ABO Blood Group and the Risk of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Case-Control Study in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B

BACKGROUND: Studies have observed an association between the ABO blood group and risk of certain malignancies. However, no studies of the association with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) risk are available. We conducted this hospital-based case-control study to examine the association with HCC in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). METHODS: From January 2004 to December 2008, a total of 6275 consecutive eligible patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection were recruited. 1105 of them were patients with HBV-related HCC and 5,170 patients were CHB without HCC. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to investigate the association between the ABO blood group and HCC risk. RESULTS: Compared with subjects with blood type O, the adjusted odds ratio (AOR) for the association of those with blood type A and HCC risk was 1.39 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.05-1.83] after adjusting for age, sex, type 2 diabetes, cirrhosis, hepatitis B e antigen, and HBV DNA. The associations were only statistically significant [AOR (95%CI) = 1.56(1.14-2.13)] for men, for being hepatitis B e antigen positive [AOR (95%CI) = 4.92(2.83-8.57)], for those with cirrhosis [AOR (95%CI), 1.57(1.12-2.20)], and for those with HBV DNA≤10(5)copies/mL [AOR (95%CI), 1.58(1.04-2.42)]. Stratified analysis by sex indicated that compared with those with blood type O, those with blood type B also had a significantly high risk of HCC among men, whereas, those with blood type AB or B had a low risk of HCC among women. CONCLUSIONS: The ABO blood type was associated with the risk of HCC in Chinese patients with CHB. The association was gender-related

The effect of double W tension-reduced suture technique on the abdominal scars following the da Vinci robot-assisted gastrectomy for severely obese patients

Abstract Objective To analyze the effect of a new type of tension-reduced suture named “double W tension-reduced suture technique” on the abdominal scars following the da Vinci robot-assisted gastrectomy for severely obese patients. Methods 40 abdominal incisions following the da Vinci robot-assisted gastrectomy on severely obese patients from September 1st, 2021 to March 1st, 2022 were comprised in the study. 20 incisions were closed by the conventional full-thickness surgical suture as the control group, and 20 incisions were sewn up by double W tension-reduced suture as the double W group. The scars were assessed at the 1-month follow-up visit using the Vancouver scar scale (VSS), ultrasound and patient satisfaction. Meanwhile, digital photographs of scars were taken as well. Results The VSS score was 6.80 ± 2.16 in the control group, while that of the double W group was 2.60 ± 1.89. The difference between groups was significant. Digital photographs showed that the scar color was not only light and close to the skin color, but also flat and soft in the double W group. Ultrasound showed that the fibers of subcutaneous tissue in the double W group were arranged neatly, the ultrasonic signal intensity was relatively uniform, and the tunnel was small without obvious lacunae. More patients were satisfied and very satisfied with scars in the double W group. Conclusion Double W tension-reduced suture technique could significantly improve the appearance and reduce comorbidities of scars following the da Vinci robot-assisted gastrectomy for severely obese patients

The evolution of refractive status in Chinese infants during the first year of life and its affected factors

AIM: To study the evolution of the refractive status and examine the affected factors in infants during the first year of life in a large sample size in China. METHODS: A total of 1258 babies (2516 eyes) aged 32wk gestational age to 1y participated in the study, including 766 premature and 492 full-term infants. First, each baby received an orthoptic examination, slit-lamp checking and fundus imaging. Patients with diseases which might affect refractive status were excluded from the cohort. The cycloplegia retinoscopy was performed. Their neonatal histories were reviewed. Each measurement contained the refractive status and calculation of the spherical equivalent (SE). RESULTS: Refractive state showed an average hyperopia of +0.94±1.63 D at early ages, followed by a trend toward more hyperopia. The refractive state reached the top (+2.43±1.46 D) at the age of one to two months. Then gliding till one year old when the refractive state reached +0.59±1.41 D. The prevalence of astigmatism was 42.17% in the study, being 2.82% myopic astigmatism and 39.35% hyperopic astigmatism. The 94.1% of hyperopic astigmatism was with-the-rule astigmatism and 71.83% of myopic astigmatism was with-the-rule astigmatism. Refractive state between boys and girls was different. The mean SE of boys was +1.97±1.57 D, while that of girls was +1.79±1.46 D, and the difference was significant. CONCLUSION: Before one year old, the change of refractive status is associated with checking age and sex. At the age of one to two months, the degree of hyperopia reaches the top. Boys have more hyperopic degree than girls, and with-the-rule astigmatism is predominant. Excluding premature infants with advanced retinopathy of prematurity, premature and full-term children have same refraction status

Serum YKL-40 independently predicts outcome after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) is the most widely used treatment option for unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Elevated serum YKL-40 level has been shown to predict poor prognosis in HCC patients undergoing resection. This study was designed to validate the prognostic significance of serum YKL-40 in patients with HCC undergoing TACE treatment.Serum YKL-40 level was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Overall survival (OS) was evaluated with the Kaplan-Meier method and compared by the log-rank test. Multivariate study with Cox proportional hazard model was used to evaluate independent prognostic variables of OS.The median pretreatment serum YKL-40 in HCC patients with was significantly higher than that in healthy controls (P<0.001). The YKL-40 could predict survival precisely either in a dichotomized or continuous fashion (P<0.001 and P = 0.001, respectively). Multivariate Cox regression analysis indicated that serum YKL-40 was an independent prognostic factor for OS in HCC patients (P = 0.001). In further stratified analyses, YKL-40 could discriminate the outcomes of patients with low and high alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) level (P = 0.006 and 0.016, respectively). Furthermore, the combination of serum YKL-40 and AFP had more capacity to predict patients' outcomes.Serum YKL-40 was demonstrated to be an independent prognostic biomarker in HCC patients treated with TACE. Our results need confirmation in an independent study

Correction to: Proteogenomic characterization and comprehensive integrative genomic analysis of human colorectal cancer liver metastasis

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported an error in affiliation 5

Proteogenomic characterization and comprehensive integrative genomic analysis of human colorectal cancer liver metastasis

Abstract Background Proteogenomic characterization and integrative and comparative genomic analysis provide a functional context to annotate genomic abnormalities with prognostic value. Methods Here, we analyzed the proteomes and performed whole exome and transcriptome sequencing and single nucleotide polymorphism array profiling for 2 sets of triplet samples comprised of normal colorectal tissue, primary CRC tissue, and synchronous matched liver metastatic tissue. Results We identified 112 CNV-mRNA-protein correlated molecules, including up-regulated COL1A2 and BGN associated with prognosis, and four strongest hot spots (chromosomes X, 7, 16 and 1) driving global mRNA abundance variation in CRC liver metastasis. Two sites (DMRTB1R202H and PARP4V458I) were revealed to frequent mutate only in the liver metastatic cohort and displayed dysregulated protein abundance. Moreover, we confirmed that the mutated peptide number has potential prognosis value and somatic variants displayed increased protein abundance, including high MYH9 and CCT6A expression, with clinical significance. Conclusions Our proteogenomic characterization and integrative and comparative genomic analysis provides a new paradigm for understanding human colon and rectal cancer liver metastasis. Trial registration ClinicalTrials, NCT02917707. Registered 28 September 2016, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02917707