as an independent prognostic factor (P = .026). An increased proportion of the SCC component is associated with worse survival in gastric cancer patients with an SCC component. The optimal cutoff for the proportion of the SCC component necessary for the diagnosis of gastric ASC is 35%.
-
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a form of pervasive developmental disorder manifested by impairment in social interactions and repetitive behaviors. Although genetic contribution is strongly suspected in autism, the specific genetic factors remain unidentified. Hyperserotoninemia has been reported in some autistic patients, and several studies have demonstrated an association between 5-hydroxytryptamine-transporter-linked promoter region (5-HTTLPR) polymorphisms and rs25531 single nucleotide polymorphism in the serotonin transporter gene (solute carrier family 6 member 4; SLC6A4) and ASD, indicating a possible involvement of the serotonin system in the etiology of ASD. ⋯ The L/L genotype was more common in patients than in the controls (13.8% vs 5.2%, P = .006), and the LA haplotype was found in patients more than the controls (16.9% vs 12.2%, P = .048). When male patients were analyzed alone (156 individuals), the associations were also statistically significant with P = .017 for L/L genotype, and P = .019 for LA haplotype distribution. Our findings support previous reports suggesting an association between the 5-HTTLPR and rs25531 polymorphisms of SLC6A4 and patients with ASD.