Background::Carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) and diameter, stiffness, and wave reflections, are independent and important clinical biomarkers and risk predictors for cardiovascular diseases. The purpose of the present study was to establish nationwide reference values of carotid properties for healthy Chinese adults and to explore potential clinical determinants.Methods::A total of 3053 healthy Han Chinese adults (1922 women) aged 18-79 years were enrolled at 28 collaborating tertiary centers throughout China between April 2021 and July 2022. The real-time tracking of common carotid artery walls was achieved by the radio frequency (RF) ultrasound system. The IMT, diameter, compliance coefficient, β stiffness, local pulse wave velocity (PWV), local systolic blood pressure, augmented pressure (AP), and augmentation index (AIx) were then automatically measured and reported. Data were stratified by age groups and sex. The relationships between age and carotid property parameters were analyzed by Jonckheere-Terpstra test and simple linear regressions. The major clinical determinants of carotid properties were identified by Pearson’s correlation, multiple linear regression, and analyses of covariance.Results::All the parameters of carotid properties demonstrated significantly age-related trajectories. Women showed thinner IMT, smaller carotid diameter, larger AP, and AIx than men. The β stiffness and PWV were significantly higher in men than women before forties, but the differences reversed after that. The increase rate of carotid IMT (5.5 μm/year in women and 5.8 μm/year in men) and diameter (0.03 mm/year in both men and women) were similar between men and women. For the stiffness and wave reflections, women showed significantly larger age-related variations than men as demonstrated by steeper regression slopes (all P for age by sex interaction <0.05). The blood pressures, body mass index (BMI), and triglyceride levels were identified as major clinical determinants of carotid properties with adjustment of age and sex. Conclusions::The age- and sex-specific reference values of carotid properties measured by RF ultrasound for healthy Chinese adults were established. The blood pressures, BMI, and triglyceride levels should be considered for clinical application of corresponding reference values.

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is the third common type of stroke in the world,and its mortality and disability rates have declined over the past few decades due to the advances in neuroimaging technology and endovascular interventional therapy and promotion of healthy physical examination,but long-term neurological deficits and cognitive impairment of the patients have not significantly improved,which may be related to the white matter injury (WMI) after SAH.Little attention has been paid to WMI after SAH in the past,which may be an important reason for the poor prognosis of the patients with SAH.The neuroin-flammation response is an important pathophysiological process after SAH,and the neuroinflammation after SAH can aggravate WMI.This article reviews the relationship between neuroinflammation and WMI after SAH in order to deepen the understanding of its effects on cognitive function after SAH.

Objective To investigate the relationship between the expression of serum microRNA-326(miR-326)and microRNA-623(miR-623)in non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC)patients and their clinical pathological characteristics and prognosis.Methods A total of 114 NSCLC patients diagnosed in our hospital from March 2019 to June 2020 were collected as study subjects as case group,123 healthy individuals who underwent physical examination were as the control group.According to the 3-year prognosis,patients were separated into a survival group of 71 cases and a death group of 43 cases.Patient related clinical data were collected,real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR method was applied to detect the expression levels of miR-326 and miR-623 in various serum samples;Kaplan-Meier method was applied to analyze the relationship between the expression levels of serum miR-326 and miR-623 in NSCLC patients and their 3-year prognosis;Cox proportional risk regression model was applied to analyze the influencing factors of 3-year prognosis in NSCLC patients.Results The expression levels of serum miR-326 in the case group and control group were 0.64±0.15 and 1.02±0.23,respectively,and the expression levels of miR-623 were 0.56±0.10 and 0.98±0.15,respectively.The difference between the two groups was statistically significant(P＜0.05).The proportions of patients with low expression of miR-326 and miR-623 in low differentiation,TNM stage Ⅲ+Ⅳ,and lymph node metastasis were higher than those in high differentiation,TNM stage Ⅰ and Ⅱ,and no lymph node metastasis(P＜0.05).The 3-year survival rates of patients with low expression of miR-326(20/55,36.36％)and miR-623(27/61,44.26％)in the serum of NSCLC patients were lower than those of patients with high expression of miR-326(51/59,86.44％)and miR-623(44/53,83.02％)(Log Rank x2=32.060,22.812,P＜0.05).Serum miR-326[(0.55±0.09)vs.(0.69±0.11)]and miR-623 levels[(0.48±0.08)vs.(0.61±0.10)]of patients in the death group were significantly lower than those in the survival group(P＜0.05).The area under the curve(AUC)for poor prognosis of serum miR-326 and miR-623 alone and in combination in patients diagnosed with NSCLC were 0.828(95％CI:0.754 to 0.901),0.763(95％CI:0.671 to 0.855),and 0.903(95％CI:0.849 to 0.958),respectively.The proportions of patients with TNM stage Ⅲ+Ⅳ,lymph node metastasis,low expression of miR-326 and low expression of miR-623in the death group were higher than those in the survival group(P＜0.05).MiR-326 and miR-623 were protective factors affecting 3-year mortality in NSCLC patients,while TNM staging and lymph node metastasis were independent risk factors affecting 3-year mortality in NSCLC patients(P＜0.05).Conclusion The low expression of miR-326 and miR-623 may be involved in the occurrence and development of lung cancer,which is closely related to the clinical pathological characteristics and poor prognosis of patients.

