Prognostic Factor In Colorectal Cancer Research Articles

BMP Signaling Is a Prognostic Marker in Patients With Colorectal Cancer and Associates With Frailty.

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are members of the transforming growth factor-β superfamily of ligands and have been shown to promote or suppress colorectal cancer (CRC) growth. Developing treatments that target BMPs is challenging due to their multiple roles, including involvement in the inflammatory response and nutritional status. The present study evaluated the prognostic value of BMP-4, which is believed to be highly expressed in CRC, and its correlation with inflammatory and nutrition statuses in patients with CRC. We analyzed BMP-4 expression in tumor tissues from 144 patients who underwent CRC surgery using immunohistochemistry and evaluated the relationship between BMP-4 levels and clinical outcomes. Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that patients with high expression levels of BMP-4 exhibited a shorter overall survival rate than those with low levels of expression. Multivariate analysis revealed that BMP-4 expression was an independent prognostic factor for overall survival and death from other diseases in CRC patients. Furthermore, high BMP-4 expression was significantly correlated with high C-reactive protein/Albumin ratio, sarcopenia, and osteopenia. BMP-4 is a significant prognostic factor in CRC, particularly in predicting death from other diseases, while also showing associations with inflammatory and nutritional statuses.

Integrated analysis reveals a novel 5-fluorouracil resistance-based prognostic signature with promising implications for predicting the efficacy of chemotherapy and immunotherapy in patients with colorectal cancer.

5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) has been used as a standard first-line treatment for colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. Although 5-FU-based chemotherapy and immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) have achieved success in treating CRC, drug resistance and low response rates remain substantial limitations. Thus, it is necessary to construct a 5-FU resistance-related signature (5-FRSig) to predict patient prognosis and identify ideal patients for chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Using bulk and single-cell RNA sequencing data, we established and validated a novel 5-FRSig model using stepwise regression and multiple CRC cohorts and evaluated its associations with the prognosis, clinical features, immune status, immunotherapy, neoadjuvant therapy, and drug sensitivity of CRC patients through various bioinformatics algorithms. Unsupervised consensus clustering was performed to categorize the 5-FU resistance-related molecular subtypes of CRC. The expression levels of 5-FRSig, immune checkpoints, and immunoregulators were determined using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT‒qPCR). Potential small-molecule agents were identified via Connectivity Map (CMap) and molecular docking. The 5-FRSig and cluster were confirmed as independent prognostic factors in CRC, as patients in the low-risk group and Cluster 1 had a better prognosis. Notably, 5-FRSig was significantly associated with 5-FU sensitivity, chemotherapy response, immune cell infiltration, immunoreactivity phenotype, immunotherapy efficiency, and drug selection. We predicted 10 potential compounds that bind to the core targets of 5-FRSig with the highest affinity. We developed a valid 5-FRSig to predict the prognosis, chemotherapeutic response, and immune status of CRC patients, thus optimizing the therapeutic benefits of chemotherapy combined with immunotherapy, which can facilitate the development of personalized treatments and novel molecular targeted therapies for patients with CRC.

