Automatically optimized radiomics modeling system for small gastric submucosal tumor (<2 cm) discrimination based on EUS images.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The clinical management of small gastric submucosal tumors (SMTs) (<2 cm) faces a non-negligible challenge because of the lack of guideline consensus and effective diagnostic tools. This article develops an automatically optimized radiomics modeling system (AORMS) based on EUS images to diagnose and evaluate SMTs. METHODS: A total of 205 patients with EUS images of small gastric SMTs (<2 cm) were retrospectively enrolled in the development phase of AORMS for the diagnosis and the risk stratification of GI stromal tumor (GIST). A total of 178 patients with images from different centers were prospectively enrolled in the independent testing phase. The performance of AORMS was compared to that of endoscopists in the development set and evaluated in the independent testing set. RESULTS: AORMS demonstrated an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.762 for the diagnosis of GIST and 0.734 for the risk stratification of GIST, respectively. In the independent testing set, AORMS achieved an AUC of 0.770 and 0.750 for the diagnosis and risk stratification of small GISTs, respectively. In comparison, the AUCs of 5 experienced endoscopists ranged from 0.501 to 0.608 for diagnosing GIST and from 0.562 to 0.748 for risk stratification. AORMS outperformed experienced endoscopists by more than 20% in diagnosing GIST. CONCLUSIONS: AORMS implements automatic parameter selection, which enhances its robustness and clinical applicability. It has demonstrated good performance in the diagnosis and risk stratification of GISTs, which could aid endoscopists in the diagnosis of small gastric SMTs (<2 cm).

Validation and update of a clinical score model to predict technical difficulty of colorectal endoscopic submucosal dissection: a multicenter prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The Zhongshan colorectal endoscopic submucosal dissection (CR-ESD) score model was proposed to grade the technical difficulty of CR-ESD. The objective of this study was to prospectively validate and update the score model. METHODS: A multicenter prospective cohort analysis of CR-ESD was conducted. Individual data on patients, lesions, and outcomes of CR-ESD were used to validate the original model and further refine the difficulty of the prediction model. Data were randomly divided into discovery and internal validation cohorts. A multivariate Cox regression analysis was conducted on the discovery cohort to develop an updated risk-scoring system, which was then validated. RESULTS: Five hundred forty-eight patients with 565 colorectal lesions treated by ESD from 4 hospitals were included. In the prospective validation cohort, the area under the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve for the original model was .707. Six risk factors were identified and assigned point values: tumor size (2 points for 30-50 mm, 3 points for ≥50 mm), at least two-thirds circumference of the lesion (3 points), tumor location in the cecum (2 points) or flexure (2 points), laterally spreading tumor-nongranular lesions (1 point), preceding biopsy sampling (1 point), and NBI International Colorectal Endoscopic type 3 (3 points). The updated model had an area under the ROC curve of .738 in the discovery cohort and of .782 in the validation cohort. Cases were categorized into easy (score = 0-1), intermediate (score = 2-3), difficult (score = 4-6), and very difficult (score ≥7) groups. Satisfactory discrimination and calibration were observed. CONCLUSIONS: The original model achieved an acceptable level of prediction in the prospective cohort. The updated model exhibited superior performance and can be used in place of the previous version. (Clinical trial registration number: ChiCTR2100047087.).

Clinical outcomes of endoscopic resection for the treatment of intermediate- or high-risk gastric small gastrointestinal stromal tumors: a multicenter retrospective study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Many studies of gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumors (g-GISTs) following endoscopic resection (ER) have typically focused on tumor size, with most tumors at low risk of aggressiveness after risk stratification. There have been few systematic studies on the oncologic outcomes of intermediate- or high-risk g-GISTs after ER. METHODS: From January 2014 to January 2020, we retrospectively collected patients considered at intermediate- or high-risk of g-GISTs according to the modified NIH consensus classification system. The primary outcome was overall survival (OS). RESULTS: Six hundred and seventy nine (679) consecutive patients were diagnosed with g-GISTs and treated by ER between January 2014 and January 2020 in three hospitals in Shanghai, China. 43 patients (20 males and 23 females) were confirmed at intermediate-or high-risk. The mean size of tumors was 2.23 ± 1.01 cm. The median follow-up period was 62.02 ± 15.34 months, with a range of 28 to 105 months. There were no recurrences or metastases, even among patients having R1 resections. The 5-year OS rate was 97.4% (42/43). CONCLUSION: ER for intermediate- or high-risk gastric small GISTs is a feasible and safe method, which allows for a wait-and-see approach before determining the necessity for imatinib adjuvant or surgical treatment. This approach to g-GISTs does require that patients undergo close follow-up.

