Ultrathin Polymer Nanofibrils for Solar-Blind Deep Ultraviolet Light Photodetectors Application.

Solar-blind deep ultraviolet photodetectors (DUVPDs) based on conventional inorganic ultrawide bandgap semiconductors (UWBS) have shown promising application in various civil and military fields and yet they can hardly be used in wearable optoelectronic devices and systems for lack of mechanical flexibility. In this study, we report a non-UWBS solar-blind DUVPD by designing ultrathin polymer nanofibrils with a virtual ultrawide bandgap, which was obtained by grafting P3HT with PHA via a polymerization process. Optoelectronic analysis reveals that the P3HT-b-PHA nanofibrils are sensitive to DUV light with a wavelength of 254 nm but are virtually blind to both 365 nm and other visible light illuminations. The responsivity is 120 A/W with an external quantum efficiency of up to 49700%, implying a large photoconductive gain in the photoresponse process. The observed solar-blind DUV photoresponse is associated with the resonant mode due to the leakage mode of the ultrathin polymer nanofibrils. Moreover, a flexible image sensor composed of 10 × 10 pixels can also be fabricated to illustrate their capability for image sensing application. These results signify that the present ultrathin P3HT-b-PHA nanofibrils are promising building blocks for assembly of low-cost, flexible, and high-performance solar-blind DUVPDs.

Collaborations of Industry, Academia, Research and Application Improve the Healthy Development of Medical Imaging Artificial Intelligence Industry in China.

In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) has developed rapidly in the field of medical imaging. However, the collaborations among hospitals, research institutes and enterprises are insufficient at the present, and there are various issues in technological transformation and value landing of products in this area. To solve the core problems in the developmental path of medical imaging AI, the Chinese Innovative Alliance of Industry, Education, Research and Application of Artificial Intelligence for Medical Imaging compiled the White Paper on Medical Image AI in China. This article introduces the current status of collaboration, the clinical demands for medical imaging AI technique, and the key points in AI technology transformation: robustness, usability and security. We are facing challenges of lacking industry standards, data desensitization standard, assessment system, as well as corresponding regulations and policies to realize the application values of AI products in medical imaging. Further development of AI in medical imaging requires breakthroughs of the core algorithm, deep involvement of doctors, input from capitals, patience from societies, and most importantly, the resolutions from government for multiple difficulties in links of landing the technology.

Pulmonary cryptococcosis: comparison of CT findings in immunocompetent and immunocompromised patients.

BACKGROUND: Computed tomography (CT) findings in patients with pulmonary cryptococcosis have been reported, however, many reports were limited by the small number of patients, and not taken into account the distinction between immunocompetent and immunocompromised patients. PURPOSE: To retrospectively evaluate thoracic CT findings in patients with pulmonary cryptococcosis whose immune status ranged from normal to severely compromised, and determine characteristic imaging features of pulmonary cryptococcosis between patients with different immune status. MATERIAL AND METHODS: CT scan findings of 29 immunocompetent and 43 immunocompromised patients with clinically proven pulmonary cryptococcosis were reviewed retrospectively. Different patterns of CT scan abnormalities between immunocompromised and immunocompetent patients, AIDS and non-AIDS immunocompromised patients were compared by Fisher's exact test. RESULTS: Pulmonary nodules/masses, either solitary or multiple, were the most common CT finding, present in 65 (90.3%) of the 72 patients; associated findings included CT halo sign (n = 24), cavitation (n = 23), and air bronchogram (n = 17). Areas of consolidation (n = 14), areas of GGO (n = 13), linear opacities (n = 11), lymphadenopathy (n = 5), and pleural effusion (n = 8) were uncommon. The parenchymal abnormalities were peripherally located in 47 (65.2%) of the cases. Cavitations within nodules/masses were more frequently present in immunocompromised patients than in immunocompetent patients (P = 0.009), and in AIDS patients than in non-AIDS immunocompromised patients (P = 0.002). Air bronchograms within nodules/masses were more frequent present in immunocompetent patients than in immunocompromised patients (P = 0.005). Nodules/masses with halo sign were less frequent in AIDS patients than those in non-AIDS immunocompromised patients (P = 0.027). CONCLUSION: Pulmonary cryptococcosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of solitary or multiple pulmonary nodules. Cavitations within nodules/masses were more commonly seen in immunocompromised patients, especially AIDS patients, while air bronchograms were more commonly seen in immunocompetent patients.

