Citations

With rapid industrial expansion, air pollution’s adverse neurological effects have gained increasing attention. Children face a greater risk of neurological damage because of their higher breathing rates, developing brains, and limited ability to detoxify harmful substances. Fine particulate matter has been identified as a primary neurotoxic contributor affecting developing brains. Strong evidence connects environmental pollutant exposure to the prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), a neurodevelopmental condition marked by lasting difficulties with social communication and interaction. This study explores the association between long-term PM2.5 exposure and ASD symptom exacerbation, investigating underlying mechanisms. We hypothesize that long-term PM2.5 exposure exacerbates ASD symptoms through neuroinflammatory activation, leading to neuronal damage and impaired synaptic plasticity. Our investigation employs three complementary approaches: First, integrated analysis combining Global Burden of Disease data with Mendelian randomization demonstrates a significant association between PM2.5 exposure and increased ASD severity risk. Second, utilizing the China High-Resolution Air Pollution Database in conjunction with cohort studies, we provide evidence that ambient air pollution substantially influences autism severity, with PM2.5 identified as the predominant environmental determinant. Third, through network toxicology, single-cell transcriptomics, and animal experimentation, we demonstrate that chronic PM2.5 exposure exacerbates valproic acid-induced autism-like behaviors in murine models, identifying CTNNB1, PTEN, CCR2, AKT1, and mTOR as potential core mediating genes. Importantly, these findings represent preliminary results. Several potential confounding factors such as co-exposure to other pollutants and socioeconomic variables have not been fully addressed. While our multi-modal approach provides converging lines of evidence, further validation in larger, more diverse populations with refined control of confounders will be essential to establish causality and elucidate mechanisms. Nonetheless, these early insights advance our understanding of PM2.5-induced neurotoxicity in the context of ASD and offer timely, albeit preliminary, evidence to inform public health policy.

Treatment-induced ovarian function loss is a significant concern for many young patients with breast cancer. Accurately predicting this risk is crucial for counselling young patients and informing their fertility-related decision-making. However, current risk prediction models for treatment-related ovarian function loss have limitations. To provide a broader representation of patient cohorts and improve feature selection, we combined retrospective data from six datasets within the FoRECAsT (Infertility after Cancer Predictor) databank, including 2679 pre-menopausal women diagnosed with breast cancer. This combined dataset presented notable missingness, prompting us to employ cross imputation using the k-nearest neighbours (KNN) machine learning (ML) algorithm. Employing Lasso regression, we developed an ML model to forecast the risk of treatment-related amenorrhea as a surrogate marker of ovarian function loss at 12 months after starting chemotherapy. Our model identified 20 variables significantly associated with risk of developing amenorrhea. Internal validation resulted in an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.820 (95% CI: 0.817–0.823), while external validation with another dataset demonstrated an AUC of 0.743 (95% CI: 0.666–0.818). A cutoff of 0.20 was chosen to achieve higher sensitivity in validation, as false negatives—patients incorrectly classified as likely to regain menses—could miss timely opportunities for fertility preservation if desired. At this threshold, internal validation yielded sensitivity and precision rates of 91.3% and 61.7%, respectively, while external validation showed 92.9% and 60.0%. Leveraging ML methodologies, we not only devised a model for personalised risk prediction of amenorrhea, demonstrating substantial enhancements over existing models but also showcased a robust framework for maximally harnessing available data sources.

ABSTRACT Background The impact of psychosocial health and socioeconomic status (SES) on long‐term lung transplant survival remains unclear. Methods We conducted a single‐center, retrospective 2:1 matched case‐control study of adult lung transplant recipients (1999–2019). Cases survived ≥6 years post‐transplant; controls survived <6 years. Matching was based on transplant year (±5 years) and indication. Psychosocial health and SES were assessed using the Psychosocial Assessment of Candidates for Transplant (PACT) score, Mayo Clinic Housing‐Based Socioeconomic Status (HOUSES) index, and Area Deprivation Index (ADI). Secondary covariates included insurance, marital status, employment, caregiver relationship, and proximity to the transplant center. Conditional logistic regression adjusted for age and gender was used. Results Among 189 patients (63 cases, 126 controls), PACT score, HOUSES index, and ADI were not significantly associated with long‐term survival. Patients with non‐family caregivers had lower odds of survival compared to those with a spouse or partner (OR = 0.16, p = 0.022). Regional residents had lower odds of long‐term survival compared to local recipients (OR = 0.55, p = 0.001). Conclusions Pre‐transplant psychosocial and SES measures were not significantly associated with long‐term survival. Caregiver relationships and geographic proximity may have a greater impact on outcomes, highlighting the importance of support systems and access to care.

