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Aim: To investigate the protective effect of magnesium isoglycyrrhizinate (MgIG) on excessive hepatectomy animal model and its possible mechanism., Methods: We used the standard 90% hepatectomy model in Sprague-Dawley rats developed using the modified Emond's method, in which the left, middle, right upper, and right lower lobes of the liver were removed. Rats with 90% liver resection were divided into three groups, and were injected intraperitoneally with 3 mL saline (control group), 30 mg/kg (low-dose group) and 60 mg/kg (high-dose group) of MgIG, respectively. Animals were sacrificed at various time points and blood was drawn from the vena cava. Biochemical tests were performed with an automatic biochemical analyzer for the following items: serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), glutamyl endopeptidase, total bilirubin (TBil), direct bilirubin (DBil), total protein, albumin, blood glucose (Glu), hyper-sensitivity C-reactive protein, prothrombin time (PT), and thrombin time (TT). Postoperative survival time was observed hourly until death. Hepatocyte regeneration was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Serum inflammatory cytokines (IL-1, IL-6, IL-10, and iNOS) was analyzed by ELISA. STAT3 protein and mRNA were analyzed by Western blot and quantitative reverse-transcription PCR, respectively., Results: The high-dose group demonstrated a significantly prolonged survival time, compared with both the control and the low-dose groups (22.0 ± 4.7 h vs 8.9 ± 2.0 vs 10.3 ± 3.3 h, P = 0.018). There were significant differences among the groups in ALT, Glu and PT levels starting from 6 h after surgery. The ALT levels were significantly lower in the MgIG treated groups than in the control group. Both Glu and PT levels were significantly higher in the MgIG treated groups than in the control group. At 12 h, ALT, AST, TBil, DBil and TT levels showed significant differences between the MgIG treated groups and the control group. No significant differences in hepatocyte regeneration were found. Compared to the control group, the high-dose group showed a significantly increase in serum inflammatory cytokines IL-1 and IL-10, and a decrease in IL-6. Both STAT3 protein and mRNA levels were significantly lower in the MgIG treated groups than in the control group at 6 h, 12 h, and 18 h after surgery., Conclusion: High-dose MgIG can extend survival time in rats after excessive hepatectomy. This hepatoprotective effect is mediated by inhibiting the inflammatory response through inhibition of the STAT3 pathway.

Aim: To analyze the correlation of treatment method with the outcome of all the hepatic metastatic melanoma (HMM) patients from our hospital., Methods: There were altogether nine cases of HMM that had been treated in the PUMCH hospital during the past 25 years, from December 1984 to February 2010. All of the cases developed hepatic metastasis from primary cutaneous melanoma. A retrospective review was performed on all the cases in order to draw informative conclusion on diagnosis and treatment in correlation with the prognosis. Clinical features including symptoms, signs, blood test results, B-ultrasound and computed tomography (CT) imaging characteristics, and pathological data were analyzed in each case individually. A simple comparison was made on case by case basis instead of performing statistical analysis since the case numbers are low and patients were much diversified in each item that has been analyzed. Literatures on this subject were reviewed in order to draw a safe conclusion and found to be supportive to our finding in a much broad scope., Results: There are six males and three females whose ages ranged 39-74 years old with an average of 58.8. Patients were either with or without symptoms at the time of diagnosis. The liver function and tumor marker exam were normal in all but one patient. The incidence of HMM does not affect liver function and was not related to virus infection status in the liver. Most of these HMM patients were also accompanied by the metastases of other locations, including lung, abdominal cavity, and cervical lymph nodes. Ultrasound examinations showed lesions ranging 2-12 cm in diameter, with no- or low-echo peripheral areola. Doppler showed blood flow appeared inside some tumors as well as in the surrounding area. CT image demonstrated low density without uniformed lesions, characterized with calcification in periphery, and enhanced in the arterial phase. Contrast phase showed heterogeneous enhancement, with a density higher than normal liver tissue, which was especially apparent at the edge. Patients were treated differently with following procedures: patients #1, #6 and #8 were operated with hepatectomy with or without removal of primary lesion, and followed by comprehensive biotherapy/chemotherapy; patient #9 received hepatectomy only; patient #2 received bacille calmette-guerin treatment only; patient #7 had Mile's surgery but no hepatectomy; and patients #3, #4 and #5 had supportive treatment without specific measurement. The patients who had resections of metastatic lesions followed by post-operative comprehensive therapy have an average survival time of 30.7 mo, which is much longer than those did not receive surgery treatment (4.6 mo). Even for the patient receiving a resection of HMM only, the post-operative survival time was 18 mo at the time we reviewed the data. This patient and the patient #6 are still alive currently and subjected to continue following up., Conclusion: Surgical operation should be first choice for HMM treatment, and together with biotherapy/chemotherapy, hepatectomy is likely to bring better prognosis.