Quantitative assessment of pulmonary perfusion using dynamic contrast-enhanced CT in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: correlations with pulmonary function test and CT volumetric parameters.

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary function test (PFT) is commonly used to help diagnose chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other lung diseases. However, it cannot be used to evaluate regional function and morphological abnormalities. PURPOSE: To quantitatively evaluate pulmonary perfusion imaging using dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) computed tomography (CT) and observe its correlations with PFT and CT volumetric parameters in COPD patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: PFT and CT pulmonary perfusion examination were performed in 63 COPD patients. Perfusion defects were quantitated by calculating the CT value ratio (RHU) between perfusion defects (HUdefect) and normal lung (HUnormal). Volumetric CT data were used to calculate emphysema index (EI), total lung volume (TLV), and total emphysema volume (TEV). Emphysematous parenchyma was defined as the threshold of lung area lower than -950 HU. Correlations between RHU and TLV, TEV, EI, and PFT were assessed using Spearman correlation analysis. RESULTS: The positive rate of perfusion defects on CT perfusion images was higher than that of emphysema on CT mask images (χ(2) = 17.027, P < 0.001). The Spearman correlation test showed that RHU was positively correlated with FEV1 (R = 0.59, P < 0.001), FEV1% Predicted (R = 0.61, P < 0.001), FVC (R = 0.47, P = 0.002), and FEV1/FVC (R = 0.65, P < 0.001), and negatively correlated with EI (R = -0.67, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: CT perfusion imaging is more sensitive in detecting emphysema that is inconspicuous on CT images. RHU is correlated with PFT and CT volumetric parameters, suggesting that it is more sensitive in detecting early COPD changes and may prove to be a potential predictor of focal lung function.

Dynamic contrast enhanced magnetic resonance perfusion imaging in high-risk smokers and smoking-related COPD: correlations with pulmonary function tests and quantitative computed tomography.

The study aimed to prospectively evaluate correlations between dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MR perfusion imaging, pulmonary function tests (PFT) and volume quantitative CT in smokers with or without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and to determine the value of DCE-MR perfusion imaging and CT volumetric imaging on the assessment of smokers. According to the ATS/ERS guidelines, 51 male smokers were categorized into five groups: At risk for COPD (n = 8), mild COPD (n = 9), moderate COPD (n = 12), severe COPD (n = 10), and very severe COPD (n = 12). Maximum slope of increase (MSI), positive enhancement integral (PEI), etc. were obtained from MR perfusion data. The signal intensity ratio (RSI) of the PDs and normal lung was calculated (RSI = SIPD/SInormal). Total lung volume (TLV), total emphysema volume (TEV) and emphysema index (EI) were obtained from volumetric CT data. For "at risk for COPD," the positive rate of PDs on MR perfusion images was higher than that of abnormal changes on non-enhanced CT images (p < 0.05). Moderate-to-strong positive correlations were found between all the PFT parameters and SIPD, or RSI (r range 0.445∼0.683, p ≤ 0.001). TEV and EI were negatively correlated better with FEV1/FVC than other PFT parameters (r range -0.48 --0.63, p < 0.001). There were significant differences in RSI and SIPD between "at risk for COPD" and "very severe COPD," and between "mild COPD" and "very severe COPD". Thus, MR perfusion imaging may be a good approach to identify early evidence of COPD and may have potential to assist in classification of COPD.

Denitrification Characteristics of the Low-Temperature Tolerant Denitrification Strain Achromobacter spiritinus HS2 and Its Application.

