Family with sequence similarity 111 member B contributes to tumor growth and metastasis by mediating cell proliferation, invasion, and EMT via transforming acidic coiled-coil protein 3/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway in hepatocellular carcinoma.

As a complex systemic disease, primary liver cancer ranks third in death rate for solid tumors worldwide. Family with sequence similarity 111 member B (FAM111B), which was found to be aberrantly mutated in multiple cancers, is a candidate oncogene. We aimed to determine the function and mechanism of FAM111B in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The expression of FAM111B was evaluated in HCC tissues, adjacent tissues, HCC cell lines. The impact of FAM111B on proliferation, invasion, apoptosis and EMT of HCC cells were detected by CCK-8, Transwell, flow cytometry and Western blot assays. The relationship between FAM111B and transforming acidic coiled-coil protein 3 (TACC3) was assessed by CoIP and Immunofluorescence (IF) staining assays. The effect of FAM111B on tumor growth was detected by using xenograft model of nude mice. The expression of FAM111B was upregulated in HCC tissues and cell lines, and the prognosis of HCC patients was worse in the high FAM111B expression group, and its expression level was associated with the TNM stage of HCC. FAM111B silencing inhibited HCC cell proliferation and invasion, EMT and induced apoptosis. Besides, TACC3 served as an interactor for FAM111B, which could enhance TACC3 expression, thus activing PI3K/AKT pathway. Rescue experiments revealed that elevated of TACC3 restored the inhibitory effect of FAM111B overexpression on the cell functions via PI3K/AKT pathway. In vivo, FAM111B inhibition hampered tumor growth and metastasis of HCC. This study highlighted a key player of FAM111B in modulating the malignant biological progression of HCC via TACC3/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway, displaying a potential therapeutic target for HCC.

A meta-analysis of use of Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System Version 2 (PI-RADS V2) with multiparametric MR imaging for the detection of prostate cancer.

OBJECTIVES: This meta-analysis was undertaken to review the diagnostic accuracy of PI-RADS V2 for prostate cancer (PCa) detection with multiparametric MR (mp-MR). METHODS: A comprehensive literature search of electronic databases was performed by two observers independently. Inclusion criteria were original research using the PI-RADS V2 system in reporting prostate MRI. The methodological quality was assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS-2) tool. Data necessary to complete 2 × 2 contingency tables were obtained from the included studies. RESULTS: Thirteen studies (2,049 patients) were analysed. This is an initial meta-analysis of PI-RADs V2 and the overall diagnostic accuracy in diagnosing PCa was as follows: pooled sensitivity, 0.85 (0.78-0.91); pooled specificity, 0.71 (0.60-0.80); pooled positive likelihood ratio (LR+), 2.92 (2.09-4.09); pooled negative likelihood ratio (LR-), 0.21 (0.14-0.31); pooled diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), 14.08 (7.93-25.01), respectively. Positive predictive values ranged from 0.54 to 0.97 and negative predictive values ranged from 0.26 to 0.92. CONCLUSION: Currently available evidence indicates that PI-RADS V2 appears to have good diagnostic accuracy in patients with PCa lesions with high sensitivity and moderate specificity. However, no recommendation regarding the best threshold can be provided because of heterogeneity. KEY POINTS: • PI-RADS V2 shows good diagnostic accuracy for PCa detection. • Initially pooled specificity of PI-RADS v2 remains moderate. • PCa detection is increased by experienced radiologists. • There is currently a high heterogeneity in prostate diagnostics with MRI.

Clinical advantage of drug-coated balloon in treatment of restenosis in superficial femoral artery stents.

BACKGROUND: This investigation probed the clinical effectiveness of drug-coated balloon (DCB) and common balloon (CB) for treating restenosis in superficial femoral artery stents. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 295 patients with lower extremity arteriosclerosis obliterans with superficial femoral artery stenting restenosis admitted to Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital from March 2017 to March 2020. Cases were segregated within two cohorts adopting different treatment methods (cohort 1, DCB and cohort 2, CB). The restenosis and clinical outcomes were evaluated by Doppler ultrasound, computed tomography angiography, or digital subtraction angiography at 1 week, 6, and 12 months. RESULTS: Following six months, the restenosis rate on angiography was 4.2% within cohort 1, and 26% within cohort 2 (P<0.05); at 12 months the rates on duplex ultrasonography were 18% and 84%, respectively (P<0.001). ABI and MDL of cohort 1 (P<0.05) were higher than those of cohort 2, 6 and 12 months post-operation; late lumen loss (LLL) and peak systolic velocity ratio (PSVR) of cohort 1 (P<0.05) were lower than those of Cohort 2. Cohort 1 cases demonstrated increased mobility upon treadmill at 12 months compared to within cohort 2. CONCLUSIONS: Medium-/long-term clinical effectiveness for drug-coated balloon treating restenosis in a superficial femoral artery stent is significantly higher than that of an ordinary balloon.

