Risk and prognostic factors of invasive gastric cancer detection during surveillance endoscopy: Multi-institutional cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVES: Esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) is important for the detection of curable gastric cancer (GC). However, there are no appropriate surveillance data during routine endoscopic inspections. This study aimed to clarify the risk factors of pT1b or deeper GC detection during surveillance endoscopy. METHODS: This was a retrospective, multicenter, cross-sectional study conducted in 15 Japanese hospitals. We retrospectively analyzed patients with GC who had previously undergone surveillance endoscopy at each institution from January 2014 to March 2020. Patients who had undergone gastrectomy, non-infection of Helicobacter pylori (Hp), and those with intervals <3 months or >10 years from a previous endoscopy were excluded. RESULTS: In total, 1085 patients with GCs detected during surveillance endoscopy were enrolled. The multivariate logistic analysis revealed that current Hp infection (odds ratio [OR] 2.18; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.50-3.16) and a surveillance interval of >1.5 years (OR 1.96; 95% CI 1.35-2.84) were independent risk factors for pT1b or deeper GC. The 5-year disease-specific survival (5y-DSS) rate of GC was significantly lower in patients with surveillance interval of >1.5 years than in those with surveillance interval of ≤1.5 years (93.7% vs. 98.3%, P < 0.001). Similarly, the 5y-DSS rate of GC was significantly lower in patients with active Hp infection than in those without (93.7% vs. 99.4%, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: In this study, a surveillance interval of >1.5 years and current Hp infection were independent risk factors for detecting pT1b or deeper GC. Additionally, these factors were poor prognostic factors of the detected GC during surveillance endoscopy.

Exploratory Study of the Effectiveness of Granulocyte and Monocyte Adsorptive Apheresis Before Initiation of Steroids in Patients With Active Ulcerative Colitis (EXPECT Study): A Multicenter Prospective Clinical Trial.

BACKGROUND: Granulocyte and monocyte adsorptive apheresis (GMA) has been used for therapy of steroid-dependent/refractory ulcerative colitis (UC). The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of GMA in UC patients not receiving steroids. METHODS: We conducted a single-arm, open-label, and multicenter prospective clinical trial. UC patients who had insufficient responses to 5-aminosalicylic acid received GMA twice a week for 5 weeks. RESULTS: The response rate of all patients was 58.2% (39/67). Of the 39 patients who achieved a response, 74.4% achieved endoscopically confirmed mucosal healing. CONCLUSIONS: GMA shows effectiveness in inducing remission in UC patients not receiving steroid.

Safety and effectiveness of granulocyte and monocyte adsorptive apheresis in patients with inflammatory bowel disease in special situations: a multicentre cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The available information on granulocyte and monocyte adsorptive apheresis (GMA) in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) under special situations remains unclear. We conducted a retrospective, multicentre cohort study to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of GMA in patients with IBD under special situations. METHODS: This study included patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) or Crohn's disease who had at least one special situation feature and who had received GMA between November 2013 and March 2017. The incidence of adverse events (AEs) was compared in relation to the special situation, and patient background factors related to an AE were identified. For patients with UC, clinical remission was defined as a partial Mayo score of ≤2. RESULTS: A total of 437 patients were included in this study. The incidence of AEs among the elderly patients (11.2%) was similar in all patients (11.4%), whereas the incidences of AEs in patients on multiple immunosuppressant medications (15.2%), patients with anaemia (18.1%) and paediatric/adolescent patients (18.9%) were higher than that in all patients (11.4%). In multivariate analysis, anaemia and concomitant immunosuppressant medications were independently associated with the incidence of AEs. Clinical remission was achieved in 46.4% of the patients with UC. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of AEs in the elderly patients was not higher than that in all patients, whereas the incidence of AE was higher in patients with anaemia and those on multiple immunosuppressant medications than that in all patients. GMA is a safe treatment option in elderly patients with IBD.

Efficacy and safety of hangeshashinto for treatment of GERD refractory to proton pump inhibitors : Usual dose proton pump inhibitors plus hangeshashinto versus double-dose proton pump inhibitors: randomized, multicenter open label exploratory study.

