Objective:Osteosarcoma is a highly aggressive primary malignant bone tumor commonly seen in children and adolescents,with a poor prognosis.Anchorage-dependent cell death(anoikis)has been proven to be indispensable in ...Objective:Osteosarcoma is a highly aggressive primary malignant bone tumor commonly seen in children and adolescents,with a poor prognosis.Anchorage-dependent cell death(anoikis)has been proven to be indispensable in tumor metastasis,regulating the migration and adhesion of tumor cells at the primary site.However,as a type of programmed cell death,anoikis is rarely studied in osteosarcoma,especially in the tumor immune microenvironment.This study aims to clarify prognostic value of anoikis and tumor immune microenvironment-related gene in the treatment of osteosarcoma.Methods:Anoikis-related genes(ANRGs)were obtained from GeneCards.Clinical information and ANRGs expression profiles of osteosarcoma patients were sourced from the therapeutically applicable research to generate effective therapies and Gene Expression Omnibus(GEO)databases.ANRGs highly associated with tumor immune microenvironment were identified by the estimate package and the weighted gene coexpression network analysis(WGCNA)algorithm.Machine learning algorithms were performed to construct long-term survival predictive strategy,each sample was divided into high-risk and low-risk subgroups,which was further verified in the GEO cohort.Finally,based on single-cell RNA-seq from the GEO database,analysis was done on the function of signature genes in the osteosarcoma tumor microenvironment.Results:A total of 51 hub ANRGs closely associated with the tumor microenvironment were identified,from which 3 genes(MERTK,BNIP3,S100A8)were selected to construct the prognostic model.Significant differences in immune cell activation and immune-related signaling pathways were observed between the high-risk and low-risk groups based on tumor microenvironment analysis(all P<0.05).Additionally,characteristic genes within the osteosarcoma microenvironment were identified in regulation of intercellular crosstalk through the GAS6-MERTK signaling pathway.Conclusion:The prognostic model based on ANRGs and tumor microenvironment demonstrate good predictive power and provide more personalized treatment options for patients with osteosarcoma.展开更多
Objective: To study the effects of platelet activation and endothelial cell injury on the patients with malignant tumor and their prognoses.Methods: Radioimmunity and ELISA methods were employed to detect the TXB2, GM...Objective: To study the effects of platelet activation and endothelial cell injury on the patients with malignant tumor and their prognoses.Methods: Radioimmunity and ELISA methods were employed to detect the TXB2, GMP-140, vWF, cGMP and FN in 78 cases of malignant tumor and 40 healthy control persons.Results: The levels of TXB2, MP-140 and cGMP were increased in intestinal cancer group, lung cancer group and hepatic cancer group, while FN decreased in intestinal cancer and lung cancer group. cGMP was positively related to TXB2, GMP-140, vWF in malignant tumor group. FN was decreased in the group complicated with infection and the group with metastasis, while the other indexes increased. GMP-140, vWF and cGMP was decreased after operation except for the increasing of FN.Conclusion: Activations of platelet and injury of endothelial cells developed in patients with malignant tumor, and both of them affected the metastasis and prognosis of malignant tumor. Key words platelet activation - epithelium injury - malignant tumor - metastasis This work was supported by grants from Guangdong Medical Science foundation (A2000633).展开更多
AIM:To determine whether serum interleukin-18 (IL-18) levels correlated with clinicopathologic features and prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS:Serum IL-18,IL-6 and IL-12 levels were mea...AIM:To determine whether serum interleukin-18 (IL-18) levels correlated with clinicopathologic features and prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS:Serum IL-18,IL-6 and IL-12 levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) from 70 patients with HCC and 10 healthy controls. RESULTS:Serum IL-18,IL-6 and IL-12 levels of patients with HCC were significantly higher that those of the controls. The levels of IL-18 correlated significantly with the presence of venous invasion and advanced tumor stages classified by Okuda's criteria. Patients with high serum IL-18 levels (≥ 105 pg/mL) had a poorer survival than those with low serum IL-18 levels (< 105 pg/mL) (4 and 11 mo,respectively,P = 0.015). Multivariate analyses showed that serum IL-18 level,but not IL-6 and IL-12 levels,was a significant and independent prognostic factor of survival. CONCLUSION:These findings demonstrate that serum IL-8 may a useful biological marker of tumor invasiveness and an independent prognostic factor of survival for patients with HCC. Thus,the detailed mechanisms of IL-18 involving in tumor progression should be further investigated.展开更多
AIM: To study the expression of the inhibitor of apoptosis protein survivin in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and its correlation with clinicopathological factors, cell proliferation, recurrence and prognosis afte...AIM: To study the expression of the inhibitor of apoptosis protein survivin in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and its correlation with clinicopathological factors, cell proliferation, recurrence and prognosis after hepatectomy. METHODS: Immunohistochemical staining of survivin and Ki-67 was performed by the standard streptavidin- peroxidase technique on paraffin sections of 55 cases of HCC. RESULTS: The positive rate of survivin in HCC was 52.7% (29/55). Significant correlation was found between survivin expression with portal vein thrombi and intrahepatic matastasistic nodes (P 〈 0.05). The recurrent rate in survivin-positive HCC was significantly higher than that in survivin-negative HCC after hepatectomy, the 1- and 3-year survival rate in patients with survivin-positive tumors was significantly lower than that in patients with survivin-negative tumors (58.62 and 10.34% vs 76.92 and 30.77%, P 〈 0.05, log-rank test). The proliferation index (Ki-67) in survivin-positive HCC (33.83% ± 18.90%) was significantly higher than that in survivin-negative HCC (19.60% ± 19.35%) (P 〈 0.05). CONCLUSION: Survivin may play an important role in progression of HCC by promoting cell proliferation, and may be positively correlated with high risk of disease recurrence and poor prognosis in HCC. Its expression may serve as a prognostic factor for patients with HCC after hepatectomy.展开更多