Objective: To explore the clinical features, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of primary hepatic angiosarcoma (PHA)., Methods: The clinical data of 7 PHA patients admitted to our hospital from December 2004 to December 2010 were retrospectively analyzed and the relevant literatures reviewed., Results: Seven cases (5 males and 2 females) were diagnosed as PHA among 1027 (0.68%) patients with primary hepatic malignant tumors. Their mean age was 43.3 years old (range: 33 - 74). Four cases were of solitary lesion and three of multiple lesions. No specific clinical features were observed. The PHA lesions were easily misdiagnosed as benign or hepatic metastatic tumors. Contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) showed the lesions with characteristic manifestations. And the positron emission tomography (PET-CT) could confirm the hepatic lesions as malignant tumors. The survival time for two untreated cases was 3 & 5 months, for two cases with liver transplantation (LTx) 3 & 8 months and for two cases treated with surgical resection & targeted therapy was 14 & 19 months respectively. One case was lost to follow-up at 6 months after hepatic resection., Conclusion: PHA is a clinically rare and highly malignant tumor with a rapid progression and a poor prognosis. Both CEUS and PET-CT are helpful for its differential and confirmative diagnosis. LTx should be considered as a contraindication for PHA. Hepatic resection has proven to be beneficial for PHA patients with solitary lesion. Surgical resection plus targeted medicines may improve their survival.

Objective: To summarize the experience of hepatectomy in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma fulfilling the Milan criteria and analyze the clinicopathological factors for patient survival and tumor recurrence., Methods: The clinicopathological data of 104 patients with early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma fulfilling the Milan criteria and underwent hepatectomy at Peking Union Medical College Hospital between April 2003 and June 2009 were retrospectively analyzed., Results: The median follow-up was 24 months. There were 54 recurrent cases. The 1-, 3- and 5-year cumulative disease-free survival rate were 63.0%, 32.6% and 22.4% respectively. Neither univariate analysis nor multivariate analysis indicated any factor significantly correlated with recurrence (P>0.05). The cumulative overall survival rate at 1, 3 and 5 years were 88.8%, 68.1% and 68.1% respectively. Univariate analysis revealed that blood transfusion (P=0.000), involvement of hepatic capsule (P=0.000) and postoperative transarterial chemotherapy (P=0.049) were significantly correlated with survival. And multivariate analysis indicated that blood transfusion (P=0.001) and involvement of hepatic capsule (P=0.000) were independent prognostic factors for survival., Conclusion: For the patients with early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma and compensated liver function fulfilling the Milan criteria, hepatectomy serves as the preferred treatment strategy.

Aim: To investigate the impact of postoperative antiviral treatment on tumor recurrence and survival of patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection-related primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after curative therapy., Methods: We performed a meta-analysis of randomized and non-randomized control trials from electronic search and manual search. The fixed effect model of Mantel-Haenszel method and the random effect model of Der Simonian and Laird method were used for homogeneous and heterogeneous studies, respectively. Seven HCV-related studies, three HBV-related studies and three studies on HBV or HCV-related HCC were identified., Results: A total of 1224 patients were included in this analysis. The estimated odds ratios (OR) for the 1-, 2-, 3- and 5-year recurrence were 0.54 [15.4% vs 24.1%, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.32-0.89, P = 0.02], 0.42 (36.9% vs 58.0%, 95% CI: 0.19-0.90, P = 0.03), 0.37 (47.9% vs 63.8%, 95% CI: 0.19-0.71, P = 0.003), and 0.32 (66.7% vs 74.3%, 95% CI: 0.15-0.66, P = 0.002), respectively; and the OR for the 1-, 2-, 3-, 5- and 7-year mortality were 0.23 (1.2% vs 9.1%, 95% CI: 0.07-0.71, P = 0.01), 0.31 (6.4% vs 22.1%, 95% CI: 0.12-0.79, P = 0.01), 0.43 (12.7% vs 20.8%, 95% CI: 0.21-0.89, P = 0.02), 0.42 (25.1% vs 42.0%, 95% CI: 0.27-0.66, P = 0.0002) and 0.28 (31.9% vs 52.2%, 95% CI: 0.13-0.59, P = 0.0008)., Conclusion: This meta-analysis indicates the postoperative antiviral therapy, interferon in particular, may serve as a favorable alternative to reduce recurrence and mortality in patients with HBV/HCV related HCCs.

