Racial differences in body composition and survival among older adults with gastrointestinal malignancies.

INTRODUCTION: Muscle and adipose tissue measures can be quantified from routinely obtained computed tomography (CT) images and are predictors of chemotherapy-related toxicities and survival among patients with gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies. Most studies to date have consisted of predominantly White patients, and the role of body composition among minoritized racial groups is unknown. We examined racial differences in body composition and survival among patients with GI malignancies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a prospective cohort study of patients with GI malignancies. Single slices of axial CT images from L3 segments were analyzed using Slice-O-Matic software. The skeletal muscle area (cm2) was divided by height to obtain the skeletal muscle index (SMI, cm2/m2). Skeletal muscle radiodensity (SMD) in Hounsfield units (HU) was used for muscle composition. We compared body composition parameters between non-Hispanic (NH)-White and NH-Black participants. Cox models were used to examine the impact of body composition on survival. We proposed new race-specific cutoffs for body composition using optimal stratification. RESULTS: Five hundred forty patients were included, of which 24% were NH-Black. In Cox models stratified by race, each 5 cm2/m2 decrease in SMI was associated with increase in risk of all-cause mortality in NH-Black patients (hazard ratio [HR] 1.25; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.04-1.49 p = 0.02). With the existing cut points, neither sarcopenia nor myosteatosis was associated with worse survival. Using a new cutoff for sarcopenia in NH-Black patients, NH-Black patients with sarcopenia (HR 2.31 95%CI 1.10-4.88 p = 0.03) and myosteatosis (HR 2.63 95% CI 1.25-5.53 p = 0.01) had worse survival. DISCUSSION: NH-Black older patients with GI cancers and sarcopenia or myosteatosis have worse overall survival.

Management of Older Adults With Colorectal Cancer: The Role of Geriatric Assessment.

Older adults share a growing burden of cancer morbidity and mortality. This is present across the spectrum of oncologic diagnoses and is particularly true with colorectal cancer (CRC), where older adults continue to share the burden of diagnoses. However, optimal cancer treatment decision making in older adults remains a significant challenge, as the majority of previous clinical trials shaping the current treatment landscape have focused on younger patients, often with more robust performance status and fewer medical comorbid conditions. The heterogeneous aging process of older adults with CRC necessitates a personalized treatment approach, as approximately three-quarters of older adults with CRC also have a concominant geriatric syndrome and more than half of older adults with CRC are pre-frail or frail. Treatment decisions shoud be multifaceted, including consultation with the patient and their familes regarding their wishes, with consideration of the patient's quality of life, functional status, medical comorbid conditions, social support, and treatment toxicity risk. Geriatric assessment is a systematic and validated approach to assess an older adults's potential strengths and vulnerabilities, which can in turn be used to assist with comprehensive cancer care planning and support. In this review, we will summarize current treatment approaches for older adults with CRC, with a particular focus on the incorporation of the geriatric assessment.

SARC-F as a screening tool to detect computed tomography-based sarcopenia and myosteatosis among older adults with cancer.

BACKGROUND: The European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP) recommends SARC-F as a tool for identifying sarcopenia among older adults. However, the role of SARC-F among older adults with cancer remains unexplored. We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic utility of SARC-F to identify those with sarcopenia, or low muscle mass (using skeletal muscle index [SMI]), and myosteatosis (using skeletal muscle density [SMD]) from computed tomography (CT) imaging and the association of SARC-F with all-cause mortality. METHODS: Older adults (≥60 years) presenting for initial consultation at UAB medical oncology clinic who underwent geriatric assessment were enrolled in a prospective cohort study. We identified study participants who completed SARC-F screening and had available CT imaging within 60 days of study enrollment. Using single-slice CT images at the L3 vertebral level, we computed SMI and SMD using published methods. Sarcopenia and myosteatosis were defined using published cutpoints. We calculated the sensitivity and specificity of SARC-F for detecting low muscle mass and low muscle density using published thresholds. Finally, we computed the impact of SARC-F and CT measures on overall survival using Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox regression models, after adjusting for age, sex, cancer type, and cancer stage. RESULTS: We identified 212 older adults with a median age of 68.8 years; with 60.8% males, 76.6% whites, and pancreatic cancer (21.2%) being the most common malignancy. In the overall cohort, 30.7% had abnormal SARC-F using published cutpoints. SARC-F ≥ 4 had a sensitivity of 35% and a specificity of 76% to identify low muscle mass. SARC-F ≥ 4 had a sensitivity of 38% and a specificity of 74% to identify low muscle density. Those with SARC-F ≥ 4 and low SMI/SMD had worse survival compared to those with low SMI/SMD alone. Incorporating SARC-F improved survival prognostication beyond SMI and SMD (HR = 3.1; p < 0.001; Harrel's C from 0.73 to 0.76). CONCLUSIONS: SARC-F as a screening tool has limited diagnostic utility for identifying older adults with low muscle mass and/or density. However, SARC-F retains prognostic value independent of CT-based muscle measures in predicting mortality among older adults with cancer.

