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Background Neuroendocrine carcinomas are extremely rare in the esophagus as they represent less than 0.04% of all neuroendocrine tumors. To date, only 14 cases of poorly differentiated, high-grade esophageal NEC have been described in the literature. The majority of these patients presented with typical dysphagia symptoms. Due to its rarity, no standardized guidelines have been proposed to treat esophageal neuroendocrine carcinoma, although general recommendations suggest surgery with adjuvant chemoradiotherapy as the treatment of choice. Case presentation A 67-year-old previously healthy White male presented with a year-long intermittent nonspecific retrosternal discomfort, with the absence of any other symptoms. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed an ulcerative mass in his lower esophagus, with concern of malignancy. Endoscopic ultrasound-guided biopsy revealed poorly differentiated neuroendocrine carcinoma of the esophagus with metastasis to a diaphragmatic lymph node. He was treated with neoadjuvant chemoradiation followed by surgery, and he has been in remission for over 5 years. Conclusion Here, we review the literature and report a unique case of a patient with a vague presentation of esophageal neuroendocrine carcinoma as he enters his sixth year of survival following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy.

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a serious complication commonly experienced in cancer patients. Incidence of VTE typically brings poor prognosis as it represents the second most common cause of mortality in cancer patients just after the malignancy itself. Studies suggest that multiple myeloma (MM) is among the malignancies with further enhanced risk of VTE, especially in patients undergoing autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (AHCT). However, risk factors and preventative approaches remain poorly explored. Here, we explore the incidence of VTE in MM patients undergoing AHCT, while also highlighting risk factors and preventions that may aid in preventing VTE in patients who are at higher risk.

Most Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries record pancreatic cancer incidence rates that are above the world's average. Reducing this burden requires evidence-based policies. This bibliometric review aims to examine the status of pancreatic cancer research in the MENA world, while systematically categorising publications across cancer care pathways. We searched Scopus, Medline and PubMed for peer-reviewed publications related to both pancreatic cancer and MENA countries by using controlled vocabulary and keywords. The results were screened for duplicates and later included in the analysis based on preset eligibility criteria. A structured data extraction form was used to collect data related to each article, its methodology, its cancer care pathway, funding status and authorship. A total of 5,848 publications resulted from our search, from which 1,098 articles remained after applying the eligibility criteria. Trends show a steady increase in pancreatic cancer research by MENA. Case reports are the most common, whereas a lack in high-evidence clinical studies as well as public health and epidemiological research was evident. Most studies were not funded and had no female contributions. Funding, if present, came mostly from foreign states. There exists a much greater focus in research on diagnosis and treatment among other cancer care pathways. Most MENA-based studies did not involve collaborations with other countries. Country gross domestic product and population are both correlated to the research output. This bibliometric analysis identified significant gaps and limitations in pancreatic cancer research in MENA countries. Vital domains requiring research investment have also been highlighted as a first step towards evidence-based health policies.

Background Coronavirus disease 2019 has been a public health threat and a worldwide emergency for more than a year. Unfortunately, many questions concerning the pathophysiology, management, and long-term side effects remain unanswered, and novel aspects of the disease keep on emerging. Of concern to healthcare providers are the recent reported cases of reinfection. Serum coronavirus disease 2019 antibodies have been detected within a few days after onset of the disease. However, it remains unclear whether this immune response is universal, or whether it can lead to latent immunity. Case presentation A previously healthy 27-year-old white man presented with fever, chills, back pain, and other constitutional symptoms, 2 days after being exposed to coronavirus disease 2019 positive patients. His severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 polymerase chain reaction was positive, and his symptoms resolved over the next 2 weeks. One month after a confirmatory negative severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 polymerase chain reaction, he was found to be ineligible for plasma donation as his anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 serology was negative. The patient redeveloped symptoms similar to his first infection 3 weeks after the negative serology test. He and his wife both tested positive via polymerase chain reaction. Their symptoms resolved over the next few days, and they had a negative polymerase chain reaction test 10 days after the positive polymerase chain reaction. Conclusion While studies showed that anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 immunoglobulins start to develop early after infection, our healthy young patient’s immune system failed to mount latent immunity against the virus. This left him, especially amid widespread social and medical misconceptions, vulnerable to reinfection by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Our case disputes the timelines for immune response that were set and supported by research studies. Our case also raises questions regarding prioritizing vaccinating other individuals over those with prior infection.

Background: The model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) has been widely used to predict the mortality and morbidity of various surgical procedures. Objectives: We aimed to correlate a high preoperative MELD score with adverse 30-day postoperative complications following radical cystectomy. Design and Methods: Patients who underwent elective, non-emergency radical cystectomy were identified from the American College of Surgeons–National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database from 2005 to 2017. Patients were categorized according to a calculated MELD score. The primary outcomes of this study were 30-day postoperative mortality, morbidity, and length of hospital stay following radical cystectomy. For further sensitivity analysis, propensity score matching was used to yield a total of 1387 matched pairs and primary outcomes were also assessed in the matched cohort. Results: Compared with patients with a MELD < 10, those with MELD ⩾ 10 had significantly higher rates of mortality [odds ratio (OR) = 1.71, p = 0.004], major complications (OR = 1.42, p < 0.001), and prolonged hospital stay (OR = 1.29, p < 0.001) on multivariate analysis. Following risk-adjustment for race, propensity-matched groups revealed that patients with MELD score ⩾ 10 were significantly associated with higher mortality (OR = 1.85, p = 0.008), major complications (OR = 1.34, p < 0.001), yet similar length of hospital stay (OR = 1.17, p = 0.072). Conclusion: MELD score ⩾ 10 is associated with higher mortality and morbidity in patients undergoing radical cystectomy compared with lower MELD scores. Risk-stratification using MELD score may assist clinicians in identifying high-risk patients to provide adequate preoperative counseling, optimize perioperative conditions, and even consider nonsurgical alternatives.