Objective: Pancreatic metastasis from renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a rare event and has not been reported in our country. We report a series of 3 patients with metastatic RCC to the pancreas after radical nephrectomy at our institution. The published reports in the literature were reviewed, and the diagnosis, treatment as well as prognosis of this rare event were discussed., Methods: The data of 3 RCC patients with metastasis to the pancreas were reviewed retrospectively, including radical nephrectomy, metastatic interval, the second and third surgical removal. Survival of the three patients was analyzed and the reports in the literature were compared as well., Results: The average interval from radical nephrectectomy to the comfirmed pancreatic metastasis was 6.6 years (range, 1.2 to 12 years). The pathological stage revealed T2N0M0 (n = 2) or T3N0M0 (n = 1), with right-sided tumor in 2 patients and left side in 1. One patient was asymptomatic, while the other two cases were symptomatic at presentation, including upper abdominal pain, weight loss, slight xanthochromia of the skin and titillation, clay stool (n = 1); irregular fever, weight loss and jaundice (n = 1). All pancreatic metastases were hypervascular on arterial stage of CT imaging. One patient had only a solitary pancreatic metastasis (n = 1), the another showed two metastatic lesions (n = 1), the third one had multiple lesions (n = 1). Surgical removal was accomplished in 2 patients: including pylorus-preserving pancreaticoduodenectomy in one, and pylorus-preserving pancreaticoduodenectomy together with partial tail resection in another one. The third one only received interventional therapy due to widespread extrapancreatic metastasis, and died of disseminated disease 11 months after the therapy. One of the above two surgically treated patients underwent the second removal due to local recurrence 2.5 years after the first removal of pancreatic metastasis. These two patients were still alive after follow-up of 8.6 years and 16.1 years, respectively., Conclusion: Renal cell carcinoma is an unpredictable tumor that may demonstrate very delayed metastasis even from early-stage of the disease. The pancreas is a rare site of metastasis from renal cell carcinoma. We advocate careful long-term follow-up of patients with a history of RCC. Aggressive surgical management of pancreatic metastatic lesions may provide a chance of long-term survival.

Objective: To observe the precise time of the recurrence after resection of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to further explore the risk factors associated with postoperative recurrence., Methods: Totally 94 patients who had undergone resection of HCC were divided into three groups based on the time of recurrence, which was indicated by the digital subtraction angiography (DSA) examination: recurrence between 1 to 6 months, recurrence between 7 to 12 months, and tumor-free after 12 months. Patients with intra-hepatic recurrence were treated with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization and confirmed by CT scans after embolization, contrast-enhanced ultrasound, or magnetic resonance imaging., Results: The recurrence rates of 6 months and 1 year were 30.9% and 36.2%, respectively. No statistically significant difference between 6-month and 1-year recurrence rates was observed. Nine (26.5%) patients with recurrence and five (8.3%) patients free of tumor had previously presented as multifocal HCC, which showed a statistical significance (P = 0.032). The diagnostic accuracy of DSA was 87.2%, which was eventually confirmed by the other investigations., Conclusions: Most recurrences occure within the first six months postoperatively and multifocal carcinogenesis is one of the risk factors associated with early recurrence after liver resection for advanced HCC. DSA is an important surveillance for early detection of intra-hepatic recurrence after surgery; meanwhile, it also provides information for early management to control the disease progression and for future active therapies.

