Development and validation of a nomogram to predict leptomeningeal metastases in lung adenocarcinoma: Cervical lymph node metastasis is an important association factor.

BACKGROUND: The goal of this study was to create a nomogram using routine parameters to predict leptomeningeal metastases (LMs) in advanced lung adenocarcinoma (LAC) patients to prevent needless exams or lumbar punctures and to assist in accurately diagnosing LMs. METHODS: Two hundred and seventy-three patients with LMs and brain metastases were retrospectively reviewed and divided into derivation (n = 191) and validation (n = 82) cohorts using a 3:7 random allocation. All LAC patients with LMs had positive cerebrospinal fluid cytology results and brain metastases confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging. Binary logistic regression with backward stepwise selection was used to identify significant characteristics. A predictive nomogram based on the logistic model was assessed through receiver operating characteristic curves. The validation cohort and Hosmer-Lemeshow test were used for internal validation of the nomogram. RESULTS: Five clinicopathological parameters, namely, gene mutations, surgery at the primary lung cancer site, clinical symptoms of the head, N stage, and therapeutic strategy, were used as predictors of LMs. The area under the curve was 0.946 (95% CI 0.912-0.979) for the training cohort and 0.861 (95% CI 0.761-0.961) for the internal validation cohort. There was no significant difference in performance between the two cohorts (p = 0.116). In the internal validation, calibration plots revealed that the nomogram predictions were well suited to the actual outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: We created a user-friendly nomogram to predict LMs in advanced lung cancer patients, which could help guide treatment decisions and reduce unnecessary lumbar punctures.

PD-1-induced encephalopathy: a report of 2 cases on neurological toxicities with immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Background: Immune-related adverse effects (irAEs) often occur during immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy. In the nervous system, the incidence of irAEs ranges from 0.1-12%, with 80% occurring within the first 4 months of ICI application. For complications of the nervous system, adequate diagnosis is made by signs, symptoms, imaging and cerebrospinal fluid. If severe irAEs occur, ICIs should be discontinued and patients should be treated with high-dose glucocorticoids, immunoglobulins, or immunosorbent therapy with systemic support. Patients who develop severe neurologic irAEs have a poorer prognosis. Case Description: In this article, we report 2 cases of encephalopathy induced by anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) monoclonal antibodies at the initial diagnoses. Our findings may help clinicians to differentiate between encephalopathy caused by immunotherapy and other neurological disorders. Case 1 was a 24-year-old male patient who had undergone PD-1 immunotherapy to treat olfactory neuroblastoma. After the 6th course of therapy, he began to develop persistent epilepsy, which decreased significantly after high doses of glucocorticoid and immunosorbent therapy were administered. Based on his medical history and laboratory examination results, PD-1-induced encephalopathy was the most likely diagnosis. Case 2 was a 67-year-old female patient who had been treated with PD-1/programmed death ligand-1 therapy for lung adenocarcinoma. She began to have headaches after 1 cycle of treatment, and her cognitive function gradually decreased with the continuation of immunotherapy. Conclusions: These case reports show the difficulty in distinguishing PD-1-induced encephalopathy from other neurological disorders, especially paraneoplastic neurological syndromes. If not treated properly, patients' lives may be endangered. Thus, early identification and early treatment are very important.

Furmonertinib and intrathecal pemetrexed chemotherapy rechallenges osimertinib-refractory leptomeningeal metastasis in a non-small cell lung cancer patient harboring EGFR20 R776S, C797S, and EGFR21 L858R compound EGFR mutations: a case report.

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are considered the first-line treatment for advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients harboring EGFR mutations. However, due to the rarity of cases, the response of EGFR-TKIs in patients harboring uncommon compound EGFR mutations still needs to be determined. Here, we demonstrated the case of a 47-year-old smoker diagnosed with leptomeningeal metastasis from NSCLC and had EGFR20 R776S, C797S, and EGFR21 L858R compound mutations. He was treated with furmonertinib combined with intrathecal pemetrexed chemotherapy following progression on osimertinib, which led to clinical improvement and successfully prolonged his survival by 3 months. Regrettably, the patient eventually died from heart disease. This report provides the first reported evidence for the use of furmonertinib and intrathecal pemetrexed chemotherapy in NSCLC patients harboring EGFR R776S/C797S/L858R mutations who progressed on previous EGFR-TKIs.

