2.1. Ethical Statement

Since this study involved clinical experiments and animal experiments, the research group obtained the approval of the Ethics Committee of Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University (No. 201701007XHK), and the Committee of Experimental Animals of Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University (No. 201810003XHK), respectively. After consultation with patients and family members, the patients signed the informed consent form and agreed to donate samples of EC and adjacent tissues which were limited to scientific experimental research. Animal experiments strictly followed animal ethical requirements in terms of the necessity of research, the standardization of operations, and the protection of experimental animals.