The trillions of commensal microorganisms living in the gut lumen profoundly influence the physiology and pathophysiology of the liver through a unique gut-liver axis. Disruptions in the gut microbial communities, arising from environmental and genetic factors, can lead to altered microbial metabolism, impaired intestinal barrier and translocation of microbial components to the liver. These alterations collaboratively contribute to the pathogenesis of liver disease, and their continuous impact throughout the disease course plays a critical role in hepatocarcinogenesis. Persistent inflammatory responses, metabolic rearrangements and suppressed immunosurveillance induced by microbial products underlie the pro-carcinogenic mechanisms of gut microbiota. Meanwhile, intrahepatic microbiota derived from the gut also emerges as a novel player in the development and progression of liver cancer. In this review, we first discuss the causes of gut dysbiosis in liver disease, and then specify the pivotal role of gut microbiota in the malignant progression from chronic liver diseases to hepatobiliary cancers. We also delve into the cellular and molecular interactions between microbes and liver cancer microenvironment, aiming to decipher the underlying mechanism for the malignant transition processes. At last, we summarize the current progress in the clinical implications of gut microbiota for liver cancer, shedding light on microbiota-based strategies for liver cancer prevention, diagnosis and therapy.

The trillions of commensal microorganisms living in the gut lumen profoundly influence the physiology and pathophysiology of the liver through a unique gut-liver axis. Disruptions in the gut microbial communities, arising from environmental and genetic factors, can lead to altered microbial metabolism, impaired intestinal barrier and translocation of microbial components to the liver. These alterations collaboratively contribute to the pathogenesis of liver disease, and their continuous impact throughout the disease course plays a critical role in hepatocarcinogenesis. Persistent inflammatory responses, metabolic rearrangements and suppressed immunosurveillance induced by microbial products underlie the pro-carcinogenic mechanisms of gut microbiota. Meanwhile, intrahepatic microbiota derived from the gut also emerges as a novel player in the development and progression of liver cancer. In this review, we first discuss the causes of gut dysbiosis in liver disease, and then specify the pivotal role of gut microbiota in the malignant progression from chronic liver diseases to hepatobiliary cancers. We also delve into the cellular and molecular interactions between microbes and liver cancer microenvironment, aiming to decipher the underlying mechanism for the malignant transition processes. At last, we summarize the current progress in the clinical implications of gut microbiota for liver cancer, shedding light on microbiota-based strategies for liver cancer prevention, diagnosis and therapy.

The trillions of commensal microorganisms living in the gut lumen profoundly influence the physiology and pathophysiology of the liver through a unique gut-liver axis. Disruptions in the gut microbial communities, arising from environmental and genetic factors, can lead to altered microbial metabolism, impaired intestinal barrier and translocation of microbial components to the liver. These alterations collaboratively contribute to the pathogenesis of liver disease, and their continuous impact throughout the disease course plays a critical role in hepatocarcinogenesis. Persistent inflammatory responses, metabolic rearrangements and suppressed immunosurveillance induced by microbial products underlie the pro-carcinogenic mechanisms of gut microbiota. Meanwhile, intrahepatic microbiota derived from the gut also emerges as a novel player in the development and progression of liver cancer. In this review, we first discuss the causes of gut dysbiosis in liver disease, and then specify the pivotal role of gut microbiota in the malignant progression from chronic liver diseases to hepatobiliary cancers. We also delve into the cellular and molecular interactions between microbes and liver cancer microenvironment, aiming to decipher the underlying mechanism for the malignant transition processes. At last, we summarize the current progress in the clinical implications of gut microbiota for liver cancer, shedding light on microbiota-based strategies for liver cancer prevention, diagnosis and therapy.

Objective:To study the clinical characteristics of congenital esophageal atresia (CEA) and risk factors of mortality associated with esophageal repair (ER) surgery.Methods:From January 2010 to December 2022, patients diagnosed of CEA using chest and abdomen X-ray and esophagography in our hospital were retrospectively reviewed. The patients were assigned into ER group and non-ER group according to the treatments. The ER group was subgrouped into survival group and death group according to the prognosis. Clinical data and outcomes were collected and compared between the groups.Results:A total of 553 cases were enrolled. According to Gross classification, 29 patients (5.2%) were type A, 2 patients (0.4%) were type B, 504 patients (91.1%) were type C, 6 patients (1.1%) were type D and 11 patients (2.0%) were type E. One patient had simple transluminal septal atresia of the esophagus. 406 patients were in ER group and 147 in non-ER group. Compared with ER group, non-ER group had significantly higher incidences of preterm birth, low birth weight and overall malformations (all P<0.05). In ER group, 152 patients (37.4%) received open thoracic surgery (OTS), 243 (59.9%) had video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) and 11 (2.7%) were VATS converted to OTS. Postoperative anastomotic leakage (PAL) occurred in 92 patients (22.7%) and 15 patients (3.7%) died after surgery. The median length of hospital stay was 23 (17, 36) d. Compared with the survival group, the death group had higher incidences of preterm birth, low birth weight, VATS converted to OTS, mechanical ventilation after ER, and shorter length of hospital stay (all P<0.05). After adjusted for birth weight, VATS converted to OTS ( OR=9.585, 95% CI 1.899-48.374) and mechanical ventilation after ER ( OR=7.821, 95% CI 1.002-61.057) were risk factors of mortality in ER patients. Conclusions:Non-ER patients have higher incidences of preterm birth, low birth weight and overall malformations than ER patients. VATS is the method of choice for CEA. Preterm birth, low birth weight, VATS converted to OTS and mechanical ventilation after ER are risk factors of mortality in ER patients.

Patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and bone metastasis (BM) suffer from greatly reduced life quality and a dismal prognosis. However, BM in HCC has long been overlooked possibly due to its relatively low prevalence in previous decades. To date, no consensus or guidelines have been reached or formulated for the prevention and management of HCC BM. Our narrative review manifests the increasing incidence of HCC BM to sound the alarm for additional attention. The risk factors, diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic approaches of HCC BM are detailed to provide a panoramic view of this disease to clinicians and specialists. We further delineate an informative cancer bone metastatic cascade based on evidence from recent studies and point out the main factors responsible for the tumor-associated disruption of bone homeostasis and the formation of skeletal cancer lesions. We also present the advances in the pathological and molecular mechanisms of HCC BM to shed light on translational opportunities. Dilemmas and challenges in the treatment and investigation of HCC BM are outlined and discussed to encourage further endeavors in the exploration of underlying pathogenic and molecular mechanisms, as well as the development of novel effective therapies for HCC patients with BM.
Bone Neoplasms/secondary* ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/therapy* ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms/therapy* ; Prognosis

Objective To establish a small liver cancer biobank with a standard operating procedure and the function of informationized management. Methods According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, blood, tissue, and stool samples were collected from the patients with liver cancer who attended Liver Surgery Center, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, from August 2012 to December 2020 and signed the informed consent. In-and-out-of-storage management was performed based on the standard procedure for whole blood, serum, frozen tissue, paraffin-embedded tissue, and stool samples, and related clinical and follow-up data were collected. The frozen samples of liver cancer tissue and adjacent tissue in different years were randomly selected, and the concentration and completeness of total RNA were examined to ensure the quality of frozen samples stored in the biobank. Results The samples were collected from 4190 liver cancer patients who underwent surgery within a period of 101 natural months, and there were 41718 frozen tissue samples, 18950 paraffin-embedded tissue samples, 24389 whole blood samples, 20060 serum samples, and 5392 stool samples. The liver cancer patients had an age range of 13-88 years, and male patients accounted for 85.1%. The patients with hepatitis B accounted for 83.3%, and those with liver cirrhosis accounted for 73.5%. A standard operating procedure and an electronic data capture system were developed according to the collection, processing, storage, application, and informationized management of samples. Among the 18 frozen tissue samples randomly selected from the biobank, 16 samples had high RNA quality, which could meet the requirements of subsequent experiments. Conclusion A standardized and informationized biobank has been established for liver cancer, which provides high-quality samples for the basic research on liver cancer and helps to explore the research value of samples.

Patients with cancer are at increased risk of severe infections. From a cohort including 3060 patients with confirmed COVID-19, 109 (3.4%) cancer patients were included in this study. Among them, 23 (21.1%) patients died in the hospital. Cancer patients, especially those with hematological malignancies (41.6%), urinary carcinoma (35.7%), malignancies of the digestive system (33.3%), gynecological malignancies (20%), and lung cancer (14.3%), had a much higher mortality than patients without cancer. A total of 19 (17.4%) cancer patients were infected in the hospital. The clinical characteristics of deceased cancer patients were compared with those of recovered cancer patients. Multivariate Cox regression analysis indicated that a Nutritional Risk Screening (NRS2002) score ⩾ 3 (adjusted hazard ratio (HR) 11.00; 95% confidence interval (CI) 4.60-26.32; P < 0.001), high-risk type (adjusted HR 18.81; 95% CI 4.21-83.93; P < 0.001), tumor stage IV (adjusted HR 4.26; 95% CI 2.34-7.75; P < 0.001), and recent adjuvant therapy (< 1 month) (adjusted HR 3.16; 95% CI 1.75-5.70; P < 0.01) were independent risk factors for in-hospital death after adjusting for age, comorbidities, D-dimer, and lymphocyte count. In conclusion, cancer patients showed a higher risk of COVID-19 infection with a poorer prognosis than patients without cancer. Cancer patients with high-risk tumor, NRS2002 score ⩾ 3, advanced tumor stage, and recent adjuvant therapy (< 1 month) may have high risk of mortality.
COVID-19 ; Hospital Mortality ; Humans ; Neoplasms ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; SARS-CoV-2