Atypical primary central nervous system lymphoma and glioblastoma: multiparametric differentiation based on non-enhancing volume, apparent diffusion coefficient, and arterial spin labeling.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the multiparametric diagnostic performance with non-enhancing tumor volume, apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), and arterial spin labeling (ASL) to differentiate between atypical primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) and glioblastoma (GBM). METHODS: One hundred and fifty-eight patients with pathologically confirmed typical PCNSL (n = 59), atypical PCNSL (hemorrhage, necrosis, or heterogeneous contrast enhancement, n = 29), and GBM (n = 70) were selected. Relative minimum ADC (rADCmin), mean (rADCmean), maximum (rADCmax), and rADCmax-min (rADCdif) were obtained by standardization of the contralateral white matter. Maximum cerebral blood flow (CBFmax) was obtained according to the ASL-CBF map. The regions of interests (ROIs) were manually delineated on the inner side of the tumor to further generate a 3D-ROI and obtain the non-enhancing tumor (nET) volume. The area under the curve (AUC) was used to evaluate the diagnostic performance. RESULTS: Atypical PCNSLs showed significantly lower rADCmax, rADCmean, and rADCdif than that of GBMs. GBMs showed significantly higher CBFmax and nET volume ratios than that of atypical PCNSLs. Combined three-variable models with rADCmean, CBFmax, and nET volume ratio were superior to one- and two-variable models. The AUC of the three-variable model was 0.96, and the sensitivity and specificity were 90% and 96.55%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The combined evaluation of rADCmean, CBFmax, and nET volume allowed for reliable differentiation between atypical PCNSL and GBM. KEY POINTS: • Atypical PCNSL is easily misdiagnosed as glioblastoma, which leads to unnecessary surgical resection. • The nET volume, ADC, and ASL-derived parameter (CBF) were lower for atypical PCNSL than that for glioblastoma. • The combination of multiple parameters performed well (AUC = 0.96) in the discrimination between atypical PCNSL and glioblastoma.

Efficacy and safety of combined immunotherapy and stereotactic radiosurgery in NSCLCBM patients and a novel prognostic nomogram: A real-world study.

Objective: To explore the effectiveness of combined immunotherapy (IT) and stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and address the gap between evidence-based clinical practice and academic knowledge of optimal timing of IT relative to SRS. In addition, to meet the unmet need for an up-to-date prognostic assessment model in the era of IT. Methods: The data of 86 non-small cell lung cancer brain metastasis (NSCLCBM) patients treated with SRS to 268 brain metastases (BMs) were retrospectively extracted from our hospital database. The Kaplan-Meier analysis was employed for overall survival (OS) and a log-rank test for comparison between groups. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to identify the significant prognostic factors. The prognostic nomogram was established utilizing the rms package of R software. Results: IT was found to be associated with improved OS (from BM diagnosis: HR 0.363, 95% CI 0.199 - 0.661, P < 0.001; from SRS: HR 0.472, 95% CI 0.260 - 0.857, P = 0.014). Individuals who received IT in combination with SRS had better OS than those who didn't (from the day of BM diagnosis: 16.8 vs. 8.4 months, P = 0.006; from the day of SRS: 12 vs. 7 months, P = 0.037). Peri-SRS timing of IT administration was a significant prognostic factor for OS (from BM diagnosis: HR 0.132, 95% CI 0.034 - 0.517, P = 0.004; from SRS: HR 0.14, 95% CI 0.044 - 0.450, P = 0.001). Initiating IT after SRS led to superior OS than concurrent or before (from BM diagnosis: 26.5 vs. 14.1 vs. 7.1 months; from SRS: 21.4 vs. 9.9 vs. 4.1 months, respectively). Additionally, we build a nomogram incorporating IT, cumulative intracranial tumor volume (CITV), and recursive partitioning analysis (RPA), demonstrating a remarkable prognosis prediction performance for SRS-treated NSCLCBM patients. Conclusion: Peri-SRS IT is a promising approach in treating NSCLCBM, as improved OS was observed without significantly increasing adverse events. Receipt of IT post-SRS was associated with superior OS than those who received IT concurrently or before. Incorporating IT and CITV into the RPA index could augment its prognosis assessment value for SRS-treated NSCLCBM patients, predominantly in the wild-type.

