tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
HBsAg seroclearance in chronic hepatitis B in the Chinese: Virological, histological, and clinical aspects
Authors: Man-Fung Yuen, Danny Ka-Ho Wong, Erwin Sablon, Eric Tse, Irene Oi-Lin Ng, He-Jun Yuan, Chung-Wah Siu, Tamara J. Sander, Eric J. Bourne, Jeff G. Hall, Lynn D. Condreay, Ching-Lung Lai
Journal: Hepatology (2004)

Few studies have examined Chinese patients with chronic hepatitis B who exhibit hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) seroclearance. We comprehensively studied the biochemical, virological, histological, and clinical aspects of 92 patients with HBsAg seroclearance (median follow-up, 126 months). Ninety-two HBsAg-positive controls matched for age, sex, and duration of follow-up were also recruited. Liver biochemistry, serum hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA levels, and development of clinical complications were monitored. Intrahepatic total and covalently closed circular (ccc) HBV DNA were measured quantitatively in 16 patients. HBV genotype was determined in 30 patients. The mean age at HBsAg seroclearance was 48.8 (+ 13.81) years. There was a significant improvement in serum alanine aminotransferase levels after HBsAg seroclearance (p&lt;0.0001). Patients with genotype B had a higher chance of HBsAg seroclearance than those with genotype C ( P = .014). Ninety-eight percent of patients had undetectable serum HBV DNA. Thirty-seven percent of patients had low titer of intrahepatic HBV DNA, mainly in the form of cccDNA (71%-100%). All 14 patients with liver biopsies had near normal histology. There was no difference in the risk of development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) between patients with and without HBsAg seroclearance. However, the mean age of HBsAg seroclearance was significantly older in patients with HCC than in patients without HCC ( P = .016). In conclusion , patients with HBsAg seroclearance had favorable biochemical, virological, and histological parameters. Intrahepatic HBV DNA level was low and predominantly in the form of cccDNA. However, HCC could still develop, particularly in patients with cirrhosis who had HBsAg seroclearance at an older age. (Hepatology 2004;39:1694-1701.)
Macrophages secrete a novel heparin-binding protein with inflammatory and neutrophil chemokinetic properties.
Authors: S D Wolpe, G Davatelis, B Sherry, B Beutler, D G Hesse, H T Nguyen, L L Moldawer, C F Nathan, S F Lowry, A Cerami
Journal: The Journal of Experimental Medicine (1988)

We report the identification and purification of a new inflammatory monokine synthesized by the macrophage tumor cell line RAW 264.7 in response to endotoxin. This monokine, which we term "macrophage inflammatory protein" (MIP), is a doublet with an apparent molecular mass of approximately 8,000 daltons on SDS-PAGE but forms aggregates of greater than 2 x 10(6) daltons as assessed by gel filtration. Partial NH2-terminal amino acid sequence data reveal no significant homology with any previously described protein. Although the monokine is anionic under physiological conditions, it is one of two major macrophage-secreted proteins that bind to heparin at high salt concentrations. At 100 ng/ml or greater, MIP is chemokinetic for human polymorphonuclear cells and triggers hydrogen peroxide production. Subcutaneous injection of 10 ng or greater of MIP into footpads of C3H/HeJ mice elicits an inflammatory response, characterized by neutrophil infiltration. These findings suggest that MIP is an endogenous mediator that may play a role in the host responses that occur during endotoxemia and other inflammatory events.
Noninvasive positive pressure ventilation in burn patients
Authors: Jihene Haddad, Imen Rahmani, Haikel Oueslati, Meriem Bouaouaja, Lazhari Gharsallah, Bahija Gasri, Imen Jami, Amel Mokline, Amen Allah Messadi
Journal: European Respiratory Journal (2011)

