Global cluster analysis and network visualization in cancer-associated fibroblast: insights from Web of Science database from 1999 to 2021

BACKGROUND

A scientific and comprehensive analysis of the current status and trends in the field of cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) research is worth investigating. This study aims to investigate and visualize the development, research frontiers, and future trends in CAFs both quantitatively and qualitatively based on a bibliometric approach.

METHODS

A total of 5518 publications were downloaded from the Science Citation Index Expanded of Web of Science Core Collection from 1999 to 2021 and identified for bibliometric analysis. Visualized approaches, OriginPro (version 9.8.0.200) and R (version 4.2.0) software tools were used to perform bibliometric and knowledge-map analysis.

RESULTS

The number of publications on CAFs increased each year, and the same tendency was observed in the RRI. Apart from China, the countries with the largest number of publications and the most cited frequency were mainly Western developed countries, especially the USA. Cancers was the journal with the largest number of articles published in CAFs, and Oncology was the most popular research orientation. The most productive author was Lisanti MP, and the University of Texas System was ranked first in the institutions. In addition, the topics of CAFs could be divided into five categories, including tumor classification, prognostic study, oncologic therapies, tumor metabolism and tumor microenvironment.

CONCLUSIONS

This is the first thoroughly scientific bibliometric analysis and visualized study of the global research field on CAFs over the past 20 years. The study may provide benefits for researchers to master CAFs' dynamic evolution and research trends.

ChatGPT encounters multiple opportunities and challenges in neurosurgery

BACKGROUND

ChatGPT, powered by the GPT model and Transformer architecture, has demonstrated remarkable performance in the domains of medicine and healthcare, providing customized and informative responses. In our study, we investigated the potential of ChatGPT in the field of neurosurgery, focusing on its applications at the patient, neurosurgery student/resident, and neurosurgeon levels.

METHOD

The authors conducted inquiries with ChatGPT from the viewpoints of patients, neurosurgery students/residents, and neurosurgeons, covering a range of topics, such as disease diagnosis, treatment options, prognosis, rehabilitation, and patient care. The authors also explored concepts related to neurosurgery, including fundamental principles and clinical aspects, as well as tools and techniques to enhance the skills of neurosurgery students/residents. Additionally, the authors examined disease-specific medical interventions and the decision-making processes involved in clinical practice.

RESULTS

The authors received individual responses from ChatGPT, but they tended to be shallow and repetitive, lacking depth and personalization. Furthermore, ChatGPT may struggle to discern a patient's emotional state, hindering the establishment of rapport and the delivery of appropriate care. The language used in the medical field is influenced by technical and cultural factors, and biases in the training data can result in skewed or inaccurate responses. Additionally, ChatGPT's limitations include the inability to conduct physical examinations or interpret diagnostic images, potentially overlooking complex details and individual nuances in each patient's case. Moreover, its absence in the surgical setting limits its practical utility.

CONCLUSION

Although ChatGPT is a powerful language model, it cannot substitute for the expertise and experience of trained medical professionals. It lacks the capability to perform physical examinations, make diagnoses, administer treatments, establish trust, provide emotional support, and assist in the recovery process. Moreover, the implementation of Artificial Intelligence in healthcare necessitates careful consideration of legal and ethical concerns. While recognizing the potential of ChatGPT, additional training with comprehensive data is necessary to fully maximize its capabilities.

Clinicopathological characteristics and prognostic factors in axial chondroblastomas: a retrospective analysis of 61 cases and comparison with extra-axial chondroblastomas

BACKGROUND

A comprehensive understanding of the clinical characteristics and prognostic factors associated with axial chondroblastoma (ACB) is still lacking. This study aimed to understand the clinical characteristics and prognostic factors of axial chondroblastoma (ACB) and compare them with extra-axial chondroblastoma (EACB).

METHODS

A retrospective review of our institution's local database was conducted, encompassing a total of 132 CB patients, of which 61 were diagnosed with ACB and 71 with EACB. Immunohistochemistry was employed to evaluate the expression levels of vimentin, S100, and cytokeratin.

