Survival Benefit of Locoregional Treatment for Hepatocellular Carcinoma with Advanced Liver Cirrhosis

BACKGROUND & AIMS

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with decompensated liver cirrhosis (LC) is a life-threatening condition, which is amenable to liver transplantation (LT) as the standard first-line treatment. However, the application of LT can be limited due to a shortage of donor livers. This study aimed to clarify the effect of non-surgical therapy on the survival of patients with HCC and decompensated LC.

METHODS

Of the 58,886 patients with HCC registered in the nationwide survey of the Liver Cancer Study Group of Japan (January 2000-December 2005), we included 1,344 patients with primary HCC and Child-Pugh (C-P) grade C for analysis in this retrospective study. Among the patients analyzed, 108 underwent LT, 273 were treated by local ablation therapy (LAT), 370 were treated by transarterial chemoembolization (TACE), and 593 received best supportive care (BSC). The effect of LT, LAT, and TACE on overall survival (OS) was analyzed using multivariate and propensity score analyses.

RESULTS

Patient characteristics did not differ significantly between each treatment group and the BSC group, after propensity score matching. LAT (hazard ratio [HR]) =0.568; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.40-0.80) and TACE (HR=0.691; 95% CI, 0.50-0.96) were identified as significant contributors to OS if the C-P score was less than 11 and tumor conditions met the Milan criteria.

CONCLUSIONS

For patients with HCC within the Milan criteria and with a C-P score of 10 or 11, locoregional treatment can be used as a salvage treatment if LT is not feasible.

Dynamic deformability of sickle red blood cells in microphysiological flow

In sickle cell disease (SCD), hemoglobin molecules polymerize intracellularly and lead to a cascade of events resulting in decreased deformability and increased adhesion of red blood cells (RBCs). Decreased deformability and increased adhesion of sickle RBCs lead to blood vessel occlusion (vaso-occlusion) in SCD patients. Here, we present a microfluidic approach integrated with a cell dimensioning algorithm to analyze dynamic deformability of adhered RBC at the single-cell level in controlled microphysiological flow. We measured and compared dynamic deformability and adhesion of healthy hemoglobin A (HbA) and homozygous sickle hemoglobin (HbS) containing RBCs in blood samples obtained from 24 subjects. We introduce a new parameter to assess deformability of RBCs: the dynamic deformability index (DDI), which is defined as the time-dependent change of the cell's aspect ratio in response to fluid flow shear stress. Our results show that DDI of HbS-containing RBCs were significantly lower compared to that of HbA-containing RBCs. Moreover, we observed subpopulations of HbS containing RBCs in terms of their dynamic deformability characteristics: deformable and non-deformable RBCs. Then, we tested blood samples from SCD patients and analyzed RBC adhesion and deformability at physiological and above physiological flow shear stresses. We observed significantly greater number of adhered non-deformable sickle RBCs than deformable sickle RBCs at flow shear stresses well above the physiological range, suggesting an interplay between dynamic deformability and increased adhesion of RBCs in vaso-occlusive events.

Report of the 19th follow-up survey of primary liver cancer in Japan

The 19th Nationwide Follow-up Survey of Primary Liver Cancer in Japan comprised 20 850 primary liver cancer patients newly registered at 482 medical institutions over a period of 2 years (from 1 January 2006 to 31 December 2007). Of these, 94.7% had hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and 4.4% had intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC). In addition, follow-up data were obtained regarding 34 752 patients who were registered in the previous survey. Epidemiological and clinicopathological factors, diagnosis, and treatment were examined in newly registered patients. Compared with the 18th follow-up survey, the present follow-up survey suggested an increase in the number of elderly and female patients, a reduction in the number of hepatitis B surface antigen- and anti-hepatitis C virus antibody-positive patients, and a reduction in tumor size at the time of clinical diagnosis. In terms of local ablation therapy, the number of patients receiving radiofrequency ablation therapy increased. The cumulative survival rates for newly registered patients between 1996 and 2007 were calculated for each histological type (HCC, ICC, and combined HCC and ICC) and stratified according to background factors and treatments. The cumulative survival rates of newly registered patients between 1978 and 2007 were calculated after dividing individuals into groups according to registration date (1978-1987, 1988-1997, and 1998-2007). The data obtained from this follow-up survey will contribute to the medical management of primary liver cancer and facilitate future research.

Complete removal of the tumor-bearing portal territory decreases local tumor recurrence and improves disease-specific survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND & AIMS

Anatomic resection (AR) of the tumor-bearing portal territory has been reported to be associated with a decreased recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, because of the heterogeneity of the study populations, its oncologic advantage remains controversial. The objective of the present study was to determine the clinical advantage of AR for primary HCC, based on the data from a large prospective cohort treated under a constant surgical policy.

