Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is an aggressive primary liver malignancy often diagnosed at an advanced stage, resulting in a poor prognosis. Accurate risk stratification and early detection of HCC are critical unmet needs for improving outcomes. Several blood-based biomarkers and imaging tests are available for early detection, prediction, and monitoring of HCC. However, serum protein biomarkers such as alpha-fetoprotein have shown relatively low sensitivity, leading to inaccurate performance. Imaging studies also face limitations related to suboptimal accuracy, high cost, and limited implementation. Recently, liquid biopsy techniques have gained attention for addressing these unmet needs. Liquid biopsy is non-invasive and provides more objective readouts, requiring less reliance on healthcare professional’s skills compared to imaging. Circulating tumor cells, cell-free DNA, and extracellular vesicles are targeted in liquid biopsies as novel biomarkers for HCC. Despite their potential, there are debates regarding the role of these novel biomarkers in the HCC care continuum. This review article aims to discuss the technical challenges, recent technical advancements, advantages and disadvantages of these liquid biopsies, as well as their current clinical application and future directions of liquid biopsy in HCC.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is an aggressive primary liver malignancy often diagnosed at an advanced stage, resulting in a poor prognosis. Accurate risk stratification and early detection of HCC are critical unmet needs for improving outcomes. Several blood-based biomarkers and imaging tests are available for early detection, prediction, and monitoring of HCC. However, serum protein biomarkers such as alpha-fetoprotein have shown relatively low sensitivity, leading to inaccurate performance. Imaging studies also face limitations related to suboptimal accuracy, high cost, and limited implementation. Recently, liquid biopsy techniques have gained attention for addressing these unmet needs. Liquid biopsy is non-invasive and provides more objective readouts, requiring less reliance on healthcare professional’s skills compared to imaging. Circulating tumor cells, cell-free DNA, and extracellular vesicles are targeted in liquid biopsies as novel biomarkers for HCC. Despite their potential, there are debates regarding the role of these novel biomarkers in the HCC care continuum. This review article aims to discuss the technical challenges, recent technical advancements, advantages and disadvantages of these liquid biopsies, as well as their current clinical application and future directions of liquid biopsy in HCC.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is an aggressive primary liver malignancy often diagnosed at an advanced stage, resulting in a poor prognosis. Accurate risk stratification and early detection of HCC are critical unmet needs for improving outcomes. Several blood-based biomarkers and imaging tests are available for early detection, prediction, and monitoring of HCC. However, serum protein biomarkers such as alpha-fetoprotein have shown relatively low sensitivity, leading to inaccurate performance. Imaging studies also face limitations related to suboptimal accuracy, high cost, and limited implementation. Recently, liquid biopsy techniques have gained attention for addressing these unmet needs. Liquid biopsy is non-invasive and provides more objective readouts, requiring less reliance on healthcare professional’s skills compared to imaging. Circulating tumor cells, cell-free DNA, and extracellular vesicles are targeted in liquid biopsies as novel biomarkers for HCC. Despite their potential, there are debates regarding the role of these novel biomarkers in the HCC care continuum. This review article aims to discuss the technical challenges, recent technical advancements, advantages and disadvantages of these liquid biopsies, as well as their current clinical application and future directions of liquid biopsy in HCC.

Background: Papillary tumor of the pineal region (PTPR) is a rare neuroepithelial tumor with CentralNervous System (CNS) World Health Organization (WHO) grade II or III classification. Due to its rarity, there is no clear census on treatment. The purpose of this study is to identify the optimal treatment plan focused on extending overall survival (OS). Methods: This is an institutional case series with review of the literature. Fifty-three publicationswere analyzed. Only cases with histological diagnosis of PTPR were included. Data collected included demographics, treatment modalities, disease progression, and OS. Results: The analysis included 105 patients from the literature and 3 new cases (54 female,50%) with an average age of 33.1 years (range 1–73 years). The average lesion size was 26.4 mm (range 5–50 mm) in longest axis. All patients underwent an initial resection. There were 46 cases of surgery alone. The remaining cases received adjuvant therapy including radiation (RT), stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), chemotherapy (CT), or RT and CT. The average follow-up was 61.4 months (range 1–240 months). OS at 1 year was 96.9%, at 5 years was 87.5%, and at 10 years was 80.2%. Overall progression-free survival (PFS) was 57.4%. Statistical significance was observed in PFS in the surgery plus SRS group and surgery plus CT and RT group. Surgery with SRS had the best PFS (75%), and OS at 1 year (100%) and 5 years (88.9%). Surgery with CT and RT had the best OS at 10 years (85.7%). Conclusion We describe a case series and literature review of PTPR to help guide the most effec-tive treatment strategies for this rare disease entity. We recommend surgery followed by SRS as the treatment of choice because of its best PFS and 5-year survival rates. We would also recommend adding chemotherapy in the event of disease progression or recurrence as adjuvant radiation and chemotherapy provided the best 10-year survival.

