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Although autophagy is being pursued as a therapeutic target in clinical oncology trials, its effects on metastasis, the principal cause of cancer mortality, remain unclear. Here, we utilize mammary cancer models to temporally delete essential autophagy regulators during carcinoma progression. Though genetic ablation of autophagy strongly attenuates primary mammary tumor growth, impaired autophagy promotes spontaneous metastasis and enables the outgrowth of disseminated tumor cells into overt macro-metastases. Transcriptomic analysis reveals that autophagy deficiency elicits a subpopulation of otherwise luminal tumor cells exhibiting basal differentiation traits, which is reversed upon preventing accumulation of the autophagy cargo receptor, Neighbor to BRCA1 (NBR1). Furthermore, pharmacological and genetic induction of autophagy suppresses pro-metastatic differentiation and metastatic outgrowth. Analysis of human breast cancer data reveal that autophagy gene expression inversely correlates with pro-metastatic differentiation signatures and predicts overall and distant metastasis-free survival. Overall, these findings highlight autophagy-dependent control of NBR1 as a key determinant of metastatic progression.

Background: Robotic retromuscular hernia repair has proven to be feasible and safe but lacks randomized data to demonstrate significant clinical benefit. The majority of current comparative studies published have been case series, retrospective studies, systematic reviews, or large registry data, all of which have significant limitations and bias (Bittner et al. in Surg Endosc 32:727–734. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00464-017-5729-0, 2018; Bracale et al in Hernia 25:1471–1480. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10029-021-02487-5, 2021; Carbonell in Ann Surg 267:210–217. https://doi.org/10.1097/SLA.0000000000002244, 2018; (Warren et al. in Surg Endosc. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00464-024-11202-1, 2024; Dewulf et al in BJS Open 6:zrac057. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsopen/zrac057, 2022; Maskal and Beffa in Surg Clin N Am 103:977–991. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.suc.2023.04.007, 2023). It was only recently that the first randomized trial was conducted by Warren et al. comparing open and robotic retromuscular hernia repairs with synthetic mesh (Warren et al. in Surg Endosc. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00464-024-11202-1, 2024). The data currently available has yielded inconsistent outcomes leaving significant knowledge gaps for clinical decision making. Reduced length of stay for robotic retromuscular repairs has been a consistently proven outcome, however, and therefore, we hypothesized that robotic retromuscular hernia repairs would be superior to open retromuscular hernia repair by reducing length of stay in the hospital by 24 h (Carbonell in Ann Surg 267:210–217. https://doi.org/10.1097/SLA.0000000000002244, 2018). Methods: The Institutional Review Board at all participating sites has approved this protocol. This trial has been registered on clinicaltrials.gov (NCT: 05472987). The ROVHR trial is a registry-based, multicenter, double-blinded randomized trial. The primary hypothesis is robotic retromuscular hernia repairs is superior to open retromuscular hernia repairs by reducing length of stay by at least 24 h. Secondary outcomes include 30-day wound morbidity, readmissions, opioids prescribed and consumed, NRS-11 pain scores obtained daily for the 5 first days after surgery, PROMIS-3a Pain Intensity survey, and patient reported outcomes including Hernia-Related Quality of Life (HerQLes), and EuraHS. Additionally, direct operating room costs will be compared. Discussion: Based existing literature, we designed a randomized trial with a primary endpoint to determine if robotic retromuscular hernia repairs reduce length of in hospital stay by at least 24 h compared to open retromuscular hernia repairs. This study will add high-level of evidence providing evidence-based outcomes for clinical decision making. Trial registration: NCT05472987. Registered on July 20, 2022. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Despite efforts to minimize opioid prescribing, outpatient ventral hernia repair (VHR) with mesh remains notoriously painful, often requiring postoperative opioid analgesia. Here, we aim to characterize patterns of opioid prescribing for the heterogenous group of patients and procedures that comprise mesh-based, outpatient VHR. Methods: The Abdominal Core Health Quality Collaborative registry was queried for patients undergoing VHR with mesh who were discharged the same or next day between January 2019 to October 2023. Procedures were broadly classified by approach and mesh location: open, minimally-invasive with intraperitoneal mesh (MIP), and minimally-invasive with retromuscular or preperitoneal mesh (MRPP). Surgeon-reported opioid prescription quantity and patient-reported 30-day consumption data were reviewed. Results: Of 2,795 patients who met inclusion criteria (46.1% open, 22.7% MIP, 31.2% MRPP), approximately 80% of patients consumed ≤ 10 tablets of opioid pain medication (open 87.7%, MIP 78.4%, MRPP 84.2%). For patients who were prescribed ≤ 10 tablets, the median number of unconsumed tablets was 5 (IQR 0–8). For patients who were prescribed > 10 tablets, the median number of unconsumed tablets was 10 or more (open 10 [IQR 2–16], MIP 10 [IQR 2–18], MRPP 12 [IQR 5–16]). The number of tablets consumed was positively correlated with the number of tablets prescribed (Kendall's rank correlation = 0.232, p < 0.001). Conclusion: Regardless of technique, for outpatient VHR with mesh, the fewer opioid tablets prescribed, the fewer tablets patients consumed. Decreasing the prescription quantity to ≤ 10 tablets, coupled with preoperative patient education, may help minimize excess opioid prescribing while still achieving adequate pain control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Forceful coughing is assumed to be an uncommon etiology for lateral abdominal wall hernias. The literature regarding this topic is very limited and there is a lack of consensus in management, both operative and non-operative. We aim to report our center’s experience in repair of lateral abdominal wall hernias secondary to vigorous coughing. Methods: All patients undergoing lateral abdominal wall hernia repairs secondary to coughing at our institution from August 2014 to December 2023 were identified in the Abdominal Core Health Quality Collaborative (ACHQC). Only patients with lateral abdominal wall hernias without prior lateral incisions, reporting a vigorous coughing event were included in the analysis. Recurrent repairs were also included. Patient and hernia characteristics, operative details, post-operative outcomes, and long-term patient reported outcomes were extracted from the ACHQC database and chart review. Results: Twelve patients with lateral abdominal wall hernias secondary to coughing underwent repair within the study period. The median hernia width was 18.5 cm. Transversus abdominus release was performed in all patients, 8 had heavyweight polypropylene mesh placed, and 9 received mesh fixation. Wound complications were noted in 2 patients, both resolved with superficial wound opening. At a mean follow up of 4.0 years, one patient reported a bulge, and no clinical or radiographic recurrences were identified. Conclusion: Lateral abdominal wall hernias after forceful coughing have not been well defined. Here we present our series based on our repairs. Unfortunately, our ability to comment on recurrences is limited by a lack of follow up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: When faced with contaminated ventral hernia repairs, surgeons must decide to repair the defect in a single-stage or delay the definitive repair until a clean scenario has been achieved. We sought to compare wound complications, long-term hernia recurrence and quality of life for patients who underwent delayed versus single-staged abdominal wall reconstruction (AWR) in the setting of clean-contaminated and contaminated wounds. Methods: The Abdominal Core Health Quality Collaborative was used to identify adult patients at our institution who underwent open AWR with retromuscular synthetic mesh placement between January 2014 and August 2023. The delayed group included patients who underwent clean-contaminated or contaminated abdominal operation in the setting of a ventral hernia without placement of permanent synthetic mesh, then underwent AWR with permanent synthetic mesh placement in a separate operation. The single-staged group had clean-contaminated or contaminated wounds concomitant with AWR. Outcomes of the AWR were compared. Results: 63 patients underwent a delayed AWR and 375 patients underwent a single-staged AWR with a median(IQR) follow-up of 3(2,5)years. Most common concomitant procedures involved small intestine(30%) or hepatobiliary(30%). Most common index operations in delayed AWR were ileostomy(52.4%) and colostomy(14.2%) reversals. Median(IQR) time between initial operation and definitive AWR was 1.0 (0.7, 1.9)years. Median(IQR) hernia width was 11.35(8.4, 15.0)cm at initial operation and 16.0(15.0,20.0)cm at AWR for the delayed group(p < 0.001). Three patients (19%) in the delayed group and 14(12%) in the single-staged underwent wound debridement within 30-days(p = 0.46); a single patient in each required partial mesh excision within 30-days(p = 0.098). Wound morbidity, reoperation and hernia recurrence were similar (p > 0.05). Conclusion: In patients with a ventral hernia and separate indication for abdominal operation with a clean-contaminated or contaminated wound, either delayed or single-stage approaches to AWR may be viable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sets out the current situation for New York City teachers who must deal with increasing numbers of immigrant students. Describes how adapting teacher education to new classroom contexts is being carried out in the Program in Social Studies at Teachers College of Columbia University. Includes a list of related teacher resources. (DSK)

