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In recent years, Brandy Melville (Hereinafter referred to as BM), an Italian clothing brand, has gained popularity in mainland China because of the style of its slim tops and skirts, which echos the “freedom to dress” speech that has been popular in recent years. However, BM only produces one size and only girls who are thin enough can wear it. This makes other girls feel that their bodies are not recognized. Therefore, BM is also known as the “creator of body anxiety”. Nevertheless, wearing BM has become a hint to prove one’s “good figure”, and BM’s marketing strategy also cleverly utilizes consumers’ vanity to achieve the purpose of marketing itself. So even though there are a lot of critical comments, BM is still gaining popularity from the public. The purpose of this case study is to explore how Brandy Melville grasps consumers’ psychology and controls their emotions, and how it takes advantage of hot comments and critical comments to build its own image and drive consumers to buy. Through the case study of Brandy Melville and the interview with its audience and Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs), this paper aims to find out how social media is used to influence and guide the public’s psychology and emotions. Results show that social media can be used to build the brand image, lead the fashion trend, echo hot topics, and create public sentiment to grasp consumer’s psychology and create traffic.

This study investigated the association between body mass index (BMI) trajectories in late middle age and incident diabetes in later years. A total of 11,441 participants aged 50–60 years from the Health and Retirement Study with at least 2 self-reported BMI records were included. Individual BMI trajectories representing average BMI changes per year were generated using multilevel modeling. Adjusted risk ratios (ARRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated. Associations between BMI trajectories and diabetes risk in participants with different genetic risks were estimated for 5,720 participants of European ancestry. BMI trajectories were significantly associated with diabetes risk in older age (slowly increasing vs. stable: ARR = 1.31, 95% CI: 1.12, 1.54; rapidly increasing vs. stable: ARR = 1.5, 95% CI: 1.25, 1.79). This association was strongest for normal-initial-BMI participants (slowly increasing: ARR = 1.34, 95% CI: 0.96, 1.88; rapidly increasing: ARR = 2.06, 95% CI: 1.37, 3.11). Participants with a higher genetic liability to diabetes and a rapidly increasing BMI trajectory had the highest risk for diabetes (ARR = 2.15, 95% CI: 1.67, 2.76). These findings confirmed that BMI is the leading risk factor for diabetes and that although the normal BMI group has the lowest incidence rate for diabetes, people with normal BMI are most sensitive to changes in BMI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The poor overall prognosis of radioiodine refractory thyroid cancer is an inevitable challenge in managing this disease. A series of trials have demonstrated the antitumor activity of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in radioiodine refractory differentiated thyroid cancer (RAIR‐DTC). However, the available evidence cannot determine the optimal choice of TKI in RAIR‐DTC. Methods: This study searched PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane databases, and the ClinicalTrials website. The Cochrane bias risk tool was used to assess the risk of bias, and to evaluate randomized clinical trials (RCT) of RAIR‐DTC patients treated with the TKI system. Outcomes, including progression‐free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and adverse events (AEs) were reported. Results: Seven studies involving 1310 patients with RAIR‐DTC was conducted to compare the PFS and OS of various TKI monotherapies with placebo. The results showed that all TKI monotherapies had a statistically significant benefit in terms of PFS compared with placebo, with lenvatinib demonstrating the greatest benefit (hazard ratio [HR] 0.19, 95% credible interval [CrI] 0.14–0.25). In terms of OS, only apatinib (HR 0.42, 95% CrI 0.18–0.97) and anlotinib (HR 0.36, 95% CrI 0.18–0.73) showed statistically significant benefits compared with placebo. TKIs also had a higher incidence of AEs of grade 3 or higher compared with placebo. The findings suggest that lenvatinib may be the preferred TKI for the treatment of RAIR‐DTC, although its high incidence of AEs should be considered. The results also indicate that TKI treatment may be similarly effective in RAIR‐DTC patients with BRAF or RAS mutations and in those with papillary or follicular