Introduction:  Acute respiratory failure is a common complication of severely burn-injured patient. Noninvasive Positive Pressure Ventilation (NIPPV) has been used with success in hypercapnic and hypoxaemic acute respiratory failure. However, the outcome of NIPPV with burn patients is less well documented.   Objective:  The purpose of this study is to report our experience with NIPPV in a series of burn-injured patients.   Method:  The records of all burn patients from July 2008- January 2010, in whom NIPPV was used at the Intensive Burn Care Unit, were reviewed.  The criteria for selecting patients for NIPPV included a combination of the following factors; patients with acute respiratory failure, haemodynamically stable, conscious and cooperative with their treatment. There had to be no need for endotracheal intubation.   Results:  Thirty five patients were treated with NIPPV. twenty were female. Mean age was 49.8 years, mean total body surface area (TBSA) was 37.63%. NIPPV was used to treat hypoxia in 24 patients, hypercapnia in 4 patients and both of them in 7 patients.  NIPPV was used to treat acute lung injury in 15 patients, pneumonia in 9 patients, atelectasis in 6 and cardiogenic oedema in 5 patients. Mean PaO2/FiO2 ratio before NIPPV was 177 and after NIPPV was 304. Intubation was successfully avoided in 16 out of the 35 (45.7%) patients. All of these patients progressed to self-ventilation status following NIPPV.   Conclusion:  The use of NIPPV with burn-injured patients is, as yet, unclear because of little work has been documented. In our experience, the use of NIPPV can lead to avoid the need for endotracheal intubation and mechanical ventilation.
WHIPLASH INJURIES IN SPORTS ACTIVITIES. CLINICAL OUTCOME AND BIOMECHANICS
Authors: Pantelis Tsoumpos, Kostas Kafchitsas, Hans-Joachim Wilke, Kostas Evaνgelou, Alkis Kallivokas, Bjoern Habermann, Elias Tsepis, Evdokia Bilis, Charalampos Matzaroglou
Journal: British Journal of Sports Medicine (2013)

Background Cervical whiplash syndrome, or hyperextension-hyperflexion injury, is a common traumatic injury in sports activities. The mechanisms of injury that cause cervical whiplash syndrome vary, but they may be sufficient enough to cause chronic whiplash syndrome. Methods and Patients Over 150 injuries were recorded in sports in our Orthopaedic Departments between the years of 2008 and 2011. Whiplash spine injuries have been reported in most contact sports, including indoor soccer, basketball, and wrestling, and in several non contact sports, such as diving. Whiplash spine injuries are estimated to occur in high percentage of indoor soccer players, and most commonly on defensive players. Injury usually is secondary to high-velocity collisions between players, causing acceleration or deceleration of the head on the neck. Acceleration usually causes a whiplash type of extension force on the neck, while deceleration usually results in flexion forces. Results Serious injuries with neurologic sequelae remain infrequent in our series, and most of these injuries are self-limited. Quality of life assessment with Euro Quol and Sleep quality tools, in our series, suggest that there is no practical difference with healthy control group normalized regarding to sex, age, socioeconomic status and marital status after six months from initial trauma. Discussion/Conclusions Our study shows that there is a significant risk of whiplash type injuries in sports, especially indoor soccer. But serious injuries with neurologic sequelae and Chronic Whiplash Associated Disorders (WAD) remain very infrequent.
Bone Marrow–Derived Gr1+ Cells Can Generate a Metastasis-Resistant Microenvironment Via Induced Secretion of Thrombospondin-1
Authors: Raúl Catena, Nandita Bhattacharya, Tina El Rayes, Suming Wang, Hyejin Choi, Dingcheng Gao, Seongho Ryu, Natasha Joshi, Diane Bielenberg, Sharrell B. Lee, Svein A. Haukaas, Karsten Gravdal, Ole J. Halvorsen, Lars A. Akslen, Randolph S. Watnick, Vivek Mittal
Journal: Cancer Discovery (2013)

Abstract Metastatic tumors have been shown to establish permissive microenvironments for metastases via recruitment of bone marrow–derived cells. Here, we show that metastasis-incompetent tumors are also capable of generating such microenvironments. However, in these situations, the otherwise prometastatic Gr1+ myeloid cells create a metastasis-refractory microenvironment via the induction of thrombospondin-1 (Tsp-1) by tumor-secreted prosaposin. Bone marrow–specific genetic deletion of Tsp-1 abolished the inhibition of metastasis, which was restored by bone marrow transplant from Tsp-1+ donors. We also developed a 5-amino acid peptide from prosaposin as a pharmacologic inducer of Tsp-1 in Gr1+ bone marrow cells, which dramatically suppressed metastasis. These results provide mechanistic insights into why certain tumors are deficient in metastatic potential and implicate recruited Gr1+ myeloid cells as the main source of Tsp-1. The results underscore the plasticity of Gr1+ cells, which, depending on the context, promote or inhibit metastasis, and suggest that the peptide could be a potential therapeutic agent against metastatic cancer. Significance: The mechanisms of metastasis suppression are poorly understood. Here, we have identified a novel mechanism whereby metastasis-incompetent tumors generate metastasis-suppressive microenvironments in distant organs by inducing Tsp-1 expression in the bone marrow–derived Gr1+ myeloid cells. A 5-amino acid peptide with Tsp-1–inducing activity was identified as a therapeutic agent against metastatic cancer. Cancer Discov; 3(5); 578–89. ©2013 AACR. This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 471
Serial Monitoring of Circulating Melanoma Cells During Neoadjuvant Biochemotherapy for Stage III Melanoma: Outcome Prediction in a Multicenter Trial
Authors: Kazuo Koyanagi, Steven J. O'Day, Rene Gonzalez, Karl Lewis, William A. Robinson, Thomas T. Amatruda, He-Jing Wang, Robert M. Elashoff, Hiroya Takeuchi, Naoyuki Umetani, Dave S.B. Hoon
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2005)

