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To retrospectively review the efficacy of short term supervised medical weight loss for women with obesity, body mass index (BMI ≥40 kg/m2 ) in gynaecologic oncology, and the associated perioperative and pathologic outcomes. A retrospective study of a dedicated preoperative weight loss clinic for gynaecologic oncology patients from March to December 2019. Statistical analysis was performed with McNemar's test for correlated proportions, Pearson's correlation tests for continuous variables, and paired t-tests to compare means. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) were used to determine the factors associated with weight loss over time. A P-value of

Aims Lynch syndrome screening in ovarian carcinoma is controversial. The aim of this study was to assess the frequency of deficient mismatch repair (dMMR) protein in a retrospective cohort enriched for non-high-grade serous carcinomas and its association with outcome within histological types. Methods and results Tissue microarrays representing 612 ovarian carcinomas were tested for mismatch repair proteins (MLH1, PMS2, MSH2, and MSH6) by immunohistochemistry. dMMR was detected in 13.8% of endometrioid and 2.4% of clear cell carcinomas, but not in other histological types. Within endometrioid carcinomas, 11 of 25 dMMR cases showed abnormal MLH1/PMS2, 10 cases showed abnormal MSH2/MSH6, and four cases showed only abnormal MSH6, indicating that at least 7.7% of endometrioid carcinomas have dMMR probably related to Lynch syndrome. The four dMMR clear cell carcinomas showed abnormal MSH2/MSH6 in three cases and only abnormal MSH6 in one case, all probably related to Lynch syndrome. Within endometrioid carcinomas, dMMR was significantly associated with age

Summary Summary Barrett's oesophagus (BO) and gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GERD) are precursors of oesophageal adenocarcinoma (OAC). There is an oesophageal biofilm, which changes in disease, but its role in aetiopathogenesis remains unclear. Aim To define the oesophageal microbiota of patients with GERD, BO and OAC compared with controls and to investigate mucosal responses related to the microbiota. Methods Cultural analysis identified the dominant bacterial species from a subset of each disease group. Based on this, molecular techniques were used to define the cohort. Host responses were analysed in tissues and co-culture experiments. Results A total of 111 species belonging to 26 genera were isolated. There was a significant decrease in bacterial counts in the GERD and BO groups for all genera except Campylobacter, which colonised GERD and Barrett's patients in increasing numbers. Campylobacter concisus was the dominant species. This relationship was not seen in the cancer group. Significant increases in IL-18 were seen in GERD and BO colonised by Campylobacter. Conclusions This study defines differences in the oesophageal biofilm in disease states, revealing the emergence of C. concisus as the dominant new colonist in the refluxed oesophagus. We also associate the presence of these bacteria with increased expression of cytokines related to carcinogenesis.

Mucinous ovarian carcinomas (MCs) typically do not respond to current conventional therapy. We have previously demonstrated amplification of HER2 in 6 of 33 (18.2%) mucinous ovarian carcinomas (MCs) and presented anecdotal evidence of response with HER2-targeted treatment in a small series of women with recurrent HER2-amplified (HER2+) MC. Here, we explore HER2 amplification and KRAS mutation status in an independent cohort of 189 MCs and 199 mucinous borderline ovarian tumours (MBOTs) and their association to clinicopathological features. HER2 status was assessed by immunohistochemistry (IHC), FISH, and CISH, and interpreted per ASCO/CAP guidelines, with intratumoural heterogeneity assessment on full sections, where available. KRAS mutation testing was performed with Sanger sequencing. Stage and grade were associated with recurrence on both univariate and multivariate analysis (p < 0.001). Assessment of HER2 status revealed overexpression/amplification of HER2 in 29/154 (18.8%) MCs and 11/176 (6.2%) MBOTs. There was excellent agreement between IHC, FISH, and CISH assessment of HER2 status (perfect concordance of HER2 0 or 1+ IHC with non-amplified status, and 3+ IHC with amplified status). KRAS mutations were seen in 31/71 (43.6%) MCs and 26/33 (78.8%) MBOTs, and were near mutually exclusive of HER2 amplification. In the 189 MC cases, a total of 54 recurrences and 59 deaths (53 of progressive disease) were observed. Within MCs, either HER2 amplification/overexpression or KRAS mutation was associated with decreased likelihood of disease recurrence (p = 0.019) or death (p = 0.0041) when compared to cases with neither feature. Intratumoural heterogeneity was noted in 26% of HER2-overexpressing cases. These data support the stratification of MCs for the testing of new treatments, with HER2-targeted therapy as a viable option for HER2+ advanced or recurrent disease. Further research is required to delineate the molecular and clinical features of the ∼34% of MC cases with neither HER2 amplification nor KRAS mutations.

Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2010; 32: 872–883 Summary Background Crohn’s disease is an inflammatory illness in which the immune response against gut microorganisms is believed to drive an abnormal immune response. Consequently, modification of mucosal bacterial communities, and the immune effects they elicit, might be used to modify the disease state. Aim To investigate the effects of synbiotic consumption on disease processes in patients with Crohn's disease. Methods A randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled trial was conducted involving 35 patients with active Crohn's disease, using a synbiotic comprising Bifidobacterium longum and Synergy 1. Clinical status was scored and rectal biopsies were collected at the start, and at 3- and 6-month intervals. Transcription levels of immune markers and mucosal bacterial 16S rRNA gene copy numbers were quantified using real-time PCR. Results Significant improvements in clinical outcomes occurred with synbiotic consumption, with reductions in both Crohn's disease activity indices (P = 0.020) and histological scores (P = 0.018). The synbiotic had little effect on mucosal IL-18, INF-γ and IL-1β; however, significant reductions occurred in TNF-α expression in synbiotic patients at 3 months (P = 0.041), although not at 6 months. Mucosal bifidobacteria proliferated in synbiotic patients. Conclusion Synbiotic consumption was effective in improving clinical symptoms in patients with active Crohn's disease.

Objective: Regular physical activity is positively associated with quality of life in ovarian cancer survivors, but no data exist on how best to promote activity in this population. This study investigated the interests and preferences of ovarian cancer survivors with regard to physical activity participation. Methods: A provincial, population-based postal survey of ovarian cancer survivors in Alberta, Canada, was performed including measures of self-reported physical activity, medical and demographic variables, and physical activity preferences. Results: A total of 359 women participated (51.4% response rate). Over half expressed interest in participating in a physical activity program (53.8%), with a further 32.9% maybe interested. The most common preferences were for programs to be home-based (48.9%), start post-treatment (69.5%), and involve walking (62.7%). There were differences in preferences based on demographic, but not medical, factors. Conclusion: The majority of ovarian cancer survivors expressed interest in participating in physical activity programs; however, some preferences varied by demographic factors. Designing physical activity interventions according to these preferences may optimize adherence and outcomes in ovarian cancer survivors. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The normal colonic microflora is intimately involved in the aetiology of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) such as ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD). These conditions are often refractile to conventional treatments involving the employment of anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressant drugs, and this has led to a search for alternative therapies based on the use of probiotics, prebiotics and synbiotics. The majority of investigations in this area have been done with probiotics, and while there is increasing interest in the abilities of prebiotics and synbiotics to control the symptoms of IBD, very few randomised controlled trials have been reported. Although the results have been variable, human and animal studies have demonstrated that in many circumstances, these functional foods can alter the composition of the colonic microbiota, reduce inflammatory processes in the gut mucosa, and have the potential to induce disease remission. More work is needed to understand the effects of prebiotics and synbiotics on microbial communities in the gut, and their interactions with the host's immune system.