AIM: To investigate the prognostic value of the model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) and three new MELD-based models combination with serum sodium in decompensated cirrhosis patients-the MELD with the incorpora...AIM: To investigate the prognostic value of the model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) and three new MELD-based models combination with serum sodium in decompensated cirrhosis patients-the MELD with the incorporation of serum sodium (MELD-Na), the integrated MELD (iMELD), and the MELD to sodium (MESO) index. METHODS: A total of 166 patients with decompensated cirrhosis were enrolled into the study. MELD, MELD- Na, iMELD and MESO scores were calculated for each patient following the original formula on the first day of admission. All patients were followed up at least 1 year. The predictive prognosis related with the four models was determined by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of the four parameters. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were made using the cut-offs identified by means of receiver operating characteristic (ROC). RESULTS: Out of 166 patients, 38 patients with significantly higher MELD-Na (28.84 ± 2.43 vs 14.72 ± 0.60), iMELD (49.04 ± 1.72 vs 35.52 ± 0.67), MESO scores (1.59 ± 0.82 vs 0.99 ± 0.42) compared to the survivors died within 3 mo (P 〈 0.001). Of 166 patients, 75 with markedly higher MELD-Na (23.01 ± 1.51 vs 13.78 ± 0.69), iMELD (44.06 ± 1.19 vs 34.12 ± 0.69), MESO scores (1.37 ± 0.70 vs 0.93 ± 0.40) than the survivors died within 1 year (P 〈 0.001). At 3 mo of enrollment, the iMELD had the highest AUC (0.841), and was followed by the MELD-Na (0.766), MESO (0.723), all larger than MELD (0.773); At year, the iMELD still had the highest AUC (0.783), the difference between the iMELD and MELD was statistically significant (P 〈 0.05). Survival curves showed that the three new models were all clearly discriminated the patients who survived or died in short-term as well as intermediate-term (P 〈 0.001). CONCLUSION: Three new models, changed with serum sodium (MELD-Na, iMELD, MESO) can exactly predict the prognosis of patients with decompensated cirrhosis for short and intermediate period, and may enhance the prognostic accuracy of MELD. The iMELD is better prognostic model for outcome prediction in patients with decompensated cirrhosis.展开更多
Immunotherapy has become a key strategy for cancer treatment, and two immune checkpoints, namely, programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) and its ligand (PD-L1), have recently emerged as important targets. The interaction ...Immunotherapy has become a key strategy for cancer treatment, and two immune checkpoints, namely, programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) and its ligand (PD-L1), have recently emerged as important targets. The interaction blockade of PD-1 and PD-L1 demonstrated promising activity and antitumor efficacy in early phase clinical trials for advanced solid tumors such as non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Many cell types in multiple tissues express PD-L1 as well as several tumor types, thereby suggesting that the ligand may play important roles in inhibiting immune responses throughout the body. Therefore, PD-L1 is a critical immunomodulating component within the lung microenvironment, but the correlation between PD-L1 expression and prognosis is controversial. More evidence is required to support the use of PD-L1 as a potential predictive biomarker. Clinical trials have measured PD-L1 in tumor tissues by immunohistochemistry (IHC) with different antibodies, but the assessment of PD-L1 is not yet standardized. Some commercial antibodies lack specificity and their reproducibility has not been fully evaluated. Further studies are required to clarify the optimal IHC assay as well as to predict and monitor the immune responses of the PD-I/PD-L1 pathway.展开更多
Considering multi-factor influence, a forecasting model was built. The structure of BP neural network was designed, and immune algorithm was applied to optimize its network structure and weight. After training the dat...Considering multi-factor influence, a forecasting model was built. The structure of BP neural network was designed, and immune algorithm was applied to optimize its network structure and weight. After training the data of power demand from the year 1980 to 2005 in China, a nonlinear network model was obtained on the relationship between power demand and the factors which had impacts on it, and thus the above proposed method was verified. Meanwhile, the results were compared to those of neural network optimized by genetic algorithm. The results show that this method is superior to neural network optimized by genetic algorithm and is one of the effective ways of time series forecast.展开更多