Importance Prostate-specific membrane antigen positron emission tomography (PSMA-PET), a form of molecular imaging, increases detection of advanced and metastatic prostate cancer, but its potential to increase treatment costs due to increased detection is poorly defined. Objective To estimate lifetime health and cost outcomes and evaluate the cost-effectiveness associated with implementing PSMA-PET in the clinical evaluation of a patient with a biochemical recurrence (BCR) of prostate cancer, with evaluation of sources of uncertainty in the underlying evidence and assessment of the need and focus of additional data collection. Design, Setting, and Participants This economic evaluation developed a decision-analytic model consisting of a decision tree and a Markov model informed by published literature and a study of patients with BCR prostate cancer undergoing PSMA-PET after definitive surgery or radiation therapy at 2 high-volume US academic centers. The analysis was performed between August 1, 2024, and May 1, 2025. Interventions Patients underwent (1) PSMA-PET, (2) PSMA-PET imaging as a reflex test if computed tomography plus bone scan (CTBS) was negative or equivocal (CTBS + PSMA-PET), and (3) CTBS alone. Main Outcomes and Measures Lifetime quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) and costs, incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER), and value of information estimates were assessed, with 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs). We assumed a willingness-to-pay threshold of $150 000 per QALY. Results The model simulated 1000 patients with BCR (median age, 66 years) and estimated that up-front PSMA-PET is expected to have the highest mean QALYs (7.12 QALYs [95% UI, 6.71-7.51 QALYs]) compared with 6.55 QALYs (95% UI, 6.08-7.03 QALYs) for CTBS; it was also estimated to have higher mean costs ($451 000 [95% UI, $336 000-$577 000]) compared with $351 000 (95% UI, $263 000-$455 000]) for CTBS; consequently, PSMA-PET had mean increments of $99 000 (95% UI, $55 000-153,000) in costs and 0.58 QALYs (95% UI, 0.35-0.82 QALYs) compared with CTBS, leading to an ICER of $172 000 per QALY, which exceeded the assumed $150 000/QALY willingness-to-pay threshold. In patients with lower prostate-specific antigen levels (&amp;lt;2 ng/mL), PSMA had mean increments of $61 000 (95% UI, $21 000-$104 000) in costs and 0.54 QALYs (95% UI, 0.34-0.77 QALYs) compared with CTBS, leading to an ICER of $113 000/QALY, suggesting it had the potential to be cost-effective. Because of high decisional uncertainty, additional information regarding outcomes and diagnostic characteristics may be associated with reduced uncertainty and a gain of 15 747 QALYs. Conclusions and Relevance This study found that PSMA-PET may be associated with improved disease detection but may not be cost-effective due to high treatment costs offsetting moderate improvements in QALYs. Further research is needed to identify patient subsets and clinical scenarios in which molecular imaging provides the greatest value.

Objective To determine the proportion of cases of lower extremity symptoms attributable to underlying musculoskeletal ( MSK ) rather than thrombotic etiologies in emergency versus non‐emergency settings. Methods We retrospectively reviewed all lower extremity Venous Doppler ultrasounds performed on emergency department ( ED ) and non‐ ED patients over a 1‐year period at a single institution. Using radiology report data mining software, keywords including tear, tendon, hematoma, and muscle were used to identify cases of MSK pathology of the lower leg. All reports were also reviewed for findings of venous thrombosis. Statistical significance between ED and non‐ ED patients for both incidental MSK pathology and venous thrombosis was assessed using chi‐squared tests. Results A total of 5714 lower extremity Doppler ultrasounds were performed at a single institution during the 1‐year period, 1829 in the ED and 3885 in non‐ ED settings. Sixty‐nine of 1829 (3.8%) ED patients had incidental MSK pathology of the lower extremity compared to 53/3885 (1.4%) in the non‐ ED setting ( p < .001). Two hundred sixty‐seven of 1829 (14.5%) ED patients had evidence of venous thrombosis and/or chronic post‐thrombotic change. When combined with thrombotic pathology as positive cases, incidental MSK injury accounted for 69/336 (20.5%) of ED cases with positive sonographic findings. Conclusions MSK pathology of the lower leg is significantly more likely to contribute to lower extremity symptoms in the ED compared to a non‐ ED setting. Therefore, a brief sonographic evaluation of the MSK apparatus may be beneficial in a subset of ED patients, particularly those with focal pain but no identifiable thrombotic etiology.

