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Scientific Reports Jun 2017Trastuzumab combined with chemotherapy is standard of care for HER2 positive advanced gastro-esophageal cancers. The reported prevalence of HER2 discordance between... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
Trastuzumab combined with chemotherapy is standard of care for HER2 positive advanced gastro-esophageal cancers. The reported prevalence of HER2 discordance between primary tumors and corresponding metastases varies, hampering uniform patient selection for HER2 targeted therapy. This meta-analysis explores the influence of HER2 assessment methods on this discordance and investigates the prevalence of HER2 discordance in gastro-esophageal adenocarcinomas. PubMed, Embase and Cochrane databases were searched until January 2016. Differences in discordance rate between strict and broad(er) definitions of HER2 status were assessed using random-effect pair-wise meta-analysis. Random-effect single-arm meta-analyses were performed to assess HER2 discordance and the prevalence of positive and negative conversion. A significantly lower discordance rate in HER2 status between primary tumors and corresponding metastases was observed using a strict vs. broad definition of HER2 status (RR = 0.58, 95%CI 0.41-0.82), with a pooled discordance rate of 6.2% and 12.2%, respectively. Using the strict definition of HER2 assessment pooled overall discordance was 7% (95%CI 5-10%). The lowest discordance rates between primary tumors and corresponding metastasis are observed when using a strict method of HER2 positivity. Treatment outcomes of different studies will be better comparable if selection of eligible patients for HER2 targeted therapy is based on this strict definition.
Topics: Adenocarcinoma; Antineoplastic Agents; Esophageal Neoplasms; Gene Amplification; Humans; Neoplasm Metastasis; Receptor, ErbB-2; Stomach Neoplasms; Trastuzumab; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 28600510
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-03304-9 -
Transfusion Medicine (Oxford, England) Apr 2023Hepatitis C virus (HCV) can be transmitted by blood transfusion. The aim of this meta-analysis is to estimate the anti-HCV reactive rate and to define the demographic... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
BACKGROUND
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) can be transmitted by blood transfusion. The aim of this meta-analysis is to estimate the anti-HCV reactive rate and to define the demographic characteristics of blood donors who have potential threats to blood safety in mainland China for nearly 30 years, in order to provide a safe reference for blood transfusion and corresponding guidance for policymakers to increase blood safety.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Literature reporting the anti-HCV screening reactive rate in Chinese blood donors was identified by systematic searching of four electronic databases from 1991 to 2017. The Preferred Reporting of Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines were strictly followed, and data manipulation and statistical analysis were performed by Stata 15.0.
RESULTS
Our results showed that the post-donation anti-HCV reactive rate was 0.53% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.51%-0.55%) with a significant variation from 1.58% (95% CI, 1.13%-2.03%) before 1998 to 0.51% (95% CI, 0.48%-0.53%) after 1998 when the Blood Donation Law was implemented in China. In addition, anti-HCV screening reactive rate for family or replacement donors was significantly higher than that in individual voluntary blood donors.
CONCLUSION
Our results indicated that blood centres in China should convert more eligible first-time donors into repeat donors and turn the 'real family or replacement donors' into individual voluntary blood donors to reduce the risk of transfusion-transmitted HCV. In the meantime, large surveys should be carried out among volunteer donors from high-risk populations.
Topics: Humans; Hepacivirus; Blood Donors; Hepatitis C; Risk Factors; China; Antibodies
PubMed: 36349871
DOI: 10.1111/tme.12935 -
Anticancer Research Feb 2012Radiation therapy for primary and secondary liver cancer has been limited due to dose-limiting radiation-associated liver injury. Stereotactic body radiation therapy... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Radiation therapy for primary and secondary liver cancer has been limited due to dose-limiting radiation-associated liver injury. Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) permits higher dose to tumors while minimizing radiation to uninvolved liver. The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of SBRT for treating primary and secondary hepatic neoplasms.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
We performed a systematic review of prospective clinical trials published in English.
RESULTS
Fifteen studies involving 158 patients with primary tumors and 341 patients with metastases to the liver were included. Treatment was performed in 1-10 fractions to total doses of 18-60 Gy. One year local control and overall survival rates were 50-100% and 33-100% respectively. There were 13 cases of radiation-induced liver disease and 4 grade 5, 6 grade 4, and 69 grade 3 adverse events reported.
