Adenocarcinoma is the predominant malignancy found in the colon and rectum. Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer diagnosed in the developed world with a high incidence of mortality and morbidity. The average five-year survival rate remains poor at 55%, although the development of new drugs has improved the survival rate of colorectal cancer patients. The prognosis of colorectal cancer remains poor in spite of the development of novel therapeutic strategies. Human colorectal cancer represents a heterogeneous group of diseases, and its molecular classification is increasingly important. Characterization of novel biomarker targets may lead to prolong the survival rate of colorectal cancer. Biomarkers may have a potential role in screening, diagnosis, prognosis and monitoring disease. Mutations in the KRAS gene in ~40% of tumors have been reported to be induced by genetic and epigenetic alterations. This book, comprised of four chapters, introduces recent topics regarding colorectal cancer, and provides recent highlighted information concerning prevention, diagnosis and treatment. This book will be of interest to undergraduate and graduate students, biomedical researchers, and medical doctors focused on the fields of molecular and cellular biology, medical sciences, and clinical challenges.

The Oxford Specialist Handbook of Paediatric Nephrology helps the reader understand and manage all conditions affecting the kidney in childhood. This concise yet comprehensive guide covers everything from history taking and urinalysis, to electrolyte management, acute kidney injury and transplantation. It is a complete reference for the day to day, bedside, and out-patient management of all conditions dealt with by general paediatricians and specialist paediatric nephrologists. The handbook also offers advice to clinical professionals working with patients in shared care between general hospitals and specialised centres. Paediatric Nephrology benefits from a clear, user-friendly layout, with bullet points and text boxes to highlight key information and colour plates illustrations and photographs. This makes the book a perfect reference for use on-the-go, and easy to navigate during an emergency. The primary focus of the book is investigation and management, but in order to enable a better understanding of conditions such as fluid and electrolytes, it also discusses pathophysiology. Evidence-based recommendations are made where possible, however the authors also provide recommendations informed by their own personal experience and current best practice in areas where high quality evidence is still lacking. Paediatric Nephrology is useful for paediatric consultants and doctors at all levels of their training, including the general paediatrician and the specialist nephrologist. The book has a global appeal, and presents information that is applicable worldwide.

Integrative Sexual Health explores beyond the standard topics in men's and women's health, drawing on a diverse research literature to provide an overview of sexual biology and sexual dysfunction, diverse lifespan, lifestyle and environmental impacts on sexual function, integrative medicine solutions to sexual problems, and traditional eastern and western treatment approaches to healing sexual difficulties. This comprehensive guide written by experts in the field provides clinical vignettes, detailed treatment strategies for mitigating the side effects of both medications and sexual dysfunction associated with medical illness and poor lifestyle habits, and extensive further reading resources. Integrative treatment modalities not typically consulted in mainstream medicine, such as traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurvedic medicine, aromatherapy, and botanical medicine, are presented with the best evidence, in a clinically relevant manner. Part of the Weil Integrative Medicine Library, this volume is a must read for the specialist and non-specialist alike who wish to address sexual problems using an integrative medicine approach, and acquire tools to maintain lifetime optimal health and vitality that supports healthy sexuality. Integrative medicine is defined as healing-oriented medicine that takes account of the whole person (body, mind, and spirit) as well as all aspects of lifestyle; it emphasizes the therapeutic relationship and makes use of appropriate therapies, both conventional and alternative. Series editor Andrew Weil, MD, is Professor and Director of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona. Dr. Weil's program was the first such academic program in the U.S., and its stated goal is "to combine the best ideas and practices of conventional and alternative medicine into cost effective treatments without embracing alternative practices uncritically."