Purpose Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in blood may be important in assessing tumor progression and treatment response. We hypothesized that quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction using multimarker mRNA assays could detect CTCs and be used as a surrogate predictor of outcome in patients receiving neoadjuvant biochemotherapy (BC) for melanoma. Patients and Methods Blood specimens were collected at four sampling points from 63 patients enrolled on a prospective multicenter phase II trial of BC before and after surgical treatment of American Joint Committee on Cancer stage III melanoma. Each specimen was assessed by quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction for expression of four melanoma-associated markers: melanoma antigen recognized by T cells 1; β1 → 4-N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase; paired box homeotic gene transcription factor 3; and melanoma antigen gene-A3 family, and the changes of CTCs during treatment and prognostic effect of CTCs after overall treatment on recurrence and survival were investigated. Results At a median postoperative follow-up time of 30.4 months, 44 (70%) patients were clinically disease free. In relapse-free patients, the number of detected markers significantly decreased during preoperative BC (P = .036), during postoperative BC (P = .002), and during overall treatment (P &lt; .0001). Marker detection after overall treatment was associated with significant decreases in relapse-free and overall survival (P &lt; .0001). By multivariate analysis using a Cox proportional-hazards model, the number of markers detected after overall treatment was a significant independent prognostic factor for overall survival (risk ratio, 12.6; 95% CI, 3.16 to 50.5; P = .0003). Conclusion Serial monitoring of CTCs in blood may be useful for indicating systemic subclinical disease and predicting outcome of patients receiving neoadjuvant BC for metastatic melanoma.
Is High-Grade Prostate Cancer Easier to Find in Smaller Prostates Because There Is More High-Grade Disease to Find? – Letter
Authors: Patrick Walsh
Journal: Clinical Cancer Research (2010)

Elliott et al. (1) report that prostate-specific antigen (PSA) performance was significantly better in identifying high-grade disease in men with smaller prostates. They use this observation to support the hypothesis that the increased detection of high-grade disease in the finasteride arm of the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial was due to an artifact in which the reduction in prostate size made it possible for PSA testing to identify the cancer better in smaller prostates. In their analysis, however, they do not consider another explanation for their findings.It is well established that patients with smaller prostates have more high-grade disease, more extraprostatic extension with positive surgical margins, and higher rates of biochemical progression following radical prostatectomy than men with larger prostates (2–4). Simply stated, did the authors find more high-grade cancer in smaller prostates because there was more high-grade disease to find and not because PSA was better at finding it? Although PSA may perform better in the absence of prostatic enlargement, when Freedland et al. (2) excluded men with T1c disease and examined only men who had abnormal digital rectal examinations, they found that the association between smaller prostate size, higher grade advanced disease, and biochemical progression remained statistically significant. In the authors' study, 39% of their patients were also diagnosed with palpable disease and those men with smaller prostates also had higher rates of Gleason 7 to 10 disease and higher PSA density (PSA divided by prostate volume). If so, how does this help explain the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial findings as an artifact? If high-volume, high-grade disease was detected more often during the first 7 years in the finasteride arm, then one would assume eventually over time that there would be fewer patients with high-grade disease. Instead, at 7 years, there were almost twice as many high-grade cancers in the finasteride arm, and in the end of study biopsies, the number was the same, not fewer (5). The authors are at an institution that has emphasized the value of measuring tumor volume in radical prostatectomy specimens and may be able to determine if the volume of high-grade tumor in the smaller prostates was the same as in larger prostates. This would support their conclusion. If not, how is this an artifact?No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.
Regional differences in the incidence of rheumatoid arthritis in Finland in 1995
Authors: O Kaipiainen-Seppanen
Journal: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (2001)