Objective: To evaluate the characteristics of autophagy in fibrotic and postoperative remnant liver., Methods: Male Wistar rats were randomly divided into three groups: control group; fibrosis group, which received the solution of CCl4 in oil twice a week for 5 weeks; and hepatectomy group, which underwent 70% hepatectomy. Liver tissues and plasma were harvested 18 hours after the surgery. The rats' general conditions and plasma liver function were observed. Histopathological characteristics and regeneration were observed with microscope and transmission electron microscope. Qualitative analysis of autophagosome was made base on the data from transmission electron microscope., Results: Compared with the control group, plasma total protein and albumin level significantly decreased in the fibrosis group (P < 0.01). Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) index was 85%-95% in the fibrosis group. Plasma alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase levels significantly increased in the hepatectomy group compared with the control group (P < 0.01), while the autophagical index significantly decreased in both the fibrosis group and hepatectomy group compared with the control group (-95%, P < 0.01; -19%, P < 0.05, respectively). PCNA index was 20%-30% in the hepatectomy group., Conclusions: Autophagy is weakened after fibrosis and hepatectomy, although it differs between these two processes. Proper regulation of autophagy may help facilitate the recovery of the residual liver function after hepatectomy.

Objective: To establish a three-dimentional liver function evaluation system using 99mTc-diethyl iminodiacetic acid (99mTc-EHIDA) scintigraphy based on single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)., Methods: Totally 16 patients with liver lesions were divided into cirrhosis group and non-cirrhosis group. SPECT was performed 2 days before operation and 5 days after operation. Serum liver functions were examined on the same day of scintigraphy. SPECT images of areas of interest of heart and liver were aquired. Time of the peak of EHIDA density in liver (Tpeak), five-minutes heart liver index (HLI5), blood clearance index (HH15), receptor index (LHL15), and the predictive values were calculated., Results: Tpeak was not significantly different between two groups, while HLI5, HH15, and LHL15 were significantly different (P = 0.033, P = 0.001, and P = 0.005). HLI, and LHL15 were significantly correlated with preoperative total protein and prealbumin levels (P = 0.003, P = 0.015, P = 0.022, P = 0.038) and post-operative prealbumin (P = 0.037, P = 0.042). The predictive values of HLI5 and LHL15 correlated well with postoperative HLI5 and LHL15 (r = 0.675, P = 0.016; r = 0.629, P = 0.028)., Conclusion: The three-dimentional liver function evaluation system using 99mTc-EHIDA based on liver SPECT may facilitate the further studies of risks of liver surgery.

Objective: To summarize the surgical experiences, risks, complications, and managements for hepatic masses in difficult sites., Methods: Totally 47 patients were divided into three groups based on the liver tumor sites: primary porta hepatis group, secondary porta hepatis group, and caudate lobe group. All patients underwent different portion of hepatectomy., Results: The surgery duration was (289.6 +/- 62.2) ml-nutes, intra-operative blood loss was (602.3 +/- 256.4) ml, and intra-operative blood transfusion was (524.0 +/- 325.9) ml. Incidence of surgical complications in each group was 61.5%, 26.9%, and 25%, respectively. Serious complications observed were biliary leakage (27.7%), bleeding (6.4%), and post-operative liver failure (2.1%). Three perioperative deaths were reported: two patients died of bleeding, and one patient died from liver failure., Conclusions: Dissection of the liver and exposure of major blood vessels and biliary ducts are of critical importance in the surgeries for hepatic masses in difficult sites, and post-operative complications may be remarkably reduced through delicate manipulations of the small intra-hepatic vessels and biliary ducts during resection. A thorough pre-operative evaluation plays a key role in predicting the feasibility and risks of the surgery. Damage to the major blood vessels adjacent to the tumor, in addition to bleeding, may result in in-flow or outflow obstruction and cause necrosis of the corresponding hepatic lobe. Compared with damage to the primary portal area, vascular damage to the secondary porta is generally associated with higher fatality.