AIM: To confirm if p53 mutation could be a routine predictive marker for the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. METHODS: Two hundreds and forty-four formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tumor samples of...AIM: To confirm if p53 mutation could be a routine predictive marker for the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. METHODS: Two hundreds and forty-four formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tumor samples of the patients with HCC receiving liver resection were detected for nuclear accumulation of p53. The percent of P53 immunoreactive tumor cells was scored as 0 to 3+ in P53 positive region (【10% -, 10-30% +, 31-50% ++, 】50% +++). Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and some clinicopathological characteristics, including patients' sex, preoperative serum AFP level, tumor size, capsule, vascular invasion (both visual and microscopic), and Edmondson grade were also evaluated. RESULTS: In univariate COX harzard regression model analysis, tumor size, capsule status, vascular invasion, and p53 expression were independent factors that were closely related to the overall survival (OS) rates of HCC patients. The survival rates of patients with 3+ for P53 expression were much lower than those with 2+ or + for P53 expression. Only vascular invasion (P【0.05) and capsule (P【0.01) were closely related to the disease-free survival (DFS) of HCC patients. In multivariate analysis, p53 overexpression (RI 0.5456, P【0.01) was the most significant factor associated with the OS rates of patients after HCC resection, while tumor size (RI 0.5209, P【0.01), vascular invasion (RI 0.5271, P【0.01) and capsule (RI-0.8691, P【0.01) were also related to the OS. However, only tumor capsular status was an independent predictive factor (P【0.05) for the DFS. No significant prognostic value was found in PCNA-LI, Edmondson's grade, patients' sex and preoperative serum AFP level. CONCLUSION: Accumulation of p53 expression, as well as tumor size, capsule and vascular invasion, could be valuable markers for predicting the prognosis of HCC patients after resection. The quantitative immunohistochemical scoring for P53 nuclear accumulation might be more valuable for predicting prognosis of patients after HCC resection than the common qualitative analysis.展开更多
Objective:To expound geographical information system (GIS) technology is a very important tool when it was employed to assist to present the distribution by time and place and the model of transmission of infectious d...Objective:To expound geographical information system (GIS) technology is a very important tool when it was employed to assist to present the distribution by time and place and the model of transmission of infectious disease. Methods: We illustrated the assistant decision-making support function of GIS with an example of the spatial decision support system for SARS controlling in Shaanxi province of China which was developed by us. Results: The spatial decision support system established by applying GIS technology fulfilled the needs of real-time collection and management and dissemination SARS information and of surveillance and analysis the epidemic situation of SARS. Conclusion: Occurrence and epidemic of diseases, implement prevention and intervention measures and collocation hygienic resources are all with the characteristic of the variation of time and space, therefore, GIS technology has become a powerful tool for identifying risk factors of diseases, providing clues of causation of diseases , evaluating the effects of intervention measures and drawing a health management plan.展开更多
AIM:To explore the prognostic variables in rectal cancer patients undergoing curative total mesorectal excision and the effect of postoperative chemotherapy in advanced rectal cancer. METHODS:A total of 259 consecutiv...AIM:To explore the prognostic variables in rectal cancer patients undergoing curative total mesorectal excision and the effect of postoperative chemotherapy in advanced rectal cancer. METHODS:A total of 259 consecutive rectal cancer patients treated with curative total mesorectal excision between 1999 and 2004 were collected. p53,p21,PCNA,and CD44v6 were examined using immunohistochemistry (IHC). The correlation between clinicopathological or molecular variables and clinical outcomes,including local recurrence,metastasis,disease-free survival and overall survival,was analyzed. RESULTS:The median follow-up was 44 mo. Five-year survival rates and 5-year disease free survival rates were 75.43% and 70.32%,respectively. Multi-analysis revealed TNM staging,preoperative CEA,and CD44v6 level were independent risk factors predicting overall survival or disease free survival. The hazard ratio of peroperative CEA was 2.65 (95% CI 1.4-5) and 3.10 (95% CI 1.37-6.54) for disease free survival and overall survival,respectively. The hazard ratio of CD44v6 was 1.93 (95% CI 1.04-3.61) and 2.21 (95% CI 1.01-4.88) for disease free survival and overall survival,respectively. TNM staging was the only risk factor predicting local recurrence. Postoperative chemotherapy without radiotherapy did not improve patients' outcome. CONCLUSION:TNM staging,preoperative CEA and CD44v6 were independent prognostic factors for rectal cancer patients with total mesorectal excision. Postoperative chemotherapy may be only used together with radiotherapy for rectal cancer patients.展开更多
AIM: To investigate the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and calcium-binding protein S100A4 in pancreatic cancer and their relationship to the clinicopathological parameters and prognosis of pan...AIM: To investigate the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and calcium-binding protein S100A4 in pancreatic cancer and their relationship to the clinicopathological parameters and prognosis of pancreatic cancer. METHODS: Expression status of VEGF and S100A4 was examined in 62 surgical specimens of primary pancreatic cancer by immunohistochemistry. Correlation between the expression of VEGF and S100A4 and clinicopathological parameters was analyzed. RESULTS: Thirty-eight of 62 (61.3%) specimens of primary pancreatic cancer were positive for S100A4. Thirty-seven (59.7%) specimens showed positive expression of VEGF. The positive correlation between S100A4 and VEGF expression was significant in cancer tissues (P < 0.001). S100A4 expression was significantly correlated with tumor size, TNM stage and poorer prognosis. VEGF expression had a significant correlation with poorer prognosis. The prognosis of 17 S100A4-and VEGF-negative cancer patients was significantly better than that of other patients (P < 0.05). Distant metastasis (P = 0.001), S100A4-(P = 0.008) and VEGF-positive expression (P = 0.016) were significantly independent prognostic predictors (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Over-expression of S100A4 and VEGF plays an important role in the development of pancreatic cancer. Combined examination of the two molecules might be useful in evaluating the outcome of patients with pancreatic cancer.展开更多