OBJECTIVE：To investiga te the role of clinical pharmacists in drug therapy for patients with severe pemphigus. METHODS：Clinical pharmacists participated in drug therapy for a patient with severe pemphigus. Clinical pharmacist adjusted the doctor’s medication plan in time according to the symptoms and adverse reactions of the patients. In view of several new blisters on the hand palms and back that may be caused by hormone reduction ，the clinical pharmacist suggested that the dosage of Prednisone acetate tablets should be adjusted to 70 mg before administration ，once a day. For poor infection control ，it was recommended to adjust the dose of minocycline to 100 mg，bid；for hypokalemia ，the clinical pharmacist advised the patients to take potassium orally，and added it into juice ，milk or honey for taking ；in order to prevent osteoporosis caused by glucocorticoid ，the clinical pharmacist suggested that patients supplement Calcium carbonate and vitamin D 3 chewable tablets and Alendronate sodium and vitamin D 3 tablets 70 mg at the same time ，once a week. For Candida albicans in patient ’s oral mucosa ，according to the results of drug sensitivity test ，the clinical pharmacists suggested that Itraconazole capsules should be adjusted to Fluconazole capsules 50 mg，once a day. At the same time ，pharmacist paid close attention to the adverse reactions after the infusion of Rituximab injection and pharmaceutical care was provided ，such as ADR monitoring ，discharge medication education. RESULTS ：The doctors took all the advice of clinical pharmacists. The patient recovered and was discharged 47 days later. CONCLUSIONS ：During drug therapy for the patient with severe pemphigus. Clinical pharmacists can help doctors improve the treatment plan so as to ensure the effectiveness and safety of patients ’medication.

OBJECTIVE: To compare 3 commonly used methods for drug delivery via the lumbar spinal subarachnoid space in rats. METHODS: We compared the effects of 3 methods for drug delivery via the lumbar spinal subarachnoid space in Sprague Dawley rats, namely acute needle puncture, chronic catheterization via laminectomy, and non-laminectomized catheterization. Body weight changes of the rats were measured, and their general and neurological conditions were assessed after the surgeries. The motor function of the rats was examined using rota rod test both before and after the surgeries. Nociceptive tests were performed to assess nociception of the rats. HE staining was used to examine local inflammation caused by the surgeries in the lumbar spinal cord tissue, and lidocaine paralysis detection and toluidine blue dye assay were used to confirm the precision of drug delivery using the 3 methods. RESULTS: Both needle puncture and catheterization via laminectomy resulted in a relatively low success rate of surgery and caused neurological abnormalities, severe motor dysfunction, hyperalgesia, allodynia and local inflammation. Catheterization without laminectomy had the highest success rate of surgery, and induced only mild agitation, slight cerebral spinal fluid leakage, mild sensory and motor abnormalities, and minimum pathology in the lumbar spinal cord. Catheterization without laminectomy produced less detectable effects on the behaviors in the rats and was well tolerated compared to the other two methods with also higher precision of drug delivery. CONCLUSIONS Catheterization without laminectomy is a safe, accurate and effective approach to lumbar drug delivery in rats.

Objective: To study the effect of continuous nursing care on quality of life in patients with rheumatoid arthritis after discharge. Methods: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis who were admitted to hospital from August 2016 to August 2017 were selected as the study subjects. According to the random number table method, they were divided into the control group and the research group, and the lost cases were eliminated. There were 99 cases in the control group and 94 cases in the research group. The control group was given routine care, and the research group conducted continuous nursing care measures on the basis of the control group. The morning stiffness time, pain score, disease activity, patient health status and nursing satisfaction of the two groups were observed before and 6 weeks after discharge. Results: Six weeks after discharge, the morning stiffness time (23.76±12.76) min of the research group was significantly higher than that of the control group (38.22±14.53) min, the difference was statistically significant (t=3.865, P<0.05). Six weeks after discharge, the VAS (2.01±0.68) and HAQ (0.42±0.34) points of the research group were lower than those of the control group (4.17±1.30), (0.92±0.63) points, the difference was statistically significant (t=4.073, 3.916, P<0.05). The nursing satisfaction of the research group was 94.68%(89/94), and that of the control group was 78.79%(78/99), and the difference was statistically significant (χ²=9.416, P < 0.05). Conclusions The implementation of continuous care mode after discharge from patients with rheumatoid arthritis is beneficial to alleviate clinical symptoms such as morning stiffness and pain. Moreover, it can also improve patient health and quality of life, increase risk of disease progression, and care satisfaction is high which can help to protect the harmony between nurses and patients.