We found that approximately 10.58% HBsAg carriers (without IVDU and HRSB) were coinfected with HDV, which is twofold of what has been estimated before. We also noted a substantially higher HDV prevalence in the IVDU and HRSB population. Our study highlights the need for increased focus on the routine HDV screening and rigorous implementation of HBV vaccine programme.

PurposeWe investigated the correlation between the number of examined lymph nodes (ELNs) and correct staging and long-term survival in non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) by using large databases and determined the minimal threshold for the ELN count.MethodsData from a Chinese multi-institutional registry and the US SEER database on stage I to IIIA resected NSCLC (2001 to 2008) were analyzed for the relationship between the ELN count and stage migration and overall survival (OS) by using multivariable models. The series of the mean positive LNs, odds ratios (ORs), and hazard ratios (HRs) were fitted with a LOWESS smoother, and the structural break points were determined by Chow test. The selected cut point was validated with the SEER 2009 cohort.ResultsAlthough the distribution of ELN count differed between the Chinese registry (n = 5,706) and the SEER database (n = 38,806; median, 15 versus seven, respectively), both cohorts exhibited significantly proportional increases from N0 to N1 and N2 disease (SEER OR, 1.038; China OR, 1.012; both P < .001) and serial improvements in OS (N0 disease: SEER HR, 0.986; China HR, 0.981; both P < .001; N1 and N2 disease: SEER HR, 0.989; China HR, 0.984; both P < .001) as the ELN count increased after controlling for confounders. Cut point analysis showed a threshold ELN count of 16 in patients with declared node-negative disease, which were examined in the derivation cohorts (SEER 2001 to 2008 HR, 0.830; China HR, 0.738) and validated in the SEER 2009 cohort (HR, 0.837).ConclusionA greater number of ELNs is associated with more-accurate node staging and better long-term survival of resected NSCLC. We recommend 16 ELNs as the cut point for evaluating the quality of LN examination or prognostic stratification postoperatively for patients with declared node-negative disease.

International expert consensus statement on chest imaging in pediatric COVID-19 patient management: imaging findings, imaging study reporting and imaging study recommendations. Radiol Cardiothorac Imaging. 2020;2: e200214. [Epub ahead of print].

Background: The pandemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has threaten the global health. The characteristics of laboratory findings of coronavirus are of great significance for clinical diagnosis and treatment. We found indicators that may most effectively predict a non-severe COVID-19 patient develop into a severe patient. Methods: We conducted a meta-analysis to compare the laboratory findings of severe patients with non-severe patients with COVID-19 from searched articles. Results: Through the analysis of laboratory examination information of patients with COVID-19 from 35 articles (5912 patients), we demonstrated that severe cases possessed higher levels of leukocyte (1.20-fold), neutrophil (1.33-fold), CRP (3.04-fold), PCT (2.00-fold), ESR (1.44-fold), AST (1.40-fold), ALT (1.34-fold), LDH (1.54-fold), CK (1.44-fold), CK-MB (1.39-fold), total bilirubin (1.14-fold), urea (1.28-fold), creatine (1.09-fold), PT (1.03fold) and D-dimer (2.74-fold), as well as lower levels of lymphocytes (1.44-fold), eosinophil (2.00-fold), monocyte (1.08-fold), Hemoglobin (1.53-fold), PLT (1.15-fold), albumin (1.15-fold), and APTT (1.02-fold). Lymphocyte subsets and series of inflammatory cytokines were also different in severe cases with the non-severe ones, including lower levels of CD4 T cells (2.10-fold) and CD8 T cells (2.00-fold), higher levels of IL-1β (1.02fold), IL-6 (1.93-fold) and IL-10 (1.55-fold). Conclusions: Some certain laboratory inspections could predict the progress of the COVID-19 changes, especially lymphocytes, CRP, PCT, ALT, AST, LDH, D-dimer, CD4 T cells and IL6, which provide valuable signals for preventing the deterioration of the disease.

Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) and its main binding protein, IGF-binding protein 3 (IGFBP3), play an important role in cancer development. Circulating levels and functional polymorphisms of IGF1 and IGFBP3 may be biomarkers of cancer development. However, the results of published studies remain conflicting rather than conclusive. We searched MEDLINE and EMBASE databases for all published studies related to circulating levels and polymorphisms of IGF1 and IGFBP3 and cancer risk. In all, 96 studies and over 110 000 subjects were available for this meta-analysis. Higher IGF1 circulating levels significantly increased 15% of cancer risk (odds ratio (OR), 1.15, 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.03-1.29), especially among prostate, pre-menopausal breast and colorectal cancer patients, whereas higher concentrations of IGFBP3 significantly decreased the risk of advanced prostate cancer by 56% (OR, 0.44, 95% CI, 0.25 -0.77). Meanwhile, IGFBP3 À202CC genotype was associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer with borderline significance (OR, 1.18, 95% CI, 0.99 -1.41). Genotype-phenotype correlation analyses showed that circulating levels of IGFBP3 could be modified by its promoter polymorphism AÀ202C (P o 0.001). In conclusion, circulating levels of IGF1, IGFBP3 and IGFBP3 AÀ202C play a crucial role in carcinogenesis and could serve as susceptibility biomarkers for cancer development.