AIM: To investigate the expression and significance of G3BP and RhoC proteins in esophageal squamous carcinoma (ESC). METHODS: The expression of G3BP and Rhoc proteins in 80 cases of ESC was detected by immunohistoche...AIM: To investigate the expression and significance of G3BP and RhoC proteins in esophageal squamous carcinoma (ESC). METHODS: The expression of G3BP and Rhoc proteins in 80 cases of ESC was detected by immunohistochemistry. The relationship was studied between the expression of the two proteins and tumor size, differentiation degree, TNM stage, lymph node metastasis and prognosis of ESC. RESULTS: The positive expression rate of G3BP in ESC was 71.25%; and the rate in the lymph node metastasis group was significantly higher than that in the non- lymph node metastasis group (Z = -2.283, P = 0.022), but no relations were found between G3BP expression and tumor size, differentiation degree and TNM stage (P > 0.05). The group with G3BP positive expression had shorter survival time than the group with G3BP negative expression (P = 0.000). The positive expression rate of RhoC in ESC was 66.25%; and the rate in the lymph node metastasis group was significantly higher than that in the non-lymph node metastasis group (Z = -2.115, P < 0.05), but no relations were found between RhoC expression and tumor size, differentiation degree and TNM stage (P > 0.05). The RhoC positive expression group had a shorter survival time than the RhoC negative expression group (P < 0.001. The expression of G3BP protein correlated positively with the expression of RhoC in ESC tissues (rs = 0.656, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The expression of G3BP and RhoC protein is closely related to the lymph node metastasis and survival in ESC patients. G3BP and RhoC proteins can be considered as predictors of prognosis in ESC patients.展开更多
OBJECTIVE To investigate the expressions of cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and their clinical significance in identifying the ...OBJECTIVE To investigate the expressions of cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and their clinical significance in identifying the progression and prognosis of the NSCLC patients. METHODS Immunohistochemical indirect method was used to detect the expressions of the COX-2 and HER-2 protein in 54 NSCLC specimens, 16 paraneoplastic specimens, and 10 normal tissue specimens. RESULTS The positive rates of COX-2 and HER-2 protein expressions were respectively 75.9% and 40.7% in the NSCLC specimens, 25% and 12.5% in the paraneoplastic specimens, and 0 in the normal tissue. The COX-2 protein expression in lung cancer (LC) was not only related to the smoking habit of the patients and histological grades of LC, but also to the TNM stages, and lymphatic metastasis (P 〈 0.05). HER-2 protein expression closely correlated to the pathologic types, histological grades, TNM stages, and lymphatic metastasis (P 〈 0.05). The result of univariate analysis showed that all the histological grades, TNM stages, lymphatic metastasis, and expressions of COX-2/HER-2 correlated to the prognosis of NSCLC patients (mean of P value 〈 0.01). The multivariate survival analysis indicated that there were signi.cant di.erences in comparison of the survival time between the COX-2 (++/+++) /HER-2 (++/+++) and the COX-2 (-/+)/HER-2 (-/+) groups (P〈 0.001), suggesting the COX-2/HER-2 was a negative prognostic factor. CONCLUSION COX-2 and HER-2 are valuable in identifying the progression of NSCLC and predicting the prognosis of NSCLC patients. COX-2 and HER-2 are useful for judging the NSCLC patient's condition, and are of great value to the decision of NSCLC prognosis.展开更多
AIM: To investigate the intratumoral expression of metastasis-associated in colon cancer 1 (MACC1) and c-Met and determine their clinical values associated with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma...AIM: To investigate the intratumoral expression of metastasis-associated in colon cancer 1 (MACC1) and c-Met and determine their clinical values associated with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS: A retrospective study admitted three hundred fifty-four patients with HBV-related HCC. The expression and distribution of MACC1 and c-Met were assessed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry staining. Prognostic factors influencing survival, metastasis and recurrence were assessed. RESULTS: Intratumoral MACC1 level was found to be associated with HCC disease progression. Both median tumor-free survival (TFS) and overall survival (OS) were significantly shorter in the postoperative HCC patients with high intratumoral MACC1 expression, as compared to those with low intratumoral MACC1 levels (TFS: 34 mo vs 48.0 mo, P < 0.001; OS: 40 mo vs 48 mo, P < 0.01). Multivariable analysis indicated that high MACC1 expression or co-expression with c-Met were independent predictors for HCC clinic outcome (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: High intratumoral MACC1 expression can be associated with enhanced tumor progression and poor outcome of HBV-related HCC. MACC1 may serve as a prognostic biomarker for postoperative HCC.展开更多
基金This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation(82172594 and 82373046)the Hunan Graduate Research Innovation Project(CX20230318),China.