The low-temperature environment significantly inhibits the growth and metabolism of denitrifying bacteria, leading to an excessive concentration of ammonia nitrogen and total nitrogen in sewage treatment plants during the cold season. In this study, an efficient denitrifying strain of heterotrophic nitrification-aerobic denitrification (HN-AD) bacteria named HS2 was isolated and screened from industrial sewage of a chemical factory in Inner Mongolia at 8 °C. The strain was confirmed to be Achromobacter spiritinus, a colorless rod-shaped bacterium. When cultured with sodium succinate as the carbon source, a carbon-to-nitrogen ratio of 20-30, a shaking rate of 150-180 r/min, and an initial pH of 6-10, the strain HS2 exhibited excellent nitrogen removal at 8 °C. Through the results of whole-genome sequencing, gene amplification, and gas product detection, the strain HS2 was determined to possess key enzyme genes in both nitrification and denitrification pathways, suggesting a HN-AD pathway of NH4+-N → NH2OH → NO2-N → NO → N2O → N2. At 8 °C, the strain HS2 could completely remove ammonia nitrogen from industrial sewage with an initial concentration of 127.23 mg/L. Microbial species diversity analysis of the final sewage confirmed Achromobacter sp. as the dominant genus, which indicated that the low-temperature denitrifying strain HS2 plays an important role in nitrogen removal in actual low-temperature sewage.

Changes in macrophage infiltration and podocyte injury in lupus nephritis patients with repeated renal biopsy: Report of three cases.

BACKGROUND: In this study, we retrospectively analysed macrophage infiltration and podocyte injury in three patients with diffuse proliferative lupus nephritis (LN) who underwent repeated renal biopsy. CASE SUMMARY: Clinical data of three diffuse proliferative LN patients with different pathological characteristics (case 1 was LN IV-G (A), case 2 was LN IV-G (A) + V, and case 3 was LN IV-G (A) + thrombotic microangiopathy) were reviewed. All patients underwent repeated renal biopsies 6 mo later, and renal biopsy specimens were studied. Macrophage infiltration was assessed by CD68 expression detected by immunohistochemical staining, and an immunofluorescence assay was used to detect podocin expression to assess podocyte damage. After treatment, Case 1 changed to LN III-(A), Case 2 remained as type V LN lesions, and Case 3, which changed to LN IV-S (A), had the worst prognosis. We observed reduced macrophage infiltration after therapy. However, two of the patients with active lesions after treatment still showed macrophage infiltration in the renal interstitium. Before treatment, the three patients showed discontinuous expression of podocin. Notably, the integrity of podocin was restored after treatment in Case 1. CONCLUSION: It may be possible to reverse podocyte damage and decrease the infiltrating macrophages in LN patients through effective treatment.

CT whole lung radiomic nomogram: a potential biomarker for lung function evaluation and identification of COPD.

BACKGROUND: Computed tomography (CT) plays a great role in characterizing and quantifying changes in lung structure and function of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This study aimed to explore the performance of CT-based whole lung radiomic in discriminating COPD patients and non-COPD patients. METHODS: This retrospective study was performed on 2785 patients who underwent pulmonary function examination in 5 hospitals and were divided into non-COPD group and COPD group. The radiomic features of the whole lung volume were extracted. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) logistic regression was applied for feature selection and radiomic signature construction. A radiomic nomogram was established by combining the radiomic score and clinical factors. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis and decision curve analysis (DCA) were used to evaluate the predictive performance of the radiomic nomogram in the training, internal validation, and independent external validation cohorts. RESULTS: Eighteen radiomic features were collected from the whole lung volume to construct a radiomic model. The area under the curve (AUC) of the radiomic model in the training, internal, and independent external validation cohorts were 0.888 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.869-0.906], 0.874 (95%CI 0.844-0.904) and 0.846 (95%CI 0.822-0.870), respectively. All were higher than the clinical model (AUC were 0.732, 0.714, and 0.777, respectively, P < 0.001). DCA demonstrated that the nomogram constructed by combining radiomic score, age, sex, height, and smoking status was superior to the clinical factor model. CONCLUSIONS: The intuitive nomogram constructed by CT-based whole-lung radiomic has shown good performance and high accuracy in identifying COPD in this multicenter study.

Capability of differentiating smokers with normal pulmonary function from COPD patients: a comparison of CT pulmonary volume analysis and MR perfusion imaging.

