Search

We investigated a screening method using only serum hormone levels and AI (artificial intelligence) predictive analysis. Among 3662 patients, numbers for NOA (non-obstructive azoospermia), OA (obstructive azoospermia), cryptozoospermia, oligozoospermia and/or asthenozoospermia, normal, and ejaculation disorder were 448, 210, 46, 1619, 1333, and 6, respectively. "Normal" was defined as semen findings normal according to the WHO (World Health Organization) Manual for Human Semen Testing of 2021. We extracted age, LH (luteinizing hormone), FSH (follicle stimulating hormone), PRL (prolactin), testosterone, E2 (estradiol), and T (testosterone)/E2 from medical records. A total motility sperm count of 9.408 × 106 (1.4 ml × 16 × 106/ml × 42%) was defined as the lower limit of normal. The Prediction One-based AI model had an AUC (area under the curve) of 74.42%. For the AutoML Tables-based model, AUC ROC (receiver operating characteristic) was 74.2% and AUC PR (precision–recall) 77.2%. In a ranking of feature importance from 1st to 3rd, FSH came a clear 1st. T/E2 and LH ranked 2nd and 3rd for both Prediction One and AutoML Tables. Using data from 2021 and 2022 to verify the Prediction One-based AI model, the predicted and actual results for NOA were 100% matched in both years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated whether aspartate transaminase (AST)-to-alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ratio and its change during the course of treatment in castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) patients is associated with tumor condition and lethality. Clinical data from 130 CRPC patients were retrospectively evaluated. AST/ALT ratios at the time of prostate cancer (PC) diagnosis, androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), CRPC diagnosis, and the final follow-up examination after CRPC treatment were calculated for each. The prognostic capabilities of the AST/ALT ratio for overall survival (OS) were analyzed by use of the Kaplan–Meier method and Cox hazard models. The median AST/ALT ratio at PC diagnosis was 1.517 and the optimal value predicting lethality defined by the receiver operating curve was 1.467. The AST/ALT ratio decreased once during ADT and then elevated in a stepwise manner with cancer progression. In surviving patients, the median AST/ALT ratio at the time of PC diagnosis was 1.423, which did not change longitudinally, whereas that in patients later deceased was significantly higher (1.620) and further elevated after CRPC diagnosis. Kaplan–Meier curves indicated significantly worse OS in patients with an AST/ALT ratio ≥ 1.467, which was confirmed by multivariate analysis. These findings indicate AST/ALT ratio as a prognostic biomarker for CRPC with longitudinal changes reflecting tumor progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2017, the Japan Society of Clinical Oncology (JSCO) published the JSCO Clinical Practice Guidelines 2017 for Fertility Preservation in Childhood, Adolescent, and Young Adult Cancer Patients. These were the first Japanese guidelines to address issues of oncofertility. In this field of medicine, sustained close cooperation between oncologists and reproductive specialists is essential from the diagnosis of cancer until many years after completion of cancer treatment. These JSCO guidelines were intended to guide multidisciplinary medical staff in considering the availability of fertility preservation options and to help them decide whether to provide fertility preservation to childhood, adolescent, and young adult cancer patients before treatment starts, with the ultimate goal of improving patient survivorship. The guidelines are presented as Parts 1 and 2. This article (Part 1) summarizes the goals of the guidelines and the methods used to develop them and provides an overview of fertility preservation across all oncology areas. It includes general remarks on the basic concepts surrounding fertility preservation and explanations of the impacts of cancer treatment on gonadal function by sex and treatment modality and of the options for protecting/preserving gonadal function and makes recommendations based on 4 clinical questions. Part 2 of these guidelines provides specific recommendations on fertility preservation in 8 types of cancer (gynecologic, breast, urologic, pediatric, hematologic, bone and soft tissue, brain, and digestive). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Japan Society of Clinical Oncology (JSCO) published the "JSCO Clinical Practice Guidelines 2017 for Fertility Preservation in Childhood, Adolescent, and Young Adult Cancer Patients" in 2017. This was the first guideline in cancer reproductive medicine in Japan. In the field of cancer reproductive medicine, close cooperation between an oncologist and a physician for reproductive medicine is important from before treatment initiation until long after treatment. The guideline takes into consideration disease specificity and provides opinions from the perspective of oncologists and specialists in reproductive medicine that are in line with the current state of the Japanese medical system. It is intended to serve as a reference for medical staff in both fields regarding the availability of fertility preservation therapy before the start of cancer treatment. Appropriate use of this guideline makes it easier to determine whether fertility preservation therapy is feasible and, ultimately, to improve survivorship in childhood, adolescent, and young adult cancer patients. In this article (Part 2), we describe details by organ/system and also for pediatric cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined whether a tool for determining Johnsen scores automatically using artificial intelligence (AI) could be used in place of traditional Johnsen scoring to support pathologists' evaluations. Average precision, precision, and recall were assessed by the Google Cloud AutoML Vision platform. We obtained testicular tissues for 275 patients and were able to use haematoxylin and eosin (H&E)-stained glass microscope slides from 264 patients. In addition, we cut out of parts of the histopathology images (5.0 × 5.0 cm) for expansion of Johnsen's characteristic areas with seminiferous tubules. We defined four labels: Johnsen score 1–3, 4–5, 6–7, and 8–10 to distinguish Johnsen scores in clinical practice. All images were uploaded to the Google Cloud AutoML Vision platform. We obtained a dataset of 7155 images at magnification 400× and a dataset of 9822 expansion images for the 5.0 × 5.0 cm cutouts. For the 400× magnification image dataset, the average precision (positive predictive value) of the algorithm was 82.6%, precision was 80.31%, and recall was 60.96%. For the expansion image dataset (5.0 × 5.0 cm), the average precision was 99.5%, precision was 96.29%, and recall was 96.23%. This is the first report of an AI-based algorithm for predicting Johnsen scores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Respiratory insufficiency has been reported frequently in patients with myotonic dystrophy (MyD). Recent data support the hypothesis that this respiratory failure results from a primary dysfunction of the central nervous system. The medullary arcuate nucleus (ARC) has been shown to be involved in the regulation of respiration. We performed a quantitative study of neurons in the ARC in eight MyD patients, ten control subjects with other neurological diseases (control group A) and eight control subjects without neurological diseases (control group B). Alveolar hypoventilation of the central type occurred in three of the MyD patients but not in the remaining MyD patients or controls. The density of neurons in the ARC in MyD patients with hypoventilation was significantly lower than in MyD patients without hypoventilation and control groups A and B. There was no significant difference in the neuronal density of the ARC between MyD patients without hypoventilation and control groups A and B. These data suggest that the neuronal loss of the ARC is associated with the presence of hypoventilation in MyD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An epithelioid haemangioendothelioma arising in a 43-year-old Japanese woman is presented. The patient first complained of severe back pain and neurogenic disturbances due to compression fracture of the spinal bone. Radiographically the tumour masses showed osteolytic lesions without reactive new bone formation. Similar lesions were noted in other bones. Biopsy and surgical specimens showed the features of epithelioid haemangioendothelioma. A lymphocyte associated antigen, HLA-DR which has been regarded as a B lymphocyte marker was detected in the tumour cells. The importance of this finding was emphasized with respect to the identification or classification of vascular tumours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two cases of undifferentiated carcinoma of the parotid gland were studied by light and electron microscopy. Light microscopy showed nests of ovoid cells with scanty cytoplasm and pyknotic nuclei in two cases. One case was the small-cell type, and another one was the large-cell type histopathologically. Electron microscopy showed two distinct cell types in each tumor: Case 1 (small-cell type). - An epithelial-like cell, and an irregular-shaped cell containing bundles of filaments suggesting myoepithelial differentiation. Case 2 (large-cell type). - An epithelial-like cell, and a large cell containing secretory-like granules. These findings support a salivary duct epithelial origin for these tumors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thirty-two cases of parotid gland tumors in Japanese children (under 16 years of age; 5.5% of total of 580 tumors) were examined and classified histopathologically. The results obtained were as follows. Some difference in the incidence of the tumors was noted between Japanese or European and American children but the reasons for this are unknown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the last three decades, 586 cases of parotid gland tumor have been extirpated in our clinic. The tumors were malignant in 170 cases and, of these, facial nerve paralysis was observed at first examination in 59 patients. This paper deals with the retrospective study of these cases and is chiefly concerned with the histological types and facial nerve paralysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We performed morphological studies of skin and measured glycosaminoglycans in the urine from patients with sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and control subjects. The wide spaces separating collagen bundles reacted strongly with alcian blue stain in ALS patients and stained more markedly as ALS progressed. Staining with alcian blue was virtually eliminated by Streptomyces hyaluronidase. The urinary excretion of hyaluronic acid (HA) (mg/day) was significantly increased ( P < 0.01) in ALS patients compared with that of control subjects, and there was a significant positive correlation between the excreted amount of HA and the duration of illness in advanced ALS patients with a duration of more than 2 years from clinical onset ( r = 0.72, P < 0.02). We suggest that sporadic ALS includes a metabolic disorder of HA in which an accumulation of HA in the skin is linked to an increased urinary excretion of HA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An improved new method for the simultaneous visualization of mRNA and encoded protein in LR White resin-embedded specimens is described. This pre-embedding electron microscopical in situ hybridization (procedure) localized rat growth hormone mRNA specifically as high electron-density products on the polysomes of the rough endoplasmic reticulum. A subsequent post-embedding immunoreaction, using protein A colloidal gold particles, identified growth hormone as gold particles both in the cisternae of the rough endoplasmic reticulum and on the secretory granules. In our previous report, we used Epon resin for tissue embedment, which required an etching process using hydrogen peroxide or sodium periodate for immunoreactivity retrieval. In general, osmification and embedment in Epon resin are reported to decrease the immunoreactivity of the targeted protein, and the etching process using hydrogen peroxide or sodium periodate results in deosmification and shades off the signals of mRNA. To resolve these problems, we have recently used LR White resin for tissue embedment. In LR White resin-embedded tissues, retrieval of immunoreactivity using hydrogen peroxide or sodium periodate is not required, and, therefore, the gradation of the signals of mRNA can be avoided. © 1998 Chapman & Hall [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A case of intraosseous well-differentiated osteosarcoma in one phalanx of the hand is reported. A 78-year-old man noticed swelling in the little finger of his right hand approximately 7 years before referral. Imaging disclosed a tumour with a “ground glass appearance and irregular mottled calcification occupying almost all of the phalanx marrow and suggested slight invasion into the soft tissue. Open biopsy suggested a diagnosis of well-differentiated fibroblastic osteosarcoma. The finger and its metacarpal bone were amputated and a tumour measuring 3.5x2.2x2.0 cm and with an indistinct soft tissue margin was found in the bone marrow. Histologically, the tumour was composed of fibroblastic cells with few mitoses, and neoplastic bone formation was apparent. Although the tumour appeared to be a fibrous dysplasia, the presence of nuclear atypia, hypercellularity, and the absence of a typical woven bone pattern in addition to the soft tissue invasion indicated otherwise. Ultrastructural examination showed focal myofibroblastic differentiation, and immunohistochemistry revealed smooth muscle actin, vimentin, osteocalcin, osteonectin and MIB1 in the tumour cells. This ultrastructural and immunohistochemical study is believed to be the first detailed report of an intraosseous well-differentiated osteosarcoma of phalangeal bone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]