Background: HIV outcomes in people with HIV (PWH) are suboptimal and inequitably distributed in the United States. Long-acting injectable antiretroviral therapy (LAI-ART) has potential to make important contributions to improving HIV outcomes and quality of life for PWH. Methods: The SELIGO Study used a 1-time, 20-minute survey of 801 PWH from the Center for AIDS Research Network of Integrated Clinical Systems cohort in 3 US cities (Boston, MA; Chapel Hill, NC; San Diego, CA) that included 54 items. Using multinomial and binary logistic regression, we assessed factors associated with LAI-ART versus daily oral ART preferences. Results: Most participants were cisgender men (82.3%); 57.0% identified as racial and/or ethnic minorities; mean years of age, 52.2; mean years living with HIV, 18.1; 2.8% were using LAI-ART. Compared with daily oral ART, 56.9% preferred LAI-ART administered monthly, and 68.0% preferred LAI-ART administered every 2 months. Factors associated with greater odds of LAI-ART preference included medication/contraception injection experience, pill burden, no medication other than ART, 4 or more clinic visits per year, detectable viral load, reporting a higher number of HIV treatment considerations, and identifying as Black. Factors associated with decreased odds of LAI-ART preference included older age, identifying as neither gay nor straight, living > 1 hour from the clinic, and considerable/extreme needle fear. Conclusions: Findings demonstrate that although there is considerable interest in LAI-ART, HIV treatment modality preferences are multifaceted. Shared decision making can ensure that conversations about ART options consistently address specific factors across diverse groups to facilitate equitable LAI-ART uptake.

