Response to First-Line Chemotherapy Predicts Response to Maintenance Avelumab Therapy in Japanese Patients With Advanced Urothelial Carcinoma.

Objectives: The association between the response to first-line chemotherapy and maintenance of avelumab remains unclear. We identified factors associated with the response to avelumab in patients with advanced urothelial carcinoma using real-world data.

Methods: We retrospectively enrolled 100 patients with advanced urothelial carcinoma treated with maintenance avelumab therapy between March 2021 and April 2024 at Nagoya University and nine affiliated hospitals.

Lenvatinib for unresectable anaplastic thyroid cancer: real-world experiences in multi-institutional study.

Purpose: Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) is a rare, aggressive malignancy with poor prognosis. Lenvatinib has demonstrated moderate efficacy and is approved for unresectable ATC treatment in Japan. However, some patients are unable to tolerate the standard 24 mg daily dose and require dose reductions or interruptions due to its high incidence of adverse effects.

Prospective observational study on the relationships between genetic alterations and survival in Japanese patients with metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer: the impact of IDC-P.

Background: Intraductal Carcinoma of the Prostate (IDC-P) is a significant prognostic indicator for prostate cancer, which demonstrates significant associations with homologous recombination repair gene mutations (HRRm) and alterations in tumor suppressor genes. However, no study in Japan has investigated the association between IDC-P and genetic mutations in men with metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC).

Methods: This prospective observational study enrolled 102 de novo mCSPC (LATITUDE high-risk) patients diagnosed between 2018 and 2021, with subsequent monitoring of survival outcomes.

Predicting postpartum hemorrhage in women undergoing planned cesarean section: A multicenter retrospective cohort study in Japan.

Given Japan's unique social background, it is critical to understand the current risk factors for postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) to effectively manage the condition, especially among specific groups. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the current risk factors for PPH during planned cesarean section (CS) in Japan. This multicenter retrospective cohort study was conducted in two tertiary maternal-fetal medicine units in Fukushima, Japan and included 1,069 women who underwent planned CS between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2022.

Hydropic leiomyoma-like ovarian tumor: a case report.

Uterine leiomyomas, benign tumors common in reproductive-aged women, can display rare variants such as hydropic leiomyoma (HL), which exhibit unique histological features like zonal edema and increased vascularity. However, due to its rarity, comprehensive clinical knowledge about HL is limited. We report a case of a 49-year-old Japanese woman who was premenopausal and nulliparous, presenting with a two-year history of abdominal distension.

Utility and optimal management of planned drug holidays during lenvatinib treatment in patients with unresectable differentiated thyroid cancer: a real-world multi-center study.

Purpose: Lenvatinib achieves favorable therapeutic outcomes for patients with radioactive iodine therapy refractory differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC); however, its use is associated with a high incidence of adverse events. To avoid severe adverse events, planned drug holidays (PDH) have been proposed. This study aimed to evaluate treatment effects, identify prognostic factors, and investigate the usefulness of PDH in patients with unresectable DTC who received lenvatinib across the multi-institutions.

Evaluation and treatment of constipation in pregnancy:Examination using the Japanese version of the constipation evaluation scale.

Objectives: No study has examined the effects of new constipation treatment drugs released in recent years in pregnant women. This prospective cohort study aimed to examine and compare the perinatal prognosis, efficacy rate, and safety of drugs frequently used to treat constipation.

Methods: The study included 211 perinatally managed individuals who answered a self-administered questionnaire during the second trimester and after delivery.

Molecular basis of carotid body tumor and associated clinical features in Japan identified by genomic, immunohistochemical, and clinical analyses.

Carotid body tumor (CBT) is classified as a paraganglioma (PGL). Here, we report the genetic background, protein expression pattern, and clinical findings of 30 Japanese CBT cases. Germline pathogenic or likely pathogenic (P/LP) variants of genes encoding succinate dehydrogenase subunits (SDHs) were detected in 15 of 30 cases (50%).

Comparative analysis of temperature preference behavior and effects of temperature on daily behavior in 11 Drosophila species.

Temperature is one of the most critical environmental factors that influence various biological processes. Species distributed in different temperature regions are considered to have different optimal temperatures for daily life activities. However, how organisms have acquired various features to cope with particular temperature environments remains to be elucidated.

Tubo-ovarian abscess in a patient with cri du chat syndrome: A case report.

