Objective To review the latest development of amniotic fluid-derived stem cells (AFSCs) in regenerative medicine, and to discuss issues related to the studies in the field of AFSCs. Methods The recent articles about AFSCs were extensively reviewed. The important knowledge of AFSCs was introduced in the field of regenerative medicine, and the basic and clinical researches of AFSCs were summarized and discussed. Results Currently, it is confirmed that AFSCs have a multi-directional differentiation capacity, therefore, they have a wide application prospect in regenerative medicine, anti-tumor, and other fields. Conclusion AFSCs will become one of the ideal seed cells in the field of regenerative medicine with extensive research value because of the advantages of easy amniotic fluid sampling, little maternal and child trauma, no tumorigenesis, and no ethical restrictions.
ObjectiveTo explore the clinical utility and safety of electromagnetic navigation bronchoscopy (ENB)-guided microwave ablation (MWA) in the patients with inoperable high-risk pulmonary nodules.MethodsClinical data of patients who were diagnosed with inoperable pulmonary nodules highly suspected as malignant tumors and treated with ENB-guided MWA in Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University from December 2019 to September 2020 were retrospectively collected and analyzed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of the procedure. There were 6 males and 3 females aged 72.0 (59.5-77.0) years.ResultsTotally ENB-guided MWA was performed in 9 patients with 12 lesions. All patients suffered from at least one chronic comorbidity. The inoperable reasons included poor pulmonary function (55.6%), comorbidities of other organs which made the surgery intolerable (33.3%), multiple lesions in different lobes or segments (22.2%), personal wills (22.2%) and advanced in age (11.1%). The median diameter of nodules was 13.5 (9.5-22.0) mm and the median distance from the edge of nodules to pleura was 5.3 (1.8-16.3) mm. Bronchoscope maneuver to the targeted lesions was manipulated according to navigation pathway under visual and X-ray guidance and confirmed with radial ultrasound probe. Rapid on-site evaluation also helped with primary pathological confirmation of biopsy specimen. Among all the lesions, 4 adenocarcinoma, 1 non-small cell lung cancer-not otherwise specified and 2 inflammatory lesions were reported in postoperative pathological diagnosis, while no malignant cells were found in 5 specimens. The ablation success rate was 83.3% (10/12). For the two off-targeted lesions, percutaneous ablations were performed as salvage treatment subsequently. The median hospitalization time was 3.0 (2.0-3.0) days and no short-term complications were reported in these patients.ConclusionENB-guided MWA is a safe and effective procedure for patients with high-risk pulmonary nodules when thoracic surgery cannot be tolerated.