Hepatic alveolar echinococcosis (HAE)is a zoonotic parasitic disease that seriously threatens the population in western China and compromises patients′quality of life.With the continuous improvement in radical resection rate in recent years,late-stage HAE pa-tients that were incurable in the past now have the opportunity for radical resection.However,patients who are not suitable candidates for radical resection still suffer from various complications and poor quality of life.Therefore,HAE is still considered a refractory and complex disease.The simple empirical treatment model provided by traditional professional discussion is unable to satisfy the treatment of advanced refractory HAE as it is unable to integrate specialized,standardized clinical skills for diagnosis and treatment.Multidisciplinary individual-ized treatment (MDT)organically integrates the advantages of the available treatment into a reasonable individualized comprehensive treat-ment regimen.This review summarizes the advances in MDT for HAE as the best option to increase long-term survival,and suggests MDT as the first-line treatment for late-stage refractory hepatic alveolar echinococcosis.

Objective To analyze the use of multidisciplinary team approach (MDT) for advanced and refractory hepatic alveolar echinococcosis in individualized treatment.Methods A retrospective study was conducted on the use of multidisciplinary team approach in individualized diagnosis and treatment for 137 patients with advanced and refractory hepatic alveolar echinococcosis (with invasion of major blood vessels and bile ducts,and/or with lung and brain metastasis) in our hospital from January 2005 to December 2013.The patients were divided into two groups:The MDT group (n =49) and the non-MDT group (n =88).The MDT group was further divided into two subgroups:subgroup A was the surgical treatment group (n =26),and subgroup B was the non-surgical treatment group (n =26).In the subgroup B,13 patients underwent late radical surgery.The non-MDT group was also further divided into two subgroups:subgroup a was the surgical treatment group (n =61),and subgroup b was the non-surgical treatment group (n =27).In subgroup b,5 patients underwent late radical surgery.The time taken to confirm the diagnosis,perioperative hospital stay,operation time,blood loss,postoperative drainage time,postoperative hospital stay,early postoperative complications (pleural and peritoneal effusions,bile leak,anastomotic leak),late postoperative complications (jaundice,anastomotic stenosis,recurrence),and rates of radical surgery were compared between subgroup A and subgroup a.The rates of late radical resection were compared between subgroup B with subgroup b.All data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney rank sum test or the Chi-square test.Results Subgroup A had significantly shorter perioperative hospital stay,postoperative hospital stay,and total length of hospital stay than subgroup a (P ＜ 0.05).The incidence of late postoperative complications (jaundice,anastomotic stenosis,recurrence) was also significantly less than subgroup a (P ＜ 0.05),and the radical surgery rate was significantly higher than subgroup a (P ＜ 0.05).There was no significant difference in the time taken to confirm the diagnosis,operation time,blood loss,postoperative drainage time,early postoperative complications (pleural and peritoneal effusions,bile leak,anastomotic leak) (P ＜ 0.05) between subgroup A and subgroup a.The ratio of subgroup B receiving chemotherapy alone or drainage + chemotherapy,and the rate of late implement of radical resection were significantly higher than subgroup b (P ＜0.05).Conclusions A multidisciplinary team approach in individualized treatment comprehensively combined the advantages of the effects of drugs,intervention,surgery and systemic nutritional support.The best individualized treatment plan could be used which improved the rates of radical surgery in advanced and refractory hepatic alveolar echinococcosis,reduced postoperative complications,improved quality of life,and offered chances of radical resection in the patients who had lost the opportunities for surgery.

