Gastric cancer,a prevalent malignancy worldwide,ranks sixth in terms of frequency and third in fatality,causing over a million new cases and 769000 annual deaths.Predominant in Eastern Europe and Eastern Asia,risk fac...Gastric cancer,a prevalent malignancy worldwide,ranks sixth in terms of frequency and third in fatality,causing over a million new cases and 769000 annual deaths.Predominant in Eastern Europe and Eastern Asia,risk factors include family medical history,dietary habits,tobacco use,Helicobacter pylori,and Epstein-Barr virus infections.Unfortunately,gastric cancer is often diagnosed at an advanced stage,leading to a grim prognosis,with a 5-year overall survival rate below 5%.Surgical intervention,particularly with D2 Lymphadenectomy,is the mainstay for early-stage cases but offers limited success.For advanced cases,the National Comprehensive Cancer Network recommends chemotherapy,radiation,and targeted therapy.Emerging immunotherapy presents promise,especially for unresectable or metastatic cases,with strategies like immune checkpoint inhibitors,tumor vaccines,adoptive immunotherapy,and nonspecific immunomodulators.In this Editorial,with regards to the article“Advances and key focus areas in gastric cancer immunotherapy:A comprehensive scientometric and clinical trial review”,we address the advances in the field of immunotherapy in gastric cancer and its future prospects.展开更多
BACKGROUND Behavioral activation therapy(BA)is as effective as cognitive behavior therapy(CBT)in treating depression and can be delivered by practitioners with much less psychological training,making it particularly s...BACKGROUND Behavioral activation therapy(BA)is as effective as cognitive behavior therapy(CBT)in treating depression and can be delivered by practitioners with much less psychological training,making it particularly suitable for low resource settings.BA that is culturally adapted for Muslims(BA-M)is a culturally adapted form of BA that has been found acceptable and feasible for Muslims with depression in the United Kingdom and Turkey;however,this is the first time that its efficacy has been determined through a definitive randomized controlled trial.AIM To compare the effectiveness of BA-M with CBT for Muslim patients with depression in Pakistan.METHODS One hundred and eight patients were randomized 1:1 to treatment arms in a parallel-group randomized controlled trial in hospital or community sites in Lahore,Pakistan.Recruitment followed self-referral or referrals from clinicians,consultants or relevant professionals at each site.Four measures were recorded by blinded assessors:The patient health questionnaire-9(PHQ-9);the BA for depression scale short form(BADS-SF);symptom checklist-revised and the World Health Organization Quality-of-Life Brief Scale.All measures were recorded at baseline and post treatment;PHQ-9 and BADS-SF were also recorded at each session and at three month follow up.The primary analysis was to regress the PHQ-9 score after therapy upon the PHQ-9 score before therapy(baseline)and the type of therapy given,that is,analysis of covariance.In addition,analysis using PHQ-9 scores collected at each therapy session was employed in a 2-level regression model.RESULTS Patients in the BA-M arm experienced greater improvement in PHQ-9 score of 1.95 units compared to the CBT arm after adjusting for baseline values(P=0.006)The key reason behind this improvement was that patients were retained in therapy longer under BA-M,in which patients were retained for an average 0.75 sessions more than CBT patients(P=0.013).Patients also showed significant differences on physical(P<0.001),psychological(P=0.004)and social(P=0.047)domains of Quality of Life(QoL)at post treatment level,indicating an increased QoL in the BA-M group as compared to the treatment as usual group.Some baseline differences were noted in both groups for BA scores and two domains of QoL scale:Physical and environment,which might have influenced the results,though the BA-M group showed more improvement at completion of therapy.CONCLUSION Results proved the efficacy of BA-M in reducing symptoms for depressed patients in Pakistan,indicating BA-M is a promising treatment modality for depression in future,particularly in low resource settings.展开更多
Breast cancer is the most frequent cancer among females and also a leading cause of cancer related mortality worldwide.A multimodality treatment approach may be utilized for optimal management of patients with combina...Breast cancer is the most frequent cancer among females and also a leading cause of cancer related mortality worldwide.A multimodality treatment approach may be utilized for optimal management of patients with combinations of surgery,radiation therapy(RT)and systemic treatment.RT composes an integral part of breast conserving treatment,and is typically used after breast conserving surgery to improve local control.Recent years have witnessed significant improvements in the discipline of radiation oncology which allow for more focused and precise treatment delivery.Adaptive radiation therapy(ART)is among the most important RT techniques which may be utilized for redesigning of treatment plans to account for dynamic changes in tumor size and anatomy during the course of irradiation.In the context of breast cancer,ART may serve as an excellent tool for patients receiving breast irradiation followed by a sequential boost to the tumor bed.Primary benefits of ART include more precise boost localization and potential for improved normal tissue sparing with adapted boost target volumes particularly in the setting of seroma reduction during the course of irradiation.Herein,we provide a concise review of ART for breast cancer in light of the literature.展开更多
