Comparison between intravenous chemotherapy and intra-arterial chemotherapy for retinoblastoma: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Intravenous chemotherapy (IVC) and intra-arterial chemotherapy (IAC) have become the primary treatments for retinoblastoma; however, some controversy remains over which method is more effective. We conducted a meta-analysis to compare the clinical efficacy of IVC and IAC. METHODS: We systematically searched literature published on PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library up to May 2017. Studies containing either IAC or IVC that reported on efficacy were included. The effects estimate was expressed as a pooled rate with 95% confidence interval (CI), using a fixed-effects or random-effects model. RESULTS: Twenty-six studies were identified which included 1541 eyes (IAC: 11 trials, 445 eyes; IVC: 16 trials, 1096 eyes). The mean follow-up times were 49.4 months (range, 13.0-105.3 months) for IVC and 21.7 months (range, 8.8-38.7 months) for IAC. For the International Classification of Intraocular Retinoblastoma (ICRB) grading, the overall success rate was higher with IAC than with IVC (75.7% [95%CI: 65.7%-83.6%] vs. 69.5% [95%CI: 51.9%-82.8%], P < 0.001). The globe salvage with IAC was higher than with IVC in group D eyes (79.5% [95%CI: 71.8%-85.4%] vs. 55.1% [95%CI: 45.6%-64.2%], P < 0.001), but not in groups B (95.8% [95%CI: 57.5%-99.7%] vs. 82.5% [95%CI: 58.9%-94.0%], P = 0.163), C (91.3% [95%CI: 65.9%-98.3%] vs. 89.0% [95%CI: 69.0%-96.7%], P = 0.212), and E eyes (51.2% [95%CI: 37.0%-65.2%] vs. 43.2% [95%CI: 18.3%-72.1%], P = 0.578). IAC and IVC were not significantly different regarding the recurrence and metastasis rates (15.0% vs. 15.4%, P = 0.148 and 2.7% vs. 0.6%, P = 0.194, respectively). For Reese-Ellsworth (RE) grading, IAC had a higher globe salvage in groups IV (90.9% [95%CI: 56.0%-98.7%] vs. 66.3% [95%CI: 32.4%-89.0%], P = 0.047) and V eyes (83.2% [95%CI: 72.0%-90.5%] vs. 59.9% [95%CI: 43.1%-74.6%], P = 0.003), but not in group I-III eyes (88.6% [95%CI: 58.3%-97.7%] vs. 88.1% [95%CI: 76.6%-94.4%], P = 0.244). The overall success rate was higher in IAC than in IVC (87.1% [95%CI: 78.1%-92.7%] vs. 77.3% [95%CI: 68.1%-84.4%], P = 0.033). CONCLUSIONS: IAC may be superior to IVC for the treatment of retinoblastoma, with a higher overall success rate and higher globe salvage in group D or groups IV and V eyes.

Maternal Programming of Social Dominance via Milk Cytokines.

Regular physical activity improves physical and mental health. Here we found that the effect of physical activity extends to the next generation. Voluntary wheel running of dams, from postpartum day 2 to weaning, increased the social dominance and reproductive success, but not the physical/metabolic health, of their otherwise sedentary offspring. The individual's own physical activity did not improve dominance status. Maternal exercise did not disrupt maternal care or the maternal and offspring microbiota. Rather, the development of dominance behavior in the offspring of running mothers could be explained by the reduction of LIF, CXCL1, and CXCL2 cytokines in breast milk. These data reveal a cytokine-mediated lactocrine pathway that responds to the mother's postpartum physical activity and programs offspring social dominance. As dominance behaviors are highly relevant to the individual's survival and reproduction, lactocrine programming could be an evolutionary mechanism by which a mother promotes the social rank of her offspring.