Nursing Students' Satisfaction and Perceptions Under the Unprecedented Abrupt Online Clinical Practicum During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Aim: To explore nursing students' satisfaction levels of each specific item and perceptions under the unprecedented abrupt online clinical practicum during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Design: A mixed-method design comprises a questionnaire and qualitative content analysis.

Methods: The study used purposive sampling using data from nursing students in grade 3 of a 4-year bachelor RN programme at a technological university in the north of Taiwan, compiled from May 2021 to June 2021 using an online questionnaire.

Multidisciplinary Team Approach to Pelvic Floor Disorders: A Systematic Review.

Background: Pelvic floor disorders (PFDs) severely and negatively impact on quality of life, affecting physical, psychological, and social well-being. Historically, PFDs have been managed within single-specialty frameworks, yet the complexity of these conditions often necessitates a comprehensive, multidisciplinary team (MDT) approach. This systematic review assesses the effectiveness of MDT strategies in improving outcomes for individuals with PFDs, aiming to identify the benefits and potential advantages of integrated, multi-specialty care for these complex conditions.

Development of PowerMag System II for Isolation of Circulating Tumor Cells with Improved Purity.

: The PowerMag system (PM) is a platform for the isolation of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) by the depletion of CD45-leukocytes. However, an EpCAMCD45 cell population is present in large numbers in the cell filtrates collected by PM. This lowers the purity of the CTCs and negatively impacts their molecular characterization.

Deep learning algorithms for predicting pathological complete response in MRI of rectal cancer patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy: a systematic review.

Purpose: This systematic review examines the utility of deep learning algorithms in predicting pathological complete response (pCR) in rectal cancer patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT). The primary goal is to evaluate the performance of MRI-based artificial intelligence (AI) models and explore factors affecting their diagnostic accuracy.

Methods: The review followed PRISMA guidelines and is registered with PROSPERO (CRD42024628017).

Impact of class cancellations on parents' and children' adaptation following an outbreak of the Omicron variant during the COVID-19 pandemic in Taiwan in April 2022.

Objective: To explore the impact on Taiwanese parents and children following an outbreak of the Omicron variant during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Data were collected following class cancellations mandated by the Ministry of Education due to an outbreak of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in April 2022. A national parent organization developed self-report survey questionnaire, "Impact of the Pandemic-related School Closures/Class Cancellations" (IPRSCCC), assessed parents' perceived impact of school cancellations on their child/children' and on their adaptation.

The prognostic and predictive significance of perineural invasion in stage I to III colon cancer: a propensity score matching-based analysis.

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) presents with varying prognoses, and identifying factors for predicting metastasis and outcomes is crucial. Perineural invasion (PNI) is a debated prognostic factor for CRC, particularly in stage I-III patients, but its role in guiding adjuvant chemotherapy for node-positive colon cancer remains uncertain.

Methods: We conducted a single-center study using data from the Colorectal Section Tumor Registry Database at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taiwan.

Localization of Colorectal Cancer Lesions in Contrast-Computed Tomography Images via a Deep Learning Approach.

Abdominal computed tomography (CT) is a frequently used imaging modality for evaluating gastrointestinal diseases. The detection of colorectal cancer is often realized using CT before a more invasive colonoscopy. When a CT exam is performed for indications other than colorectal evaluation, the tortuous structure of the long, tubular colon makes it difficult to analyze the colon carefully and thoroughly.

Usefulness of close surveillance for rectal cancer patients after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy.

It is controversial whether patients who achieve clinical complete remission (cCR) of rectal cancer should be treated with the "watch and wait" (W&W) or radical resection (RR) strategy. Our study aimed to compare the survival outcomes and ostomy rate of the W&W and RR strategies. Between January 2008 and December 2015, we investigated 26 patients who achieved pathologic complete remission after undergoing RR and 36 patients who adopted the W&W strategy because of cCR.

Association of Preoperative Physical Activity with Short- and Long-Term Outcomes in Patients Undergoing Palliative Resection for Metastatic Colorectal Cancer: An Inverse Probability of Treatment Weighting Analysis.

