With the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, its effect on society is amplified. We aimed to describe the viral detection results across different timepoints throughout the disease course. A retrospective study of 301 confirmed COVID-19 patients hospitalized at Tongji Hospital in Wuhan, China, were included. Demographic characteristics of the patients were collected. Upper respiratory specimens (throat and/or nasal swabs) were obtained and analyzed by real-time RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Period of viral infection and the contagious stage were analyzed. Of 301 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, the median age was 58 years and 51.2 % were male. The median period between symptoms presence and positive SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR results was 16 days (IQR, 10-23, N = 301). The median period between symptoms presence and an effective negative SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR result was 20 days (IQR, 17-24; N = 216). Infected patient ≥65 years old stayed contagious longer (22 days vs 19 days, p = 0.015). Although two consecutive negative results were confirmed in 70 patients, 30 % of them had positive viral test results for the third time. Using specimens from nasal swabs to run the RT-PCR test showed a higher positive rate than using specimens from throat swabs. This large-scale investigation with 1113 RT-PCR test results from 301 COVID-19 patients showed that the average contagious period of SARS-CoV-2 infected patients was 20 days. Longer observation period and more than 2 series of negative viral test are necessary for patients ≥65 years.

Background: Immune function influenced patients’ recovery from major abdominal surgery. The aim of this study is to explore the clinical feasibility of peripheral lymphocyte absolute counts for predicting short-term surgical outcomes in gastric cancer patients after laparoscopic D2 gastrectomy. Methods: This is a prospective cohort study from a single tertiary referral hospital. Patients diagnosed with gastric cancer who met the inclusion criteria were included in this study. We collected the demographic and clinicopathological characteristics of included patients. We monitored perioperative dynamics of absolute counts of peripheral lymphocyte subsets. Predictive factors for length of postoperative hospital stay and complications were investigated in univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: A total of 137 gastric cancer patients were included. Decreased preoperative absolute counts of peripheral lymphocyte subsets were correlated with advanced clinical stage. In multivariate analysis, independent predictive factors for prolonged hospital stay were age (p=0.04), decreased preoperative B cell counts (p=0.05), decreased preoperative NK cell counts (p=0.05) and complications (p< 0.01). For postoperative complication, independent predictive factors were age (p=0.02), operation time (p=0.05), lymphocyte to C-reactive protein ratio (p=0.01) and decreased preoperative B cell counts (p=0.01). Conclusion: Our findings for the first time revealed that absolute counts of peripheral lymphocyte subsets are independent predictive factors for surgical outcomes in gastric cancer patients after D2 gastrectomy. We suggested that patients with impaired immune state should receive both preoperative immune modulator and nutritional support.

Re-positive tests for SARS-CoV-2 in Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients were common. We aimed to investigate the rate and risk factors of recurrent positive detection of SARS-CoV-2 in hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Oropharyngeal and nasopharyngeal swabs (n=3513) were collected to detect SARS-CoV-2 during the hospitalization. We analyzed the recurrent positive rate after consecutive negative results and its relationship to demographic characteristics. Among 599 enrolled COVID-19 patients, the median time for viral RNA shedding was 24 days (IQR, 19-33 days). The positive rate of RT-PCR was 35.9% (215/599), 17.0% (65/383) and 12.4% (23/185) after one, two and three consecutive negative RT-PCR test results respectively. Medians of CT-values of initial positive test, rebound positive after two consecutive negative results, and rebound positive after three consecutive negative results were 28.8, 32.8 and 36.1 respectively. Compare with male patients, females had a significant higher rate of recurrent positive RT-PCR after three consecutive negative results (18.2%, 18/99 vs. 5.8%, 5/86, p=0.013). Older age (≥55 yrs) had a significant higher rate of recurrent positive RT-PCR after one negative result (42.3%, 165/390, vs. 23.9%, 50/209, p<0.001). Nasopharyngeal swab tests produced a higher positive rate than oropharyngeal swab tests (37.3%, 152/408 vs. 35.8%, 1111/3105). Our study revealed the prevalence and dynamic characteristics of recurrent positive RT-PCR to SARS-CoV-2. We showed that around 17.0% (65/383) patients were tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 after two consecutive negative results. Patients with rebound positive RT-PCR test had a low viral load. Older age and female were risk factors for recurrent positive results.

