A novel nomogram for the preoperative prediction of sentinel lymph node metastasis in breast cancer.

BACKGROUND OR PURPOSE: A practical noninvasive method to identify sentinel lymph node (SLN) status in breast cancer patients, who had a suspicious axillary lymph node (ALN) at ultrasound (US), but a negative clinical physical examination is needed. To predict SLN metastasis using a nomogram based on US and biopsy-based pathological features, this retrospective study investigated associations between clinicopathological features and SLN status. METHODS: Patients treated with SLN dissection at four centers were apportioned to training, internal, or external validation sets (n = 472, 175, and 81). Lymph node ultrasound and pathological characteristics were compared using chi-squared and t-tests. A nomogram predicting SLN metastasis was constructed using multivariate logistic regression models. RESULTS: In the training set, statistically significant factors associated with SLN+ were as follows: histology type (p < 0.001); progesterone receptor (PR: p = 0.003); Her-2 status (p = 0.049); and ALN-US shape (p = 0.034), corticomedullary demarcation (CMD: p < 0.001), and blood flow (p = 0.001). With multivariate analysis, five independent variables (histological type, PR status, ALN-US shape, CMD, and blood flow) were integrated into the nomogram (C-statistic 0.714 [95% CI: 0.688-0.740]) and validated internally (0.816 [95% CI: 0.784-0.849]) and externally (0.942 [95% CI: 0.918-0.966]), with good predictive accuracy and clinical applicability. CONCLUSION: This nomogram could be a direct and reliable tool for individual preoperative evaluation of SLN status, and therefore aids decisions concerning ALN dissection and adjuvant treatment.

Mode of action and efficacy of quinolinic acid for the control of Ceratocystis fimbriata on sweet potato.

BACKGROUND: Ceratocystis fimbriata is a hazardous fungal pathogen able to cause black rot disease on sweet potato. The management of C. fimbriata strongly relies on the use of toxic fungicides, and there is a lack of efficient alternative strategies. RESULTS: The antifungal properties of quinolinic acid (QA) were studied for the first time, indicating that QA shows selective antifungal activity against C. fimbriata. QA inhibited completely the mycelial growth of C. fimbriata at less than 0.8 mg mL-1 concentration (pH 4), and was able to produce alterations in the fungal cell wall, and to impede spore agglutination and mycelium formation. QA significantly reduced the concentration of ergosterol, and was able to associate to iron (II), suggesting that QA may be a lanosterol 14-α demethylase inhibitor. In preventive applications, QA reduced the disease incidence of C. fimbriata on sweet potato by 75%, achieving higher control efficacy in comparison with commercial fungicides prochloraz and carbendazim. CONCLUSIONS: The first selective antifungal agent against C. fimbriata was discovered in this work, and showed suitable antifungal properties for the management of black rot disease. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Platinum-Based Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer With BRCA Mutations: A Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is one of the most aggressive subtypes of breast cancer and the major phenotype of BRCA related hereditary breast cancer. Platinum is a promising chemotherapeutic agent for TNBC. However, its efficacy for breast cancer with BRCA germline mutation remains inconclusive. Here we present a meta-analysis to evaluate the effect of platinum agents for breast cancer patients with BRCA mutation in neoadjuvant setting. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pubmed, Embase, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials databases were searched for relevant studies on neoadjuvant platinum treatment and BRCA related breast cancer. Fixed- and random-effect models were adopted for meta-analyses. Heterogeneity investigation was conducted by sensitivity and subgroup analyses. Publication bias was evaluated by funnel plot and Begg's test. RESULTS: In all, five studies with 363 patients were included for meta-analysis. The pooled pathological complete response (pCR) rates were 43.4% (59/136) and 33.9% (77/227) for platinum and control groups, respectively. Adding platinum to neoadjuvant regimen did not significantly improved pCR rate (odds ratio [OR]: 1.340, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.677-2.653, p = 0.400). Sensitivity analyses also revealed platinum did not significantly increase pCR rate in either TNBC or HER2- patients (TNBC subgroup: OR: 1.028, 95% CI = 0.779-1.356, p = 0.846; HER2- subgroup: OR: 0.935, 95% CI = 0.716-1.221, p = 0.622). CONCLUSIONS: Our meta-analysis suggested that the addition of platinum to neoadjuvant chemotherapy did not significantly improve pCR rate for patients with BRCA mutations. Further large-scale randomized control trial with survival data may provide more robust evidence on therapeutic value of platinum for breast cancer neoadjuvant treatment.

