1.Analysis of the Current Situation of Orphan Drugs for the Treatment of Rare Diseases in Children and Their Coverage Level of National Basic Medical Insurance in China
Yu HOU ; Aili REYISHAMU ; Li ZHOU ; Yaqin WANG ; Liru QIU ; Dong LIU ; Shiwei GONG ; Wenting ZHANG
Herald of Medicine 2025;44(12):1962-1970
Objective To establish a pediatric rare disease catalog,analyze the current status of therapeutic drugs and their coverage of the medical insurance in China,and propose strategies to enhance drug accessibility.Methods Pediatric rare diseases were identified from China's two national rare disease catalogs combined with the EU Orphanet database,US FDA orphan drug database,and the Diagnosis and Treatment Standards for Rare Diseases in Children.We created a specialized drug catalog for pediatric rare diseases,then analyzed drug types(ATC classification),pricing,and medical insurance coverage using descriptive statistics based on Yaozhi.com drug bidding prices and the 2024 Drug of List National Basic Medical Insurance(NBMIDL).Drug affordability was assessed through annual treatment cost calculations.Results The national catalogs included 151 pediatric rare diseases(72.95%of listed conditions),spanning 13 disease systems.We identified 94 dedicated orphan drugs(by generic name)for these conditions,among which 43 were approved internationally but unavailable in China.The average unit price per package was 6 113.53 yuan.Overall NBMIDL coverage was 68.83%,but drugs priced above 7 000 yuan per unit had only 7.69%coverage.Annual treatment costs reached 4.54 million for laronidase(mucopolysaccharidosis).Conclusions Critical gaps persist in China's pediatric rare disease treatment landscape,including catalog deficiencies,inadequate coverage for high-cost drugs and insufficient domestic innovation.It is recommended to establish a list of orphan drugs for pediatric rare diseases,accelerate the import of foreign drugs and the local innovative drugs through policy incentives,optimizing medical insurance reimbursement mechanisms for pediatric rare disease drugs to comprehensively improve therapeutic accessibility.
2.SFTPC Mutation-Related Interstitial Lung Disease in Infants:A Case Study and Review of Related Literature
Xiuyun ZHOU ; Liru QIU ; Min'er CAI ; Zongming YANG ; Dong XU ; Yongjian HUANG
Herald of Medicine 2025;44(12):1982-1989
To investigate the clinical characteristics,genetic mutation patterns,and therapeutic strategies of an infant with interstitial lung disease associated with a surfactant protein C(SFTPC)gene mutation,and systematic review of 188 cases of SFTPC mutation-elated childhood ILD(chILD)reported in Chinese and English literature(from database inception to December 2024)was conducted.The patient in this study was a girl aged 11 months.She presented with progressive dyspnea,hypoxemia,and severe growth retardation starting at 2 months of age.Whole-exome sequencing identified a heterozygous missense mutation in SFTPC(c.187A>G,p.K63E),inherited from her mother.Symptoms significantly improved after treatment with glucocorticoids and azithromycin,though pulmonary bullae persisted at 5-year follow-up.Literature analysis revealed that the hotspot mutation I73T was located in the linker domain,while BRICHOS domain mutations exhibited the highest genetic diversity.BRICHOS domain mutations were associated with earlier onset,whereas non-BRICHOS mutations predominantly manifested in infancy with chronic cough,hypoxemia,and growth retardation.Oxygen therapy and glucocorticoids were the most common treatments.Hydroxychloroquine was more frequently used in linker domain mutations.The overall survival rate was 84%.SFTPC mutations are a critical genetic etiology of chILD in infants.Early genetic testing combined with glucocorticoid/macrolide therapy improves prognosis,but long-term monitoring for structural lung damage(e.g.,pulmonary bullae)is essential.
