The proposed nomogram resulted in more-accurate prognostic prediction for patients with ICC after partial hepatectomy.

Background: To provide a quantitative assessment of the association between body mass index (BMI) and the risk of gastric cancer, we summarized the evidence from prospective studies.Methods: Eligible studies published up to November 30, 2012, were retrieved via computer searches of MEDLINE and EMBASE as well as manual review of references. Summary relative risks (SRR) with their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using a random-effects model.Results: A total of 24 prospective studies of BMI and gastric cancer risk with 41,791 cases were included in our analysis. Overall, both overweight (BMI, 25-30 kg/m

IMPORTANCE Repeat hepatectomy and percutaneous radiofrequency ablation (PRFA) are most commonly used to treat early-stage recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (RHCC) after initial resection, but previous studies comparing the effectiveness of the 2 treatments have reported conflicting results.OBJECTIVE To compare the long-term survival outcomes after repeat hepatectomy with those after PRFA among patients with early-stage RHCC. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSThis open-label randomized clinical trial was conducted at the Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital and the National Center for Liver Cancer of China. A total of 240 patients with RHCC (with a solitary nodule diameter of Յ5 cm; 3 or fewer nodules, each Յ3 cm in diameter; and no macroscopic vascular invasion or distant metastasis) were randomized 1:1 to receive repeat hepatectomy or PRFA between

Early and late recurrences of solitary HCC after curative resection are associated with different predictive factors. The time to recurrence and further curative treatment after recurrence were the best predictors of survival post recurrence.

The association between the overexpression of aspartyl-(asparaginyl)-b-hydroxylase (AAH) and the invasiveness of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in vitro has been reported. However, the prognostic value of AAH expression in HCC remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between AAH expression, tumor recurrence, and patient survival. We identified AAH as the most overexpressed gene in HCC by way of complementary DNA microarray hybridization. A prospective study of 233 patients undergoing curative resection indicated that AAH expression was an independent factor affecting recurrence (hazard ratio [HR] 3.161, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.115-4.724, P < 0.001) and survival (HR 2.712, 95% CI 1.734-4.241, P < 0.001). Patients with AAH overexpression had a poorer prognosis than those with AAH underexpression (P < 0.001 for both recurrence and survival). In Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage A patients with AAH overexpression or underexpression, the tumor recurrence and survival rates were also statistically different (45% and 85% versus16% and 33% in 1-and 3-year cumulative recurrence rates, respectively; 73% and 37% versus 90% and 80% in 1-and 3-year survival rates, respectively; P < 0.001 for both). Furthermore, in stage A patients with tumors measuring 5 cm in diameter, the time to recurrence was 26.7 6 1.6 versus 51.9 6 2.8 months, and the 1-and 3-year survival rates were 97% and 52% versus 100% and 90% in AAH overexpression and underexpression patients, respectively (P < 0.001 for both). Conclusion: AAH overexpression in HCC is strongly correlated with worse surgical outcome, and this molecule likely provides a more precise prognostic predictor in early stage HCCs. (HEPATOLOGY 2010;52:164-173) H epatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent malignant neoplasms worldwide 1 and is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in China.2 Both hepatic resection and liver transplantation are considered as potential curative treatments for well-selected HCC patients. As far as curative resection is concerned, surgical prognosis for many patients with HCC is not favorable due to the likelihood of intrahepatic and extrahepatic recurrence, which leads to a high mortality rate.3-5 Several prognostic staging systems have been established in clinical practice allowing clinicians to predict HCC outcome.6-8 Nevertheless, correlations are not always found between tumor stage and the actual prognosis, and this phenomenon is more common in patients with early HCC than in those with advanced HCC. Considering that HCC is increasingly diagnosed and resected at an early stage and that current staging systems have some limitations in the prognostic evaluation of early HCC, 4,9,10 efforts have been made to

No abstract

A novel amphiphilic diblock copolymer composed of a hydrophilic poly(ethylene oxide) block and a hydrophobic block copolymerized by azobenzene-containing methacrylate and N-isopropylacrylamide was synthesized using ATRP. The polymer micelles showed dual responsiveness to heat and light. The size of the micelles was dependent on temperature and the encapsulated substance in the hydrophobic cores was released during heating and cooling processes. The hydrophobicity of the micellar cores appeared as a reversible change in response to light with neither disruption of the micelles nor leakage of the encapsulated substance while H-aggregation of the azobenzene moieties was detected.

Hepatic progenitor cells (HPC) play important roles in both liver regeneration and carcinogenesis. Combined hepatocellular‐cholangiocarcinoma (CHC), a malignant primary liver tumor with poor prognosis, is thought to be of HPC origin. However, the prognostic significance of this etiology is not well defined. Therefore, we retrospectively investigated the relationship of HPC‐related pathological features and long‐term outcome in patients with CHC in our department. In a cohort of 80 patients identified between 1997 and 2003, including 70 patients who underwent resection with curative intent, overall survival (OS) and disease‐free survival (DFS) were correlated with the proliferative activity of nontumor ductular reaction (DR) and the expression levels of HPC and biliary markers including α‐fetoprotein (AFP), keratin 7 (K7), keratin 19 (K19), oval cell (OV)‐6, epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM), and c‐Kit in both tumor and nontumor liver. We found that nontumor ductular reactions (DRs), specifically the proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) labeling index of the ductular reaction (PI‐DR), a surrogate for transit‐amplifying compartments, was an independent prognostic factor for both OS and DFS. By contrast, intratumoral expression of only one marker, absence of AFP, was associated with OS. PI‐DR was also independently associated with synchronous “multicentric occurrence” in hepatocellular carcinoma components, a feature of CHC that may predispose to metachronous multifocal tumorigenesis. Conclusion: Proliferative ductular reaction related to HPC activation is associated with recurrence of CHC. Background HPC activation is strongly associated with multifocal occurrence and related tumor recurrence, highlighting the critical role of background liver disease, a “field effect,” in the recurrence of CHC. (Hepatology 2012;56:1804–1816)