CONCLUSION
For patients who are unable or unwilling to undergo local therapy, SBRT is safe and efficacious for treating primary and secondary liver cancer.
Topics: Clinical Trials as Topic; Humans; Liver Neoplasms; Prospective Studies; Radiosurgery
PubMed: 22287758
DOI: No ID Found -
Frontiers in Oncology 2020Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a risk factor for squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (HNSCC). This study aimed to investigate the feasibility of IHC- p16INK4a...
Feasibility of Immunohistochemical p16 Staining in the Diagnosis of Human Papillomavirus Infection in Patients With Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a risk factor for squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (HNSCC). This study aimed to investigate the feasibility of IHC- p16INK4a (p16) as an alternative modality for diagnosing HPV infection. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Cochrane library for studies that evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of IHC-p16 staining. A total of 30 studies involving 2,963 patients were included from 2007 to 2019. The combined sensitivity was 0.94 (95% CI: 0.92-0.95); specificity, 0.90 (95% CI: 0.89-0.91); positive likelihood ratio (LR), 6.80 (95% CI: 5.63-8.21); negative LR, 0.10 (95% CI: 0.07-0.16); diagnostic odds ratio, 85.98 (95% CI: 55.57-133.03); and area under the curve value, 0.9550. Subgroup analysis showed that the IHC-p16 test was more consistent with the hybridization (ISH) test and has greater diagnostic value for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. The diagnostic efficacy of IHC-p16 varied among countries. In conclusion, IHC-p16 has high sensitivity and specificity for diagnosing HPV infection in HNSCC. The consistency of IHC-p16 findings with those of ISH indicate that their combination can be used to improve the specificity of diagnosis.
PubMed: 33324540
DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2020.524928 -
International Journal of Molecular... Jul 2021Medical staff represent the largest group of workers occupationally exposed to ionizing radiation (IR). Chronic exposure to low-dose IR may result in DNA damage and... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
Medical staff represent the largest group of workers occupationally exposed to ionizing radiation (IR). Chronic exposure to low-dose IR may result in DNA damage and genotoxicity associated with increased risk of cancer. This review aims to identify the genotoxicity biomarkers that are the most elevated in IR-exposed vs. unexposed health workers. A systematic review of the literature was performed to retrieve relevant studies with various biomarkers of genotoxicity. Subsequent meta-analyses produced a pooled effect size for several endpoints. The search procedure yielded 65 studies. Chromosome aberrations (CA) and micronuclei (MN) frequencies were significantly different between IR-exposed and unexposed workers (θ = 3.19, 95% CI 1.46-4.93; and θ = 1.41, 95% CI 0.97-1.86, for total aberrant cells and MN frequencies, respectively), which was not the case for ring chromosomes and nucleoplasmic bridges. Although less frequently used, stable translocations, sister chromatid exchanges (SCE) and comet assay endpoints were also statistically different between IR-exposed and unexposed workers. This review confirms the relevance of CA and MN as genotoxicity biomarkers that are consistently elevated in IR-exposed vs. unexposed workers. Other endpoints are strong candidates but require further studies to validate their usefulness. The integration of the identified biomarkers in future prospective epidemiological studies is encouraged.
