Evaluation of a follow-up programme after curative resection for colorectal cancer

Frequent liver imaging can detect liver metastases from colorectal cancer at an asymptomatic stage. © 1999 Cancer Research Campaig

Breeding latitude predicts timing but not rate of spring migration in a widespread migratory bird in South America

Identifying the processes that determine avian migratory strategies in different environmental contexts is imperative to understanding the constraints to survival and reproduction faced by migratory birds across the planet. We compared the spring migration strategies of Fork‐tailed Flycatchers (Tyrannus s. savana) that breed at south‐temperate latitudes (i.e., austral migrants) vs. tropical latitudes (i.e., intratropical migrants) in South America. We hypothesized that austral migrant flycatchers are more time‐selected than intratropical migrants during spring migration. As such, we predicted that austral migrants, which migrate further than intratropical migrants, will migrate at a faster rate and that the rate of migration for austral migrants will be positively correlated with the onset of spring migration. We attached light‐level geolocators to Fork‐tailed Flycatchers at two tropical breeding sites in Brazil and at two south‐temperate breeding sites in Argentina and tracked their movements until the following breeding season. Of 286 geolocators that were deployed, 37 were recovered ~1 year later, of which 28 provided useable data. Rate of spring migration did not differ significantly between the two groups, and only at one site was there a significantly positive relationship between date of initiation of spring migration and arrival date. This represents the first comparison of individual migratory strategies among conspecific passerines breeding at tropical vs. temperate latitudes and suggests that austral migrant Fork‐tailed Flycatchers in South America are not more time‐selected on spring migration than intratropical migrant conspecifics. Low sample sizes could have diminished our power to detect differences (e.g., between sexes), such that further research into the mechanisms underpinning migratory strategies in this poorly understood system is necessary.Fil: Jahn, Alex. Universidade Estadual Paulista Julio de Mesquita Filho; BrasilFil: Cereghetti, Joaquín. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Cueto, Víctor. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Centro de Investigación Esquel de Montaña y Estepa Patagóica. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco". Facultad de Ciencias Naturales - Sede Esquel. Centro de Investigación Esquel de Montaña y Estepa Patagónica; ArgentinaFil: Hallworth, Michael T.. Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute; Estados UnidosFil: Levey, Douglas J.. National Science Foundation; Estados UnidosFil: Marini, Miguel Â.. Universidade do Brasília; BrasilFil: Masson, Diego. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo; ArgentinaFil: Pizo, Marco A.. Universidade Estadual Paulista Julio de Mesquita Filho; BrasilFil: Sarasola, José Hernán. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Tuero, Diego Tomas. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; Argentin

Oral beclomethasone dipropionate is an effective treatment for immune checkpoint inhibitor induced colitis.

INTRODUCTION: Systemic corticosteroids are the mainstay of treatment for immune checkpoint inhibitor induced (CPI) colitis but are associated with complications including life-threatening infection. The topically acting oral corticosteroid beclomethasone dipropionate (BD) is an effective treatment for mild to moderate flares of ulcerative colitis, and has fewer side effects than systemic corticosteroids. We hypothesized that BD would be an effective treatment for CPI-induced colitis. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of all patients who started BD for CPI-induced colitis at three UK cancer centers between November 2017 and October 2020. All patients underwent endoscopic assessment and biopsy. The initial regimen of BD was 5 mg once daily for 28 days. Data were collected from electronic patient records. Clinical outcomes were assessed at 28 days after initiation of treatment. RESULTS: Twenty-two patients (14 male) with a median age of 64 (range 45-84) with CPI-induced colitis were treated with BD. At baseline, the median number of loose stools in a 24-hour period was six (common terminology criteria for adverse events, CTCAE grade diarrhea=2). Thirteen patients (59%) were dependent on systemic corticosteroids prior to starting BD. Baseline sigmoidoscopy showed moderate inflammation (Mayo Endoscopic Score (MES) = 2) in two patients (9%), mild inflammation (MES=1) in nine patients (41%) and normal findings (MES=0) in eleven patients (50%). Twenty patients (91%) had histopathological features of inflammation. All 22 patients (100%) had a clinical response to BD and 21 (95%) achieved clinical remission with a return to baseline stool frequency (CTCAE diarrhea=0). Ten patients (45%) had symptomatic relapse on cessation of BD, half within 7 days of stopping. All patients recaptured response on restarting BD. No adverse events were reported in patients treated with BD. CONCLUSIONS: Topical BD represents an appealing alternative option to systemic immunosuppressive treatments to treat colonic inflammation. In this study, BD was effective and safe at inducing remission in CPI-induced colitis, which was refractory to systemic corticosteroids. Further randomized studies are needed to confirm these findings and determine the optimum dosing regimen