文摘Objective:Osteosarcoma is a highly aggressive primary malignant bone tumor commonly seen in children and adolescents,with a poor prognosis.Anchorage-dependent cell death(anoikis)has been proven to be indispensable in tumor metastasis,regulating the migration and adhesion of tumor cells at the primary site.However,as a type of programmed cell death,anoikis is rarely studied in osteosarcoma,especially in the tumor immune microenvironment.This study aims to clarify prognostic value of anoikis and tumor immune microenvironment-related gene in the treatment of osteosarcoma.Methods:Anoikis-related genes(ANRGs)were obtained from GeneCards.Clinical information and ANRGs expression profiles of osteosarcoma patients were sourced from the therapeutically applicable research to generate effective therapies and Gene Expression Omnibus(GEO)databases.ANRGs highly associated with tumor immune microenvironment were identified by the estimate package and the weighted gene coexpression network analysis(WGCNA)algorithm.Machine learning algorithms were performed to construct long-term survival predictive strategy,each sample was divided into high-risk and low-risk subgroups,which was further verified in the GEO cohort.Finally,based on single-cell RNA-seq from the GEO database,analysis was done on the function of signature genes in the osteosarcoma tumor microenvironment.Results:A total of 51 hub ANRGs closely associated with the tumor microenvironment were identified,from which 3 genes(MERTK,BNIP3,S100A8)were selected to construct the prognostic model.Significant differences in immune cell activation and immune-related signaling pathways were observed between the high-risk and low-risk groups based on tumor microenvironment analysis(all P<0.05).Additionally,characteristic genes within the osteosarcoma microenvironment were identified in regulation of intercellular crosstalk through the GAS6-MERTK signaling pathway.Conclusion:The prognostic model based on ANRGs and tumor microenvironment demonstrate good predictive power and provide more personalized treatment options for patients with osteosarcoma.
基金This work was supported by grants from Guangdong Medical Science foundation(A2000633).
文摘Objective: To study the effects of platelet activation and endothelial cell injury on the patients with malignant tumor and their prognoses.Methods: Radioimmunity and ELISA methods were employed to detect the TXB2, GMP-140, vWF, cGMP and FN in 78 cases of malignant tumor and 40 healthy control persons.Results: The levels of TXB2, MP-140 and cGMP were increased in intestinal cancer group, lung cancer group and hepatic cancer group, while FN decreased in intestinal cancer and lung cancer group. cGMP was positively related to TXB2, GMP-140, vWF in malignant tumor group. FN was decreased in the group complicated with infection and the group with metastasis, while the other indexes increased. GMP-140, vWF and cGMP was decreased after operation except for the increasing of FN.Conclusion: Activations of platelet and injury of endothelial cells developed in patients with malignant tumor, and both of them affected the metastasis and prognosis of malignant tumor. Key words platelet activation - epithelium injury - malignant tumor - metastasis This work was supported by grants from Guangdong Medical Science foundation (A2000633).
基金Supported by the Rajadapiseksompoj research grant,Faculty of Medicine,Chulalongkorn University
文摘AIM:To determine whether serum interleukin-18 (IL-18) levels correlated with clinicopathologic features and prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS:Serum IL-18,IL-6 and IL-12 levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) from 70 patients with HCC and 10 healthy controls. RESULTS:Serum IL-18,IL-6 and IL-12 levels of patients with HCC were significantly higher that those of the controls. The levels of IL-18 correlated significantly with the presence of venous invasion and advanced tumor stages classified by Okuda's criteria. Patients with high serum IL-18 levels (≥ 105 pg/mL) had a poorer survival than those with low serum IL-18 levels (< 105 pg/mL) (4 and 11 mo,respectively,P = 0.015). Multivariate analyses showed that serum IL-18 level,but not IL-6 and IL-12 levels,was a significant and independent prognostic factor of survival. CONCLUSION:These findings demonstrate that serum IL-8 may a useful biological marker of tumor invasiveness and an independent prognostic factor of survival for patients with HCC. Thus,the detailed mechanisms of IL-18 involving in tumor progression should be further investigated.