Abstract Disclosure: I. Bancos: Adrenas, consulting, advisory board, or data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work), AstraZeneca, consulting, advisory board, or data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work), Corcept Therapeutics, consulting, advisory board, or data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work), Diurnal, consulting, advisory board, or data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work), HRA Pharma, consulting, advisory board, data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work), or funding for investigator-initiated research, Neurocrine, consulting, advisory board, or data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work), NovoNordisk, consulting, advisory board, or data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work), Recordati Rare Diseases, consulting, advisory board, data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work), or funding for investigator-initiated research, Sparrow, consulting, advisory board, or data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work), Spruce, consulting, advisory board, or data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work), Xeris, consulting, advisory board, or data safety monitoring board fees (paid to institution outside this work). F. Castinetti: HRA Pharma, consultancy for and research grants, Lundbeck, consultancy for and research grants, Recordati Rare Diseases, consultancy for and research grants. E.B. Geer: Corcept Therapeutics, research grants to her hospital, Recordati Rare Diseases, research grants to her hospital and occasional consulting honoraria, Sparrow, research grants to her hospital and occasional consulting honoraria, Xeris Pharmaceuticals (Strongbridge), research grants to her hospital and occasional consulting honoraria, Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, occasional consulting honoraria, HRA Pharma, occasional consulting honoraria, Lundbeck, occasional consulting honoraria, Member of the LINC 6 steering committee. S. Espiard: Recordati Rare Diseases, reports invitations to training courses and medical congresses. C. Mouly: Pfizer, consulting and advisory board fees, Recordati Rare Diseases, consulting and advisory board fees. L. Dichtel: Lumos Pharma, consultant and received research support to her hospital, Novo Nordisk, consultant and received research support to her hospital, Perspectum, received research support to her hospital, Recordati Rare Diseases, research support to her hospital, Flare Therapeutics, consultant, Marea Therapeutics, consultant and has equity in company, Third Rock Ventures, consultant, Merida Biosciences, consultant and has equity in company. E.V. Varlamov: Lumiio, research support to her university, Novo Nordisk, research support to her university, Pfizer, research support to her university, Recordati Rare Diseases, research support to her university. A. Ferriere: Novo Nordisk, Recordati Rare Diseases. E. Nowak: Supported by the Else Kröner-Fresenius–Stiftung and the Eva Luise und Horst Köhler–Stiftung within the Clinician Scientist program RISE (2022_EKFKSE.03). C. Simeoli: Neurocrine UK Ltd, consultancy, Recordati Rare Diseases, consultancy. R.A. Feelders: HRA Pharma, consultancy, Recordati Rare Diseases, consultancy, Corcept Therapeutics, research grant, Member of the LINC 6 steering committee. J. Le Mouhaër: Recordati Rare Diseases, employee. P. Raunioniemi: Recordati Rare Diseases, employee. A. Mueller: Recordati Rare Diseases, employee. N. Scheyer: HRA Pharma, invitations to training courses and medical congresses, Pfizer, invitations to training courses and medical congresses, Recordati Rare Diseases, invitations to training courses and medical congresses. Introduction: LINC 6 (NCT05382156) is an ongoing prospective, observational study evaluating the long-term safety and effectiveness of osilodrostat, a potent 11β-hydroxylase inhibitor, over 3 years in patients (pts) with Cushing’s syndrome (CS). We report results from a prespecified 2-year interim analysis. Methods: Adult pts with endogenous CS were enrolled in 5 countries (USA and Europe) where osilodrostat is approved and available. The primary objective is long-term safety and tolerability, assessed by incidence of osilodrostat-related adverse events (AEs) and serious AEs (SAEs), with a focus on hypocortisolism-, adrenal hormone precursor accumulation-, arrhythmia/QT prolongation-, and pituitary tumor enlargement-related AEs. Secondary effectiveness endpoints include change in mean urinary free cortisol (mUFC) and late-night salivary cortisol (LNSC). Here, we report AEs in the safety population (≥1 osilodrostat dose; n=206) among pts with Cushing’s disease (CD) and non-pituitary CS (non-PCS, adrenal or ectopic CS; data cutoff July 2024). Results: Data were available for 205 pts: 75.6% were female, mean (standard deviation) age was 53.0 (14.4) years. 161 pts had CD and 44 had non-PCS (adrenal adenoma, n=12; adrenal carcinoma, n=2; bilateral adrenal nodular disease, n=10; ectopic adrenocorticotropic hormone secretion, n=17; other, n=3). Median (min-max) on-study osilodrostat exposure and dose were 8.3 months (0.0-20.8) and 5.0 mg/day (0.5-80.0). 34 (21.1%) CD and 9 (20.5%) non-PCS pts reported 91 and 14 AEs considered treatment related, respectively; most were mild or moderate (95.6% CD and 85.7% non-PCS). Most common (&gt;5% of events) treatment-related AEs: CD, adrenal insufficiency (9.9%, n=9/91 events), diarrhea, dizziness, fatigue (6.6% [n=6/91] each) and nausea (5.5%, n=5/91); non-PCS, adrenal insufficiency (42.9%, n=6/14 events), hypokalemia (14.3%, n=2/14), abnormal hormone (cortisol) level, dizziness, hirsutism, joint stiffness, musculoskeletal stiffness, and nervous system disorder (7.1% [n=1/14] each). 17 (10.6%) CD and 10 (22.7%) non-PCS pts reported 29 and 16 SAEs (7 and 4 were considered treatment related), respectively. 5 (3.1%) CD and 2 (4.5%) non-PCS pts discontinued because of 8 and 3 treatment-related AEs. CD and non-PCS pts reported 21 and 9 hypocortisolism-related AEs, 16 and 6 adrenal hormone precursor accumulation-related AEs, and 3 and 0 arrhythmogenic potential/QT interval prolongation-related AEs, respectively. CD pts had 3 pituitary tumor enlargement-related AEs. At month 3, mUFC and LNSC were normal in 73.9% (n=34/46) and 56.3% (n=18/32) of pts. By month 6, mUFC and LNSC were normal in 63.0% (n=29/46) and 30.4% (n=7/23) of pts. Conclusions: These LINC 6 2-year interim data show that osilodrostat is effective for the management of different etiologies of CS. AEs were mostly mild or moderate, with few leading to treatment discontinuation. Presentation: Sunday, July 13, 2025