Sentinel lymph node biopsy should be considered for clinically node-negative breast cancer regardless of BRCA1/2 mutation status.

BACKGROUND: BRCA1/2 mutations lead to an elevated risk of breast cancer. None involved in whether BRCA1/2 mutation status will affect the first decision-making of sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy or not for clinically node-negative breast cancer. We retrospectively investigated whether BRCA1/2 mutation status influenced SLN involvement rate and survival outcomes after sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) for Chinese clinically node-negative breast cancer patients. METHODS: Patients who underwent SLNB at initial were enrolled and divided according to BRCA1/2 mutation status. Germline DNA for BRCA1/2 testing was derived from blood samples. SLN involvement rate and clinicopathological characteristics were analyzed using the Chi-square test. Kaplan-Meier univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis was performed to compare survival between groups. RESULTS: According to BRCA1/2 mutation test criteria, 156 Chinese women receiving initial SLNB with clinically node-negative breast cancer were selected-thirty-one patients identified as BRCA1/2 mutation carriers and 102 as non-carriers were enrolled. Non-carriers seemed to be with a more advanced TNM stage (P<0.01) compared to the non-carrier group. Once SLN involved, the patient will receive axillary lymph node dissection in which BRCA1/2 mutation did not increase the rate (P=0.73). Disease-free survival (DFS) (P=0.48) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) (P=0.79) are comparable between groups, even after adjustment for clinicopathological characteristics, systemic treatment, and surgical management of breast [DFS, hazard ratio (HR) =1.63, confidence interval (CI): 0.48-5.54, P=0.43; RFS, HR =0.75, CI: 0.14-3.89, P=0.73]. CONCLUSIONS: SLNB should be considered for clinically node-negative breast cancer regardless of BRCA1/2 status.

MicroRNA-27b-3p Promotes Tumor Progression and Metastasis by Inhibiting Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Gamma in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Introduction: The role and underlying mechanisms of miR-27b-3p in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) remains unclear. Methods: miR-27b-3p expression level was evaluated in 99 TNBC patients with a median follow-up time of 133 months. The biological functions of miR-27b-3p by targeting PPARG were assessed by luciferase reporter assay, CCK-8 assay, Transwell assay, wound healing assay, western blot analysis and xenograft models. Results: High level of miR-27b-3p expression was found to confer poor prognosis in TNBC patients. MiR-27b-3p overexpression increased TNBC cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and metastasis. Our data suggested peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARG) was a target of miR-27b-3p. The capacity of miR-27b-3p to induce TNBC progression and metastasis depended on its inhibition of the PPARG expression. Furthermore, restoring PPARG expression reversed the effect of miR-27b-3p overexpression. Mechanistically, miR-27b-3p regulated metastasis-related pathways through PPARG by promoting epithelial-mesenchymal transition. By suppressing PPARG, miR-27b-3p could also activate transcription factors Snail and NF-κB, thereby promoting metastasis. Conclusions: miR-27b-3p promotes TNBC progression and metastasis by inhibiting PPARG. MiR-27b-3p may be a potential prognostic marker of TNBC, and PPARG may be a potential molecular therapeutic target of TNBC.

Breast-conserving therapy is safe both within BRCA1/2 mutation carriers and noncarriers with breast cancer in the Chinese population.

