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Eur J Cancer 2022 Jun 22;172:31-40. Epub 2022 Jun 22.

Department of Surgery, Teikyo University School of Medicine, 2-11-1, Kaga, Itabashi-ward, Tokyo, 173-8606, Japan. Electronic address:

Aim: Postmastectomy radiotherapy (PMRT) is the standard treatment for locally advanced breast cancer. However, the effectiveness of PMRT in patients with pT1-2 and N1 tumours remains controversial. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the prognostic impact of PMRT in patients with breast cancer and with pT1-2 and 1-3 lymph node metastases. Read More

BMC Infect Dis 2022 Jun 24;22(1):572. Epub 2022 Jun 24.

Laboratory of Immune Regulation, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita, Japan.

Background: The impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection on the gut fungal (mycobiota) and bacterial (microbiota) communities has been elucidated individually. This study analyzed both gut mycobiota and microbiota and their correlation in the COVID-19 patients with severe and mild conditions and follow-up to monitor their alterations after recovery.

Methods: We analyzed the gut mycobiota and microbiota by bacterial 16S and fungal ITS1 metagenomic sequencing of 40 severe patients, 38 mild patients, and 30 healthy individuals and reanalyzed those of 10 patients with severe COVID-19 approximately 6 months after discharge. Read More

Sci Immunol 2022 Jun 24;7(72):eabl7209. Epub 2022 Jun 24.

Department of Pathophysiology, Osaka Metropolitan University, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka, Japan (formerly, Osaka City University).

Long-term senescent cells exhibit a secretome termed the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Although the mechanisms of SASP factor induction have been intensively studied, the release mechanism and how SASP factors influence tumorigenesis in the biological context remain unclear. In this study, using a mouse model of obesity-induced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), we identified the release mechanism of SASP factors, which include interleukin-1β (IL-1β)- and IL-1β-dependent IL-33, from senescent hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) via gasdermin D (GSDMD) amino-terminal-mediated pore. Read More

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022 Jun 24;119(26):e2114441119. Epub 2022 Jun 24.

Laboratory of Molecular Immunology and Infectious Disease, Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Yamaguchi University, Yamaguchi 753-8515, Japan.

Host genetic resistance to viral infection controls the pathogenicity and epidemic dynamics of infectious diseases. Refrex-1 is a restriction factor against feline leukemia virus subgroup D (FeLV-D) and an endogenous retrovirus (ERV) in domestic cats (ERV-DC). Refrex-1 is encoded by a subset of ERV-DC loci with truncated envelope genes and secreted from cells as a soluble protein. Read More

Swiss Med Wkly 2022 May 26;152:w30171. Epub 2022 May 26.

Division of Pediatric Cardiology, Department of women-mother-child, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Aim Of The Study: Kawasaki disease is a febrile illness which can lead to significant coronary artery lesions. Its incidence varies among countries and is highest in Japan (330.2 children under 5 years old/100,000 per year). Read More

EClinicalMedicine 2022 Jul 27;49:101475. Epub 2022 May 27.

Department of Paediatrics, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria.

Background: Multisystemic inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) has increasingly been documented globally with the progression of the COVID-19 pandemic and a significant proportion of cases have been noted in children of Black descent. There has been a noticeable discrepancy in the presentation and outcomes of COVID-19 infection in sub-Saharan Africa compared to the rest of the world. We documented the demography, clinical features, laboratory and imaging findings, therapeutic management, and short-term outcomes of paediatric patients with MIS-C diagnosed during the COVID-19 pandemic in Lagos, Nigeria. Read More

Br J Cardiol 2020 11;27(2):18. Epub 2020 Jul 11.

Consultant Cardiologist, Tallaght University Hospital, Dublin 24, Ireland.

From the time that the first cases were reported from Wuhan, China on the 31 December 2019, our knowledge of the clinical and virological associations of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has been evolving at a rapid pace. On 18 May 2020, COVID-19 had caused over 4.82 million cases worldwide and resulted in 316,959 deaths. Read More

Gynecol Minim Invasive Ther 2022 Apr-Jun;11(2):127-130. Epub 2022 May 4.

Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Kawasaki Medical School, Okayama, Japan.

We presented a case of uncontrolled genital bleeding caused by subserosal fibroid and treated by robotic-assisted hysterectomy during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. A 49-year-old woman had severe anemia with hypermenorrhea due to submucosal fibroid. Hysterectomy was deemed necessary to control genital bleeding. Read More

Medicina (Kaunas) 2022 May 30;58(6). Epub 2022 May 30.

Department of Pediatric, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Yaacob Latif, Kuala Lumpur 56000, Malaysia.

Kawasaki disease (KD) has shown a marked increase in trend over the globe, especially within the last two decades. Kawasaki disease is often seen in the paediatric population below five years old, while it is rare for those who are beyond that age. Up to this date, no exact causes has been identified although KD was found more than half a century ago. Read More

J Pers Med 2022 Jun 15;12(6). Epub 2022 Jun 15.

Pediatric Emergency Unit, Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria, University of Bologna, Via Massarenti 9, 40138 Bologna, Italy.

Kawasaki disease (KD) and Henoch-Schönlein purpura (HSP) are the most frequent vasculitis in childhood. For both, a multifactorial mechanism has been hypothesised, with an abnormal immune response in genetically predisposed children. Gut microbiota (GM) alterations might trigger the hyperimmune reaction. Read More

Diagnostics (Basel) 2022 May 25;12(6). Epub 2022 May 25.

Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Jichi Medical University, Shimotsuke 329-0498, Tochigi, Japan.

Endoscopic ultrasound can be useful for obtaining detailed diagnostic images for pancreatic disease. Contrast-enhanced harmonic endoscopic ultrasound has allowed to demonstrate not only microvasculature but also real perfusion imaging using second-generation contrast agents. Furthermore, endoscopic ultrasound fine-needle aspiration cytology and histology have become more ubiquitous; however, the risk of dissemination caused by paracentesis has yet to be resolved, and the application of less invasive contrast-enhanced endoscopic ultrasound for the differential diagnosis of pancreatic tumors has been anticipated. Read More

Children (Basel) 2022 Jun 18;9(6). Epub 2022 Jun 18.

Kawasaki Disease Center, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung 833, Taiwan.

Kawasaki disease (KD) is a febrile coronary vasculitis that affects younger children and includes complications such as coronary artery aneurysm. KD diagnoses are diagnosed based on clinical presentations, a process that still poses a challenge for front-line physicians. In the current study, we developed a novel predictor using the hemoglobin-for-age z-score (HbZ) and plasma hepcidin to differentiate Kawasaki disease (KD) from febrile children (FC). Read More

Children (Basel) 2022 Jun 8;9(6). Epub 2022 Jun 8.

Division of Pediatric Cardiology, Kyungpook National University Children's Hospital, Daegu 41404, Korea.

Diagnosis of Kawasaki disease in infants under 3 months of age is challenging. This study aimed to confirm the diagnostic efficacy of BCGitis in patients with Kawasaki disease aged <3 months. Overall, 473 children were enrolled; they were grouped by age into group 1 (≤3 months, = 19) and group 2 (>3 months, = 454). Read More

Contemp Clin Trials Commun 2022 Aug 9;28:100946. Epub 2022 Jun 9.

Department of Endocrinology, Hematology and Gerontology, Chiba University Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-0856, Japan.

Backgrounds: Despite the absolute need for life-long treatment of inherited and genetic diseases, there has been little effort to develop such treatments for most of these conditions due to their rarity. Familial lecithin:cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT) deficiency is recognized as one such orphan disease. We have been developing an adipocyte-based gene therapy/regenerative medicine, a novel methodology that differs from the adeno-associated virus-mediated gene therapy or gene-transduced hematopoietic cell therapy, to treat familial LCAT deficiency. Read More

J Pediatr Intensive Care 2022 Jun 4;11(2):124-129. Epub 2020 Dec 4.