OBJECTIVE: To compare CT volume analysis with MR perfusion imaging in differentiating smokers with normal pulmonary function (controls) from COPD patients. METHODS: Sixty-two COPD patients and 17 controls were included. The total lung volume (TLV), total emphysema volume (TEV) and emphysema index (EI) were quantified by CT. MR perfusion evaluated positive enhancement integral (PEI), maximum slope of increase (MSI), maximum slope of decrease (MSD), signal enhancement ratio (SER) and signal intensity ratio (RSI) of perfusion defects to normal lung. RESULTS: There were 19 class I, 17 class II, 14 class III and 12 class IV COPD patients. No differences were observed in TLV, TEV and EI between control and class I COPD. The control was different from class II, III and IV COPD in TEV and EI. The control was different from each class of COPD in RSI, MSI, PEI and MSD. Differences were found in RSI between class I and III, I and IV, and II and IV COPD. Amongst controls, MR detected perfusion defects more frequently than CT detected emphysema. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with CT, MR perfusion imaging shows higher potential to distinguish controls from mild COPD and appears more sensitive in identifying abnormalities amongst smokers with normal pulmonary function (controls). KEY POINTS: • Detailed information is needed to diagnose chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. • High-resolution CT provides detailed anatomical and quantitative information. • Magnetic resonance imaging is demonstrating increasing potential in pulmonary function imaging. • MR perfusion can distinguish mild COPD patients from controls. • MRI appears more sensitive than CT in identifying early abnormalities amongst controls.

Comparison of lung lesion biopsies between low-dose CT-guided and conventional CT-guided techniques.

BACKGROUND: The low-dose computed tomography (CT) technique has been widely used because it decreases the potential risk of radiation exposure, as well as enabling low-dose CT-guided lung lesion biopsy. However, uncertainties remain regarding diagnostic accuracy, radiation dose, complication rate, and image quality. PURPOSE: To compare the diagnostic accuracy, radiation dose, complication rate, and image quality of lung lesion biopsy between conventional CT-guided and low-dose CT-guided techniques. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 90 patients were prospectively enrolled and randomized into two groups (group A: 120 kv; 200 mA; thickness, 2.0 mm; pitch, 16 mm/rot; n = 44; group B: 120 kv;10 mA; thickness, 2.0 mm; pitch, 23 mm/rot; n = 46). Sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), radiation dose, image quality, and complication rate were compared. All variables between the two groups were analyzed using chi-square and Student's t tests. A P value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) for diagnosing lung lesions were 96.88%, 100%, 97.5%, 100%, and 88.89% in group A, respectively. In group B, the values were 96.67%, 100%, 97.5%, 100%, and 90.91%, respectively (P > 0.05). The mean weighted CT dose index (CTDIw) and dose-length product (DLP) were 29.29 ± 3.93 mGy and 211.74 ± 37.89 mGy*cm in group A and 1.55 ± 0.15 mGy and 10.98 ± 1.56 mGy*cm in group B (P < 0.001). Image quality satisfied the need for a coaxial biopsy. Complications in group A and group B were observed in 27.28% and 23.91% of the patients, respectively (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Compared to conventional CT-guided biopsies, lung lesion biopsies guided by the low-dose CT biopsy protocol showed dramatically lower CTDIw and DLP levels. In contrast, the diagnostic yield of the procedures did not differ significantly, which is a recommended technique in certain populations.

Percutaneous vertebroplasty as a treatment for painful osteoblastic metastatic spinal lesions.

Percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) has been used widely to treat pain caused by osteolytic spinal lesions, whereas vertebroplasty for osteoblastic spinal lesions is less known. The purpose of this study is to describe PVP as a highly effective miniinvasive procedure to treat painful osteoblastic metastatic spinal lesions. Four patients with painful osteoblastic metastatic spinal lesions were treated by PVP in the authors' department, and immediately relief of pain was achieved in all of them. The findings from this study may encourage more studies of PVP in palliative treatment of patients with osteoblastic lesions.

An animal experiment about early pulmonary candidiasis in immunosuppressive rabbits: thin-section CT images dynamically observed and proved by histopathological results.