METHODS

In 209 Child-Pugh class A patients with primary, solitary HCC measuring ⩽5.0cm in diameter, which was resectable either by AR or limited resection (non-AR), the overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were compared with patients in whom complete AR was achieved and those who eventually ended up with non-AR after adjustment for the propensity scores to select AR. Advantages of AR in disease-specific survival and local recurrence were also evaluated by competing-risks regression to clarify the true oncologic impact of AR.

RESULTS

The AR group showed better DFS than the non-AR group (HR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.45-0.99; p=0.046), while no significant difference was observed in OS (hazard ratio [HR], 0.82; 95% CI, 0.46-1.48; p=0.511). Competing-risks regression revealed that AR significantly decreases local recurrence (HR, 0.12; 95% CI, 0.05-0.30; p<0.001) and improves disease-specific survival (HR, 0.50; 95% CI, 0.28-0.90; p=0.020), while the other cause of death was highly influenced by patient age (>65years) (HR, 7.51; 95% CI, 2.16-26.04; p=0.002) and not associated with AR.

CONCLUSION

Complete removal of tumor-bearing portal territory decreases the risk of local recurrence and death from HCC.

[Association between medical institution characteristics and patients' dissatisfaction based on the Patient's Behavior Survey in Japan]

OBJECTIVES

 Patients' dissatisfaction with medical practice is driven by several patient- and institution-related factors. However, little is known about the effect of institutional factors on patients' satisfaction. Accordingly, we examined institutional factors in determining patients' dissatisfaction using the Patient's Behavior Survey in Japan.

METHODS

 The combined database of the Patient's Behavior Survey, the Patient Survey, and the Survey of Medical Institutions from 2011 was used for the analysis. The item "overall patients' satisfaction" was used as the outcome for patient dissatisfaction. Medical institution factors were selected from the Survey of Medical Institutions, and patient factors, such as age, sex, and disease, were drawn from the Patient Survey. The analyses were conducted separately for inpatients and outpatients. Mixed-effects logistic regression, which accounts for the heterogeneity of institution type, was used to investigate the relationship between patients' dissatisfaction and institutional factors.

RESULTS

 There were 27,842 outpatients and 17,770 inpatients. In outpatients, founders (P<0.001), preventive measures for passive smoking (P<0.001), and training for new employees (P=0.002) were significantly related to patients' dissatisfaction. In inpatients, founders (P=0.037), preventive measures for passive smoking (P<0.001), the palliative care team (P=0.001), and training for new employees (P=0.013) were significant predictors. The heterogeneity among medical institution types was negligible for both outpatients and inpatients.

CONCLUSION

 Patient dissatisfaction was significantly associated with founders, preventive measures for passive smoking, and training for new employees for both outpatients and inpatients and with palliative care team only for inpatients. These items were indicators of improved hospital environments, and they represent key elements to ensure patient satisfaction in hospitals.

Proposal of a new staging system for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma: Analysis of surgical patients from a nationwide survey of the Liver Cancer Study Group of Japan

BACKGROUND

In the current American Joint Committee on Cancer/International Union Against Cancer staging system (seventh edition) for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC), tumor size was excluded, and periductal invasion was added as a new tumor classification-defining factor. The objective of the current report was to propose a new staging system for ICC that would be better for stratifying the survival of patients based on data from the nationwide Liver Cancer Study Group of Japan database.

METHODS

Of 756 patients who underwent surgical resection for ICC between 2000 and 2005, multivariate analyses of the clinicopathologic factors of 419 patients who had complete data sets were performed to elucidate relevant factors for inclusion in a new tumor classification and staging system.

RESULTS

Overall survival data were best stratified using a cutoff value of 2 cm using a minimal P value approach to discriminate patient survival. The 5-year survival rate of 15 patients who had ICC measuring ≤ 2 cm in greatest dimension without lymph node metastasis or vascular invasion was 100%, and this cohort was defined as T1. Multivariate analysis of prognostic factors for 267 patients with lymph node-negative and metastasis-negative (N0M0) disease indicated that the number of tumors, the presence arterial invasion, and the presence major biliary invasion were independent and significant prognostic factors. The proposed new system, which included tumor number, tumor size, arterial invasion, and major biliary invasion for tumor classification, provided good stratification of overall patient survival according to disease stage. Macroscopic periductal invasion was associated with major biliary invasion and an inferior prognosis.