Advanced mesenchymal stromal cell-based therapies for neurodegenerative diseases are widely investigated in preclinical models.Mesenchymal stromal cells are well positioned as therapeutics because they address the und...Advanced mesenchymal stromal cell-based therapies for neurodegenerative diseases are widely investigated in preclinical models.Mesenchymal stromal cells are well positioned as therapeutics because they address the underlying mechanisms of neurodegeneration,namely trophic factor deprivation and neuroinflammation.Most studies have focused on the beneficial effects of mesenchymal stromal cell transplantation on neuronal survival or functional improvement.However,little attention has been paid to the interaction between mesenchymal stromal cells and the host immune system due to the immunomodulatory properties of mesenchymal stromal cells and the long-held belief of the immunoprivileged status of the central nervous system.Here,we review the crosstalk between mesenchymal stromal cells and the immune system in general and in the context of the central nervous system,focusing on recent work in the retina and the importance of the type of transplantation.展开更多
Deformable image registration (DIR) has been an important component in adaptive radiotherapy (ART). Our goal was to examine the accuracy of ART using the dice similarity coefficient (DSC) and to determine the optimal ...Deformable image registration (DIR) has been an important component in adaptive radiotherapy (ART). Our goal was to examine the accuracy of ART using the dice similarity coefficient (DSC) and to determine the optimal timing of replanning. A total of 22 patients who underwent volume modulated arc therapy (VMAT) for head and neck (H&N) cancers were prospectively analyzed. The planning target volume (PTV) was to receive a total of 70 Gy in 33 fractions. A second planning CT scan (rescan) was performed at the 15th fraction. The DSC was calculated for each structure on both CT scans. The continuous variables to predict the need for replanning were assessed. The optimal cut-off value was determined using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. In the correlation between body weight loss and DSC of each structure, weight loss correlated negatively with DSC of the whole face (rs = -0.45) and the face surface (rs = -0.51). Patients who required replanning tended to have experienced rapid weight loss. The threshold DSC was 0.98 and 0.60 in the whole face and the face surface, respectively. Patients who showed low DSC in the whole face and the face surface required replanning at a significantly high rate (P < 0.05 and P < 0.01). Weight loss correlated with DSC in both the whole face and the face surface (P < 0.05 and P < 0.05). The DSC values in the face predicted the need for replanning. In addition, weight loss tended to correlate with DSC. DIR during ART was found to be a useful tool for replanning.展开更多
BACKGROUND Infiltration of the breast by leukemic cells is uncommon but may manifest as an oncological emergency requiring prompt management.Extramedullary relapse of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia(T-ALL)within t...BACKGROUND Infiltration of the breast by leukemic cells is uncommon but may manifest as an oncological emergency requiring prompt management.Extramedullary relapse of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia(T-ALL)within the breast is exceedingly rare and there is paucity of data in the literature regarding this entity.No consensus exists on management of isolated extramedullary breast relapses of T-ALL.Herein,we report a case of isolated extramedullary breast relapse of T-ALL treated with breathing adapted radiation therapy(BART)using the active breathing control(ABC)system.CASE SUMMARY The patient was a 33-year-old female with diagnosis of T-ALL.She received intensive systemic chemotherapy that resulted in complete remission of her disease,and then underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.After a 15 mo period without symptoms and signs of progression,the patient presented with palpable masses in both breasts.She complained from severe pain and swelling of the breasts.Imaging workup showed bilateral breast lesions,and diagnosis of breast infiltration by leukemic cells was confirmed after immunohistopathological evaluation.The patient suffering from severe pain,discomfort,and swelling of both breasts due to leukemic infiltration was referred to the Radiation Oncology Department for symptomatic palliation.Whole breast irradiation was delivered to both breasts of the patient with BART using the ABC system.The patient had complete resolution of her symptoms after treatment with BART.CONCLUSION BART with the ABC system resulted in complete resolution of the patient’s symptoms due to leukemic infiltration of both breasts with T-ALL.This contemporary treatment technique should be preferred for radiotherapeutic management of patients with leukemic infiltration of the breasts to achieve effective symptomatic palliation.展开更多
