OBJECTIVES: To propose a new method for optimizing radiotherapy planning for lung cancer by incorporating prognostic models that take into account individual patient information and assess the feasibility of treatment planning optimization directly guided by minimizing the predicted prognostic risk. METHODS: A mixed fluence map optimization objective was constructed, incorporating the outcome-based objective and the physical dose constraints. The outcome-based objective function was constructed as an equally weighted summation of prognostic prediction models for local control failure, radiation-induced cardiac toxicity, and radiation pneumonitis considering clinical risk factors. These models were derived using Cox regression analysis or Logistic regression. The primary goal was to minimize the outcome-based objective with the physical dose constraints recommended by the clinical guidelines. The efficacy of the proposed method for optimizing treatment plans was tested in 15 cases of non-small cell lung cancer in comparison with the conventional dose-based optimization method (clinical plan), and the dosimetric indicators and predicted prognostic outcomes were compared between different plans. RESULTS: In terms of the dosemetric indicators, D_95% of the planning target volume obtained using the proposed method was basically consistent with that of the clinical plan (100.33% vs 102.57%, P=0.056), and the average dose of the heart and lungs was significantly decreased from 9.83 Gy and 9.50 Gy to 7.02 Gy (t=4.537, P<0.05) and 8.40 Gy (t=4.104, P<0.05), respectively. The predicted probability of local control failure was similar between the proposed plan and the clinical plan (60.05% vs 59.66%), while the probability of radiation-induced cardiac toxicity was reduced by 1.41% in the proposed plan. CONCLUSIONS The proposed optimization method based on a mixed objective function of outcome prediction and physical dose provides effective protection against normal tissue exposure to improve the outcomes of lung cancer patients following radiotherapy.
Humans ; Lung Neoplasms/radiotherapy* ; Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted/methods* ; Prognosis ; Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated/methods* ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/radiotherapy* ; Radiotherapy Dosage ; Female ; Male ; Middle Aged

BACKGROUND: Stroke is the leading cause of death and long-term disability worldwide, including China. This study aimed to provide timely updates on stroke burden and stroke-related risk factors to help improve population-based prevention and control strategies. METHODS: Based on the Global Burden of Disease study 2021, incidence rate, prevalence rate, mortality rate, and disability-adjusted life-year (DALY) rate were used to estimate stroke burden trend from 1990 to 2021. RESULTS: In 2021, China had 4.1 million incident stroke cases, 26.3 million prevalent stroke cases, 2.6 million stroke related deaths, and 53.2 million stroke related DALYs, compared to 11.9 million incident stroke cases, 93.8 million prevalent stroke cases, 7.3 million stroke related deaths, and 160.5 million stroke-related DALYs worldwide. In 2021, the top six risk factors contributing to stroke burden were high blood pressure, air pollution, tobacco consumption, dietary risk factors, high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and high fasting plasma glucose, both in China and worldwide. From 1990 to 2021, China had significant increases of incidence rate, prevalence rate, mortality rate, and DALY rate for stroke, with estimates of 100.6 (95% uncertainty intervals [UI]: 87.2, 114.1)%, 102.9 (95% UI: 95.5, 110.9)%, 40.0 (95% UI: 14.9, 72.3)% and 15.7 (95% UI: -4.6, 41.2)%, respectively, while global incidence rate, prevalence rate, mortality rate and DALY rate for total stroke showed relatively moderate increases or even decreases, with estimates of 15.0 (95% UI: 12.1,18.0)%, 25.8 (95% UI: 23.7, 28.0)%, -2.6 (95% UI: -10.6, 5.5)%, and -10.7 (95% UI: -17.7, -3.6)%, respectively. CONCLUSION Stroke remains a huge disease burden worldwide and in China, and compared to the worldwide China has a significantly higher burden of stroke.