<h3>OBJECTIVE</h3> To investigate regional differences in the incidence of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). <h3>METHODS</h3> Those subjects entitled to receive drug reimbursement for chronic inflammatory joint diseases in 11/21 central hospital districts (population base about 1.8 million adults) in Finland during 1995 were studied. The incidence rates from these central hospital districts were compared. <h3>RESULTS</h3> A total of 1213 subjects were entitled to drug reimbursement for chronic inflammatory joint disease which had started at the age of 16 or over. Of these, 598 subjects satisfied the American Rheumatism Association 1987 criteria for RA. The age adjusted incidence of RA was 31.7/100 000 (95% CI 29.2 to 34.4) and varied significantly (p&lt;0.001) among the central hospital districts, ranging from 16.3 to 44.8/100 000. <h3>CONCLUSION</h3> There are regional differences in the incidence of RA. The reasons for these are probably environmental rather than genetic.
Recognizing and managing the expanded risk of tumor lysis syndrome in hematologic and solid malignancies
Authors: Ali McBride, Peter Westervelt
Journal: Journal of Hematology & Oncology (2012)

Tumor lysis syndrome (TLS) is widely recognized as a serious adverse event associated with the cytotoxic therapies primarily used in hematologic cancers, such as Burkitt lymphoma and acute lymphoblastic leukemia. In recent years, TLS has been more widely observed, due at least in part to the availability of more effective cancer treatments. Moreover, TLS is seen with greater frequency in solid tumors, and particularly in bulky tumors with extensive metastases and tumors with organ or bone marrow involvement. The consequences of TLS include the serious morbidity and high risk of mortality associated with the condition itself. Additionally, TLS may delay or force an alteration in the patient's chemotherapy regimen. The changing patterns of TLS, as well as its frequency, in the clinical setting, result in unnecessarily high rates of illness and/or fatality. Prophylactic measures are widely available for patients at risk of TLS, and are considered highly effective. The present article discusses the various manifestations of TLS, its risk factors and management options to prevent TLS from occurring.
Mannan binding lectin (MBL) gene polymorphisms are not associated with anti-Saccharomyces cerevisiae (ASCA) in patients with Crohn's disease
Authors: S Joossens
Journal: Gut (2006)

2) As is clearly shown in the table under fig 2, for patients with ALT ,0.56upper limit of normal (ULN), the risk of development of complications was significantly different from those with ALT 0.5-16ULN.Also, the risk of development of complications was significant lower than patients with ALT .1-26ULNand ALT .2-66ULN.Clearly, ALT levels .1-26ULNhave the highest risk of complications.We would like to stress that the ''baseline HBV DNA levels'' of the study of Yu et al were arbitrary, 1 taken at the particular time point the subjects were recruited on a completely random basis.As for the study of Yang and colleagues, 2 hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) status was only measured on recruitment.It is not known what proportion of these patients had HBeAg seroconversion during the subsequent follow up of 92 359 patient years (that is, HBeAg/anti-HBe status was not known at the time of development of hepatocellular carcinoma).(3) As for our specifically studying the late complications of cirrhosis, we consider this as one of the important and innovative aspects of our study, and not a flaw.Huo et al are wrong in saying that only the formation of cirrhosis or hepatocellular carcinoma is directly linked with chronic HBV infection.As the study of Liaw et al has elegantly shown, lowering viral replication can suppress the development of late complications of cirrhosis. 3In fact, this exactly confirms the proposal of our study.
Heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) inhibition targets canonical TGF-β signalling to prevent fibrosis
Authors: Michal Tomcik, Pawel Zerr, Jana Pitkowski, Katrin Palumbo-Zerr, Jérôme Avouac, Oliver Distler, Radim Becvar, Ladislav Senolt, Georg Schett, Jörg H Distler
Journal: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (2013)

