Objective To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of retroperitoneal laparoscopic pyelolithotomy in the treatment of intrarenal pelvic staghorn calculus or multiple renal calculi. Methods Fifteen patients(9 males and 6 females)with average age of 40 years old were treated. The diameters of the calculi were from 1.5 cm to 3.7 cm. Three trocars were used in this procedure as rou-tine. The renal sinus was exposed by separating the pelvis from outside to inside until reaching the in-fundibulum of the renal calyx. Then the renal calyx was cut open and the calculus was taken out. Double J stent was placed in the ureter and the incision of pelvis was closed by 3-0 absorbable suture. The drainage tube was pulled out 3-4 d post-operatively according to the drainage quantity. Double J stent was then pulled out 2 weeks after surgery. Results All the 15 procedures were successfully completed. The average operation time was 170 min and the average post-operative hospital stay was 7 d. During the 3-15 months' follow-up, 2 patients had calculus remnants with the size of 0. 2-0.5cm in diameter. Conclusions Retroperitoneal laparoscopic pyelolithotomy provides a minimally inva-sive treatment option in patients with intrarenal pelvic staghorn calculus or multiple renal calculi. It has the advantages of good exposure, little bleeding, small incision and fast recovery.

Objective To investigate the prediction function of preoperative B-type natriuretic peptide in patients to receive on-pump coronary artery bypass grafting with postoperative complications. Methods One hundred and thirty-two patients , including 78 males and 54 females , received on-pump coronary artery bypass grafting from January 2013 to November 2014 and were enrolled in the study. The patients were (63 ± 11.35) years old ( range from 35 to 82 years). The level of BNP was determined before operation, after operation, and on day 1, 2, 3 and 7 post-operation. Relationships were analyzed between BNP and LVEF,ventilation time, length of stay in ICU, the need for inotropic agents or intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP), incidence of postoperative atrial fibrillation, and acute renal failure. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was also performed to predict the role of BNP in postoperative complications. Result A negative correlation between preoperative BNP level and preoperative LVEF(r = -0.512,P < 0.05) was found. The preoperative BNP level was positively correlated with a series of adverse events. The preoperative BNP was used to predict incidence of postoperative atrial fibrillation , the possibility of using IABP , renal failure , length of stay in ICU exceeding 48h or mortality at 28 days, and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.780, 0.893, 0.818 and 0.820, respectively. Conclusion The preoperative BNP level is well correlated with the cardiac function before CABG , which may be a good predictor of postoperative complications after CABG.

Objective:To compare 5-year overall survival (OS) and disease free survival (DFS) between preoperative three dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) and volumetric medulated arc therapy (VMAT) concurrently combined with chemotherapy for locally advanced rectum cancer (LARC), and analyze the value of induction and/or consolidation chemotherapy in these circumstances.Methods:334 patients with LARC treated with preoperative 3DCRT (172 cases) and VMAT (162 cases) concurrently combined with chemotherapy, main protocol XELOX (capecitabine plus oxaplatin), and subsequent surgery in Sun Yat-sen University from May 2007 to April 2013 were retrospectively analyzed. The radiation prescription dose for VMAT group was 50 Gy 25 fractions for planning target volume1(PTV 1), and 46 Gy 25 fractions for PTV 2. The radiation prescription dose for 3DCRT group was 46 Gy 23 fractions for PTV 2. One hundred and eighty-five cases of all received preoperative concurrent chemoradiotherapy (namely, CCRT group), 149 cases received preoperative concurrent chemoradiotherapy plus median 2 courses (1-7 courses) induction and/or consolidation chemotherapy (namely, CCRT±induction chemotherapy±consolidation chemotherapy group), whose main chemotherapy protocol was XELOX. Difference of 5-year OS and DFS between 3DCRT and VMAT group was compared. The rate differences of acute toxicity during chemoradiotherapy, postoperative complications, ypCR, and survival between CCRT group and CCRT±induction chemotherapy±consolidation chemotherapy group were analyzed. Results:After a median follow-up of 62.3 months (2.4-119months) for the 334 patients, no any significant difference for 5-year OS (79.0% vs. 83.2%, P=0.442) and 5-year DFS (77.0% vs. 82.1%, P=0.231) between 3DCRT and VMAT group was observed. There was no any significant difference for the Grade 3 hematological toxicity (7.0% vs. 12.1%, P=0.114) and non-hematological toxicity (14.1% vs. 16.8%, P=0.491) during chemoradiotherapy, postoperative complications (17.3% vs. 17.4%, P=0.971), ypCR rate (25.4% vs. 30.2%, P=0.329), 5-year OS (80.5% vs. 82.0%, P=0.714) and 5-year DFS (78.8% vs. 81%, P=0.479) between CCRT group and CCRT±induction chemotherapy±consolidation chemotherapy group. Conclusions:Compared with 3DCRT, the physics advantage of VMAT technique does not significantly convert into clinical benefits and improve 5-year OS and DFS, even further boosting radiation dose to the gross tumor volume. It is safe for median 2 courses of induction and/or consolidation chemotherapy before and or after preoperative concurrent chemoradiotherapy in the treatment of LARC, though it does not significantly improve ypCR rate and survival.