Humans ; Stroke/etiology* ; China/epidemiology* ; Risk Factors ; Global Burden of Disease ; Disability-Adjusted Life Years ; Prevalence ; Incidence ; Female ; Quality-Adjusted Life Years ; Male

Objective:To explore the clinical characteristics of biliary system diseases complicated by severe acute pancreatitis(SAP) and the risk factors.Methods:This is a retrospective cohort study. A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 159 SAP patients admitted to the Department of Pancreatic and Biliary Surgery,the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University from January 2019 to October 2024. There were 105 male cases, 54 female cases;aged (42.3±10.8)years (range:20 to 71 years). Grouping was performed according to the presence or absence of concurrent acute acalculous cholecystitis (AAC) and biliary stricture. There were 58 cases in the AAC group,including 40 males and 18 females;aged (43.8±10.6) years (range:28 to 71 years);101 cases in the non-AAC group,including 64 males and 37 females;aged (41.5±10.8) years (range:20 to 64 years);there were statistically significant differences between the two groups in terms of admission total bilirubin,Balthazar-CTSI score,fasting time,and the proportions of concurrent shock and sepsis (all P<0.05);the time from onset of SAP to diagnosis of AAC( M (IQR)) was 10.5 (13.3) days (range: 3 to 34 days). There were 15 cases in the biliary stricture group,including 13 males and 2 females;age (46.5±10.0) years (range:33 to 63 years);141 cases in the non-biliary stricture group,including 89 males and 52 females;age (41.9±10.8) years (range: 20 to 71 years); there were statistically significant differences between the two groups in the proportions of infected pancreatic necrosis,pancreatic head necrosis,and lower extremity venous thrombosis (all P<0.05);the time from the onset of SAP to the diagnosis of biliary stenosis in patients with biliary stenosis was 2.0 (3.0) months (range: 1 to 19 months). Univariate analysis was performed using independent sample t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, χ 2 test,or Fisher′s exact probability method,and variables with P<0.05 in univariate analysis were included in multivariate logistic regression analysis. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the diagnostic and predictive value of the multivariate logistic regression model for AAC and biliary stricture. Results:There were statistically significant differences in fasting time,Balthazar-CTSI score,admission total bilirubin,and the proportions of concurrent shock and sepsis between the AAC group and non-AAC group ( P<0.05). Multivariate logistic analysis showed that admission total bilirubin ( OR=1.033,95% CI: 1.010 to 1.058, P=0.004),Balthazar-CTSI score ( OR=1.276,95% CI: 1.036 to 1.572, P=0.022),fasting time ( OR=1.127,95% CI: 1.044 to 1.216, P=0.002), and sepsis ( OR=4.033, 95% CI: 1.419 to 11.462, P=0.009) were independent risk factors for AAC complicated by SAP. The area under the curve (AUC) of the ROC curve was 0.820 (95% CI: 0.752 to 0.888). There were statistically significant differences in the proportions of infected pancreatic necrosis,pancreatic head necrosis,and lower extremity venous thrombosis between the biliary stricture group and non-biliary stricture group ( P<0.05). Multivariate logistic analysis showed that infected pancreatic necrosis ( OR=7.376,95% CI:1.566 to 37.750, P=0.012) and pancreatic head necrosis ( OR=3.898,95% CI:1.180 to 12.877, P=0.026) were independent risk factors for biliary stricture complicated by SAP. The AUC of the ROC curve was 0.806 (95% CI:0.715 to 0.898). Conclusions:AAC typically occurs in the early stage of SAP,and biliary stricture usually occurs in the late stage of SAP. Admission total bilirubin,Balthazar-CTSI score,fasting duration,and concurrent sepsis are independent risk factors for AAC complicating SAP. Infected pancreatic necrosis and pancreatic head necrosis are independent risk factors for biliary stricture complicating SAP.