Despite the overall success of using R-CHOP for the care for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma patients, it is clear that the disease is quite complex and new insight is needed to further stratify the patient for a better personized treatment. In current study, based on previous studies from animal model, new panels combining well-established cytokine (BAFF) and autoantibodies (anti-SSA/Ro) with newly identified cytokine (IL14) and autoantibodies (TSA) were used to evaluate the association between B cell growth factor and Sjögren’s related autoantibodies in NHL patients. The result clearly indicates that there was a unique difference between BAFF and IL14 in association with autoantibodies. While serum BAFF was negatively associated with the presence of both traditional anti-SSA/Ro and novel TSA antibodies in GI lymphoma patient, IL14 was positively associated with the presence of both traditional anti-SSA/Ro and novel TSA antibodies in non-GI lymphoma patient. Long-term follow-ups on these patients and evaluation of their response to the R-CHOP treatment and recurrence rate will be very interesting. Our result provides a solid evidence to support using novel diagnostic panel to better stratify the NHL patients.

Background: Although enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) has been proven to be beneficial after laparoscopic colorectal surgery, some of the patients may fail to complete the ERAS program during hospitalization. This prospective study aims to evaluate the risk factors associated with ERAS failure after laparoscopic colorectal cancer surgery.Methods: This is a prospective study from a single tertiary referral hospital. Patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer who met the inclusion criteria were included in this study. Demographic and clinicopathological characteristics were collected. Post-operative activity time and 6-min walking distance (6MWD) were measured. Patients were divided into ERAS failure group and ERAS success according to decreased post-operative activity and 6MWD. Factors associated with ERAS failure were investigated by univariate and multivariate analysis.Results: A total of 91 patients with colorectal cancer were included. The incidence of ERAS failure is 28.6% among all patients. Patients in ERAS failure group experienced higher rate of post-operative ileus and prolonged hospital stay (p < 0.001). Multivariate analysis revealed that older age (p = 0.006), body mass index ≥25.5 kg/m² (p = 0.037), smoking (p = 0.002), operative time (p = 0.048), and post-operative energy intake <18.5 kcal/kg•d (p = 0.045) were independent risk factors of ERAS failure after laparoscopic colorectal surgery.Conclusions: Our findings indicated that a proportion of patients may fail the ERAS program after laparoscopic colorectal surgery. We for the first time showed that post-operative energy intake was an independent risk factor for ERAS failure. This may provide evidence for further investigation on precise measurement of nutritional status and selected high-risk patients for enhanced nutrition support.

Purpose: Adequate lymph node yield is crucial for accurate staging in colorectal cancer. This study aims to analyze clinical factors associated with lymph node retrieval in laparoscopic colorectal cancer surgery and to explore strategies that may enhance yield.Methods: We conducted a retrospective review of clinical, pathological, and surgical data from patients who underwent laparoscopic colorectal cancer resection between July 2019 and July 2024 at our institution. Patients were stratified by lymph node yield into 2 groups: <12 nodes (reduced yield) and ≥12 nodes (control). Univariate analyses were used to identify factors potentially affecting lymph node yield, and multivariate logistic regression was performed to determine independent risk factors for reduced yield.Results: A total of 639 patients (305 with rectal cancer and 334 with colon cancer) were included. Univariate analysis identified age (P=0.039), sex (P=0.029), neoadjuvant therapy (P<0.001), tumor location (P<0.001), invasion depth (P<0.001), lymphovascular invasion (P=0.028), and station-specific lymph node submission (P<0.001) as influential factors. Multivariate analysis revealed that preoperative neoadjuvant therapy, tumor location (non–right colon), shallow invasion depth (T1–T2), and lack of station-specific submission independently contributed to reduced lymph node yield (all P<0.05).Conclusion: This study highlights preoperative neoadjuvant therapy, tumor location, and invasion depth (T stage) as independent factors associated with reduced lymph node yield in laparoscopic colorectal cancer surgery. However, station-specific lymph node submission significantly increases yield and may help address inadequate retrieval. These findings suggest both predictive and interventional strategies to optimize lymph node harvest after surgery.