Current practice of pathologic response assessment following chemoimmunotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in Germany: first real-world data from the multicentre Re-GraDE study.

Background: Given that pathologists now frequently assess pathologic response following neoadjuvant or perioperative chemoimmunotherapy for NSCLC, we set up a multicentre study to evaluate the current practice of regression grading in Germany (Re-GraDE NSCLC).

Methods: 133 cases of NSCLC resection specimens following chemoimmunotherapy (IO) were collected from 9 high-volume lung cancer centres in Germany. Case characteristics were obtained from pathology reports/electronic medical records.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cancer incidence, stage distribution and survival in Switzerland: a register-based cohort study.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted healthcare systems worldwide. This raised concerns about delays in cancer diagnosis and treatment, with potentially worse patient outcomes. The aim of this nationwide, population-based cohort study was to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cancer incidence, stage distribution and one-year survival in Switzerland.

Incidence, Mortality and Survival Time Trends of Brain and CNS Tumours in the Canton of Zurich (Switzerland) Between 1980 and 2021.

Purpose: We aimed to analyse trends in incidence, mortality and 5-year relative survival of malignant and benign/borderline brain and central nervous system (CNS) tumours between 1980 and 2021 in the Canton of Zurich, Switzerland, stratified by sex, age group, behaviour and histological subtypes.

Methods: We used incidence data from the Cancer Registry of Zurich, Zug, Schaffhausen and Schwyz, including primary benign/borderline and malignant tumours diagnosed between 1980 and 2021 in the Canton of Zurich in patients aged ≥ 15 years (N = 10,226). Mortality data were provided by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (N = 3514).

Association between habitual adherence to the planetary health diet and mortality and major chronic disease risk among UK Biobank participants.

Background: Since a healthy diet is a key contributor to human health and risk of developing noncommunicable diseases, the EAT-Lancet Commission proposed the "planetary health diet" (PHD) in 2019. The literature on the association between the PHD and risk for health outcomes is sparse and diverse.

Objectives: To increase the knowledge of the potential effects of the PHD on human health, we analyzed data from a prospective cohort study, investigating whether habitual adherence to the PHD was associated with health outcomes among participants in the UK Biobank cohort study.

Placental histology, perioperative brain development, and neurodevelopmental outcome at 1 year of age in patients undergoing neonatal cardiac surgery-is there an association?

Background: Patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) who are operated on after birth are at risk for neurodevelopmental (ND) impairment. Before birth, altered fetal hemodynamics due to the CHD may lead to reduced cerebral perfusion and oxygen supply. The placenta as a critical organ may enhance this pathology.

RalGAP complexes control secretion and primary cilia in pancreatic disease.

κB-Ras/RalGAP complexes limit the activity of Ral GTPases, which function in EGFR/Ras signaling. RalGAP expression is down-regulated in pancreatic cancer; however, the role of RalGAP and Ral GTPases in tumor development in vivo remained unclear. Here, we show that pancreatic RalGAPβ deficiency alone is sufficient to induce inflammation and neoplasia in vivo.

A novel KRAS exon 2 drop-off digital PCR assay for mutation detection in cell-free DNA of cancer patients.

Background: KRAS exon 2 mutations are highly prevalent in human malignancies, making them attractive targets for detection and monitoring in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) of cancer patients. Drop-off assays designed for digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR drop-off) span entire mutational hotspots and detect any mutated allele within the covered region, overcoming a major limitation of mutation-specific ddPCR assays. We therefore set out to develop a novel KRAS codon 12/13 ddPCR drop-off assay for the robust, highly sensitive and specific detection of KRAS exon 2 hotspot mutations in cfDNA.

Refining histopathological growth pattern-based risk group discrimination in nodular lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma: an analysis from the German Hodgkin Study Group.

Histopathological growth patterns (GP) in nodular lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma (NLPHL) have previously been divided into GP AB (typical) vs CDEF (variant). However, it is unclear whether this division is optimal. We thus investigated alternative GP grouping approaches (GP ABC vs DEF; GP ABCF vs DE).

A benchmark study of compression software for human short-read sequence data.

Efficient data compression technologies are crucial to reduce the cost of long-term storage and file transfer in whole genome sequencing studies. This study benchmarked four specialized compression tools developed for paired-end fastq.gz files DRAGEN ORA 4.

Phyllodes Tumor of the Breast: Histomorphological Transformation to High-Grade Tumor during Pregnancy and Challenging Oncoplastic Surgery.

Introduction: Phyllodes tumors of the breast are a very rare tumor entity. There are two different classifications according to AFIP (low-grade and high-grade phyllodes tumors of the breast) and WHO (three subtypes: benign, borderline, and malignant phyllodes tumors). Phyllodes tumors have an increased risk of recurrence.

Conference on challenges in sarcoma (CCS) 2024: Expert opinions on non-evidence-based management aspects.

Background: Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) and other mesenchymal tumours belong to rare, heterogeneous neoplasms with over 150 subtypes that pose significant challenges in diagnosis and clinical decision making. While guidelines address evidence-based diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, clinical situations and scenarios without evidence remain controversial in daily practice. The 2024 Conference on Challenges in Sarcoma (CCS2024) aimed to narrow these gaps with the support of an international and multidisciplinary panel of sarcoma experts.

