Objective:To investigate the effect of the number of positive preoperative serological tumor markers on the surgical approach and prognosis of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.Methods:This is a retrospective case-series study. Data from 548 patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma after radical resection from October 2010 to April 2019 were retrospectively collected in 10 hospitals of China. There were 277 males and 271 females with an age of (57.8±10.2)years(range:23 to 84 years). Four hundred and twenty-six patients(77.7%) had at least one positive preoperative serum tumor marker. The data collection included the results of 4 preoperative serological tumor markers,other preoperative indicators(5 prodromal symptoms, 6 medical history,8 preoperative serological indicators,5 preoperative imaging indicators,and 14 preoperative pathological examination indicators),baseline data (gender and age),surgical methods,and prognostic follow-up data. Four preoperative results of serologic tumor marker and surgical procedure were converted into categorical variables. The number of positive preoperative serum tumor markers was used as the treatment variable,the surgical method was used as the mediating variable,and the survival time was used as the outcome variable. Univariate and multivariate analysis were used to screen for other preoperative indicators which were independent factors that influenced the surgical procedure and the prognosis of patients as covariates to analyze the mediating effect.Results:Of the 548 patients included in the study, 176 patients (32.1%) underwent partial hepatectomy,151 patients(27.5%) underwent hemihepatectomy, and 221 patients(40.3%) underwent partial hepatectomy or hemihepatectomy combined with other treatments. The results of the univariate and multivariate analysis showed that the number of positive serum tumor markers,intrahepatic bile duct dilatation,portal vein invasion,pathological differentiation,pathological type,vascular invasion,T stage,N stage and maximum tumor diameter were independent factors influencing the surgical procedure(all P<0.05). Intrahepatic bile duct dilatation,pathological differentiation and T stage were independent prognostic factors for patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma(all P<0.05). Intrahepatic bile duct dilatation,differentiation and T stage were included as covariates in the mediation effect model. The results showed that the number of positive serum tumor markers before surgery had a negative predictive effect on the survival time of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma ( β=-0.092, P=0.039),and had a positive predictive effect on the surgical method ( β=0.244, P<0.01). The number of positive serum tumor markers had a negative predictive effect on the survival time of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma ( β=-0.151, P=0.002). Direct and indirect effects accounted for 71.3% and 28.7% of total effects,respectively. Conclusions:The higher the positive number of preoperative tumor markers,the worse the prognosis of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. The number of positive cells not only directly affects the prognosis of patients,but also indirectly affects the prognosis of patients by affecting the surgical method.

Objective:To investigate the effect of the number of positive preoperative serological tumor markers on the surgical approach and prognosis of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.Methods:This is a retrospective case-series study. Data from 548 patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma after radical resection from October 2010 to April 2019 were retrospectively collected in 10 hospitals of China. There were 277 males and 271 females with an age of (57.8±10.2)years(range:23 to 84 years). Four hundred and twenty-six patients(77.7%) had at least one positive preoperative serum tumor marker. The data collection included the results of 4 preoperative serological tumor markers,other preoperative indicators(5 prodromal symptoms, 6 medical history,8 preoperative serological indicators,5 preoperative imaging indicators,and 14 preoperative pathological examination indicators),baseline data (gender and age),surgical methods,and prognostic follow-up data. Four preoperative results of serologic tumor marker and surgical procedure were converted into categorical variables. The number of positive preoperative serum tumor markers was used as the treatment variable,the surgical method was used as the mediating variable,and the survival time was used as the outcome variable. Univariate and multivariate analysis were used to screen for other preoperative indicators which were independent factors that influenced the surgical procedure and the prognosis of patients as covariates to analyze the mediating effect.Results:Of the 548 patients included in the study, 176 patients (32.1%) underwent partial hepatectomy,151 patients(27.5%) underwent hemihepatectomy, and 221 patients(40.3%) underwent partial hepatectomy or hemihepatectomy combined with other treatments. The results of the univariate and multivariate analysis showed that the number of positive serum tumor markers,intrahepatic bile duct dilatation,portal vein invasion,pathological differentiation,pathological type,vascular invasion,T stage,N stage and maximum tumor diameter were independent factors influencing the surgical procedure(all P<0.05). Intrahepatic bile duct dilatation,pathological differentiation and T stage were independent prognostic factors for patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma(all P<0.05). Intrahepatic bile duct dilatation,differentiation and T stage were included as covariates in the mediation effect model. The results showed that the number of positive serum tumor markers before surgery had a negative predictive effect on the survival time of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma ( β=-0.092, P=0.039),and had a positive predictive effect on the surgical method ( β=0.244, P<0.01). The number of positive serum tumor markers had a negative predictive effect on the survival time of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma ( β=-0.151, P=0.002). Direct and indirect effects accounted for 71.3% and 28.7% of total effects,respectively. Conclusions:The higher the positive number of preoperative tumor markers,the worse the prognosis of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. The number of positive cells not only directly affects the prognosis of patients,but also indirectly affects the prognosis of patients by affecting the surgical method.

