ObjectiveTo evaluate pulmonary function and clinical symptoms in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) survivors within 3 months after hospital discharge, and to identify risk factors associated with impaired lung function.Methods and materialCOVID-19 patients were prospectively followed up with pulmonary function tests and clinical characteristics for 3 months following discharge from a hospital in Wuhan, China between January and February 2020.Results647 patients were included. 87 (13%) patients presented with weakness, 63 (10%) with palpitation and 56 (9%) with dyspnea. Prevalences of the three symptoms were markedly higher in severe patients than non-severe patients (19% versus 10% for weakness, p=0.003; 14% versus 7% for palpitation, p=0.007; 12% versus 7% for dyspnea, p=0.014). Results of multivariable regression showed an increased odd in the ongoing symptoms among severe patients (OR: 1.7, 95%CI: 1.1–2.6, p=0.026) or patients with longer hospital stay (OR: 1.03, 95%CI: 1.00–1.05, p=0.041). Pulmonary function test results were available for 81 patients, including 41 non-severe and 40 severe patients. In this subgroup, 44 (54%) patients manifested abnormal diffusion capacity for carbon monoxide (DLCO) (68% severe versus 42% non-severe patients, p=0.019). Chest CT total severity score (TSS)>10.5 (OR: 10.4; 95%CI: 2.5–44.1; p=0.001) on admission and ARDS (OR: 4.6; 95%CI: 1.4–15.5; p=0.014) were significantly associated with impaired DLCO. Pulmonary interstitial damage may be associated with abnormal DLCO.ConclusionPulmonary function, particularly DLCO, declined in COVID-19 survivors. This decrease was associated with TSS of chest CT >10.5 and ARDS occurrence. Pulmonary interstitial damage might contribute to the imparied DLCO.

No abstract

Lung cancer has become the top killer among malignant tumors in China and is significantly associated with somatic genetic alterations. We performed exome sequencing of 14 non-small cell lung carcinomas (NSCLCs) with matched adjacent normal lung tissues extracted from Chinese patients. In addition to the lung cancer-related genes (TP53, EGFR, KRAS, PIK3CA, and ROS1), this study revealed "novel" genes not previously implicated in NSCLC. Especially, matrix-remodeling associated 5 was the second most frequently mutated gene in NSCLC (first is TP53). Subsequent Sanger sequencing of matrix-remodeling associated 5 in an additional sample set consisting of 52 paired tumor-normal DNA samples revealed that 15% of Chinese NSCLCs contained somatic mutations in matrix-remodeling associated 5. These findings, together with the results from pathway analysis, strongly indicate that altered extracellular matrix-remodeling may be involved in the etiology of NSCLC.

No abstract