subtypes of the disease, regardless of prior TKI treatment. Conclusions: The results of this meta‐analysis suggest that targeted therapy with TKIs may be beneficial for patients with radioiodine‐refractory advanced or metastatic differentiated thyroid cancer. Among the TKIs analyzed, lenvatinib appeared to be the most effective at improving PFS, although it also had the highest incidence of AEs. Further research through direct randomized controlled trials is needed to determine the optimal choice of TKI for treating patients with RAIR‐DTC. This study is beneficial for formulating patients' treatment plans and guides clinicians' decision‐making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fusarium crown rot (FCR) in wheat is a prevalent soil-borne disease worldwide and poses a significant threat to the production of wheat (Triticum aestivum) in China, with F. pseudograminearum being the dominant pathogen. Currently, there is a shortage of biocontrol resources to control FCR induced by F. pseudograminearum, along with biocontrol mechanisms. In this study, we have identified 37 strains of biocontrol bacteria displaying antagonistic effects against F. pseudograminearum from over 8000 single colonies isolated from soil samples with a high incidence of FCR. Among them, QY43 exhibited remarkable efficacy in controlling FCR. Further analysis identified the isolate QY43 as Pseudomonas aeruginosa, based on its colony morphology and molecular biology. In vitro, QY43 significantly inhibited the growth, conidial germination, and the pathogenicity of F. pseudograminearum. In addition, QY43 exhibited a broad spectrum of antagonistic activities against several plant pathogens. The genomics analysis revealed that there are genes encoding potential biocontrol factors in the genome of QY43. The experimental results confirmed that QY43 secretes biocontrol factor siderophores and pyocyanin. In summary, QY43 exhibits a broad spectrum of antagonistic activities and the capacity to produce diverse biocontrol factors, thereby showing substantial potential for biocontrol applications to plant disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this review is to discuss previous studies on the function of stem cells in radiation-induced damage, and the factors affecting these processes, in the hope of improving our understanding of the different stem cells and the communication networks surrounding them. This is essential for the development of effective stem cell-based therapies to regenerate or replace normal tissues damaged by radiation. In salivary glands, senescence-associated cytokines and inflammation-associated cells have a greater effect on stem cells. In the intestinal glands, Paneth cells strongly affect stem cell-mediated tissue regeneration after radiation treatment. In the pancreas, β-cells as well as protein C receptor positive (Procr) cells are expected to be key cells in the treatment of diabetes. In the bone marrow, a variety of cytokines such as CXC-chemokine ligand 12 (CXCL12) and stem cell factor (SCF), contribute to the functional recovery of hematopoietic stem cells after irradiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Observational studies suggested that inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) (i.e., Crohn's disease [CD] and ulcerative colitis [UC]) is associated with an increased risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), including coronary artery disease (CAD) and ischemic stroke. However, it is still unclear whether the observed associations causally exist. Thus, we aim to examine the potential effect of IBD, CD, and UC on the risk of CAD and ischemic stroke, using a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) study. Methods: Genetic instruments for IBD, CD, and UC were retrieved from the latest published genome-wide association studies (GWASs) of European ancestry. GWAS summary data for instrument–outcome associations were gathered from four independent resources: CARDIoGRAMplusC4D Consortium, MEGASTROKE consortium, FinnGen, and UK Biobank. The inverse variance weighted (IVW) method and multiple pleiotropy-robust approaches were conducted and, subsequently, combined in a fixed-effect meta-analysis. Moreover, multivariable MR (MVMR) analysis was conducted to adjust for potential influencing instrumental variables. Results: The IVW method revealed no causal effect of IBD on the risk of CAD (overall IBD on CAD: OR 1.003, 95%CI 0.982 to 1.025; CD on CAD: OR 0.997, 95%CI 0.978 to 1.016; UC on CAD: OR 0.986, 95%CI 0.963 to 1.010) or the risk of ischemic stroke (overall IBD on ischemic stroke: OR 0.994, 95%CI 0.970 to 1.018; CD on ischemic stroke: OR 0.996, 95%CI 0.979 to 