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most common tumors in digestive system, which is characterized by insidious clinical symptoms, strong invasion, easy metastasis and high mortality. In recent years, immunotherapy is a new direction to the treatment of solid tumors, but its applica-tion in pancreatic cancer is limited by tumor microenvironment of pancreatic cancer. The authors systematically analyze the tumor microenvironment of pancreatic cancer, summarize the clinical researches related to pancreatic cancer immunotherapy, and discuss the prospect of pancreatic cancer immunotherapy.

Objective:To study the safety and efficacy of laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) in treatment of T2a and lower stages of gallbladder carcinoma.Methods:A retrospective study was performed on patients who were diagnosed with gallbladder cancer and underwent surgical treatment from January 2016 to January 2021 at Hunan Provincial People's Hospital. These patients were divided into the simple treatment group and the radical treatment group based on the surgical methods used. The simple treatment group consisted of 64 patients who underwent LC for accidental gallbladder cancers. The radical treatment group consisted of 30 patients who underwent laparoscopic radical cholecystectomy (LRC). The baseline characteristic of the two groups of patients were matched in a 1∶1 ratio using propensity score matching. After matching, there were 26 patients in each of the 2 groups. There were 7 males and 19 females in the simple group, with mean ± s. d. age of (60.6±9.6) years. There were 8 males and 18 females, with mean ± s. d. age (60.9±9.1) years in the radical treatment group. Blood loss, operation time, postoperative hospital stay, biliary leakage, acute pulmonary embolism, and incisional infection were compared between the two groups.Results:In the simple group, the operative time was (78.7±62.9) min, intraoperative blood loss was (10.7±11.6) ml and postoperative hospital stay was (4.4±2.6) d. These results were significantly better than those in the radical group with operative time (298.7±101.3) min, intraoperative blood loss (161.9±96.7) ml and postoperative hospital stay (9.9±4.0) d (all P<0.05). There were no significant difference in the postoperative complications and disease free survival rates between the two groups (both P>0.05). Conclusion:LC was safe and effective for treatment of T2a and lower stages of gallbladder cancer, and it could achieve a similar disease-free survival rate as LRC.

Objective:To study and analyse the results of postoperative hemorrhage after laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy (LPD).Methods:The clinical data of patients who underwent LPD from May 2011 to December 2019 at Hunan Provincial People's Hospital were retrospectively analyzed. The clinical characteristics of patients, onset time of postoperative hemorrhage, location of postoperative hemorrhage, postoperative biliary fistula, pancreatic fistula, infection and other short-term complications, reoperation and mortality rates were analyzed.Results:Of 356 patients who underwent LPD in this study, there were 200 males and 156 females, aged (58.0±10.5) years. The postoperative complication rate was 33.1% (118/356), the reoperation rate was 6.5% (23/356), and the mortality rate was 2.5% (9/356). The most common complications were postoperative hemorrhage [15.2% (54/356)], pancreatic fistula [14.6%(52/356)] and abdominal infection [13.8%(49/356)]. The onset time of postoperative hemorrhage was usually in the 1st - 14th day, and the highest rate of postoperative hemorrhage was 3.9% (14/356) on the first day after surgery. The postoperative hemorrhage rate then showed a downward trend, but increased again on the 7th day. The extraluminal hemorrhage locations were relatively widely distributed, and the incidence of gastrointestinal anastomotic hemorrhage in patients with intraluminal hemorrhage was the highest [67.9%(19/28)]. Of the 9 patients who died, 7 were related to postoperative bleeding.Conclusions:LPD resulted in a high incidence of complications. Postoperative hemorrhage was a complication that had the greatest impact on short-term recovery of patients. It was also an important cause of reoperation and death. In addition to postoperative bleeding caused by pancreatic fistula, gastrointestinal anastomotic bleeding was also clinically important.