RESULTS

ACB and EACB shared similar characteristics, with the exception of advanced age, tumor size, elevated Vim expression, incidence of surrounding tissue invasion, and postoperative sensory or motor dysfunction. While wide resection and absence of surrounding tissue invasion consistently showed a favorable association with survival in both ACB and EACB cohorts during univariate analysis, most parameters exhibited differential prognostic significance between the two groups. Notably, the significant prognostic factors for local recurrence-free survival in the ACB cohort included the type of resection and the presence of chicken-wire calcification. In the multivariate analysis of overall survival, the type of resection emerged as a significant predictor in the ACB cohort, whereas in the EACB group, the type of resection and the occurrence of postoperative sensory or motor dysfunction were predictive of overall survival.

CONCLUSION

There may exist distinct biological behaviors between ACB and EACB, thereby providing valuable insights into the prognostic characteristics of ACB patients and contributing to enhanced outcome prediction in this particular patient population.

Tumor Growth Rate in Spinal Giant Cell Tumors of Bone and Association With the Immune Microenvironment and Denosumab Treatment Responsiveness: A Multicenter Study

BACKGROUND

Currently, little is known about the prognostic value of tumor growth rate (TGR) in spinal giant cell tumors of bone (GCTB).

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the correlation of TGR with clinicopathological features, immune microenvironment, prognosis, and response to denosumab treatment of spinal GCTB.

METHODS

A total of 128 patients with spinal GCTB treated at 5 centers from 2011 to 2021 were included. TGR was assessed by 2 independent neuroradiologists using at least 2 preoperative thin-section magnetic resonance imaging scans at a minimum interval of 2 months. Immunohistochemistry was used to assess tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte subtypes for CD3, CD4, CD8, CD20, PD-1, PD-L1, and Foxp3. Then, these parameters were analyzed for their associations with patient outcomes (progression-free survival and overall survival), clinicopathological features, and denosumab treatment responsiveness.

RESULTS

High TGR predicted both poor progression-free survival and overall survival (both P < .001). In addition, TGR was associated with postoperative neurological dysfunction ( P < .001), Enneking staging ( P = .016), denosumab treatment responsiveness ( P = .035), and the number of CD3 + ( P < .001), PD-1 + ( P = .009), PD-L1 + ( P < .001), and FoxP3 + tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte ( P = .02). Importantly, TGR outperformed the traditional Enneking, Campanacci, and American Joint Committee on Cancer staging systems in predicting the clinical outcomes of spinal GCTB.

CONCLUSION

These data support the use of TGR as a reliable predictive tool for clinically relevant outcomes and response to denosumab therapy of spinal GCTB, which may be helpful in guiding prognostic risk stratification and therapeutic optimization of patients.

Corrigendum: Risk factors for tuberculous or nontuberculous spondylitis after percutaneous vertebroplasty or kyphoplasty in patients with osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture: A case-control study

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fsurg.2022.962425.].

Risk factors for tuberculous or nontuberculous spondylitis after percutaneous vertebroplasty or kyphoplasty in patients with osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture: A case-control study

Objectives

The contributing factors for spondylitis after percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) or percutaneous kyphoplasty (PKP) remain unclear. Here, we sought to investigate the factors affecting spondylitis occurrence after PVP/PKP. We also compared the clinical characteristics between patients with tuberculous spondylitis (TS) and nontuberculous spondylitis (NTS) following vertebral augmentation.

Methods

Literature searches (from January 1, 1982 to October 16, 2020) using MEDLINE, EMBASE, Google Scholar and Web of science databases were conducted to identify eligible studies according to predefined criteria. The local database was also retrospectively reviewed to include additional TS and NTS patients at our center.