1.014; UC on ischemic stroke: OR 0.999, 95%CI 0.978 to 1.020). The results of the meta-analysis and MVMR remained consistent. Conclusion: Our MR analysis does not support a causal effect of IBD on CAD and ischemic stroke, and previous results from observational studies might be biased through uncontrolled confoundings (such as IBD-specific medications and detection bias, etc.) that warrant further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Cognitive performance in older ages is strongly affected by individuals' genetic predispositions. We investigated whether depression trajectories were associated with subsequent cognitive performance independent of participants' genetic predispositions. Methods: Participants from the Health and Retirement Study with European ancestry and aged over 50 were included in the analysis. Depressive symptoms were evaluated using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, and the 6-year trajectories were fitted using latent class linear mixed models. Linear multilevel regression was applied to model the associations between depression trajectory and subsequent cognitive performance. Stratified analyses were performed to investigate these associations in participants with different genetic predispositions of cognitive performance and APOE ε4 allelic status. Results: A total of 5,942 eligible participants were included in the study. Four depression trajectories were identified. Compared with the nondepression trajectory, all other depression trajectories were associated with worse cognitive performance (β [95% CI]: mild-depression trajectory: −0.20 [−0.56, −0.06], p = 0.007; worsening-depression trajectory: −0.29 [−0.47, −0.12], p = 0.001; persistent-depression trajectory: −0.32 [−0.53, −0.13], p = 0.001). Although these associations were independent of participants' inherent genetic risk, the participants with a low polygenetic score for cognitive performance were more likely to have an enhanced association between depression trajectories and cognitive decline. Similar relationships were also found in APOE ε4 noncarriers. Conclusion: Among older participants with European ancestry, even a mild-depression trajectory was associated with worse cognitive performance. Early intervention in participants with any degree of depression might benefit regarding preventing cognitive performance decline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to conduct a meta-analysis and dose-response analysis of the relationship between nut intake and cancer risk and mortality. Electronic databases were searched. A meta-analysis was conducted to calculate the pooled effect sizes (ESs) with the corresponding 95% CIs, and a dose-response analysis was performed. A random-effects model was used in the statistical analysis. Two independent reviewers completed the full-text screening, data extraction, and quality assessment. We included 17 articles in the present meta-analysis. Total nuts intake was revealed to be significantly associated with reduced cancer risk (ES: 0.9; 95% CI: 0.86–0.95; P < 0.001) and cancer mortality (ES: 0.88; 95% CI: 0.85–0.92, P < 0.001), especially lung cancer risk (ES: 0.86; 95% CI: 0.81–0.91, P < 0.001) and gastric cancer risk (ES: 0.79; 95% CI: 0.68–0.91, P = 0.001). Moreover, a 10 g/d increment of tree nuts consumption was associated with a 20% cancer mortality reduction (ES: 0.80; 95% CI: 0.71–0.89; P < 0.0001). Nuts intake is significantly associated with the reduction of cancer risk and mortality. Especially, nuts intake is significantly associated with reduced lung cancer risk and gastric cancer risk. Noticeably, a 10 g/d increase in tree nuts intake is related to a 20% reduction in overall cancer mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brain metastasis predicts a worse clinical outcome in cancer patients. Emerging observational evidence suggests that statin use has a protective role in overall cancer prevention. Whether statin use could also be a supplementary treatment for advanced-stage cancers remains under researched and controversial. Data for cancer patients with brain metastasis were selected from the linked electronic medical care records of the West China Hospital between October 2010 and July 2019. Fisher's exact chi-square test was used to compare the differences between cohorts. Multivariate Cox analysis was conducted to adjust the potential confounders in evaluating the role of statin use in the overall survival (OS) of cancer patients with brain metastasis. There were 4510 brain metastatic patients included in this retrospective study. The overall statin use rate in our patients was 5.28% (219 cases/4510 cases). Compared with the non-statin