Efficacy and safety of Chinese patent medicine (Jinlong capsule) in the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis.

Jinlong capsule (JLC), a type of herbal medicine, is considered to be a promising adjuvant therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HC). Although an analysis of the published literature has been performed, the exact effects and safety of JLC are yet to be systematically investigated. Therefore, a wide-ranging systematic search of electronic databases to draw conclusions was performed. Data from 29 trials, including 2488 patients with advanced HC, were analyzed. The results indicated that, compared with conventional treatment alone, the combination of conventional treatment and JLC markedly improved overall patient response (odds ratio (OR) 2.06 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.71-2.49]; P<0.00001), disease control rate (DCR) (OR 2.17 [95% CI 1.74-2.71]; P<0.00001) and quality of life (QoL) (OR 2.71 [95% CI 2.05-3.58]; P<0.00001), and significantly prolonged 6- (P=0.01), 12- (P<0.00001), 24- (P=0.001) and 36-month (P<0.0001) overall survival (OS) rates. The immune function of patients was also significantly enhanced after combined conventional therapy and JLC treatment, indicated by clearly increased percentages of CD3+ (P<0.0001), CD4+ (P<0.00001) and natural killer (NK) cells (P=0.0003), and CD4+/CD8+ ratio (P<0.00001). The incidence of leukopenia (P<0.00001), hepatotoxicity (P=0.005), and myelosuppression (P=0.0007) was lower in HC patients injected with JLC, whereas other adverse events did not differ significantly between the two groups (P>0.05). In summary, results of this meta-analysis suggest that the combination of conventional treatment and JLC is more effective for the treatment of HC than conventional treatment alone.

Polymorphism in asparagine synthetase is associated with overall survival of hepatocellular carcinoma patients.

BACKGROUND: Recently, it is reported that asparagine synthetase (ASNS) is an independent predictor of surgical survival in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. It is also reported that activating transcription factor 6 (ATF6) expression is decreased in HCC patients. So in the present study, we explored the relationship between ASNS and ATF6, and whether ASNS expression was associated with HCC. METHODS: ATF6 was over expressed in 3 HCC cell lines (HepG2, HepG2.2.15 and SMMC-7721). We then examined the mRNA levels of ASNS and ATF6 in 90 HCC patients, 77 chronic hepatitis B patients and 70 controls. We also genotyped 2 functional polymorphisms in ASNS in a case-control study. RESULTS: The expression of ASNS was significantly elevated when ATF6 was over expressed. The expressions of these 2 genes were both decreased in HCC patients, and it was more significantly with ASNS. The mRNA levels of ASNS and ATF6 were positively correlated with each other. rs34050735 was associated with HCC in the case-control study (P = 0.003) and also an independent predictor of overall survival of HCC patients (P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, these findings indicated that rs34050735 in ASNS may associate with HCC and may be a promising biomarker of HCC.

Retroperitoneal abscess and acute acalculous cholecystitis after iatrogenic colon injury: report of a case.

Acute acalculous cholecystitis has a high mortality rate due to the difficulties in early diagnosis and high rate of complications like empyema, gangrene and perforation. We report a case of 20-year-old male with acute severe pancreatitis, acute renal failure and acute peripancreatic fluid collection who was transferred to our department after blood filtration treatment in ICU. After percutaneous catheter drainage for 20 hours, the patient got a high fever. Computed tomography revealed retroperitoneal colon injury. In this case, percutaneous catheter drainage was performed again and the pus cavity was flushed regularly, after which the patient's state gradually improved. Unpredictably, septic shock appeared on the 51(st) day. Repeated computed tomography revealed acute acalculous cholecystitis and abscess formation. After percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder catheterization and drainage, the patient got better gradually. Three months later the retroperitoneal catheter was removed. Four months later, ultrasound examination showed normal gallbladder and the catheter was removed.