Biofunctional Layered Double Hydroxide Nanohybrids for Cancer Therapy

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs) with two-dimensional nanostructure are inorganic materials that have attractive advantages such as biocompatibility, facile preparation, and high drug loading capacity for therapeutic bioapplications. Since the intercalation chemistry of DNA molecules into the LDH materials were reported, various LDH nanohybrids have been developed for biomedical drug delivery system. For these reasons, LDHs hybridized with numerous therapeutic agents have a significant role in cancer imaging and therapy with targeting functions. In this review, we summarized the recent advances in the preparation of LDH nanohybrids for cancer therapeutic strategies including gene therapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and combination therapy.     

Modeling HPV-Associated Disease and Cancer Using the Cottontail Rabbit Papillomavirus

Approximately 5% of all human cancers are attributable to human papillomavirus (HPV) infections. HPV-associated diseases and cancers remain a substantial public health and economic burden worldwide despite the availability of prophylactic HPV vaccines. Current diagnosis and treatments for HPV-associated diseases and cancers are predominantly based on cell/tissue morphological examination and/or testing for the presence of high-risk HPV types. There is a lack of robust targets/markers to improve the accuracy of diagnosis and treatments. Several naturally occurring animal papillomavirus models have been established as surrogates to study HPV pathogenesis. Among them, the Cottontail rabbit papillomavirus (CRPV) model has become known as the gold standard. This model has played a pivotal role in the successful development of vaccines now available to prevent HPV infections. Over the past eighty years, the CRPV model has been widely applied to study HPV carcinogenesis. Taking advantage of a large panel of functional mutant CRPV genomes with distinct, reproducible, and predictable phenotypes, we have gained a deeper understanding of viral–host interaction during tumor progression. In recent years, the application of genome-wide RNA-seq analysis to the CRPV model has allowed us to learn and validate changes that parallel those reported in HPV-associated cancers. In addition, we have established a selection of gene-modified rabbit lines to facilitate mechanistic studies and the development of novel therapeutic strategies. In the current review, we summarize some significant findings that have advanced our understanding of HPV pathogenesis and highlight the implication of the development of novel gene-modified rabbits to future mechanistic studies.     

A pilot study of intraoperative localization of peripheral small pulmonary tumors by cone-beam computed tomography: sandwich marking technique

BackgroundIntraoperative identification of small pulmonary nodules has been an important technical issue. We aimed to develop a new localization method which is much safer and simple procedure compared with conventional methods.MethodsThis was a retrospective study including patients with resected peripheral pulmonary nodules between November 2017 and April 2021 at Teikyo University School of Medicine, and Saitama Cardiovascular and Respiratory Center. All surgical procedure was wedge resection, and the tumor size was equal to or less than 20 mm which were detected by cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT; Philips Allura Xper FD 20, Philips). Some metal clips were put on several places of visceral pleura, where the target lesion was sandwiched by marking clips (sandwich marking technique). CBCT detected both the target lesion and metal clips, and video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) was performed. Radiological and pathological findings were analyzed, and the correlation coefficient of tumor size was examined among pre-, intra-, and post-operative tumor sizes.ResultsThe average age of 90 patients was 65.2 years, and 47 were male (52.2%). All procedure was wedge resection including twelve bi-wedge resections, and one hundred nine peripheral pulmonary lesions were obtained by sandwich marking technique. The detection rate was 100%, and there was no marking-related complication.ConclusionsAll small peripheral pulmonary lesions were successfully detected and resected by using CBCT with no marking-related complication. Sandwich marking technique was demonstrated to provide safe, reliable, and simple localization procedure for small peripheral pulmonary lesions.     

A retrospective comparative cohort study on the efficacy and safety of bi-port robotic-assisted lobectomy and multi-port robotic-assisted lobectomy

BackgroundThe pursuit of less surgical incisions brings better postoperative experience of patients and earns extensive popularity recently. As the update to the da Vinci robotic surgical system has reduced the size of the robotic arm, a new surgical method with fewer ports has become feasible. We performed 20 cases of robotic surgery with only 2 ports and compared the efficacy and safety between bi-port robotic-assisted lobectomy and multi-port robotic-assisted lobectomy.MethodsTo compare the efficacy and safety of the different surgery strategies, we retrospectively reviewed 20 cases of bi-port robotic-assisted thoracic surgery (RATS) and 40 cases of multi-port RATS which were performed at the Shanghai Chest Hospital Between February 2021 and May 2021. The baseline characteristics and their perioperative data were collected and analyzed. Chest tube drainage, chest tube removal time, lymphadenectomy outcomes, operation duration were collected to compare the efficacy of the two groups and blood loss, perioperative complications were recorded to value the safety.ResultsA total of 60 surgeries in the 2 groups were successfully completed. The baseline characteristics in terms of sex, age, health statues were comparable (P≥0.05). The maximum diameter of the tumor in the bi-port surgery group was 0.5–3.6 cm (2.0±1.0) vs. 0.5–4.0 cm (1.9±0.9) cm in the control group. No significant difference was discovered in terms of tumor location, tumor maximum diameter, tumor histology. The intraoperative blood loss was 60.0±20.5 mL and the average operation time was 95.6±21.4 min in the bi-port surgery group compared to 65.0±30.4 mL and 101.4±25.0 min in the control group. An average of 6.0±1.4 lymph nodes were collected in the bi-port surgery group with a mean diameter of 1.2±0.4 cm, and in the control group, an average of 6.1±1.6 lymph nodes were collected with a mean diameter was 1.2±0.5 cm. The average time of chest drainage was 4.3±1 vs. 5.1±1.3 days in the bi-port surgery group and control group. No statistical significance was found between the two groups (P>0.05).ConclusionsCompared to multi-port RATS, Bi-port robotic-assisted lobectomy was safe and showed promising efficacy in patients with early staged operable lung cancer.     