Association of the TRIM family protein with survival outcomes and clinicopathological features in colorectal cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundThe tripartite motif (TRIM) proteins have been reported to play crucial roles in various malignancies. However, the clinical significance of TRIM proteins in colorectal cancer (CRC) remains controversial. This study aimed to evaluate the association between TRIM proteins and the clinicopathological features and survival outcomes in patients with CRC.MethodsWe performed a meta-analysis to investigate whether TRIM is a prognostic factor in CRC. PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, CNKI and Weipu databases were searched to identify eligible studies that evaluated the association between TRIM proteins and overall survival (OS), as well as the clinicopathological features of patients with CRC. Hazard ratios (HR) or odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) were derived and pooled using a fixed-effects model.ResultsFrom inception to March 2023, we extracted study characteristics and prognostic data for each identified study. Twelve studies enrolling 1608 patients were eligible for inclusion. Data on OS and recurrence-free survival (RFS) were available for 12 and 2 studies, respectively. The pooled analysis results showed a significant correlation between the elevated TRIM proteins and shorter OS (HR = 2.42, 95% CI: 1.96–2.99) and worse RFS (HR = 2.51, 95% CI: 1.78–3.54) in patients with CRC. The combined ORs indicated that TRIM protein over-expression was significantly associated with advanced TNM stage (OR = 2.26, 95% CI: 1.25–4.10), deep tumor invasion (OR = 2.01, 95% CI: 1.04–3.88), lymph node metastasis (OR = 2.99, 95% CI: 2.19–4.09) and perineural invasion (OR = 1.95, 95% CI: 1.18–3.23).ConclusionsOur findings suggest that TRIM proteins can predict tumor progression and poor prognosis in CRC. Therefore, TRIM proteins may be promising therapeutic targets for patients with CRC.Graphical

Identification and validation of cuproptosis and disulfidptosis related genes in colorectal cancer

Colorectal cancer, the third most prevalent malignant cancer, is associated with poor prognosis. Recent studies have investigated the mechanisms underlying cuproptosis and disulfidptosis in colorectal cancer. However, whether genes linked to these processes impact the prognosis of colorectal cancer patients through analogous mechanisms remains unclear. In this study, we developed a model of cuproptosis and disulfidptosis in colorectal cancer and concurrently explored the role of the pivotal model gene HSPA8 in colorectal cancer cell lines. Our results revealed a positive correlation between cuproptosis and disulfidptosis, both of which are emerging as protective factors for the prognosis of CRC patients. Consequently, a prognostic model encompassing HSPA8, PDCL3, CBX3, ATP6V1G1, TAF1D, RPL4, and RPL14 was constructed. Notably, the key gene in our model, HSPA8, exhibited heightened expression and was validated as a protective prognostic factor in colorectal cancer, exerting inhibitory effects on colorectal cancer cell proliferation. This study offers novel insights into the interplay between cuproptosis and disulfidptosis. The application of the prognostic model holds promise for more effectively predicting the overall survival of colorectal cancer patients.

Enhancing Colorectal Cancer Tumor Bud Detection Using Deep Learning from Routine H&E-Stained Slides.

Tumor budding refers to a cluster of one to four tumor cells located at the tumor-invasive front. While tumor budding is a prognostic factor for colorectal cancer, counting and grading tumor budding are time consuming and not highly reproducible. There could be high inter- and intra-reader disagreement on H&E evaluation. This leads to the noisy training (imperfect ground truth) of deep learning algorithms, resulting in high variability and losing their ability to generalize on unseen datasets. Pan-cytokeratin staining is one of the potential solutions to enhance the agreement, but it is not routinely used to identify tumor buds and can lead to false positives. Therefore, we aim to develop a weakly-supervised deep learning method for tumor bud detection from routine H&E-stained images that does not require strict tissue-level annotations. We also propose Bayesian Multiple Instance Learning (BMIL) that combines multiple annotated regions during the training process to further enhance the generalizability and stability in tumor bud detection. Our dataset consists of 29 colorectal cancer H&E-stained images that contain 115 tumor buds per slide on average. In six-fold cross-validation, our method demonstrated an average precision and recall of 0.94, and 0.86 respectively. These results provide preliminary evidence of the feasibility of our approach in improving the generalizability in tumor budding detection using H&E images while avoiding the need for non-routine immunohistochemical staining methods.

