Latin American Association for the study of the liver (ALEH) practice guidance for the diagnosis and treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) currently represents an epidemic worldwide. NAFLD is the most frequently diagnosed chronic liver disease, affecting 20-30% of the general population. Furthermore, its prevalence is predicted to increase exponentially in the next decades, concomitantly with the global epidemic of obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and sedentary lifestyle. NAFLD is a clinical syndrome that encompasses a wide spectrum of associated diseases and hepatic complications such as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Moreover, this disease is believed to become the main indication for liver transplantation in the near future. Since NAFLD management represents a growing challenge for primary care physicians, the Asociación Latinoamericana para el Estudio del Hígado (ALEH) has decided to organize this Practice Guidance for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, written by Latin-American specialists in different clinical areas, and destined to general practitioners, internal medicine specialists, endocrinologists, diabetologists, gastroenterologists, and hepatologists. The main purpose of this document is to improve patient care and awareness of NAFLD. The information provided in this guidance may also be useful in assisting stakeholders in the decision-making process related to NAFLD. Since new evidence is constantly emerging on different aspects of the disease, updates to this guideline will be required in future.

Clinical practice guidance for next-generation sequencing in cancer diagnosis and treatment (edition 2.1)

Background

To promote precision oncology in clinical practice, the Japanese Society of Medical Oncology, the Japanese Society of Clinical Oncology, and the Japanese Cancer Association, jointly published “Clinical practice guidance for next-generation sequencing in cancer diagnosis and treatment” in 2017. Since new information on cancer genomic medicine has emerged since the 1st edition of the guidance was released, including reimbursement for NGS-based multiplex gene panel tests in 2019, the guidance revision was made.

Methods

A working group was organized with 33 researchers from cancer genomic medicine designated core hospitals and other academic institutions. For an impartial evaluation of the draft version, eight committee members from each society conducted an external evaluation. Public comments were also made on the draft. The finalized Japanese version was published on the websites of the three societies in March 2020.

Results

The revised edition consists of two parts: an explanation of the cancer genomic profiling test (General Discussion) and clinical questions (CQs) that are of concern in clinical practice. Particularly, patient selection should be based on the expectation that the patient's post-test general condition and organ function will be able to tolerate drug therapy, and the optimal timing of test should be considered in consideration of subsequent treatment plans, not limited to treatment lines.

Conclusion

We expect that the revised version will be used by healthcare professionals and will also need to be continually reviewed in line with future developments in cancer genome medicine.