Utilizing the Retrograde Flow of Internal Mammary Vessels as a Donor Pedicle

Introduction  The aim of this study is to assess the results of retrograde flow of internal mammary artery and vein (IMA/V) as a donor vessel for free flap microvascular anastomosis (MVA). This need arises with bipedicle deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flaps, when all four zones with extra fat need to be harvested for unilateral breast reconstruction coupled with poor midline crossover of circulation naturally or because of midline scar. Large anterolateral thigh flaps for chest wall cover, with multiple perforators from separate pedicles, also need supercharging. This needs an additional source of donor vessels, antegrade IMA/V being the first one. Materials and Methods  Retrospective study of microvascular breast reconstruction using retrograde internal mammary donor vessels. Results  Out of 35 cases, 20 cases had distal IMA/V, with retrograde flow, as donor vessel for second set of arterial and venous anastomosis. In two cases, retrograde IMA/V was used for the solitary set of MVA. In remaining 13 cases, either retrograde IMA or V was utilized either as a principal or accessory donor. No flap was lost. Venous and arterial insufficiency happened in one case each, both were salvaged. Two cases developed partial necrosis, needing debridement and suturing. One case developed marginal necrosis. Only one case developed fat necrosis with superadded infection on follow-up. Conclusion  Distal end of IMA and IMV on retrograde flow is safe for MVA as an additional or sole pedicle. It is convenient to use being in the same field. It enables preservation of other including thoracodorsal pedicle and latissimus dorsi flap for use in case of a complication or recurrence.     

Novel application of the traditional lipid ratios as strong risk predictors of nonsmall-cell lung cancer risk in a Chinese population

Dyslipidemia has been associated with cancer risk, yet the relationship between lipid ratios and nonsmall-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is still unclear. This study aimed to explore the value of lipid ratios, including total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (TC/HDL-C) and triglyceride/HDL-C (TG/HDL-C) as predictors of NSCLC in a Chinese population. Adult patients with histologically confirmed NSCLC, without a previous history of cancer, concomitant disease associated with lipid metabolism disorders, or usage of lipid-lowering drugs, were enrolled from a single center. Controls without NSCLC, matched for age and sex, were enrolled from the same Center. Lipid profile including TC, TG, HDL-C were measured in all participants. TC/HDL-C and TG/HDL-C were calculated based on the levels of TC, TG, HDL-C. Seven hundred eighty-two NSCLC cases and 599 controls were enrolled. NSCLC patients had significantly higher TG/HDL-C and TC/HDL-C levels than those in the control. After controlling for confounding factors, TG/HDL-C (OR = 4.489, 95% CI: 2.463–6.035, P < .001) and TC/HDL-C (OR = 2.396, 95% CI: 2.086–2.752, P = .001) were independently associated with NSCLC risk. The incidence of NSCLC was increased with rising tertiles of TG/HDL-C and TC/HDL-C. Moreover, patients with TNM II-IV stage NSCLC had higher TG/HDL-C and TC/HDL-C than those in TNM I and Tis stage. TG/HDL-C and TC/HDL-C are positively correlated with NSCLC risk and TG/HDL-C is more predictive than TC/HDL-C in predicting the risk of NSCLC. The highest AUC was that of TG/HDL (0.898), at a cutoff point of 0.62, with 83.6% sensitivity and 83.5% specificity.     

Nomogram for predicting distant metastasis of male breast cancer: A SEER population-based study

The main purpose of this study was to build a prediction model for male breast cancer (MBC) patients to predict the possibility of distant metastasis. The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database was used to obtain data on patients with MBC. The patients were divided into a training set and a validation set at a ratio of 7:3. The risk variables of distant metastasis in the training set were determined by univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. And then we integrated those risk factors to construct the nomogram. The prediction nomogram was further verified in the verification set. The discrimination and calibration of the nomogram were evaluated by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, calibration plots, respectively. A total of 1974 patients (1381 in training set and 593 in validation set) were eligible for final inclusion, of whom 149 (7.55%) had distant metastasis at the diagnosed time. Multivariate logistic regression analyses presented that age, T stage, N stage, and hormone receptor status were independent risk factors for distant metastasis at initial diagnosis of male breast cancer. Finally, the 4 variables were combined to construct the nomogram. The area under the curve values for the nomogram established in the training set and validation set were 0.8224 (95%CI: 0.7796–0.8652) and 0.8631 (95%CI: 0.7937–0.9326), suggesting that the nomogram had good predictive power. The calibration plots illustrated an acceptable correlation between the prediction by nomogram and the actual observation, as the calibration curve was closed to the diagonal bisector line. An easy-to-use nomogram, being proven to be with reliable discrimination ability and accuracy, was established to predict distant metastasis for male patients with breast cancer using the easily available risk factors.