Objective To compare the Barcelona clinic liver cancer staging classification (BCLC), the Japan integrated staging score (JIS), the cancer of the liver Italian program score (CLIP) and Chinese staging system in terms of their ability to predict outcomes and to guide option of therapy in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in China.Methods Clinical data of 861 HCC patients from Zhongshan Hospital between 2001 and 2002 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were classified acccording to different staging systems. Survival for patients in different stages and the effects of therapeutic methods on survival time were compared. Results BCLC, JIS and Chinese staging system showed the ability in predicting survival for patients in different staging. CLIP failed to show significant difference in survival rates for each subgroup. There was no significant difference in survival rate between surgery and transarterial chemoembolization (TACE)/transarterial embolization (TAE) for patients classified as BCLC stage C, CLIP scores more than 3 or Chinese stage Ⅲ a.The survival rate, however, was higher in patients received operation than those received TACE/TAE if they were classified as earlier stages. Conclusions The BCLC, JIS and Chinese staging systems show prospective ability for Chinese HCC patients in prediction outcomes, whereas the BCLC and the Chinese staging systems are better at both predicting outcomes and guiding the option of treatment.

Objective:To investigate the efficacy and safety of 125I seed implantation in the treatment of radioactive iodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer (RAIR-DTC). Methods:Fourteen patients (8 males, 6 females, age: (62.0±10.7) years) with RAIR-DTC confirmed by pathology or imaging examination in the Central Hospital of Wuhan, Tongji Medical College between July 2017 and March 2021, were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were treated with 125I seed implantation guided by CT. Ultrasound, CT, 125I-SPECT/CT or MRI were performed at 1.5, 3, 6 and 12 months after the implantation to evaluate the changes of lesion volume, and serum thyroglobulin (Tg), as well as symptom relief were monitored and recorded. The paired t-test was used for data analysis. Results:The 125I seeds were successfully implanted (16 operations) in 14 patients with 25 lesions. Patients were followed up for 3-44 months (median: 6.5(4.5, 11.5) months). The total effective rate was 60.0%(15/25) and the total local control rate was 96.0%(24/25). The effective rate for metastatic lymph nodes was 10/17, and the local control rate was 16/17. The effective rate and the local control rate for local recurrence were 1/3 and 3/3 respectively, and those for bone metastasis were both 3/3, those for sinus metastasis were 0/1 and 1/1 respectively, and those for lung metastasis were both 1/1. In 8 patients with clinical symptoms, symtoms of 4 cases were completely relieved, those of 3 cases were partially relieved and 1 case had no remission. The Tg level and the tumor length were both decreased after operation ((245.99±44.85) μg/L vs (330.38±50.78) μg/L, t=2.92, P=0.010; (2.71±0.34) cm vs (3.78±0.27) cm, t=3.13, P=0.007). Conclusions:125I seed implantation, as a supplementary treatment for RAIR-DTC, is safe and effective. It has a good effect against metastatic and local recurrent lesions.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA) in infected hepatocytes is the main cause of off-therapy viral rebound. The half-life of cccDNA is only 33-50 days, so the conversion of newly synthesized rcDNA to cccDNA in the nucleus is essential for the maintenance of cccDNA pool in infected hepatocytes. Though not directly targeting the existing cccDNA, current nucleos(t)ide analogues (NAs) may exhaust the cccDNA reservoir by blocking the rcDNA formation. Indeed, a prolonged consolidation therapy post loss of serum HBV DNA can achieve sustained remission and thus safe drug discontinuation in a small proportion of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients. In recent studies, we and others have demonstrated that it is the serum HBV RNA that reflects the cccDNA activity in infected hepatocytes, particularly among the patients on NAs. Here we suggest that instead of measuring serum HBV DNA only, simultaneous measurement of both viral DNA and RNA would improve the accuracy to reflect the cccDNA activity; therefore, the virological response should be redefined as consistent loss (less than the lower limit of detection) of both serum HBV DNA and RNA, which indicates the safety of drug discontinuation. Accumulating evidence has suggested that for the CHB patients with lower serum HBsAg, switch-to or add-on pegylated interferon (Peg-IFN) treatment would result in loss of serum HBsAg in a relatively large proportion of CHB patients. Since serum HBV RNA is an ideal biomarker to reflect the intrahepatic cccDNA activity, for the patients with a serum HBsAg level lower than 1 500 IU/ml after long-term NAs treatment, the serum HBV RNA should be measured. If serum HBV RNA is detected, peg-IFN should be added on; if serum HBV RNA is not detected, NAs treatment should be switched to peg-IFN treatment. We believe the therapy based on serum HBV RNA would make the functional cure of CHB (serum HBsAg loss or even conversion to anti-HBs) more efficient.

Objective: The relationship between serum uric acid (SUA) levels and glycemic indices, including plasma glucose (FPG), 2-hour postload glucose (2h-PG), and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), remains inconclusive. We aimed to explore the associations between glycemic indices and SUA levels in the general Chinese population. Methods: The current study was a cross-sectional analysis using the first follow-up survey data from The China Cardiometabolic Disease and Cancer Cohort Study. A total of 105,922 community-dwelling adults aged ≥ 40 years underwent the oral glucose tolerance test and uric acid assessment. The nonlinear relationships between glycemic indices and SUA levels were explored using generalized additive models. Results: A total of 30,941 men and 62,361 women were eligible for the current analysis. Generalized additive models verified the inverted U-shaped association between glycemic indices and SUA levels, but with different inflection points in men and women. The thresholds for FPG, 2h-PG, and HbA1c for men and women were 6.5/8.0 mmol/L, 11.0/14.0 mmol/L, and 6.1/6.5, respectively (SUA levels increased with increasing glycemic indices before the inflection points and then eventually decreased with further increases in the glycemic indices). Conclusion An inverted U-shaped association was observed between major glycemic indices and uric acid levels in both sexes, while the inflection points were reached earlier in men than in women.
Aged ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Blood Glucose/analysis* ; China/epidemiology* ; Cohort Studies ; Diabetes Mellitus/blood* ; Female ; Glucose Tolerance Test ; Glycated Hemoglobin A/analysis* ; Glycemic Index ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Uric Acid/blood*