Porphyromonas gingivalis predicts local recurrence after endoscopic submucosal dissection of early esophageal squamous cell carcinoma or precancerous lesion.

BACKGROUND: Porphyromonas gingivalis plays an oncogenic role in development and progression of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). However, the impact of P. gingivalis on local recurrence of early ESCC or precancerous lesion after ESD treatment remains unknown. The present study aimed to evaluate the impact of P. gingivalis on local recurrence after ESD treatment of early ESCC or high-grade dysplasia (HGD). METHODS: The amount of P. gingivalis was assessed by immunohistochemistry in 205 patients with early ESCC or HGD. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were performed to determine the effect of P. gingivalis on local recurrence. Propensity score matching analysis was performed to reduce the imbalance of baseline characteristics. A nomogram integrating significant prognostic factors was built for local recurrence prediction. RESULTS: The amount of P. gingivalis increased significantly in neoplasms that invaded up to muscularis mucosa and submucosa compared with lesions confined to epithelium or lamina propria. Overabundance of P. gingivalis was positively associated with invasion depth, post-ESD stricture and local recurrence. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses revealed that P. gingivalis, longitudinal length of lesion and lymphovascular invasion were independent predictors for post-ESD recurrence. A nomogram comprising P. gingivalis, lymphovascular involvement, and lesion length performed well for prediction of post-ESD local recurrence with the concordance indices of 0.72 (95%CI, 0.62 to 0.80), 0.72 (95%CI, 0.63 to 0.80), and 0.74 (95%CI, 0.65 to 0.83) in the validation cohort, the entire cohort, and the subcohort after PSM, respectively. CONCLUSION: P. gingivalis overabundance is a risk factor and a potential predictor for local recurrence of early ESCC or HGD after ESD treatment. Thus, clearance of P. gingivalis represents an attractive strategy for prognosis improvement and for prevention of ESCC.

Long-term clinical outcomes of endoscopic submucosal dissection in rectal neuroendocrine tumors based on resection margin status: a real-world study.

BACKGROUND: Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) has been widely adopted in treating rectal neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). However, clinical outcomes in rectal NETs after ESD with different resection margin status remain scanty, particularly in patients with positive resection margins. This study aimed to evaluate the long-term clinical outcomes of ESD in rectal NET based on the resection margin status. METHODS: This retrospective study included 436 patients diagnosed with rectal NET who had undergone ESD. Clinical data, including age, sex, tumor size, stage, invasion, and the resection margin status, were collected. Further, the patients were assessed for complications, recurrence, distant metastasis, and long-term outcomes. RESULTS: Among all 436 patients, 395 patients had their primary ESD in our hospital. Complete resection was achieved in 319 patients. Patients who did not achieve complete resection opted for follow-up (n = 73), salvage surgery (n = 1) and salvage ESD (n = 2). Another 41 had their primary ESD in other hospital with incomplete resection and had salvage ESD in our hospital. All 436 patients had a median follow-up period of 61.4 months (range 33.4-125.3 months). During the follow-up period, two patients developed recurrences, while three patients developed metastasis. There were no significant differences in the 5-year progression-free survival and overall survival between patients with incomplete resection opting for follow-up compared to the other two groups (P = 0.5/0.8). However, the complication rates were significantly higher in patients who received salvage ESD. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that positive resection margins have no influence on survival in patients with rectal NET treated using ESD.