The activation of HAMP promotes colorectal cancer cell proliferation through zinc-mediated upregulation of SMAD4 expression.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) poses a significant challenge in digestive system diseases, and emerging evidence underscores the critical role of zinc metabolism in its progression. This study aimed to investigate the clinical implications of genes at the intersection of zinc metabolism and CRC. We downloaded CRC prognosis-related genes and zinc metabolism-related genes from public databases. Then, the overlapping genes were screened out, and bioinformatics analysis was performed to obtain the hub gene associated with CRC prognosis. Subsequently, in vitro assays were carried out to investigate the expression of this hub gene and its exact mechanism between zinc metabolism and CRC. HAMP was identified as the hub CRC prognostic gene from overlapping zinc metabolism-related and CRC prognostic genes. In vitro analysis showed HAMP was over-expressed in CRC, and its knockdown inhibited RKO and HCT-116 cell invasion and migration significantly. ZnSO4 induced HAMP up-regulation to promote cell proliferation, while TPEN decreased HAMP expression to inhibit cell proliferation. Importantly, we further found that ZnSO4 enhanced SMAD4 expression to augment HAMP promoter activity and promote cell proliferation in CRC. HAMP stands out as an independent prognostic factor in CRC, representing a potential therapeutic target. Its intricate regulation by zinc, particularly through the modulation of SMAD4, unveils a novel avenue for understanding CRC biology. This study provides valuable insights into the interplay between zinc metabolism, HAMP, and CRC, offering promising clinical indicators for CRC patients. The findings present a compelling case for further exploration and development of targeted therapeutic strategies in CRC management.

Pathological image profiling identifies onco-microbial, tumor immune microenvironment, and prognostic subtypes of colorectal cancer.

Histology slide, tissue microbes, and the host gene expression can be independent prognostic factors of colorectal cancer (CRC), but the underlying associations and biological significance of these multimodal omics remain unknown. Here, we comprehensively profiled the matched pathological images, intratumoral microbes, and host gene expression characteristics in 527 patients with CRC. By clustering these patients based on histology slide features, we classified the patients into two histology slide subtypes (HSS). Onco-microbial community and tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) were also significantly different between the two subtypes (HSS1 and HSS2) of patients. Furthermore, variation in intratumoral microbes-host interaction was associated with the prognostic heterogeneity between HSS1 and HSS2. This study proposes a new CRC classification based on pathological image features and elucidates the process by which tumor microbes-host interactions are reflected in pathological images through the TIME.

Overexpression of circulating CD38+ NK cells in colorectal cancer was associated with lymph node metastasis and poor prognosis.

Lymph node metastasis (LNM) is a critical prognostic factor for colorectal cancer (CRC). Due to the potential influence of immune system on CRC progression, investigation into lymphocyte subsets as clinical markers has gained attention. The objective of this study was to assess the capability of lymphocyte subsets in evaluating the lymph node status and prognosis of CRC. Lymphocyte subsets, including T cells (CD3+), natural killer cells (NK, CD3- CD56+), natural killer-like T cells (NK-like T, CD3+ CD56+), CD38+ NK cells (CD3- CD56+ CD38+) and CD38+ NK-like T cells (CD3+ CD56+ CD38+), were detected by flow cytometry. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to assess the risk factors of LNM. The prognostic role of parameters was evaluated by survival analysis. The proportion of CD38+ NK cells within the NK cell population was significantly higher in LNM-positive patients (p <0.0001). However, no significant differences were observed in the proportions of other lymphocyte subsets. Poorer histologic grade (odds ratio [OR] =4.76, p =0.03), lymphovascular invasion (LVI) (OR =22.38, p <0.01), and CD38+ NK cells (high) (OR =4.54, p <0.01) were identified as independent risk factors for LNM. Furthermore, high proportion of CD38+ NK cells was associated with poor prognosis of CRC patients (HR=2.37, p =0.03). It was demonstrated that the proportion of CD38+ NK cells was a marker overexpressed in LNM-positive patients compared with LNM-negative patients. Moreover, an elevated proportion of CD38+ NK cells is a risk factor for LNM and poor prognosis in CRC.

SLC4A4 moulds the inflammatory tumor microenvironment and predicts therapeutic expectations in colorectal cancer.