A propensity score matching analysis of neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio forecasts the survival of individuals undergoing the transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt.

The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) has been shown to predict patient outcomes in various disorders. This study was carried out to evaluate the value of NLR in predicting mortality in decompensated cirrhosis patients having transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS). The end-stage liver disease model (MELD) is a scoring system to evaluate the liver function reserve. Retrospective investigation was conducted on the clinical information of 244 decompensated cirrhosis individuals with a MELD score ≤15 who underwent TIPS production at two academic medical centres between January 2017 and August 2021. The main result was 12-month post-TIPS mortality. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was used to investigate the predictive potential of prognostic markers correlated with 12-month mortality using a logistic regression approach. To minimize the effects of potential factors, a 1:2 propensity score matching (PSM) was carried out. The non-surviving group had 21 (8.6%) patients who passed away within 12mo, while the surviving group included 223 (91.4%) patients who survived for more than 12mo. According to the multivariate analyses, NLR>4.8 was an independent prognostic factor of 12-month mortality after PSM analysis (OR=3.4, 95%CI, 1.052-10.985, P =0.041). In comparison to the non-surviving group, the proportion of NLR-high (>4.8) cells in the surviving group were considerably greater (71.4%vs.38.1%, P =0.017). Whether Unmatched group or the Matched group, NLR exhibited the highest diagnostic performance (AUCs of 0.646 and 0.667, respectively, P <0.05). The NLR is a reasonable and effective indicator of 12-month mortality in decompensated cirrhosis patients with a MELD ≤15 receiving TIPS.

Different percutaneous transhepatic biliary stent placements and catheter drainage in the treatment of middle and low malignant biliary obstruction.

BACKGROUND: For cases of middle and low biliary obstruction with left and right hepatic duct dilatation, the type of approach and whether different approaches affect the difficulty of puncture operation and intraoperative and postoperative complications have not been discussed in detail. AIM: To compare the efficacy of different percutaneous transhepatic biliary stent placements and catheter drainage in treating middle and low biliary obstruction. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on the medical records of 424 patients with middle and low biliary obstruction who underwent percutaneous liver puncture biliary stent placement and catheter drainage at the Department of Interventional Radiology, Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital between March 2016 and March 2022. Based on the puncture path, patients were categorized into two groups: Subxiphoid left hepatic lobe approach group (Group A, 224 cases) and right intercostal, right hepatic lobe approach group (Group B, 200 cases). Liver function improvement, postoperative biliary bleeding incidence, postoperative pain duration, and abdominal effusion leakage around the drainage tube were compared between the two groups at 3 d and 1 wk after the surgery. Patient survival time was recorded during follow-up. RESULTS: All 424 surgeries were successful without adverse events. Group A comprised 224 cases, and Group B had 200 cases. There was no statistically significant difference in basic data between Group A and Group B (P > 0.05). No significant difference in postoperative biliary bleeding incidence was observed between the groups (P > 0.05). The decreased rates for total bilirubin (Group A: 69.23 ± 4.50, Group B: 63.79 ± 5.65), direct bilirubin (Group A: 79.30 ± 11.19, Group B: 63.62 ± 5.64), and alkaline phosphatase (Group A: 60.51 ± 12.23, Group B: 42.68 ± 23.56) in the 1st wk after surgery were significantly faster in Group A than in Group B. The decreased rate of gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase was also significantly faster in Group A at both 3 d (Group A: 40.56 ± 10.32, Group B: 32.22 ± 5.12) and 1 wk (Group A: 73.19 ± 7.05, Group B: 58.81 ± 18.98) after surgery (P < 0.05). Group A experienced significantly less peritoneal effusion leakage around the drainage tube than Group B (P < 0.05). The patient survival rate was higher in Group A compared to Group B (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: In treating jaundice patients with middle and low biliary obstruction, a percutaneous left liver puncture demonstrated better clinical efficacy than a percutaneous right liver puncture.