Objective:To compare the safety and efficacy of high-dose- rate interstitial brachytherapy and particle implantation radiotherapy in the treatment of lymph nodes with pelvic metastases in the field after external radiotherapy.Methods:Clinical data of 42 patients with residual or newly metastatic pelvic lymph nodes after radiotherapy at Cangzhou Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Hospital who met the inclusion criteria from January 2017 to April 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. Among them, 12 patients were male and 30 females, aged 39-82 years, (61.6±9.64) years on average. According to the treatment method, all patients were divided into the high-dose-rate interstitial brachytherapy group ( n=18) and particle implantation radiotherapy group ( n=24). During 3-year follow-up, the local control rate (LCR), incidence of complications and overall survival (OS) were compared between two groups. Age and operation time conforming to normal distribution were analyzed by t-test. The remaining indexes were analyzed by the Chi-square test or Fisher's exact test. The OS and LCR were calculated by Kaplan-Meier method. Results:There was no significant difference in baseline data between two groups (all P>0.05). The operation time in the high-dose- rate interstitial brachytherapy group was longer than that in the particle implantation radiotherapy group [(66.39±11.07) : (45.75±9.19) min, P<0.001]. During subsequent follow-up, there was no significant difference in the LCR between two groups (1-year LCR 88.9% vs. 87.5%, P=0.927; 2-year LCR 72.2% vs. 62.5%, P=0.874). There was no significant difference in the median OS between two groups (31.6 vs. 29.8 months, P=0.798). There was no significant difference in the incidence of early complications between two groups [ (4/18) vs. 5/24 (20.8%), P=1.000]. No late complications observed. Conclusion:High-dose- rate interstitial brachytherapy yields equivalent efficacy and safety to particle implantation radiotherapy in the treatment of lymph nodes with pelvic metastases.

The widespread application of 3D printing and computer technologies in the medical field has opened up opportunities for digital and automated fabrication of body immobilization tools for radiotherapy, thus making it possible to get rid of the original complex manual fabrication process. As the most widely used technique for body immobilization, body membrane immobilization has always attracted much attention. This review outlines the development of the body membrane immobilization technology in different radiotherapy stages. Moreover, the advances in the application of 3D-printed body membranes were introduced, as a development direction of body immobilization technology, in the field of radiotherapy. This technology can be utilized as a reference for clinical application and research.