Results

Thirty studies from the literature and 11 patients from our local institute were identified, yielding a total of 23 TS patients and 50 NTS patients for analysis. Compared with NTS group, patients in the TS group were more likely to have a history of trauma before PVP/PKP treatment. Univariate analyses of risk factors revealed pulmonary tuberculosis and diabetes were significant factors for TS after PVP/PKP. Analyzing NTS, we found obesity, a history of preoperative trauma, urinary tract infection, diabetes and multiple surgical segments (≥2) were significantly associated with its occurrence following PVP/PKP treatment. Multivariate logistic analyses showed a history of pulmonary tuberculosis and diabetes were independent risk factors for TS after PVP/PKP, while diabetes and the number of surgically treated segments independently influenced NTS development.

Conclusions

A history of pulmonary tuberculosis and diabetes were independent risk factors for TS. For NTS, diabetes and the number of surgically treated segments significantly influenced the occurrence of postoperative spinal infection. These data may be helpful for guiding risk stratification and preoperative prevention for patients, thereby reducing the incidence of vertebral osteomyelitis after PVP/PKP.

A global bibliometric and visualized analysis in the status and trends of corneal tissue engineering research from 1991 to 2021

Corneal tissue engineering has developed rapidly in recent years, with a large number of publications emerging worldwide. This study focused on exploring the global status and research trends in this field. Publications related to corneal tissue engineering from 1991 to 2021 were acquired from the Science Citation Index-Expanded (SCI-Expanded) of Web of Science (WoS). Firstly, the VOS viewer software was chosen for visualizing bibliometric networks, including bibliographic coupling analysis, co-citation analysis, co-authorship analysis, and co-occurrence analysis, and the CiteSpace software was used to detect burst keywords. Subsequently, the publication trends in corneal tissue engineering research were also predicted. In present study, 953 publications were selected and analyzed. The number of annual publications was increasing globally and was predicted to continue the current trend. While Japan ranked top 1 in terms of average citation, the USA contributed the most to the corneal tissue engineering research with highest number of citations and highest H-index. The journal of Biomaterials contributed the largest publication number. The top-ranked institutions were National University of Singapore and Singapore National Eye Center. Additionally, researches could be manually divided into four clusters: "biomaterial related research," "cell related research," "transplantation therapy," and "mechanism research on biomaterials." Specifically, the research topic "hydrogel" was predicted to be hotspots which may help researchers to explore new directions for future research.

Sacral chondroblastoma — a rare location, a rare pathology: A case report and review of literature

BACKGROUND

Chondroblastoma (CB) is an intermediate tumor of cartilage origin. CB involving the sacrum is a very rare pathology.

CASE SUMMARY

A 17-year-old male with sacral CB was diagnosed as CB during the first surgery, and 18 mo later, the tumor recurred and a second surgery was performed with the same pathology result of CB.

CONCLUSION

We recommend complete removal of the tumor in a timely manner, provided that surgical conditions are met. At the same time, other diseases should be carefully differentiated in terms of imaging or pathological features so as to avoid erroneous diagnostic conclusions.

Letter to the Editor concerning the article "Clinical outcomes of chondroblastoma treated using synthetic bone substitute: risk factors for developing radiographic joint degeneration"

The purpose of this letter to the Editor is to report some shortcomings in the statistical analysis and variable grouping in the recent publication of the article “Clinical outcomes of chondroblastoma treated using synthetic bone substitute: risk factors for developing radiographic joint degeneration,” and to further explore some of the factors that may affect the clinical prognosis of chondroblastoma patients. We also suggest future prospective controlled studies with large samples to improve the limitations encountered by Outani et al. (World J Surg Oncol. 18(1):47, 2020) due to insufficient statistical power of variables and lack of controls.

[Immunomicroecology: concept and applications]

Microorganism exerts a profound impact on the development and function of human immunity. Vice versa, immunity also affects the constitution and function of human microbiota. Hence, a new concept, immunomicroecology, has been put forward as an inevitable consequence of the development in the fields of microecology and immunology. Here, we describe the reciprocities between immunological system and microecological system, and elaborate the concept, developing course, and prospects of immunomicroecology.