In this report, we performed a comprehensive analysis of data in colorectal cancer (CRC), to elucidate the association among Solute Carrier Family 4 Member 4 (SLC4A4) and the abundance of immunological features and immune cell infiltration in CRC, and to explore the impact of SLC4A4 on the CRC tumor microenvironment. Colorectal cancer (CRC) cases with advanced or distal metastases experience a survival rate of less than 20%, with the lack of spectral therapeutic targets and prognostic markers posing a significant challenge for CRC treatment. SLC4A4 may be a CRC-targeted therapy for which there is currently inadequate evidence Objective: To deeply and systematically reveal the characteristics of the tumor microenvironment created by SLC4A4. We downloaded RNA sequencing files (TCGA-COADREAD), clinical data for Colon Cancer (COAD) and Rectal Cancer (READ) from the Cancer Genome Atlas. We evaluated the spearman correlation of SLC4A4 with immune features, Tracking Tumor Immunophenotype (TIP) score, and immune checkpoint gene expression. SLC4A4/immunity-related differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in SLC4A4 expression groups and immune groups, and an assessment system for predicting CRC prognosis was constructed based on univariate COX and multivariate COX analyses. Based on the prognostic factors in CRC, we also constructed a nomogram to assess the survival risk status of CRC. Besides, we evaluated the potential association of SLC4A4 to immunotherapy. We found that SLC4A4 expression trended positively with immune checkpoint expression (PD-L1, CTLA4) and promoted infiltration of 27 immune cells. SLC4A4 promoted the infiltration of CD8 T cells, Dendritic cells, Macrophage, NK cells, and Th1 cells in CRC, shaping the inflammatory tumor microenvironment. Up-regulation of SLC4A4 expression might promote drug response to Anti-FGFR3_therapy, Anti-PPARG_therapy, Nivolumab, Ipilimumab in CRC patients, and down-regulation of SLC4A4 expression might promote drug response to Anti-EGFR_therapy, Aflibercept drug response. Based on the SLC4A4/immunization-related DEGs, we constructed RiskScore to assess the prognosis of CRC, which showed excellent predictive effect and robustness. RiskScore showed a trend of negative correlation with SLC4A4, which was consistent with the trend of the effect of SLC4A4 on CRC survival. Besides, RiskScore could also be useful for predicting patient prognosis. Finally, we constructed a nomogram for predicting CRC survival based on metrics with independent prognostic value (Age, M stage, Stage, RiskScore), which showed potential clinical value. Overall, upregulation of SLC4A4 expression promoted an inflammatory tumor microenvironment in CRC, and RiskScore predicted therapeutic expectancy. SLC4A4 could be a potentially clinically valuable target for CRC therapy.

The Role of Galectin3, Tubulinβ, and Maspin in Promoting Tumor Budding in Colorectal Carcinoma and Their Clinical Implications.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a leading cause of death worldwide. Despite the advances in surgical and therapeutic management, tumor metastases and poor prognosis are still major problems. Tumor budding is a relevant prognostic factor in CRC, and it can predict tumor metastasis. Galectin3 is responsible for the development and progression of many cancers through the regulation of cell-cell/cell-matrix interactions and tumor cell invasion. Tubulin is a microtubule protein, and maspin is a serine protease inhibitor; both induce tumor cell invasion through the stimulation of epithelial-mesenchymal transition. This study aims to evaluate the relationship between the expression of galecin3, tubulinβ, and maspin in CRC and clinicopathological features, including tumor budding, their prognostic roles, and clinical implications using immunohistochemistry. Galectin3, tubulinβ, and maspin were detected in tumor cells in 95%, 65%, and 87.5% of cases and in stromal cells in 28.8%, 40%, and 0% of cases. High expression of galectin3 and tubulinβ expression either in tumor cells or stroma was significantly associated with aggressive tumor features such as lymph node metastasis, lymphovascular invasion, tumor budding, and advanced tumor stage. The nucleocytoplasmic expression of maspin in tumor cells showed a significant association with deeper tumor invasion, lymph node metastasis, tumor budding, and advanced tumor stage. Significant associations were found between high galectin3 tumor cell expression and nucleocytoplasmic maspin and shorter survival. High expression of galectin3, tubulinβ, and nucleocytoplasmic maspin were significantly associated with aggressive tumor features such as tumor invasion, metastasis, high tumor budding, and short survival in CRC. They could be used as biomarkers for tumor budding and tumor aggressiveness in CRC and may be considered for future target therapy.