Topics: Biomarkers; Chromosome Aberrations; DNA Damage; Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; Health Personnel; Humans; Occupational Exposure; Radiation, Ionizing
PubMed: 34299125
DOI: 10.3390/ijms22147504 -
Radiotherapy and Oncology : Journal of... Aug 2021Linear Energy Transfer (LET) is widely used to express the radiation quality of ion beams, when characterizing the biological effectiveness. However, averaged LET may be... (Review)
Review
Linear Energy Transfer (LET) is widely used to express the radiation quality of ion beams, when characterizing the biological effectiveness. However, averaged LET may be defined in multiple ways, and the chosen definition may impact the resulting reported value. We review averaged LET definitions found in the literature, and quantify which impact using these various definitions have for different reference setups. We recorded the averaged LET definitions used in 354 publications quantifying the relative biological effectiveness (RBE) of hadronic beams, and investigated how these various definitions impact the reported averaged LET using a Monte Carlo particle transport code. We find that the kind of averaged LET being applied is, generally, poorly defined. Some definitions of averaged LET may influence the reported averaged LET values up to an order of magnitude. For publications involving protons, most applied dose averaged LET when reporting RBE. The absence of what target medium is used and what secondary particles are included further contributes to an ill-defined averaged LET. We also found evidence of inconsistent usage of averaged LET definitions when deriving LET-based RBE models. To conclude, due to commonly ill-defined averaged LET and to the inherent problems of LET-based RBE models, averaged LET may only be used as a coarse indicator of radiation quality. We propose a more rigorous way of reporting LET values, and suggest that ideally the entire particle fluence spectra should be recorded and provided for future RBE studies, from which any type of averaged LET (or other quantities) may be inferred.
Topics: Humans; Linear Energy Transfer; Monte Carlo Method; Proton Therapy; Protons; Radiobiology; Relative Biological Effectiveness
PubMed: 33894298
DOI: 10.1016/j.radonc.2021.04.007 -
Cancers May 2024Modern advanced radiotherapy techniques have improved the precision and accuracy of radiotherapy delivery, with resulting plans being highly personalised based on... (Review)
Review
Modern advanced radiotherapy techniques have improved the precision and accuracy of radiotherapy delivery, with resulting plans being highly personalised based on individual anatomy. Adaptation for individual tumour biology remains elusive. There is an unmet need for biomarkers of intrinsic radiosensitivity that can predict tumour response to radiation to facilitate individualised decision-making, dosing and treatment planning. Over the last few decades, the use of high throughput molecular biology technologies has led to an explosion of newly discovered cancer biomarkers. Gene expression signatures are now used routinely in clinic to aid decision-making regarding adjuvant systemic therapy. They have great potential as radiotherapy biomarkers. A previous systematic review published in 2015 reported only five studies of signatures evaluated for their ability to predict radiotherapy benefits in clinical cohorts. This updated systematic review encompasses the expanded number of studies reported in the last decade. An additional 27 studies were identified. In total, 22 distinct signatures were recognised (5 pre-2015, 17 post-2015). Seventeen signatures were 'radiosensitivity' signatures and five were breast cancer prognostic signatures aiming to identify patients at an increased risk of local recurrence and therefore were more likely to benefit from adjuvant radiation. Most signatures (15/22) had not progressed beyond the discovery phase of development, with no suitable validated clinical-grade assay for application. Very few signatures (4/17 'radiosensitivity' signatures) had undergone any laboratory-based biological validation of their ability to predict tumour radiosensitivity. No signatures have been assessed prospectively in a phase III biomarker-led trial to date and none are recommended for routine use in clinical guidelines. A phase III prospective evaluation is ongoing for two breast cancer prognostic signatures. The most promising radiosensitivity signature remains the radiosensitivity index (RSI), which is used to calculate a genomic adjusted radiation dose (GARD). There is an ongoing phase II prospective biomarker-led study of RSI/GARD in triple negative breast cancer. The results of these trials are eagerly anticipated over the coming years. Future work in this area should focus on (1) robust biological validation; (2) building biobanks alongside large radiotherapy randomised controlled trials with dose variance (to demonstrate an interaction between radiosensitivity signature and dose); (3) a validation of clinical-grade cost-effective assays that are deliverable within current healthcare infrastructure; and (4) an integration with biomarkers of other determinants of radiation response.
PubMed: 38792019
DOI: 10.3390/cancers16101942 -
Critical Reviews in Oncology/hematology May 2020Brain metastasis (BM) is a complex process that implies immune cells and microglia. Stereotactic radiation therapy (SRT) and immunotherapy (IT) are established to...
INTRODUCTION
Brain metastasis (BM) is a complex process that implies immune cells and microglia. Stereotactic radiation therapy (SRT) and immunotherapy (IT) are established to increase the immune response; but their association has never been prospectively studied.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Two reviewers performed a systematic review in original papers published up to September 2019. We analysed OS, local (mLRF) and regional (mBRF) median disease-free survival in patients with BMs after SRT with and without IT.
