Background and Objectives: At present, the association between the long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1) polymorphism rs3200401 C > T and cancer risk remain controversial. The aim of this meta-analysis was to assess the association between rs3200401 C > T and cancer susceptibility. Materials and Methods: The databases of PubMed, EMBASE and Web of Science were searched for literature published in English until 1 September 2021. The odd ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were applied to evaluate the strength of association in five genetic models. Heterogeneity was assessed using the Q-test and I² test. Begg’s funnel plot and Egger’s linear regression test were conducted to assess publication bias. Meta-regression analysis was used to explore potential sources of heterogeneity. Trial sequential analysis (TSA) was performed to validate the reliability of the results. Results: A total of 10 case–control studies involving 6630 cases and 7457 controls were included in this study. The pooled ORs showed no significant association between MALAT1 rs3200401 C > T and cancer risk in five genetic models. Similarly, the association was not found in the subgroups of control source, ethnicity and study quality. In the cancer type subgroup, the results demonstrated that the T allele increased the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC) compared with the C allele. (C vs. T: OR, 1.16; 95% CI, 1.01–1.33). Conclusion: In the current meta-analysis, we found no significant association between MALAT1 polymorphism rs3200401 C > T and overall cancer risk. However, the rs3200401 C > T may be linked to a higher risk of CRC, which needs more studies to be further confirmed.

Background and Objectives: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the most common malignancies. Anti-tumor associated antigen autoantibodies (TAAbs) can be used as biomarkers for tumor detection. The aim of this study was to identify a reliable TAAb as the diagnostic marker for ESCC. Materials and Methods: The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database was used to screen candidate genes. The mRNA expression of the key gene was then verified by micro array dataset GSE44021 from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and the diag nostic value of the corresponding autoantibody to the key gene in ESCC was detected by enzyme-linked im muno sorbent assay (ELISA). Results: CXCL8 was identified as the key gene. The dataset GSE44021 showed that CXCL8 mRNA expression was prominently over-expressed in ESCC tissues compared with normal tissues. ELISA results showed that the level of anti-CXCL8 autoantibody in ESCC patients was significantly higher than in normal controls and the receiver operating char ac teristic (ROC) curve indicated that anti-CXCL8 autoantibody could discriminate ESCC patients from normal controls, with the area under the ROC curve (AUC) for the verification cohort, and the validation cohort were 0.713 and 0.751, respectively. Conclusions: Our study illustrated that anti-CXCL8 autoantibody had good diagnostic value, and may become a candidate biomarker for ESCC.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of self-expandable metal stents (SEMS) and neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) for obstructive colorectal cancer (CRC). Methods: This multicenter, retrospective study analyzed 154 patients with obstructive CRC from three centers between 2011 and 2025. Patients were allocated to either a NAT combined with SEMS group ( n = 93) or a SEMS-alone group ( n = 61). Short-term procedural outcomes, pathological tumor response, long-term survival, and the impact of the time interval from stenting to surgery were evaluated between groups and across two time periods (2011–2020 vs. 2021–2025). Results: Baseline characteristics were largely comparable between groups. The NAT group demonstrated significantly lower intraoperative stoma rates (8.6% vs. 29.0%, P = 0.031) and postoperative complication rates (8.6% vs. 29.0%, P = 0.031) in the 2011–2020, advantages that persisted in the 2021–2025. Pathological assessment revealed a superior tumor response in the 2021–2025, with 20.7% achieving TRG 0–1 and significantly higher rates of T and N downstaging (39.7% and 60.3%) compared to the 2011–2020. Although survival benefits were not significant in the 2011–2020 period, NAT may be associated with a significant improvement in overall survival (OS) in the 2021–2025 cohort ( P = 0.013). Analysis of surgical timing identified an optimal interval of 14–21 days related to OS for the SEMS group, whereas for NAT patients, an interval exceeding 90 days was associated with worse disease-free survival (DFS). Conclusion: SEMS-NAT for obstructive CRC may is an important factor for improved surgical quality and OS benefit in 2021–2025. This study provides crucial evidence for optimizing treatment strategy by recommending a surgery interval.