Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has attracted more attention both clinically and experimentally because of its high-risk biological characteristics and lacking of effective treatment method. The tumour characteristics, patterns of recurrence and metastasis, therapy methods and prognosis in younger TNBC patients have been widely formulated, but the relevant data of the elderly people are lacking. We conducted this retrospective study to compare and analyse the above-related characteristics between the younger and elderly patients with TNBC to estimate the relevance for the elderly TNBC patients. A total of 1489 female patients with primary breast cancer were diagnosed and treated at the department of General Surgery, the Chinese PLA General Hospital, China, from January 2004 to December 2008. In the 1489 patients, 302 patients (20.28%) with TNBC histopathologically confirmed were retrospectively analysed. The 302 TNBC patients were divided into two groups: the younger (<60 years) group and the elderly (≥60 years) group. The relevant characteristics of the two groups were compared. There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in common clinical data of the patients, clinicopathological features of tumour and the features of local recurrences and metastases of tumour, and the 5-year disease-free survival and overall survival were all significantly higher in the elderly group than those in the younger group, although the elderly group patients accepted significantly less radiotherapy and chemotherapy than the younger group patients. The elderly and younger TNBC patients may belong to different subtypes of TNBC and we probably could take a more conservative and cautious attitude in choosing the post-operative adjuvant treatment for the elderly patients with TNBC.

Background In patients with diabetes and hypertension, proteinuria is independently associated with all-cause death. However, in the general population, urinary albumin to creatinine ratio (UACR) is less used to predict all-cause mortality. When the urinary albumin to creatinine ratio is within the normal range (UACR< 30 mg/g), the clinical relevance of an increased urinary albumin excretion rate is still debated. We studied the relationship between UACR and all-cause mortality in community populations, and compared UACR groups within the normal range. Methods The participants were the inhabitants from the Wanshoulu community in Beijing, China. The average age is 71.48 years, and the proportion of women is 60.1%. A total of 2148 people completed random urine samples to determine the urinary albumin to creatinine ratio (UACR). The subjects were divided into three groups according to UACR: Group 1 (UACR< 10 mg/g), Group 2 (10 mg/g < UACR< 30 mg/g), Group 3 (UACR> 30 mg/g). We used Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and Cox regression model to verify the relationship between UACR and all-cause mortality. Results At an average follow-up of 9.87 years (718,407.3 years), the total mortality rate were 183.4/1000. In the Cox proportional hazards model, after adjusting for possible confounders, those with normal high-value UACR (group 2) showed a higher all-cause mortality than those with normal low-value UACR (group 1) [hazard ratio (HR) 1.289, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.002 ~ 1.659 for all-cause mortality]. Those with proteinuria (group 3) showed a higher all-cause mortality than those with normal low-value UACR (group 1) [hazard ratio (HR) 1.394, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.020 ~ 1.905 for all-cause mortality]. Conclusion Urinary albumin to creatinine ratio is an important risk factor for all-cause death in community population. Even if it is within the normal range (UACR< 30 mg/g), it occurs in people with high normal value (10 mg/g < UACR< 30 mg/g), the risk of all-cause death will also increase.

BackgroundAnkle-brachial index (ABI) and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) are both important indicators of arterial stiffness and vascular injury. At present, most studies on the relationship between ABI and baPWV and all-cause mortality in community-based elderly are analyzing ABI or baPWV alone, and will focus on a single special population such as diabetes and stroke. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between ABI and baPWV in a Chinese community-based elderly population, and to analyze their impact on all-cause mortality in a community-based population through a follow-up of nearly 10 years.MethodsParticipants were residents of the Wanshou Road community in Beijing, China. A total of 2,162 people in the community were included, with an average age of 71.48 years. During a mean follow-up period of 9.87 years, 1,826 subjects completed follow-up. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and different Cox regression models were used to verify the association of ABI and baPWV with all-cause mortality. The selected subjects were divided into two groups according to ABI and baPWV, and ABI was divided into two groups with 0.90 as the cut-off point (group 1: 0.9 &lt; ABI ≤ 1.3; group 2: ABI ≤ 0.9); according to the level of baPWV, they were divided into three groups (Tertile 1: baPWV &lt;1761.5 cm/s; Tertile 2: 1761.5 ≤ baPWV &lt;2121.5 cm/s; Tertile 3: baPWV ≥2121.5 cm/s).Results1,826 people were included in the statistical analysis, and the total mortality rate was 181.3/1000. The 10-year all-cause mortality rate of the abnormal ABI group (group 2) was 44.7%, and that of the normal ABI group (group 1) was 17.0%; The 10-year all-cause mortality rates from low to high in the baPWV tertile were 10.0%, 18.7%, and 26.4%. In the Cox proportional hazards model, after adjusting for possible confounders, the effect of baPWV on all-cause mortality was significant, with the 3rd tertile having a 1.647-fold higher risk of all-cause mortality than the 1st tertile (P = 0.014 ).ConclusionsABI and baPWV are risk factors affecting all-cause mortality in the elderly community population, and baPWV is an independent predictor of all-cause mortality in the elderly community population.

Primary malignant cardiac tumors (PMCTs) are rare but highly lethal, and up to 75% of them are sarcomas, followed by lymphoma and mesothelioma. [1] Due to the rarity of this disease, most studies to date were small series or single case report. Although a few of them investigated the clinical characteristics and survival of PMCT patients, the factors influencing overall survival have not been well elucidated. [2][3][4] The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program covers about 28% of the US population, collecting data on patient demographics, primary tumor site, tumor morphology, stage at diagnosis, survival, and mortality, including rich data of cardiac tumors. [5] In the present study, we described the clinical characteristics, identified the variables affecting the prognosis, and constructed a nomogram for patients with PMCTs using the data from the SEER database.Jiaojiao Qiu and Yun Sun contribute equally to this work.

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