1.Health Economic Evaluation of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Screening and Optimal Delicacy Management Strategies in China
Qing XIE ; Fangzhou WANG ; Liyue ZHANG ; Shuli QU ; Jingya WU ; Yihan LIAO ; Chunlin JIN
Chinese Health Economics 2024;43(2):16-20
Objective:Based on the cost-effectiveness,it aimed to assess the health benefits amd economic value of screening,di-agnosis,treatment,and optimal delicacy management of liver disease in hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)patients.Methods:A Deci-sion tree-Markov model was developed to compare the cost-effectiveness of HCC screening and long-term surveillance versus no screening in population at risk from the health care system perspective.Results:It is found that HCC screening was a cost-effective approach compared to no screening(Incremental Cost-Effectiveness Ratio[ICER]:17 790 yuan/QALY).Scenario analyses suggested that initiating HCC screening at the age of 40,as recommended by clinical guidelines,and implementing long-term surveillance based on risk stratification were more cost-effective.Conclusions:For the implementation of HCC screening programs,attention should be paid to improving participation and compliance among the population at risk,incorporating advanced screening methods,improving management efficiency with digital tools,and introducing innovative payment methods to reduce economic burden.
2.Value of assessing right ventricular function by echocardiography in primary light-chain amyloidosis
Shusheng LIAO ; Yihan JIANG ; Teng YE ; Hongxiang TU ; Zhijun JIA
China Modern Doctor 2023;61(36):49-53
Objective To investigate the value of echocardiography in assessing right ventricular function of primary light-chain amyloidosis(AL)-cardiac amyloidosis(CA)patients.Methods A total of 25 patients biopsy diagnosed as AL-CA,who were admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University from January 2018 to December 2021,were enrolled in this study as amyloidosis group.And 25 heathy volunteers were set as control group.The routine right ventricular morphology and functional parameters were acquired by standard echocardiography.Right ventricular global longitudinal strain(RVGLS)and right ventricular free wall longitudinal strain(RVfwLS)were obtained by two-dimensional speckle tracking imagine.Tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion(TAPSE)/pulmonary artery systolic pressure(PASP),RVGLS/PASP,RVfwLS/PASP ratio were calculated as the noninvasively parameters of right ventricular-pulmonary artery coupling.Results ①Compared with control group,patients in amyloidosis group showed significantly larger right heart size,and significantly thicker right ventricular free wall[(7.16±1.84)mm vs.(3.76±0.66)mm],the difference was statistically significant(P<0.001).②Compared with control group,RVGLS[(17.43±2.45)%vs.(23.22±3.73)%]and RVfwLS[(18.44±2.10)%vs.(22.62±3.64)%]were significantly impaired in amyloidosis group,the difference was statistically significant(P<0.001).The ratios of TAPSE/PASP,RVGLS/PASP,RVfwLS/PASP were found to be lower in amyloidosis group,the difference was statistically significant(P<0.001).③TAPSE/PASP showed mild correlations with N-terminal brain natriuretic peptide precursor(NT-proBNP),highly sensitive T cardiac troponin(hs-TNT)(r=0.45 and 0.40)there were statistically significant(P<0.05).Conclusion Echocardiography can effectively evaluate the right heart function impairment in AL-CA patients,providing valuable information for a deeper understanding of the pathological and physiological mechanisms of the disease.
3.Roles of THEM4 in the Akt pathway:a double-edged sword
XIE WEN ; LIU WEIDONG ; WANG LEI ; ZHU BIN ; ZHAO CONG ; LIAO ZILING ; LI YIHAN ; JIANG XINGJUN ; LIU JIE ; REN CAIPING
Journal of Zhejiang University. Science. B 2024;25(7):541-556
The protein kinase B(Akt)pathway can regulate the growth,proliferation,and metabolism of tumor cells and stem cells through the activation of multiple downstream target genes,thus affecting the development and treatment of a range of diseases.Thioesterase superfamily member 4(THEM4),a member of the thioesterase superfamily,is one of the Akt kinase-binding proteins.Some studies on the mechanism of cancers and other diseases have shown that THEM4 binds to Akt to regulate its phosphorylation.Initially,THEM4 was considered an endogenous inhibitor of Akt,which can inhibit the phosphorylation of Akt in diseases such as lung cancer,pancreatic cancer,and liver cancer,but subsequently,THEM4 was shown to promote the proliferation of tumor cells by positively regulating Akt activity in breast cancer and nasopharyngeal carcinoma,which contradicts previous findings.Considering these two distinct views,this review summarizes the important roles of THEM4 in the Akt pathway,focusing on THEM4 as an Akt-binding protein and its regulatory relationship with Akt phosphorylation in various diseases,especially cancer.This work provides a better understanding of the roles of THEM4 combined with Akt in the treatment of diseases.