CONCLUSIONS

The proposed new staging system, which includes a tumor cutoff size of 2 cm and major biliary invasion, may be useful for assigning patients to surgery.

A new formula for calculating standard liver volume for living donor liver transplantation without using body weight

BACKGROUND & AIMS

The standard liver volume (SLV) is widely used in liver surgery, especially for living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). All the reported formulas for SLV use body surface area or body weight, which can be influenced strongly by the general condition of the patient.

METHODS

We analyzed the liver volumes of 180 Japanese donor candidates and 160 Swiss patients with normal livers to develop a new formula. The dataset was randomly divided into two subsets, the test and validation sample, stratified by race. The new formula was validated using 50 LDLT recipients.

RESULTS

Without using body weight-related variables, age, thoracic width measured using computed tomography, and race independently predicted the total liver volume (TLV). A new formula: 203.3-(3.61×age)+(58.7×thoracic width)-(463.7×race [1=Asian, 0=Caucasian]), most accurately predicted the TLV in the validation dataset as compared with any other formulas. The graft volume for LDLT was correlated with the postoperative prothrombin time, and the graft volume/SLV ratio calculated using the new formula was significantly better correlated with the postoperative prothrombin time than the graft volume/SLV ratio calculated using the other formulas or the graft volume/body weight ratio.

CONCLUSIONS

The new formula derived using the age, thoracic width and race predicted both the TLV in the healthy patient group and the SLV in LDLT recipients more accurately than any other previously reported formulas.

Interim analysis based on the weighted log-rank test for delayed treatment effects under staggered patient entry

Fleming and Harrington's G(ρ,γ) class of weighted log-rank tests is appropriate for detecting delayed treatment effects such as those seen in cancer vaccines. A conditional power (CP) and an alpha spending function (ASF) approach are useful for interim analyses that are conducted with the aim of early termination due to futility and efficacy, respectively. However, calculation of the CP and the total Type I error probability are often not considered for delayed effects under the staggered patient entry. In this article, we first propose methods for calculating the CP analytically based on the weighted log-rank test. We compared the performances of the proposed methods with two other methods (i.e., usual log-rank test and optimal one) under the delayed alternatives. Our simulations demonstrated that the CP based on the weighted log-rank test was more powerful than that of the usual log-rank test and was comparable to the CP based on the optimal log-rank test. Second, we quantitatively evaluated the degree to which the Type I error probability was inflated when an ASF approach with forced independent increments assumption was applied to the weighted log-rank test. The proposed method will provide valuable tools in the decision-making stage of the interim analysis.

Prospective Study of Arterial Stiffness and Subsequent Cognitive Decline Among Community-Dwelling Older Japanese

Background

Brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) is inversely associated with cognitive function. However, it is not known whether baPWV predicts cognitive decline (CD) in later life. We examined whether or not baPWV is an independent risk marker of subsequent CD in a population of older Japanese.

Methods

Among 982 adults aged 65 years or older who participated in a baseline survey, 526 cognitively intact adults (Mini-Mental State Examination [MMSE] score ≥24; mean [SD] age, 71.7 [5.6] years; women, 57.8%) were followed for a period of up to 5 years. Pulse wave velocity was determined using an automated waveform analyser. Cognition was assessed by the MMSE, and CD was defined as a decrease of two points or more on the MMSE.

Results

During an average follow-up of 3.4 years, 85 participants (16.2%) developed CD. After controlling for important confounders, the odds ratios for CD in the highest and middle tertiles of baPWV, as compared with the lowest tertile, were 2.95 (95% confidence interval, 1.29–6.74) and 2.39 (95% confidence interval, 1.11–5.15), respectively.

Conclusions

High baPWV was an independent predictor of CD in a general population of older adults and may be useful in the clinical evaluation of elders.

Does Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) prevent major depressive episode for workers? A 12-month follow-up of a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND

In this study we investigated whether an Internet-based computerized cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) program can decrease the risk of DSM-IV-TR major depressive episodes (MDE) during a 12-month follow-up of a randomized controlled trial of Japanese workers.

METHOD

Participants were recruited from one company and three departments of another company. Those participants who did not experience MDE in the past month were randomly allocated to intervention or control groups (n = 381 for each). A 6-week, six-lesson iCBT program was provided to the intervention group. While the control group only received the usual preventive mental health service for the first 6 months, the control group was given a chance to undertake the iCBT program after a 6-month follow-up. The primary outcome was a new onset of DSM-IV-TR MDE during the 12-month follow-up, as assessed by means of the web version of the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI), version 3.0 depression section.