Growing evidence suggests that the transforming growth factor b (TGF-b) signaling pathway occupies a central position in the signaling networks that control cell growth and differentiation. TGFb1 and its receptor TGF-bRII have been correlated with the development of certain forms of cancer, including gastric cancer. We hypothesized that functional genetic variants in TGFB1 and TGFBR2 are associated with gastric cancer risk. To test this hypothesis, we genotyped C-509T and Leu10Pro polymorphisms in TGFB1 and G-875A variant in TGFBR2, using the primer-introduced restriction analysis (PIRA)-PCR assay, in a case-control study of 675 gastric cancer cases and 704 healthy controls in a Chinese population. We found that the variant alleles of the promoter polymorphisms, TGFB1 C-509T and TGFBR2 G-875A, were associated with a significantly decreased risk of gastric cancer [adjusted odds ratio (OR) 5 0.65, 95% confidence interval (CI) 5 0.52-0.82 for 2509CT/TT and adjusted OR 5 0.67, 95% CI 5 0.53-0.85 for 2875GA/AA]. Furthermore, subjects with both variant genotypes of the TGFB1 C-509T and TGFBR2 G-875A were associated with a significantly (56%) decreased risk of gastric cancer (adjusted OR 5 0.44, 95% CI 5 0.32-0.62). These findings indicate, for the first-time, that the functional variants in the promoter of TGFB1 and TGFBR2 might contribute to gastric cancer susceptibility. ' 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Purpose: Accumulative evidence suggests that folate has a protective effect on gastric cancer.The methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (MTHFD) plays an important role in folate and homocysteine metabolisms, and polymorphisms of MTHFD may result in disturbance of the folate-mediated homocysteine pathway. The aim of this study is to test the hypothesis that genetic variants of MTHFD and plasma homocysteine levels are associated with risk of gastric cancer and modulated by genotypes of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR). Experimental Design: We genotyped G1958A and T401C in MTHFD and C677T in MTHFR and detected total plasma homocysteine (tHcy) levels in a case-control study of 589 gastric cancer cases and 635 cancer-free controls in a high-risk Chinese population. Results: The variant genotypes of MTHFD 1958AA and 401CC were associated with a significantly increased risk of gastric cancer [adjusted odds ratio (OR), 2.05; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 1.34-3.13 for 1958AA; adjusted OR, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.14-1.80 for 401CC] compared with 1958GG/GA and 401TT/TC genotypes, respectively. Both of the effects were more evident in the subjects carrying MTHFR 677CT/TTgenotypes. The average tHcy level was significantly higher in gastric cancer cases than in controls (P < 0.01), and the upper quartile of tHcy (>13.6 Amol/L) was associated with an 82% significantly increased risk of gastric cancer, compared with the lowest quartile of tHcy (V8.0 Amol/L; adjusted OR, 1.82; 95% CI, 1.20-2.75). Conclusions: The strong associations between MTHFD variants and the plasma tHcy levels and gastric cancer risk suggest, for the first time, a possible gene-environment interaction between genetic variants of folate-metabolizing genes and high tHcy levels in gastric carcinogenesis.

p21Cip1 and p27 Kip1 are cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors, which can arrest cell proliferation and serve as tumor suppressors. Reduced protein expression of p21Cip1 and p27 Kip1 was frequently observed in a subset of cancers, including breast cancer. In this study, we hypothesized that genetic variants in CDKN1A (encode for p21 Cip1) and CDKN1B (encode for p27 Kip1 ) may modulate the risk of breast cancer. To test this hypothesis, we evaluated the associations of the polymorphisms of Ser31Arg and C120T in CDKN1A and C279T and Gly109Val in CDKN1B, as well as their combinations, with breast cancer risk in a case-control study of 368 breast cancer cases and 467 cancer-free controls in a Chinese population. We found that a significantly increased risk of breast cancer was associated with the variant genotypes of CDKN1B C279T [adjusted OR 5 1.43 (95% CI 5 1.0321.98) for 279TC/ TT], compared with the 279CC genotype, but no associations were observed for other variant genotypes. However, the combined variant genotypes of the 4 loci were associated with a significantly increased breast cancer risk (adjusted OR 5 1.49, 95% CI 5 1.1122.01 among subjects carrying 3 or more variant alleles), especially among premenopausal women (adjusted OR5 2.30, 95% CI 5 1.4523.66). Furthermore, in premenopausal women, this significant association remained unchanged, after including other individual risk factors in the multivariate logistic regression model, suggesting an independent role of CDKN1A and CDKN1B variants in breast cancer risk. Although the exact biological mechanism remains to be explored, our findings suggest possible involvement of CDKN1A and CDKN1B variants in the etiology of breast cancer. Further large and functional studies are needed to confirm our findings. ' 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.