Simultaneous endoscopic submucosal dissection for synchronous multiple early esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: a propensity score-matched analysis.

BACKGROUND: The clinical effect of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) in the treatment of early esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (EESCC) is widely recognized. However, the long-term treatment outcome of simultaneous ESD for multiple EESCC currently remained unknown. Hence, this study was aimed at further evaluating the long-term outcome of simultaneous ESD for synchronous multiple EESCC by comparing with ESD for single EESCC. METHODS: Consecutive patients who underwent ESD for EESCC from June 2008 to June 2018 were included. Propensity score-matched analysis was used to compensate for the differences in age, sex, tumor location, tumor size, and tumor invasion depth between simultaneous and single ESD groups. Treatment outcomes including en bloc resection rate, curative resection rate, complication rate, and long-term outcomes including overall survival (OS), recurrence-free survival (RFS), metachronous recurrence were compared between the 2 groups after matching. RESULTS: The propensity score-matched analysis included 332 lesions (166 patients) and 332 lesions (332 patients) in simultaneous and single ESD groups, respectively. Among all the outcomes, en bloc resection, curative resection, 5-year OS, and 5-year RFS rates were comparable. Complications were more common in the simultaneous ESD group (15.06% vs. 9.64%, P = 0.073). The 5-year metachronous recurrence rates were significantly high in the simultaneous ESD groups (24.28% vs. 6.99%). CONCLUSIONS: Simultaneous ESD is an effective and safe methodology for synchronous multiple EESCC; it also reduces hospital stay and medical expenses. The risk of metachronous recurrence is higher for patients with synchronous multiple EESCC; thus, more intensive strategies are required.

HDAC2 promotes the EMT of colorectal cancer cells and via the modular scaffold function of ENSG00000274093.1.

Histone deacetylase 2 (HDAC2), a member of the Histone deacetylase family, plays a vital role in various carcinomas. In this study, we identified that HDAC2 expression levels are associated with liver metastasis, higher T stages and poor prognosis in colorectal cancer. HDAC2 down-regulation via lentivirus-mediated expression of HDAC2-targeting shRNA reduced the in vitro migration and invasion ability of HCT116 cell as well as their liver metastasis in nude mouse xenografts. Mechanistically, HDAC2 promotes epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in colorectal cancer cells by combining HDAC1 with EZH2 (a key histone methyltransferase), possibly through the modular scaffold function of a new lncRNA, ENSG00000274093.1. HDAC2 thus appears to promote CRC cell migration and invasion through binding HDAC1 and EZH2 via ENSG00000274093.1.

Prediction of technically difficult endoscopic submucosal dissection for large superficial colorectal tumors: a novel clinical score model.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is a promising technique for removing superficial GI tumors, but ESD is technically difficult. The aim of this study was to establish a clinical score model for grading technically difficult colorectal ESD. METHODS: Data on patients, lesions, and outcomes of colorectal ESD at 2 centers were analyzed. The objective parameter of successful ESD within 60 minutes was set as an endpoint to evaluate the difficulty. Independent predictors of difficulty in the derivation cohort were identified by multiple logistic regression analysis and used to develop a clinical score. We validated the score model in the validation cohort. RESULTS: The clinical score comprised tumor size of 30 to 50 mm (1 point) or ≥50 mm (2 points), at least two-thirds circumference of the lesion (2 points), location in the cecum (1 point), flexure (2 points) or dentate line (1 point), and laterally spreading tumor nongranular lesions (1 point). Areas under the receiver operator characteristic curves for the score model were comparable (derivation [.70] vs internal validation [.69] vs external validation [.69]). The probability of successful ESD within 60 minutes in easy (score = 0), intermediate (score = 1), difficult (score = 2-3), and very difficult (score ≥4) categories were 75.0%, 51.3%, 35.6%, and 3.4% in the derivation cohort; 73.3%, 47.9%, 31.8%, and 16.7% in the internal validation cohort; and 79.5%, 66.7%, 43.3%, and 20.0% in the external validation cohort, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This clinical score model accurately predicts the probability of successful ESD within 60 minutes and can be applied to grade the technical difficulty before the procedure.