Case Report: Identification of a Novel GNAS Mutation and 1p/22q Co-Deletion in a Patient With Multiple Recurrent Meningiomas Sensitive to Sunitinib.

BACKGROUND: Although surgical resection can cure the majority of meningiomas, there are still approximately 20% of patients suffering from an aggressive course with recurrence or progression. In this study, we reported a novel GNAS mutation and 1p/22q co-deletion responding to sunitinib in a patient with multiple recurrent meningiomas. CASE PRESENTATION: A 53-year-old woman with meningioma was hospitalized due to postoperative tumor progression for 3 weeks. WHO grade I meningioma was pathologically diagnosed after the first three surgeries, but the second recurrence occurred approximately 3 years following the third surgery. Next-generation sequencing was performed on the first two recurrent samples. GNAS mutations and 1p/22q co-deletion were both identified, and amplification at 17q and chromosome 19 was also found in the second recurrent sample, based on which WHO grade II/III meningioma was diagnosed. The lesion in the left cerebellopontine angle area enlarged after use of radiotherapy combined with temozolomide chemotherapy for 2 months. When sunitinib was added, the residual lesions began to lessen and continuously reduced. CONCLUSION: This typical case suggested that timely molecular diagnosis for refractory meningiomas contributed to guiding the molecular classification and clinicians to make more reasonable individualized therapeutic regimens, consequently benefiting the patients. This case report also highlighted the potential role of sunitinib in the treatment of refractory meningiomas.

Bevacizumab as a treatment for radiation necrosis following stereotactic radiosurgery for brain metastases: clinical and radiation dosimetric impacts.

BACKGROUND: Brain necrosis (RN) is a common radiotherapy sequela for brain metastases. Bevacizumab is identified as a therapeutic strategy for RN. This study aimed to study the clinical and radiobiological impacts on the efficacy of Bevacizumab in treating RN following stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) for brain metastases. METHODS: From April 2011 to November 2019, 40 patients diagnosed with RN after SRS for brain metastases were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were treated with Bevacizumab for RN and follow-up for 6 months using MR imaging at different timepoints. Linear regression was performed to evaluate the relationship between these variables. RESULTS: The median time course from the end of radiotherapy to the onset of RN was 11 months (range, 7-35 months). No significant difference was found in the edema volume between the chemotherapy group and non-chemotherapy group (P>0.05). Patients received with SRS + WBRT exhibited relatively larger edema volumes post radiotherapy than those without WBRT (P<0.05). Interestingly, the ratio of BED/GTV (Gy/cm3 ) correlated positively with the severity (time for half-reduction dose of corticosteroids) (r2 =0.13, P<0.05), and negatively with the latency period (time course for development of radiation-induced brain necrosis) (r2 =0.21, P<0.01). A new radiation doses volume index, BED × GTV (Gy·cm3 ), was proposed to facilitate the risk stratifications of patients for radiation-induced brain necrosis. Furthermore, no significant difference was found in alleviating brain edema between different regimens of Bevacizumab, i.e., 5 vs. 10 mg/kg, 2 vs. >2 cycles (both P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Bevacizumab is a feasible and favorable salvage treatment of BN after SRS for patients with BM. The efficacy is mainly manifested in radiological improvement and symptoms alleviation. The development of RN was found to be largely associated with radiation dose and gross tumor volume, and thus we proposed two new indexes, i.e., BED/GTV (Gy/cm3 ) for quantitative assessment of the severity and latency time, and BED × GTV (Gy·cm3 ) for risk stratifications for BN. A low dose with two cycles of Bevacizumab is recommended.

Stereotactic radiosurgery for treatment of large cerebellum metastases from lung cancer.