Objective: To evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of Golgi glycoprotein 73 (GP73) for the diagnosis of hepatitis B related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)., Methods: Western blotting was used to detect the serum GP73level in 25 patients being HBV carrier, 24 HCC patients, 12 patients with non-liver disease, and 99 healthy controls. Serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) was detected by electrochemiluminescence reaction. The levels of sensitivity and specificity of serum GP73 in diagnosing HCC were compared with those of AFP. The serum GP73 levels of some HCC patients during the perioperative period were compared., Results: The serum GP73 level of the HCC patients, all HBV positive, was (40.36 +/- 64.43) relative units, significantly higher than those of the HBV carriers, non-liver patients, and healthy controls [(7.82 +/- 10.72), (4.48 +/- 5.70), and (2.59 +/- 5.12) relative units respectively, all P < 0.01]. There was no difference of GP73 levels between the healthy controls and the patients of non liver diseases (P = 0.2925). The sensitivity of GP73 for the diagnosis of HCC was 76.9%, significantly higher than that of AFP (48.6%). The specificity for the diagnosis of HCC of GP73 was 92.9%. Findings in a few HCC patients showed that the GP73 level remained not remarkably lowered within a week after surgical resection; but became lower 1.5-2 years after surgery. There was no raise of GP73 in the patients with non- malignant liver lesions. The GP73 levels of 4 of the 6 intra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma patients were between those of the HCC patients and HBV carriers., Conclusion: Serum GP73 has higher sensitivity and specificity in diagnosis of hepatitis B-related HCC than AFP, and it can become a new effective HCC tumor marker.

Objective: To explore the possibility of using melanoma antigen (MAGE)-1 and MAGE-3 gene encoding proteins as an index of potential target for immunotherapy in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (IHCC) patients., Methods: The expressions of MAGE-1 and MAGE-3 genes in tumor tissues and tumor adjacent non-IHCC liver tissues were examined by RT-PCR method. The relationship between positive expression rates of MAGE-1 and MAGE-3 genes and clinical data including sex, age, tumor diameters, tumor envelope, tumor nodules number, and hepatitis B virus surface antigen were determined., Results: The positive expression rates of MAGE-1 (35%) and MAGE-3 genes (45%) were significantly higher in the tumor tissues than in tumor adjacent tissues (0) (P<0.01). The positive expression rates of MAGE-1 and MAGE-3 genes had no relationship with the clinical data (P >0.05), except the morphology of tumor (P <0.05)., Conclusion: The high expression rates of MAGE-1 and MAGE-3 genes in IHCC suggests the MAGE-1 and MAGE-3 gene may be a target for immunotherapy in IHCC patients.

Objective: To evaluate the values of the two tracers of positron emission tomography (PET) in the liver masses not definitely diagnosed by routine examinations., Methods: Fifteen patients with liver masses of indefinite diagnosis after serum tests and common imaging examinations underwent PET with both (11)C-acetate and (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG). The results were compared. After the PET all 15 patients were subjected to surgery., Results: Pathological examination showed that 13 of the 15 patients were confirmed as malignant liver lesions and the other 2 as benign. Within the 13 malignant liver lesions, (11)C-acetate-PET suggested malignancy in 10 cases, and benignancy in 3 cases. And (18)F-FDG-PET suggested malignancy in 9 cases and benignancy in 4 cases. In the two benign cases, both (11)C-acetate-PET and (18)F-FDG-PET showed one malignant liver lesion and one benign liver lesion. (11)C-acetate-PET showed a high sensitivity (100%) for the well-differentiated tumors, and (18)F-FDG-PET showed a high sensitivity for the poorly-differentiated tumors., Conclusion: The diagnostic accuracy for liver lesions may be improved by the two tracers of PET when the lesions can not be definitely diagnosed by routine examinations and at the same time when the patients are able to afford two PET examinations. They may also imply the cell-differentiation of the liver masses, and be helpful for selecting the treatment means for the patients.

Objective: To summarize the experience in the diagnosis and treatment of biliary cystadenoma and cystadenocarcinoma., Methods: The clinical data of 8 patients of biliary cystadenoma and cystadenocarcinoma, 3 males and 5 females, aged 55.8 (26 approximately 71), were analyzed retrospectively., Results: There were 2 cases of biliary cystadenoma and 6 vases of biliary cystadenocarcinoma confirmed by histopathologic examination. Three patients were found by routine physical examination and the other 5 patients admitted to the hospital with abdominal pain with or without fever. Ultrasound examination was a good choice for primary diagnosis and follow-up, while CT scan was better for the suspected cases. Surgical therapy was a major treatment method and was important for total resection to achieve longer survival time and lower recurrence rate. The results of long-term follow-up were satisfactory if the tumors were resected completely., Conclusion: The accurate diagnosis is truly important for the following treatment of biliary cystadenoma and cystadenocarcinoma. The completely resection of the tumors is the key point to achieve a better outcome.