Identifying early gastric cancer under magnifying narrow-band images with deep learning: a multicenter study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Narrow-band imaging with magnifying endoscopy (ME-NBI) has shown advantages in the diagnosis of early gastric cancer (EGC). However, proficiency in diagnostic algorithms requires substantial expertise and experience. In this study, we aimed to develop a computer-aided diagnostic model for EGM (EGCM) to analyze and assist in the diagnosis of EGC under ME-NBI. METHODS: A total of 1777 ME-NBI images from 295 cases were collected from 3 centers. These cases were randomly divided into a training cohort (n = 170), an internal test cohort (ITC, n = 73), and an external test cohort (ETC, n = 52). EGCM based on VGG-19 architecture (Visual Geometry Group [VGG], Oxford University, Oxford, UK) with a single fully connected 2-classification layer was developed through fine-tuning and validated on all cohorts. Furthermore, we compared the model with 8 endoscopists with varying experience. Primary comparison measures included accuracy, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV). RESULTS: EGCM acquired AUCs of .808 in the ITC and .813 in the ETC. Moreover, EGCM achieved similar predictive performance as the senior endoscopists (accuracy: .770 vs .755, P = .355; sensitivity: .792 vs .767, P = .183; specificity: .745 vs .742, P = .931) but better than the junior endoscopists (accuracy: .770 vs .728, P < .05). After referring to the results of EGCM, the average diagnostic ability of the endoscopists was significantly improved in terms of accuracy, sensitivity, PPV, and NPV (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: EGCM exhibited comparable performance with senior endoscopists in the diagnosis of EGC and showed the potential value in aiding and improving the diagnosis of EGC by endoscopists.

Risk factors for delayed bleeding after endoscopic submucosal dissection of colorectal tumors.

AIM: To investigate the risk factors for delayed bleeding following endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for colorectal neoplasms. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 991 consecutive patients who underwent ESD for colorectal neoplasms at our hospital from January 2007 to November 2016. Delayed post-ESD bleeding was defined as bleeding within 6 h to 30 days after ESD that resulted in either of the three situations: overt hematochezia, bleeding spots confirmed by repeat colonoscopy, or the requirement of a blood transfusion. Delayed bleeding was furtherly separated into early and late delayed bleeding by the end of post-ESD day 2. We analyzed the relationship between delayed bleeding and candidate factors including patient-, lesion-, and treatment-related details. RESULTS: Delayed post-ESD bleeding was found in 47 patients (4.7%), of which 18 cases were late delayed bleeding. Among all patients, 14 patients required a second colonoscopy, and 2 other patients were transferred to surgery. Univariate analysis revealed that patients with hypertension (p = 0.017) and using hot biopsy forceps for wound management (p = 0.028) were significantly associated with late delayed bleeding. Both risk factors remained significant after multivariate analysis: hypertension (OR 2.829, 95% CI 1.101-7.265, p = 0.031), hot biopsy forceps (OR 2.873, 95% CI 1.013-8.147, p = 0.047). Using hot biopsy forceps was also the significant risk factor for late delayed bleeding compared with early delayed bleeding. CONCLUSION: Patient with hypertension and using hot biopsy forceps for wound management during procedure call for attention on high risk of delayed post-ESD bleeding. Therefore, additional perioperative treatment is recommended in patients with these risk factors.

Self-expandable metallic stenting as a bridge to elective surgery versus emergency surgery for acute malignant right-sided colorectal obstruction.