It is unclear whether health provider accreditation ensures or promotes quality of care. Using baseline data from the Quality Improvement Demonstration Study (QIDS) in the Philippines we measured the quality of pediatric care provided by private and public doctors working at the district hospital level in the country's central region. We found that national level accreditation by a national insurance program influences quality of care. However, our data also show that insurance payments have a similar, strong impact on quality of care. These results suggest that accreditation alone may not be sufficient to promote high quality of care. Further improvements may be achieved with properly monitored and well-designed payment or incentive schemes. Keywords: Accreditation Quality of care Insurance payment Philippines Physicians Pediatrics

Introduction: Pancreatic acinar cell carcinoma (pACC) is a rare malignancy with unique clinical and molecular features. The role of chemotherapy in pACC management is not well established., Methods: The National Cancer Database (NCDB) for pACC was used. Cox regression was used in resected pACC patients to identify significant overall survival (OS) predictors. Patients were then divided based on these risk factors into propensity-matched group of surgery versus surgery + chemotherapy and Kaplan-Meier analysis was performed with log-rank tests to compare OS., Results: The NCDB 2004-2020 included 1592 pACC patients, 1553 were selected. Median age was 66 and 1090 (70.2%) were males. 622 (40.1%) received chemotherapy only, 257 (16.5%) had surgery only, and 365 (23.5%) had both. 189 Patients who received surgery were only matched to peers who had surgery + chemotherapy. The median OS for surgery only was 57.8 ± 6.0 versus 54.2 ± 9.9 months for surgery + chemotherapy (p = 0.836). Cox regression identified nodal and margin status as independent predictors of OS. Therefore, subgroups of patients with node-negative, node-positive, margin-negative, and margin-positive resections were similarly matched 1:1 for the receipt of surgery only versus surgery + chemotherapy. Only patients with node-positive disease had a significant OS benefit with the addition of chemotherapy (44.2 ± 7.3 vs. 27.5 ± 10.5 months; p = 0.036)., Conclusion: Our analysis suggests that surgical resection remains the cornerstone of therapy for pACC. Node status and margin status are the primary prognosticators. The addition of chemotherapy provides an OS benefit only in node-positive disease., (© 2024 The Author(s). Journal of Surgical Oncology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)