Objective: The predictive value of postoperative hepatic function evaluated by liver functional imaging combined with single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) technique was appraised in the present study., Methods: Twenty New Zealand white rabbits were divided randomly into two groups, including the Hepatic Fibrosis with Carcinoma Group (FC-Group, n = 10) and the Control Group (C-Group, n = 10). All the rabbits underwent the resection of outer-right lobe of the liver. The whole hepatic function indexes, such as HCI(5), HLI(5) and Ex(15), and the hepatic function remnant indexes, including HCI(5P), HLI(5P) and Ex(15P), were calculated by 99mTc-EHIDA liver imaging., Results: Ex(15) of FC-Group was lower than that of C-Group (P < 0.05). HCI(5) and HLI(5) of FC-Group had the trends to increase compared with the C-Group. Ex(15) was positively correlated with ALB, and negatively correlated with TBil and GGT (P < 0.05). HCI(5) had a positive correlation with CHE (P < 0.05), while HLI(5) had a negative correlation with A/G (P < 0.05). HLI(5P) had the negative correlation with postoperative A/G (P < 0.05), and Ex(15P) had the negative correlation with postoperative TBil and GGT (P < 0.05)., Conclusions: This study has established a method of 3-D liver function evaluation system on an animal model. Among the indexes, Ex(15) can exactly represent the whole liver function while Ex(15P) and HLI(5P) can predict the liver function after the liver resection. The results may help the future clinical use of this technique to evaluate the risk of operation.

Objective: To report the first case of primary epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma (EMC) in the liver., Methods: The clinical manifestations, imaging characteristics, and histopathological changes of EMC in this case were described. The patient was a thirty-seven-year old female. A 10 cm lesion was detected in the right liver upon a routine examination. Following that, the CT scan, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), repeated puncture biopsies, and serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) detection were done with no specificity and significance found., Results: Right hemi-hepatectomy was performed. The special double catheterization cannula was found in the histopathological examination, and the final diagnosis of EMC was proven by immuno-histochemical staining., Conclusions: Primary EMC is difficult to be finally diagnosed prior to the surgery. The diagnosis can be confirmed using pathological examination and immuno-histochemical staining of the specimen.

Objectives: To investigate the feasibility and safety of one-day bowel preparation for colorectal surgery., Methods: Forty patients undergone colorectal surgery were divided randomly into the Control group and the Experimental group and received 3-day magnesium sulfate and 1-day sodium phosphate bowel preparations before the operation, respectively. The levels of hemoglobin, hematocrit, serum electrolytes, and anaerobe counts in the stool prior and post bowel preparation were examined. The general status, surgical complications, and structure of intestinal mucosa in the patients were observed after the operation., Results: There was no significant difference in the anastomoses healing, infectious complications, serum tests and intestinal mucosa structures between the two groups. Less diarrhea occurred prior and post the surgery in the experimental group, and they felt better with the bowel preparation. The anaerobe counts in stool were higher after the bowel preparation than before in both groups., Conclusions: One-day bowel preparation with sodium phosphate is a safe and reliable method for colorectal surgery. The shortening of preparation time can reduce the degrees of uncomfortable feeling and disruptions of intestinal micro-ecology and barrier.

Objective: To improve the diagnosis and treatment of primitive neuroectodermal tumors (PNET) of the pancreas., Methods: One patient with PNET of the pancreas was reported in this article. The corresponding literatures on the diagnosis and treatment was reviewed., Results: The patient was diagnosed as pancreatic PNET by her clinical, microscopic, and immunohistochemical features as well as cytogenetic analysis after the resection of the tumor located in the uncinate process in PUMC Hospital. Radiochemotherapy was given after the operation for 8 months and no recurrence was observed. Since PNET of pancreas have no specific clinical symptoms and most patients have jaundice and/or abdominal pain, the diagnosis depended on the immunohistochemical features of positive P30/32(MIC2) and at least two of the neural markers. The cytogenetic analysis showed translocation mainly harbored the characteristic t (11; 22) (q24; q12). Since pancreatic PNET were highly aggressive, early chemotherapy, close follow-up, and immediate surgical interventions were required as early as possible., Conclusion: PNET can occur in pancreas, and diagnosis and treatment should be made as early as possible to improve the outcome.