BACKGROUND: The use of a self-expandable metallic stent (SEMS) as a bridge to surgery has increased for patients with obstructing colorectal cancer. However, relatively few reports have compared SEMS as a bridge to elective surgery for acute malignant obstruction of the right-sided colon (MORC) vs. emergency surgery (ES). This study aimed to evaluate the benefits of elective surgery after SEMS placement vs. ES for patients (including stage IV cases) with acute MORC. METHODS: Patients with acute MORC who underwent radical resection for a primary tumour from July 2008 to November 2016 at Zhongshan Hospital of Fudan University were retrospectively enrolled. Postoperative short-term outcomes, progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were compared between the SEMS and ES groups. RESULTS: In total, 107 patients with acute MORC (35 in the SEMS group and 72 in the ES group) were included for analysis. The Intensive Care Unit admission rate was lower (11.4% vs. 34.7%, P = 0.011), the incidence of complications was reduced (11.4% vs. 29.2%, P = 0.042), and the postoperative length of hospitalisation was significantly shorter (8.23 ± 6.50 vs. 11.18 ± 6.71 days, P = 0.033) for the SEMS group. Survival curves showed no significant difference in PFS (P = 0.506) or OS (P = 0.989) between groups. Also, there was no significant difference in PFS and OS rates between patients with stage II and III colon cancer. After colectomy for synchronous liver metastases among stage IV patients, the hepatectomy rates for the SEMS and ES groups were 85.7% and 14.3%, respectively (P = 0.029). The hazard ratio for colectomy alone vs. combined resection was 3.258 (95% CI 0.858-12.370; P = 0.041). CONCLUSION: Stent placement offers significant advantages in terms of short-term outcomes and comparable prognoses for acute MORC patients. For synchronous liver metastases, SEMS placement better prepares the patient for resection of the primary tumour and liver metastasis, which contribute to improved survival.

Using a deep learning system in endoscopy for screening of early esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (with video).

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Few artificial intelligence-based technologies have been developed to improve the efficiency of screening for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Here, we developed and validated a novel system of computer-aided detection (CAD) using a deep neural network (DNN) to localize and identify early ESCC under conventional endoscopic white-light imaging. METHODS: We collected 2428 (1332 abnormal, 1096 normal) esophagoscopic images from 746 patients to set up a novel DNN-CAD system in 2 centers and prepared a validation dataset containing 187 images from 52 patients. Sixteen endoscopists (senior, mid-level, and junior) were asked to review the images of the validation set. The diagnostic results, including accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV), were compared between the DNN-CAD system and endoscopists. RESULTS: The receiver operating characteristic curve for DNN-CAD showed that the area under the curve was >96%. For the validation dataset, DNN-CAD had a sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, PPV, and NPV of 97.8%, 85.4%, 91.4%, 86.4%, and 97.6%, respectively. The senior group achieved an average diagnostic accuracy of 88.8%, whereas the junior group had a lower value of 77.2%. After referring to the results of DNN-CAD, the average diagnostic ability of the endoscopists improved, especially in terms of sensitivity (74.2% vs 89.2%), accuracy (81.7% vs 91.1%), and NPV (79.3% vs 90.4%). CONCLUSIONS: The novel DNN-CAD system used for screening of early ESCC has high accuracy and sensitivity, and can help endoscopists to detect lesions previously ignored under white-light imaging.

Endoscopic full-thickness resection (EFTR) without laparoscopic assistance for nonampullary duodenal subepithelial lesions: our clinical experience of 32 cases.

BACKGROUND: Standard treatment for nonampullary duodenal tumors has not yet been established. In case of tumors originated from the muscularis propria (MP) layer and adherent to the serosa layer, the lesions can not be completely removed by ESD. However, with the development of the endoscopic suture technique, endoscopic full-thickness resection (EFTR) of duodenal subepithelial lesions has become possible. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 32 patients with nonampullary duodenal subepithelial lesions who underwent EFTR between February 2012 and January 2017. The suturing method, complications that occurred during and after the operations, perioperative management, tumor characteristics, and pathological findings were analyzed in all patients. RESULTS: The complete resection rate was 100%; all patients successfully received EFTR except for one patient who required conversion to open surgery. Severe abdominal pain was observed after the operation in one patient who then received laparoscopic exploration, and the possibility of delayed perforation was considered. Another patient showed a decline in blood oxygen saturation (SO2) and was transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU) for further management. Delayed bleeding and fistula were not observed. All patients achieved complete remission. CONCLUSION: EFTR is a safe, minimally invasive treatment modality that ensures complete eradication of the duodenal subepithelial lesions.