BACKGROUND: BRCA1/2 mutation is associated with a high risk of breast cancer, which may preclude breast cancer patients with BRCA1/2 mutation from breast-conserving therapy (BCT) [breast-conserving surgery (BCS), followed by radiotherapy, BCT]. It is debatable whether BCT could be a rational choice for Chinese breast cancer patients with a BRCA1/2 mutation. METHODS: The study comprised a cohort of women with invasive breast cancer either receiving BCT or mastectomy following the criteria for the germline BRCA1/2 mutation test. Germline DNA for BRCA1/2 testing was derived from blood samples. Survival analyses were performed. The correlations were analyzed between survival and distinct types of surgery. To compare the survival between different surgical management, Kaplan-Meier univariate analysis and multivariate Cox regression was used. RESULTS: In BRCA1/2 mutation carriers (N=176) and noncarriers (N=293), 25% and 27.3% of the patients received BCT, respectively (P=0.675). Patients receiving mastectomy (without radiotherapy or followed by radiotherapy) have larger tumor size (P<0.05 both in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers and noncarriers), prognostically worse tumor characteristics including significantly more advanced TNM stage (P=0.017 and P<0.0001 respectively) and more positive lymph nodes (P=0.008 and P<0.0001, respectively) both in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers and noncarriers. Still, more often received systemic therapy has also been observed. After adjustment for clinical-pathological characteristics and systemic treatment, patients who received BCT had a similar breast cancer disease-free survival compared with patients who received mastectomy, both in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers and noncarriers [HR BRCA1/2 =1.17, confidence interval (CI): 0.57-2.39, P=0.68; HRnoncarriers =0.91, CI: 0.47-1.77, P=0.79, respectively). The recurrence free survival after BCT did not differ from mastectomy in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers [BCT, 5-year cumulative recurrence-free survival (RFS) =0.95, CI: 0.89-1.00; mastectomy, 5-year cumulative RFS =0.93, CI: 0.85-1.00], even better for BCT in noncarriers (BCT, 5-year cumulative RFS =0.67, CI: 0.42-0.89; mastectomy, 5-year cumulative RFS =0.83, CI: 0.71-0.95). CONCLUSIONS: Thus, BCT may be a safe and rational choice for Chinese female breast cancer patients with a BRCA1/2 mutation. However, tumor size, the TNM stage, the number of positive lymph nodes, might be taken into consideration when choosing surgical management.

Ornithinicoccus soli sp. nov., isolated from farmland soil.

A Gram-stain-positive, aerobic, non-motile and coccoid-shaped bacterium, designated XNB-1T, was isolated from farmland soil in Taian, Shandong province, China. Strain XNB-1T contained iso-C15 : 0 and iso-C16 : 0 as the predominant fatty acids. The diagnostic diamino acid of the peptidoglycan was ornithine, and the interpeptide bridge was l-Orn←Gly(1, 2)←d-Glu. The polar lipid profile of strain XNB-1T consisted of diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylglycerol, an unidentified phosphoglycolipid and three unidentified phospholipids. The predominant menaquinone of strain XNB-1T was MK-8(H4) and the DNA G+C content was 70.1 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain XNB-1T belonged to the genus Ornithinicoccus, and shared the highest similarity with Ornithinicoccus hortensis HKI 0125T (96.0 %), followed by Ornithinicoccus halotolerans EGI 80423T (95.5 %). Genome-based analysis of average nucleotide identity of strain XNB-1T with O. hortensis HKI 0125T and O. halotolerans EGI 80423T yielded values of 73.1 and 73.3 %, respectively, while the digital DNA-DNA hybridization values were 19.5 and 19.9 %, respectively. On the basis of phenotypic, chemotaxonomic and phylogenetic data, strain XNB-1T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Ornithinicoccus, for which the name Ornithinicoccus soli sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is XNB-1T (=CCTCC AB 2019099T=KCTC 49259T).

Cumulibacter soli sp. nov., isolated from farmland soil.