文摘AIM: To study the expression of the inhibitor of apoptosis protein survivin in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and its correlation with clinicopathological factors, cell proliferation, recurrence and prognosis after hepatectomy. METHODS: Immunohistochemical staining of survivin and Ki-67 was performed by the standard streptavidin- peroxidase technique on paraffin sections of 55 cases of HCC. RESULTS: The positive rate of survivin in HCC was 52.7% (29/55). Significant correlation was found between survivin expression with portal vein thrombi and intrahepatic matastasistic nodes (P 〈 0.05). The recurrent rate in survivin-positive HCC was significantly higher than that in survivin-negative HCC after hepatectomy, the 1- and 3-year survival rate in patients with survivin-positive tumors was significantly lower than that in patients with survivin-negative tumors (58.62 and 10.34% vs 76.92 and 30.77%, P 〈 0.05, log-rank test). The proliferation index (Ki-67) in survivin-positive HCC (33.83% ± 18.90%) was significantly higher than that in survivin-negative HCC (19.60% ± 19.35%) (P 〈 0.05). CONCLUSION: Survivin may play an important role in progression of HCC by promoting cell proliferation, and may be positively correlated with high risk of disease recurrence and poor prognosis in HCC. Its expression may serve as a prognostic factor for patients with HCC after hepatectomy.
文摘AIM: To investigate the prognostic value of the model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) and three new MELD-based models combination with serum sodium in decompensated cirrhosis patients-the MELD with the incorporation of serum sodium (MELD-Na), the integrated MELD (iMELD), and the MELD to sodium (MESO) index. METHODS: A total of 166 patients with decompensated cirrhosis were enrolled into the study. MELD, MELD- Na, iMELD and MESO scores were calculated for each patient following the original formula on the first day of admission. All patients were followed up at least 1 year. The predictive prognosis related with the four models was determined by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of the four parameters. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were made using the cut-offs identified by means of receiver operating characteristic (ROC). RESULTS: Out of 166 patients, 38 patients with significantly higher MELD-Na (28.84 ± 2.43 vs 14.72 ± 0.60), iMELD (49.04 ± 1.72 vs 35.52 ± 0.67), MESO scores (1.59 ± 0.82 vs 0.99 ± 0.42) compared to the survivors died within 3 mo (P 〈 0.001). Of 166 patients, 75 with markedly higher MELD-Na (23.01 ± 1.51 vs 13.78 ± 0.69), iMELD (44.06 ± 1.19 vs 34.12 ± 0.69), MESO scores (1.37 ± 0.70 vs 0.93 ± 0.40) than the survivors died within 1 year (P 〈 0.001). At 3 mo of enrollment, the iMELD had the highest AUC (0.841), and was followed by the MELD-Na (0.766), MESO (0.723), all larger than MELD (0.773); At year, the iMELD still had the highest AUC (0.783), the difference between the iMELD and MELD was statistically significant (P 〈 0.05). Survival curves showed that the three new models were all clearly discriminated the patients who survived or died in short-term as well as intermediate-term (P 〈 0.001). CONCLUSION: Three new models, changed with serum sodium (MELD-Na, iMELD, MESO) can exactly predict the prognosis of patients with decompensated cirrhosis for short and intermediate period, and may enhance the prognostic accuracy of MELD. The iMELD is better prognostic model for outcome prediction in patients with decompensated cirrhosis.
文摘Immunotherapy has become a key strategy for cancer treatment, and two immune checkpoints, namely, programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) and its ligand (PD-L1), have recently emerged as important targets. The interaction blockade of PD-1 and PD-L1 demonstrated promising activity and antitumor efficacy in early phase clinical trials for advanced solid tumors such as non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Many cell types in multiple tissues express PD-L1 as well as several tumor types, thereby suggesting that the ligand may play important roles in inhibiting immune responses throughout the body. Therefore, PD-L1 is a critical immunomodulating component within the lung microenvironment, but the correlation between PD-L1 expression and prognosis is controversial. More evidence is required to support the use of PD-L1 as a potential predictive biomarker. Clinical trials have measured PD-L1 in tumor tissues by immunohistochemistry (IHC) with different antibodies, but the assessment of PD-L1 is not yet standardized. Some commercial antibodies lack specificity and their reproducibility has not been fully evaluated. Further studies are required to clarify the optimal IHC assay as well as to predict and monitor the immune responses of the PD-I/PD-L1 pathway.
基金Project(70373017) supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China
文摘Considering multi-factor influence, a forecasting model was built. The structure of BP neural network was designed, and immune algorithm was applied to optimize its network structure and weight. After training the data of power demand from the year 1980 to 2005 in China, a nonlinear network model was obtained on the relationship between power demand and the factors which had impacts on it, and thus the above proposed method was verified. Meanwhile, the results were compared to those of neural network optimized by genetic algorithm. The results show that this method is superior to neural network optimized by genetic algorithm and is one of the effective ways of time series forecast.