3.Analysis of the Current Situation of Orphan Drugs for the Treatment of Rare Diseases in Children and Their Coverage Level of National Basic Medical Insurance in China
Yu HOU ; Aili REYISHAMU ; Li ZHOU ; Yaqin WANG ; Liru QIU ; Dong LIU ; Shiwei GONG ; Wenting ZHANG
Herald of Medicine 2025;44(12):1962-1970
Objective To establish a pediatric rare disease catalog,analyze the current status of therapeutic drugs and their coverage of the medical insurance in China,and propose strategies to enhance drug accessibility.Methods Pediatric rare diseases were identified from China's two national rare disease catalogs combined with the EU Orphanet database,US FDA orphan drug database,and the Diagnosis and Treatment Standards for Rare Diseases in Children.We created a specialized drug catalog for pediatric rare diseases,then analyzed drug types(ATC classification),pricing,and medical insurance coverage using descriptive statistics based on Yaozhi.com drug bidding prices and the 2024 Drug of List National Basic Medical Insurance(NBMIDL).Drug affordability was assessed through annual treatment cost calculations.Results The national catalogs included 151 pediatric rare diseases(72.95%of listed conditions),spanning 13 disease systems.We identified 94 dedicated orphan drugs(by generic name)for these conditions,among which 43 were approved internationally but unavailable in China.The average unit price per package was 6 113.53 yuan.Overall NBMIDL coverage was 68.83%,but drugs priced above 7 000 yuan per unit had only 7.69%coverage.Annual treatment costs reached 4.54 million for laronidase(mucopolysaccharidosis).Conclusions Critical gaps persist in China's pediatric rare disease treatment landscape,including catalog deficiencies,inadequate coverage for high-cost drugs and insufficient domestic innovation.It is recommended to establish a list of orphan drugs for pediatric rare diseases,accelerate the import of foreign drugs and the local innovative drugs through policy incentives,optimizing medical insurance reimbursement mechanisms for pediatric rare disease drugs to comprehensively improve therapeutic accessibility.
4.SFTPC Mutation-Related Interstitial Lung Disease in Infants:A Case Study and Review of Related Literature
Xiuyun ZHOU ; Liru QIU ; Min'er CAI ; Zongming YANG ; Dong XU ; Yongjian HUANG
Herald of Medicine 2025;44(12):1982-1989
To investigate the clinical characteristics,genetic mutation patterns,and therapeutic strategies of an infant with interstitial lung disease associated with a surfactant protein C(SFTPC)gene mutation,and systematic review of 188 cases of SFTPC mutation-elated childhood ILD(chILD)reported in Chinese and English literature(from database inception to December 2024)was conducted.The patient in this study was a girl aged 11 months.She presented with progressive dyspnea,hypoxemia,and severe growth retardation starting at 2 months of age.Whole-exome sequencing identified a heterozygous missense mutation in SFTPC(c.187A>G,p.K63E),inherited from her mother.Symptoms significantly improved after treatment with glucocorticoids and azithromycin,though pulmonary bullae persisted at 5-year follow-up.Literature analysis revealed that the hotspot mutation I73T was located in the linker domain,while BRICHOS domain mutations exhibited the highest genetic diversity.BRICHOS domain mutations were associated with earlier onset,whereas non-BRICHOS mutations predominantly manifested in infancy with chronic cough,hypoxemia,and growth retardation.Oxygen therapy and glucocorticoids were the most common treatments.Hydroxychloroquine was more frequently used in linker domain mutations.The overall survival rate was 84%.SFTPC mutations are a critical genetic etiology of chILD in infants.Early genetic testing combined with glucocorticoid/macrolide therapy improves prognosis,but long-term monitoring for structural lung damage(e.g.,pulmonary bullae)is essential.
5.Clinical features of hereditary leiomyomatosis and renal cell carcinoma syndrome-associated renal cell carcinoma: a multi-center real-world retrospective study
Yunze XU ; Wen KONG ; Ming CAO ; Guangxi SUN ; Jinge ZHAO ; Songyang LIU ; Zhiling ZHANG ; Liru HE ; Xiaoqun YANG ; Haizhou ZHANG ; Lieyu XU ; Yanfei YU ; Hang WANG ; Honggang QI ; Tianyuan XU ; Bo YANG ; Yichu YUAN ; Dongning CHEN ; Dengqiang LIN ; Fangjian ZHOU ; Qiang WEI ; Wei XUE ; Xin MA ; Pei DONG ; Hao ZENG ; Jin ZHANG
Chinese Journal of Urology 2024;45(3):161-167
Objective:To investigate the clinical features and therapeutic efficacy of patients with hereditary leiomyomatosis and renal cell carcinoma(RCC) syndrome-associated RCC (HLRCC-RCC) in China.Methods:The clinical data of 119 HLRCC-RCC patients with fumarate hydratase (FH) germline mutation confirmed by genetic diagnosis from 15 medical centers nationwide from January 2008 to December 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. Among them, 73 were male and 46 were female. The median age was 38(13, 74) years. The median tumor diameter was 6.5 (1.0, 20.5) cm. There were 38 cases (31.9%) in stage Ⅰ-Ⅱand 81 cases (68.1%) in stage Ⅲ-Ⅳ. In this group, only 11 of 119 HLRCC-RCC patients presented with skin smooth muscle tumors, and 44 of 46 female HLRCC-RCC patients had a history of uterine fibroids. The pathological characteristics, treatment methods, prognosis and survival of the patients were summarized.Results:A total of 86 patients underwent surgical treatment, including 70 cases of radical nephrectomy, 5 cases of partial nephrectomy, and 11 cases of reductive