Objective:To analyze the prognosis and risk factors for brain metastases (BM) in patients with limited-stage small cell lung cancer (LS-SCLC) after complete resection, aiming to identify those most likely to benefit from prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI).Methods:Clinical data of 94 patients with LS-SCLC treated in Cangzhou Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Hospital from January 2005 to December 2018 who underwent complete resection were retrospectively analyzed, including 31 cases treated with PCI and 63 without PCI. Prognostic factors and risk factors of BM were analyzed by Kaplan-Meier method. The differences between two groups were analyzed by log-rank test. Independent risk factors of overall survival (OS) and BM were assessed by multivariate Cox regression model.Results:The 2-year and 5-year OS rates were 80.6% and 61.3% in the PCI group, and 61.9% and 46.0% in the non-PCI group, respectively ( P=0.001). The 2-year and 5-year brain metastasis-free survival (BMFS) rates were 80.6% and 54.8% in the PCI group, and 57.1% and 42.9% in the non-PCI group, respectively ( P=0.045). The 2-year and 5-year progression-free survival (PFS) rates were 71.0% and 48.4% in the PCI group, and 49.2% and 34.9% in the non-PCI group, respectively ( P=0.016). PCI could improve OS in patients with pII/III stage LS-SCLC ( P=0.039, P=0.013), but the OS benefit in patients with pI stage LS-SCLC was not significant ( P=0.167). BM occurred in 3 patients (9.7%) in the PCI group, which was significantly lower than that in the non-PCI group ( n=17, 27.0%; P=0.044); there was no significant difference in the BM rate of patients with pI and pII stage LS-SCLC between PCI and non-PCI groups ( P=0.285, P=0.468); and the BM rate of patients with pIII stage LS-SCLC in the PCI group was significantly lower than that in the non-PCI group ( P=0.041). Multivariate analysis showed age ≥60 ( HR=2.803, P=0.001), BM ( HR=2.239, P=0.022), no PCI ( HR=0.341, P=0.004) and pathological stage pII/III ( HR=4.963, P=0.002) were the independent high-risk factors affecting OS; and pathological stage pII/III ( HR=11.665, P=0.007) was an independent high-risk factor affecting BM. Conclusions:LS-SCLC patients with pII-III stage have a higher risk of developing BM and poor prognosis after complete resection, and should receive PCI treatment. However, LS-SCLC patients with pI stage may not benefit significantly.

Objective:To conduct a meta-analysis to analyze the efficacy and adverse reactions of fractionated high dose rate brachytherapy (HDR-BT) as monotherapy for localized prostate cancer.Methods:Relevant databases were searched to collect the clinical trials on HDR-BT as monotherapy in patients with localized prostate cancer. Included studies were limited to full-text publications of fractionated HDR-BT as monotherapy with a median follow-up of at least 5 years, and adequate reporting of treatment outcomes and adverse reactions data. Stata 12.0 was used for data analysis.Results:According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 11 clinical trials involving 2 683 patients with prostate cancer were included in this meta-analysis. The results of the meta-analysis showed that 5-year biochemical recurrence-free survival (bRFS) rate and overall survival (OS) rate were 94% (95% CI: 93% - 96%) and 96% (95% CI: 94% - 98%), respectively. Long-term (≥5 years) cancer-specific survival (CSS) rate and distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) rate were 99% (95% CI: 98% - 100%) and 98% (95% CI: 98% - 99%), respectively. Long-term (≥5 years) late grade ≥3 grade gastrointestinal and genitourinary adverse reactions rates were 2% (95% CI: 1% - 3%) and 9% (95% CI: 6% - 13%), respectively. Conclusions:Fractionated HDR-BT as monotherapy is an effective treatment for patients with localized prostate cancer. Its long-term efficacy is encouraging, and the treatment is well tolerated and safe.

Objective:To analyze the research status and comment of radiation-induced heart injury based on relevant literature analysis in China.Methods:A literature database was established with studies published from 1983 to 2021 as the data source from "China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) database", "Wanfang Database", "VIP Chinese Science and Technology Journal Database" and "China Biology Medicine Disc". The publication date, type and journal distribution of studied related to radiation-induced heart injury were quantitatively analyzed.Results:A total of 300 literatures were included. The chronological distribution of literatures: from 1983 to 2021, the number of literatures related to radiation-induced heart injury was gradually increased, and the overall trend was on the rise. The top three publication journals were Chinese Journal of Radiation Oncology, Chinese Journal of Radiation Medicineand Protection, and Chinese Journal of Cancer Prevention and Treatment. Literature type distribution: clinical research accounted for 48.50%, 25.58% for review, and 17.61% for animal experiment, respectively. The distribution of clinical research types: lung cancer, esophageal cancer and breast cancer were the most, followed by thymoma and lymphoma. In animal experiments, rat was the most frequently studied animal model, and the maximum radiation dose was 20 Gy. Conclusions:The number of studies related to radiation-induced heart injury is gradually increasing in China. The quantity of clinical studies is higher than that of animal experiments, most clinical studies focus on chest tumors, but there is great potential in animal experimental research. We still need to explore the pathogenesis of radiation-induced heart injury and develop drug prevention and intervention strategies.

