While the incidence rates of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are increasing, there are limited comprehensive data on demographic-specific incidence and mortality trends in the USA. We aimed to evaluate recent trends in HCC incidence and mortality among different demographic groups in the USA.

Age-adjusted HCC incidence rates were calculated from the Centers for Disease Control’s United States Cancer Statistics database, which combines incidence data on newly diagnosed cancer cases and covers approximately 98% of the population in the USA. Additionally, age-adjusted HCC mortality rates were obtained from the Centers for Disease Control’s National Center for Health Statistics database, which offers comprehensive coverage spanning nearly 100% of deaths attributed to HCC in the USA. Rates were stratified by sex, age (older [≥55 years] and younger [<55 years] adults), race and ethnicity (Non-Hispanic White, Non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic, Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander, and Non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native), and tumor stage at diagnosis (early and late). Annual and average annual percentage change (AAPC) were calculated using joinpoint regression. A sex-specific pairwise comparison was conducted.

Between 2001 and 2020, there were 467,346 patients diagnosed with HCC (26.0% women), with increasing incidence in both sexes without significant difference (p=0.65). In younger adults (78,169 patients), the incidence decreased in men but not in women (AAPC difference=−2.39, p=0.002). This was seen in various racial and ethnic groups, mostly driven by early-stage tumors (AAPC difference=−2.65, p=0.02). There were 329,973 deaths attributed to HCC between 2000 and 2020 (28.4% women). In younger adults (43,093 deaths), mortality decreased in men at a greater rate than in women (AAPC difference=1.61, p=0.007). This was seen in various racial and ethnic groups, most notably in non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Natives (AAPC difference=−4.51, p=0.01).

Nationwide USA data, covering nearly all HCC cases, show an increasing incidence and mortality over the last two decades. In younger adults, there was a decreasing incidence in men but not in women, due to early-stage tumors. Mortality improved in younger men at a greater rate than in women, especially in Non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Natives. Future studies are warranted to identify the risk factors associated with the occurrence and outcomes of HCC in demographic-specific populations, especially younger women.

The consequences of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the perceived workload of health care professionals and remaining mental symptomatology are becoming increasingly visible. Increasing waiting lists and workload and decreasing employee capacity in mental health services will contribute to the problem of health care availability. In several studies, many of the responding mental health care workers (MHCWs) reported stress-related complaints and depression. Moreover, more clients with complaints, as a direct and indirect result of the COVID-19 pandemic, requested mental health care. Support for mental health care staff is needed to prevent further escalation. These insights trigger an appeal to government and mental health institutions to take responsibility for protecting MHCWs. This requires the right decisions and investment in the prevention and mental health support for MHCWs! Preparing health care professionals for future challenges by focusing on interventions early in their career, which improve mental stability to enhance resilience, seems to be important to prioritize.

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) superfamily member 15 (TNFSF15) may have the potential to control vascular homeostasis and inflammation. Through binding to death receptor 3 (TNFRSF25), TNFSF15 promotes T-cell activation, proliferation, and the generation of multiple cytokines. TNFSF15-TNFRSF25 signaling is essential for effective T-cell immune responses in T-cell-mediated autoimmune diseases. Our goal is to study the role of the (TNFSF15) rs4979462 gene variant and TNFSF15 serum levels in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in Egyptian patients.

A total of 118 patients with SLE and 102 age- and sex-matched healthy control volunteers were genotyped for the TNFSF15 rs4979462 variant by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism and verified by direct sequencing. TNFSF15 serum levels were measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Regarding the TNFSF15 rs4979462 gene variant, there was a significant increase in the frequencies of combined genotypes (CT + TT) and T-allele among female patients with SLE compared with the healthy female subjects (OR = 2.6, 95% CI = 1.1–6.3, p = 0.027; OR = 2.7, 95% CI = 1.2–6.3, p = 0.015, respectively). The T-variant was significantly associated with serositis and thrombotic manifestations (OR = 2.8, 95% CI = 1.1–7.1, p = 0.032; OR = 2.9, 95% CI = 1.1–7.8, p = 0.023, respectively). The median serum TNFSF15 concentration was significantly higher in patients with SLE compared to the healthy control group and was correlated with the disease activity (p = 0.023, 0.012, respectively).

The TNFSF15 rs4979462 gene variant increases the risk of SLE in female subjects and modulates the clinical outcome of the disease. TNFSF15 serum level could be a biological marker of SLE disease activity.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common malignancy worldwide. The average age at diagnosis of CRC is around 70 years old. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of asymptomatic CRC and premalignant lesions in the colon in OSI Araba.