N ⁶-methyladenosine (m⁶A) modification is critical for mRNA splicing, nuclear export, stability and translation. Fat mass and obesity-associated protein (FTO), the first identified m⁶A demethylase, is critical for cancer progression. Herein, we developed small-molecule inhibitors of FTO by virtual screening, structural optimization, and bioassay. As a result, two FTO inhibitors namely 18077 and 18097 were identified, which can selectively inhibit demethylase activity of FTO. Specifically, 18097 bound to the active site of FTO and then inhibited cell cycle process and migration of cancer cells. In addition, 18097 reprogrammed the epi-transcriptome of breast cancer cells, particularly for genes related to P53 pathway. 18097 increased the abundance of m⁶A modification of suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1) mRNA, which recruited IGF2BP1 to increase mRNA stability of SOCS1 and subsequently activated the P53 signaling pathway. Further, 18097 suppressed cellular lipogenesis via downregulation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ), CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein alpha (C/EBPα), and C/EBPβ. Animal studies confirmed that 18097 can significantly suppress in vivo growth and lung colonization of breast cancer cells. Collectively, we identified that FTO can work as a potential drug target and the small-molecule inhibitor 18097 can serve as a potential agent against breast cancer.

ObjectiveTo explore the efficacy and predictive indicators of stellate ganglion block （SGB） as an adjunctive intervention for chronic subjective tinnitus and accumulate experience for the application of SGB in the clinical treatment of tinnitus. MethodsA retrospective review was conducted on the data of chronic subjective tinnitus patients who received SGB intervention， with unsatisfactory outcomes otherwise. Pure tone audiometry （PTA）， tinnitus loudness evaluation and Pittsburgh sleep quality index （PSQI） were used. The tinnitus handicap inventory （THI） scores were compared before and after SGB intervention. Correlation analysis and linear regression equations were employed to identify the potential indicators predicting the effectiveness of SGB intervention. Statistical analysis was performed by SPSS 24.0 software. ResultsBy April 2023， a total of 107 patients with chronic subjective tinnitus had undergone SGB intervention， including 67 male and 40 female， with a mean age of （45.32±11.40） years old and an average tinnitus history of （20.32±24.64） months ［16 （12~20）］. Only 7 patients （6.54%） quitted the intervention for personal reasons， which demonstrated good compliance with the intervention. No patients experienced adverse reactions such as infection at the injection site， hematoma， nerve injury， local anesthetic intoxication and so on， which revealed good safety. After SGB intervention， THI scores decreased to below 36 points in 77 patients and decrease by 10 points or more in 12 of the remaining patients， with a total effective rate of 89%. A paired sample t-test showed a significant difference in THI scores before and after SGB intervention （t=15.575， P<0.001）， indicating good improvement. Pearson correlation analysis suggested that pre-intervention THI scores and subjective tinnitus loudness were significantly positively correlated with the improvement level of THI scores （P<0.05）. Further stepwise linear regression analysis found that "pre-intervention THI scores" had statistical significance （P<0.001）， with a regression coefficient of 0.308， predicting a 17.4% improvement level in THI scores. ConclusionsDue to its good and safe short-term effects， SGB intervention can be used as a supplementary option for chronic subjective tinnitus when other interventions are not ideal， especially for patients with higher THI scores. However， further research is needed to clarify the long-term efficacy and underlying mechanisms， in order to establish a more solid theoretical basis for SGB intervention in the treatment of subjective tinnitus.