nephrectomy. The other 33 patients with newly diagnosed metastasis underwent renal puncture biopsy. The results of genetic testing showed that 94 patients had FH gene point mutation, 18 had FH gene insertion/deletion mutation, 4 had FH gene splicing mutation, 2 had FH gene large fragment deletion and 1 had FH gene copy number mutation. Immunohistochemical staining showed strong 2-succinocysteine (2-SC) positive and FH negative in 113 patients. A total of 102 patients received systematic treatment, including 44 newly diagnosed patients with metastasis and 58 patients with postoperative metastasis. Among them, 33 patients were treated with tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) combined with immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI), 8 patients were treated with bevacizumab combined with erlotinib, and 61 patients were treated with TKI monotherapy. Survival analysis showed that the median progression-free survival (PFS) of TKI combined with ICI was 18 (5, 38) months, and the median overall survival (OS) was not reached. The median PFS and OS were 12 (5, 14) months and 30 (10, 32) months in the bevacizumab combined with erlotinib treatment group, respectively. The median PFS and OS were 10 (3, 64) months and 44 (10, 74) months in the TKI monotherapy group, respectively. PFS ( P=0.009) and OS ( P=0.006) in TKI combined with ICI group were better than those in bevacizumab combined with erlotinib group. The median PFS ( P=0.003) and median OS ( P=0.028) in TKI combined with ICI group were better than those in TKI monotherapy group. Conclusions:HLRCC-RCC is rare but has a high degree of malignancy, poor prognosis and familial genetic characteristics. Immunohistochemical staining with strong positive 2-SC and negative FH can provide an important basis for clinical diagnosis. Genetic detection of FH gene germ line mutation can confirm the diagnosis. The preliminary study results confirmed that TKI combined with ICI had a good clinical effect, but it needs to be confirmed by the results of a large sample multi-center randomized controlled clinical study.
6.Interpretation of the European Respiratory Society Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Pulmonary Alveolar Proteinosis
Dong XU ; Liru QIU ; Xiaoping LUO ; Xiuyun ZHOU ; Yongjian HUANG
Herald of Medicine 2024;43(12):1869-1873
To improve the understanding of clinicians on the diagnostic criteria and treatment principlis of pulmonary alveolar proteinosis(PAP),which is a rare respiratory disease.European Respiratory Society published the first edition guidelines for PAP,including a systematic review of the literature and the application of the grading of recommendations,assessment,development and evaluation(GRADE)approach to assess the certainty of evidence and the strength of recommendations.Five questions of patient,intervention,comparison,outcome(PICO)and two narrative questions were developed.Recommendations and evidence-based evidence were given,including management of PAP,whole lung lavage,granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor(GM-CSF)therapy,rituximab,plasma exchange,and lung transplantation.In addition,recommendations were given for the use of GM-CSF antibody testing,bronchoalveolar lavage,and lung biopsy.This study is to interpret the main content of the guideline.
7.Expression of Nectin-4 in invasive bladder urothelial carcinoma and its clinical significance
Huiru SONG ; Dan LUO ; Junxiu WEN ; Lu NI ; Kexin ZHANG ; Qi WANG ; Liu YANG ; Xudong SONG ; Liru DONG
Journal of Modern Urology 2024;29(10):903-908
[Objective] To explore the expression of Nectin-4 in invasive bladder urothelial carcinoma (BUC) tissue and its clinical significance, so as to provide reference for clinical diagnosis and treatment of BUC. [Methods] Nectin-4 expression in 60 cases of invasive BUC and 40 cases of chronic inflammation of bladder mucosa was detected with immunohistochemical staining (IHC) and RNAscope.The results of the two methods were analyzed and compared, and the relationship between the two methods and the clinicopathological characteristics of invasive BUC was discussed.The correlation between the protein expression of Nectin-4 in BUC tissues, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (Her-2) and programmed death factor ligand 1 (PD-L1) was analyzed. [Results] The positive protein expression rates of Nectin-4 detected by IHC were 78.33%(47/60) and 17.50% (7/40) in the invasive BUC group and inflammatory group, respectively, while the positive mRNA expression rates of Nectin-4 detected by RNAscope were 83.33% (50/60) and 12.50% (5/40), respectively.The Kappa values of Nectin-4 in the invasive BUC group and inflammatory group were 0.732 and 0.610, respectively, with general consistency.The protein expression of Nectin-4 in invasive BUC was correlated with muscular invasion, histological grade, vascular thrombus, lymph node metastasis and clinical stage (P<0.05). The mRNA expression of Nectin-4 in invasive BUC was correlated with max tumor diameter, muscular invasion, histological grade, vascular thrombus, lymph node metastasis and clinical stage (P<0.05). The high expression of Nectin-4 in invasive BUC was positively correlated with the expression of Her-2 (P=0.002), but not with the expression of PD-L1 (P>0.05). [Conclusion] Nectin-4 is highly expressed in invasive BUC, and is usually associated with the pathological parameters of poor prognosis.Detection of Nectin-4 expression will help to guide clinical diagnosis and treatment.