Objective:To investigate the immune cell infiltration width on lesion microenvironment (LME) based on different hepatic alveolar echinococcosis lesion features to underlie referential sampling range for experimental and control tissues aiming at avoiding false negativity in basic researches.Methods:Using prospective research methods, from January 2017 to December 2019, patients with hepatic alveolar echinococcosis who were diagnosed and treated surgically at the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University and met the multi-site sampling method (MSS method) were investigated. A total of 26 cases were included, aged 34 (15, 65) years old, with a gender ratio of 12/14. Lesions were classified into six groups based on heterogenic scales of calcification and liquefaction: A. non-calcified and non-liquefied; B. obvious calcified and non-liquefied; C. partial calcified and partial liquefied; D. obvious calcified and partial liquefied; E. partial calcified and subtotal liquefied; F. obvious calcified and subtotal liquefied. Liver specimens were acquired with 5 mm interval off the lesion shore in LME area using MSS method. Performed immunohistochemical staining of CD3, CD19, CD68, and Masson staining of fibrous tissue, and after pathological evaluation, the layer with a sharp decrease in immune cell infiltration abundance was determined as the maximum infiltration range (width, W value). The experimental group conservatively estimated the maximum sampling range for the integer value of Q1 of W value. The control group conservatively estimated the minimum sampling range for the integer value after Q3 rounding plus 5 mm of W value. Results were analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis H and Mann-Whitney U tests, referential ranges were concluded. Results:Median W values (interquartile) for each group were 20.0 (12.5, 22.5), 15.0 (10.0, 15.0), 10.0 (10.0, 15.0), 5.0 (5.0, 10.0), 12.5 (6.3, 15.0), and 5.0 (5.0, 10.0) mm, among which A > D, A > F, C > D, and C > F ( P≤0.05); from the perspective of calcification, A > C + E, A > B + D + F ( P < 0.05), while A + B > C + D, A + B > E + F ( P < 0.05) from the perspective of liquefaction. In these groups, the experimental group conservatively estimated the maximum distance for sampling to be 12.0, 10.0, 10.0, 5.0, 6.0, and 5.0 mm, while the control group conservatively estimated the minimum distance for sampling to be 28.0, 20.0, 20.0, 15.0, 20.0, and 15.0 mm. Conclusions:Less calcification and liquefaction implicates wider immune cell infiltration range in those lesions. Tissue sampling should be individualized based on different lesion features in basic research to avoid false negativity.

Objective:To investigate characteristics of the 18F-flurodeoxyglucose ( 18F-FDG) uptake intensity and ranges in distinct hepatic alveolar echinococcosis lesions. Methods:The clinical data of 39 patients with position emission tomography during Jan 2017 to Dec 2019 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University were enrolled. Among them, there were 17 males and 22 females, aging from 15 to 65 years (median 34 years). Lesions were classified into six groups based on heterogenic scales of calcification and liquefaction: A. non-calcified and non-liquefied ( n=7); B. obvious calcified and non-liquefied ( n=7); C. partial calcified and partial liquefied( n=10); D. obvious calcified and partial liquefied ( n=5); E. partial calcified and subtotal liquefied ( n=5); F. obvious calcified and subtotal liquefied ( n=5). Tumor to background ratio (TBR) and width (W) of lesion infiltrative boundary were measured and calculated. Statistical comparison using Mann-Whitney U test as well as correlation analysis was performed. Results:TBR values [ M( Q1, Q3)] for each group were 4.40(3.66, 7.03), 2.55(1.69, 3.60), 3.73(3.37, 5.21), 2.90(2.75, 3.60), 3.80(3.49, 6.36), 2.49(2.21, 3.97), among which A>B, A>D, A>F, C>B, E>B ( U=3.0, 4.0, 4.5, 11.0, 5.0, all P<0.05); From the perspective of the calcification in each group, it was found that the lighter the calcification was, the greater the TBR value was. W values [ M( Q1, Q3)] for each group were [12.5(10.0, 19.5), 11.2(10.5, 12.5), 12.2(10.9, 13.2), 7.8(7.3, 9.3), 10.0(7.3, 13.4), 7.3(6.8, 7.6)] mm, among which A>D, A>F, B>D, B>F, C>D, C>F (all U=0, all P<0.05); According to the degree of calcification and liquefaction of lesions in each group, the lighter the calcification was, the greater the W value was; The heavier the liquefaction was, the smaller the W value was. A mild strength linear correlation has been observed between the TBR value and W value ( r=0.4136, P<0.05). Conclusions:Less calcification and liquefaction implicated higher 18F-FDG uptake intensity and wider range. Radical resection margins and tissue sampling should be individualized based on different lesion features in surgical treatment.