Acetone compression improves lymph node yield and metastasis detection in colorectal cancer.

Lymph node status is one of the most important prognostic factors in colorectal cancer, and accurate pathological nodal staging and detection of lymph node metastases is crucial for determination of post-operative management. Current guidelines, including the TNM staging system and European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) guidelines, recommend examination of at least 12 lymph nodes. However, identification of an adequate number of lymph nodes can be challenging, especially in the setting of neoadjuvant treatment, which may reduce nodal size. In this study, we investigated 384 colorectal cancer resections that were processed at our department of pathology between January 2012 and December 2022, in which the number of detected lymph nodes was less than 12 subsequent to conventional preparation of mesocolic fat tissue. By means of acetone compression, lymph node harvest increased significantly (p < 0.0001), and the intended number of ≥ 12 lymph nodes was achieved in 98% of resection specimens. The number of nodal positive cases increased significantly from n = 95 (24.7%) before versus n = 131 (34.1%) after acetone compression due to additionally identified lymph node metastases (p < 0.001). In 36 patients (9.4%) initially considered as nodal negative, acetone compression led to a staging adjustment to a nodal positive category and thereby drove a recommendation to offer post-operative therapy. In conclusion, acetone compression is a reliable and useful method implementable in routine surgical pathology for the retrieval of lymph nodes in colorectal cancer specimen, allowing for an adequate lymph node sampling and an increase in nodal staging reliability.

Aldo-keto reductase 1B10 as a Carcinogenic but Not a Prognostic Factor in Colorectal Cancer

Aldo-keto reductase 1B10 as a Carcinogenic but Not a Prognostic Factor in Colorectal Cancer

CBX2 Deletion Suppresses Growth and Metastasis of Colorectal Cancer by Mettl3-p38/ERK MAPK Signalling Pathway.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) seriously endangers human health owing to its high morbidity and mortality. Previous studies have suggested that high expression of CBX2 may be associated with poor prognosis in CRC patients. However, its functional role in CRC remains to be elucidated. Herein, we found that CBX2 overexpression in colorectal cancer tissue compared with adjacent tissues. Additionally, forest maps and the nomogram model indicated that elevated CBX2 expression was an independent prognostic factor in CRC. Moreover, we confirmed that the deletion of CBX2 markedly suppressed the proliferation and migration of CRC cells in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, downregulation of CBX2 promotes CRC cell apoptosis and hinders the cell cycle. Mechanistically, our data demonstrated that deletion of CBX2 inhibited the MAPK signaling pathway by regulating the protein levels of Mettl3. In conclusion, our study demonstrated that CBX2 is a vital tumor suppressor in CRC and could be a promising anti-cancer therapeutic target.

Tumor Budding Assessment in Colorectal Carcinoma: Normalization Revisited.

Tumor budding (TB) is a powerful prognostic factor in colorectal cancer (CRC). An internationally standardized method for its assessment (International Tumor Budding Consensus Conference [ITBCC] method) has been adopted by most CRC pathology protocols. This method requires that TB counts are reported by field area (0.785mm 2 ) rather than objective lens and a normalization factor is applied for this purpose. However, the validity of this approach is yet to be tested. We sought to validate the ITBCC method with a particular emphasis on normalization as a tool for standardization. In a cohort of 365 stage I-III CRC, both normalized and non-normalized TB were significantly associated with disease-specific survival and recurrence-free survival ( P <0.0001). Examining both 0.95 and 0.785mm 2 field areas in a subset of patients (n=200), we found that normalization markedly overcorrects TB counts: Counts obtained in a 0.95mm 2 hotspot field were reduced by an average of 17.5% following normalization compared with only 3.8% when counts were performed in an actual 0.785mm 2 field. This resulted in 45 (11.3%) cases being downgraded using ITBCC grading criteria following normalization, compared with only 5 cases (1.3%, P =0.0007) downgraded when a true 0.785mm 2 field was examined. In summary, the prognostic value of TB was retained regardless of whether TB counts in a 0.95mm 2 field were normalized. Normalization resulted in overcorrecting TB counts with consequent downgrading of most borderline cases. This has implications for risk stratification and adjuvant treatment decisions, and suggests the need to re-evaluate the role of normalization in TB assessment.