Objective:To investigate the clinicopathological and molecular genetic characteristics of diffuse gliomas with the features of polymorphous low-grade neuroepithelial tumor of the young (PLNTY) and their prognostic values.Methods:A retrospective analysis was performed on 14 cases of diffuse gliomas with PLNTY features diagnosed at the First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China from June 2020 to August 2024. Their clinicopathological characteristics were examined, and their molecular genetic and epigenetic features were assessed using next-generation sequencing (NGS) and methylation analysis. Factors influencing prognosis were also analyzed.Results:Among the 14 patients, there were 8 males and 6 females, aged 3-62 years, median 29 (9, 50) years. All cases were initially diagnosed as low-grade diffuse gliomas histologically but exhibited the histological and immunohistochemical features of PLNTY. At the molecular level, all cases showed molecular abnormalities involving the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway, including 5 cases with FGFR3-TACC3 (F3T3) fusion, 3 cases with FGFR2 fusion, 5 cases with BRAF V600E mutation, and 1 case with FGFR1 mutation. Among them, TERT promoter mutations were frequently observed in tumors with F3T3 fusion (5/5), while NCOR2 in-frame insertion mutations were prominent in tumors with non-F3T3 fusions. Clinical follow-up showed recurrence in 3 cases, all of which had F3T3 fusion and concurrent TERT promoter mutations. Prognostic analysis confirmed that F3T3 fusion with concurrent TERT promoter mutation was associated with poor prognosis.Conclusions:Diffuse gliomas with PLNTY features exhibit heterogeneity in clinicopathology and molecular genetics, with FGFR3/FGFR2 fusions and BRAF/FGFR1 mutations as the most common molecular alteration. They often have concurrent F3T3 fusion and TERT promoter mutations, which are related to poor prognosis. The possibility of molecular glioblastoma should be considered for these tumors. It is thus recommended to perform genetic testing on diffuse gliomas with PLNTY features in order to facilitate integrated diagnosis and provide molecular evidence for accurate evaluation of prognoses.

Objective:To address large-scale nonlinear programming challenges in optimizing prognosis-guided intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) plans, to propose gradient-enhanced random contrastive interaction particle swarm optimization (GradRCIPSO). This gradient-enhanced swarm intelligence algorithm aims to enable global optimization of prognostic treatment plans in clinically efficient scenarios.Methods:The core concept of GradRCIPSO lied in achieving rapid global convergence by allowing particles to learn both swarm interaction and gradient information. Specifically, the interaction information was obtained from elite individuals in the swarm, enabling the particles to efficiently search the entire solution space, whereas the gradient information represents the direction of the steepest descent, enabling the particles to quickly explore the current neighborhood. To assess the effectiveness of the methodology, the IMRT plans for 10 cases of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were selected in this study. They were compared with the GradRCIPSO-generated prognosis-guided IMRT plans. Moreover, the interior-point method, sequential quadratic programming, active set, gradient descent method, and random contrastive interaction particle swarm optimization (RCIPSO) were employed as optimization engines and compared with GradRCIPSO in terms of optimization efficiency and accuracy.Results:GradRCIPSO successfully generated clinically viable prognosis-guided IMRT plans with comparable dosimetric statistics to original plans, while significantly reducing predicted total radiotherapy risk from 1.22(0.84, 1.51) to 0.93(0.80, 1.29) ( z=2.81, P<0.01). It demonstrated superior accuracy over the above four gradient-based method ( z=2.80-2.81, P<0.01) and achieved threefold acceleration versus RCIPSO while maintaining equivalent solution quality( P>0.05). Conclusions:The proposed GradRCIPSO demonstrates high feasibility and performance in optimizing prognosis-guided IMRT plans, laying the technical foundation for the broad clinical application of prognosis-guided IMRT plans for lung cancer.

Objective:To address large-scale nonlinear programming challenges in optimizing prognosis-guided intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) plans, to propose gradient-enhanced random contrastive interaction particle swarm optimization (GradRCIPSO). This gradient-enhanced swarm intelligence algorithm aims to enable global optimization of prognostic treatment plans in clinically efficient scenarios.Methods:The core concept of GradRCIPSO lied in achieving rapid global convergence by allowing particles to learn both swarm interaction and gradient information. Specifically, the interaction information was obtained from elite individuals in the swarm, enabling the particles to efficiently search the entire solution space, whereas the gradient information represents the direction of the steepest descent, enabling the particles to quickly explore the current neighborhood. To assess the effectiveness of the methodology, the IMRT plans for 10 cases of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were selected in this study. They were compared with the GradRCIPSO-generated prognosis-guided IMRT plans. Moreover, the interior-point method, sequential quadratic programming, active set, gradient descent method, and random contrastive interaction particle swarm optimization (RCIPSO) were employed as optimization engines and compared with GradRCIPSO in terms of optimization efficiency and accuracy.Results:GradRCIPSO successfully generated clinically viable prognosis-guided IMRT plans with comparable dosimetric statistics to original plans, while significantly reducing predicted total radiotherapy risk from 1.22(0.84, 1.51) to 0.93(0.80, 1.29) ( z=2.81, P<0.01). It demonstrated superior accuracy over the above four gradient-based method ( z=2.80-2.81, P<0.01) and achieved threefold acceleration versus RCIPSO while maintaining equivalent solution quality( P>0.05). Conclusions:The proposed GradRCIPSO demonstrates high feasibility and performance in optimizing prognosis-guided IMRT plans, laying the technical foundation for the broad clinical application of prognosis-guided IMRT plans for lung cancer.

