Characteristics of gastric cancer in Asia

Gastric cancer(GC)is the fourth most common cancer in the world with more than 70%of cases occur in the developing world.More than 50%of cases occur in Eastern Asia.GC is the second leading cause of cancer death in both sexes worldwide.In Asia,GC is the third most common cancer after breast and lung and is the second most common cause of cancer death after lung cancer.Although the incidence and mortality rates are slowly declining in many countries of Asia,GC still remains a significant public health problem.The incidence and mortality varies according to the geographic area in Asia.These variations are closely related to the prevalence of GC risk factors;especially Helicobacter pylori(H.pylori)and its molecular virulent characteristics.The gradual and consistent improvements in socioeconomic conditions in Asia have lowered the H.pylori seroprevalence rates leading to a reduction in the GC incidence.However,GC remains a significant public health and an economic burden in Asia.There has been no recent systemic review of GC incidence,mortality,and H.pylori molecular epidemiology in Asia.The aim of this report is to review the GC incidence,mortality,and linkage to H.pylori in Asia.

Primary hepatocellular carcinoma and metabolic syndrome:An update

Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) is the most common primary liver malignancy. The incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma has increased dramatically by 80% over the past two decades in the United States. Numerous basic science and clinical studies have documented a strong association between hepatocellular carcinoma and the metabolic syndrome. These studies have documented that, in most patients, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is the hepatic manifestation of the metabolic syndrome, which may progress to hepatocellular carcinoma through the cirrhotic process. However, minority of patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease may progress to hepatocellular carcinoma without cirrhosis.This review summarizes the current literature of the link between hepatocellular carcinoma and metabolic syndrome with special emphasis on various components of the metabolic syndrome including risk of association with obesity, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia,and hypertension. Current understanding of pathophysiology, clinical features, treatments, outcomes,and surveillance of hepatocellular carcinoma in the background of metabolic syndrome and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is reviewed. With the current epidemic of metabolic syndrome, the number of patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is increasing.Subsequently, it is expected that the incidence and prevalence of HCC will also increase. It is very important for the scientific community to shed more light on the pathogenesis of HCC with metabolic syndrome,both with and without cirrhosis. At the same time it is also important to quantify the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma associated with the metabolic syndrome in a prospective setting and develop surveillance recommendations for detection of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with metabolic syndrome.

Gastric cancer in Africa:Current management and outcomes

Gastric cancer is the fourth most common cancer and second most common cause of cancer death worldwide.Globally,gastric cancer poses a significant public health burden-both economically and socially.In 2008,the economic burden from premature cancer deaths and disability was$895 billion and gastric cancer was the second highest cancer responsible for healthy life lost.With the expected increase in cancer deaths and non-communicable diseases,these costs are expected to rise and impact patient care.World Health Organization,estimates a 15%increase in non-communicable disease worldwide,with more than 20%increase occurring in Africa between 2010 and 2020.Mali,West Africa,is ranked 15th highest incidence of gastric cancer worldwide at a rate of 20.3/100000,yet very scarce published data evaluating etiology,prevention or management exist.It is understood that risk factors of gastric cancer are multifactorial and include infectious agents(Helicobacter pylori,Epstein-Barr virus),genetic,dietary,and environmental factors(alcohol,smoking).Interestingly,African patients with gastric cancer are younger,in their 3rd-4th decade,and present at a late stage of the disease.There is sparse data regarding gastric cancer in Africa due to lack of data collection and under-reporting,which impacts incidence and mortality rates.Currently,GLOBOCAN,an International Agency for Research on Cancer resource,is the most comprehensive available resource allowing comparison between nations.In resource limited settings,with already restricted healthcare funding,data is needed to establish programs in Africa that increase gastric cancer awareness,curtail the economic burden,and improve patient management and survival outcomes.

Liver diseases in pregnancy: Liver transplantation in pregnancy

Pregnancy in patients with advanced liver disease is uncommon as most women with decompensated cirrhosis are infertile and have high rate of anovulation.However,if gestation ensued;it is very challenging and carries high risks for both the mother and the baby such as higher rates of spontaneous abortion,prematurity,pulmonary hypertension,splenic artery aneurysm rupture,postpartum hemorrhage,and a potential for life-threatening variceal hemorrhage and hepatic decompensation.In contrary,with orthotopic liver transplantation,menstruation resumes and most women of childbearing age are able to conceive,give birth and lead a better quality of life.Women with orthotopic liver transplantation seeking pregnancy should be managed carefully by a team consultation with transplant hepatologist,maternal-fetal medicine specialist and other specialists.Pregnant liver transplant recipients need to stay on immunosuppression medication to prevent allograft rejection.Furthermore,these medications need to be monitored carefully and continued throughout pregnancy to avoid potential adverse effects to mother and baby.Thus delaying pregnancy 1 to 2 years after transplantation minimizes fetal exposure to high doses of immunosuppressants.Pregnant female liver transplant patients have a high rate of cesarean delivery likely due to the high rate of prematurity in this population.Recent reports suggest that with close monitoring and multidisciplinary team approach,most female liver transplant recipient of childbearing age will lead a successful pregnancy.

Prophylactic tracheal intubation for upper GI bleeding: A meta-analysis

AIM: To evaluate usefulness of prophylactically intubating upper gastrointestinal bleeding(UGIB) patients. METHODS: UGIB results in a significant number of hospital admissions annually with endoscopy being the key intervention. In these patients, risks are associated with the bleeding and the procedure, including pulmonary aspiration. However, very little literature is available assessing the use of prophylactic endotracheal intubation on aspiration in these patients. A comprehensive search was performed in May 2014 in Scopus, CINAHL, Cochrane databases, Pub Med/Medline, Embase, and published abstracts from national gastroenterology meetings in the United States(2004-2014). Included studies examined UGIB patients and compared prophylactic intubation to no intubation before endoscopy. Meta-analysis was conducted using Rev Man 5.2 by Mantel-Haenszel and Der Simonian and Laird models with results presented as odds ratio for aspiration, pneumonia(within 48 h), and mortality. Funnel plots were utilized for publication bias and I2 measure of inconsistency for heterogeneity assessments. RESULTS: Initial search identified 571 articles. Of these articles, 10 relevant peer-reviewed articles in English and two relevant abstracts were selected to review by two independent authors(Almashhrawi AA and Bechtold ML). Of these studies, eight were excluded: Five did not have a control arm, one was a letter the editor, one was a survey study, and one was focused on prevention of UGIB. Therefore, four studies(N = 367) were included. Of the UGIB patients prophylactically intubated before endoscopy, pneumonia(within 48 h) was identified in 20 of 134(14.9%) patients as compared to 5 of 95(5.3%) patients that were not intubated prophylactically(P = 0.02). Despite observed trends, no significantdifferences were found for mortality(P = 0.18) or aspiration(P = 0.11).CONCLUSION: Pneumonia within 48 h is more likely in UGIB patients who received prophylactic endotracheal intubation prior to endoscopy.