Emerging role and clinical implication of mRNA scavenger decapping enzyme in colorectal cancer

BackgroundTurnover of RNA is a regulated process that in part controls gene expression. This process is partly controlled by the scavenger decapping enzyme (DcpS). This study aimed to investigate the expression of DcpS in colorectal cancer (CRC) tissue, to evaluate its prognostic significance in patients with CRC and to investigate potentially targeted genes by DcpS. MethodsImmunohistochemical analysis was used to determine localization of DcpS in normal and CRC tissue, western blot analysis for quantification of protein expression and qPCR for mRNA expression in normal and CRC tissue and expression in cell lines after silencing using siRNA. Gene array analysis was used to study regulation of genes after silencing of DcpS. Proliferation was studied using BRDU. ResultsDcpS expression was localized to the epithelial cells of both control and cancer tissue. Tumor and paired control tissue samples from 100 patients who underwent surgical resection for primary colorectal adenocarcinomas were utilized. mRNA and protein of DcpS was significantly up-regulated in the patients with CRC and the mRNA level was higher in rectal cancer tissue compared to colon cancer tissue (p < 0.05). Lowest tertile levels of DcpS mRNA in cancer tissue was associated with a decreased cancer-specific survival rate with a hazard ratio (HR) of 4.7 (95% CI=1.02–12.3), independent of disease stage. The low level of DcpS mRNA was a predictor of poorer survival in patients with rectal and disseminated cancer and in patients receiving adjuvant treatment (p < 0.05). After silencing DcpS in Caco-2 cancer cells, altered expression of several genes associated with RNA, cell cycle regulation, alternative splicing and microRNA was observed and resulted in 23% increase in proliferation. ConclusionsThese results indicate that DcpS has potential as a prognostic factor for CRC but further studies in a broader cohort are warranted to evaluate the significance of the findings in the clinic.

Diabetic severity and oncological outcomes of colorectal cancer following curative resection: A population-based cohort study in Taiwan.

Although diabetes is a poor prognostic factor for colorectal cancer (CRC), whether diabetes severity provides an additional predictive value for CRC prognosis remains unclear. The study aimed to investigate the prognostic differences after curative CRC resection among patients with different diabetic severities. This population-based retrospective cohort study analyzed data registered between 2007 and 2015 in the Cancer Registry Database, which is linked to the National Health Insurance Research Database and National Death Registry. Patients with CRC who underwent curative radical resection for stage I-III disease were evaluated, with their diabetic status subdivided into no diabetes, diabetes without complication, and diabetes with complications. Cox regressions were applied to determine the association between diabetes severity and CRC survival, including overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), time to recurrence, and cancer-specific survival (CSS). A total of 59,202 patients with CRC were included. Compared with the no diabetes group, the diabetes without complication group has insignificantly worse OS (hazard ratio [HR],1.05; 95% confidence interval [CI],1.01-1.09), DFS (HR,1.08; 95% CI,1.04-1.12), and CSS (HR,0.98; 95% CI,0.93-1.03), whereas those with complicated diabetes had a significantly higher risk of poor survival (OS: HR,1.85; 95% CI,1.78-1.92; DFS: HR,1.75; 95% CI,1.69-1.82; CSS: HR,1.41; 95% CI,1.33-1.49). Patients with CRC and diabetes also had a higher risk of recurrence than did those without diabetes. Sex and TNM staging were important effect modifiers. Among patients with CRC who undergo curative resection, the severity of the diabetes is inversely correlated with long-term outcomes, especially in women and patients in the earlier stages of CRC. The prognostic impact of diabetes severity in colorectal cancer (CRC) is yet to be clarified. In this cohort study of 59,202 patients with CRC, compared with patients with CRC and without diabetes, those with uncomplicated diabetes had an insignificantly worse CRC survival, whereas those with complicated diabetes had a significantly higher risk of poor survival. Multidisciplinary medical care to prevent progression into diabetes with complications is needed to improve survival among patients with CRC and diabetes.