Objective:To explore the predictive value of stroke-related early tracheotomy score (SET) for tracheotomy in neurocritical patients.Methods:A retrospective analysis of the clinical data of neurocritical patients admitted to the department of intensive care unit (ICU) of the Xindu District People's Hospital of Chengdu from January 1st to December 31st, 2019. Patients were divided into tracheostomy group and non-tracheostomy group according to whether they underwent tracheotomy during hospitalization; according to SET score, patients were divided into groups with SET score < 10 points and SET score ≥ 10 points. The differences in gender, age, acute physiology and chronic health evaluation Ⅱ (APACHEⅡ), Glasgow coma score (GCS), SET score, the length of ICU stay and mechanical ventilation time were compared between the two groups. The receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) was used to analyze the predictive value of SET score for the length of ICU stay > 10 days, mechanical ventilation time > 5 days, and tracheotomy treatment, and the predictive value of APACHEⅡ score for tracheotomy treatment.Results:Among 66 patients, 35 cases underwent a tracheotomy, 31 cases did not; SET score < 10 points in 19 cases, while SET score ≥ 10 points in 47 cases. Compared with the non-tracheostomy group, there were more male patients in the tracheostomy group (cases: 27 vs. 13), the GCS score was lower (7.00±2.41 vs. 11.52±2.00), the APACHEⅡ score and the SET score were higher (22.43±4.45 vs. 19.58±5.86, 16.11±3.67 vs. 8.61±4.27), and the length of ICU stay and mechanical ventilation time was longer [days: 27.54±18.82 vs. 7.45±5.30, 13 (9, 19) vs. 0 (0, 2)], and all differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). Compared with SET score < 10 points group, the proportion of traumatic brain injury and tracheotomy in the SET score ≥ 10 points group was higher (44.68% vs. 15.79%, 70.21% vs. 5.26%), the GCS score was lower (8.00±2.87 vs. 11.89±1.97), APACHEⅡ score was higher (22.30±4.80 vs. 18.11±5.49), and the length of ICU stay and mechanical ventilation time was longer [days: 22.38±18.74 vs. 7.53±4.60, 9 (4, 16) vs. 0 (0, 2)], and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) of SET score predicting the length of ICU stay > 10 days of neurocritical patients was 0.877, and the 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was 0.790-0.964 ( P = 0.000), and its cut-off value was 13.50, the sensitivity was 80.0%, and the specificity was 87.1%. The SET score predicts the AUC for mechanical ventilation time > 5 days was 0.915, the 95% CI was 0.851-0.979 ( P = 0.000), the cut-off value was 13.50, the sensitivity was 78.4%, and the specificity was 89.7%. SET score predicts the AUC of tracheotomy treatment was 0.919, 95% CI was 0.853-0.985 ( P = 0.000), its cut-off value was 13.50, the sensitivity was 82.9%, and the specificity was 90.3%, which was significantly better than that of APACHEⅡ score in predicting the value of tracheotomy (AUC was 0.647, 95% CI was 0.512-0.783, P = 0.040, its cut-off value was 17.50, the sensitivity was 91.4%, and the specificity was 41.9%). Conclusion:SET score has a good predictive value for the length of ICU stay, mechanical ventilation time and tracheotomy in neurocritical patients.