The efficacy of dental floss and a hemoclip as a traction method for the endoscopic full-thickness resection of submucosal tumors in the gastric fundus.

BACKGROUND: Endoscopic full-thickness resection (EFTR) provides a significant advancement to the treatment of gastrointestinal submucosal tumors (SMTs). However, technological challenges, particularly in the gastric fundus, hinder its wider application. Here, we investigated the efficacy of a simple traction method that used dental floss and a hemoclip (DFC) to facilitate EFTR. METHODS: Between July 2014 and December 2016, we retrospectively reviewed data from all patients with SMTs in the gastric fundus originating from the muscularis propria layer that were treated by EFTR at Zhongshan Hospital of Fudan University. Baseline characteristics and clinical outcomes, including procedure time and complications rate, were compared between groups of patients receiving DFC-EFTR and conventional EFTR. RESULTS: A total of 192 patients were included in our analysis (64 in the DFC-EFTR group and 128 in the conventional EFTR group). Baseline characteristics for the two groups were similar. The mean time for DFC-EFTR and conventional EFTR was 44.2 ± 24.4 and 54.2 ± 33.2 min, respectively (P = 0.034). Although no serious adverse events presented in any of our cases, post-EFTR electrocoagulation syndrome (PEECS), as a minor complication, was less frequent in the DFC-EFTR group (3.1% vs. 12.5%, P = 0.036). Univariate and multivariate analysis identified that DFC, when used in EFTR, played a significant role in reducing procedure time and the rate of PEECS. The mean procedure time was significantly shorter in the DFC-EFTR group for lesions over 1.0 cm (P = 0.005), when the lesions were located in the greater curvature of the gastric fundus (P = 0.025) or when the lesions presented with intraluminal growth (P = 0.032). Moreover, when EFTR was carried out by experts, the mean procedure time was 20.4% shorter in the DFC-EFTR group (P = 0.038). CONCLUSIONS: This study indicated that DFC-EFTR for SMTs in the gastric fundus resulted in a shorter procedure time and reduced the risk of PEECS, a minor complication.

Efficacy and safety of endoscopic resection for small submucosal tumors originating from the muscularis propria layer in the gastric fundus.

BACKGROUND: Gastric small submucosal tumors (SMTs) are becoming increasingly common. However, the fundus of stomach is regarded as a difficult area for endoscopic resection (ER). In this study, we investigated the efficacy, safety, and long-term outcomes of ER for small SMTs of the gastric fundus in a large series of patients, research that was previously lacking. METHODS: 537 consecutive patients with SMTs no more than 20 mm in diameter, occurring in the gastric fundus and originating from the muscularis propria layer, which were treated with endoscopic submucosal excavation or endoscopic full-thickness resection (EFTR) were included in this retrospective study at Zhongshan Hospital of Fudan University from January 2013 to September 2016. Clinicopathological, endoscopic, and follow-up data were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: En bloc resection was achieved in 100% of patients, and complete resection was achieved for 530 (98.7%) lesions. Although the total rate of complications was 9.3%, few serious adverse events occurred in only three (0.6%) patients, including major pneumoperitoneum, major hydrothorax, and bleeding. Unlike lager tumor sizes and longer procedure times, endoscopist experience had a positive impact on decreasing the likelihood of complications. Based on statistical analysis, tumors with greater size near the cardia, which were treated by EFTR, were the significant contributors to longer operative times. A median follow-up of 32 months was available, and all patients were free from local recurrence or distant metastasis during the study period. CONCLUSIONS: Although the gastric fundus presents technical difficulties, ER is effective for the resection of small gastric SMTs with a high complete resection rate and rare serious adverse events.