基金the Key Project of Medical Development in Shanghaithe National Science Funding for Young Scientists (No.30000075)Fund for Leading Specialty of Shanghai Metropolitan Burean of Public Health
文摘AIM: To confirm if p53 mutation could be a routine predictive marker for the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. METHODS: Two hundreds and forty-four formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tumor samples of the patients with HCC receiving liver resection were detected for nuclear accumulation of p53. The percent of P53 immunoreactive tumor cells was scored as 0 to 3+ in P53 positive region (【10% -, 10-30% +, 31-50% ++, 】50% +++). Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and some clinicopathological characteristics, including patients' sex, preoperative serum AFP level, tumor size, capsule, vascular invasion (both visual and microscopic), and Edmondson grade were also evaluated. RESULTS: In univariate COX harzard regression model analysis, tumor size, capsule status, vascular invasion, and p53 expression were independent factors that were closely related to the overall survival (OS) rates of HCC patients. The survival rates of patients with 3+ for P53 expression were much lower than those with 2+ or + for P53 expression. Only vascular invasion (P【0.05) and capsule (P【0.01) were closely related to the disease-free survival (DFS) of HCC patients. In multivariate analysis, p53 overexpression (RI 0.5456, P【0.01) was the most significant factor associated with the OS rates of patients after HCC resection, while tumor size (RI 0.5209, P【0.01), vascular invasion (RI 0.5271, P【0.01) and capsule (RI-0.8691, P【0.01) were also related to the OS. However, only tumor capsular status was an independent predictive factor (P【0.05) for the DFS. No significant prognostic value was found in PCNA-LI, Edmondson's grade, patients' sex and preoperative serum AFP level. CONCLUSION: Accumulation of p53 expression, as well as tumor size, capsule and vascular invasion, could be valuable markers for predicting the prognosis of HCC patients after resection. The quantitative immunohistochemical scoring for P53 nuclear accumulation might be more valuable for predicting prognosis of patients after HCC resection than the common qualitative analysis.
基金Supported by the Sci & Tech Development Foundation of Shaanxi province(2003K10G61)
文摘Objective:To expound geographical information system (GIS) technology is a very important tool when it was employed to assist to present the distribution by time and place and the model of transmission of infectious disease. Methods: We illustrated the assistant decision-making support function of GIS with an example of the spatial decision support system for SARS controlling in Shaanxi province of China which was developed by us. Results: The spatial decision support system established by applying GIS technology fulfilled the needs of real-time collection and management and dissemination SARS information and of surveillance and analysis the epidemic situation of SARS. Conclusion: Occurrence and epidemic of diseases, implement prevention and intervention measures and collocation hygienic resources are all with the characteristic of the variation of time and space, therefore, GIS technology has become a powerful tool for identifying risk factors of diseases, providing clues of causation of diseases , evaluating the effects of intervention measures and drawing a health management plan.
文摘AIM:To explore the prognostic variables in rectal cancer patients undergoing curative total mesorectal excision and the effect of postoperative chemotherapy in advanced rectal cancer. METHODS:A total of 259 consecutive rectal cancer patients treated with curative total mesorectal excision between 1999 and 2004 were collected. p53,p21,PCNA,and CD44v6 were examined using immunohistochemistry (IHC). The correlation between clinicopathological or molecular variables and clinical outcomes,including local recurrence,metastasis,disease-free survival and overall survival,was analyzed. RESULTS:The median follow-up was 44 mo. Five-year survival rates and 5-year disease free survival rates were 75.43% and 70.32%,respectively. Multi-analysis revealed TNM staging,preoperative CEA,and CD44v6 level were independent risk factors predicting overall survival or disease free survival. The hazard ratio of peroperative CEA was 2.65 (95% CI 1.4-5) and 3.10 (95% CI 1.37-6.54) for disease free survival and overall survival,respectively. The hazard ratio of CD44v6 was 1.93 (95% CI 1.04-3.61) and 2.21 (95% CI 1.01-4.88) for disease free survival and overall survival,respectively. TNM staging was the only risk factor predicting local recurrence. Postoperative chemotherapy without radiotherapy did not improve patients' outcome. CONCLUSION:TNM staging,preoperative CEA and CD44v6 were independent prognostic factors for rectal cancer patients with total mesorectal excision. Postoperative chemotherapy may be only used together with radiotherapy for rectal cancer patients.
文摘AIM: To investigate the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and calcium-binding protein S100A4 in pancreatic cancer and their relationship to the clinicopathological parameters and prognosis of pancreatic cancer. METHODS: Expression status of VEGF and S100A4 was examined in 62 surgical specimens of primary pancreatic cancer by immunohistochemistry. Correlation between the expression of VEGF and S100A4 and clinicopathological parameters was analyzed. RESULTS: Thirty-eight of 62 (61.3%) specimens of primary pancreatic cancer were positive for S100A4. Thirty-seven (59.7%) specimens showed positive expression of VEGF. The positive correlation between S100A4 and VEGF expression was significant in cancer tissues (P < 0.001). S100A4 expression was significantly correlated with tumor size, TNM stage and poorer prognosis. VEGF expression had a significant correlation with poorer prognosis. The prognosis of 17 S100A4-and VEGF-negative cancer patients was significantly better than that of other patients (P < 0.05). Distant metastasis (P = 0.001), S100A4-(P = 0.008) and VEGF-positive expression (P = 0.016) were significantly independent prognostic predictors (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Over-expression of S100A4 and VEGF plays an important role in the development of pancreatic cancer. Combined examination of the two molecules might be useful in evaluating the outcome of patients with pancreatic cancer.