This study included individuals aged 50–69 who were admitted to OSI Araba Health Centers. It spanned from the start of CRC screening through fecal occult blood test immunological analysis in 2009 to the publication of the latest updated data in 2021.

An average of 90.98% of participants obtained a definitive result. Specifically, 31.71% were normal, 1.22% had relevant non-neoplastic pathology, 5.49% had non-neoplastic polyps, 15.93% had low-risk adenomas, 22.26% had medium-risk adenomas, 17.65% had high-risk adenomas and 5.02% had CRC.

CRC screening is an effective strategy for reducing incidence and mortality rates, preventing new cases, and minimizing disease burden in the future.

Neuroblastoma is a heterogeneous solid tumor that originates extracranially from neuroblasts. Previous research has demonstrated that miR-492 polymorphisms can contribute to cancer susceptibility. However, their specific involvement in susceptibility to neuroblastoma has yet to be fully clarified.

To address this question, we used the TaqMan method to genotype miR-492 rs2289030 G>C in a cohort of 402 neuroblastoma children and 473 control individuals from Jiangsu Province, China.

Our study showed that there was no significant association between miR-492 rs2289030 G>C and the risk of neuroblastoma in children, as assessed by combined odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (P > 0.05).

Further validation of these findings requires well-designed studies with large sample sizes.

Global deaths attributed to gastric cancer (GC) are increasing, yet our understanding of it remains limited. Recently, single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and spatial transcriptomics have provided important insights into the dissection of metastasis-related biological processes in subpopulations of cells in the GC tumor microenvironment, especially intratumoral cellular heterogeneity and cell-cell interactions. In this review, we discuss the mechanisms underlying GC metastasis and potential strategies for developing upcoming immunotherapies by combining advances in scRNA-seq and spatial transcriptomics.

Obesity is a complex disease resulting from excessive adipose tissue in the body, leading to various metabolic, mechanical, and psychological complications. The prevalence of obesity has increased exponentially in the past few decades to reach an epidemic proportion. Obesity can predispose to or aggravate the fatty liver. Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) represents fatty liver in individuals who are either overweight/obese, or have type 2 diabetes, or have normal weight with at least two metabolic risk factors. MAFLD pathogenesis is multifactorial and involves an interplay of genetics, lifestyle-related factors, gut dysbiosis, lipotoxicity, and oxidative stress. Besides hepatic complications, MAFLD also has systemic implications in the form of increased risk for various metabolic diseases, cardiovascular diseases, malignancies, and infectious diseases. If left untreated, MAFLD can progress to liver cirrhosis and end-stage liver disease. Many noninvasive strategies like serum-based markers and imaging help diagnose MAFLD at an early stage. Timely detection and appropriate intervention are crucial for preventing its progression to advanced liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma. Though lifestyle modification remains the main pillar of management, with advances in the treatment of obesity, newer agents are being tried for patients with MAFLD. The current therapeutic strategies are limited, and future research is needed to identify the subset of patients with MAFLD who are at a higher risk of hepatic and systemic complications and to develop more effective and personalized therapies.

In this systematic review, we assessed the efficacy, potential mechanisms, and safety of two neuromodulation therapies in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. The first therapy is vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) utilizing implantable or transcutaneous electrodes, and the second is sacral nerve stimulation (SNS) using implantable or percutaneous electrodes.

We conducted a systematic literature review following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The PubMed database was comprehensively searched, and studies were rigorously assessed for inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Our analysis encompassed five clinical studies, three on VNS and two on SNS. Most investigated studies demonstrated significant beneficial effects on IBD symptoms, including disease activity, severity of intestinal lesions, and intestinal pain. When evaluating the impact on key IBD pathophysiologies, both VNS and SNS exhibited trends toward reducing biomarkers of intestinal mucosal inflammation and mitigating sympathetic dominance. Importantly, none of the evaluated neuromodulation methods resulted in long-term adverse effects.

Cumulative evidence from the evaluated studies indicates that VNS and SNS therapies effectively alleviate IBD symptoms and may hold promise in addressing the underlying pathophysiologies of IBD, including intestinal mucosal inflammation and sympathetic dominance. Consequently, they represent valuable options for individualized IBD treatment.

