Publications by authors named "Amanda Cass"

Variation in gastrointestinal morphology is associated with dietary specialization across the animal kingdom. Gut length generally correlates with trophic level, and increased gut length in herbivores is a classic example of adaptation to cope with diets having a lower nutrient content and a higher proportion of refractory material. However, the genetic basis of gut length variation remains largely unstudied, partly due to the inaccessibility and plasticity of the gut tissue, as well as the lack of dietary diversity within traditional model organisms relative to that observed among species belonging to different trophic levels.

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Purpose: Osimertinib is a third-generation EGFR-TKI and preferred first-line (1L) treatment for EGFR positive (EGFR+) metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (mNSCLC). This study compared real-world clinical outcomes of 1L osimertinib versus 1st or 2nd generation EGFR-TKIs (1/2G-TKIs) in patients with EGFR+ mNSCLC.

Methods: Nine academic cancer centers in the US participated in the retrospective cohort study.

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Introduction: Osimertinib is now a standard first-line (1L) therapy for EGFR-mutated (EGFRm) advanced NSCLC. We aimed to characterize patterns of therapy and longitudinal risk of brain and liver metastasis in a cohort of EGFRm NSCLC.

Methods: Patients with metastatic EGFRm NSCLC who received 1L systemic therapy at sites within the Academic Thoracic Medical Investigator's Consortium were included; demographic and clinical data including treatment patterns were described.

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Introduction: Determining lines of therapy (LOT) using real-world data is crucial to inform clinical decisions and support clinical research. Existing rules for determining LOT in patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (mNSCLC) do not incorporate the growing number of targeted therapies used in treatment today. Therefore, we propose rules for determining LOT from real-world data of patients with mNSCLC treated with targeted therapies.

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Introduction: Characteristics of long-term survivors in EGFR-mutant (EGFRm) NSCLC are not fully understood. This retrospective analysis evaluated a multi-institution cohort of patients with EGFRm NSCLC treated in the pre-osimertinib era and sought to describe characteristics of long-term survivors.

Methods: Clinical characteristics and outcomes were abstracted from the electronic medical records of patients with EGFRm metastatic NSCLC who started first-line therapy before 2015.

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Article Synopsis
  • DNA barcoding uses molecular techniques like DNA extraction, PCR, and Sanger sequencing to identify biological samples.
  • Although it's a valuable tool for hands-on learning in classes, extracting DNA affordably and efficiently from various sample types can be difficult.
  • The text presents two methods that novice students can use to effectively extract DNA from a range of organisms for barcoding purposes.
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Introduction: Acquired gene amplification, exon 14 skip mutations, or fusions can emerge as resistance mechanisms to tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in patients with lung cancer. The efficacy and safety of combining MET TKIs (such as crizotinib, capmatinib, or tepotinib) with parent TKIs to target acquired MET resistance are not well characterized.

Methods: Multi-institutional retrospective chart review identified 83 patients with metastatic oncogene-driven NSCLC that were separated into the following two pairwise matched cohorts: (1) MET cohort (n = 41)-patients with acquired MET resistance continuing their parent TKI with a MET TKI added or (2) Chemotherapy cohort (n = 42)-patients without any actionable resistance continuing their parent TKI with a platinum-pemetrexed added.

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Background: More than 50% of patients with lung cancer are admitted to the hospital while receiving treatment, which is a burden to patients and the healthcare system. This study characterizes the risk factors and outcomes of patients with lung cancer who were admitted to the hospital.

Methods: A multidisciplinary oncology care team conducted a retrospective medical record review of patients with lung cancer admitted in 2018.

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The development of paired appendages was a key innovation during evolution and facilitated the aquatic to terrestrial transition of vertebrates. Largely derived from the lateral plate mesoderm (LPM), one hypothesis for the evolution of paired fins invokes derivation from unpaired median fins via a pair of lateral fin folds located between pectoral and pelvic fin territories. Whilst unpaired and paired fins exhibit similar structural and molecular characteristics, no definitive evidence exists for paired lateral fin folds in larvae or adults of any extant or extinct species.

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Background And Objective: Low and intermediate grade neuroendocrine tumors of the lung are uncommon malignancies representing 2% of all lung cancers. These are termed typical and atypical pulmonary carcinoid tumors. These can arise in the setting of diffuse idiopathic pulmonary neuroendocrine cell hyperplasia (DIPNECH).

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Background: Whether influenza vaccination (FV) is associated with the severity of immune-related adverse events (IRAEs) in patients with advanced thoracic cancer on immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) is not fully understood.

Methods: Patients enrolled in this retrospective cohort study were identified from the Vanderbilt BioVU database and their medical records were reviewed. Patients with advanced thoracic cancer who received FV within 3 months prior to or during their ICI treatment period were enrolled in the FV-positive cohort and those who did not were enrolled in the FV-negative cohort.

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The origin and diversification of appendage types is a central question in vertebrate evolution. Understanding the genetic mechanisms that underlie fin and limb development can reveal relationships between different appendages. Here we demonstrate, using chemical genetics, a mutually agonistic interaction between Fgf and Shh genes in the developing dorsal fin of the channel catfish, .

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Background: Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are the front-line therapy for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), where phase 3 clinical trials have demonstrated their safety and efficacy. However, trial patients may not be representative of real-world patients (RWPs).

Objective: To evaluate RWP clinical factors associated with effectiveness and safety in CML patients treated with TKIs.

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Almost a half of patients diagnosed with nonesmall-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) present with incurable disease, and a significant number of patients who are treated with curative intent for early-stage disease will eventually recur. Systemic therapy is selected based on tumor histology, squamous versus nonsquamous NSCLC, molecular testing, and PD-L1 score. Depending on PD-L1 score, patients are eligible for immunotherapy alone or in combination with chemotherapy in the first-line setting.

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Salamanders and lungfishes are the only sarcopterygians (lobe-finned vertebrates) capable of paired appendage regeneration, regardless of the amputation level. Among actinopterygians (ray-finned fishes), regeneration after amputation at the fin endoskeleton has only been demonstrated in polypterid fishes (Cladistia). Whether this ability evolved independently in sarcopterygians and actinopterygians or has a common origin remains unknown.

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In 2017, due to a fluid shortage secondary to Hurricane Maria's devastation of Puerto Rico, hospitals and health-systems began to substitute rolapitant for fosaprepitant as part of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting prevention and treatment strategies. However, despite advantageous pharmacologic and formulation (e.g.

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Objectives: This study examined the pattern of use and factors predicting prolonged prescription opioid medications among cancer patients following treatment with curative intent.

Materials And Methods: Patients diagnosed with cancer over a 3-year period at a large urban safety-net hospital were included. Univariate and multivariate analyses was used to identify factors associated with continued opioid use.

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The presence of an air-filled organ (AO), either lungs or a swimbladder, is a defining character of the Osteichthyes (bony vertebrates, including tetrapods). Despite the functional and structural diversity of AOs, it was not previously known whether the same group of developmental regulatory genes are involved in the early development of both lungs and swimbladders. This study demonstrates that a suite of genes (Nkx2.

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