Anxiety is Associated With Geriatric Assessment Impairments and Reduced Quality of Life Among Older Adults With Colorectal Cancer: Results From the CARE Registry.

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer (CRC) preferentially affects older adults. Modifiable factors, such as anxiety, can be measured as part of cancer-specific geriatric assessments (GA) completed prior to the start of treatment. We hypothesized that anxiety is prevalent among older adults with CRC and is associated with increased depression, increased frailty, and impaired health-related quality of life (HRQOL). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients ≥60 years old with newly diagnosed CRC completed a cancer-specific GA called the Cancer and Aging Resilience Evaluation (CARE). Between September 2017 and February 2023, we analyzed patients with CRC who had not yet received any systemic treatment. Anxiety was assessed using the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Anxiety 4-item short form and reported as t-scores. We used modified Poisson models with robust variance estimation to assess for differences in the prevalence of depression, frailty, and impaired HRQOL. RESULTS: We analyzed 277 older adults with CRC. The median age of the study sample was 68 years. 57% were male, 72% were non-Hispanic White, and most had advanced CRC (35% stage III and 39% stage IV). Moderate/severe anxiety was present in 17% of older adults with newly diagnosed CRC. In adjusted models, as compared to patients without moderate/severe anxiety, patients with moderate/severe anxiety had significantly increased risk of depression (prevalence ratio [PR] 7.60, CI 4.90-11.78), frailty (PR 4.93, CI 3.01-8.07), impaired physical HRQOL (PR 3.57, CI 2.03-6.28), and impaired mental HRQOL (PR 3.82, CI 2.12-6.89). CONCLUSION: Among older adults with CRC, anxiety is associated with increased depression and frailty as well as reduced HRQOL.

Spontaneous Closure of a Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Pseudoaneurysm Embedded in a Mediastinal Hematoma.

Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) pseudoaneurysms are a rare but often unrecognized clinical entity. They are prone to rupture and hemodynamic compromise and should therefore be on the differential in the appropriate patient. We present a case of a gentleman with a recent CABG surgery who presented with acute onset dyspnea and a large pleural effusion. Imaging revealed a saphenous vein graft pseudoaneurysm embedded in a mediastinal hematoma. Four weeks later, prior to planned stenting, the pseudoaneurysm had spontaneously closed. This case highlights an unusual acute presentation of a CABG pseudoaneurysm and a multidisciplinary approach to its management.

Perivascular cell-specific knockout of the stem cell pluripotency gene Oct4 inhibits angiogenesis.

The stem cell pluripotency factor Oct4 serves a critical protective role during atherosclerotic plaque development by promoting smooth muscle cell (SMC) investment. Here, we show using Myh11-CreERT2 lineage-tracing with inducible SMC and pericyte (SMC-P) knockout of Oct4 that Oct4 regulates perivascular cell migration and recruitment during angiogenesis. Knockout of Oct4 in perivascular cells significantly impairs perivascular cell migration, increases perivascular cell death, delays endothelial cell migration, and promotes vascular leakage following corneal angiogenic stimulus. Knockout of Oct4 in perivascular cells also impairs perfusion recovery and decreases angiogenesis following hindlimb ischemia. Transcriptomic analyses demonstrate that expression of the migratory gene Slit3 is reduced following loss of Oct4 in cultured SMCs, and in Oct4-deficient perivascular cells in ischemic hindlimb muscle. Together, these results provide evidence that Oct4 plays an essential role within perivascular cells in injury- and hypoxia-induced angiogenesis.