Objective:To investigate the clinical effect of free anterolateral thigh flap(ALTF) combined with medial plantar flap(MPF) transfer in repairing forefoot and mid-foot degloving injury.Methods:From May, 2016 to November, 2019, 6 patients with forefoot and mid-foot degloving injuries underwent reconstructions using free ALTF combined with MPF. The study included 4 males and 2 females patients with an average of 43 (range, 35-55) years. The size of soft tissue defects was 15 cm×12 cm-19 cm×14 cm. The dimension of the MPF was 8 cm×5 cm-10 cm× 6 cm, and that of ALTF was 16 cm×7 cm-20 cm×8 cm. The ALTF was used to cover the dorsal and lateral foot, the flap artery was anastomosed to the dorsalis pedis artery. The MPF was used to repair the weight-bearing area of the forefoot, the flap artery was anastomosed to the medial plantar artery in recipient site. All patients entered follow-up by outpatient clinic or Wechat for 9-18(mean, 14) months, and the appearance of flap and limb function were recorded.Results:The MPF and ALTF survived uneventfully in all 6 patients, and the wound in donor and recipient areas healed in one stage. At the last follow-up, the flaps had satisfactory contour, the texture of the flaps was soft, the protective sensation was recovered, and the appearance and function of the foot recovered satisfactorily. The Maryland score of reconstructed foot function was considered excellent (90-100) in 4 cases and good (75-89) in 2 cases. The average Maryland score was 91.2.Conclusion:ALTF combined with MPF generated good effect and satisfactory function in repairing forefoot and mid-foot degloving injury.

Objective:To examine the value of number of metastatic lymph nodes(NMLN), lymph node ratio(LNR) and log odds of metastatic lymph nodes(LODDS) in assessing the prognosis of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma(ICC).Methods:The clinical and pathological data of 440 ICC patients who underwent curative-intent resection in 10 of Chinese hepatobiliary surgery centers from January 2010 to December 2018 were collected, and the deadline of follow-up was April 30th, 2019. Among them, 205 were males and 235 were females, with age of (57.0±9.9) years (range:23-83 years).Eighty-five cases (19.3%) had intrahepatic bile duct stones, and 98 cases (22.3%) had chronic viral hepatitis.The Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival analysis. The univariate and multivariate analysis were implemented respectively using the Log-rank test and Cox proportional hazard model.Results:A total of 440 patients underwent curative-intent resection and lymphadenectomy.R0 resection were achieved in 424 cases (96.4%) and R1 resection were in 16 cases (3.6%). The results of postoperative pathological examination showed that high, moderate and poor differentiation was 4.2%(18/426), 60.6%(258/426) and 35.2%(150/426), respectively.Adenocarcinoma was seen in 90.2%(397/440) and non-adenocarcinoma was seen in 9.8%(43/440), respectively. T stage: 2 cases (0.5%) with Tis, 83 cases(18.9%) with T1a, 97 cases(22.0%) with T1b, 95 cases(21.6%) with T2, 122 cases (27.7%) with T3 and 41 cases(9.3%) with T4.The overall median survival time was 24.0 months, and the 1-,3-, and 5-year survival rate was 74.3%, 37.7% and 18.3%, respectively. Lymphatic metastasis occurred in 175 patients(39.8%), the median total number of TNLE( M( Q R)) was 6(5), the median number of NMLN was 0(1), the median number of LNR was 0 (0.33) and the median number of LODDS was -0.70(-0.92). Rerults of univariate analysis showed that combined stones, pathological differentiation, vascular invasion, LODDS, margin and T staging affected the prognosis (all P<0.05). Rerults of multivariate analysis showed that pathological differentiation, LODDS, margin, and T staging were independent risk factors affecting the prognosis of ICC patients (all P<0.05). Conclusion:LODDS could be used as an optimal prognostic lymph node staging index for ICC, and it is also an independent risk factor for survival after curative intent resection.