Background: Papillary tumor of the pineal region (PTPR) is a rare neuroepithelial tumor with CentralNervous System (CNS) World Health Organization (WHO) grade II or III classification. Due to its rarity, there is no clear census on treatment. The purpose of this study is to identify the optimal treatment plan focused on extending overall survival (OS). Methods: This is an institutional case series with review of the literature. Fifty-three publicationswere analyzed. Only cases with histological diagnosis of PTPR were included. Data collected included demographics, treatment modalities, disease progression, and OS. Results: The analysis included 105 patients from the literature and 3 new cases (54 female,50%) with an average age of 33.1 years (range 1–73 years). The average lesion size was 26.4 mm (range 5–50 mm) in longest axis. All patients underwent an initial resection. There were 46 cases of surgery alone. The remaining cases received adjuvant therapy including radiation (RT), stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), chemotherapy (CT), or RT and CT. The average follow-up was 61.4 months (range 1–240 months). OS at 1 year was 96.9%, at 5 years was 87.5%, and at 10 years was 80.2%. Overall progression-free survival (PFS) was 57.4%. Statistical significance was observed in PFS in the surgery plus SRS group and surgery plus CT and RT group. Surgery with SRS had the best PFS (75%), and OS at 1 year (100%) and 5 years (88.9%). Surgery with CT and RT had the best OS at 10 years (85.7%). Conclusion We describe a case series and literature review of PTPR to help guide the most effec-tive treatment strategies for this rare disease entity. We recommend surgery followed by SRS as the treatment of choice because of its best PFS and 5-year survival rates. We would also recommend adding chemotherapy in the event of disease progression or recurrence as adjuvant radiation and chemotherapy provided the best 10-year survival.

Background: Papillary tumor of the pineal region (PTPR) is a rare neuroepithelial tumor with CentralNervous System (CNS) World Health Organization (WHO) grade II or III classification. Due to its rarity, there is no clear census on treatment. The purpose of this study is to identify the optimal treatment plan focused on extending overall survival (OS). Methods: This is an institutional case series with review of the literature. Fifty-three publicationswere analyzed. Only cases with histological diagnosis of PTPR were included. Data collected included demographics, treatment modalities, disease progression, and OS. Results: The analysis included 105 patients from the literature and 3 new cases (54 female,50%) with an average age of 33.1 years (range 1–73 years). The average lesion size was 26.4 mm (range 5–50 mm) in longest axis. All patients underwent an initial resection. There were 46 cases of surgery alone. The remaining cases received adjuvant therapy including radiation (RT), stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), chemotherapy (CT), or RT and CT. The average follow-up was 61.4 months (range 1–240 months). OS at 1 year was 96.9%, at 5 years was 87.5%, and at 10 years was 80.2%. Overall progression-free survival (PFS) was 57.4%. Statistical significance was observed in PFS in the surgery plus SRS group and surgery plus CT and RT group. Surgery with SRS had the best PFS (75%), and OS at 1 year (100%) and 5 years (88.9%). Surgery with CT and RT had the best OS at 10 years (85.7%). Conclusion We describe a case series and literature review of PTPR to help guide the most effec-tive treatment strategies for this rare disease entity. We recommend surgery followed by SRS as the treatment of choice because of its best PFS and 5-year survival rates. We would also recommend adding chemotherapy in the event of disease progression or recurrence as adjuvant radiation and chemotherapy provided the best 10-year survival.

Objective:To analyze the accuracy of lung ultrasound and chest X-ray in the diagnosis of neonatal pulmonary disease.Methods:We prospectively collected newborns that needed chest X-ray examination to diagnose pulmonary disease from twelve neonatal intensive care units across the country between June 2019 and April 2020.Each newborn was examined by lung ultrasound within two hours after chest X-ray examination.All chest X-ray and lung ultrasound images were independently read by a radiologist and a sonographer.When there was a disagreement, a panel of two experienced physicians made a final diagnosis based on the clinical history, chest X-ray and lung ultrasound images.Results:A total of 1 100 newborns were enrolled in our study.The diagnostic agreement between chest X-ray and lung ultrasound(Cohen′s kappa coefficient=0.347) was fair.Lung ultrasound(area under the curve=0.778; 95% CI 0.753-0.803) performed significantly better than chest X-ray(area under the curve=0.513; 95% CI 0.483-0.543) in the diagnosis of transient tachypnea of the newborn( P<0.001). The accuracy of lung ultrasound in diagnosing neonatal respiratory distress syndrome, meconium aspiration syndrome, pneumonia and neonatal pulmonary atelectasis was similar to that of chest X-ray. Conclusion:Lung ultrasound, as a low-cost, simple and radiation-free auxiliary examination method, has a diagnostic accuracy close to or even better than that of chest X-ray, which may replace chest X-ray in the diagnosis of some neonatal lung diseases.It should be noted that both chest X-ray and lung ultrasound can only be used as auxiliary means for the diagnosis of lung diseases, and it is necessary to combine imaging with the clinical history and presentation.

