Pancreatic cancer is a highly malignant digestive tract tumor with hidden symptoms,limited treatment options and rapid progression.With an increasing incidence rate year by year,pancreatic cancer has increasingly become a prominent issue endangering public health,causing a huge social burden.Although there was no significant improvement in survival rates for pancreatic cancer patients in the past two decades,recent progress in epidemiology,basic research and clinical research of pancreatic cancer has accelerated significantly compared to the past.Some findings have already enabled a small proportion of pancreatic cancer patients to achieve better survival.This article provided a review of the significant progress made in research,diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic cancer in 2023.

Objective:To explore the surgical intervention strategy for metastatic cervical lymph nodes surrounding the carotid artery in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.Methods:A total of 62 patients with advanced head and neck tumors and carotid wrap by disease treated in Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, the Affiliated BenQ Hospital of Nanjing Medical University between June 2019 and December 2023 were reviewed, of whom 9 patients presented with metastatic squamous cell carcinoma in cervical lymph nodes of unknown primary or with no recurrence of primary lesion and all the 9 patients were males, aged from 48 to 79 years old, with≤level 2 of Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group-Performance Status (ECOG-PS). Radiographically common carotid artery (CCA) and/or internal carotid artery (ICA) were surrounded by≥270° with tumor. All the 9 patients received implantation of covered stent in carotid artery and radical resection of metastatic cervical lymph nodes. The success rate, complications, surgery-related complications, local recurrence rate, quality of life (QOL) and overall survival (OS) were analyzed. The QOL of patients was compared by paired rank sum test, and P<0.05 indicated statistically significant difference. The OS was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier. Results:The success rate of stent implantation was 100%, with no implantation-related complications. R0 resection was performed in 8 cases and R1 resection in 1 case. The QOL of patients after surgery was improved, and the improvements in "pain", "mood" and "anxiety" were statistically significant( Z values were -2.236, -2.460 and -2.200, respectively, and all P values were<0.05). Follow-up was 1-18 months, with a median of 7 months, and 1 case was lost to follow-up. Local recurrence occurred in 3 patients with an incidence of 37.5% (3/8). OS was 59.9% at 12 months after surgery. Conclusion:Implantation of covered stent in carotid artery combined with radical resection is an effective method for the treatment of cervical lymph node metastasis.

Pancreatic cancer is a highly malignant tumor in the digestive system, and radical surgery is the only possible means to cure pancreatic cancer at present. In the past decade, pancreatic surgery has been developing rapidly, with various new technologies and concepts emerging, among which the use of minimally invasive techniques and the popularization of neoadjuvant therapy concepts are the most notable. At the same time, the surgical treatment of pancreatic cancer still has a long way to go, and many problems need to be solved urgently. This article introduces the surgical treatment of pancreatic cancer in the 2024 edition of the NCCN guidelines, focusing on minimally invasive and open surgical treatments, expanded lymph node dissection, combined vascular resection and reconstruction, surgical treatment of pancreatic neck cancer and neoadjuvant therapy, and briefly discussing the unresolved issues.

Pancreatic cancer is a highly malignant tumor in the digestive system, and radical surgery is the only possible means to cure pancreatic cancer at present. In the past decade, pancreatic surgery has been developing rapidly, with various new technologies and concepts emerging, among which the use of minimally invasive techniques and the popularization of neoadjuvant therapy concepts are the most notable. At the same time, the surgical treatment of pancreatic cancer still has a long way to go, and many problems need to be solved urgently. This article introduces the surgical treatment of pancreatic cancer in the 2024 edition of the NCCN guidelines, focusing on minimally invasive and open surgical treatments, expanded lymph node dissection, combined vascular resection and reconstruction, surgical treatment of pancreatic neck cancer and neoadjuvant therapy, and briefly discussing the unresolved issues.