Objective:To examine the role of the number of lymph nodes examined(NLNE) on the prognosis of patients with curatively resected gallbladder carcinoma(GBC).Methods:The clinicopathological data and prognosis of 401 patients with GBC who underwent radical surgery from six institutions of China from January 2013 to December 2017 were analyzed retrospectively. There were 153 males(38.2%) and 248 females(61.8%), with age of (62.0±10.5) years (range: 30-88 years). Fifty-three patients(22.2%) were accompanied by jaundice. All patients underwent radical resection+regional lymphadenectomy.R0 or R1 resection was confirmed by postoperative pathological examination.The different cut-off values of NLNE were determined by the X-tile software, the optimal cut-off values were identified by analyzing the relationship between different cut-off values of NLNE with survival rate. Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival analysis. Univariate and multivariate analysis were implemented respectively using the Log-rank test and Cox proportional hazard model.Results:Among the 401 patients enrolled, 135 cases (33.6%) had lymphatic metastasis, of which 98 cases were in N1 stage(24.4%) and 37 cases were in N2 stage(9.2%).A total of 2 794 NLNE were retrieved, with a median count of 6 (5).The median positive lymph nodes count was 0 (1), and the median positive lymph nodes ratio was 0 (IQR, 0-0.2). Since the 12 and 15 were determined as the cut-off values by X-tile, all patients were divided into three groups of 1-11, 12-15 and ≥16.The 3-year survival rate of the three groups was 45.2%, 74.5%, 12.0% respectively, with statistically significant difference between three groups (χ 2=10.94, P<0.01). The results of multivariate analysis showed that NLNE was an independent prognostic factor for overall survival ( P<0.05). Further analysis was performed specifically for subgroup of T stages. For T1b patients, the prognosis of the NLNE with 1-7 group was significantly better than that of the ≥8 group(χ 2=4.610, P<0.05). For T2 patients, the prognosis of the TLNE ≥7 group was significantly better than that of 1 -6 group (χ 2=4.287, P<0.05). For T3 and T4 patients, the prognosis of the TLNE with 12 - 15 group was significantly better than that of 1 -11 group (χ 2=5.007, P<0.01) and ≥16 group (χ 2=10.158, P<0.01). Conclusions:The NLNE is an independent factor affecting the prognosis of patients with GBC.For patients with stage T1b,8 lymph nodes should be retrieved; for patients with stage T2,extensive dissection of more than 6 lymph nodes can significantly improve the prognosis.For advanced patients (stages T3 and T4), extensive dissection with 12-15 lymph nodes is recommended. However, it fails to get more survival benefits by dissecting more than 16 lymph nodes.

Objective:To examine the value of number of metastatic lymph nodes(NMLN), lymph node ratio(LNR) and log odds of metastatic lymph nodes(LODDS) in assessing the prognosis of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma(ICC).Methods:The clinical and pathological data of 440 ICC patients who underwent curative-intent resection in 10 of Chinese hepatobiliary surgery centers from January 2010 to December 2018 were collected, and the deadline of follow-up was April 30th, 2019. Among them, 205 were males and 235 were females, with age of (57.0±9.9) years (range:23-83 years).Eighty-five cases (19.3%) had intrahepatic bile duct stones, and 98 cases (22.3%) had chronic viral hepatitis.The Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival analysis. The univariate and multivariate analysis were implemented respectively using the Log-rank test and Cox proportional hazard model.Results:A total of 440 patients underwent curative-intent resection and lymphadenectomy.R0 resection were achieved in 424 cases (96.4%) and R1 resection were in 16 cases (3.6%). The results of postoperative pathological examination showed that high, moderate and poor differentiation was 4.2%(18/426), 60.6%(258/426) and 35.2%(150/426), respectively.Adenocarcinoma was seen in 90.2%(397/440) and non-adenocarcinoma was seen in 9.8%(43/440), respectively. T stage: 2 cases (0.5%) with Tis, 83 cases(18.9%) with T1a, 97 cases(22.0%) with T1b, 95 cases(21.6%) with T2, 122 cases (27.7%) with T3 and 41 cases(9.3%) with T4.The overall median survival time was 24.0 months, and the 1-,3-, and 5-year survival rate was 74.3%, 37.7% and 18.3%, respectively. Lymphatic metastasis occurred in 175 patients(39.8%), the median total number of TNLE( M( Q R)) was 6(5), the median number of NMLN was 0(1), the median number of LNR was 0 (0.33) and the median number of LODDS was -0.70(-0.92). Rerults of univariate analysis showed that combined stones, pathological differentiation, vascular invasion, LODDS, margin and T staging affected the prognosis (all P<0.05). Rerults of multivariate analysis showed that pathological differentiation, LODDS, margin, and T staging were independent risk factors affecting the prognosis of ICC patients (all P<0.05). Conclusion:LODDS could be used as an optimal prognostic lymph node staging index for ICC, and it is also an independent risk factor for survival after curative intent resection.