Efficacy of Drug-Eluting Bead Transarterial Chemoembolization in the Treatment of Colorectal Cancer Liver Metastasis.

We aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of drug-eluting bead transarterial chemoembolization (DEB-TACE) in the treatment of colorectal cancer liver metastasis. A total of 120 patients with colorectal cancer liver metastasis were divided into the TACE group (receiving TACE treatment, n = 60) and the DEB-TACE group (receiving DEB-TACE treatment, n = 60). At 1 month after treatment, the objective response rate (ORR) in the TACE group and DEB-TACE group were 65.0% (39/60) and 78.3% (47/60), respectively, and the disease control rate (DCR) was 78.3% (47/60) and 85.0% (51/60), respectively. Three months later, the ORRs in TACE and DEB-TACE groups were 63.3% (38/60) and 75.0% (45/60), and the DCRs were 76.7% (46/60) and 81.7% (49/60). We showed that the 1-year overall survival (OS) in TACE and DEB-TACE groups were 100% (60/60) and 88.3% (53/60), respectively, and the 2-year OS were 78.3% (47/60) and 61.7% (37/60). Further analysis indicated that the OS in the DEB-TACE group was significantly longer than that in the TACE group (P = 0.045). DEB-TACE is effective, safe, and feasible in the treatment of colorectal cancer liver metastasis, which can effectively improve the survival of patients.

Construction and Validation of Prediction Model of Severe Abdominal Pain Post-Transarterial Chemoembolization in Patients with HBV-Associated Primary Liver Cancer.

Objective: This study is aimed at constructing and evaluating a prediction model of severe abdominal pain post-transcatheter arterial chemoembolization in patients with HBV-related primary liver cancer. Methods: Patients with HBV-associated primary liver cancer who received transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) from March 2019 to March 2022 in the Interventional Therapy Department of our hospital were selected as the subjects, and the included 160 patients were randomly divided into modeling group (n = 120) and validation group (n = 40) in a ratio of 3 : 1. Visual analog scale (VAS) was used to assess pain severity. 120 patients in the modeling group were divided into no/mild abdominal pain group and severe abdominal pain group. The clinical data of the patients, including gender, age, TACE treatment history, vascular invasion, maximum diameter of tumor, infarction degree, preoperative Eastern Oncology Collaboration Group (ECOG) score, and Lipiodol dosage, were analyzed. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the predictive value of the prediction model for severe abdominal pain post-TACE. Results: A total of 116 patients (72.50%) had severe abdominal pain after TACE. Univariate analysis showed that severe abdominal pain after TACE in the modeling group was associated with TACE treatment history, maximum tumor diameter, infarction degree, and preoperative ECOG score (all P < 0.05), but not related to gender, age, vascular invasion, and Lipiodol dosage (all P > 0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that TACE treatment history, maximum tumor diameter, infarction degree, and preoperative ECOG score were all independent influencing factors for acute abdominal pain post-TACE in HBV-HCC patients (all P < 0.05). The prediction model equation was Y = -3.673 + 1.722 × TACE treatment history + 1.175 × tumor maximum diameter + 2.064 × infarction degree + 1.555 × preoperative ECOG score. Goodness-of-fit test results showed no significant difference between the established prediction model and the observed value (χ 2 = 1.645, P = 0.560) and R 2 = 0.821, suggesting that the prediction ability of the model was relatively accurate. ROC analysis results showed that the area under the curve (AUC) of severe abdominal pain after TACE was 0.916 (0.862~0.970) and 0.902 (95% CI: 0.841~0.963) in the modeling group and the verification group, respectively. Conclusion: TACE treatment history, tumor maximum diameter, infarction degree, and preoperative ECOG score are independent influencing factors for severe abdominal pain post-TACE in patients with HBV-HCC, and the prediction model established on this basis has good application value.