Objective:To explore the clinical characteristics of biliary system diseases complicated by severe acute pancreatitis(SAP) and the risk factors.Methods:This is a retrospective cohort study. A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 159 SAP patients admitted to the Department of Pancreatic and Biliary Surgery,the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University from January 2019 to October 2024. There were 105 male cases, 54 female cases;aged (42.3±10.8)years (range:20 to 71 years). Grouping was performed according to the presence or absence of concurrent acute acalculous cholecystitis (AAC) and biliary stricture. There were 58 cases in the AAC group,including 40 males and 18 females;aged (43.8±10.6) years (range:28 to 71 years);101 cases in the non-AAC group,including 64 males and 37 females;aged (41.5±10.8) years (range:20 to 64 years);there were statistically significant differences between the two groups in terms of admission total bilirubin,Balthazar-CTSI score,fasting time,and the proportions of concurrent shock and sepsis (all P<0.05);the time from onset of SAP to diagnosis of AAC( M (IQR)) was 10.5 (13.3) days (range: 3 to 34 days). There were 15 cases in the biliary stricture group,including 13 males and 2 females;age (46.5±10.0) years (range:33 to 63 years);141 cases in the non-biliary stricture group,including 89 males and 52 females;age (41.9±10.8) years (range: 20 to 71 years); there were statistically significant differences between the two groups in the proportions of infected pancreatic necrosis,pancreatic head necrosis,and lower extremity venous thrombosis (all P<0.05);the time from the onset of SAP to the diagnosis of biliary stenosis in patients with biliary stenosis was 2.0 (3.0) months (range: 1 to 19 months). Univariate analysis was performed using independent sample t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, χ 2 test,or Fisher′s exact probability method,and variables with P<0.05 in univariate analysis were included in multivariate logistic regression analysis. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the diagnostic and predictive value of the multivariate logistic regression model for AAC and biliary stricture. Results:There were statistically significant differences in fasting time,Balthazar-CTSI score,admission total bilirubin,and the proportions of concurrent shock and sepsis between the AAC group and non-AAC group ( P<0.05). Multivariate logistic analysis showed that admission total bilirubin ( OR=1.033,95% CI: 1.010 to 1.058, P=0.004),Balthazar-CTSI score ( OR=1.276,95% CI: 1.036 to 1.572, P=0.022),fasting time ( OR=1.127,95% CI: 1.044 to 1.216, P=0.002), and sepsis ( OR=4.033, 95% CI: 1.419 to 11.462, P=0.009) were independent risk factors for AAC complicated by SAP. The area under the curve (AUC) of the ROC curve was 0.820 (95% CI: 0.752 to 0.888). There were statistically significant differences in the proportions of infected pancreatic necrosis,pancreatic head necrosis,and lower extremity venous thrombosis between the biliary stricture group and non-biliary stricture group ( P<0.05). Multivariate logistic analysis showed that infected pancreatic necrosis ( OR=7.376,95% CI:1.566 to 37.750, P=0.012) and pancreatic head necrosis ( OR=3.898,95% CI:1.180 to 12.877, P=0.026) were independent risk factors for biliary stricture complicated by SAP. The AUC of the ROC curve was 0.806 (95% CI:0.715 to 0.898). Conclusions:AAC typically occurs in the early stage of SAP,and biliary stricture usually occurs in the late stage of SAP. Admission total bilirubin,Balthazar-CTSI score,fasting duration,and concurrent sepsis are independent risk factors for AAC complicating SAP. Infected pancreatic necrosis and pancreatic head necrosis are independent risk factors for biliary stricture complicating SAP.

