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Objectives: Cytokine release triggered by severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) depends on a dysregulated immune response and is associated with high mortality. Extracorporeal cytokine hemoadsorption (HA) can be considered a possible adjuvant therapy. This study aimed to review the outcomes of critically ill patients with COVID-19 treated with HA and analyze possible factors associated with mortality. Methods: Data of patients who received HA for at least one cycle from April 17, 2020, to January 31, 2021, were collected. Clinical and laboratory features were recorded, and mortality was evaluated based on the extracorporeal treatment application time and intensive care units (ICU) admission. Results: Data from 177 patients among 4733 ICU patients were analyzed. Their mean age was 60.9±10.9, and 40 (22.6%) of them were females. About 83% of them were mechanically ventilated, and the overall mortality was 76%. In univariate analysis, the mean age, median acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHE)-II score, respiratory support rate, and duration between ICU admission and first cytokine filter were lower in the survivor group than in the non-survivor group. In binary logistic regression analysis, higher APACHE-II with an odds ratio of 1.06 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.005–1.128, p=0.033), invasive mechanical ventilation with an odds ratio of 138.4 (95%CI: 24.2–791.8, p<0.001), and later application of HA with an odds ratio of 1.190 (95%CI: 1.009–1.404, p=0.039) were independently associated with in-hospital mortality. Conclusion: Cytokine HA was applied to a large number of patients at our center. Although this was conducted in a severe population with high mortality, besides invasive mechanical ventilation, late application of the cytokine filter was found as one of the factors independently associated with higher mortality [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The dysregulation of metabolism is a hallmark of cancer. Enzymes of tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle have a key role in pathogenesis of carcinogenesis as oncometabolits. The variants in fumarate hydratase (FH) gene have been linked to sporadic tumors and familial tumor propensity. To asses the prevalence of variants in the FH gene in endometrial carcinoma (EC) and uterine leiomyomas (UL). Material and Methods: This prospective study included 58 patients with EC and 44 with UL. The FH gene variants were analyzed in the DNA samples collected from peripheral circulation. All exons of the FH gene were replicated by polymerase chain reaction utilizing specific primers including intron-exon boundaries and than was sequenced with Sanger method. Results: Only two variants were detected in two different patients. The c.927G>A (p.Pro309Pro) and c.63C>T (p.Ala21Ala) variants were observed in patients with UL, EC respectively. c.927G>A (p.Pro309=) and c.63C>T (p.Ala21=) are rare variants inside the overall population with allele frequency ranges of 0.02428, 0.000014 respectively. Conclusion: The contribution of variants in genes encoding the TCA cycle enzymes in tumor cells has provided understanding fundamental role on metabolic alterations in carcinogenesis. Further studies are needed to discover the novel tumor mutations and identify appropriate treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing awareness of human papilloma virus (HPV) and vaccines among the target population is an important factor for decreasing the rate of malignancies related to HPV. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to determine Turkish high school and college students' knowledge level of HPV and vaccines via a survey. The HPV knowledge scale (HPV-KS) has been developed to measure the level of knowledge about HPV and vaccination. The response rate of 'Yes' to the question of whether the participants have heard of HPV and the vaccine was 60.8% and 58.8%, respectively. The lack of information was the commonest reason for not being vaccinated in 54% of the participants. According to the HPV-KS, the median value of the knowledge level of the participants was 35.7 (IQR; 14.3–57.1). The HPV-KS scores were significantly higher among those with parents who had graduated from university and had an income above the minimum wage than those who did not (p =.013 and p =.029, respectively). Current evidence suggests that Turkish adolescents have limited HPV knowledge. Gender, age, education (particularly university and health-related departments), parents' level of education and income were all important factors in determining the outcome variables. Therefore, it is very important to apply educational programs to raise awareness by medical staff. What is already known on this subject? Human papilloma virus (HPV) infection is a major threat due to the reason of many malignancies, especially cervical cancer, and this problem can be overcome by informing the target population about the screening program and vaccination. What do the results of this study add? Lack of knowledge about HPV infection and cost of the vaccine were the main reasons for insufficient vaccination rate among the adolescents. What are the implications of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? In developing countries such as Turkey, the necessity to raise awareness about HPV infection and vaccination has emerged. As a result, it is critical to implement educational campaigns to enhance awareness, particularly by medical staff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]