RESULTS
Upon 14 studies, eleven concerned melanoma, three concerned lung cancers. SRT-IT showed better OS, mLRF and mBRF than SRT. mBRF was better if SRT was performed with short delay from IT. No higher rates of radionecrosis and haemorrhage were found among groups.
CONCLUSION
This review suggests SRT combined to IT in melanoma is safe and could provide better BRF, suggesting a lymphocytic immune reaction in brain. No improvement trend was found in lung cancer BM.
Topics: Brain Neoplasms; Cranial Irradiation; Humans; Immunotherapy; Lung Neoplasms; Melanoma; Neoplasm Metastasis; Radiosurgery; Retrospective Studies
PubMed: 32199131
DOI: 10.1016/j.critrevonc.2020.102923 -
Pathology, Research and Practice Feb 2024The biosynthesis of tumor-associated sialoglycans involves Sialyltransferases expressed in cancer cells differentially. The current review aspires to bridge the existing... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
The biosynthesis of tumor-associated sialoglycans involves Sialyltransferases expressed in cancer cells differentially. The current review aspires to bridge the existing knowledge gaps by consolidating evidence regarding the role of Sialyltransferases in gynecological malignant tumors (ovarian, cervix, endometrial, and breast).
METHODS
In this systematic review, we searched databases, including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus and Cochrane Library. Twenty-two high-quality articles were selected out of 559 researched studies using radiomics quality score (RQS) tools.
RESULTS
Our findings indicated that 7 articles were related to Sialyltransferases in ovarian cancer, in which 6 studies was examined only ST6Gal-I and one study examined the ST3Gal-I, ST3Gal-II, ST3Gal-III, ST3Gal-IV, ST3Gal-VI, and ST3Gal-6. In addition, 5 articles were related to Sialyltransferases in cervix cancer (ST6Gal-I), 3 articles to endometrial cancer (ST6Gal-I, ST3Gal-III, ST3Gal-IV, and ST3Gal-6), and 7 articles to breast cancer (ST6Gal-I gene in 5 studies, ST6GAL-II gene in one study, and ST8SIA1 and ST3GAL-V genes in one study).
CONCLUSION
ST6Gal-I gene expression occurs at a high speed in ovarian, cervix, endometrial, and breast cancers, leading to metastasis to distant cells, cell destruction, cell invasion, and reduced patient survival.
Topics: Female; Humans; Sialyltransferases; Genital Neoplasms, Female; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms; Cervix Uteri; Ovarian Neoplasms; Breast Neoplasms
PubMed: 38306862
DOI: 10.1016/j.prp.2024.155159 -
International Journal of Radiation... Feb 2020A large proportion of preclinical or translational studies using radiation have poor replicability. For a study involving radiation exposure to be replicable,...
PURPOSE
A large proportion of preclinical or translational studies using radiation have poor replicability. For a study involving radiation exposure to be replicable, interpretable, and comparable, its experimental methodology must be well reported, particularly in terms of irradiation protocol, including the amount, rate, quality, and geometry of radiation delivery. Here we perform the first large-scale literature review of the current state of reporting of essential experimental physics and dosimetry details in the scientific literature.
METHODS AND MATERIALS
For 1758 peer-reviewed articles from 469 journals, we evaluated the reporting of basic experimental physics and dosimetry details recommended by the authoritative National Institute of Standards and Technology symposium.
RESULTS
We demonstrate that although some physics and dosimetry parameters, such as dose, source type, and energy, are well reported, the majority are not. Furthermore, highly cited journals and articles are systematically more likely to be lacking experimental details related to the irradiation protocol.
CONCLUSIONS
These findings show a crucial deficiency in the reporting of basic experimental details and severely affect the reproducibility and translatability of a large proportion of radiation biology studies.
Topics: Bibliometrics; Biomedical Research; Congresses as Topic; Humans; Journal Impact Factor; Physics; Radiation Exposure; Radiobiology; Radiometry; Radiotherapy Dosage; Reference Standards; Reproducibility of Results; Time Factors; Translational Research, Biomedical
PubMed: 31288053
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2019.06.2545