Geolocators lead to better measures of timing and renesting in black-tailed godwits and reveal the bias of traditional observational methods

Long-term population studies can identify changes in population dynamics over time. However, to realize meaningful conclusions, these studies rely on accurate measurements of individual traits and population characteristics. Here, we evaluate the accuracy of the observational methods used to measure reproductive traits in individually marked black-tailed godwits (Limosa limosa limosa). By comparing estimates from traditional methods with data obtained from light-level geolocators, we provide an accurate estimate of the likelihood of renesting in godwits and the repeatability of the lay dates of first clutches. From 2012 to 2018, we used periods of shading recorded on the light-level geolocators carried by 68 individual godwits to document their nesting behaviour. We then compared these estimates to those simultaneously obtained by our long-term observational study. We found that among recaptured geolocator-carrying godwits, all birds renested after a failed first clutch, regardless of the date of nest loss or the number of days already spent incubating. We also found that 43% of these godwits laid a second replacement clutch after a failed first replacement, and that 21% of these godwits renested after a hatched first clutch. However, the observational study correctly identified only 3% of the replacement clutches produced by geolocator-carrying individuals and designated as first clutches a number of nests that were actually replacement clutches. Additionally, on the basis of the observational study, the repeatability of lay date was 0.24 (95% CI 0.17-0.31), whereas it was 0.54 (95% CI 0.28-0.75) using geolocator-carrying individuals. We use examples from our own and other godwit studies to illustrate how the biases in our observational study discovered here may have affected the outcome of demographic estimates, individual-level comparisons, and the design, implementation and evaluation of conservation practices. These examples emphasize the importance of improving and validating field methodologies and show how the addition of new tools can be transformational

Gastric adenocarcinoma in a patient re-infected with H. pylori after regression of MALT lymphoma with successful anti-H. pylori therapy and gastric resection: a case report

BACKGROUND: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) has been etiologically linked with primary gastric lymphoma (PGL) and gastric carcinoma (GC). There are a few reports of occurrence of both diseases in the same patient with H. pylori infection. CASE PRESENTATION: We report a patient with PGL in whom the tumor regressed after surgical resection combined with eradication of H. pylori infection. However, he developed GC on follow up; this was temporally associated with recrudescence / re-infection of H. pylori. This is perhaps first report of such occurrence. CONCLUSIONS: Possible cause and effect relationship between H. pylori infection and both PGL and GC is discussed. This case also documents a unique problem in management of PGL in tropical countries where re-infection with H. pylori is supposed to be high

Seatbelt use and risk of major injuries sustained by vehicle occupants during motor-vehicle crashes: A systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies

BackgroundIn 2004, a World Health Report on road safety called for enforcement of measures such as seatbelt use, effective at minimizing morbidity and mortality caused by road traffic accidents. However, injuries caused by seatbelt use have also been described. Over a decade after publication of the World Health Report on road safety, this study sought to investigate the relationship between seatbelt use and major injuries in belted compared to unbelted passengers.MethodsCohort studies published in English language from 2005 to 2018 were retrieved from seven databases. Critical appraisal of studies was carried out using the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) checklist. Pooled risk of major injuries was assessed using the random effects meta-analytic model. Heterogeneity was quantified using I-squared and Tau-squared statistics. Funnel plots and Egger's test were used to investigate publication bias. This review is registered in PROSPERO (CRD42015020309).ResultsEleven studies, all carried out in developed countries were included. Overall, the risk of any major injury was significantly lower in belted passengers compared to unbelted passengers (RR 0.47; 95%CI, 0.29 to 0.80; I-2=99.7; P=0.000). When analysed by crash types, belt use significantly reduced the risk of any injury (RR 0.35; 95%CI, 0.24 to 0.52). Seatbelt use reduces the risk of facial injuries (RR=0.56, 95% CI=0.37 to 0.84), abdominal injuries (RR=0.87; 95% CI=0.78 to 0.98) and, spinal injuries (RR=0.56, 95% CI=0.37 to 0.84). However, we found no statistically significant difference in risk of head injuries (RR=0.49; 95% CI=0.22 to 1.08), neck injuries (RR=0.69: 95%CI 0.07 to 6.44), thoracic injuries (RR 0.96, 95%CI, 0.74 to 1.24), upper limb injuries (RR=1.05, 95%CI 0.83 to 1.34) and lower limb injuries (RR=0.77, 95%CI 0.58 to 1.04) between belted and non-belted passengers.ConclusionIn sum, the risk of most major road traffic injuries is lower in seatbelt users. Findings were inconclusive regarding seatbelt use and susceptibility to thoracic, head and neck injuries during road traffic accidents. Awareness should be raised about the dangers of inadequate seatbelt use. Future research should aim to assess the effects of seatbelt use on major injuries by crash type

Genetic Background Can Result in a Marked or Minimal Effect of Gene Knockout (GPR55 and CB2 Receptor) in Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis Models of Multiple Sclerosis

PMCID: PMC379391

Thinking the unthinkable: Imagining an ‘un-American,’ Girl-friendly, Women- and Trans-Inclusive Alternative for Baseball

The purpose of this article is twofold: to capture the injustice inherent in the gendered bifurcation of baseball and softball via the prism of critical feminist sport studies; and to begin to imagine a girl-friendly/women-and trans-inclusive future for baseball that is less fertile for cooptation into post-911 United States security state discourses. In this article I link the "unthinkability" of the occupational segregation of baseball in North America to the dominance of the ideology of the two sex system and European disasporic morality. To illustrate the extent of this occupational segregation via the gendered bifurcation of baseball and softball, I draw on feminist sport studies to examine the exemplars or "texts" of three Canadian brother/sister baseball softball duos: Jason Bay and Lauren Bay Regula; Brett and Danielle Lawrie; and Mathew and Katie Reyes

Vessel co-option mediates resistance to anti-angiogenic therapy in liver metastases

The efficacy of angiogenesis inhibitors in cancer is limited by resistance mechanisms that are poorly understood. Notably, instead of through the induction of angiogenesis, tumor vascularization can occur through the nonangiogenic mechanism of vessel co-option. Here we show that vessel co-option is associated with a poor response to the anti-angiogenic agent bevacizumab in patients with colorectal cancer liver metastases. Moreover, we find that vessel co-option is also prevalent in human breast cancer liver metastases, a setting in which results with anti-angiogenic therapy have been disappointing. In preclinical mechanistic studies, we found that cancer cell motility mediated by the actin-related protein 2/3 complex (Arp2/3) is required for vessel co-option in liver metastases in vivo and that, in this setting, combined inhibition of angiogenesis and vessel co-option is more effective than the inhibition of angiogenesis alone. Vessel co-option is therefore a clinically relevant mechanism of resistance to anti-angiogenic therapy and combined inhibition of angiogenesis and vessel co-option might be a warranted therapeutic strategy