INTRODUCTION:Inadequate bowel preparation (IBP) before colonoscopy remains a common problem. This meta-analysis aimed to assess the risk factors associated with IBP.METHODS:We searched multiple databases for studies that assessed risk factors for IBP after adjustment and reported the data as adjusted odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals. Meta-analyses were conducted using a random-effects model, and pooled adjusted odds ratios for risk factors reported in ≥ 3 studies were constructed.RESULTS:One hundred fifty-four studies with 358,257 participants were included. We analyzed 48 unique risk factors. Sociodemographic predictors of IBP were Medicaid insurance, obesity, current tobacco use, age ≥ 65 years, Black race, low education level, male sex, and unmarried status. Comorbidity-related predictors of IBP were any psychiatric disease, cirrhosis, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) class ≥ 3, poor functional status, constipation, diabetes, previous abdominopelvic surgery, and hematochezia. Medication-related predictors of IBP were tricyclic antidepressants, antidepressants, opioids, nontricyclic antidepressants, and calcium channel blockers. Preparation/procedure-related predictors of IBP were brown liquid rectal effluent, any incomplete bowel preparation (BP) intake, lack of split-dose BP, increased BP-to-defecation interval, any nonadherence to dietary instructions, increased BP-to-colonoscopy interval, any BP intolerance, previous IBP, and inpatient status. Although afternoon colonoscopy was a predictor of IBP, subgroup analysis of prospective studies revealed no significant association.DISCUSSION:Our meta-analysis focused on adjusted risk factors to provide precise estimates of the most important risk factors for IBP. Our findings could help develop a validated prediction model to identify high-risk patients for IBP, improve colonoscopy outcomes, reduce the need for repeat colonoscopies, and reduce associated healthcare costs.

In a large screening program of asymptomatic middle-aged individuals, we sought to assess the degree of risk reclassification provided by comparing multiethnic study on subclinical atherosclerosis coronary artery calcium scoring (CACS) versus atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) and Reynolds risk score (RRS) score. All 5,324 consecutive patients (aged 57 ± 8 years, 76% male) who underwent CACS screening at the Cleveland Clinic as part of a primary prevention executive health between March 16 and October 21 were included. The 10-year ASCVD, RRS, and multiethnic study on subclinical atherosclerosis CACS (MESA-CACS) risk scores were calculated and categorized as <1, 1 to 4.99, 5 to 9.99, and ≥10%. Compared with ASCVD, using MESA-CACS resulted in a downgraded risk in 1,667 subjects (31%), whereas 738 (14%) had an upgrade in risk (total of 45% reclassification). Similarly, compared with RRS, using MESA-CACS resulted in an upgraded risk in 797 (15%) and a downgrade in 1,380 (26%) subjects (total of 41% reclassification). However, by further dividing by the distribution of the coronary calcification, ASCVD overestimates the risk only for patients with coronary artery calcium (CAC) in 0 or 1 coronary artery only, whereas MESA-CACS overestimates if the CAC was noted in ≥2 arteries. Similarly, RRS only overestimates the risk for patients with 0 CAC, whereas it underestimates the risk for patients with any CAC. In conclusion, the use of MESA-CACS, along with CAC distribution in primary prevention clinics, results in differential and significant reclassification of traditional scores when calculating the 10-years coronary vascular disease risk. Overall, RRS underestimates and ASCVD overestimates the cardiovascular disease risk compared with MESA-CACS.

Introduction: Programmed death ligand-1 expression has been shown to be a good predictor of response to cancer therapy with checkpoint inhibitors. Its expression varies among different tumor types and among non-small cell lung cancer patients with different clinical and demographic characteristics. The prevalence and determinants of programmed death ligand-1 expression have been previously reported from various regions of the world, but data from Lebanon are lacking. This study examines the prevalence and the clinical, demographic and pathological predictors of programmed death ligand-1 expression in patients diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer in Lebanon. Methods: Medical records of 180 patients diagnosed with primary non-small cell lung cancer at our institution and tested for programmed death ligand-1 expression were reviewed. Clinical, demographic and pathological information were collected and correlated with programmed death ligand-1 expression using the chi-square test and logistic regression. Results: One hundred eleven of the 180 non-small cell lung cancer tumor samples tested positive for programmed death ligand-1 expression (61.7%). 27.2% of those tumor samples expressed programmed death ligand-1 in 1%–49% of tumor cells, while 34.4% of tumor samples expressed programmed death ligand-1 in 50% or more of their cells. Squamous histology and advanced stage were significant predictors of programmed death ligand-1 expression (odds ratio = 2.79, 95% confidence interval [1.13–6.90], p = 0.012 and odds ratio = 2.48, 95% confidence interval [1.23–4.99], p = 0.044, respectively). Conclusion: Similar to reports from other populations, our results suggest that programmed death ligand-1 expression in non-small cell lung cancer is highly prevalent in the Lebanese population, especially in patients with advanced stage at diagnosis or squamous cell carcinoma histology. Because of the small sample size, while more that 60% of the patients are Lebanese, the results of this article cannot be extrapolated to the Middle Eastern and the Levantine population.