Objective To evaluate the applied value of CT in breast lesions.Methods Imaging data of 120 patients with normal breast were reviewed retrospectively in 4 groups of different age(15～25,26～35,36～50 and 51～80),and imaging data of 49 patients with breast lesions biopsy-proved were also analysed.Of 49 breast masses,31 were malignant tumor,18 were benign lesion.All the patients underwent CT scan with supine position whole thoracic region.Results The CT imaging features of normal breast in different age groups were different.65% of normal people had small sporadic axillary lymph nodes.Breast cancer usually showed hillslike and benign tumor showed round oroval-shap.The signs of spiculated lesion,deformed adipose space and thicken of local skin were statistical difference between benign and malignant lesions(P0.05).The metastatic axillary lymph nodes usually showed as the significant enlarged nodes with indefinite margin or multiple small nodes.Conclusion CT scan is valuable in detecting breast disease and differential diagnosis,and also can offer the informations on tumor staging and treatment.

Objective To explore the value of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and diffusion tensor tracography (DTT) in assessment of Corticospinal tract (CST) and medial lemniscus (ML) in tumors involving brainstem.Methods A total of 35 cases with pathologically confirmed tumors involving brainstem were collected,and 35 volunteers matched with genders and ages were recruited as the normal group.DTI scanning was performed on all the patients and controls.The damage degrees of CST and ML were evaluated and graded by DTT,and the dysfunction degrees were evaluated for the patients.Spearman correlation was used to statistically analyze the relationships of limb movement,sensory dysfunction and CST and ML damage.Results According to the rating results,normal findings,shifting,edema or infiltration and damage of CST was found in 9,9,11,and 6 cases respectively.They were 8,9,15,3 cases for ML.Motor function was normal in 20 cases,slightly defective in 11 cases,and moderate defective in 4 cases.Sensory function was normal in 21 cases,slightly defective in 6 cases,and moderate defective in 8 cases.The patients' dyskinesia and CST damage degree,sensory dysfunction and ML damage degree were positively correlated (r was 0.786 and 0.686 respectively,P ＜ 0.01).The position relationship among tumor and CST and ML could be well displayed on images.None of the patients showed new symptoms of dysneuria after surgery.Conclusions DTI and DTT technology can be used to evaluate CST and ML damage degree in tumors involving brainstem.They can display the position relationship between tumor and the brainstem CST and ML,which is important in protecting the brainstem fiber tract during operation and evaluating the recovery after the operation.

Objective To report computer-aided three-dimensional visualization of simulated surgery for distal femoral fractures using software Unigraphics NX and Mimics. Methods The preoperative CT scans of 6 patients with distal femoral fractures were used for three-dimensional reconstruction of distal femoral fractures using software Mimics. Three-dimensional reconstruction of the surgical instruments using the modeling function of software Unigraphics NX. The assembly function of software Unigraphics NX was used to vi-sualize the simulated internal fixations of distal femoral fractures with both Less Invasive Stable System plates and the retrograde nails. The operative procedures simulated by the software Unigraphics NX were analyzed preoperatively. Results The simulated operative procedures were clearly and vividly visualized in three-dimensions, The fracture reduction and operative effects could be predicted. Conclusion This system of three-dimensional visualization of simulated surgery for distal femoral fractures using software Unigraphics NX and Mimics can help surgeons make preoperative predictions and select reliable methods to improve the reliability and effectiveness of the orthopaedic surgery.

High-affinity α-glucosidase inhibitors were screened from Cichorium glundulosum Boiss.et Hout seed (CGS) extract by ultra-filtration affinity-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UF-LC-MS) and molecular docking.By taking 4-nitrobenzene-α-D-glucopyranoside (PNPG) as substrate and acarbose as positive control to evaluate the inhibitory activity of CGS extract, IC50 of acarbose and CGS extract were 0.003 mg/mL and 0.447 mg/mL, respectively.Meanwhile, 4 compounds from CGS extract by UF-LC-MS were screened and identified.Then by using autodock software, the compounds that combined with α-glucosidase were well screened out, including chlorogenic acid and isochlorogenic acid A.The inhibitory activity of chlorogenic acid and chlorogenic acid A against α-glucosidase was verified in vitro.The results showed that the inhibitory activity of the compounds toward α-glucosidase presented the sequence of acarbose>isochlorogenic acid A>chlorogenic acid.The inhibition rate of isochlorogenic acid A was close to acarbose.The experimental results illustrated that UF-LC-MS and molecular docking could be used to screen high affinity enzyme inhibitors from CGS.