use cohort, patients who received statin therapy showed a decreased Karnofsky performance score (KPS, p < 0.001) and lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL, p = 0.020) but higher body mass index (BMI, p = 0.002) and triglyceride (TG, p < 0.001) at admission. There was no association between statin use and the OS of the cancer patients with brain metastasis (Hazard ratio (HR) = 0.90, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.73–1.07, p = 0.213) during the univariate analysis. However, after adjusting for baseline patient characteristics, metabolism indicators, and cancer-specific factors, statin use was shown to have a significant protective role, aiding the survival of the cancer patients with brain metastasis (adjustHR = 0.82, 95%CI: 0.69–0.99, p = 0.034). Our results highlight that statin use shows significant survival benefits in cancer patients with brain metastasis. However, future research is needed to validate our findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: It has been questioned whether vitamin D supplements can reduce the mortality and incidence of tumors. In this systematic review and meta-analysis of 12 randomized controlled trials with a total of 72,669 participants, vitamin D supplementation could not reduce the cancer mortality or cancer incidence. Our results suggest a reconsideration of the previous view that vitamin D supplementation could reduce overall cancer mortality is needed. Background: Vitamin D deficiency is related to increased cancer risk and deaths. However, whether vitamin D supplementation reduces cancer mortality remains unclear, and several randomized controlled trials yield inconsistent results. Methods: Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched from their inception until 28 June 2022, for randomized controlled trials investigating vitamin D supplementation. Pooled relative risks (RRs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated. Trials with vitamin D supplementation combined with calcium supplementation versus placebo alone and recruiting participants with cancer at baseline were excluded in the present study. Results: This study included 12 trials with a total of 72,669 participants. Vitamin D supplementation did not reduce overall cancer mortality (RR 0.96, 95% CI 0.80–1.16). However, vitamin D supplementation was associated with a reduction in lung cancer mortality (RR 0.63, 95% CI 0.45–0.90). Conclusions: Vitamin D supplementation could not reduce cancer mortality in this highly purified meta-analysis. Further RCTs that evaluate the association between vitamin D supplementation and total cancer mortality are still needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this study was to dosimetrically compare volumetric‐modulated arc therapy (VMAT) with intensity‐modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) techniques using either 6‐ or 10‐MV photon beam energies in lung stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) plans. Methods: Thirty patients with primary or metastatic lung tumors eligible for SBRT were randomly selected. VMAT and IMRT treatment plans using either 6‐ or 10‐MV photon energies were generated through automatic SBRT planning software in the RayStation treatment planning system. Results: For planning target volume, there was no difference in D95% for all plans, whereas D2% and D50% were significantly increased by 5.22%–5.98% and 2.47%–2.59%, respectively, using VMAT6/10‐MV plans compared to IMRT6/10‐MV plans. When comparing the Dmax of organs at risk (OARs), VMAT6/10‐MV was 18.32%–47.95% lower than IMRT6/10‐MV for almost all OARs. VMAT6/10‐MV obviously decreased Dmean, V5Gy, V10Gy, and V20Gy of whole lung by 9.68%–20.92% than IMRT6/10‐MV. Similar results were found when comparing VMAT6‐MV with IMRT10‐MV or VMAT10‐MV with IMRT6‐MV. The differences in the D2%, heterogeneity index, and conformity index between 6‐ and 10‐MV plans are not statistically significant. Plans using 6‐MV performed 4.68%–8.91% lower levels of Dmax of spinal cord, esophagus, great vessels, and trachea and proximal bronchial tree than those using 10‐MV plans. Similarly, Dmean, V5Gy, V10Gy, and V20Gy of whole lung were also reduced by 2.79%–5.25% using 6‐MV. For dose fall‐off analysis, the D2cm and R50% of VMAT6/10‐MV were lower than those of IMRT6/10‐MV. Dose fall‐off curve based on 10 rings was steeper for VMAT plans than IMRT plans regardless of the energy used. Conclusions: For lung SBRT plans, VMAT‐based plans significantly reduced OARs dose and steepened dose fall‐off curves compared to IMRT‐based plans. A 6‐MV energy level was a better choice than 10‐MV for lung SBRT. In addition, the dose differences