Capecitabine metronomic chemotherapy combined with autologous CIK cell immunotherapy in the treatment of recurrent and metastatic triple-negative breast cancer.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy and safety of maintenance therapy of capecitabine metronomic chemotherapy combined with autologous cytokine-induced killer (CIK) cell immunotherapy in patients with recurrent metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (mTNBC). METHODS: The clinical data of 110 patients with recurrent mTNBC were retrospectively analyzed. Among, 55 were treated with maintenance therapy of capecitabine metronomic chemotherapy combined with autologous CIK cell immunotherapy (DC-CIK group), while the rest 55 were treated with simple metronomic chemotherapy (control group). RESULTS: The ORR of patients in DC-CIK group and control group was 29.1% and 16.4%, and the DCR was 74.5% and 63.6%, respectively. After treatment, the proportions of CD3+ T lymphocytes, CD4+ T lymphocytes and NK cells as well as the CD4/CD8 cell ratio were notably higher in DC-CIK group than those in control group, while the proportion of CD8+ T lymphocytes was notably lower in DC-CIK group than that in control group. Compared with those before treatment, the scores of quality of life evaluated using the FACT-B-V4.0 scale were remarkably improved in both groups after treatment. The score of emotional status and total score were distinctly higher in DC-CIK group than those in control group. Moreover, the follow-up results together with log-rank test revealed that the PFS in DC-CIK group was notably superior to that in control group. CONCLUSIONS: The maintenance therapy of capecitabine metronomic chemotherapy combined with DC-CIK cell immunotherapy is effective in the treatment of recurrent mTNBC, with tolerable adverse reactions. It can improve the patients' immune function, improve their quality of life, and prolong their PFS. Key words: capecitabine, metronomic chemotherapy, immunotherapy, breast cancer, recurrent and metastatic.

The utility of diffusion MRI with quantitative ADC measurements for differentiating high-grade from low-grade cerebral gliomas: Evidence from a meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this meta-analysis was to predict the grades of cerebral gliomas using quantitative apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A comprehensive search of the PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases was performed up to 8, 2016. The quality assessment of diagnostic accuracy studies (QUADAS 2) was used to evaluate the quality of studies. Statistical analyses included pooling of sensitivity and specificity, positive likelihood ratio (PLR), negative likelihood ratio' (NLR), diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), and diagnostic accuracy values of the included studies using the summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC). All analyses were conducted using STATA (version 12.0), RevMan (version 5.3), and Meta-Disc 1.4 software programs. RESULTS: Fifteen studies were analyzed and included a total of 821 patients and 821 lesions. In regards to the diagnostic accuracy of ADC maps, the pooled SEN, SPE, PLR, NLR, and DOR with 95%CIs were 0.82 [95%CI: 0.76, 0.87] and 0.75 [95%CI: 0.67, 0.81], 3.24 [95%CI: 2.48, 4.24], 0.24 [95%CI: 0.17, 0.33], and 13.60 [95%CI: 8.37, 22.07], respectively. The SROC curve showed an AUC of 0.85. Deeks testing confirmed no significant publication bias in all studies. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that quantitative ADC values have high accuracy in separating high-grade from low-grade cerebral gliomas. Further studies using a standardized methodology may help guide the use of ADC values for clinical decision-making.

Executive dysfunction and gray matter atrophy in amnestic mild cognitive impairment.

Recent studies have shown that impairment in executive function (EF) is common in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). However, the neuroanatomic basis of executive impairment in patients with aMCI remains unclear. In this study, multiple regression voxel-based morphometry analyses were used to examine the relationship between regional gray matter volumes and EF performance in 50 patients with aMCI and 48 healthy age-matched controls. The core EF components (response inhibition, working memory and task switching, based on the EF model of Miyake et al) were accessed with computerized tasks. Atrophic brain areas related to decreases in the three EF components in patients with aMCI were located in the frontal and temporal cortices. Within the frontal cortex, the brain region related to response inhibition was identified in the right inferior frontal gyrus. Brain regions related to working memory were located in the left anterior cingulate gyrus, left premotor cortex, and right inferior frontal gyrus, and brain regions related to task shifting were distributed in the bilateral frontal cortex. Atrophy in the right inferior frontal gyrus was most closely associated with a decrease in all three EF components in patients with aMCI. Our data, from the perspective of brain morphology, contribute to a better understanding of the role of these brain areas in the neural network of EF.