Abstract Disclosure: Y. Ahmed: None. S.M. Saad-Omer: None. R.M. Castro: None. M. Rivera: None. M.N. Stan: None. Background: Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) is a cornerstone in the evaluation of thyroid nodules. Its accuracy during long term follow up is not well established though. Our project aims to address that. Objective: To assess long-term accuracy of FNA results at Mayo Clinic Rochester including diagnostic classifications, procedural and cytologic variables, and concordance with surgical pathology. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients who underwent thyroid FNA at Mayo Clinic Rochester in 2014, to allow for the long-term follow-up. Descriptive statistics summarized patient demographics, nodule characteristics, and procedural factors. Cross-tabulation was used to evaluate concordance between FNA cytology and surgical pathology. This is an interim analysis. Results: Among 199 patients (from 741 FNAs that year), the mean age was 58.6 ± 14.1 years, and 73.7% were female. The average BMI was 29.6 ± 6.4 kg/m². Most had non-toxic multinodular goiter (69.3%) or non-toxic solitary nodules (27.6%). Nodules were 45% solid, 8% cystic, and 47% mixed, with a mean size of 2.3 cm. FNA results were predominantly benign (Bethesda II, 80%), followed by malignant (Bethesda VI, 8%), suspicious for follicular neoplasm (Bethesda IV, 7.5% ), non-diagnostic (Bethesda I, 3%), and suspicious for malignancy (Bethesda V,1%). There were no cases read as Bethesda III (AUS) in 2014. Of the 16 Bethesda VI cases, 15 had surgery; 14 were confirmed malignant, and 1 was benign (Hurthle cell adenoma). Both Bethesda V cases that underwent surgery were benign. Of the 15 Bethesda IV cases, 12 had surgery; 11 were benign and 1 was malignant and 3 had long term follow up (2 benign, and one malignant based on the available data). Overall the malignancy rate for Bethesda IV was 13.3%. Surgery was performed in 12 Bethesda II cases, with final pathology available for 11; 9 were confirmed benign, while 2 were malignant. In the other 147 cases of benign FNAs that didn’t undergo surgery we have not identified any indication of necessity for surgery during the mean of 9 years of follow-up, presumably indicating their benign character. Overall malignancy rate for this group was 1.3%. We had only 6 non diagnostic FNAs (Bethesda I), with all of them during follow up proven benign (2 by surgery, 2 by repeat FNA and 2 by long term follow up). Conclusion: Long term follow up data (over 9 years) support the continued reliability of Bethesda II and VI , while conversely raising questions about the significance of the Bethesda V classification. The malignancy rate in Bethesda IV (likely including the Bethesda III category at the time) is consistent with our institutional data, although it remains lower than that reported by other institutions. We’re currently enriching our cohort to verify and strengthen our conclusions. Presentation: Monday, July 14, 2025

In the phase III placebo-controlled DeFi trial (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03785964 ) primary analysis, nirogacestat showed significant improvement versus placebo in progression-free survival (PFS), objective response rate (ORR), and patient-reported outcomes (PRO) in adult patients with progressing desmoid tumors (DT; median [range] exposure: 20.6 [0.3-33.6] months). Here, long-term nirogacestat efficacy and safety were evaluated in patients randomly assigned to nirogacestat and followed through the final data cutoff date of December 19, 2024. End points included PFS and ORR per RECIST v1.1, PRO, and safety. The median (range) duration of exposure was 33.6 (0.3-61.8) months. Median PFS was not reached. The ORR with up to 4 years of nirogacestat treatment was 45.7% (32 of 70), with three additional partial and three additional complete responses since the primary analysis. Further target tumor size reduction occurred in most patients. Benefits in PROs were sustained while on treatment. Frequently reported treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) decreased in incidence and severity over time. Since the primary analysis, four patients discontinued nirogacestat because of TEAEs between years 2 and 4. In conclusion, long-term continuous nirogacestat treatment was associated with further tumor size reductions, durable objective responses, sustained PRO benefits, and a manageable safety profile consistent with the primary analysis.