BACKGROUND: Early detection and treatment of pulmonary fungal infection in immunocompromised patients has a profound impact on mortality. However, information available about the thin-section computed tomography (CT) findings of Candida pneumonia has largely been limited to isolated cases seen in reviews of various infections and to other acute lung diseases seen in immunocompromised patients. PURPOSE: To dynamically observe and evaluate CT findings in immunosuppressed animals with histopathologically confirmed pulmonary candidiasis at the acute stage. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty-four New Zealand rabbits were randomly divided into an experimental group (n = 21) and a control group (n = 3). Pulmonary candidiasis was established by C. albicans inoculation via a transtracheal route in immunosuppressed rabbits in the experimental group, and an equivalent amount of normal saline was injected via the same way in the control group. Chest CT scan was performed before and on alternative days after inoculation/injection. Microbiological and pathological results were obtained by autopsy. RESULTS: In the experiment group, pulmonary candidiasis was successfully established in 13 rabbits as confirmed by microbiology and pathology. Areas of air-space consolidation were present in 10 (10/13) rabbits, with lobular distribution in six and lobar or segmental distribution in four, pathologically presenting as bronchopneumonia or hemorrhagic lung infarcts. Areas of ground-glass opacity (GGO) were identified in five (5/13) rabbits, three of which were associated with other abnormalities, presenting as bronchopneumonia or interstitial pneumonitis. Multiple nodules were seen in three (3/13) rabbits. They were clustered around bronchovascular bundles in two rabbits, and subpleural in the remaining one, pathologically presenting as hemorrhagic granulomas. Other less common CT findings included thickening of bronchovascular bundles (n = 3), linear opacity (n = 1), and pneumothorax (n = 1). No abnormality was detected by CT scan and pathological examination in the three rabbits of the control group. CONCLUSION: Peripheral multiple areas of lobular consolidation and/or GGO representing bronchopneumonia were the most common thin-section CT findings of pulmonary candidiasis at the early stage.

LncRNA PCAT1 Interacts with DKC1 to Regulate Proliferation, Invasion and Apoptosis in NSCLC Cells via the VEGF/AKT/Bcl2/Caspase9 Pathway.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are increasingly recognized as indispensable components of the regulatory network in the progression of various cancers, including nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The lncRNA prostate cancer associated transcript 1 (PCAT1) has been involved in tumorigenesis of multiple malignant solid tumors, but it is largely unknown that what is the role of lncRNA-PCAT1 and how it functions in the progression of lung cancer. Herein, we observed that lncRNA PCAT1 expression was upregulated in both human NSCLC tissues and cell lines, which was determined by qualitative polymerase chain reaction analysis. Then, gain-and loss-of-function manipulations were performed in A549 cells by transfection with a specific short interfering RNA against PCAT1 or a pcDNA-PCAT1 expression vector. The results showed that PCAT1 not only promoted NSCLC cell proliferation and invasion but also inhibited cell apoptosis. Bioinformatics and expression correlation analyses revealed that there was a potential interaction between PCAT1 and the dyskerin pseudouridine synthase 1 (DKC1) protein, an RNA-binding protein. Then, RNA pull-down assays with biotinylated probes and transcripts both confirmed that PCAT1 directly bounds with DKC1 that could also promote NSCLC cell proliferation and invasion and inhibit cell apoptosis. Moreover, the effects of PCAT1 and DKC1 on NSCLC functions are synergistic. Furthermore, PCAT1 and DKC1 activated the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)/protein kinase B (AKT)/Bcl-2/caspase9 pathway in NSCLC cells, and inhibition of epidermal growth factor receptor, AKT, or Bcl-2 could eliminate the effect of PCAT1/DKC1 co-overexpression on NSCLC cell behaviors. In conclusion, lncRNA PCAT1 interacts with DKC1 to regulate proliferation, invasion, and apoptosis in NSCLC cells via the VEGF/AKT/Bcl-2/caspase9 pathway.

