Prediction of pathological complete response and prognosis in locally advanced rectal cancer

BACKGROUND Colorectal cancer is currently the third most common malignant tumor and the second leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide.Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy(nCRT)is standard for locally advanced rectal cancer(LARC).Except for pathological examination after resection,it is not known exactly whether LARC patients have achieved pathological complete response(pCR)before surgery.To date,there are no clear clinical indicators that can predict the efficacy of nCRT and patient outcomes.AIM To investigate the indicators that can predict pCR and long-term outcomes following nCRT in patients with LARC.METHODS Clinical data of 128 LARC patients admitted to our hospital between September 2013 and November 2022 were retrospectively analyzed.Patients were categorized into pCR and non-pCR groups.Univariate analysis(using the χ^(2) test or Fisher’s exact test)and logistic multivariate regression analysis were used to study clinical predictors affecting pCR.The 5-year disease-free survival(DFS)and overall survival(OS)rates were calculated using Kaplan-Meier analysis,and differences in survival curves were assessed with the log-rank test.RESULTS Univariate analysis showed that pretreatment carcinoembryonic antigen(CEA)level,lymphocyte-monocyte ratio(LMR),time interval between neoadjuvant therapy completion and total mesorectal excision,and tumor size were correlated with pCR.Multivariate results showed that CEA≤5 ng/mL(P=0.039),LMR>2.73(P=0.023),and time interval>10 wk(P=0.039)were independent predictors for pCR.Survival analysis demonstrated that patients in the pCR group had significantly higher 5-year DFS rates(94.7%vs 59.7%,P=0.002)and 5-year OS rates(95.8%vs 80.1%,P=0.019)compared to the non-pCR group.Tumor deposits(TDs)were significantly correlated with shorter DFS(P=0.002)and OS(P<0.001).CONCLUSION Pretreatment CEA,LMR,and time interval contribute to predicting nCRT efficacy in LARC patients.Achieving pCR demonstrates longer DFS and OS.TDs correlate with poor prognosis.

Tear inflammation related indexes after cataract surgery in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

BACKGROUND Quantitative studies on the changes in inflammation-related content in tears,especially the effect of diabetes,are lacking.In this study,we measured the preoperative and postoperative tear inflammatory mediator levels in cataract patients,focusing on the expression of inflammatory factors in postoperative cataracts in the diabetic,and investigated the effect of drugs on the control of postoperative inflammation.AIM To study the expression of inflammatory factors in elderly people with type 2 diabetes after cataract surgery.METHODS Patients with a mean age of 70.3±6.3 years were divided into group A(composed of elderly patients with cataracts and type 2 diabetes,n=20 eyes)and group B(patients with age-related cataract,n=20 eyes).Their tears were collected before each operation and on days 1 and 3,and weeks 1,2,3,and 4 post-surgery.Saline(150μL)was dropped into the conjunctival sac of the surgical eye,followed by oculogyration in four directions.The fluid in the conjunctival sac was extracted using a sterile syringe and stored in Eppendorf tubes at-80°C until measurement.The expression levels of matrix metalloproteinase-2(MMP-2),MMP-9,tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1(TIMP-1),TIMP-2,interleukin-6(IL-6),and IL-20 in tear fluid were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays.RESULTS The postoperative expression levels of MMP-2,MMP-9,TIMP-2,IL-6,and IL-20 in group A were significantly higher than those in group B,whereas the concentration of TIMP-1 in group A remained lower than that in group B.The levels of MMP-2 and IL-6 in both groups continuously increased until the peak in the first postoperative week,and then gradually decreased over the next three weeks.Ultimately,MMP-2 declined to a lower level than that preoperatively at week 4,but IL-6 decreased to the same level as that preoperatively.The level of MMP-9 peaked in the first two weeks postoperative and then returned to the same level as 1-day post-operation.The concentration of TIMP-1 post-operation remained constant at a lower level than before surgery,and TIMP-2 Levels remained stable in both groups.IL-20 content started to increase in the third week after surgery.CONCLUSION Inflammatory factor levels in tears fluctuated before and post-operation,which indicated more severe postoperative inflammation in the first two weeks.

Advance in Pathogenesis of Gout and Related Gene Polymorphism

Gout is an independent risk factor for hypertension,diabetes mellitus,hyperlipidemia,coronary heart disease and cerebral infarction.At present,the studies on the mechanism of gout at home and abroad have mainly focused on immune inflammation,gene polymorphism and related studies.Uric acid deposition or crystal precipitation activates phagocytes,fibroblasts and mast cells in synovium,produces IL-1β,TNF and chemokine IL-8(CXCL8),thereby activating neutrophils,urate crystal polyanion surface can be coated with immunoglobulins and other serum proteins as substrates for complement activation,complement substitution pathways and classical complement pathways to activate complements.Uric acid crystals activate inflammation-related signal transduction pathways including the activation of inflammation-related signal transduction pathway by uric acid crystals and TLRS/MyD88 signal transduction pathways.Gene polymorphism is related to inflammation and signaling pathway,EGF gene is closely related to gout inflammation,which may be involved in the regulation of gout inflammation,among which NLRP3 inflammatory signaling pathway and gene polymorphism have been deeply studied in the pathogenesis of gout,which is the main therapeutic target of anti-inflammatory and uric acid lowering.

Advances in Pharmacological Research on Active Components of Traditional Chinese Medicine in the Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease-related Bowel Cancer

In recent years,with the modern development of traditional medicine,the research on the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease and bowel cancer is increasingly deep.This paper reviews the pharmacological research progress of flavonoids,alkaloids,polyphenols,polysaccharides,steroids and saponins in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease and canceration.