Clinical significance of Bacteroides fragilis as a potential prognostic factor in colorectal cancer

IntroductionBacteroides fragilis (B. fragilis) is considered to act in an anti-inflammatory manner on the intestinal tract. On the contrary, enterotoxigenic B. fragilis (ETBF), a subtype of B. fragilis, produces an enterotoxin (BFT; B. fragilis toxin), leading to asymptomatic chronic infections and colonic tumor formation. However, the impact of B. fragilis and ETBF on the clinical outcome of colorectal cancer (CRC) remains unclear. We aim to assess whether their presence affects the outcome in patients with CRC after curative resection. MethodsWe obtained 197 pairs of matched formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded samples from cancerous and adjacent non-cancerous tissues of patients with pathological stage (pstage) II and III CRC after curative resection. The presence of B. fragilis and ETBF were estimated using real-time polymerase chain reaction, and recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) of the patients were analyzed. Results16S rRNA for B. fragilis and bft DNA were detected in 120 (60.9%) and 12 (6.1%) of the 197 patients, respectively. B. fragilis-positive patients had better RFS than B. fragilis-negative patients, although that was not statistically significant. In subgroup analysis, better outcomes on RFS were observed in the presence of B. fragilis in pstage II and left-sided CRC. The association of B. fragilis positivity on OS was accentuated in the depth of T4 subgroup. No significant differences were observed in RFS and OS between ETBF and non-toxigenic B. fragilis. ConclusionsOur findings suggest that the presence of B. fragilis is associated with better outcomes in patients with pstage II and III CRC after curative resection.

Hsa_circRNA_102051 regulates colorectal cancer proliferation and metastasis by mediating Notch pathway

BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to investigate the role of hsa_circRNA_102051 in colorectal cancer (CRC) and its effect on the stemness of tumor cells.MethodsCircRNA microarray was under analysis to screen differentially expressed novel circRNAs in the pathology of CRC. Quantitative real-time PCR was used to detect the relative RNA expression in CRC cells and samples. The effects of hsa_circRNA_102051 on biological functions in CRC cells were accessed both in vitro and in vivo. FISH, RIP and luciferase reporter assay were conducted to confirm the regulatory correlations between hsa_circRNA_102051 and miR-203a, as well as miR-203a and BPTF. Xenograft models were applied to further verify the impacts and fluctuations of hsa_circRNA_102051/miR-203a/BPTF. Moreover, the mechanism how hsa_circRNA_102051 affected the Notch signals was also elucidated.ResultsHsa_circRNA_102051 was up-regulated in CRC tissues and cell lines, capable to promote the growth and invasion of CRC. In addition, hsa_circRNA_102051 could enhance stemness of CRC cells. BPTF was identified as downstream factors of hsa_circRNA_102051, and miR-203a was determined directly targeting both hsa_circRNA_102051 and BPTF as an intermediate regulator. Hsa_circRNA_102051 in CRC could block miR-203a expression, and subsequently activated BPTF. Hsa_circRNA_102051/miR-203a/BPTF axis modulated stemness of CRC cells by affecting Notch pathway.ConclusionsOur findings provided new clues that hsa_circRNA_102051 might be a potential predictive or prognostic factor in CRC, which induced the fluctuation of downstream miR-203a/BPTF, and subsequently influenced tumor growth, activities and stemness. Thereinto, the Notch signals were also involved. Hence, the hsa_circRNA_102051/miR-203a/BPTF axis could be further explored as a therapeutic target for anti-metastatic therapy in CRC patients.