Efficacy and safety of endoscopic submucosal dissection for submucosal tumors of the colon and rectum.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) of colorectal submucosal tumors (SMTs) is becoming increasingly common; however, there have been few large consecutive studies analyzing its therapeutic efficacy and safety. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and long-term outcomes of ESD for colorectal SMTs. METHODS: This retrospective study included 412 consecutive patients with colorectal SMTs who underwent ESD at the Zhongshan Hospital of Fudan University from January 2008 to July 2014. Tumor histopathology, completeness of resection, adverse events, tumor recurrence, and distant metastasis were analyzed. RESULTS: Complete resection was achieved for 358 lesions (86.9%). Thirteen patients had serious adverse events (3.2%) including bleeding and perforation, and 28 patients (6.8%) had post-ESD electrocoagulation syndrome (PEECS). Because more ESDs for colorectal SMTs were performed by endoscopists, the rate of complete resection increased (78.5% vs 88.5%), and the rate of serious adverse events decreased (9.2% vs 2.0%). SMTs in the colon increased the risk of incomplete resection (19.6% vs 11.3%), serious adverse events (8.7% vs 1.6%), and PEECS (16.3% vs 4.1%). SMTs originating from the muscularis propria and sized ≥20 mm increased the rate of PEECS (22.7% vs 5.9% and 31.3% vs 5.8%, respectively). CONCLUSION: ESD is effective for resection of colorectal SMTs and rarely causes serious adverse events. Tumor location and the experience of endoscopists influence the complete resection rate and the development of serious adverse events. ESD is feasible for large tumors and tumors in the muscularis propria, but this is associated with relatively high risks of adverse events.

Endoscopic submucosal dissection for early esophageal cancer in elderly patients with relative indications for endoscopic treatment.

BACKGROUND: According to the Japanese Esophageal Society (JES) guidelines, early esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) involving the muscularis mucosae (M3) or upper submucosal (SM1) layers are relative indications for endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD). Additional esophagectomy or chemoradiotherapy is recommended for patients with relative indications after evaluation. However, elderly patients (≥ 60 years) with relative indications in China often refuse additional treatment because of the debilitating side effects. The aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term outcomes of elderly patients with relative indications who did not undergo additional treatment after ESD. METHODS: Data from elderly patients with relative indications who underwent ESD for early esophageal SCC between January 2008 and December 2013 were reviewed retrospectively. Stricture and recurrence, and 5-year progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival rates were compared with patients with absolute indications for ESD. RESULTS: 158 elderly patients were included and analyzed (89 in the absolute indications group and 69 in the relative indications group). The baseline characteristics were balanced between the two groups. During 56 months (range 1 - 108) of follow-up, the postoperative stricture rates were similar in the absolute and relative indications groups (21.3 % vs. 31.9 %; P  = 0.13). The hazard ratio (HR) for PFS in the absolute vs. the relative indications groups was 1.025 (95 % confidence interval [CI] 0.36 - 2.95; P = 0.96). The 5-year PFS rates were 90.5 % (95 %CI 83.44 - 97.56) and 90.8 % (95 %CI 83.74 - 97.86) for the absolute and relative indications groups, respectively. The HR for overall survival in the absolute vs. the relative indications groups was 0.564 (95 %CI 0.13 - 2.52; P = 0.45). The 5-year overall survival rates were 96.6 % (95 %CI 92.88 - 100) and 95.6 % (95 %CI 90.70 - 100) for the absolute and relative indications groups, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Based on this study, regular follow-up without additional treatment may be considered as another choice for elderly patients with early esophageal SCC and relative indications after ESD.

