No abstract

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC), as a proportion, makes up only 15–17% of lung cancer cases. The development of treatments for SCLC has remained stagnant for decades, and SCLC is expected to persist as a threat to human health. To date, no publications based on large populations have been reported. We calculated survival changes in patients with SCLC during each decade between 1983 and 2012 to determine the roles of race, sex, age, and socioeconomic status (SES) on survival rates based on the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registries. In total, 106,296 patients with SCLC were identified, with the overall incidence per 100,000 decreasing each decade from 9.6 to 7.8 to 5.8. The median survival for SCLC remained 7 months, and the 12-month relative survival rates (RSRs) remained relatively stable at 32.9%, 33.2% and 33.2% during each decade. The 5-year RSRs significantly improved from 4.9% to 5.9% to 6.4% during each decade, but remained extremely low. In addition, a narrowing of the survival gaps among SES groups and stable survival gaps between sexes were observed. Although the incidence of SCLC decreased during each decade, the overall survival remained relatively stable, highlighting the urgency of developing novel treatments and the importance of prevention and early detection.

Both Xp11 translocation renal cell carcinomas and the corresponding mesenchymal neoplasms are characterized by a variety of gene fusions involving TFE3. It has been known that tumors with different gene fusions may have different clinicopathologic features; however, further in-depth investigations of subtyping Xp11 translocation-associated cancers are needed in order to explore more meaningful clinicopathologic correlations. A total of 22 unusual cases of Xp11 translocation-associated cancers were selected for the current study; 20 cases were further analyzed by RNA sequencing to explore their TFE3 gene fusion partners. RNA sequencing identified 17 of 20 cases (85%) with TFE3-associated gene fusions, including 4 ASPSCR1/ASPL-TFE3, 3 PRCC-TFE3, 3 SFPQ/PSF-TFE3, 1 NONO-TFE3, 4 MED15-TFE3, 1 MATR3-TFE3, and 1 FUBP1-TFE3. The results have been verified by fusion fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) assays or reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The remaining 2 cases with specific pathologic features highly suggestive of MED15-TFE3 renal cell carcinoma were identified by fusion FISH assay. We provide the detailed morphologic and immunophenotypic description of the MED15-TFE3 renal cell carcinomas, which frequently demonstrate extensively cystic architecture, similar to multilocular cystic renal neoplasm of low malignant potential, and expressed cathepsin K and melanotic biomarker Melan A. This is the first time to correlate the MED15-TFE3 renal cell carcinoma with specific clinicopathologic features. We also report the first case of the corresponding mesenchymal neoplasm with MED15-TFE3 gene fusion. Additional novel TFE3 gene fusion partners, MATR3 and FUBP1, were identified. Cases with ASPSCR1-TFE3, SFPQ-TFE3, PRCC-TFE3, and NONO-TFE3 gene fusion showed a wide variability in morphologic features, including invasive tubulopapillary pattern simulating collecting duct carcinoma, extensive calcification and ossification, and overlapping and high columnar cells with nuclear grooves mimicking tall cell variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma. Furthermore, we respectively evaluated the ability of TFE3 immunohistochemistry, TFE3 FISH, RT-PCR, and RNA sequencing to subclassify Xp11 translocation-associated cancers. In summary, our study expands the list of TFE3 gene fusion partners and the clinicopathologic features of Xp11 translocation-associated cancers, and highlights the importance of subtyping Xp11 translocation-associated cancers combining morphology, immunohistochemistry, and multiple molecular techniques.

Background. The role of interleukin-12 (IL-12), interleukin-23 (IL-23), and interleukin-17 (IL-17) has been recognized in psoriasis pathogenesis, and new drugs targeting this axis have already been developed which may provide a new therapeutic approach for patients with moderate to severe psoriasis. Objective. To compare the direct and indirect evidences of the efficacy and safety of brodalumab, secukinumab, ixekizumab, ustekinumab, guselkumab, tildrakizumab, and risankizumab in the short-term treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis using network meta-analysis (NMA). Methods. A comprehensive literature search was performed in PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials for the available relevant studies. NMA was conducted by Stata 15.0 software using relative risks (RR) with 95% confidence interval to assess the clinical effectiveness and safety. Ranked the efficacy and safety for each drug accordance with the surface under the cumulative ranking curve (SUCRA). Results. This meta-analysis included 28 studies. All the interventions performed better than placebo in short-term achievement. Based on the result of SUCRA, ixekizumab 80 mg every 2 weeks ranked the highest in short-term achievement of PASI 75 (SUCRA = 93.0%). Brodalumab 210 mg ranked the highest in short-term achievement of PASI 100 (SUCRA = 85.0%). Secukinumab 300 mg ranked the highest in short-term achievement of sPGA 0/1 or IGA 0/1 or PGA 0/1 (SUCRA = 98.1%). In terms of having a risk of adverse events, the rates were higher in brodalumab, secukinumab, ixekizumab, and ustekinumab 45 mg compared with placebo. Ixekizumab 80 mg every 4 weeks ranked the highest in the risk of adverse events during short-term treatment (SUCRA = 4.5%). Guselkumab 50 mg ranked the highest in the risk of serious adverse events during short-term treatment (SUCRA = 25.9%). Ixekizumab 80 mg every 4 weeks ranked the highest in the risk of discontinuations due to adverse events during short-ter treatment (SUCRA = 10.7%). Conclusions. IL-17, IL-12/23, and IL-23 inhibitors had high efficacy in the achievement of PASI 75, PASI 100, and sPGA 0/1 or IGA 0/1 or PGA 0/1 in moderate to severe plaque psoriasis after 12 or 16 weeks of treatment. IL-17 inhibitors showed superior efficacy. However, its clinical safety was poor. Risankizumab appeared to have relatively high efficacy and low risk. The clinical tolerance of other biological agents needs to be further observed.