Objective:To investigate the clinicopathological and molecular genetic characteristics of diffuse gliomas with the features of polymorphous low-grade neuroepithelial tumor of the young (PLNTY) and their prognostic values.Methods:A retrospective analysis was performed on 14 cases of diffuse gliomas with PLNTY features diagnosed at the First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China from June 2020 to August 2024. Their clinicopathological characteristics were examined, and their molecular genetic and epigenetic features were assessed using next-generation sequencing (NGS) and methylation analysis. Factors influencing prognosis were also analyzed.Results:Among the 14 patients, there were 8 males and 6 females, aged 3-62 years, median 29 (9, 50) years. All cases were initially diagnosed as low-grade diffuse gliomas histologically but exhibited the histological and immunohistochemical features of PLNTY. At the molecular level, all cases showed molecular abnormalities involving the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway, including 5 cases with FGFR3-TACC3 (F3T3) fusion, 3 cases with FGFR2 fusion, 5 cases with BRAF V600E mutation, and 1 case with FGFR1 mutation. Among them, TERT promoter mutations were frequently observed in tumors with F3T3 fusion (5/5), while NCOR2 in-frame insertion mutations were prominent in tumors with non-F3T3 fusions. Clinical follow-up showed recurrence in 3 cases, all of which had F3T3 fusion and concurrent TERT promoter mutations. Prognostic analysis confirmed that F3T3 fusion with concurrent TERT promoter mutation was associated with poor prognosis.Conclusions:Diffuse gliomas with PLNTY features exhibit heterogeneity in clinicopathology and molecular genetics, with FGFR3/FGFR2 fusions and BRAF/FGFR1 mutations as the most common molecular alteration. They often have concurrent F3T3 fusion and TERT promoter mutations, which are related to poor prognosis. The possibility of molecular glioblastoma should be considered for these tumors. It is thus recommended to perform genetic testing on diffuse gliomas with PLNTY features in order to facilitate integrated diagnosis and provide molecular evidence for accurate evaluation of prognoses.

Objective:Trigeminal neuralgia(TN)is a severe chronic neuropathic pain that mainly affects the distribution area of the trigeminal nerve with limited treating efficacy.There are numerous treatments for TN,but currently the main clinical approach is to suppress pain by carbamazepine(CBZ).Brain-derived neurotrophic factor(BDNF)is closely related to chronic pain.This study aims to determine the effects of CBZ treatment on BDNF expression in both the trigeminal ganglion(TG)and serum of TN via a chronic constriction injury of the infraorbital nerve(ION-CCI)rat model. Methods:The ION-CCI models were established in male Sprague-Dawley rats and were randomly divided into a sham group,a TN group,a TN+low-dose CBZ treatment group(TN+20 mg/kg CBZ group),a TN+medium-dose CBZ treatment group(TN+40 mg/kg CBZ group),and a TN+high-dose CBZ treatment group(TN+80 mg/kg CBZ group).The mechanical pain threshold in each group of rats was measured regularly before and after surgery.The expressions of BDNF and tyrosine kinase receptor B(TrkB)mRNA in TGs of rats in different groups were determined by real-time PCR,and the expression of BDNF protein on neurons in TGs was observed by immunofluorescence.Western Blotting was used to detect the protein expression of BDNF,TrkB,extracellular regulated protein kinases(ERK),and phospho-extracellular regulated protein kinases(p-ERK)in TGs of rats in different groups.The expression of BDNF in the serum of rats in different groups was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA). Results:The results of mechanical pain sensitivity showed that there was no significant difference in the mechanical pain threshold in the right facial sensory area of the experimental rats in each group before surgery(all P>0.05).From the 3rd day after operation,the mechanical pain threshold of rats in the TN group was significantly lower than that in the sham group(all P<0.01),and the mechanical pain threshold of rats in the TN+80 mg/kg CBZ group,the TN+40 mg/kg CBZ group,and the TN+20 CBZ mg/kg group was higher than