Objective:To investigate the relationship between microRNA (miR)-1, miR-133b and hepatic fibrosis in patients with hepatic alveolar echinococcosis.Methods:From October 2020 to April 2021, patients who were definitely diagnosed as hepatic alveolar echinococcosis (9 cases), cirrhosis (9 cases) and hepatocellular carcinoma (5 cases) in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University were selected as the research subjects, and healthy volunteers in the same period were taken as the control (10 cases). Peripheral blood samples of all subjects were collected to prepare plasma, and the expression levels of miR-1 and miR-133b in peripheral blood were detected by quantitative real-time PCR. At the same time, tissue samples around the liver lesion (proximal), and the corresponding tissues about 5 cm from the lesion (distal) were collected from 5 patients with hepatic alveolar echinococcosis, and immunohistochemical staining was used to detect the cell activation related indicators [cyclinD1, cyclin dependent kinase 1 (CDK1), α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA)], fibrosis indicators (Collagen Ⅰ, Collagen Ⅲ), transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) signal pathway related genes [TGF-β1, TGF-β1 receptor type Ⅰ/Ⅱ (TGF-β1RⅠ, TGF-β1RⅡ)] and its downstream related proteins (SMAD2, SMAD3).Results:The quantitative real-time PCR results showed that there were significant differences in the expression levels of miR-1 and miR-133b in the peripheral blood of patients with hepatic alveolar echinococcosis, cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma and the control group ( H = 16.54, 28.40, P < 0.001); the expression levels of miR-1 and miR-133b in hepatic alveolar echinococcosis group were higher than those in control group, cirrhosis group ( P < 0.05). The expression levels of CDK1 (0.46 ± 0.02, 0.42 ± 0.01), α-SMA (0.54 ± 0.09, 0.51 ± 0.07), TGF-β1 (0.55 ± 0.15, 0.51 ± 0.13), TGF-β1RⅠ (0.58 ± 0.09, 0.57 ± 0.08), and TGF-β1RⅡ(0.40 ± 0.05, 0.39 ± 0.05) between the proximal and distal tissue of liver lesion in hepatic alveolar echinococcosis patients were statistically significantly different ( t = 5.56, 3.17, 3.18, 4.27, 5.65, P = 0.005, 0.034, 0.034, 0.024, 0.011). There was no statistically significant difference in the expression levels of CyclinD1, Collagen Ⅰ, Collagen Ⅲ, SMAD2 and SMAD3 between the proximal and distal tissue of liver lesion in hepatic alveolar echinococcosis patients ( t = 3.06, 3.06, 2.86, 1.43, 1.50, P = 0.055, 0.055, 0.064, 0.247, 0.230). Pearson correlation analysis showed that miR-1 in the patients' peripheral blood was positively correlated with TGF-β1RⅠ in the proximal tissue of the liver lesion ( P = 0.001); there was no correlation between miR-1, miR-133b and CDK1, α-SMA, TGF-β1, TGF-β1RⅡ( P > 0.05). Conclusions:The expression of TGF-β1 signaling pathway related factors in the proximal tissue of liver lesion in patients with hepatic alveolar echinococcosis is up-regulated. The expression of miR-1 and miR-133b in peripheral blood is upregulated, and miR-1 is positively correlated with TGF-β1RⅠ level in proximal tissue of liver lesion, suggesting that miR-1 may promote the occurrence of liver fibrosis in hepatic alveolar echinococcosis.