Dietary management is one of the top research interests in the field of human cancer, but due to the heavy focus of cancer studies mainly on detection and medical treatment, the role of nutrition in prevention has generally received little research attention, and standards of care in cancer treatment do not effectively consider diet-based interventions as either an alternative or a complementary practice. It is generally believed that an unbalanced diet, unhealthy dietary patterns, and the consumption of nutrient-deficient foods contribute to the occurrence of various cancers. In contrast, adequate consumption of healthy, natural foods rich in essential nutrients may reduce the risk of cancer and help cancer patients better recover from the adverse effects of medical treatments. However, little is known about how dietary interventions interact with cancer. This study aims to provide an overview of several major dietary cancer risk factors and protective measures, as well as nutritional recommendations for the management of this disease. Moreover, based on the Warburg hypothesis, several potential dietary interventions have been identified to help maintain nutritional balance and reduce cancer risk. The findings of this study suggest that a balanced healthy diet with alkalizing and anti-inflammatory properties may be effective for maintaining certain aspects of health and reducing the risk of developing cancer. Further research should be performed to explore whether such dietary interventions could have an impact on the incidence or development of cancer.

Multiple factors are responsible for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV 2)-associated liver dysfunction. The impact of variants of concern (VoCs) on liver function is less clear. The aims were to determine (1) the prevalence and risk of abnormal liver biochemistry (ALB) and liver injury (LI) and (2) differences in ALB and LI with the Delta variant compared with wild-type and VoCs before Delta variant coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) infections in Malaysian adults.

This prospective single-center, observational study enrolled adults hospitalized for COVID-19 infection between 1 February 2020 and 30 October 2021 using a convenience sampling method. Patients with COVID-19 confirmed by real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction of nasal and pharyngeal swabs and having at least one liver function test were recruited and assigned to cohort A (wild-type strain and all VoCs before the Delta variant) or cohort B (Delta variant).

Of 1,246 patients with COVID-19 infection, 58.7% developed ALB and 26.6% developed LI. Multivariate analysis showed that men, moderate and severe disease, and underlying chronic liver disease (CLD) were associated with ALB and LI. Patients with the Delta variant had a significantly higher risk of developing both ALB (71.6% vs. 48.5%, p < 0.001) and LI (38.8% vs. 17.1%, p < 0.001) compared with previous strains.

ALB was more common than LI, but LI was more frequent in men with underlying CLD, and in those with moderate or severe COVID-19 infections. Patients with Delta variant infections were more likely to have ALB and LI than those with precedent strains.

fatigue is a common symptom in patients with malignant tumors, which seriously affects patient quality of life and even the progress of treatment. There have been numerous studies on various aspects of cancer-related fatigue. This review summarizes and analyzes its pathogenesis, screening, evaluation, and treatment from the perspectives of modern medicine and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Modern medicine believes that the pathogenesis of cancer-related fatigue is still unclear. Screening assessment scales are varied and have different focuses, so they should be selected and used comprehensively. Drug intervention for cancer-related fatigue has safety problems and is not recommended for conventional treatment. Non-drug treatment methods such as exercise, psychological intervention, diet guidance, and light therapy have good efficacy and high safety and are worthy of clinical promotion. In TCM, cancer fatigue is included as a deficiency. The syndrome of TCM is divided into two categories: deficiency syndrome and syndrome of intermingled deficiency and excess, involving the three viscera, the liver, spleen, and kidney that are closely related to the pathological products of blood stasis, toxin, phlegm, and dampness. The TCM diagnosis and evaluation scale is still in its infancy, which objectively quantifies TCM syndromes, forms a unified diagnostic standard for TCM syndrome differentiation, and standardizes TCM syndrome differentiation and treatment. The elements of syndromes open the idea of constructing a TCM scale. TCM offers various treatment and nursing methods that have high efficacy and safety. TCM, acupuncture, moxibustion, and traditional exercises are the main methods, but high-quality evidence is needed. In the future, the advantages of the combination of TCM and Western medicine should be used to overcome cancer-related fatigue.

Pediatric melanoma is a rare skin cancer in children. Among the various subtypes, Spitz melanoma is particularly difficult to diagnose and poses a significant challenge in the fields of pediatric dermatopathology and surgical pathology. Due to the uncertainty surrounding this diagnosis, a diverse approach is necessary for both diagnosing and treating these rare lesions. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the clinical presentation, histopathology, and ancillary studies associated with pediatric Spitz melanoma, with the goal of formulating more uniform diagnostic criteria and work-up algorithms for these challenging lesions.