Disparities in quality of life among patients with breast cancer based on surgical methods: a cross-sectional prospective study.

To determine the impact of breast conservation on quality of life and identify treatment-related and other demographic factors associated with post-breast cancer treatment quality of life. A prospective study was conducted on 392 women who underwent breast cancer surgery at Hangzhou Cancer Hospital from January 1, 2013, to December 31, 2022. Operable breast cancer patients who had completed all treatments except endocrine therapy were included. Patients with tumor recurrence/metastasis, bilateral or male breast cancer, and other primary malignancies were excluded. After enrollment, patients were asked to complete the BREAST-Q scale, and their pathological and medical records were reviewed. Analysis of variance was used to compare the quality of life scores among the groups. Univariate and multivariate linear regression analyses were performed to identify independent factors associated with quality of life scores in different domains. Participants completed the BREAST-Q scale at a median of 4.6 years after surgery. Quality of life scores varied based on the therapeutic strategy. Breast conservation has significant advantages over mastectomy in terms of breast satisfaction, psychosocial, and sexual well-being. Compared to oncoplastic breast-conserving surgery, mastectomy was independently associated with decreased breast satisfaction, psychosocial, and sexual well-being, while conventional breast-conserving surgery showed comparable outcomes to oncoplastic breast-conserving surgery in terms of these factors. Breast conservation leads to an improvement in quality of life compared to mastectomy. Oncoplastic breast-conserving surgery does not lead to a decrease in quality of life compared to conventional breast-conserving surgery and offers better outcomes compared to mastectomy.

Evaluation of the Efficacy of Three Times Titanium Plate Gradual Fixation Method in the Treatment of Extracapsular Condylar Fractures.

OBJECTIVE: An improved method of treating inwardly dislocated mandibular extracapsular condylar fracture-three times titanium plate gradual fixation method was introduced, and the clinical efficacy of this method was evaluated. METHODS: Twenty patients with extracapsular condylar fractures who underwent surgical treatment using the three times titanium plate gradual restoration and fixation method in the Department of Oral Craniomaxillofacial Surgery of the Ninth People's Hospital of Shanghai from November 2020 to June 2023 were selected as the study subjects. RESULTS: After condylar restoration 22 sides reached healing and 1 side was basically healed; in 3 months after the operation, the degree of opening the mouth and the type of the opening of the mouth reached normal, and 1 case had mildly poor occlusion, which required to be further adjusted through orthodontics, and there was no temporomandibular function disorder or facial nerve function damage. CONCLUSION: Three times of gradual fixation with a titanium plate can make the condylar process achieve precise and stable repositioning, and make the surgical process orderly, and it is a kind of reliable fixation method for extracapsular condylar fractures.

Upregulated Tß4 expression in inflammatory bowel disease impairs the intestinal mucus barrier by inhibiting autophagy in mice.

Disrupted intestinal barrier homeostasis is fundamental to inflammatory bowel disease. Thymosin ß4 (Tß4) improves inflammation and has beneficial effects in dry-eye diseases, but its effects on the intestinal mucus barrier remain unknown. Therefore, this study evaluated the underlying regulatory mechanisms and effects of Tß4 by examining Tß4 expression in a mouse model with dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis and colonic barrier damage. Additionally, we intraperitoneally injected C57BL/6 mice with Tß4 to assess barrier function, microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3II) protein expression, and autophagy. Finally, normal human colon tissue and colon carcinoma cells (Caco2) were cultured to verify Tß4-induced barrier function and autophagy changes. Mucin2 levels decreased, microbial infiltration increased, and Tß4 expression increased in the colitis mouse model versus the control mice, indicating mucus barrier damage. Moreover, Tß4-treated C57BL/6 mice had damaged intestinal mucus barriers and decreased LC3II levels. Tß4 also inhibited colonic mucin2 production, disrupted tight junctions, and downregulated autophagy; these results were confirmed in Caco2 cells and normal human colon tissue. In summary, Tß4 may be implicated in colitis by compromising the integrity of the intestinal mucus barrier and inhibiting autophagy. Thus, Tß4 could be a new diagnostic marker for intestinal barrier defects.

A Novel Technique for Reduction and Fixation of Severe Extracapsular Condylar Fracture.

Introducing a novel surgical technique that uses 2 screws and 3 titanium plates to reduce and fix an extracapsular condylar fracture. This technique has been used on 18 sides of extracapsular condylar fracture over the last 3 years in the Department of Oral and Cranio-Maxillofacial Science of Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital without severe complications in clinical practice. Applying this technique, the dislocated condylar segment can be reduced accurately and fixed efficiently.