Objective: To develop a high risk scoring model and screening strategy to improve the diagnosis of symptomatic pancreatic cancer., Methods: A hospital-based case-control study was undertaken among a cohort comprising 136 pancreatic cancer patients and 191 patients with benign gastrointestinal diseases who were hospitalized between Feb, 2002 and Mar, 2004. All patients were consulted with an epidemiological questionnaire. Risk factors and symptoms described in the questionnaire were compared between these two groups. Significant and borderline risk factors and symptoms were selected to undergo multivariate logistic regression. A high risk scoring model was constructed according to the weighted numerical scores of every variable. The diagnostic values of 4 tumor markers of pancreatic cancers (serum CA19-9, CA242, stool K-ras and p53 mutation) and 2 imaging tests (abdominal spiral CT and ultrasonography) were evaluated to provide evidence for establishing the diagnostic strategy., Results: The average score was significantly higher for the pancreatic cancer patients than for the control patients [mean 49.6 (95% CI: 45.6-53.7) vs 21.6 (95% CI: 19.3-23.9); P < 0.01]. With a cutoff value of 27 points, the sensitivity and specificity of the scoring model was 87.0% and 68.1% respectively. CT had the highest sensitivity (94.7%) among the 4 tumor markers and 2 imaging tests. Combination of the two tumor markers (CA19-9 and stool K-ras) with CT or ultrasonography could improve the sensitivity to 100% with a specificity of 67.5%-73.0%. It was suggested that for high risk patients with a risk score more than 27, the combination test be recommended as the primary test, endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) and/or endoscopic retrograde cholangipancreatography (ERCP) be considered for patients with inconclusive CT studies when risk score and tumor markers nevertheless suggest pancreatic cancer., Conclusion: The high risk scoring model provides a simple and feasible way to screen pancreatic patients in hospitals at all levels. Once high risk patients are identified, they can be transferred to higher level hospitals to receive further examinations. This screening strategy may help detect more resectable pancreatic cancers.

Objective: To study the mechanism by which AG490 improves the survival rate of rats following extensive liver resection., Methods: Thirty-eight rats were randomly divided into two groups after surgery: control group (n=10), without treatment; (2) AG490 group (n=28), with AG490 (1 mg x kg(-1) x 12 h(-1)) administrated intraperitoneally immediately and 36 hours after the operation. The survival rate was observed and the serum liver functions were measured., Results: The survival rates of control group and AG490 group were 0% and 25%. AG490 group had significantly better blood glucose and aminotransferase levels (P < 0.05) than control group; serum bilirubin levels significantly decreased 48 hours after the operation. Serum protein levels in both two groups had slow decrease but without statistical significance (P > 0.05)., Conclusions: AG490 can significantly increase the survival rate of rats following extensive liver resection. Such a benefit mainly results from the protection towards residual liver function rather than from the promotion of liver regeneration.

Objective: To investigate the impact of AG490, a cytokine signaling inhibitor, on cytokine signaling pathway with phosphorylation levels of Janus kinase 2 (Jak2) and singal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (Stat3), and liver pro-/anti-inflammatory cytokine expressions., Methods: Rats were divided into two groups after surgery: control group, without treatment; AG490 group, with AG490 (1 mg.kg(-1).12 h(-1)) administration intraperitoneally, immediately and through 36 hs after the operation. Western blotting was used to detect the levels of phosphorylated Jak2 and Stat3. Semi-quantitative RT-PCR was employed to examine Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and Interleukin-10 (IL-10) expression., Results: At 8 h and 12 h post-operatively, the phosphorylation levels of Jak2 and Stat3 were significantly inhibited in the AG490 group when compared with the control group. The DNA levels of IL-6 in the liver of the AG490 group rat at the same time points were also decreased, whereas IL-10 levels markedly increased. These changes made the ratio of IL-6/IL-10 dropped significantly., Conclusions: AG490 ameliorates the overwhelming inflammatory response via a mechanism of blocking cytokine signaling transduction and consequently suppresses the ratio of pro-/anti-inflammatory cytokine expression, which exerts potential clinical implications of use of anti-inflammatory agents in hepatic surgery.