Paediatric Intensive Care Unit, Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, United Kingdom.

We describe the critical care course of children with a novel hyperinflammatory syndrome associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome temporally associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), with focus on trajectory before and after immunomodulation. Overall, 10 patients who met the U.K. Read More

Cureus 2022 May 17;14(5):e25091. Epub 2022 May 17.

Department of Healthcare Epidemiology, Graduate School of Medicine and Public Health, Kyoto University, Kyoto, JPN.

An endovascular arteriovenous fistula is a recent technological advancement in hemodialysis vascular access. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of endovascular arteriovenous fistula (eAVF) creation compared with surgical arteriovenous fistula (sAVF) creation among patients with chronic kidney disease. We searched Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, EMBASE, Clinical Trials. Read More

J Headache Pain 2022 Jun 23;23(1):70. Epub 2022 Jun 23.

Medical Affairs, Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., 463-10 Kagasuno, Kawauchi-cho, Tokushima, 771-0192, Japan.

Background: Migraine is a chronic disease characterized by episodic headache attacks. No recent studies have, however been conducted on the epidemiology of migraine or the treatment landscape in Japan. This study was conducted as a fact-finding survey using medical claims data and an online survey on migraine and headaches, conducted among members of health insurance associations with the objective of gaining an understanding of migraine prevalence and the treatment status in Japan. Read More

Pediatr Res 2022 Jun 22. Epub 2022 Jun 22.

Department of Infectious Disease, Imperial College London, London, UK.

Background: Kawasaki disease (KD) is a systemic vasculitis that mainly affects children under 5 years of age. Up to 30% of patients develop coronary artery abnormalities, which are reduced with early treatment. Timely diagnosis of KD is challenging but may become more straightforward with the recent discovery of a whole-blood host response classifier that discriminates KD patients from patients with other febrile conditions. Read More

Emerg Infect Dis 2022 Jul;28(7):1437-1441

Unidentified Mycobacterium species are sometimes detected in respiratory specimens. We identified a novel Tsukamurella species (Tsukamurella sp. TY48, RIMD 2001001, CIP 111916), Tsukamurella toyonakaense, from a patient given a misdiagnosis of nontuberculous mycobacterial pulmonary disease caused by unidentified mycobacteria. Read More

Anim Sci J 2022 Jan;93(1):e13752

Miyazaki Prefectural Economics Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives, Miyazaki, Japan.

The present study aimed to investigate the quantitative relationship between the number of cross-fostering (CF) piglets and subsequent productivity of sows. Data were obtained from seven commercial farms including 41,086 farrowing records. Sows were divided into those that fostered out three or more piglets (CF ≥ 3-), fostered out one or two piglets (CF1-2-), did not do CF (NCF), fostered in one or two piglets (CF1-2+), and fostered in three or more piglets (CF ≥ 3+). Read More

BMC Pediatr 2022 Jun 20;22(1):353. Epub 2022 Jun 20.

Department of Cardiology, Children's Hospital of Soochow University, No. 92, Zhongnan Street, Suzhou, China.

Background: Kawasaki disease (KD) is a self-limiting vasculitis with an unknown etiology. It has been reported that breastfeeding has a potential protective effect on KD development. However, whether breastfeeding has an effect on the development of coronary artery lesions (CALs) remains unclear. Read More

Int J Cancer 2022 Jun 20. Epub 2022 Jun 20.

Department of Surgery, Kitakyusyu General Hospital, Kitakyusyu, Japan.

This multicenter single-arm, phase II study evaluated the efficacy and safety of uninterrupted panitumumab usage combined with cytotoxic doublets for unresectable/metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Additionally, clinical value of the RAS/BRAF mutation status in circulating cell-free DNA (ccfDNA) was evaluated; this evaluation was measured independently of the protocol treatment. Eligible patients with RAS wild-type mCRC who had received the first-line panitumumab plus FOLFOX treatment were recruited and administered continuous panitumumab combined with FOLFIRI. Read More

Cureus 2022 May 16;14(5):e25039. Epub 2022 May 16.