A polymorphism for the phase I drug-metabolizing enzyme, flavin-containing monooxygenase isoform 2 (FMO2), encoding either truncated inactive protein, FMO2X472 (FMO2.2A), or full-length active enzyme, FMO2Q472 (FMO2.1), is known and exhibits significant interethnic differences in allelic frequency. FMO2 is the major or sole FMO isoform expressed in the lung of most mammals, including nonhuman primates. To date, FMO2.1 has been found only in African-American and Hispanic populations, rendering individuals with this allele subject to drug metabolism that is potentially different from that of the general population. Approximately 26% of African-Americans (<i>n</i> = 180) possess the <i>FMO2<sup>*</sup>1</i> allele. In preliminary studies, we initially estimated that 5% of Hispanics (<i>n</i> = 40) have the <i>FMO2<sup>*</sup>1</i> allele, but access to large cohorts of individuals of defined national origin has allowed us to determine the occurrence among Mexican-American and Puerto Rican-American groups. We used allele-specific genotyping to detect <i>FMO2<sup>*</sup>1</i> from 632 Hispanic individuals, including 280 individuals of Mexican origin and 327 individuals of Puerto Rican origin. Statistical analysis indicated that results from Mexican (five sample sources) and Puerto Rican (three sample sources) samples were consistent with the hypothesis of homogeneity within each group from different sources. Data were subsequently pooled across sources to test for evidence of a difference in occurrence of <i>FMO2<sup>*</sup>1</i> between ethnic groups. There was strong evidence (<i>p</i> = 0.0066) that <i>FMO2<sup>*</sup>1</i> is more common among Puerto Ricans (7%) than among individuals of Mexican descent (2%). The overall occurrence of <i>FMO2<sup>*</sup>1</i> among Hispanics of all origins is estimated to be between 2 and 7%.
Procarbazine-Free OEPA-COPDAC Chemotherapy in Boys and Standard OPPA-COPP in Girls Have Comparable Effectiveness in Pediatric Hodgkin's Lymphoma: The GPOH-HD-2002 Study
Authors: Christine Mauz-Körholz, Dirk Hasenclever, Wolfgang Dörffel, Kathrin Ruschke, Tanja Pelz, Antje Voigt, Martina Stiefel, Melanie Winkler, Constanze Vilser, Karin Dieckmann, Jonas Karlén, Eva Bergsträsser, Alexander Fosså, Georg Mann, Michael Hummel, Wolfram Klapper, Harald Stein, Dirk Vordermark, Regine Kluge, Dieter Körholz
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2010)

Purpose Vincristine, etoposide, prednisone, and doxorubicin (OEPA)–cyclophosphamide, vincristine, prednisone, and dacarbazine (COPDAC) is derived from standard vincristine, procarbazine, prednisone, and doxorubicin (OPPA)–cyclophosphamide, vincristine, procarbazine, and prednisone (COPP) chemotherapy by replacing procarbazine with etoposide and dacarbazine for a potentially less gonadotoxic regimen for boys with Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL). Patients and Methods Five hundred seventy-three pediatric patients with classical HL were enrolled onto the German Society of Pediatric Oncology and Hematology–Hodgkin's Disease (GPOH-HD) -2002 study between November 2002 and December 2005. Boys received two courses of OEPA and girls received two courses of OPPA for induction. Treatment group (TG) -2 (intermediate stages) and TG-3 (advanced stages) patients received further two or four cycles COPP (girls) or COPDAC (boys), respectively. After chemotherapy all patients received involved-field irradiation with 19.8 Gy, except for patients with early-stage disease (TG-1) in complete remission. Results Five hundred seventy-three patients (287 males and 286 females) were less than 18 years old and fulfilled all inclusion criteria; 195 patients (34.0%) were allocated to TG-1, 139 (24.3%) were allocated to TG-2, and 239 (41.7%) were allocated to TG-3. Toxicity of OEPA-COPDAC was tolerable overall. Hematotoxicity was more pronounced with OEPA than OPPA, whereas it was less pronounced with COPDAC compared with COPP. The median observation time was 58.6 months. Overall survival and event-free survival (EFS) rates (± SE) at 5 years were 97.4% ± 0.7% and 89.0% ± 1.4%, respectively. In TG-1, overall EFS was 92.0% ± 2.0%. EFS of patients without irradiation (93.2% ± 3.3%) was similar to that of irradiated patients (91.7% ± 2.5%), confirming results of the previous GPOH-HD-95 study. In TG-2+3, EFS did not significantly differ between boys and girls (90.2% ± 2.3 v 84.7% ± 2.7, respectively; P = .12). Conclusion In TG-2+3, results in boys and girls are superimposable. OPPA-COPP and OEPA-COPDAC seem to be exchangeable regimens in intermediate- and advanced-stage classical HL in pediatric patients.