that in the TN group(all P<0.05).The BDNF and TrkB mRNA and protein expressions in TGs of rats in the TN group were higher than those in the sham group(all P<0.05),and those in the TN+80 mg/kg CBZ group,the TN+40 mg/kg CBZ group,and the TN+20 mg/kg CBZ group were lower than the TN group(all P<0.05).The p-ERK levels in TG of rats in the TN+80 mg/kg CBZ group,the TN+40 mg/kg CBZ group,and the TN+20 mg/kg CBZ group were significantly decreased compared with the TN group(all P<0.05).The BDNF and neuron-specific nuclear protein(NeuN)were mainly co-expressed in neuron of TGs in the TN group and they were significantly higher than those in the sham group(all P<0.05).The co-labeled expressions of BDNF and NeuN in TGs of the TN+ 80 mg/kg CBZ group,the TN+40 mg/kg CBZ group,and the TN+20 mg/kg CBZ group were lower than those in the TN group(all P<0.05).The results of ELISA showed that the level of BDNF in the serum of the TN group was significantly higher than that in the sham group(P<0.05).The levels of BDNF in the TN+80 mg/kg CBZ group,the TN+40 mg/kg CBZ group,and the TN+20 mg/kg CBZ group were lower than those in the TN group(all P<0.05).Spearman correlation analysis showed that the BDNF level in serum was negatively correlated with mechanical pain threshold(r=-0.650,P<0.01). Conclusion:CBZ treatment can inhibit the expression of BDNF and TrkB in the TGs of TN rats,reduce the level of BDNF in serum of TN rats and the phosphorylation of ERK signaling pathway,so as to inhibit TN.The serum level of BDNF can be considered as an indicator for the diagnosis and prognosis of TN.

Objective To explore the mechanism of Yangxue Qingnao Granules(Siwu Decoction modified)in the treatment of hypertension based on network pharmacology and molecular docking.Methods The chemical composition analysis results of Yangxue Qingnao Granules in the early stage of the research group were used as the basis for the screening of active compounds.The oral bioavailability≥30%and drug-likeness≥0.18 were used as the screening conditions,and the blood components were supplemented in combination with the literature.TCMSP,chemical professional database and SWISS database were used to predict the targets of potential active compounds of Yangxue Qingnao Granules.Hypertension-related targets were obtained through GeneCards and DiGSeE databases.The intersection of the targets related to hypertension disease and the targets of the potential active compounds of Yangxue Qingnao Granules(common targets)is the potential target of Yangxue Qingnao Granules for the treatment of hypertension.The potential targets were matched with the potential active compounds of Yangxue Qingnao Granules to obtain the antihypertensive active compounds of Yangxue Qingnao Granules.PPI analysis was performed on the potential targets of serum brain granules in the treatment of hypertension through the STRING database,and the core targets were screened according to the degree value.The David database was used to analyze the GO function and KEGG pathway enrichment of the core targets.The core targets with the top six degrees were selected as the docking target proteins,and molecular docking verification was performed with the antihypertensive active compounds.Results A total of 32 potential active compounds,161 active compound targets and 1 539 hypertension-related targets were obtained.After intersection,88 potential targets(common targets)of Yangxue Qingnao Granules in the treatment of hypertension were obtained,involving 29 antihypertensive active compounds.PPI analysis screened 14 core targets:PPARG,ACHE,IL4,CCL2,JUN,NOS3,APP,IL1B,CAT,PTGS2,CASP3,TP53,TNF,IL6,involving 158 GO entries and 13 signaling pathways.Five key active ingredients,chlorogenic acid,rosmarinic acid,paeoniflorin catechinic acid and aloe emodin,were obtained by molecular docking,which were combined with PTGS2,CASP3,TNF,CAT,TP53 and IL6,respectively.Conclusion Yangxue Qingnao Granules may act on core targets such as PTGS2 and CASP3 through key active components such as chlorogenic acid and rosmarinic acid,regulate key pathways such as TNF signaling pathway,MAPK signaling pathway and Toll-like receptor signaling pathway,and play a role in the treatment of hypertension through anti-inflammatory effects.