A lack of physical activity is a generally accepted risk factor for colorectal cancer. However, research on the effect of preoperative physical activity on postoperative and long-term outcomes is limited, especially in patients with stage IV colorectal cancer who underwent palliative surgery. Patients who underwent bowel resection for stage IV primary colorectal cancer between January 1995 and December 2016 were retrospectively enrolled.

Smoking cessation for less than 10 years remains a risk factor of anastomotic leakage in mid-to-low rectal cancer patients undergoing sphincter-preserving surgery.

Purpose: Although cigarette smoking is a well-known risk factor for anastomotic leakage during rectal surgery, the proper duration of smoking cessation that can decrease anastomotic leakage in patients undergoing sphincter-preserving surgery is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the optimal duration of smoking cessation that can reduce this complication.

Methods: Between January 1, 2000, and December 31, 2012, we enrolled 1246 consecutive patients who underwent curative-intent sphincter-preserving surgery without preventive stoma at the Division of Colorectal Surgery of a tertiary referral center in Taiwan.

A high density of PD-L1-expressing immune cells is significantly correlated with favorable disease free survival in nonmetastatic colorectal cancer.

The impact of immune cells (ICs) expressing various markers remains poorly understood in nonmetastatic colorectal cancer patients who have undergone colectomy. Here, we aimed to clarify the correlation between IC density and clinical parameters and survival.Programmed death protein-1 (PD-1), programmed cell death protein ligand-1 (PD-L1), clusters of differentiation (CD)-3, CD-8, and CD45RO immunostaining was performed for 421 patients using tissue microarray and automatic counting.

Colon Tissues Classification and Localization in Whole Slide Images Using Deep Learning.

Colorectal cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer-related death worldwide. The early diagnosis of colon cancer not only reduces mortality but also reduces the burden related to the treatment strategies such as chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. However, when the microscopic examination of the suspected colon tissue sample is carried out, it becomes a tedious and time-consuming job for the pathologists to find the abnormality in the tissue.

Real-World Effectiveness of Adjuvant Oxaliplatin Chemotherapy in Stage III Colon Cancer: A Controlled Interrupted Time Series Analysis.

The real-world effectiveness of oxaliplatin in stage III colon cancer has not been determined in a large-scale population. We aimed to assess the real-world impact of adjuvant oxaliplatin treatment on the survival of these patients. Based on Taiwan cancer registry, we evaluated 17,801 patients with resected stage III colon cancer, including 14,168 patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy and 3,633 not receiving adjuvant chemotherapy as the control group between 2004 and 2014.

A Prediction Model for Metachronous Peritoneal Carcinomatosis in Patients with Stage T4 Colon Cancer after Curative Resection.

(1) Background: The aim of this study was to develop a prediction model for assessing individual mPC risk in patients with pT4 colon cancer. Methods: A total of 2003 patients with pT4 colon cancer undergoing R0 resection were categorized into the training or testing set. Based on the training set, 2044 Cox prediction models were developed.

Prognostic value of regional lymph node involvement in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer: palliative versus curative resection.

Background: Approximately 20% of patients with colorectal cancer are initially diagnosed with stage IV disease. This study aims to examine the role of regional lymph node (LN) status in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) with respect to clinicopathologic features and survival outcomes.

Methods: We investigated 1147 patients diagnosed with mCRC and had undergone surgical resection of the primary CRC.

Comprehensive functional genomic analyses link APC somatic mutation and mRNA-miRNA networks to the clinical outcome of stage-III colorectal cancer patients.

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major health concern globally, but exhibits regional and/or environmental distinctions in terms of outcome especially for patients with stage III CRC.

Methods: From 2014 to 2016, matched pairs of tumor and adjacent normal tissue samples from 60 patients with stage I-IV CRC from Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taiwan were analyzed using next-generation sequencing. The DNA, mRNA, and miRNA sequences of paired tumor tissues were profiled.