Human Adaptive Mechatronics(HAM)includes human and computer system in a closed loop.Elderly person with disabilities,normally carry out their daily routines with some assistance to move their limbs.With the short fall...Human Adaptive Mechatronics(HAM)includes human and computer system in a closed loop.Elderly person with disabilities,normally carry out their daily routines with some assistance to move their limbs.With the short fall of human care takers,mechatronics devices are used with the likes of exoskeleton and exosuits to assist them.The rehabilitation and occupational therapy equipments utilize the electromyography(EMG)signals to measure the muscle activity potential.This paper focuses on optimizing the HAM model in prediction of intended motion of upper limb with high accuracy and to increase the response time of the system.Limb characteristics extraction from EMG signal and prediction of optimal controller parameters are modeled.Time and frequency based approach of EMG signal are considered for feature extraction.The models used for estimating motion and muscle parameters from EMG signal for carrying out limb movement predictions are validated.Based on the extracted features,optimal parameters are selected by Modified Lion Optimization(MLO)for controlling the HAM system.Finally,supervised machine learning makes predictions at different points in time for individual sensing using Support Vector Neural Network(SVNN).This model is also evaluated based on optimal parameters of motion estimation and the accuracy level along with different optimization models for various upper limb movements.The proposed model of human adaptive controller predicts the limb movement by 96%accuracy.展开更多
Most patients with multiple myeloma (MM) respond well to initial therapy, but invariably relapse due to evolution of resistant phenotypes. Here we examine the evolutionary dynamics of proliferation of resistant MM phe...Most patients with multiple myeloma (MM) respond well to initial therapy, but invariably relapse due to evolution of resistant phenotypes. Here we examine the evolutionary dynamics of proliferation of resistant MM phenotypes during therapy. By applying computational models to data from three clinical trials for newly diagnosed MM patients, we have quantified the size and level of chemoresistance of subpopulations within the tumor burden in 124 patients, prior to and during therapy. Subsequently, we used the computational models to explore an alternative strategy of “adaptive therapy” (AT), which includes defined treatment holidays, to improve the duration of “controlled disease” (CD). Simulations showed that AT could prolong CD in all three trials: 50.0% vs. 11.1% 50-month CD for a single agent approach in older adults (P = 0.0123), 80.4% vs. 58.8% 60-month CD for a multi-agent bortezomib based therapy (P = 0.0082), and 54.0% vs. 24.0% 60-month CD for a multi-agent lenalidomide based therapy (P < 0.0001). Increases in duration of CD resulted from the stabilization of tumor burden, which in turn would delay the growth of chemoresistant sub-populations in patients with partial (PR), or very good partial response (VGPR). These computational algorithms suggest that AT may provide an alternative and feasible therapeutic management strategy in MM.展开更多
文摘Gastric cancer,a prevalent malignancy worldwide,ranks sixth in terms of frequency and third in fatality,causing over a million new cases and 769000 annual deaths.Predominant in Eastern Europe and Eastern Asia,risk factors include family medical history,dietary habits,tobacco use,Helicobacter pylori,and Epstein-Barr virus infections.Unfortunately,gastric cancer is often diagnosed at an advanced stage,leading to a grim prognosis,with a 5-year overall survival rate below 5%.Surgical intervention,particularly with D2 Lymphadenectomy,is the mainstay for early-stage cases but offers limited success.For advanced cases,the National Comprehensive Cancer Network recommends chemotherapy,radiation,and targeted therapy.Emerging immunotherapy presents promise,especially for unresectable or metastatic cases,with strategies like immune checkpoint inhibitors,tumor vaccines,adoptive immunotherapy,and nonspecific immunomodulators.In this Editorial,with regards to the article“Advances and key focus areas in gastric cancer immunotherapy:A comprehensive scientometric and clinical trial review”,we address the advances in the field of immunotherapy in gastric cancer and its future prospects.