A Gram-stain-positive, strictly aerobic, non-motile, non-spore-forming and rod-shaped bacterium, designated as strain G-1T, was isolated from farmland soil sampled in in Fuyang, Anhui Province, PR China. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain G-1T was closely related to Cumulibacter manganitolerans 2-36T (97.7 % similarity). Strain G-1T contained iso-C16 : 0, C17 : 1ω6c, iso-C15 : 0 and iso-C14 : 0 as the predominant fatty acids. The polar lipids of strain G-1T were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, an unidentified phospholipid, an unidentified lipid and two unidentified glycolipids. The predominant respiratory quinone of strain G-1T was MK-9(H4). The cell wall contained meso-diaminopimelic acid as the diagnostic diamino acid. The G+C content of the genomic DNA based on genome calculations was 64.2 mol%. Average nucleotide identity and the digital DNA-DNA hybridization values for the draft genomes between strain G-1T and strain 2-36T were 75.7 and 20.2 %, respectively. On the basis of phenotypic and phylogenetic data, strain G-1T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Cumulibacter, for which the name Cumulibacter soli sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is G-1T (=CCTCC AB2019021T=KCTC 49258T).

The prognostic comparison among unilateral, bilateral, synchronous bilateral, and metachronous bilateral breast cancer: A meta-analysis of studies from recent decade (2008-2018).

BACKGROUND: The incidence of bilateral breast cancer (BBC) is increasing nowadays comprising 2%-11% of all breast cancer (BC). According to the interval time between the first and second cancer, BBC could be divided into synchronous (SBBC) and metachronous (MBBC). However, this interval time is quite different across studies. It remains controversial whether the survival of BBC, SBBC, and MBBC is similar or worse compared to that of unilateral breast cancer (UBC), and whether the survival of SBBC is similar or worse compared to MBBC. To better understand the survival of UBC, BBC, SBBC, and MBBC and how the interval time would influence the prognosis of SBBC and MBBC, we performed this meta-analysis on studies from recent 10 years (2008-2018). METHODS: Databases of PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science were searched for relevant studies within recent 10 years. Hazard ratio (HR) was adopted to evaluate the difference of overall survival (OS) of UBC, BBC, SBBC, and MBBC. HR of OS comparisons were performed between BBC vs UBC, SBBC vs UBC, MBBC vs UBC, and SBBC vs MBBC with 3, 6, 12 months as the interval time, respectively. RESULTS: There were 15 studies of 72 302 UBC and 2912 BBC included in the meta-analysis. The summary HR of OS comparison between BBC vs UBC was 1.68 (95% CI: 1.28-2.20), SBBC vs UBC was 2.01 (95% CI: 1.14-3.55), MBBC vs UBC was 3.22 (95% CI: 0.75-13.78). When 3, 6, 12 months were used as the interval time, the summary HR of the OS comparison between of SBBC vs MBBC were 0.64 (95% CI: 0.44-0.94), 1.17 (95% CI: 0.84-1.63) and 1.45 (95% CI: 1.10-1.92), respectively. CONCLUSION: BBC and SBBC showed worse prognosis in terms of OS compared to UBC while MBBC manifested similar or non-superior survival as UBC. The OS comparison between SBBC and MBBC changed with different interval time used. The longer the interval time used, the worse the survival of SBBC. SBBC with interval of 3-12 months between the two cancers had the worst prognosis. When 6 months was used to differentiate SBBC from MBBC, these two clinical entities showed similar OS.

Mammography-detected ultrasound-negative asymptomatic micro-calcifications in Chinese women: Would it be safe to watch and wait?

