Haibin Chen

Background: The incidence and mortality of colorectal cancer (CRC) have been rising steadily. Early diagnosis and precise treatment are essential for improving patient survival outcomes. Over the past decade, the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and medical imaging technologies has positioned radiomics as a critical area of research in the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of CRC.Methods: We conducted a comprehensive review of CRC-related radiomics literature published between 1 January 2013 and 31 December 2023 using the Web of Science Core Collection database. Bibliometric tools such as Bibliometrix, VOSviewer, and CiteSpace were employed to perform an in-depth bibliometric analysis.Results: Our search yielded 1,226 publications, revealing a consistent annual growth in CRC radiomics research, with a significant rise after 2019. China led in publication volume (406 papers), followed by the United States (263 papers), whereas the United States dominated in citation numbers. Notable institutions included General Electric, Harvard University, University of London, Maastricht University, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Prominent researchers in this field are Tian J from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, with the highest publication count, and Ganeshan B from the University of London, with the most citations. Journals leading in publication and citation counts are Frontiers in Oncology and Radiology. Keyword and citation analysis identified deep learning, texture analysis, rectal cancer, image analysis, and management as prevailing research themes. Additionally, recent trends indicate the growing importance of AI and multi-omics integration, with a focus on improving precision medicine applications in CRC. Emerging keywords such as deep learning and AI have shown rapid growth in citation bursts over the past 3 years, reflecting a shift toward more advanced technological applications.Conclusions: Radiomics plays a crucial role in the clinical management of CRC, providing valuable insights for precision medicine. It significantly contributes to predicting molecular biomarkers, assessing tumor aggressiveness, and monitoring treatment efficacy. Future research should prioritize advancing AI algorithms, enhancing multi-omics data integration, and further expanding radiomics applications in CRC precision medicine.

PurposeComplementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is well documented and widely applied in healthcare, however, there is a paucity of knowledge on the attitudes of high healthcare clinicians regarding CAM, as well aspects related to the communications by clinicians on the use of CAM. Such communication can be important in assuring agreement about therapeutic plans and the use of CAM as complimentary higher healthcare. The study investigated the communication about CAM between patients and clinicians, as well as factors that influence the communication of clinicians about CAM.MethodsThe study made use of the CAM Health Belief Questionnaire (CHBQ), a 10-item Likert-scale questionnaire that assesses the attitudes and beliefs of healthcare professionals towards CAM. The cross-sectional survey was distributed to 360 doctors in traditional Chinese Mmedicine (TCM) and western medicine (WM) from the departments of Internal Medicine (physicians) and Surgery (surgeons). The survey was distributed in 5 different hospitals in China over the period from May to August 2019.ResultsWe found that there is generally a positive attitude toward CAM by clinicians, with a large difference between physicians and surgeons. We found that there was a lack of communication about CAM between clinicians and patients, largely associated with the uncertainty about the scientific evidence for the efficacy of CAM, and the possible interactions with conventional medicine and other safety-related components. This made clinicians fearful and worried, and reluctant to share about CAM. Among those who could share or discuss CAM with patients, many were trained in TCM and had previously used CAM, and so they were more likely to communicate CAM to patients. Western medicine doctors were more resultant and did not have a positive attitude towards CAM, and would not recommend it to patients. Moreover, the physicians who typically would communicate about CAM with patients indicated that they were not encouraged to use it due, largely, to lack of access to CAM training, which is evident in the fact that on 10.6% of the clinicians had certificates in TCM. Therefore, there is a need to train clinicians in CAM and to equip them with skills that will enable them to engage patients and offer complementary modalities of treatment, given the historical use of CAM in China.ConclusionsOur results show that there is a generally positive attitude towards CAM in higher health in China. Clinicians have a positive attitude towards CAM but do not generally communicate with patients. The willingness that clinicians, especially the western clinicians, want to communicate with patients was weak. To reduce the reluctance and uncertainty, clinicians should be trained in evidence for those CAM methods in which patients are interested. This will also improve doctor-patient communication and allow for better integration of patient needs in their healthcare plans.

Background: Due to economic development and an increase in the aging population, the demand for medical resources is increasing. A good doctor-patient relationship (DPR) can optimize patients’ medical experience and improve treatment efficiency. The DPR, however, is currently in crisis in China. To explore ways to improve DPR, this study assessed the views on the status of the DPR, medical services, and the general situation of medical work among medical personnel (MP) and the general population (GP). Methods: This cross-sectional study, conducted between December 2019 and March 2020, targeted the MP and the GP in Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province, and Zhengzhou City, Henan Province. A total of 154 MP and 329 GP answered a self-administered questionnaire through Questionnaire Star and WeChat apps. Wilcoxon’s Sign Rank Test, Chi-square test, and frequency distributions and percentages were used to process the data. Results: Only 11.04% of the MP and 14.89% of the GP believed that the current DPR was harmonious. Moreover, 54.55% of the MP and 71.12% of the GP believed that the medical industry was a service industry. While 14.29% of the MP and 64.44% of the GP thought medical staff earned high salaries, 19.48% of the MP and 47.11% of the GP wanted their children to be in the medical industry. The recognition of the current status of the DPR did not affect the GP’s preference for their children’s practice (p < 0.05). Most MPs hoped to improve salaries (40.26%), followed by safety (17.53%) and social status (12.99%); only 8.44% of the MP wanted to improve the DPR. Conclusion: The MP’s and GP’s views on the current status of DPR, the importance of medical service attitudes, and the general sense of the medical industry were similar. However, there was a significant difference in the perception of the nature of medical services and the income of the people employed in the medical industry between the two groups. Balancing the expectations of patients in the medical industry and increasing public awareness of the actual situation in the medical industry may be a feasible way to improve the DPR.