基金Supported by Key Science Research Project of Guangdong Province, No. 2003B30104
文摘AIM: To investigate the expression and significance of G3BP and RhoC proteins in esophageal squamous carcinoma (ESC). METHODS: The expression of G3BP and Rhoc proteins in 80 cases of ESC was detected by immunohistochemistry. The relationship was studied between the expression of the two proteins and tumor size, differentiation degree, TNM stage, lymph node metastasis and prognosis of ESC. RESULTS: The positive expression rate of G3BP in ESC was 71.25%; and the rate in the lymph node metastasis group was significantly higher than that in the non- lymph node metastasis group (Z = -2.283, P = 0.022), but no relations were found between G3BP expression and tumor size, differentiation degree and TNM stage (P > 0.05). The group with G3BP positive expression had shorter survival time than the group with G3BP negative expression (P = 0.000). The positive expression rate of RhoC in ESC was 66.25%; and the rate in the lymph node metastasis group was significantly higher than that in the non-lymph node metastasis group (Z = -2.115, P < 0.05), but no relations were found between RhoC expression and tumor size, differentiation degree and TNM stage (P > 0.05). The RhoC positive expression group had a shorter survival time than the RhoC negative expression group (P < 0.001. The expression of G3BP protein correlated positively with the expression of RhoC in ESC tissues (rs = 0.656, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The expression of G3BP and RhoC protein is closely related to the lymph node metastasis and survival in ESC patients. G3BP and RhoC proteins can be considered as predictors of prognosis in ESC patients.
文摘OBJECTIVE To investigate the expressions of cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and their clinical significance in identifying the progression and prognosis of the NSCLC patients. METHODS Immunohistochemical indirect method was used to detect the expressions of the COX-2 and HER-2 protein in 54 NSCLC specimens, 16 paraneoplastic specimens, and 10 normal tissue specimens. RESULTS The positive rates of COX-2 and HER-2 protein expressions were respectively 75.9% and 40.7% in the NSCLC specimens, 25% and 12.5% in the paraneoplastic specimens, and 0 in the normal tissue. The COX-2 protein expression in lung cancer (LC) was not only related to the smoking habit of the patients and histological grades of LC, but also to the TNM stages, and lymphatic metastasis (P 〈 0.05). HER-2 protein expression closely correlated to the pathologic types, histological grades, TNM stages, and lymphatic metastasis (P 〈 0.05). The result of univariate analysis showed that all the histological grades, TNM stages, lymphatic metastasis, and expressions of COX-2/HER-2 correlated to the prognosis of NSCLC patients (mean of P value 〈 0.01). The multivariate survival analysis indicated that there were signi.cant di.erences in comparison of the survival time between the COX-2 (++/+++) /HER-2 (++/+++) and the COX-2 (-/+)/HER-2 (-/+) groups (P〈 0.001), suggesting the COX-2/HER-2 was a negative prognostic factor. CONCLUSION COX-2 and HER-2 are valuable in identifying the progression of NSCLC and predicting the prognosis of NSCLC patients. COX-2 and HER-2 are useful for judging the NSCLC patient's condition, and are of great value to the decision of NSCLC prognosis.
基金Supported by Grants from the Key Scientific and Technological Research Foundation of the National Special-purpose Program,No. 2008ZX10002-018from the Capital Medical Development and Research in Beijing, China, No. 2007-1021 and2009-2041
文摘AIM: To investigate the intratumoral expression of metastasis-associated in colon cancer 1 (MACC1) and c-Met and determine their clinical values associated with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS: A retrospective study admitted three hundred fifty-four patients with HBV-related HCC. The expression and distribution of MACC1 and c-Met were assessed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry staining. Prognostic factors influencing survival, metastasis and recurrence were assessed. RESULTS: Intratumoral MACC1 level was found to be associated with HCC disease progression. Both median tumor-free survival (TFS) and overall survival (OS) were significantly shorter in the postoperative HCC patients with high intratumoral MACC1 expression, as compared to those with low intratumoral MACC1 levels (TFS: 34 mo vs 48.0 mo, P < 0.001; OS: 40 mo vs 48 mo, P < 0.01). Multivariable analysis indicated that high MACC1 expression or co-expression with c-Met were independent predictors for HCC clinic outcome (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: High intratumoral MACC1 expression can be associated with enhanced tumor progression and poor outcome of HBV-related HCC. MACC1 may serve as a prognostic biomarker for postoperative HCC.