The incidence and detection rates of benign and low-grade malignant pancreatic tumors have risen yearly.For patients with such tumors,traditional radical resection procedures often result in excessive loss of normal pancreatic parenchyma,leading to complications such as postoperative insufficiency of both exocrine and endocrine functions.Studies have shown that functional-preserving surgeries,such as minimally invasive enucleation or partial resection surgeries,can maximize the protection of patients'pancreatic function and improve long-term quality of life.However,for some tumors deep within the pancreatic parenchyma,accurately locating the tumor and protecting the pancreatic duct pose challenges.Intraoperative ultrasound(IOUS)has become an ideal intraoperative imaging tool,often referred to as the surgeon's"third eye"because of its portability,ability to provide real-time high-resolution information,non-reliance on ionizing radiation,and the fact that it does not require special patient preparation.With advancements in technology,the application scope of IOUS has expanded beyond its initially limited diagnostic role to various surgical applications,including identifying non-palpable lesions,guiding surgical strategies,and staging tumors.In the current era of minimally invasive and precision surgery,the proficiency of surgeons in using IOUS has become an important issue.This article reviews the history of IOUS applications,summarizes the advantages and basic usage methods of robotic IOUS,and shares techniques for applying IOUS in robot-assisted precise resection of pancreatic tumors.

Autologous ozonized blood transfusion(AOBT) is a therapy of re-transfusion of 100-200 mL of autologous blood after shaking and agitation with appropriate amount of oxygen-ozone in vitro. The oxidation of blood through the strong oxidation of ozone can enhance the non-specific immune response of the body, regulate the internal environment and promote health. This therapy has been increasingly applied in clinical practice, while no unified standard for the operation process in terms of ozone concentration, treatment frequency and treatment course had been established. This operation process of AOBT is primarily explored in order to standardize the operation process and ensure its safety and efficacy.

10,11-Dehydrocurvularin (DCV) is a natural-product macrolide that has been shown to exert anti-inflammatory activity. However, the underlying mechanism of its anti-inflammatory activity remains poorly understood. Aberrant activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome is involved in diverse inflammation-related diseases, which should be controlled. The results showed that DCV specifically inhibited the activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome in association with reduced IL-1β secretion and caspase-1 activation, without effect on the NLRC4 and AIM2 inflammasomes. Furthermore, DCV disturbed the interaction between NEK7 and NLRP3, resulting in the inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome activation. The C=C double bond of DCV was required for the NLRP3 inflammasome inhibition induced by DCV. Importantly, DCV ameliorated inflammation in vivo through inhibiting the NLRP3 inflammasome. Taken together, our study reveals a novel mechanism by which DCV suppresses inflammation, which indicates the potential role of DCV in NLRP3 inflammasome-driven inflammatory disorders.
Animals ; Mice ; Inflammasomes ; NLR Family, Pyrin Domain-Containing 3 Protein/genetics* ; Inflammation/drug therapy* ; Anti-Inflammatory Agents/pharmacology* ; Interleukin-1beta/genetics* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL

Objective:To systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of general anesthesia versus conscious sedation in patients with endovascular therapy for acute ischemic stroke.Methods:Databases, including English databases PubMed, Embase and Cochrane, as well as Chinese databases Wan Fang Data and CNKI, were screened for randomized controlled trials (RCT) of general anesthesia versus conscious sedation on the effect of endovascular treatment for acute anterior circulation ischemic stroke. The searching period was from the establishment of databases to July 14, 2022. Two researchers independently screened literatures, extracted data and evaluated the risk of bias. And meta-analysis was performed using RevMan5.3 software.Results:A total of 7 RCTs involving 923 patients were included, with 461 in the general anesthesia group and 462 in the other. As the meta-analysis showing, general anesthesia could significantly improve the good outcomes (modified Rankin Scale score≤2) at 3 months after endovascular treatment in comparison with conscious sedation ( OR=1.34, 95% CI 1.01-1.78, P=0.04), and significantly increased the rate of successful revascularization ( OR=1.87, 95% CI 1.32-2.65, P<0.001). In addition, there were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in mortality ( OR=0.93, 95% CI 0.66-1.29, P=0.65), symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage ( OR=0.88, 95% CI 0.57-1.35, P=0.55) and intervention-related complications ( OR=0.83, 95% CI 0.50-1.36, P=0.46). However, general anesthesia was associated with higher risk for both 20% reduction in mean arterial pressure ( OR=4.76, 95% CI 1.49-15.19, P=0.008) and pneumonia ( OR=2.58, 95% CI 1.51-4.39, P<0.001). Conclusions:Compared with conscious sedation, endovascular treatment under general anesthesia in patients with acute anterior circulation ischemic stroke may contribute to better outcomes and higher successful revascularization. However, this method will lead to the risk of blood pressure variability and the incidence of pneumonia.