8.The efficacy of different treatment modes for locoregional recurrence after nephrectomy in patients with renal cell carcinoma
Xinyue ZHANG ; Xia ZHENG ; Yang LIU ; Zhiling ZHANG ; Weijun FAN ; Hui HAN ; Shengjie GUO ; Liru HE ; Fangjian ZHOU ; Pei DONG
Chinese Journal of Urology 2023;44(1):1-6
Objective:To investigate the efficacy of different treatment modes for locoregional recurrence after nephrectomy in patients with renal cell carcinoma.Methods:A total of 106 patients with locoregional recurrence after nephrectomy without distant metastasis (77 males and 29 females) admitted to Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center from October 2001 to July 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. The median age was 51 (40, 60) years old. Radical nephrectomy was performed in 90 patients with primary tumor and partial nephrectomy was performed in 16 patients. Pathological diagnosis showed that 54 cases were clear cell carcinoma and 52 cases were non-clear cell carcinoma. 53 cases were in stage T 1-2 and 53 cases in stage T 3-4. The median diameter of recurrent lesions was 3.2 (2.0, 6.3) cm, and the median number was 2 (1, 4). The recurrence sites were divided into renal fossa recurrence (33 cases), renal fossa±retroperitoneal lymph node recurrence (38 cases), and intra-abdominal spread (35 cases). The median duration from primary surgery to local recurrence was 14.8 (7.3, 35.8) months. Two treatment groups were identified as systemic therapy alone (Group A) and local therapy with or without systemic therapy (Group B). The Kaplan-Meier method was used to compare the progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) between Group A and Group B. The Cox model was used to perform univariate and multivariate analysis. Results:Of all the 106 patients, 33 patients were in Group A and 73 patients were in Group B. In Group A, 29 patients (87.9%) received targeted therapy, and 4 patients (12.1%) received targeted therapy combined with immunotherapy. In Group B, 34 patients (46.6%) received surgery or ablation and 39 patients (53.4%) received SBRT, of which 62 patients (84.9%) received concurrent systemic therapy. Among them, 58 patients (93.5%) received targeted therapy, and 4 patients (6.5%) received targeted therapy combined with immunotherapy. The median follow-up period was 29.0 (15.4, 45.9) months, 64 patients progressed on tumor including 28 patients died. The median PFS and OS were 15.6 (7.1, 35.2) months and 66.9 (37.8, not reached) months. The median PFS of Group A and Group B were 7.6(5.0, 17.2)months and 22.2(9.6, 63.9)months respectively ( P=0.001), median OS of Group A and Group B were 45.7 (23.4, 62.8)months and 71.0(50.6, not reached)months respectively, and the 2-year OS were 70.6% and 85.5% in Group A and Group B respectively ( P=0.023). The univariate analysis showed local therapy with or without systemic therapy was significantly reduced 56% risk of tumor progression ( HR=0.44, P=0.003) and reduced 60% risk of death ( HR=0.40, P=0.028). The multivariate analysis showed that the OS was associated with ECOG score( HR=10.20, 95% CI 4.13-25.30, P<0.001)and local therapy( HR=0.23, 95% CI 0.09-0.58, P=0.002). Conclusion:Compared with systemic therapy alone, local therapy with or without systemic therapy can effectively improve the PFS and OS of patients with locoregional recurrence after nephrectomy.