Chemoradiotherapy for untreated Masaoka-Koga stage IVB thymic carcinoma: a single-center retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: Thymic carcinoma (TC) is a rare type of a malignant tumor. The optimal treatment for Masaoka-Koga stage IVB TC patients is controversial due to the rarity of the disease. Chemotherapy is still the preferred option, but the outcomes are unsatisfactory. Whether radiotherapy combined with chemotherapy could improve prognosis remains unclear. METHODS: Untreated stage IVB TC patients who have received first-line chemotherapy were included in the present study. The patients who have undergone surgery were excluded. The primary outcomes were objective response rate (ORR) and progression-free survival (PFS). RESULTS: Sixty-seven patients were included in the study. A total of 31 patients received chemoradiotherapy (ChemoRT cohort), and the remaining 36 patients only received chemotherapy (Chemo cohort). The median follow-up period was 40.3 months. The ORR for the ChemoRT and Chemo cohorts was 61.3 and 27.8%, respectively (P = 0.006). Furthermore, PFS (P = 0.003) and OS (P = 0.046) were significantly superior in the ChemoRT cohort. Radiotherapy maintained a significant favorable effect on PFS in multivariate analysis (P = 0.014), but the effect on OS was insignificant (P = 0.249). There was no advantage in PFS (P = 0.302) in the ChemoRT cohort in patients who received < 4 cycles of chemotherapy. In contrast, radiotherapy significantly improved PFS (P = 0.005) in patients who received ≥ 4 cycles of chemotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: Chemoradiotherapy used as the first-line treatment improved ORR and PFS in Masaoka-Koga stage IVB TC patients. Patients receiving more cycles of chemotherapy may have a better chance to benefit from chemoradiotherapy.

Definitive local therapy for extracranial single-organ oligorecurrent non-small-cell lung cancer: A single institutional retrospective study.

Oligometastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is potentially curable. Oligo-recurrence occurs with oligometastatic disease characterized by well-controlled primary lesion. The purpose of the present study was to explore the value of definitive local therapy (DLT) for extracranial single-organ oligorecurrent NSCLC. A total of 81 patients with NSCLC who had extracranial single-organ oligorecurrence after receiving radical treatment at the Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences from January 2010 to December 2017 were analyzed. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS), and the secondary endpoint was overall survival (OS). The median follow-up time of the 81 patients was 65.8 months. A total of 39 patients received DLT. A large proportion of patients who did not accept DLTs received specific tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). The results of multivariate analysis showed that DLT and specific TKI therapy were favorable prognostic factors significantly related to PFS. Further analysis showed that for patients without specific TKI therapy, DLT significantly improved PFS and the 5-year PFS rate. The 5-year OS rate also improved, but the improvement was not significant. For extracranial single-organ oligorecurrent NSCLC, PFS was significantly superior in patients receiving DLT. Among them, for the subgroup of patients who did not receive specific TKI therapy, DLT is expected to improve long-term prognostic outcomes.

Using Network Pharmacology and Animal Experiment to Investigate the Therapeutic Mechanisms of Polydatin against Vincristine-Induced Neuropathic Pain.

Background: Polydatin (PD) is the primary active compound in Polygonum cuspidatum Sieb and has been demonstrated to exert anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective activities. In the present study, we aimed to explore the therapeutic mechanisms of PD against chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain. Methods: The putative targets of PD were obtained from the CTD and SwissTargetPrediction databases. Neuropathic pain- and VIN-related targets were collected from the CTD and GeneCards databases. Subsequently, the intersection targets were obtained using the Venn tool, and the protein-protein interaction (PPI) was constructed by the STRING database. GO and KEGG enrichment analyses were performed to investigate the biological functions of the intersection targets. Further, a rat model of VIN-induced neuropathic pain was established to confirm the reliability of the network pharmacology findings. Results: A total of 46 intersection targets were identified as potential therapeutic targets, mainly related to neuroinflammation. KEGG pathway analysis indicated that the IL-17 signaling pathway was involved in the mechanism of the antinociceptive effect of PD. PPI network analysis indicated that RELA, IL-6, TP53, MAPK3, and MAPK1 were located at crucial nodes in the network. Additionally, PD exerted an antinociceptive effect by increasing the nociceptive threshold. The results of qRT-PCR, western blot, and immunohisochemistry indicated that PD inhibited the IL-6, TP53, and MAPK1 levels in VIN-induced neuropathic pain rats. Conclusions: Overall, this research provided evidence that suppressing inflammatory signaling pathways might be a potential mechanism action of PD's antinociceptive effect against VIN-induced neuropathic pain.

The role m6A RNA methylation is CNS development and glioma pathogenesis.

Epigenetic abnormalities play a crucial role in many tumors, including glioma. RNA methylation occurs as an epigenetic modification similar to DNA methylation and histone modification. m6A methylation is the most common and most intensively studied RNA methylation, which can be found throughout the RNA life cycle and exert biological functions by affecting RNA metabolism. The m6A modification is primarily associated with three types of protease, which are encoded by the writer, eraser and reader genes, respectively. It has been shown that the m6A methylation has close connections with the occurrence and development of many tumors, including glioma. In this study, the concept and the research progress of m6A methylation are reviewed, especially the role of m6A methylation in glioma. Moreover, we will discuss how glioma is paving the way to the development of new therapeutic options based on the inhibition of m6A deposition.