Although mammography (MG) has been widely used for breast cancer screening in the western world, over-diagnosis remains controversial. Milestone studies showed that ultrasound (US) was an effective primary screening test for breast cancer both in the western world and in China. US improves the sensitivity of screening in Chinese women who have denser breasts and develop breast cancer earlier than Caucasian counterparts, and is used as the primary imaging test in the hospital-based opportunistic screening among asymptomatic self-referred women. Our previous work showed that US result might further differentiate the MG-detected breast cancers into low risk (US+) and ultra-low risk (US-). Indeed, most of the MG+/US- breast cancers would be ultra-low risk cancers and almost always present as MG micro-calcifications. Furthermore, majority of the commonest MG+/US- abnormal finding of micro-calcification is usually benign. Biopsy of benign breast disease increases not only the risk of breast cancer, but the expenses of screening and healthcare. Our hypothesis proposes that mammography-positive ultrasound-negative (MG+/US-) asymptomatic micro-calcifications might not need immediate invasive procedures and be safe to observe until the micro-calcifications increase significantly or become US-positive. If this hypothesis is proved, US would serve as the primary imaging test for breast cancer screening in China, with MG as the selective screening test and diagnostic tool for surgical plan. Unnecessary biopsy or surgery might be avoided with screening expenses considerably decrease.

Terrimonas soli sp. nov., isolated from farmland soil.

A Gram-staining-negative, aerobic, non-motile and rod-shaped bacterium that produced yellow viscous colonies, designated FL-8T, was isolated from farmland soil in Chuzhou, Anhui province, PR China. 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities between strain FL-8T and the type strains of species of the genus Terrimonas with validly published names ranged from 94.6 to 96.1 %. Strain FL-8T contained iso-C15 : 1 G, iso-C15 : 0 and iso-C17 : 0 3-OH as the predominant fatty acids. The predominant polar lipid of strain FL-8T was phosphatidylethanolamine. The sole respiratory quinone of strain FL-8T was MK-7 and the DNA G+C content was 44.8 mol%. On the basis of phenotypic, chemotaxonomic and phylogenetic data, strain FL-8T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Terrimonas, for which the name Terrimonassoli sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is FL-8T (=CCTCC AB 2017059T=JCM 32095T).

Pedobacter agrisoli sp. nov., isolated from farmland soil.

A Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, non-motile, non-spore-forming and rod-shaped bacterium, designated YHM-9T, was isolated from soil in Yangquan, Shanxi Province, PR China. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain YHM-9T belonged to the genus Pedobacter and shared the highest similarity (97.4 %) to the type strain Pedobacter lignilitoris W-WS13T. Strain YHM-9T exhibited low DNA-DNA relatedness with P. lignilitoris W-WS13T (21.7±1.3 %). The DNA G+C content was 38.9 mol%. The major fatty acids were iso-C15 : 0, summed feature 3 (C16 : 1ω7c and/or C16 : 1ω6c) and iso-C17 : 0 3-OH. The respiratory quinone was MK-7, the major polyamine was sym-homospermidine and the major polar lipids were phosphatidylethanolamine. Based on the morphological, physiological, biochemical and chemotaxonomic characteristics, strain YHM-9T was recognized as a representative of a novel species within the genus Pedobacter, for which the name Pedobacteragrisoli sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is YHM-9T (=JCM 32093T=CCTCC AB 2017125T).

The value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound for sentinel lymph node identification and characterisation in pre-operative breast cancer patients: A prospective study.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the feasibility of sentinel lymph node (SLN) identification by contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) in pre-operative breast cancer patients and the value of enhancement patterns for diagnosing lymph node metastases and characterising axillary nodal burden. METHODS: 110 consecutive breast cancer patients were enrolled. Before the surgery, microbubbles were injected intradermally. The lymphatic drainage pathway was detected to identify the SLNs. Blue dye and indocyanine green (ICG) fluorescence were used to trace SLNs during the operation. The enhancement patterns of SLNs were recorded and compared with the final pathological diagnosis. RESULTS: SLN detection rate was 96.4 % of 110 patients, 134 SLNs were detected in total. The sensitivity, specificity, positive-predictive value, negative-predictive value and accuracy of predicting SLNs metastases by CEUS enhancement patterns were 100 %, 52.0 %, 43.4 %, 100 % and 64.9 %, respectively. No metastatic SLNs were presented as homogeneous enhancement. Low nodal burden with 0-2 SLN metastases in 92.5 % nodes presented as heterogeneous enhancement. No enhancement pattern was proved to be SLN metastases in 100 % patients. CONCLUSIONS: CEUS is a feasible approach for SLN identification. CEUS enhancement patterns can be helpful in recognising metastatic SLNs and nodal burden. KEY POINTS: • CEUS is a feasible approach for SLN identification and characterisation. • The enhancement patterns on CEUS can be helpful in recognising metastasised SLNs. • Homogeneous enhancement pattern has the highest negative-predictive value.

Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment of Male Breast Cancer:Analysis of 24 Cases.

Objective To summarize our experiences in the clinical diagnosis and treatment of male breast cancer(MBC).Methods The clinical date of 24 MBC patients treated in our hospital from January 2006 to December 2012 were retrospective analyzed.Results The average age of these 24 patients was(55.7±2.1) years.All the patients received surgical treatment,and the surgical procedures were simple excision of breast lesion in 6 patients,breast resection alone in 5 patients,and modified radical mastectomy in 13 patients(bilateral in 1 case).The pathological diagnoses included invasive ductal carcinoma in 18 cases,papillary carcinoma in 4 cases,mucinous adenocarcinoma in 1 case,and malignant solitary fibrous tumor in 1 case.Twenty patients received chemotherapy,7 received radiotherapy,and 15 received endocrine therapy after operation.The 5-year survival rate was 54.2%.Conclusions The incidence of MBC is low.This malignancy is mainly seen in elderly individuals,with relatively long disease course,poor prognosis,and high risk of metastasis.MBC is mainly treated by surgery,and adjuvant chemotherapy,radiotherapy,and endocrine therapy may be applied,if appropriate,after the operation.

Tumor biology, clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis of screen detected T1 invasive non-palpable breast cancer in asymptomatic Chinese women (2001-2014).

BACKGROUND: Mammography screening usually detects low-risk breast cancer in the western world. However, little is known about the ultrasound and mammography screen-detected T1 invasive non-palpable breast cancer (NPBC) in asymptomatic Chinese women. RESULTS: With the increase of tumor size (T1a, b, c), lymph node positivity (8.7%, 18.3%, 26.0%, p = 0.018), pN (p = 0.028) and TNM stage (p = 0.035) increased accordingly. Tumor size (T1a, b, c) was correlated with high Ki-67 index (defined as ≥ 14%, 37.9%, 45.8%, 56.2%, p = 0.017), chemotherapy (20.4%, 35.2%, 57.3%, p < 0.001) and targeted therapy (2.9%, 9.9%, 15.1%, p = 0.008). T1a disease had higher chance of being luminal A and accompanied with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), while T1c tumor being triple-negative and without DCIS. The 5-year disease free survival (DFS) of T1a, b, c NPBC were 99.0%, 96.9% and 92.9%, whereas the 5-year overall survival (OS) were 100.0%, 100.0% and 97.9% respectively. There was no significant difference in 5-year DFS or OS among the T1 NPBC subgroups or subtypes/immunophenotypes. PATIENTS AND METHODS: From 2001 to 2014, 4,574 screening positive women received biopsies in Peking Union Medical College (PUMC) Hospital, and 729 NPBC including 437 T1 unilateral invasive NPBC were diagnosed. With a median follow-up time of 32 months (6-163 months), the clinicopathological characteristics, treatment choice, 5-year DFS and OS were compared between T1a, T1b and T1c NPBC. The DFS and OS prognostic factors were identified. CONCLUSION: Screen-detected T1 invasive NPBC could be regarded as low-risk cancer in Chinese women. TNM stage and LN metastasis instead of molecular subtype was identified as the DFS prognostic factors while radiotherapy as the OS predictor.

Correlation of Stress Hyperglycemia after Ischemic Stroke with Early Vascular Cognitive Impairment.

