Despite some limitations, this study suggests a possible predictive value of FDG PET for the assessment of the pathological response of primary breast cancer after neo-adjuvant chemotherapy. However, these findings deserve further investigation on a larger number of patients, and more frequent and earlier PET scans in each patient need to be performed to allow a better validation of the differentiation between the responder and non-responder groups.

The identification rate in confirmed axillary lymph node-positive patients was significantly lower in patients received pre-operative chemotherapy, but accuracy did not differ significantly between the two groups. Thus, for patients who achieve complete axillary clearance by chemotherapy, SNB could replace AND.

We prospectively studied the feasibility of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) after neoadjuvant chemotherapy by comparing the identification rate and the false-negative rate (FNR) with the results obtained from the patients without chemotherapy. From October 2001 to March 2003, a total of 284 consecutive patients who underwent SLNB and axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) at the Center for Breast Cancer, National Cancer Center were enrolled. Of the 284 patients, 54 underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy prior to operation. The sentinel lymph node (SLN) was mapped by radioactive colloid alone or in combination with blue dye. All SLNs were evaluated by 2 mm serial sections after hematoxylin-eosin staining. The overall SLN identification rate was 91.9% (261/284): 72.2% (39/54) of the patients after chemotherapy and 96.5% (222/230) of the patients without chemotherapy. These results suggest that preoperative chemotherapy significantly affects lymphatic mapping ( p< 0.001). Among the patients with chemotherapy, there were 3 false negatives in 39 successfully mapped tumors, yielding an FNR of 11.1% (3/27), a negative prediction value (NPV) of 80.0% (12/15), and an accuracy of 92.3% (36/39). There were 10 false negatives among 222 successfully detected patients without chemotherapy, yielding an FNR of 9.9% (10/101), an NPV of 92.4% (121/131), and an accuracy of 95.5% (212/222). These results were not statistically different when compared ( p > 0.05). Although the SLN identification rate significantly decreased after neoadjuvant chemotherapy, SLNB could accurately predict axillary status. Thus SLNB can be an alternative to ALND even after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in cases of successful identification of the SLN.

For the fabrication of next‐generation flexible metal oxide devices, solution‐based methods are considered as a promising approach because of their potential advantages, such as high‐throughput, large‐area scalability, low‐cost processing, and easy control over the chemical composition. However, to obtain certain levels of electrical performance, a high process temperature is essential, which can significantly limit its application in flexible electronics. Therefore, this article discusses recent research conducted on developing low‐temperature, solution‐processed, flexible, metal oxide semiconductor devices, from a single thin‐film transistor device to fully integrated circuits and systems. The main challenges of solution‐processed metal oxide semiconductors are introduced. Recent advances in materials, processes, and semiconductor structures are then presented, followed by recent advances in electronic circuits and systems based on these semiconductors, including emerging flexible energy‐harvesting devices for self‐powered systems that integrate displays, sensors, data‐storage units, and information processing functions.

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This the first report of the use of the da Vinci robotic system for pelvic exenteration in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer invading the prostate and seminal vesicles. The robot may have a potential role in selected patients requiring exenterative pelvic surgery particularly in men.

Recent studies have determined that inactivation of runt‑related transcription factor 3 (RUNX3) expression is highly associated with lymph node metastasis and poor prognosis in various types of cancer. However, the mechanism of RUNX3-mediated suppression of tumor metastasis remains unclear. Herein, we aimed to clarify the effect of RUNX3 on metastasis and angiogenesis in colorectal cancer (CRC). Firstly, we found that the reduction in expression of RUNX3 in CRC tissues when compared with tumor adjacent normal colon tissues, as indicated by reduced RUNX3 staining, was significantly correlated with tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage. Secondly, we demonstrated that RUNX3 overexpression inhibited CRC cell migration and invasion resulting from the upregulation of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and MMP-9 expression. In contrast, the knockdown of RUNX3 reduced the inhibition of migration and invasion of CRC cells. Finally, we found that restoration of RUNX3 decreased vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) secretion and suppressed endothelial cell growth and tube formation in CRC cells. All in all, our findings may provide insight into the development of RUNX3 for CRC metastasis diagnostics and therapeutics.

Modified internucleotide linkage featuring the C3′‐O‐P‐CH2‐O‐C4″ phosphonate grouping as an isosteric alternative to the phosphodiester C3′‐O‐P‐O‐CH2‐C4″ bond was studied in order to learn more on its stereochemical arrangement, which we showed earlier to be of prime importance for the properties of the respective oligonucleotide analogues. Two approaches were pursued: First, the attempt to prepare the model dinucleoside phosphonate with 13C‐labeled CH2 group present in the modified internucleotide linkage that would allow for a more detailed evaluation of the linkage conformation by NMR spectroscopy. Second, the use of ab initio calculations along with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations in order to observe the most populated conformations and specify main structural elements governing the conformational preferences. To deal with the former aim, a novel synthesis of key labeled reagent (CH3O)2P(O)13CH2OH for dimer preparation had to be elaborated using aqueous 13C‐formaldehyde. The results from both approaches were compared and found consistent. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers 91: 514–529, 2009. This article was originally published online as an accepted preprint. The “Published Online” date corresponds to the preprint version. You can request a copy of the preprint by emailing the Biopolymers editorial office at biopolymers@wiley.com