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, St. Marianna University School of Medicine, Kawasaki, JPN.

Introduction The purpose of this study was to clarify the superiority of robotic-assisted lumbar pedicle screw placement in terms of screw insertion time, fluoroscopy time, and operation time. Methods The subjects were 46 patients who underwent a posterior lumbar interbody fusion with an open procedure for lumbar degenerative disease from April 2021 to February 2022. The robot group contained 29 cases of screw insertion using a spine robotic system (Mazor X Stealth Edition, Medtronic Inc. Read More

Allergol Int 2022 Jun 6. Epub 2022 Jun 6.

Division of Rheumatology and Allergology, Department of Internal Medicine, St. Marianna University School of Medicine, Kanagawa, Japan.

Background: The mechanism of allergic reactions to COVID-19 mRNA vaccines has not been clarified. Polyethylene glycol (PEG) is a potential antigen in the components of vaccines. However, there is little evidence that allergy after COVID-19 mRNA vaccination is related to PEG. Read More

Tissue Cell 2022 Jun 2;77:101848. Epub 2022 Jun 2.

Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Iwate University, Morioka, Japan. Electronic address:

Common marmosets are non-human primate models used in biomedical research and genome editing technology. This study aimed to establish cell lines from common marmosets and evaluate their characteristics. We obtained normal fibroblasts derived from muscle tissues of two common marmosets and immortalized them with the introduction of a mutat form of cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (CDK4), Cyclin D1, and telomere reverse transcriptase (TERT) using the piggyBac transposon. Read More

Head Neck 2022 Jun 17. Epub 2022 Jun 17.

Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Medicine, University of California Irvine School of Medicine, Orange, CA, USA.

Background: Initial primary head and neck cancer (IPHNC) is associated with second primary lung cancer (SPLC). We studied this association in a population with a high proportion of African American (AA) patients.

Methods: Patients with IPHNC and SPLC treated between 2000 and 2017 were reviewed for demographic, disease, and treatment-related characteristics and compared to age-and-stage-matched controls without SPLC. Read More

JAMA Netw Open 2022 Jun 1;5(6):e2217436. Epub 2022 Jun 1.

Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla.

Importance: Public health measures implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic had widespread effects on population behaviors, transmission of infectious diseases, and exposures to environmental pollutants. This provided an opportunity to study how these factors potentially influenced the incidence of Kawasaki disease (KD), a self-limited pediatric vasculitis of unknown etiology.

Objectives: To examine the change in KD incidence across the United States and evaluate whether public health measures affected the prevalence of KD. Read More

Front Pediatr 2022 31;10:890755. Epub 2022 May 31.

Department of Pediatrics, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama, Japan.

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) is a new syndrome involving the development of severe dysfunction in multiple organs after severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Because the pathophysiology of MIS-C remains unclear, a treatment strategy has not yet been established. We experienced a 12-year-old boy who developed MIS-C at 56 days after SARS-CoV-2 infection and for whom ciclosporin A (CsA) was effective as a third-line treatment. Read More

Paediatr Child Health 2022 Jun 1;27(3):160-168. Epub 2022 Mar 1.

Division of Rheumatology, Department of Pediatrics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Objectives: Kawasaki disease (KD) is a common childhood vasculitis with increasing incidence in Canada. Acute KD hospitalizations are associated with high health care costs. However, there is minimal health care utilization data following initial hospitalization. Read More

Vasc Health Risk Manag 2022 10;18:407-416. Epub 2022 Jun 10.

Department of Pediatrics, Jichi Medical University, Tochigi, Japan.

Kawasaki disease (KD), first reported as an acute febrile mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome, is a self-limiting vasculitis of unknown etiology. The most important aspect of KD is the prevention of coronary artery lesion (CAL) because myocardial ischemia or infarction due to CAL might be lethal. In addition to the CAL, patients with KD develop systemic vasculitis, which indicates the presence of vascular endothelial damage. Read More