Objective To study the use of preoperative indocyanine green retention test at 15 minutes (ICG R15) in the prediction of liver functional reserve in patients with hilar cholangiocarcinoma (HCCA).Methods The clinical data of 62 patients with HCCA treated in our department from March 2016 to March 2018 was reviewed.The relationship between preoperative ICG R15 and postoperative hepatic insufficiency was analyzed.The relationship between preoperative ICG R15 and Child-Pugh scoring was also studied.Univariate analysis was used to evaluate the risk factors of postoperative liver dysfunction.Logistic regression was used to assess the independent risk factors of postoperative liver dysfunction.The regression equation between independent risk factors and postoperative liver dysfunction was established.Results Among the 62 patients,ICG R15 was less than 10.0％ in 26 patients,between 10.0％ and 19.0％ in 17 patients,between 20.0％ and 29.0％ in 9 patients,between 30.0％ and 39.0％ in 5 patients,and over 40.0％ in 5 patients.There were 29 patients with a Child-Pugh A grading and 33 patients with a Child-Pugh B grading in the preoperative evaluation of liver function.The Wilcoxon W rank sum test was used to compare the preoperative ICG R15 in patients with Child-Pugh grading A and B separately.The ICG R15 in Child-Pugh grading A patients was significantly lower than those in Child-Pugh B grading patients (P ＜0.05).There were no significant differences in age,gender,history of previous liver diseases,duration of operation,and intraoperative blood loss (P ＞ 0.05) between the normal liver function group and the liver dysfunction group.However,there was a significant difference in the preoperative ICG R15 and preoperative bilirubin levels (P ＜ 0.05) between the two groups.The preoperative ICG R15 and preoperative bilirubin levels were significant risk factors of postoperative hepatic insufficiency.Regression analysis suggested that preoperative ICG R15 level was an independent risk factor of postoperative hepatic insufficiency (P ＜ 0.05).A regression equation:logit(P) =0.185 × preoperative ICG R15-3.152 could be constructed.Conclusions ICG R15 is an ideal clinical indicator for evaluation of preoperative liver functional reserve in patients with HCCA.It predicted the recovery of postoperative liver function.

Objective:Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a malignant tumor derived from bile duct epithelial cells with extremely poor prognosis. The Hippo-Yes-associated protein (YAP)/transcription activator with PDZ binding motif (TAZ) signaling plays a critical role in cancer stem cell biology. Previous studies have shown that the positive expression of YAP/TAZ in CCA predicts larger tumor size and unfavorable clinical outcomes. We aim to evaluate the prognostic value of YAP/TAZ detection in CCA patients.Methods:CCA patients who underwent radical resection were retrospectively analyzed at our institution from January 2011 to June 2016. Postoperative pathological specimens were scored by YAP/TAZ immunohistochemical staining. The prognostic value of YAP/TAZ was analyzed by multivariate Cox-proportional hazards model.Results:A total of 91 CCA patients were enrolled. During a median follow-up time of 11.0 months, 69.2% patients relapsed and 45.1% died. The median OS and DFS were 10.7 months and 8.8 months respectively. The YAP/TAZ dual positive patients owned a worse TNM stage ( P=0.015), poorer tissue differentiation ( P=0.007), and a higher CA199 than those in negative patients. Multivariate Cox analysis identified that YAP/TAZ dual positivity as a significant factor predicted poorer OS ( P=0.010) and DFS ( P=0.028) in CCA patients after radical resection. In subgroup analysis, YAP/TAZ combination also significantly predicted OS ( P=0.044) and DFS ( P=0.043) in CCA patients with positive lymphatic metastasis and/or surgical margin who required adjuvant therapy. Conclusions:YAP/TAZ positivity is an independent predictive factor for survival in CCA patients after radical resectiony.

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a kind of highly invasive malignant neoplasm, which is characterized by short survival and high-risk cranial metastasis. Therefore, application of prophylactic cranial irradiation(PCI) is of clinical significance to reduce the incidence of brain metastasis and prolong the patients' survival on the basis of radio-and chemo-therapy. Nevertheless, the indications and clinical value of PCI have been controversial in recent years. These controversies mainly include the significance of PCI for extensive-stage SCLC,the indications of PCI for limited-stage SCLC and the alternative approaches for PCI. In this paper, the controversies and progresses of PCI applied in clinical practice are investigated and reviewed.