between different techniques were more obvious than those between different energy levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the prognostic factors of penile cancer and establish a comprehensive predictive model for clinical application. Methods: A total of 581 patients from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program (2000–2018) were used to develop the prognostic model. The multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression was performed to identify independent prognostic factors to develop the nomogram. The performance of this model was validated internally by a cohort with 143 patients from the SEER database and validated externally by a cohort with 70 patients from the West China Hospital, Sichuan University (2010–2020). Results: Age, marital status, size of the primary lesion, primary tumor (T), regional lymph nodes status, distant metastasis (M), and the surgery of regional lymph node (LND) were the independent prognostic factors for overall survival (OS) and were incorporated in the prognostic model. The prognostic nomogram showed a good risk stratification ability for OS in the development cohort, internal validation cohort, and external validation cohort. Conclusion: This study incorporates the clinical, pathological, and therapeutic features comprehensively to develop a novel and clinically effective prognostic model for patients with penile cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To evaluate the efficiency of local radiotherapy to metastatic lesions in patients with metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma (mNPC). Methods: The overall survival was observed and compared for mNPC patients who received local radiotherapy versus nonradiotherapy to metastatic lesions by using the Kaplan–Meier method and Cox analysis. Results: One hundred and nine patients with NPC were involved in this study, with 61 (56.0%) received radiotherapy to metastatic sites and 48 (44.0%) did not receive radiotherapy to metastatic sites. The 2‐ and 5‐year OS for patients who received local radiotherapy to metastatic lesions were 65.8% and 35.7%, and for patients who did not receive radiotherapy to metastatic lesions were 45.3% and 26.2%. The multivariable adjusted hazard radios for local radiotherapy versus nonradiotherapy to metastatic lesions were 0.482 (95% confidence interval is 0.278–0.834, p = 0.009). Conclusions: Local radiotherapy to metastatic lesions might be a protective factor for patients with mNPC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whether regular fish oil supplementation is associated with cancer risk is controversial. We aimed to evaluate the association of fish oil supplementation on cancer risk according to fatty fish consumption patterns. From the UK Biobank cohort, 470 804 participants with fish oil supplementation data were included. A total of 147 316 individuals with fish oil supplementation were in the exposed group; the other 323 488 were in the unexposed group. No association was found between self‐report regular fish oil supplementation and overall cancer risk (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.97, 95% confidence intervals [CIs] = 0.95‐1). Stratified by fatty fish consumption level, we found the association between fish oil supplementation and lower cancer risk in participants who consumed fatty fish less than two times per week, with association noted for both overall cancer (HR = 0.96, 95% CI = 0.94‐0.99) and some specific cancers (colon cancer: HR = 0.84, 95% CI = 0.75‐0.94; hepatobiliary cancer: HR = 0.74, 95% CI = 0.58‐0.96; lung cancer: HR = 0.87, 95% CI = 0.78‐0.98). On the contrary, a higher risk of breast cancer was observed (HR = 1.16, 95% CI = 1.01‐1.32) in participants who consumed fatty fish at least two times per week. In conclusion, our findings underscore the need to refine recommendations for nutritional supplements according to inherent diet habits. What's new? Previous evidence from randomised controlled trials and meta‐analyses suggests that fish oil supplementation may not lower overall cancer risk, but the results were largely inconsistent. This large‐scale prospective real‐world analysis of half a million U.K. Biobank participants found that regular fish oil supplementation was not associated with overall cancer risk. When stratifying the participants based on their dietary fish oil consumption, however, regular fish oil supplementation was associated with lower cancer incidence in participants with insufficient dietary fish oil consumption. These findings underscore the need to refine recommendations for fish oil supplementation according to dietary