Comprehensive transcriptome profiling of Taiwanese colorectal cancer implicates an ethnic basis for pathogenesis.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers worldwide. While both genetic and environmental factors have been linked to the incidence and mortality associated with CRC, an ethnic aspect of its etiology has also emerged. Since previous large-scale cancer genomics studies are mostly based on samples of European ancestry, the patterns of clinical events and associated mechanisms in other minority ethnic patients suffering from CRC are largely unexplored.

Prediction of Colon Cancer Stages and Survival Period with Machine Learning Approach.

The prediction of tumor in the TNM staging (tumor, node, and metastasis) stage of colon cancer using the most influential histopathology parameters and to predict the five years disease-free survival (DFS) period using machine learning (ML) in clinical research have been studied here. From the colorectal cancer (CRC) registry of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Linkou, Taiwan, 4021 patients were selected for the analysis. Various ML algorithms were applied for the tumor stage prediction of the colon cancer by considering the Tumor Aggression Score (TAS) as a prognostic factor.

Survival analysis of local excision vs total mesorectal excision for middle and low rectal cancer in pT1/pT2 stage and intermediate pathological risk.

Background: Local excision (LE) is a feasible treatment approach for rectal cancers in stage pT1 and presents low pathological risk, whereas total mesorectal excision (TME) is a reasonable treatment for more advanced cancers. On the basis of the pathology findings, surgeons may suggest TME for patients receiving LE. This study compared the survival outcomes between LE with/without chemoradiation and TME in mid and low rectal cancer patients in stage pT1/pT2, with highly selective intermediate pathological risk.

Applicability of postoperative carcinoembryonic antigen levels in determining post-liver-resection adjuvant chemotherapy regimens for colorectal cancer hepatic metastasis.

Liver resection (LR) is the standard procedure for treating colorectal cancer (CRC) hepatic metastasis; however, LR associated with a high recurrence incidence. This study aimed to determine an optimal post-LR adjuvant chemotherapeutic strategy to improve overall long-term patient outcomes. A retrospective study of 490 patients who had undergone curative LR for CRC hepatic metastasis was performed.

The impact of kidney function on colorectal cancer patients with localized and regional diseases: An observational study from Taiwan.

Background: Impaired kidney function is associated with different diseases. However, its impact on colorectal cancer has not been clarified. In order to understand the effect of preoperative kidney function on the outcome of patients with cancer, we analyzed colorectal cancer patients with localized or regional diseases.

Preoperative Carcinoembryonic Antigen as a Poor Prognostic Factor in Stage I-III Colorectal Cancer After Curative-Intent Resection: A Propensity Score Matching Analysis.

Background: Preoperative carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) has yet to be used as a prognostic or adjuvant chemotherapy factor for colorectal cancer (CRC).

Methods: This retrospective cohort study included all stage I-III CRC patients with different preoperative serum CEA levels (≤ 5, 5-10, and > 10 ng/ml) at a single center between 1995 and 2010. Propensity score matching was performed in a 1:1 ratio between the two elevated CEA groups (5-10 ng/ml and > 10 ng/ml) and in a 1:2 ratio between the elevated and non-elevated groups (≤ 5 ng/ml), with a caliper of 0.

The dark side of laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer patients aged 75 years or older.

Purpose: The rate of postoperative morbidity and mortality is reportedly high in patients aged ≥ 75 years with colorectal cancer (CRC). In such patients, a comparison of the short-term outcome between open method and laparoscopy has not been clearly defined in Taiwan. We aimed to compare postoperative morbidity and mortality parameters after open method and laparoscopy in CRC patients aged ≥ 75 years.

Targeted Sequencing of Circulating Tumor DNA to Monitor Genetic Variants and Therapeutic Response in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer.

Substantial improvements have been made in the management of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) in the last two decades, but disease monitoring remains underdeveloped. Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) is a promising prognostic and predictive biomarker; however, ctDNA as a marker for mCRC patients is not well established, and there is still no consensus about how to utilize it most cost-effectively. In this study, we aim to investigate plasma ctDNA levels as a biomarker for therapeutic response of mCRC patients.