Objective To establish a method of LC-MS/MS for determining cordycepin(Cor)and 3′-deoxyinosine(3′-Deo)concentration in rat plasma,and to study their pharmacokinetics in rats.Methods Protein was precipitated with methanol using 2-chloadenosine(2-Chl)as an internal standard.The chromatography was performed on Kinetex C18(3 mm×100 mm,2.6 μm,Phenomenex,USA)with gradient elution in aqueous(5 mmol·L-1 ammonium acetate)-methanol solution as mobile phase.ESI ion source was used for mass spectrometry,and positive ion multiple reaction monitoring(MRM)was used for scanning detection.The pharmacokinetics of Cor and 3′-Deo after oral administration of Cor(10 mg·kg-1)were studied in rats.Results Cor at 0.5-100 ng·mL-1 and 3′-Deo at 1-200 ng·mL-1 had good linearity,and the lower limits of quantification were 0.5 and 1 ng·mL-1,respectively.After oral administration of Cor in rats,the plasma concentration of Cor was low,which was mainly converted into the metabolite 3′-Deo.The Cmax of Cor and 3′-Deo were(5.4±3.4)and(142.0±50.0)ng·mL-1,and AUC0-360min min were(658.4±459.3)and(18 034.9±4 981.1)ng·min·mL-1,respectively.Conclusion The method is simple,sensi-tive,and accurate,which is suitable for determining Cor and 3′-Deo concentration in plasma and the pharmacokinetic study.

Objective To investigate the association between the timing of brain metastases and the prognosis of patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC).Methods A retrospective analysis was performed in 131 patients with limited-stage SCLC firstly metastasized to the brain were admitted to our hospital from 2007 to 2015.According to the median bone metastasis-free survival (BMFS),all patients were divided into A group (BMFS ≤ 10 months,n =61) and B group (BMFS＞ 10 months,n=70).The survival rates were analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method.Between-group comparison was performed by log-rank test.The Cox regression model was used for multivariate prognostic analysis.Results In all 131 patients,the median overall survival (OS) and 1-,2-,and 3-year OS rates were 22.5 months,87.3％,44.7％,and 20.8％,respectively.The median OS after brain metastases and 1-and 2-year OS rates were 9.3 months,39.3％ and 14.8％,respectively.No statistical significance was observed in the median OS after brain metastases between the A and B groups (8.6 vs.9.3 months,P=0.695).Moreover,the OS after brain metastases did not significantly differ in patients without PCI or those receiving different therapies after brain metastases between two groups (P=0.240-0.731).Conclusions The timing of SCLC with brain metastases is significantly correlated with the OS rather than the OS after brain metastases.Therefore,prevention of brain metastases may be an effective approach to prolong the OS of patients with SCLC.

Objective:To evaluate the value of whole-brain radiotherapy (WBRT) combined with simultaneous integrated boost (SIB) and WBRT plus sequential stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) in the treatment of small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) patients with brain metastases (BM).Methods:A retrospective analysis was performed among 135 SCLC patients with BM who were admitted to Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital from 2007 to 2023. They all received cisplatin- or carboplatin-based first-line chemotherapy and WBRT with 94 patients receiving thoracic radiotherapy after chemotherapy. All patients were divided into the WBRT+SIB ( n=66) and WBRT+SRS groups ( n=69) according to the treatment methods. After propensity score matching (PSM), 63 patients were assigned into each group. The primary endpoints were overall survival (OS) and brain metastasis-related local control (BMRLC) rates. Categorical data, such as gender and age, were compared by Chi-square test. OS and BMRLC were calculated by Kaplan-Meier method. The survival curves between two groups were compared by log-rank test. The risk factors of OS and BMRLC were assessed by multivariate Cox regression models. Results:In all the patients, the median follow-up time was 24.9 (range 6.30-109.57) months. The 2-year OS and BMRLC rates were 49.0% and 85.0%, respectively. Cerebral necrosis occurred in 2 patients. Multivariate analysis revealed that shorter time interval of BM after diagnosis (≤10 months) ( P=0.041), control of extracranial progression ( P=0.029), and lower diagnosis-specific graded prognostic assessment (DS-GPA) (≥2) ( P=0.006) significantly improved OS. After PSM, the 2-year OS rate in the WBRT+SIB group was significantly higher than that in the WBRT+SRS group ( P=0.041), while the 2-year BMRLC rate was not significantly improved ( P=0.203). In the DS-GPA<2 subgroup, the OS in the WBRT+SIB group was significantly higher than that in the WBRT+SRS group ( P=0.016), whereas no significant difference was observed in BMRLC between two groups ( P=0.205). In the DS-GPA≥2 subgroup, no significant difference was found in OS between two groups ( P=0.266), while BMRLC in the WBRT+SIB group was significantly lower compared with that in the WBRT+SRS group ( P=0.027). Conclusions:WBRT+SIB is more suitable for SCLC patients with BM than WBRT+SRS. However, WBRT+SRS yields higher local control for DS-GPA≥2 patients.