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a complication in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). The Chinese Children's Cancer Group-ALL-2015 protocol was carried out in China, and epidemiology, clinical characteristics, and risk factors associated with VTE were analyzed. We collected data on VTE in a multi-institutional clinical study of 7640 patients with ALL diagnosed in 20 hospitals from January 2015 to December 2019. First, VTE occurred in 159 (2.08%) patients, including 90 (56.6%) during induction therapy and 108 (67.92%) in the upper extremities. T-ALL had a 1.74-fold increased risk of VTE (95% CI 1.08-2.8, P = 0.022). Septicemia, as an adverse event of ALL treatment, can significantly promote the occurrence of VTE (P < 0.001). Catheter-related thrombosis (CRT) accounted for 75.47% (n = 120); and, symptomatic VTE, 58.49% (n = 93), which was more common in patients aged 12-18 years (P = 0.023), non-CRT patients (P < 0.001), or patients with cerebral thrombosis (P < 0.001). Of the patients with VTE treated with anticoagulation therapy (n = 147), 4.08% (n = 6) had bleeding. The VTE recurrence rate was 5.03% (n = 8). Patients with VTE treated by non-ultrasound-guided venous cannulation (P = 0.02), with residual thrombus (P = 0.006), or with short anticoagulation period (P = 0.026) had high recurrence rates. Thus, preventing repeated venous puncture and appropriately prolonged anticoagulation time can reduce the risk of VTE recurrence.
Humans ; Child ; Venous Thromboembolism/etiology* ; East Asian People ; Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/epidemiology* ; Risk Factors ; Thrombosis/chemically induced* ; China/epidemiology* ; Anticoagulants/adverse effects* ; Recurrence

Radical gastrectomy for gastric cancer results in various post-operative complications, and the influencing factors are complicated. The diagnosis, treatment and prevention of common complications have been reported in many literatures. However, there are few reports on the prevention and treatment of rare complications. Rare complications after radical gastrectomy are often overlooked due to their low incidence. In addition, there are few guidelines and expert consensus regarding to the rare complications. Therefore, clinicians may lack experience in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of rare complications after radical gastrectomy. Based on the literature review and the author's experience, this article systematically reviews seven rare complications after radical gastrectomy (duodenal stump fistula, pancreatic fistula, chyle leakage, esophagomediastinal fistula, internal hernia, gastroparesis, and intussusception). This article aims to provide a comprehensive reference for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of rare complications after radical gastrectomy for gastric cancer patients.
Humans ; Stomach Neoplasms/complications* ; Gastrectomy/methods* ; Postoperative Complications/etiology* ; Duodenal Diseases ; Laparoscopy/adverse effects* ; Retrospective Studies

Objective: To investigate the evolution and clinical significance of HER2 low expression status in HER2 negative patients in primary and recurrent/metastatic breast cancers. Methods: The data and archived sections of 259 breast cancer patients with recurrence/metastasis and HER2-negative primary foci were collected from January 2015 to January 2022 at the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, and the HER2 status of primary and recurrence/metastasis foci was determined by immunohistochemistry (IHC), among which IHC 2+patients were subject to fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). The HER2 status was classified as HER2-0 group; patients with IHC 1+, IHC 2+and no FISH amplification were classified as HER2 low expression group; and patients with IHC 3+, IHC 2+and FISH amplified were classified as HER2-positive group. The changes of HER2 status in patients with HER2 low expression in primary versus recurrent/metastatic breast cancer foci were compared, and their clinicopathologic characteristics and prognosis were analyzed. Results: The overall concordance rate between primary and recurrent/metastatic HER2 status in breast cancer was 60.6% (157/259, κ=0.178). A total of 102 patients (102/259, 39.4%) had inconsistent primary and recurrent/metastatic HER2 status; 37 patients (37/259, 14.3%) had HER2-0 at the primary foci and HER2-low expression at the recurrent/metastatic; and 56 patients (56/259, 21.6%) had HER2-low expression in the primary foci and HER2-0 in the recurrent/metastatic. The recurrent/metastatic foci became low-expressing compared with the recurrent/metastatic foci which remained HER2-0 patients, with longer overall survival time, higher ER and PR positivity, lower Ki-67 positivity index, and lower tumor histological grade; all with statistically significant differences (all P<0.05). In the primary HER2-low group, patients with recurrent/metastatic foci became HER2-0 while those with recurrent/metastatic foci remained low expression; there were no statistically significant differences in clinicopathological features and overall survival time (all P>0.05). Conclusions: Unstable HER2 status in patients with HER2-0 and low expression in primary versus recurrent/metastatic breast cancer foci, and HER2-0 in the primary foci but low HER2 expression status in recurrence/metastasis is associated with favourable prognosis, and testing HER2 status in recurrence/metastasis can provide more treatment options for such patients.
Humans ; Breast Neoplasms/genetics* ; Clinical Relevance ; In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence ; Female