habits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a severe malignancy arising from the nasopharyngeal epithelium and is southern China's third most common cancer. With the advancement of treatment methods, early-stage NPC patients usually have a better prognosis and more prolonged survival period than those with other malignant tumors. Most treatment failures are due to distant metastasis or a locally advanced stage of NPC in the initial diagnosis. In addition, approximately 10% of patients develop local recurrence, and 10%–20% of patients experience distant metastasis after treatment. These patients have a poor prognosis, with a median survival of only approximately 10–15 months. In the rapid development of treatment options, the efficacy and safety of some treatments have been validated and approved for first-line treatment, while those of other treatments remain unclear. The present study aims to provide a comprehensive overview of recent advances in NPC treatment and explain the various therapeutic possibilities in treating locally advanced, recurrent, and metastatic NPC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The optimal treatment strategy of combining systemic chemotherapy and radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is controversial. This study aimed to compare the efficacy and toxicities of induction chemotherapy followed by intensity‐modulated radiotherapy (IC‐RT) versus concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) in NPC. Methods: Of 448 stage II‐IVb NPC patients treated with IC‐RT or CCRT were retrospectively analysed. The primary outcome was overall survival, which was analysed by using Kaplan‐Meier curves and log‐rank (Mantel‐Cox) test. Results: The median follow‐up was 66 months (interquartile range, 46‐84 months). There was no statistically significant difference in the estimated 5‐year overall survival (OS), progression‐free survival (PFS), distance metastasis‐free survival (DMFS) and locoregional relapse‐free survival (LRFS) between IC‐RT group and CCRT group (OS: 89.5% vs 91.7%, P =.568; PFS: 85.2% vs 87.5%, P =.615; DMFS: 90.9% vs 91.7%, P =.847; LRFS: 92.0% vs 96.9%, P =.104). In the multivariate analysis, the treatment group (IC‐RT vs CCRT) was not an independent prognostic factor for OS, PFS, DMFS and LRFS. Less advanced tumour stage and lymph node stage were predictive of higher OS. EBV‐DNA level was an independent prognostic factor that was only significantly associated with LRFS. Conclusions: IC‐RT achieves similar survival outcomes and treatment‐related toxicities as CCRT in OS, PFS, DMFS and LRFS for patients with NPC. We need multicentre randomised controlled trials to reconfirm our data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A Bayesian network meta‐analysis was performed to compare the efficacy and toxicities among different induction chemotherapy regimens in locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LA‐NPC). Methods: Electronic databases were searched for literature up to September 16, 2019. Two researchers independently selected the articles, evaluated the quality of the literature, and extracted and analyzed the data. Results: There were no significant differences in survival outcomes, mucositis, or gastrointestinal adverse events among the four regimens. The probability of GP being the best induction scheme to improve OS was 43.7%. The completion rate of concurrent chemotherapy with the GP regimen was significantly reduced than the other three regimens. Conclusions: The survival outcomes of the four regimens in LA‐NPC were comparable. Considering only OS, GP showed the highest probability of improving the survival of LA‐NPC, while it also affected the completion of concurrent chemotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is a relatively uncommon tumor. The existing prediction model is limited to the head and neck. We aim to construct a prognostic nomogram combined with the clinical features and treatment options of ACC to predict the disease‐specific survival (DSS) of patients diagnosed with ACC in different anatomic sites. Methods: A novel predictive model was constructed using 1285 patients with ACC from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registry between 2010 and 2015. The performance of this model was externally validated using 118 patients with ACC in the West China Hospital, Sichuan University between 2010 and 2017. Results: The prognostic model demonstrated that age, primary site, lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, radiotherapy and surgery were independent factors for DSS. The validation of the model using an external cohort proved its reliability. Conclusion: The developed novel predictive