[Short-term outcome of sacral neuromodulation on refractory interstitial cystitis/pelvic pain syndrome]

Objective: To summarize the initial experiences of applying sacral neuromodulation (SNM) for refractory interstitial cystitis/pelvic pain syndrome (IC/PPS). Methods: From January 2013 to August 2016, 26 patients with refractory IC/PPS (including 5 males and 21 females) treated with SNM were recruited in Beijing Chaoyang Hospital and Hebei Yanda Hospital in this retrospective study. The data before operation, after implantation of stage Ⅰ tined lead, and during short-term follow-up after implantation of stage Ⅱ implanted pulse generator (IPG) were compared in order to observe the improvement of relevant symptoms, and to summarize the effectiveness and safety of SNM for IC/PPS. Results: All the 26 patients received stage Ⅰ tined lead implantation under local anesthesia, of whom 7 patients finally had the tined lead removed under local anesthesia because of poor testing effects. And 19 patients chose embedding of IPG at the end of stageⅠ, with the conversion rate from stage Ⅰto stage Ⅱ being 73.1%. The mean follow-up time after stage Ⅱ was 12.1 months. The data at the end of follow-up compared with those before treatment were: voiding frequency in 24 hours 24.3±9.6 vs 13.5±5.7, nocturia 4.6±2.2 vs 2.7±1.5, average voiding amount (109.4 ±45.3)vs(172.6±61.6) ml, O'leary-sant scale score 26.0±3.1 vs 17.0±3.8, quality of life (QOL) score 5.7±0.4 vs 3.3±1.3, sex rating 5.4±1.4 vs 2.9±1.6, and Numeric Pain Intensity Scale 8.4±1.7 vs 3.9±1.2 (all P<0.05). During the follow-up period for the 19 patients, 11 showed symptoms relieve without recurrence, 5 patients had slightly symptoms recurrence and 3 patients had severe recurrence of pelvic pain and frequent urination. About 42.1%(8/19) patients received reprogramming, the average reprogramming rate being 1.73/person. And 84.2% (16/19) patients had symptoms improvement greater than 50% after stage Ⅱ IPG implantation. Conclusions: SNM is an effective, safe and minimally invasive procedure for refractory IC/PPS. IC/PPS is a good indication for SNM with a high conversion rate from stage Ⅰ to stage Ⅱ. Patients should be followed up regularly after operation, and reprogramming should be arranged according to the degree of symptom improvement.

Radiobiological effects of photon radiosurgery on choroid plexus cells in vitro

The standard surgical treatment of hydrocephalus by cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) shunt is accompanied by numerous complications. The search for alternative treatment methods includes resection, coagulation and irradiation of part of the plexus choroideus. The reduction of CSF secretion after choroid plexus (CP) irradiation has been investigated only on the experimental level. The new Photon Radiosurgery System (PRS) now also provides clinically the opportunity to induce selective radionecrosis on the CP with high efficiency and safety. In order to achieve a basic understanding of the reaction of CP cells after PRS irradiation, we investigated the cell death after different irradiation doses using TB dye-exclusion and MTT assay on sheep choroid plexus (SCP) cells. We observed a dose-dependent decrease in cell survival with increasing doses of irradiation (9, 18, 27 and 36 Gy). Lower irradiation doses (9, 18 Gy) induced an initial decrease of cell survival. Cells were able to recover from day 6 on and achieved a similar cell viability compared to non-irradiated cells on day 12. In contrast, higher doses (27 and 36 Gy) of irradiation induced a constant decrease of the cell survival over 12 days. These results clearly demonstrate that PRS irradiation is able to induce radionecrosis of CP cells which are responsible for the secretion of CSF. Interstitial photon radiosurgery can provide the opportunity to deliver the irradiation dose locally to CP with minimal exposure of surrounding tissue. Our basic data support further studies investigating this concept in animal models and clinically.