The first edition of Comorbidities in Chronic Kidney Disease is focused on the main clinical syndromes associated with renal failure. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) are characterized by a wide spectrum of comorbidities, potentially complicating patients clinical outcomes. In this volume, both editor and authors have planned a complete review of the main clinical syndromes associated with renal injury and failure. The first chapter is dedicated to epidemiological aspects of chronic kidney disease, and also introduces risk factors and associated comorbidities. Arterial hypertension and cardiovascular diseases are actually accountable as major risk factors for developing renal disease, and the next chapter is mainly focused on the latest trials in this field. The following chapter is dedicated to pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of dyslipidemia and atherosclerosis in patients with declined renal function. The subsequent chapter is exhaustively focused on the clinical features of secondary hyperparathyroidism and the diseases complications on kidneys, bone, vessels and heart, from early laboratory findings to severe vascular and heart valvular calcifications. The section that succeeds reflects on secondary anemia and consequent cardiorenal anemia syndrome with particular attention on the latest treatment schedules. Coronary artery disease is also discussed, especially for those concerned with clinical features and laboratory diagnosis in chronic kidney disease patients with impaired clearance of coronary acute syndrome biomarkers. Cardiorenal syndrome and sudden cardiac death are well-established clinical aspects in CKD patients, and they are discussed both in terms of pathophsysiological and clinical features. The book finally ends with two sections on hepato-renal syndrome and contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN). CIN represents daily challenges for all nephrologists because due to the large amounts of instrumental diagnostic tests and an increasing number of chronic kidney disease patients involved. This volume could be appreciated both by nephrologists and all clinicians involved in chronic patients management due to schematic and practical editing and form.

The two kidneys of mammalian organisms receive around 25 % of the cardiac output at rest, of which only 7 % is distributed to the renal medulla. Despite the low blood flow to the renal medulla, small changes in perfusion to the region can have profound effects on urine-concentrating ability and the excretion of sodium, which in turn affects the chronic regulation of body fluid volumes and arterial blood pressure. Importantly, we know that if blood flow to the renal medulla is not tightly regulated, sodium and water homeostasis is impaired and medullary hypoxia develops. The resultant injury inevitably reduces urine concentrating ability and leads to hypertension. This book will discuss the variety of mechanisms that mammalian organisms have developed to ensure that renal medullary blood flow and oxygen levels are precisely regulated. This book will focus on the unique anatomical arrangement of the medullary circulation, the functional roles of medullary blood flow, as well as the experimental techniques used to assess medullary blood flow and the insight that these studies have provided. The hormonal and non-hormonal control of medullary blood flow will be considered and finally the impact of reduced medullary blood flow on blood pressure is discussed.

This book reviews important aspects of polycystic kidney diseases, the latest scientific understanding of the diseases and syndromes, along with the therapies being developed. Cystic kidney diseases comprise a spectrum of genetic syndromes defined by renal cyst formation and expansion with variable extrarenal manifestations. The most prevalent disorder is the autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). It is the most common monogenetic disorder in humans and accounts for 4.4% of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) cases in the U.S. Patients inevitably progress to ESRD and require renal replacement therapy in the form of dialysis or transplantation. Through advancements in genomics and proteomics approaches, novel genes responsible for cystic diseases have been identified, further expanding our understanding of basic mechanisms of disease pathogenesis. The hallmark among all cystic genetic syndromes is the formation and growth of fluid-filled cysts, which originate from tubular epithelia of nephron segments. Cysts are the disease, and treatment strategies are being developed to target prevention or delay of cyst formation and expansion at an early stage, however no such therapy is currently approved.

Critical References Nephrology (Edition 1) contains the essential references for each of 62 topics in adult clinical nephrology. With each reference, the authors have explained how that research study contributed to the clinical topic of interest, providing immediate context. Critical References Nephrology (Edition 1) is an invaluable reference, serving as an easy guide for exam preparation, daily clinical practice and preparation of both research articles and teaching sessions. By summarizing the major findings of the most important research studies, Critical References Nephrology quickly provides the most evidence based information of all major nephrology topics.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a major health concern because it is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. While therapies for AKI have improved in recent years, the prevalence of this condition is still high and continues to increase. Considering these clinical issues, the appropriate detection and management of risk factors related to AKI are important issues for clinicians managing AKI patients. This book discusses the forms of detection, predictors and long-term outcomes for acute kidney injuries.