9.Efficacy of first-line tyrosine kinase inhibitors plus immune checkpoint inhibitors in metastatic fumarate hydratase-deficient renal cell carcinoma
Junru CHEN ; Junjie ZHAO ; Yunze XU ; Wen KONG ; Wensu WEI ; Liru HE ; Fangjian ZHOU ; Wei XUE ; Qiang WEI ; Pei DONG ; Jin ZHANG ; Hao ZENG
Chinese Journal of Urology 2023;44(6):410-415
Objective:To evaluate the efficacy of first-line tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) plus immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) in metastatic fumarate hydratase-deficient renal cell carcinoma (FH-deficient RCC).Methods:The data of 87 metastatic FH-deficient RCC patients from West China Hospital ( n=44), Renji Hospital ( n=27) and Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center (n=16) from Mar 2019 to Aug 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. The median age was 37(30, 47) years, the male to female ratio was 1.9∶1. The median size of tumor was 7.5(5.0, 10.0) cm. Sixty-one patients (70.1%) had germline FH mutations, and 26 patients (29.9%) had somatic FH mutations. Forty-nine patients (56.3%) metastasis disease at initial diagnosis, and 38 patients (43.7%) had metachronous metastasis. The most common site of metastasis was lymph node (41/87, 47.1%), followed by bone (33/87, 37.9%), liver (22/87, 25.3%), and lung (14/87, 16.1%). Fifteen patients (17.2%) had weak expression of FH protein and 59 patients (67.8%) had positive PD-L1 expression. The most common treatments were sintilimab plus axitinib (52/87, 59.8%), followed by pembrolizumab plus cabozantinib (7/87, 8.0%), tirelizumab plus axitinib (6/87, 6.9%), pembrolizumab plus axitinib (5/87, 5.7%), and toripalimab plus axitinib (4/87, 4.6%). Thirteen patients (13/87, 14.9%) received other ICI plus TKI combination treatments. Statistical analysis was conducted using R 4.2.3 software. Kaplan Meier survival curve was used to evaluate survival data, and log-rank test was used to compare differences between treatment groups. Results:The overall objective response rate (ORR) and disease control rate (DCR) of first-line TKI + ICI were 39.1% and 89.7%, respectively. The median progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were 16.5 months and 71.0 months, respectively. For first-line sintilimab plus axitinib, the ORR and DCR were 44.2% and 92.3%, respectively. The median PFS was 17.3 months and the median OS was not reached for this combination treatment. The efficacy of first-line tirelizumab plus axitinib was inferior to other treatment strategies (median PFS: 4.0 vs. 16.6 months, P<0.001; median OS: 22.0 vs. 71.0 months, P=0.043). Subgroup analyses further showed that the efficacy of ICI+ TKI combination therapy was consistent in patients with different clinicopathologic and genomic features. However, patients with liver metastasis had shorter OS than those without liver metastasis (median OS: 26.3 vs. 71.0 months, P=0.021). Conclusion:First-line TKI + ICI is effective for metastatic FH-deficient RCC and can significantly prolong the survival of the patients.
10.Preliminary clinical observation of efficacy and safety of stereotactic body radiation therapy in combination with targeted therapy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma
Yang LIU ; Pei DONG ; Sijuan HUANG ; Wufei CAO ; Boji LIU ; Maosheng LIN ; Xiaobo JIANG ; Chengguang LIN ; Zhuowei LIU ; Hui HAN ; Yonghong LI ; Mengzhong LIU ; Fangjian ZHOU ; Liru HE
Chinese Journal of Radiation Oncology 2020;29(10):855-858
Objective:To evaluate the preliminary clinical efficacy and safety of stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) in combination with targeted therapy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC).Methods:Clinical data of 58 patients with mRCC who were treated with SBRT in combination with targeted therapy in Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center from June 2013 to December 2018 were retrospectively analyzed. Among them, 79.3% patients were classified as intermediate or high risk according to International Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma Database Consortium Criteria. The median biologically equivalent dose (BED) was 147 Gy (67 to 238 Gy).Results:Overall, 32, 13, 7, 5 and 1 patients received SBRT for 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 metastatic sites (105 lesions) and 71.4% of them were bone lesions. Targeted therapy was continued during SBRT. With a median follow-up of 9.4 months (range 2.7 to 40.1 months), 18 patients died. The 1-year local control rate was 97.4%. The 1-year progression-free survival was 50.3%. The 1-and 2-year overall survival was 72% and 53%. Approximately 85% patients experienced pain relief after SBRT. Patients who achieved complete or partial response after SBRT obtained better overall survival than those with stable disease or disease progression (1-year overall survival: 83% vs. 48%, P=0.021). In the whole cohort, 6 cases developed Grade Ⅲ adverse events, 4 of which were Grade Ⅲ myelosuppression, 1 case of Grade Ⅲ neuropathy and 1 case of radiation-induced skin injury. Conclusion:Preliminary study reveals that combined use of targeted therapy and SBRT is an efficacious and safe treatment of advanced mRCC.

Result Analysis
Print
Save
E-mail