BACKGROUND: Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is an important treatment option. This report evaluated the efficacy and safety of SRS in patients with large cerebellum metastases from lung cancer. METHODS: Between September 2016 and January 2020, a total of 44 patients with large cerebellum metastases >2 cm from lung cancer were evaluated. A median dose of 20 Gy (range, 8-24 Gy) was delivered in 1 to 3 fractions for SRS treatment. The survival rate was analyzed with SPSS software 21.0 and compared by log-rank test using the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: The median overall survival (OS) and neurological progression-free survival (PFS) were 10.5 months (range, 1-32 months) and 9.0 months (range, 1-32 months), respectively. The median diameter and volume of the metastases were 3.5 cm (range, 2.1-5.7 cm) and 12.5 cc (range, 1.8-39.7 cc), respectively. The median volume of peritumoral edema was 36.3 cc (range, 3.7-100.3 cc). The median ratio of tumor volume to cerebellum volume was 8.7% (range, 1.3-27.0%). The median ratio of peritumoral edema volume to cerebellum volume was 25.0% (range, 2.5-68.6%). Neurological symptoms were present in 97.7% (43/44) of patients. After SRS treatment, symptoms improved in 83.7% (36/44) patients, stabilized in 11.6% (5/44) patients, whilst two patients experienced symptomatic progression. Of the latter, one patient accepted emergency surgery and the other accepted palliative care. CONCLUSIONS: Large cerebellum metastases are amongst the most severe forms of brain tumors. Increased tumor volume and peritumoral edema volume correlate with the most severe symptoms. SRS may be an effective alternative treatment for large cerebellum metastases from lung cancer and may preserve neurological function.

Long non-coding RNA HOTTIP promotes BCL-2 expression and induces chemoresistance in small cell lung cancer by sponging miR-216a.

Despite progress in treatment of small cell lung cancer (SCLC), its multidrug chemoresistance and poor prognosis still remain. Recently, we globally assessed long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) for contributions to SCLC chemoresistance using microarray data, in vitro and in vivo assays. Here we reported that HOTTIP, encoding a lncRNA that is frequently amplified in SCLC, was associated with SCLC cell chemosensitivity, proliferation, and poor prognosis of SCLC patients. Moreover, mechanistic investigations showed that HOTTIP functioned as an oncogene in SCLC progression by binding miR-216a and abrogating its tumor-suppressive function in this setting. On the other hand, HOTTIP increased the expression of anti-apoptotic factor BCL-2, another important target gene of miR-216a, and jointly enhanced chemoresistance of SCLC by regulating BCL-2. Taken together, our study established a role for HOTTIP in SCLC progression and chemoresistance suggest its candidacy as a new diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for clinical management of SCLC.

TSPAN12 promotes chemoresistance and proliferation of SCLC under the regulation of miR-495.

Studies have shown that TSPAN12 serves as an oncogenic gene or tumor suppressor depending on the types of cancer. However, its role in the drug resistance of small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is still unknown. In this study, we investigated whether TSPAN12 regulates chemoresistance, proliferation and tumor growth of SCLC under the regulation of miR-495 using two drug resistant cell lines. The results showed that down-regulation of TSPAN12 inhibited cells chemoresistance, proliferation and tumor growth. Besides, TSPAN12 elevation in SCLC specimens correlated with poor pathologic stage and shorter survival time. In addition, the dual luciferase assay indicated that TSPAN12 was one of the directly targeted genes of miR-495. Our study revealed that TSPAN12 promoted chemoresistance of SCLC under the regulation of miR-495. TSPAN12 depletion is a promising strategy for inhibiting the chemoresistance in SCLC.

The Effects of Anti-inflammatory Drug Treatment in Gastric Cancer Prevention: an Update of a Meta-analysis.

Gastric cancer has high incidence and fatality rates, making chemoprevention agents necessary. There is an ongoing debate about aspirin/nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) use can significant reduce the risk of GC. We conducted a meta-analysis of existing studies evaluating the association of anti-inflammatory drug and GC. We performed a systematic literature search of PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, OVID, Cochrane Library and Clincialtrials.gov up to August 31, 2015. Either a fixed-effects or a random-effects model using was based on the result of homogeneity analysis. Subgroup, sensitivity, meta-regression, and publication bias analyses were evaluated. Forty-seven studies were finally included in this meta-analysis. The overall GC risk reduction benefit associated with anti-inflammatory drug use represented an RR of 0.78 (95% CI 0.71 to 0.85) and an adjusted RR of 0.74 (95% CI 0.71 to 0.77). Besides, the prevention benefit of aspirin/NSAIDs ingestion appeared to be confined to those patients with regiment of short or middle-term (≤5 years), high-frequency (>30 times per month) and low dose (<200 mg per day). Further, our data also suggest that COX-2 inhibitors use is a more effective approach in GC prevention (RR, 0.45; 95% CI, 0.29-0.70). In this meta-analysis, our finding support short or middle-term (≤5 years), high-frequency (>30 times per month) and low dose (<200 mg per day) aspirin/NSAIDs intake is a well method for GC prevention and also confirm the inverse association between aspirin/NSAIDs use and GC risk. Additionally, selective COX-2 inhibitors use probably a more effective approach to reduce GC risk.