Accuracy of MRI in prediction of pathologic complete remission in breast cancer after preoperative therapy: a meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Prediction of pathologic complete remission in breast cancer after preoperative therapy presents difficulties. We performed a meta-analysis to determine the ability of MRI to predict pathologic complete remission in patients with breast cancer after preoperative therapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Medical subject heading terms ("MRI" and "Breast Neoplasm") and key words ("neoadjuvant" or "primary systemic" or "preoperative" or "presurgery") were used for a literature search in the MEDLINE database. A meta-analysis of pooled data from eligible studies was performed to estimate the accuracy of MRI in predicting pathologic complete remission after preoperative therapy in patients with breast cancer. RESULTS: Twenty-five studies were included in this meta-analysis. Pooled weighted estimates of sensitivity and specificity were 0.63 (range, 0.56-0.70) and 0.91 (range, 90.89-0.92), respectively. Heterogeneity between studies was highly influenced by the pathologic complete remission rate, with a regression coefficient of -6.160 (p = 0.020). Subgroup analysis showed that the specificity of MRI in studies with a pathologic complete remission rate of > or = 20% was lower than that in studies with a pathologic complete remission rate of < 20% (p = 0.0003). CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis indicates that MRI has high specificity and relatively lower sensitivity in predicting pathologic complete remission after preoperative therapy in patients with breast cancer. The pathologic complete remission rate may influence the performance of MRI accuracy in this setting, which deserves further investigation.

Diagnostic value of serum human epididymis protein 4 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Numerous studies have demonstrated that human epididymis protein 4 (HE4) is overexpressed in various malignant tissues including ovarian, endometrial, lung, breast, pancreatic, and gastric cancers. However, no study has examined the diagnostic impact of HE4 in patient with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) until now. AIM: To analyze the value of four serum tumor markers for the diagnosis of ESCC, and examine the associations of serum levels of HE4 with ESCC patients' clinicopathological characteristics. METHODS: The case group consisted of 80 ESCC patients, which were compared to a control group of 56 patients with benign esophageal disease. Serum levels of HE4, carcinoma embryonic antigen (CEA), alpha fetal protein, and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) were detected by ELISA. The associations of serum HE4 levels with ESCC patients' clinicopathological characteristics such as gender, tumor location, and pathological stage were also examined after operation. RESULTS: The result of ELISA showed that serum HE4 level was significantly higher in the patients with ESCC than in the controls, and the staining intensity was inversely correlated with the pathological T and N stages. Serum HE4 levels had a sensitivity of 66.2% and specificity of 78.6% when the cutoff value was set at 3.9 ng/mL. Moreover, the combined HE4 and CA19-9 increased the sensitivity to 83.33%, and interestingly, the combination of HE4 with CEA led to the most powerful sensitivity of 87.5%. Furthermore, A positive correlation was observed between HE4 serum levels and pathological T and N stages (P = 0.0002 and 0.0017, respectively), but there was no correlation between HE4 serum levels and ESCC patient gender (P = 0.4395) or tumor location (P = 0.6777). CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that detection of serum HE4 levels may be useful in auxiliary diagnosis and evaluation of the progression of ESCC.

[Model-based FTIR reflectometry measurement system for deep trench structures of DRAM].

A method and system for measuring deep trench structures of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) based on Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) reflectometry is proposed. The principle of the measurement system is presented, along with a detailed description of the optical path design. By regulating the slit aperture to decrease the size of the detection spot and optimizing the incidence angle onto the wafer, the reflection from the backside of the wafer is suppressed, thus the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the measurement is increased significantly. The experiments carried out on the deep trench structures of DRAM demonstrate that the trench geometric parameters can be extracted with a nanometer scale accuracy using the proposed system, thus the technique is proven to provide a non-contact, nondestructive, time-effective, low-cost and high resolution tool for the measurement of deep trench structures. It is expected that the proposed technique will find potential applications in the on-line monitoring and process control for microelectronics and microelectromechanical system (MEMS) manufacturing.