Irradiation abolishes smooth muscle investment into vascular lesions in specific vascular beds.

The long-term adverse effects of radiotherapy on cardiovascular disease are well documented. However, the underlying mechanisms responsible for this increased risk are poorly understood. Previous studies using rigorous smooth muscle cell (SMC) lineage tracing have shown abundant SMC investment into atherosclerotic lesions, where SMCs contribute to the formation of a protective fibrous cap. Studies herein tested whether radiation impairs protective adaptive SMC responses during vascular disease. To do this, we exposed SMC lineage tracing (Myh11-ERT2Cre YFP+) mice to lethal radiation (1,200 cGy) followed by bone marrow transplantation prior to atherosclerosis development or vessel injury. Surprisingly, following irradiation, we observed a complete loss of SMC investment in 100% of brachiocephalic artery (BCA), carotid artery, and aortic arch lesions. Importantly, this was associated with a decrease in multiple indices of atherosclerotic lesion stability within the BCA. Interestingly, we observed anatomic heterogeneity, as SMCs accumulated normally into lesions of the aortic root and abdominal aorta, suggesting that SMC sensitivity to lethal irradiation occurs in blood vessels of neural crest origin. Taken together, these results reveal an undefined and unintended variable in previous studies using lethal irradiation and may help explain why patients exposed to radiation have increased risk for cardiovascular disease.

Activation of the pluripotency factor OCT4 in smooth muscle cells is atheroprotective.

Although somatic cell activation of the embryonic stem cell (ESC) pluripotency factor OCT4 has been reported, this previous work has been controversial and has not demonstrated a functional role for OCT4 in somatic cells. Here we demonstrate that smooth muscle cell (SMC)-specific conditional knockout of Oct4 in Apoe(-/-) mice resulted in increased lesion size and changes in lesion composition that are consistent with decreased plaque stability, including a thinner fibrous cap, increased necrotic core area, and increased intraplaque hemorrhage. Results of SMC-lineage-tracing studies showed that these effects were probably the result of marked reductions in SMC numbers within lesions and SMC investment within the fibrous cap, which may result from impaired SMC migration. The reactivation of Oct4 within SMCs was associated with hydroxymethylation of the Oct4 promoter and was hypoxia inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α, encoded by HIF1A) and Krüppel-like factor-4 (KLF4)-dependent. These results provide the first direct evidence that OCT4 has a functional role in somatic cells, and they highlight the potential role of OCT4 in normal and diseased somatic cells.

Rapamycin up-regulation of autophagy reduces infarct size and improves outcomes in both permanent MCAL, and embolic MCAO, murine models of stroke.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The role of autophagy in response to ischemic stroke has been confusing with reports that both enhancement and inhibition of autophagy decrease infarct size and improve post-stroke outcomes. We sought to clarify this by comparing pharmacologic modulation of autophagy in two clinically relevant murine models of stroke. METHODS: We used rapamycin to induce autophagy, and chloroquine to block completion of autophagy, by treating mice immediately after stroke and at 24 hours post-stroke in two different models; permanent Middle Cerebral Artery Ligation (MCAL), which does not allow for reperfusion of distal trunk of middle cerebral artery, and Embolic Clot Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion (eMCAO) which allows for a slow reperfusion similar to that seen in most human stroke patients. Outcome measures at 48 hours post-stroke included infarct size analysis, behavioral assessment using Bederson neurological scoring, and survival. RESULTS: Chloroquine treatment reduced the lesion size by approximately 30% and was significant only in the eMCAO model, where it also improved the neurological score, but did not increase survival. Rapamycin reduced lesion size by 44% and 50% in the MCAL and eMCAO models, respectively. Rapamycin also improved the neurological score to a greater degree than chloroquine and improved survival. CONCLUSIONS: While both inhibition and enhancement of autophagy by pharmacological intervention decreased lesion size and improved neurological scores, the enhancement with rapamycin showed a greater degree of improvement in outcomes as well as in survival. The protective action seen with chloroquine may be in part due to off-target effects on apoptosis separate from blocking lysosomal activity in autophagy. We conclude pharmacologic induction of autophagy is more advantageous than its blockade in physiologically-relevant permanent and slow reperfusion stroke models.