文摘BACKGROUND Behavioral activation therapy(BA)is as effective as cognitive behavior therapy(CBT)in treating depression and can be delivered by practitioners with much less psychological training,making it particularly suitable for low resource settings.BA that is culturally adapted for Muslims(BA-M)is a culturally adapted form of BA that has been found acceptable and feasible for Muslims with depression in the United Kingdom and Turkey;however,this is the first time that its efficacy has been determined through a definitive randomized controlled trial.AIM To compare the effectiveness of BA-M with CBT for Muslim patients with depression in Pakistan.METHODS One hundred and eight patients were randomized 1:1 to treatment arms in a parallel-group randomized controlled trial in hospital or community sites in Lahore,Pakistan.Recruitment followed self-referral or referrals from clinicians,consultants or relevant professionals at each site.Four measures were recorded by blinded assessors:The patient health questionnaire-9(PHQ-9);the BA for depression scale short form(BADS-SF);symptom checklist-revised and the World Health Organization Quality-of-Life Brief Scale.All measures were recorded at baseline and post treatment;PHQ-9 and BADS-SF were also recorded at each session and at three month follow up.The primary analysis was to regress the PHQ-9 score after therapy upon the PHQ-9 score before therapy(baseline)and the type of therapy given,that is,analysis of covariance.In addition,analysis using PHQ-9 scores collected at each therapy session was employed in a 2-level regression model.RESULTS Patients in the BA-M arm experienced greater improvement in PHQ-9 score of 1.95 units compared to the CBT arm after adjusting for baseline values(P=0.006)The key reason behind this improvement was that patients were retained in therapy longer under BA-M,in which patients were retained for an average 0.75 sessions more than CBT patients(P=0.013).Patients also showed significant differences on physical(P<0.001),psychological(P=0.004)and social(P=0.047)domains of Quality of Life(QoL)at post treatment level,indicating an increased QoL in the BA-M group as compared to the treatment as usual group.Some baseline differences were noted in both groups for BA scores and two domains of QoL scale:Physical and environment,which might have influenced the results,though the BA-M group showed more improvement at completion of therapy.CONCLUSION Results proved the efficacy of BA-M in reducing symptoms for depressed patients in Pakistan,indicating BA-M is a promising treatment modality for depression in future,particularly in low resource settings.
文摘Breast cancer is the most frequent cancer among females and also a leading cause of cancer related mortality worldwide.A multimodality treatment approach may be utilized for optimal management of patients with combinations of surgery,radiation therapy(RT)and systemic treatment.RT composes an integral part of breast conserving treatment,and is typically used after breast conserving surgery to improve local control.Recent years have witnessed significant improvements in the discipline of radiation oncology which allow for more focused and precise treatment delivery.Adaptive radiation therapy(ART)is among the most important RT techniques which may be utilized for redesigning of treatment plans to account for dynamic changes in tumor size and anatomy during the course of irradiation.In the context of breast cancer,ART may serve as an excellent tool for patients receiving breast irradiation followed by a sequential boost to the tumor bed.Primary benefits of ART include more precise boost localization and potential for improved normal tissue sparing with adapted boost target volumes particularly in the setting of seroma reduction during the course of irradiation.Herein,we provide a concise review of ART for breast cancer in light of the literature.
基金funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness,No.PID(2019)-106498GB-100 (to MVS)by the Instituto de Salud CarlosⅢ,Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional"Una manera de hacer Europa",No.PI19/00071 (to MAB)+2 种基金the RETICS subprograms of Spanish Networks OftoRed,Nos.RD16/0008/0026 (to DGB) and RD16/0008/0016 (to DGB)RICORS Terav,No.RD16/0011/0001 (to DGB)from Instituto de Salud CarlosⅢby the Fundacion Seneca,Agencia de Cienciay Tecnologia Región de Murcia,No.19881/GERM/15 (all to MVS)
文摘Advanced mesenchymal stromal cell-based therapies for neurodegenerative diseases are widely investigated in preclinical models.Mesenchymal stromal cells are well positioned as therapeutics because they address the underlying mechanisms of neurodegeneration,namely trophic factor deprivation and neuroinflammation.Most studies have focused on the beneficial effects of mesenchymal stromal cell transplantation on neuronal survival or functional improvement.However,little attention has been paid to the interaction between mesenchymal stromal cells and the host immune system due to the immunomodulatory properties of mesenchymal stromal cells and the long-held belief of the immunoprivileged status of the central nervous system.Here,we review the crosstalk between mesenchymal stromal cells and the immune system in general and in the context of the central nervous system,focusing on recent work in the retina and the importance of the type of transplantation.
文摘Deformable image registration (DIR) has been an important component in adaptive radiotherapy (ART). Our goal was to examine the accuracy of ART using the dice similarity coefficient (DSC) and to determine the optimal timing of replanning. A total of 22 patients who underwent volume modulated arc therapy (VMAT) for head and neck (H&N) cancers were prospectively analyzed. The planning target volume (PTV) was to receive a total of 70 Gy in 33 fractions. A second planning CT scan (rescan) was performed at the 15th fraction. The DSC was calculated for each structure on both CT scans. The continuous variables to predict the need for replanning were assessed. The optimal cut-off value was determined using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. In the correlation between body weight loss and DSC of each structure, weight loss correlated negatively with DSC of the whole face (rs = -0.45) and the face surface (rs = -0.51). Patients who required replanning tended to have experienced rapid weight loss. The threshold DSC was 0.98 and 0.60 in the whole face and the face surface, respectively. Patients who showed low DSC in the whole face and the face surface required replanning at a significantly high rate (P < 0.05 and P < 0.01). Weight loss correlated with DSC in both the whole face and the face surface (P < 0.05 and P < 0.05). The DSC values in the face predicted the need for replanning. In addition, weight loss tended to correlate with DSC. DIR during ART was found to be a useful tool for replanning.