DLL3 Expression in Neuroendocrine Carcinomas and Neuroendocrine Tumours: Insights From a Multicentric Cohort of 1294 Pulmonary and Extrapulmonary Neuroendocrine Neoplasms.

Delta-like ligand 3 (DLL3) is frequently expressed in pulmonary small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (SCNEC) and has emerged as a promising therapeutic target. However, limited data on DLL3 expression in other neuroendocrine neoplasms (NEN), such as extrapulmonary SCNEC, large cell neuroendocrine carcinomas (LCNEC), mixed neuroendocrine-non-neuroendocrine neoplasms (MiNEN), gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumours (GEP-NET), and pulmonary carcinoids, impedes an estimation if other types of NEN might be suitable candidates for anti-DLL3 therapies. We evaluated DLL3 expression in 1294 NEN and 479 non-neuroendocrine carcinomas, correlating the findings with histological subtypes, tumour localisation, and overall survival (OS).

Current Biomarkers in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer-The Molecular Pathologist's Perspective.

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Advances in tissue-based biomarkers have significantly enhanced diagnostic and therapeutic approaches in NSCLC, enabling precision medicine strategies. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of the molecular pathologist's practical approach to assessing NSCLC biomarkers across various specimen types (liquid biopsy, broncho-alveolar lavage, transbronchial biopsy/endobronchial ultrasound-guided biopsy, and surgical specimen), including challenges such as biological heterogeneity and preanalytical variability.

A Lgr5-independent developmental lineage is involved in mouse intestinal regeneration.

Collagenase and dispase treatment of intestinal tissue from adult mice generates cells growing in matrigel as stably replatable cystic spheroids, in addition to differentiated organoids. Contrary to classical EDTA-derived organoids, these spheroids display poor intestinal differentiation and grow independently of Rspondin, noggin and EGF. Their transcriptome strikingly resembles that of fetal intestinal spheroids, with downregulation of crypt base columnar cell (CBC) markers (Lgr5, Ascl2, Smoc2 and Olfm4).

Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown on cancer stage distribution and time to treatment initiation using cancer registry data of the Swiss cantons of Zurich and Zug from 2018 to 2021.

Purpose: Swiss healthcare institutions conducted only urgent procedures during the COVID-19 lockdown, potentially leading to a lack of care for other severe diseases, such as cancer. We examined the effects of the pandemic on cancer stage distribution and time between cancer diagnosis and treatment initiation using population-based cancer registry data.

Methods: The study was based on data of the cancer registry of the cantons of Zurich and Zug from 2018 to 2021.

From dyspnea to Olympic qualification - A case report as a model for post-acute sequelae of COVID-19.

Introduction: Pulmonary post-acute COVID-19 sequelae (PASC) can occur in professional athletes. In these individuals, the physical impairment can ultimately mean the end of their career due to the lack of specific treatment strategies. Individualised treatment approaches are required, as demonstrated in this case report.

The role of vascularity and the fibrovascular interface in interstitial lung diseases.

Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a clinical term that refers to a diverse group of non-neoplastic lung diseases. This group includes idiopathic and secondary pulmonary entities that are often associated with progressive pulmonary fibrosis. Currently, therapeutic approaches based on specific structural targeting of pulmonary fibrosis are limited to nintedanib and pirfenidone, which can only slow down disease progression leading to a lower mortality rate.

Darier disease: Current insights and challenges in pathogenesis and management.

Darier disease is a rare autosomal dominant genodermatosis caused by mutations in the ATP2A2 gene encoding for sarcoendoplasmic reticulum Ca ATPase isoform 2. The skin disease is characterized by a chronic relapsing course with recurrent reddish-brown keratotic papules and plaques located mainly in seborrhoeic areas. Due to chronic inflammation and epidermal barrier defects of the skin, patients often develop severe bacterial and viral superinfections.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and Lockdown on Cancer Diagnoses Using Swiss Cantonal Cancer Registry Data.

This study aims to investigate differences in cancer diagnosis based on absolute case numbers and age-standardized incidence rate ratios (IRRs) in the pre-Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) years (2018/19) and the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic (2020, 2021) in two Swiss cantons. : Data of the Swiss cantonal cancer registry of the cantons of Zurich (ZH) and Zug (ZG) were used to descriptively investigate differences in annual and monthly absolute numbers regarding all-cancer and the five most common cancer types. Directly age-standardized monthly incidence rates (IRs) were calculated.

Molecular composition of skeletal muscle in infants and adults: a comparative proteomic and transcriptomic study.

To gain a deeper understanding of skeletal muscle function in younger age and aging in elderly, identification of molecular signatures regulating these functions under physiological conditions is needed. Although molecular studies of healthy muscle have been conducted on adults and older subjects, there is a lack of research on infant muscle in terms of combined morphological, transcriptomic and proteomic profiles. To address this gap of knowledge, we performed RNA sequencing (RNA-seq), tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), morphometric analysis and assays for mitochondrial maintenance in skeletal muscle biopsies from both, infants aged 4-28 months and adults aged 19-65 years.

A sexually dimorphic hepatic cycle of periportal VLDL generation and subsequent pericentral VLDLR-mediated re-uptake.

Recent single-cell transcriptomes revealed spatiotemporal programmes of liver function on the sublobular scale. However, how sexual dimorphism affected this space-time logic remained poorly understood. We addressed this by performing scRNA-seq in the mouse liver, which revealed that sex, space and time together markedly influence xenobiotic detoxification and lipoprotein metabolism.