Objective To investigate the influence and forecast value of stress hyperglycemia on the early vascular cognitive impairment (VCI) in stroke patients.Methods Totally 422 patients with acute non-diabetic stroke were divided into three groups according to the fasting plasma glucose level:the euglycemia group (<6.1 mmol/L),the mild stress hyperglycemia group (6.1-7.0 mmol/L),and the severe stress hyperglycemia group (≥7.0 mmol/L).Mini-mental state examination,Alzheimer's disease rating scale cognitive subscale,and clinical dementia rating scale were used to evaluate early cognition in post-stroke patients,and patients were divided into three groups accordingly:normal cognitive function group,mild VCI group,and vascular dementia group.Correlation analysis was carried out on the level of stress hyperglycemia and the degree of VCI.Results Of these 422 patients,stress hyperglycemia was identified in 62 cases (14.7%).The risk of stress hyperglycemia was higher in patients with a high degree of education [(8.39±3.85)years vs.(6.62±4.39)years,P=0.037)] or a history of cardiovascular disease (45.2% vs.18.3%,P=0.001).VCI was detected in 270 patients (64.0%).Age,sex,smoking,National Institute of Health Stroke Scale score,Hamilton Depression Rating Scale score,stress hyperglycemia,and history of cardiovascular disease were related with early VCI after non-diabetic ischemic stroke (P<0.05).Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that stress hyperglycemia was an independent risk factor for VCI in patients with non-diabetic ischemic stroke (OR=3.086,95% CI=1.065-8.929).The risks of cognitive impairment in the mild stress hyperglycemia group and the severe stress hyperglycemia group were higher than that of the euglycemia group,while it was also higher in the severe stress hyperglycemia group than in the mild stress hyperglycemia group (61.11% vs.75.00% vs.90.91%).Stress hyperglycemia was positively correlated with the high risk of early cognitive impairment in stroke patients (rs=0.185,P=0.007).Conclusion There is a significant correlation between stress hyperglycemia and early VCI after ischemic stroke.

Clinicopathological characteristics and long-term prognosis of screening detected non-palpable breast cancer by ultrasound in hospital-based Chinese population (2001-2014).

PURPOSE: The mainstay modality of breast cancer screening in China is the hospital-based opportunistic screening among asymptomatic self-referred women. There is little data about the ultrasound (US) detected non-palpable breast cancer (NPBC) in Chinese population. METHODS: We analyzed 699 consecutive NPBC from 1.8-2.3 million asymptomatic women from 2001 to 2014, including 572 US-detected NPBC from 3,786 US-positive women and 127 mammography (MG) detected NPBC from 788 MG-positive women. The clinicopathological features, disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were compared between the US- and MG-detected NPBC. Prognostic factors of NPBC were identified. RESULTS: Compared to MG, US could detect more invasive NPBC (83.6% vs 54.3%, p<0.001), lymph node positive NPBC (19.1% vs 10.2%, p=0.018), lower grade (24.8% vs 16.5%, p<0.001), multifocal (19.2% vs 6.3%, p<0.001), PR positive (71.4% vs 66.9%, p=0.041), Her2 negative (74.3% vs 54.3%, p<0.001), Ki67 high (defined as >14%, 46.3% vs 37.0%, p=0.031) cancers and more NPBC who received chemotherapy (40.7% vs 21.3%, p<0.001). There was no significant difference in 10-year DFS and OS between US-detected vs MG-detected NPBC, DCIS and invasive NPBC. For all NPBC and the US-detected NPBC, the common DFS-predictors included pT, pN, p53 and bilateral cancers. CONCLUSION: US could detect more invasive, node-positive, multifocal NPBC in hospital-based asymptomatic Chinese female, who could achieve comparable 10-year DFS and OS as MG-detected NPBC. US would not delay early detection of NPBC with improved cost-effectiveness, thus could serve as the feasible initial imaging modality in hospital-based opportunistic screening among Chinese women.