文摘BACKGROUND Infiltration of the breast by leukemic cells is uncommon but may manifest as an oncological emergency requiring prompt management.Extramedullary relapse of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia(T-ALL)within the breast is exceedingly rare and there is paucity of data in the literature regarding this entity.No consensus exists on management of isolated extramedullary breast relapses of T-ALL.Herein,we report a case of isolated extramedullary breast relapse of T-ALL treated with breathing adapted radiation therapy(BART)using the active breathing control(ABC)system.CASE SUMMARY The patient was a 33-year-old female with diagnosis of T-ALL.She received intensive systemic chemotherapy that resulted in complete remission of her disease,and then underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.After a 15 mo period without symptoms and signs of progression,the patient presented with palpable masses in both breasts.She complained from severe pain and swelling of the breasts.Imaging workup showed bilateral breast lesions,and diagnosis of breast infiltration by leukemic cells was confirmed after immunohistopathological evaluation.The patient suffering from severe pain,discomfort,and swelling of both breasts due to leukemic infiltration was referred to the Radiation Oncology Department for symptomatic palliation.Whole breast irradiation was delivered to both breasts of the patient with BART using the ABC system.The patient had complete resolution of her symptoms after treatment with BART.CONCLUSION BART with the ABC system resulted in complete resolution of the patient’s symptoms due to leukemic infiltration of both breasts with T-ALL.This contemporary treatment technique should be preferred for radiotherapeutic management of patients with leukemic infiltration of the breasts to achieve effective symptomatic palliation.
基金This work was supported by the Deanship of Scientific Research,King Khalid University,Kingdom of Saudi Arabia under research Grant Number(R.G.P.2/100/41).
文摘Human Adaptive Mechatronics(HAM)includes human and computer system in a closed loop.Elderly person with disabilities,normally carry out their daily routines with some assistance to move their limbs.With the short fall of human care takers,mechatronics devices are used with the likes of exoskeleton and exosuits to assist them.The rehabilitation and occupational therapy equipments utilize the electromyography(EMG)signals to measure the muscle activity potential.This paper focuses on optimizing the HAM model in prediction of intended motion of upper limb with high accuracy and to increase the response time of the system.Limb characteristics extraction from EMG signal and prediction of optimal controller parameters are modeled.Time and frequency based approach of EMG signal are considered for feature extraction.The models used for estimating motion and muscle parameters from EMG signal for carrying out limb movement predictions are validated.Based on the extracted features,optimal parameters are selected by Modified Lion Optimization(MLO)for controlling the HAM system.Finally,supervised machine learning makes predictions at different points in time for individual sensing using Support Vector Neural Network(SVNN).This model is also evaluated based on optimal parameters of motion estimation and the accuracy level along with different optimization models for various upper limb movements.The proposed model of human adaptive controller predicts the limb movement by 96%accuracy.
文摘Most patients with multiple myeloma (MM) respond well to initial therapy, but invariably relapse due to evolution of resistant phenotypes. Here we examine the evolutionary dynamics of proliferation of resistant MM phenotypes during therapy. By applying computational models to data from three clinical trials for newly diagnosed MM patients, we have quantified the size and level of chemoresistance of subpopulations within the tumor burden in 124 patients, prior to and during therapy. Subsequently, we used the computational models to explore an alternative strategy of “adaptive therapy” (AT), which includes defined treatment holidays, to improve the duration of “controlled disease” (CD). Simulations showed that AT could prolong CD in all three trials: 50.0% vs. 11.1% 50-month CD for a single agent approach in older adults (P = 0.0123), 80.4% vs. 58.8% 60-month CD for a multi-agent bortezomib based therapy (P = 0.0082), and 54.0% vs. 24.0% 60-month CD for a multi-agent lenalidomide based therapy (P < 0.0001). Increases in duration of CD resulted from the stabilization of tumor burden, which in turn would delay the growth of chemoresistant sub-populations in patients with partial (PR), or very good partial response (VGPR). These computational algorithms suggest that AT may provide an alternative and feasible therapeutic management strategy in MM.