Colorectal Carcinomas: Searching for New Histological Parameters Associated with Lymph Node Metastases.

Background and Objectives: Colorectal cancer (CRC) continues to be an essential public health problem. Our study aimed to evaluate the prognostic significance of classic prognostic factors and some less-studied histopathological parameters in CRC. Materials and Methods: We performed a retrospective study on 71 colorectal carcinoma patients who underwent surgery at the "Pius Brînzeu" County Clinical Emergency Hospital in Timișoara, Romania. We analyzed the classic parameters but also tumor budding (TB), poorly differentiated clusters (PDCs) of cells, tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), and the configuration of the tumor border on hematoxylin-eosin slides. Results: A high degree of malignancy (p = 0.006), deep invasion of the intestinal wall (p = 0.003), an advanced stage of the disease (p < 0.0001), lymphovascular invasion (p < 0.0001), perineural invasion (p < 0.0001), high-grade TB (p < 0.0001), high-grade PDCs (p < 0.0001), infiltrative tumor border configuration (p < 0.0001) showed a positive correlation with lymph node metastases. Conclusions: The analyzed parameters positively correlate with unfavorable prognostic factors in CRC. We highlight the value of classic prognostic factors along with a series of less-known parameters that are more accessible and easier to evaluate using standard staining techniques and that could predict the risk of relapse or aggressive evolution in patients with CRC.

Survival prediction and prognostic factors in colorectal cancer after curative surgery: insights from cox regression and neural networks

Medical research frequently relies on Cox regression to analyze the survival distribution of cancer patients. Nonetheless, in specific scenarios, neural networks hold the potential to serve as a robust alternative. In this study, we aim to scrutinize the effectiveness of Cox regression and neural network models in assessing the survival outcomes of patients who have undergone treatment for colorectal cancer. We conducted a retrospective study on 284 colorectal cancer patients who underwent surgery at Imam Khomeini clinic in Hamadan between 2001 and 2017. The data was used to train both Cox regression and neural network models, and their predictive accuracy was compared using diagnostic measures such as sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, accuracy, negative predictive value, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve. The analyses were performed using STATA 17 and R4.0.4 software. The study revealed that the best neural network model had a sensitivity of 74.5% (95% CI 61.0–85.0), specificity of 83.3% (65.3–94.4), positive predictive value of 89.1% (76.4–96.4), negative predictive value of 64.1% (47.2–78.8), AUC of 0.79 (0.70–0.88), and accuracy of 0.776 for death prediction. For recurrence, the best neural network model had a sensitivity of 88.1% (74.4–96.0%), specificity of 83.7% (69.3–93.2%), positive predictive value of 84.1% (69.9–93.4%), negative predictive value of 87.8% (73.8–95.9%), AUC of 0.86 (0.78–0.93), and accuracy of 0.859. The Cox model had comparable results, with a sensitivity of 73.6% (64.8–81.2) and 85.5% (78.3–91.0), specificity of 89.6% (83.8–93.8) and 98.0% (94.4–99.6), positive predictive value of 84.0% (75.6–90.4) and 97.4% (92.6–99.5), negative predictive value of 82.0% (75.6–90.4) and 88.8% (0.83–93.1), AUC of 0.82 (0.77–0.86) and 0.92 (0.89–0.95), and accuracy of 0.88 and 0.92 for death and recurrence prediction, respectively. In conclusion, the study found that both Cox regression and neural network models are effective in predicting early recurrence and death in patients with colorectal cancer after curative surgery. The neural network model showed slightly better sensitivity and negative predictive value for death, while the Cox model had better specificity and positive predictive value for recurrence. Overall, both models demonstrated high accuracy and AUC, indicating their usefulness in predicting these outcomes.