Prognostic Impact of the Signet Ring Cell Type in Node-Negative Gastric Cancer.

Little is known regarding the prognostic impact of the signet ring cell (SRC) histotype on negative lymph nodes (LNs) in gastric cancer (GC). In this study, we aimed to investigate the differences between SRC and non-SRC GC patients without LN metastasis. The medical records of patients with GC who underwent gastrectomy at Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Centre from 1996 to 2012 were reviewed to analyse the clinicopathologic characteristics associated with survival. A total of 480 cases of GC patients without LN metastasis were identified, which included 90 SRC GC patients and 390 non-SRC GC patients. Between the two groups, there were a host of significant differences in the American Joint Committee on Cancer, 7th edition (AJCC) stage. We found that SRC histology was correlated with a poor prognosis in terms of recurrence in node-negative GC patients and that SRC histologic analysis combined with AJCC staging maybe an effectual method for prediction of the recurrence rate. Additionally, we found that SRC GC presents a more dismal overall prognosis in patients with perineural or vascular invasion.

EPHA3 regulates the multidrug resistance of small cell lung cancer via the PI3K/BMX/STAT3 signaling pathway.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is a major obstacle to the treatment of small cell lung cancer (SCLC). EPHA3 has been revealed to be the most frequently mutated Eph receptor gene in lung cancer with abnormal expression. Growing evidence indicates that the signaling proteins of EPHA3 downstream, including PI3K, BMX and STAT3, play crucial roles in tumorigenesis and cancer progression. To explore the possible role of EPHA3 in MDR, we assessed the influence of EPHA3 on chemoresistance, cell cycle, apoptosis, and tumor growth, as well as the relationship between EPHA3 and the expression of PI3K, BMX, and STAT3 in SCLC. We observed that overexpression of EPHA3 in SCLC cells decreased chemoresistance by increasing apoptosis and inducing G0/G1 arrest, accompanied by reduced phosphorylation of PI3K/BMX/STAT3 signaling pathway. Knockdown of EPHA3 expression generated a resistant phenotype of SCLC, as a result of decreased apoptosis and induced G2/M phase arrest. And re-expression of EPHA3 in these cells reversed the resistant phenotype. Meanwhile, increased phosphorylation of PI3K/BMX/STAT3 signaling pathway was observed in these cells with EPHA3 deficiency. Notably, both PI3K inhibitor (LY294002) and BMX inhibitor (LFM-A13) impaired the chemoresistance enhanced by EPHA3 deficiency in SCLC cell lines. Furthermore, EPHA3 inhibited growth of SCLC cells in vivo and was correlated with longer overall survival of SCLC patients. Thus, we first provide the evidences that EPHA3 is involved in regulating the MDR of SCLC via PI3K/BMX/STAT3 signaling and may be a new therapeutic target in SCLC.

Environmental impact assessment of industrial structure change in a rural region of China.

As the embodiment of human activities, the change of regional industrial structure is an essential driving factor of global environmental change. Consequently, the research on the change of regional industrial structure and associated effects on the environment is one of the key issues of researches on sustainable development, human-environment relationship, and regional response to global environment change. However, compared to the flourish of researches on environmental impact assessment of industrial departments, few studies have been conducted to assess the environmental impact of regional industrial structure. In this study, based on a synthetic analysis of environmental disturbances of different industrial departments, the environmental impact coefficient of industrial department associated with the index of environmental impact of industrial structure was constructed, so as to make a quantitative assessment of environmental impact of the change of regional industrial structure. And the results of the case study in Lijiang City, a rural region of China, have showed that there are two obvious changes of industrial structure in the study area from 1992 to 2003, associated with a continuous decreasing of the index of environmental impact of industrial structure, which indicated a positive environmental effects of the change of regional industrial structure.