A tubo-ovarian abscess is an infection that occurs as a sequela of pelvic inflammatory disease. There is no reported association between a tubo-ovarian abscess and cri du chat syndrome in the medical literature. Herein, we report the case of a 44-year-old woman with cri du chat syndrome who was subsequently diagnosed with a tubo-ovarian abscess.

Risk factors for discontinuation of exclusive breast feeding within 1month: a retrospective cohort study in Japan.

Background: While breastfeeding provides benefits for infants and the mother, many women either do not breastfeed or terminate breastfeeding earlier than recommended. The aim of this analysis was to identify factors associated with early discontinuation of breastfeeding in Japanese women.

Methods: This study used data from medical records of women delivering a singleton live birth between March 2017 and August 2019 in Iwase General Hospital, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan to assess cessation of breastfeeding by the 1-month postpartum appointment.

Carotid body tumor with neck metastasis due to germline variant: a case report and literature review.

Unlabelled: Carotid body tumor involving the succinate dehydrogenase subunit B (SDHB) variant reportedly had a higher frequency of metastasis than other variants of succinate dehydrogenase. However, the correlation between genotype and phenotype among patients with carotid body tumor with gene variant remains unclear. Thus, we present a case of carotid body tumor with neck lymph metastasis caused by a novel variant, which resulted in long-term disease-free survival achieved after surgery.

Pregnancy complicated by central diabetes insipidus and oligohydramnios.

This is the fourth reported case of central diabetes insipidus with oligohydramnios. Central diabetes insipidus does not adversely affect pregnancy; it can present with oligohydramnios, which can be improved by treating central diabetes insipidus.

Cyclooxygenase-2 expression is associated with chemoresistance through cancer stemness property in hypopharyngeal carcinoma.

Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is one of the two isoforms of COX, an enzyme that catalyzes the conversion of arachidonic acid to prostaglandins. COX-2 is associated with the progression in various types of cancer, and its expression has been associated with a poor prognosis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Furthermore, COX-2 expression has been associated with resistance to anticancer drugs.

Selective EP2 and Cox-2 inhibition suppresses cell migration by reversing epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and Cox-2 overexpression and E-cadherin downregulation are implicated in neck metastasis of hypopharyngeal cancer.

Cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2) has been shown to promote cancer initiation and progression through pleiotropic functions including induction of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) via its predominant product prostaglandin E that binds to the cognate receptor EP2. Hence, pharmacological inhibition at the level of EP2 is assumed to be a more selective alternative with less risk to Cox-2 inhibition. However, little is known regarding the anti-cancer effect of an EP2 antagonist on the malignant properties of cancers including hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (HPSCC).

Cyclo-oxygenase-2 Expression Is Associated With Lymph Node Metastasis in Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Under the New TNM Classification.

Background: This study aimed to investigate p16 and COX2 expression in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC), and evaluate the prognostic role of COX2 expression under the new TNM classification.

Materials And Methods: Biopsy specimens obtained from 75 patients with OPSCC were stained for p16 and COX2 expression immunohistochemically. The results and clinical records were analyzed retrospectively.

Usefulness of Hematological Inflammatory Markers in Predicting Severe Side-effects from Induction Chemotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer Patients.

Background: Induction chemotherapy (IC) for head and neck cancer (HNC) often causes severe side-effects. However, it has still been challenging to predict the adverse events. The present study aimed to evaluate the role of hematological inflammatory markers in predicting severe side-effects caused by IC.

Frequent nonrandom shifts in the temporal sequence of developmental landmark events during teleost evolutionary diversification.

Morphological transformations can be generated by evolutionary changes in the sequence of developmental events. In this study, we examined the evolutionary dynamics of the developmental sequence on a macroevolutionary scale in teleosts. Using the information from previous reports describing the development of 31 species, we extracted the developmental sequences of 19 landmark events involving the formation of phylogenetically conserved body parts; we then inferred ancestral developmental sequences by two different parsimony-based methods-event-pairing and continuous analysis.

Uterine rupture at 33rd week of gestation after laparoscopic myomectomy with signs of fetal distress. A case report and review of literature.

Objective: We describe a case of uterine rupture (UR) during pregnancy after laparoscopic myomectomy (LM) and discuss the risk factors of UR.

Case Report: A 37-year-old woman with multiple myomas underwent laparoscopic myomectomy. Subserosal and intramural myomas were enucleated, and the myometrial wounds were repaired with single-layer suturing.