Pelvic insufficiency fracture (PIF) is a late complication which is not fully understood after radiotherapy and chemotherapy for cervical cancer and is easily misdiagnosed as bone metastasis. Previous clinical trials focused on the incidence, time and location of PIF, while the analysis of potential risk factors mainly emphasized the clinical characteristics of patients. There were few studies analyzing the correlation between treatment factors and the incidence. The damage of pelvis bone, especially the sacrum, after radiotherapy is mainly related to irradiation mode and dose. In this article, the radiotherapy technology, the formulation of bone-conserving radiotherapy plan, the dose-volume parameters of external irradiation and intracavitary brachytherapy, and the correlation between chemotherapy and this disease were reviewed. In the future, according to the advantages of precision radiotherapy technology, it is necessary to optimize the bone preservation plan, reduce the irradiation range and dose of sacrum and pelvis, and then reduce the incidence of PIF, which needs further clinical trials and practice to verify.

Objective:To evaluate the efficacy and safety of 192Ir brachytherapy combined with external beam radiation for the treatment of unresectable hilar cholangiocarcinoma. Methods:The clinical data of 26 patients with unresectable hilar cholangiocarcinoma admitted to Hebei Province Cangzhou Hospital of Integrated Traditional and Western Medicine from February 2016 to July 2018 were retrospectively analyzed. All patients received 192Ir brachytherapy combined with external beam radiation. First, percutaneous hepatobiliary stent implantation was given, followed by external beam radiotherapy (radiotherapy dose 45 Gy, 25 times), and then 192Ir brachytherapy (radiotherapy dose 20 Gy, 4 times), a total of 4 to 6 cycles of chemotherapy. The short-term and long-term efficacy were evaluated, and the Karnofsky performance status (KPS) score, CA19-9, total bilirubin (TBIL), direct bilirubin (DBIL), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) level changes and percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage (PTCD) tube indwelling time were analyzed. Adverse reactions were recorded according to the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) injury classification standard. Results:Three months after the end of treatment, 4 cases (15.4%) were completely remitted, 20 cases (76.9%) were partially remitted, 2 cases (7.7%) were stable, and there was no disease progression. The objective remission rate was 92.3% (24/26). The 1-year and 2-year local control rates were 75.0% and 62.5% respectively, and the 1-year and 2-year overall survival rates were 57.7% and 26.9% respectively. The KPS score was 70.39±10.76 one month after the treatment, which was significantly higher than the 60.00±10.58 before treatment ( t=-27.00, P<0.001). The levels of CA19-9 before treatment and 1 month, 2 months and 3 months after treatment were (390.88±202.62) U/ml, (322.45±204.06) U/ml, (254.00±160.49) U/ml, (182.85±124.05) U/ml, which showed a gradual decrease trend, and there was a statistically significant difference ( F=126.94, P<0.001). TBIL [(250.88±80.83) μmol/L, (153.98±61.74) μmol/L, (93.45±38.12) μmol/L, (53.82±26.75) μmol/L], DBIL [(205.82±66.68) μmol/L, (133.23±58.53) μmol/L, (64.31±36.25) μmol/L, (40.55±26.16) μmol/L], ALT [(163.92±54.12) U/L, (68.23±28.86) U/L, (45.73±21.94) U/L, (32.66±12.88) U/L], AST [(177.69±58.68) U/L, (79.23±32.87) U/L, (49.77±25.45) U/L, (35.54±16.10) U/L] showed progressive decline, with statistically significant differences ( F=315.60, P<0.001; F=385.30, P<0.001; F=284.24, P<0.001; F=311.80, P<0.001), and liver function was improved. The PTCD tube was removed after treatment in all patients, with a median time of 54 days (49-96 days). During the treatment, bone marrow suppression, nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain and biliary tract infection occurred. All of them improved after symptomatic treatment. No serious complications such as bile leakage and biliary hemorrhage occurred. Conclusion:192Ir brachytherapy combined with external beam radiation has a reliable curative effect in the treatment of unresectable hilar cholangiocarcinoma. It can improve the quality of life of patients, and the adverse reactions can be tolerated. It provides a feasible and safe treatment method for the clinic.