HER2 amplification level is not a prognostic factor for HER2-positive breast cancer with trastuzumab-based adjuvant treatment: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Trastuzumab-based therapy is a standard, targeted treatment for HER2-positive breast cancer in the adjuvant setting. However, patients do not benefit equally from it and the association between HER2 amplification level and patients' survival remains controversial. A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted by incorporating all available evidence to evaluate the association between disease free survival (DFS) and HER2 amplification level. RESULTS: Three cohort studies involving 1360 HER2-positive breast cancer patients stratified by HER2 amplification magnitude were eligible for meta-analysis. The combined HRs for DFS were 1.05 (95% CI: 0.80-1.36, p = 0.74) and 0.97 (95% CI: 0.73-1.29, p = 0.83) for HER2 gene copy number (GCN) and HER2/CEP 17 ratio. No evidence of heterogeneity or public bias was found. METHODS: Databases including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), were searched for eligible literature. HER2 amplification level was evaluated by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in terms of gene copy number (GCN) and HER2/CEP17 ratio. Hazard ratios (HRs) for DFS with 95% confidence interval (CI) according to the amplification level of HER2 were extracted. The outcomes were synthesized based on a fixed-effects model. CONCLUSIONS: HER2 amplification level is not a prognostic factor for HER2-positive breast cancer with trastuzumab-based targeted therapy in the clinical adjuvant setting.

Prognosis of subtypes of the mucinous breast carcinoma in Chinese women: a population-based study of 32-year experience (1983-2014).

PURPOSE: The heterogeneous nature of the mucinous breast cancer (MBC), with its pure (PMBC) and mixed subtypes (MMBC), calls for precise prognosis assessment. METHODS: We analyzed 197 consecutive MBC patients, including 117 PMBC and 80 MMBC, who were treated from 1983 to 2014. The clinicopathological features, treatment choice, disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were compared among PMBC, MMBC and MMBC subgroups. Prognostic factors of PMBC and MMBC were identified. RESULTS: Compared to PMBC, MMBC had more lymph node metastasis (p = 0.043), Her2 positivity (p = 0.036), high Ki-67 index (defined as>20%, p = 0.026) and anti-Her2 targeted therapy (p = 0.016). The 5-year DFS of PMBC and MMBC were 90.4% and 86.2%, whereas the 5-year OS were 99.0% and 98.7%. No significant difference was found in DFS or OS among all MBC subtypes. High Ki-67 (p = 0.020) appeared as DFS factor in PMBC, while anti-Her2 targeted therapy (p = 0.047) as the DFS predictors in MMBC. CONCLUSION: MMBC manifested similar 5-year survival to PMBC in Chinese woman, suggesting that intra-tumoral heterogeneity might not interfere with MBC short-term prognosis.

Sensitivity, Specificity and Accuracy of Ultrasound in Diagnosis of Breast Cancer Metastasis to the Axillary Lymph Nodes in Chinese Patients.

The use of ultrasound in the diagnosis of axillary lymph node metastases from breast cancer in a Chinese population was investigated. Data for 1,049 with breast cancer were retrospectively collected. All patients had undergone pre-operative axillary ultrasound and then axillary lymph node dissection. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of axillary ultrasound in this cohort were 69.4%, 81.8% and 77.0%, respectively. The overall false-negative rate of ultrasound images was 30.6% (123/402). False-negative ultrasound rates for pathologic N1, N2 and N3 patients were 46.2%, 21.8% and 9.3%, respectively. In patients with stage T1 disease and fewer than three metastatic lymph nodes, the false-negative ultrasound rate was 52.2% (47/90). Moreover, breast cancer patients with a false-negative axillary ultrasound were more likely to have a large tumor (p < 0.001) and high tumor grade (p = 0.009). However, there were no statistically significant differences between accuracy of axillary ultrasound and age of patients or experiences of ultrasound practitioners. In conclusion, the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of ultrasound in the diagnosis of breast cancer metastasis to the axillary lymph nodes in Chinese patients were assessed. These data could help us to carefully use axillary ultrasound to diagnose and predict breast cancer axillary lymph node metastasis.