CircRNA circ-IQGAP1 Knockdown Alleviates Interleukin-1ß-Induced Osteoarthritis Progression via Targeting miR-671-5p/TCF4.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the function of circular RNA IQ motif-containing GTPase-activating protein 1 (circ-IQGAP1) in interleukin (IL)-1ß-induced osteoarthritis (OA) model and to explore whether circ-IQGAP1 can modulate microRNA-671-5p (miR-671-5p) and transcription factor 4 (TCF4) to regulate chondrocyte apoptosis, inflammatory injury, and extracellular matrix degradation. METHODS: The cartilage tissues were collected from 32 OA patients or normal subjects. Human chondrocyte CHON-001 cells were challenged via different doses of IL-1ß for 24 hours. CHON-001 cells were transfected with circ-IQGAP1 overexpression vector, TCF4 overexpression vector, small interfering RNA (siRNA) for circ-IQGAP1, miR-671-5p mimic, miR-671-5p inhibitor or corresponding negative controls. Circ-IQGAP1, miR-671-5p and TCF4 abundances in cartilage tissues or CHON-001 cells were examined via quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) or western blot. Cell viability was investigated by 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT). Cell apoptosis was measured by flow cytometry. The inflammatory injury was analyzed by the secretion levels of inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-8 and tumor necrosis factor-α [TNF-α]) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The extracellular matrix degradation was evaluated by expression of aggrecan and matrix metalloproteinase 13 (MMP13) via western blot. The target relationship of miR-671-5p and circ-IQGAP1 or TCF4 was analyzed via dual-luciferase reporter and RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) analyses. RESULTS: Circ-IQGAP1 abundance was enhanced in the cartilage tissues from OA patients compared with normal subjects (n = 32), and its expression was increased in CHON-001 cells after treatment of IL-1ß in a dose-dependent pattern. MiR-671-5p expression was decreased in the cartilage tissues from OA patients (n = 32) and IL-1ß-challenged CHON-001 cells. MiR-671-5p expression was negatively associated with circ-IQGAP1 level in OA patients. Circ-IQGAP1 silence mitigated IL-1ß-caused chondrocyte viability reduction, apoptosis promotion, secretion of inflammatory cytokine (IL-6, IL-8 and TNF-α), and extracellular matrix degradation (reduction of aggrecan and increase of MMP13). MiR-671-5p was targeted and inhibited via circ-IQGAP1. MiR-671-5p knockdown attenuated the influence of circ-IQGAP1 interference on IL-1ß-caused chondrocyte apoptosis, inflammatory injury, and extracellular matrix degradation. TCF4 was targeted via miR-671-5p, and TCF4 expression was increased in the cartilage tissues from OA patients (n = 32) and IL-1ß-challenged CHON-001 cells. TCF4 abundance in OA patients was negatively correlated with miR-671-5p expression. MiR-671-5p overexpression alleviated IL-1ß-mediated chondrocyte apoptosis, inflammatory injury, and extracellular matrix degradation via decreasing TCF4 expression. Circ-IQGAP1 silence reduced TCF4 expression via regulating miR-671-5p in IL-1ß-challenged CHON-001 cells. CONCLUSION: Circ-IQGAP1 knockdown attenuated IL-1ß-caused chondrocyte apoptosis, inflammatory injury, and extracellular matrix degradation. Circ-IQGAP1 could regulate miR-671-5p/TCF4 axis to modulate IL-1ß-caused chondrocyte damage. Circ-IQGAP1 might act as a new target for the treatment of OA.

[Value of serum miR-21-3p in predicting acute kidney injury in children with sepsis].

OBJECTIVE: To study the value of serum miR-21-3p combined with serum creatinine (Scr), cystatin C (Cys-C), and kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) in predicting acute kidney injury (AKI) in children with sepsis. METHODS: A total of 142 children who were diagnosed with sepsis from January 2016 to March 2019 were enrolled. According to the presence or absence of AKI, they were divided into AKI group with 49 children and non-AKI group with 93 children. The serum levels of miR-21-3p, Scr, Cys-C, and KIM-1 were measured for the two groups. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was plotted to analyze the value of serum miR-21-3p, Scr, Cys-C, and KIM-1 in predicting AKI. A Pearson correlation analysis was used to evaluate the correlation of serum miR-21-3p with Scr, Cys-C, and KIM-1. RESULTS: The AKI group had significantly higher serum levels of miR-21-3p, Scr, Cys-C, and KIM-1 than the non-AKI group (P<0.05). The ROC curve analysis showed that the combination of serum miR-21-3p, Scr, Cys-C, and KIM-1 had an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.962 (95%CI: 0.906-0.998), which was significantly larger than the AUC of each index alone (P<0.05), with a sensitivity of 97.0% and a specificity of 91.4%. The correlation analysis showed that the serum level of miR-21-3p was positively correlated with Scr, Cys-C, and KIM-1 in the AKI group (r=0.704, 0.812, and 0.863 respectively, P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: There is a significant increase in the serum level of miR-21-3p in children with sepsis and AKI, and its combination with Scr, Cys-C, and KIM-1 has a high value in predicting AKI.