Efficacy and Safety of Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection for Colorectal Carcinoids.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Although endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) of colorectal carcinoids is increasing, little is known about long-term outcomes of patients. We investigated the efficacy and safety of ESD of colorectal carcinoids and evaluated long-term outcomes, including local recurrence and metastasis. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of data collected from 239 consecutive patients with colorectal carcinoids <20 mm who underwent endoscopic ultrasonography (to evaluate the size of tumor and the depth of invasion), followed by ESD from January 2007 through October 2012 at the Zhongshan Hospital of Fudan University. Histology and patient data were collected during a median follow-up period of 52 months (range, 25-94 months) to determine tumor stage and type, completeness of resection, complications, tumor recurrence, and distant metastasis. RESULTS: En bloc resection was achieved for all of the 239 treated lesions; tumor tissues were completely resected for 216 of the lesions (90.38%). Eight patients had ESD-related complications (3.35%). As more ESDs were performed by endoscopists, the rate of complete tumor resection increased, and the rate of complications decreased. ESD of carcinoids in colon increased the risk of non-R0 resection and the rate of complications. During the follow-up period, all patients remained free from local recurrence. However, distant metastases were detected in 6 patients (2.51%); lymphovascular invasion was a risk factor for metastasis. CONCLUSIONS: ESD is effective for the resection of rectal carcinoids <20 mm and causes complications in less than 4% of patients. ESD for colonic carcinoids is feasible but associated with a higher non-R0 resection rate and a trend toward higher complications risk. Tumor features and stage determine risk for distant metastasis, so long-term follow-up is essential.

Angiopoietin-like 4 enhances metastasis and inhibits apoptosis via inducing bone morphogenetic protein 7 in colorectal cancer cells.

Angiopoietin-like 4 (ANGPTL4), a secretory glycoprotein, plays an important role in cancer metastasis. In the present study, we aim to investigate the roles and mechanisms of ANGPTL4 in the regulation of colorectal cancer metastasis. We found that expression level of ANGPTL4 was increased in colorectal cancer tissues, compared with that in normal tissues. Moreover, liver metastasis was significantly associated with higher expression of ANGPTL4. In vitro studies further showed that overexpression of ANGPTL4 enhanced cell migration, invasion and inhibited apoptosis. At the molecular level, ANGPTL4 overexpression resulted in an up-regulation of bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP7). Indeed, knockdown of BMP7 by small interfering RNA (siRNA) oligos reversed the roles of ANGPTL4 overexpression in HCT116 cells. Finally, in vivo studies further confirmed the metastatic roles of ANGPTL4 by inducing BMP7. Therefore, our study demonstrated that ANGPTL4 might promote metastasis and might inhibit apoptosis of colorectal cancer cells by up-regulation of BMP7.

ClusterNet: a clustering distributed prior embedded detection network for early-stage esophageal squamous cell carcinoma diagnosis.

BACKGROUND: Early and accurate diagnosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is important for reducing mortality. Analyzing intrapapillary capillary loops' (IPCLs) patterns on magnification endoscopy with narrow band imaging (ME-NBI) has been demonstrated effective in the diagnosis of early-stage ESCC. However, even experienced endoscopists may face difficulty in finding and classifying countless IPCLs on ME-NBI. PURPOSE: We propose a novel clustering prior embedded detection network: ClusterNet. ClusterNet is capable of analyzing the distribution of IPCLs on ME-NBI automatically and enables endoscopists to overview multiple types of visualization. With ClusterNet assisting, endoscopists may observe ME-NBI images more efficiently, thus they may also predict the pathology and make medical decisions more easily. METHODS: We propose the first large-scale ME-NBI dataset with fine-grained annotations by consensus of expert endoscopists. The dataset is splitted into a training set and an independent testing set based on patients. With two strategies for embedding, ClusterNet can automatically take the clustering effect into consideration. Prior to this work, none of the existing approaches take the clustering effect, which is rather important in classifying the IPCLs, into account. RESULTS: ClusterNet achieves an average precision of 81.2% and an average recall of 90.0% for the detection of IPCLs patterns on each patient of the independent testing set. We also compare ClusterNet with other state-of-the-art detection approaches. The performance of ClusterNet with embedding strategies is consistently superior to that of other approaches in terms of average precision, recall and F2-Score. CONCLUSIONS: Experiments demonstrate that our proposed method is able to detect almost all the IPCLs patterns on ME-NBI and classify them according to the Japanese Endoscopic Society (JES) classification accurately.