RESULTS

The intervention group had a significantly lower incidence of MDE at the 12-month follow-up than the control group (Log-rank χ2 = 7.04, p < 0.01). The hazard ratio for the intervention group was 0.22 (95% confidence interval 0.06-0.75), when estimated by the Cox proportional hazard model.

CONCLUSIONS

The present study demonstrates that an iCBT program is effective in preventing MDE in the working population. However, it should be noted that MDE was measured by self-report, while the CIDI can measure the episodes more strictly following DSM-IV criteria.

Relationships between the risk of cardiovascular disease in type 2 diabetes patients and both visit-to-visit variability and time-to-effect differences in blood pressure

AIMS

To determine whether visit-to-visit blood pressure (BP) variability can predict cardiovascular disease (CVD) incidence in type 2 diabetes patients independently of mean BP, and to analyze the time-to-effect relationship between BP and CVD risk.

METHODS

We retrospectively enrolled 629 type 2 diabetes patients with no history of CVD who first visited our hospital between 1995 and 1996, made at least one hospital visit per year, were followed-up for at least 1 year, and had undergone four or more BP measurements. The patients were followed until June 2012 at the latest.

RESULTS

CVD occurred in 66 patients. Variability in systolic or diastolic BP (SBP and DBP, respectively) was a significant predictor of CVD incidence, independent of mean SBP or DBP. CVD incidence was significantly associated with SBP during the preceding 3-5 years, with the highest risk occurring during the preceding 3 years.

CONCLUSIONS

Visit-to-visit BP variability independently predicts CVD incidence in type 2 diabetes patients. Increased SBP over the preceding 3-5 years indicated a significant CVD risk. To prevent CVD, BP management should focus on stable and well-timed control. In particular, BP stabilization at an early phase and BP control during late phases are important.

Effects of an internet-based cognitive behavioural therapy intervention on preventing major depressive episodes among workers: a protocol for a randomised controlled trial

INTRODUCTION

The aim of this study is to examine the effects of an internet-based cognitive behavioural therapy (iCBT) program on decreasing the risk of major depressive episodes (MDEs) among workers employed in a private corporate group in Japan, using a randomised controlled trial design.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

All of the workers in a corporate group (n=20,000) will be recruited through an invitation email. Participants who fulfil the inclusion criteria will be randomly allocated to intervention or control groups (planned N=4050 for each group). They will be allowed to complete the six lessons of the iCBT program within 10 weeks after the baseline survey. Those in the control group will receive the same iCBT after 12 months. The program includes several CBT skills: self-monitoring, cognitive restructuring, assertiveness, problem-solving and relaxation. The primary outcome measure is no new onset of MDE (using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR)/DSM-5 criteria) during the 12-month follow-up. Assessment will use the web version of the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview V.3.0 depression section.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

The Research Ethics Review Board of Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo (No. 3083-(2)), approved the study procedures.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

The study protocol is registered at the UMIN Clinical Trials Registry (UMIN-CTR; ID=UMIN000014146).

Association of weight gain since age 20 with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in normal weight individuals

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Interventions for lifestyle diseases including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) have focused on overweight and obese populations. The impact of adult weight gain on NAFLD development among normal weight individuals remains unclear.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional study, we collected data from participants presenting to a health check-up program. Ultrasound-diagnosed NAFLD prevalence was examined over 1-kg increments of weight change since age 20. Relative risks were calculated in men and women stratified by current weight (normal, overweight, and obese). Logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) adjusting for potential confounders.

RESULTS

Among 21 496 participants, 3498 cases of NAFLD (16.3%) were observed. Prevalence of NAFLD increased with weight gain since age 20; among the 10.1-11.0 kg weight gain group, 41.6% of men and 24.8% of women had NAFLD. Multivariate analysis by quartiles showed that weight change was significantly associated with NAFLD risk in men and women. Risk of NAFLD associated with weight change (10-kg increments) was significantly higher in normal weight individuals (men: OR 7.53, 95% CI: 4.99-11.36, women: OR 12.20, 95% CI: 7.45-19.98) than overweight (men: OR 1.61, 95% CI: 0.91-2.85, women: OR 2.90, 95% CI: 0.99-8.54) and obese (men: OR 4.0, 95% CI: 2.97-5.39, women: OR 2.68, 95% CI: 2.00-3.60).

CONCLUSIONS

NAFLD is robustly associated with weight change since age 20. This effect appears particularly strong in individuals at normal weight, suggesting an important role for early and longitudinal weight monitoring, even among healthy individuals at normal weight.