BACKGROUND: Proton pump inhibitor (PPI)-refractory gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) leads to a clinical decline in the quality of life (QOL). Therefore, new treatment options are needed. We performed a multicenter, randomized, parallel-group exploratory trial to determine the efficacy of hangeshashinto (HST) in patients with PPI-refractory GERD. METHODS: We enrolled 78 patients with PPI-refractory GERD for standard PPI regimens for at least 4 weeks and randomly assigned patients to receive either a combination of usual dose of rabeprazole (10 mg/day) + HST (7.5 g/day; HST group) or a double dose of rabeprazole (20 mg/day; double-dose PPI group). The primary end points were the extent of improvement in FSSG (Frequency Scale for the Symptoms of GERD) score and the change over time in FSSG score. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in terms of the improvement degree of the FSSG score between the two groups. Although the total FSSG score and reflux syndrome score decreased significantly for both groups over time (p < 0.001), the acid-related dyspepsia (ARD) score decreased significantly in the HST group from 1 week after drug administration (p < 0.05), indicating an improvement in the condition earlier than in the double-dose PPI group. Moreover, in examinations concerning BMI and age, the HST group had a significantly higher improvement degree of ARD score in patients with BMI < 22 (p < 0.05) and aged < 65 years (p < 0.05) than the double-dose PPI group. CONCLUSIONS: HST may be beneficial for patients with PPI-refractory GERD, particularly in non-obese and non-elderly patients with dyspepsia symptoms.

Increased expression of microRNA in the inflamed colonic mucosa of patients with active ulcerative colitis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: MicroRNA (miRNA) are endogenous, approximately 22-nucleotide non-coding RNA that suppress gene expression at post-transcriptional levels by binding to the 3'-untranslated region of specific mRNA targets through base-pairing. It has been recently reported that miRNA have critical functions in key biological processes such as cell proliferation and cell death in various cancer cells. However, the relationship between intestinal inflammation and miRNA expression remains unclear. In the present study, we used microarray technology to identify miRNA induced in the colonic mucosa of patients with active ulcerative colitis (UC). METHODS: Two colonic biopsy specimens from patients with active stage (>Matts grade 2) of UC under colonoscopy and two colonic biopsy specimens from healthy volunteers were obtained for gene expression profiles. Total RNA was extracted, and miRNA expression profiles were investigated using miRNA Microarray. Subsequently, to confirm the result of the Microarray investigation, we checked the expression of several selected miRNA using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in 12 colonic biopsy specimens from patients with active UC under colonoscopy and 12 specimens from the healthy volunteers. RESULTS: In the microarray study, the expression of several miRNA was upregulated in the colonic mucosa of patients with active UC. Furthermore, two miRNA (miR-21, miR-155) were selected in the study using real-time PCR. CONCLUSION: Upregulated miRNA may be responsible for the development of intestinal inflammation in UC.

A comparative study on endoscopic ulcer healing of omeprazole versus rabeprazole with respect to CYP2C19 genotypic differences.

Omeprazole is mainly metabolized in the liver by CYP2C19, a genetically determined enzyme, while rabeprazole is mainly nonenzymatically degraded with a minor involvement by CYP2C19. We investigated the gastric ulcer healing effect of omeprazole versus rabeprazole evaluated endoscopically with reference to the different CYP2C19 genotypes. Eighty patients with active gastric ulcer were treated with a daily dose of 20 mg of omeprazole or 10 mg of rabeprazole. The endoscopic evaluation was performed at the baseline and 2- and 8-week posttreatment periods. The endoscopic improvement of gastric ulcer size and ulcer healing rates using a thin rubber disc with a diameter of 6 mm, were evaluated in relation to the CYP2C19 genotypic status. The mean 2-week posttreatment ulcer size value by rabeprazole did not significantly differ among the different CYP2C19 genotypes, whereas the mean value in the homozygous extensive metabolizer patients treated with omeprazole was significantly (P = 0.0057) greater than in those with rabeprazole. However, after the 8-week treatment, omeprazole and rabeprazole showed the similarly high healing rates of 87.8% (31/37) and 88.9% (32/36), respectively. Although both omeprazole and rabeprazole showed a high healing rate of gastric ulcer after the 8-week treatment period, the healing effect of rabeprazole appears to be relatively independent of the CYP2C19 status, resulting in an earlier repair of gastric mucosal damage evaluated endoscopically compared to that of omeprazole.

[A case of advanced gastric cancer with DIC treated by sequential MTX and 5-FU].

A 75-year-old man was admitted to our hospital complaining of gastric fatigue. Endoscope and CT scan revealed type 3 gastric cancer with paraaortic lymph nodal metastasis. Histological examination of the endoscopic biopsy revealed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma. A blood examination and bone marrow biopsy revealed DIC causing bone marrow carcinosis. Chemotherapy with sequential therapy consisting of MTX and 5-FU was performed. Stretch of the fold and flatness of the ulcer were obtained against the gastric primary lesion observed endoscopically. Complete response was obtained against the lymph node around the abdominal aorta. Reduction of low back pain and DIC were observed. He was thus able to be discharged and sequential therapy was performed again over 2 months in outpatient care.