Consecutively hospitalized patients with confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Wuhan, China were retrospectively enrolled from January 2020 to March 2020 to investigate the association between the use of renin-angiotensin system inhibitor (RAS-I) and the outcome of this disease. Associations between the use of RAS-I (angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB)), ACEI, and ARB and in-hospital mortality were analyzed using multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression models in overall and subgroup of hypertension status. A total of 2771 patients with COVID-19 were included, with moderate and severe cases accounting for 45.0% and 36.5%, respectively. A total of 195 (7.0%) patients died. RAS-I (hazard ratio (HR)= 0.499, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.325-0.767) and ARB (HR = 0.410, 95% CI 0.240-0.700) use was associated with a reduced risk of all-cause mortality among patients with COVID-19. For patients with hypertension, RAS-I and ARB applications were also associated with a reduced risk of mortality with HR of 0.352 (95% CI 0.162-0.764) and 0.279 (95% CI 0.115-0.677), respectively. RAS-I exhibited protective effects on the survival outcome of COVID-19. ARB use was associated with a reduced risk of all-cause mortality among patients with COVID-19.
Angiotensin Receptor Antagonists/therapeutic use* ; Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors/therapeutic use* ; COVID-19 ; Humans ; Hypertension/drug therapy* ; Renin-Angiotensin System ; Retrospective Studies

Objective:To investigate the correlation and predictive value of serum miR-149-5p and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and hemorrhagic transformation (HT) after intravenous thrombolysis in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS).Methods:Patients with AIS received intravenous thrombolytic therapy in Shangqiu First People's Hospital from September 2019 to February 2022 were enrolled prospectively. They were divided into HT group and non-HT group according to whether HT occurred after intravenous thrombolysis. Serum miR-149-5p and MMP-9 were measured by real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine the independent risk factors for HT after thrombolysis. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the predictive value of serum miR-149-5p, MMP-9 and their combination for HT after intravenous thrombolysis. Results:A total of 358 patients with AIS received intravenous thrombolytic therapy were enrolled, 71 of them (19.83%) developed HT. The serum MMP-9 in the HT group was significantly higher than that in the non-HT group (273.95±35.23 μg/L vs. 202.71±30.52 μg/L; t=17.062, P<0.001), while the serum miR-149-5p was significantly lower than that in the non-HT group (0.26±0.06 vs. 1.03±0.15; t=42.387, P<0.001). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that atrial fibrillation (odds ratio [ OR] 2.282, 95% confidence interval [ CI] 1.731-3.008; P<0.001), time from onset to intravenous thrombolysis ( OR 2.334, 95% CI 1.458-3.735; P<0.001), miR-149-5p ( OR 1.758, 95% CI 1.142-2.705; P=0.010) and MMP-9 ( OR 1.535, 95% CI 1.106-2.129; P=0.010) were the independent risk factors for HT after intravenous thrombolysis. Serum miR-149-5p (area under the curve 0.856, 95% CI 0.803-0.909; when the optimal cut-off value was 0.741, the sensitivity was 80.3% and the specificity was 89.9%), MMP-9 (area under the curve 0.875, 95% CI 0.821-0.929; when the optimal cut-off value was 240.051 μg/L, the sensitivity was 83.1% and the specificity was 90.2%) and their combination (area under the curve 0.897, 95% CI 0.854-0.941; sensitivity 84.5% and specificity 90.6%) had better predictive value for HT after thrombolysis, and there were no significant differences in the predictive value among the three. Conclusions:After intravenous thrombolysis, the serum miR-149-5p is lower and MMP-9 is higher at admission in patients with HT in patients with AIS. Both of them and their combination have better predictive value for HT after intravenous thrombolysis.