Prognostic value of metabolic tumour volume and total lesion glycolysis measured by 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography in small cell lung cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic value of metabolic tumour volume (MTV) and total lesion glycolysis (TLG) for small cell lung cancer (SCLC). MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane Library databases were systematically searched. The pooled hazard ratio (HR) was used to measure the influence of MTV and TLG on survival. The subgroup analysis according to VALSG stage and the measured extent of MTV was performed. Patients with high MTV values experienced a significantly poorer prognosis with a HR of 2.42 (95% CI 1.46-4.03) for overall survival (OS) and a HR of 2.78 (95% CI 1.39-5.53) for progression-free survival (PFS) from the random effect model, and the pooled HR from the fixed effect model was 2.10 (95% CI 1.77-2.50) for OS and 2.27 (95% CI 1.83-2.81) for PFS. Patients with high TLG experienced a poorer prognosis with a HR of 1.61 (95% CI: 1.24-2.07) for OS from the random effect model, and the pooled HR from the fixed effect model was 1.64 (95% CI 1.37-1.96). Heterogeneity among studies was high for MTV in both OS and PFS meta-analyses (I2  = 87% and 88% respectively). After removing one outlier study the heterogeneity was substantially reduced (I2  = 0%) and the pooled HR for the effect of MTV on OS was 1.80 (1.51-2.16, P < 0.00001), and on PFS it was 1.86 (1.49-2.33, P < 0.00001), using either the fixed or random effects model. High MTV is associated with a significantly poorer prognosis OS and PFS, and high TLG is associated with a significantly poorer prognosis regarding OS for SCLC.

Lung Cancer Screening with Low-Dose CT: Baseline Screening Results in Shanghai.

OBJECTIVE: To report the initial baseline lung cancer screening results with low dose computed tomography (LDCT) in a multicenter study in Shanghai. METHODS: A total of 14,506 subjects underwent LDCT lung cancer screening and completed questionnaires consisting of 13 risk factors for lung cancer in the prospective study. The positive result was defined as any size and density nodule. The nodules were classified into calcified, solid, part-solid, and nonsolid nodules. The positive rate and incidental detection rate of lung cancer and stage I lung cancer were calculated. The proportion of lung nodule and lung cancer with different density and size was analyzed. RESULTS: The positive rate and incidental detection rate of lung cancer was 29.89% and 1.23%, respectively. The incidental detection rate of stage I lung cancer was 0.97%. The proportion of lung cancer in lung nodules and stage I in lung cancer was 3.48% and 81.09%, respectively. The ratio of nonsolid nodule, part-solid nodule, and solid nodule in lung cancer was 52.94%, 31.93%, and 15.13%, respectively. 74.88% lung nodules were less than 5 mm and 94.12% lung cancers were larger than 5mm in size. CONCLUSION: The baseline LDCT lung cancer screening showed subsolid nodules accounted for the majority of lung cancer, and 5 mm in size would be recommended as the positive result threshold.

Effect of b value on monitoring therapeutic response by diffusion-weighted imaging.

AIM: To explore the diffusion gradient b-factor that optimizes both apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurement and contrast-to-noise (CNR) for assessing tumor response to transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) in a rabbit model. METHODS: Twelve New Zealand white rabbits bearing VX2 tumors in the liver were treated with TACE. Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) with various b values was performed using the same protocol before and 3 d after treatment with TACE. ADC values and CNR of each tumor pre- and post-treatment with different b factors were analyzed. Correlation between ADC values and extent of necrosis in histological specimens was analyzed by a Pearson's correlation test. RESULTS: The quality of diffusion-weighted images diminished as the b value increased. A substantial decrease in the mean lesion-to-liver CNR was observed on both pre- and post-treatment DW images, the largest difference in CNR pre- and post-treatment was manifested at a b value of 1000 s/mm(2) (P = 0.036 ). The effect of therapy on diffusion early after treatment was shown by a significant increase in ADCs (P = 0.007), especially with large b factors (>= 600 s/mm(2)). The mean percentage of necrotic cells present within the tumor was 76.3%-97.5%. A significant positive correlation was found between ADC values and the extent of necrosis with all b values except for b200, a higher relative coefficient between ADC values and percentage of necrosis was found on DWI with b1000 and b2000 (P = 0.002 and 0.006, respectively). CONCLUSION: An increasing b value of up to 600 s/mm(2) would increase ADC contrast pre- and post-treatment, but decrease image quality. Taking into account both CNR and ADC measurement, diffusion-weighted imaging obtained with a b value of 1000 s/mm(2) is recommended for monitoring early hepatic tumor response to TACE.