model is shown to provide accurate and efficient predictive information for patients with ACC for different anatomic sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Induction chemotherapy followed by concurrent chemoradiotherapy is one of the standards of care for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma, but the optimal number of induction cycles is unclear. Here we compared survival data from patients treated with 2 to 4 cycles. Methods: Patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma at West China Hospital of Sichuan University between January 2009 and December 2015 were retrospectively analyzed. Results: Six hundred and seventy three patients met eligibility criteria. After a median follow‐up of 53 months (interquartile range, 38‐74), there was no difference between 2 and 3 cycles in overall survival (88.14% vs 91.24%). But four cycles were associated with worse overall survival (79.12%) and higher incidence of treatment‐related toxicities. Multivariate analysis showed that the number of induction cycles and lymph node classification were prognostic factors. Conclusions: Two and three cycles of induction chemotherapy are associated with similar survival, while four cycles reduce survival and increase treatment‐related toxicity in endemic regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐grade serous ovarian cancer (HGS‐OvCa) is one of the most lethal gynaecological malignancies. Molecular classification identified an immunoreactive subtype of HGS‐OvCa; however, the immunologic characteristics of immunoreactive HGS‐OvcA remain unclear. In this study, 121 immunoreactive HGS‐OvCa samples were identified from a meta‐analysis of 5 large transcriptome profiling data sets using a cross‐platform immunoreactive HGS‐OvCa subgroup‐specific classifier. By comparing the gene expression profiles of immunoreactive HGS‐OvCa samples and normal tissues, 653 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. KEGG pathway analysis revealed that the leukocyte transendothelial migration pathways were significantly enriched in the immunoreactive HGS‐OvCa. Protein‐protein interaction analysis identified a module that showed strong involvement of the immune‐related chemokine signalling pathway. Moreover, the GSEA enrichment analysis showed a T‐cell subgroup and M1 macrophages were significantly enriched in immunoreactive OvCa compared with normal samples. Macrophage infiltration levels were significantly elevated in immunoreactive HGS‐OvCa compared with other OvCa subtypes. In addition, expression of immune checkpoint molecules VTCN1 and IDO1 was significantly increased in immunoreactive HGS‐OvCa. In summary, our results suggest that the immunoreactive HGS‐OvCa has unique molecular characteristics and a tumour‐associated immune microenvironment featured by increased infiltration of macrophages, rather than lymphocytes. VTCN1 could be potential targets for the treatment of immunoreactive HGS‐OvCa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI)-1 levels and activity are known to increase during metabolic syndrome and obesity. In addition, previous studies have implicated PAI-1 in adipose tissue (AT) expansion while also contributing to insulin resistance. As inflammation is also known to occur in AT during obesity, we hypothesized that in a high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mouse model PAI-1 contributes to macrophage-mediated inflammation and metabolic dysfunction. Methods: Four- to five-weeks-old male C57B6/6J mice were fed a HFD (45%) for 14 weeks, while age-matched control mice were fed a standard laboratory chow diet (10% fat). Additional studies were performed in PAI-1 knockout mice and wild type mice treated with an inhibitor (PAI-039) of PAI-1. Macrophage polarization were measured by real time PCR. Results: HFD mice showed increased expression of PAI-1 in visceral white AT (WAT) that also displayed increased macrophage numbers. PAI-1 deficient mice exhibited increased numbers of anti-inflammatory macrophages in WAT and were resistant to HFD-induced obesity. Similarly, pharmacological inhibition of PAI-1 using PAI-039 significantly decreased macrophage infiltration in WAT and improved metabolic status in HFD-induced wild-type mice. Importantly, the numbers of M1 macrophages appeared to be increased by the HFD and decreased by either genetic PAI-1 depletion or PAI-039 treatment. Conclusions: Collectively, our findings provide support for PAI-1 contributing to the development of inflammation in adipose tissue and explain the mechanism of inflammation modulated by PAI-1 in the disordered metabolism in HFD-induced obesity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]