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Biomedical subjects

A D Spigelman

Publications and source records attributed to A D Spigelman.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Rectal polyposis as a guide to duodenal polyposis in familial adenomatous polyposis.

Almost all patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) develop duodenal polyps, the severity of which is graded stage 1 (minor) to stage V (cancer). Regular endoscopy is recommended for all patients with FAP. To test whether the development of severe duodenal polyposis could be predicted in another way, rectal and duodenal polyp severity were compared in 91 patients with FAP. The fulguration ratio (number of rectal fulgurations divided by number of years since colectomy) supplied the rectal polyp severity index. Patients with stage V duodenal polyposis had significantly higher fulguration ratios (median 0.38) than did patients with stage 1 disease (median 0; P = 0.009). However, the wide scatter of results means that rectal polyp severity cannot be used as a guide to duodenal polyp severity in individual patients. The coexistence of populations with severe duodenal and rectal polyposis suggests that environmental factors are important in phenotypic expression in FAP.

Adenomatous Polyposis Coli↗

Biliary bile acid profiles in familial adenomatous polyposis.

Patients with familial adenomatous polyposis have an excess risk for adenomas and cancers of the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract. In the upper intestine these lesions occur mainly around the ampulla of Vater and they parallel mucosal exposure to bile. In view of this finding and of evidence that bile acids play a role in colorectal carcinogenesis, biliary bile acid profiles were determined in 29 patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (12 before colectomy, 17 after colectomy) and in 28 patients without familial adenomatous polyposis (all with colons in situ). Patients with familial adenomatous polyposis had a higher total biliary bile acid concentration than the others. The bile of patients with polyposis had a greater proportion of chenodeoxycholic acid and a lower proportion of deoxycholic acid than did the bile of patients without polyposis. The ratio of chenodeoxycholic acid and its metabolite lithocholic acid to cholic acid and its metabolite deoxycholic acid, which is related to subsequent bile acid profiles in the colon, was higher in patients with polyposis. Because bile acids influence cellular proliferation, these findings may be of importance with respect to intestinal adenoma and cancer growth.

Adenoma↗

DNA adducts, detected by 32P-postlabelling, in the foregut of patients with familial adenomatous polyposis and in unaffected controls.

Duodenal neoplasms in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) cluster around the ampulla; duodenal neoplasia is common but gastric neoplasia is rare. These observations suggest that bile enhances neoplasia by carrying carcinogens to target cells. A critical step in carcinogenesis is the reaction of carcinogens with DNA to form chemical adducts. Using 32P-postlabelling to measure DNA adducts we asked: (i) are there more adducts in the duodenum of patients with FAP than in the duodenum of normal patients? (ii) Are there more adducts in the duodenum than in the stomach? We measured adducts in duodenal biopsies from 51 patients with FAP and 30 age-matched controls; and paired gastric and duodenal biopsies from 31 FAP patients and six controls. The foregut of 90% of all patients studied contained DNA modifications with characteristics of aromatic non-polar DNA adducts. In duodenal biopsies, adduct labelling per 10(9) DNA nucleotides was significantly higher in FAP patients (median 15.0, range 0-162) than in normal patients (median, 7.5, range 0-40; P = 0.0002). In paired duodenal and gastric biopsies from 31 FAP patients, adduct labelling was significantly higher in duodenal DNA (median 15, range 0-109) than in stomach DNA (median 8.0, range 0-40; P = 0.0004). Age, gender or smoking did not account for these differences. Gastric adducts (median 3.5, range 0-10) were lower than duodenal adducts (median 8.5, range 0-29) in paired biopsies from six control patients, P = 0.031). These results support the hypothesis that pancreaticobiliary secretions may be involved in the pathogenesis of foregut neoplasia in FAP.

Adenomatous Polyposis Coli↗

Duodeno-gastric reflux and gastric adenomas: a scintigraphic study in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis.

To test whether the presence of gastric adenomas (dysplasia) was associated with gastric reflux of duodenal contents, six patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) who had gastric adenomas and nine matched FAP patients without gastric adenomas underwent scintigraphic duodeno-gastric reflux scanning. Reflux was graded 0-6, where 0 = no reflux, 1 = intermittent reflux into antrum only, 2 = prolonged reflux into antrum only, 3 = intermittent reflux into body, 4 = prolonged reflux into body, 5 = intermittent reflux into body and fundus, and 6 = prolonged reflux into body and fundus. FAP patients with gastric adenomas had more severe reflux (median 6, range 4-6) than did controls (median 3, range 0-6; P = 0.009, Mann-Whitney U test). These results are consistent with a role for bile in the development of gastric adenomatous polyps and suggest that bile is involved in the dysplasia-carcinoma sequence.

Adenoma↗

Towards decreasing the relaparotomy rate in the Peutz-Jeghers syndrome: the role of peroperative small bowel endoscopy.

Relaparotomy occurs commonly in patients with the Peutz-Jeghers syndrome, and at quite short intervals. Between 1943 and 1987 laparotomies were performed on 54 occasions in 23 patients with the Peutz-Jeghers syndrome who at some time came under the care of St. Mark's Hospital. In four patients repeat laparotomy was performed within a single year. Between 1987 and 1989 a further five patients have undergone laparotomy with on-table small bowel endoscopy. External palpation and small bowel transillumination failed to demonstrate 17 out of a total of 45 hamartomas (38 per cent). Of these 17 polyps identified endoscopically, 11 (65 per cent) were sufficiently large that a snare was used to remove them. We recommend peroperative enteroscopy as an adjunct to surgery in the Peutz-Jeghers syndrome.

Adolescent↗

Mutagenicity of bile and duodenal adenomas in familial adenomatous polyposis.

Duodenal adenomas occur almost inevitably in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) whereas gastric adenomas are rare. FAP patients are also at high risk of duodenal cancer. Within the duodenum, adenomas cluster around the ampulla of Vater, as do the majority of duodenal cancers, suggesting that bile plays a role in tumour development. We therefore tested duodenal bile from 29 postcolectomy FAP patients (27 of whom had duodenal adenomas) and 24 non-FAP patients for mutagenicity, using techniques that detect point mutations in bacteria. Results which appeared to show that FAP bile was more mutagenic than control bile could be accounted for by a feeding effect, elimination of which also eliminated 'mutagenicity'. Under the conditions of our assays we conclude that if bile is an important factor in genesis of duodenal tumours, it does not act by inducing point mutation.

Adenoma↗

Upper gastrointestinal pathology in familial adenomatous polyposis: results from a prospective study of 102 patients.

Multiple gastric and duodenal biopsy specimens from 102 asymptomatic patients with familial adenomatous polyposis, taken during a prospective endoscopic screening programme were examined. One hundred patients had microscopic gastroduodenal pathology, often in the absence of macroscopic lesions. Adenomas were found in 94 patients in the duodenum, in the second and third parts. Hyperplasia of villous and crypt epithelium was also seen, sometimes in the absence of adenomas: this may be a precursor of neoplastic change. In the stomach fundic gland polyps were the commonest abnormality, seen microscopically in 44 patients. Chronic antral gastritis was common in patients without fundic polyps. Gastric adenomas were present in six patients, all of whom also had duodenal adenomas. If duodenal adenomas in familial adenomatous polyposis have a similar malignant potential to those in the colorectum sequential endoscopy and biopsy are necessary to detect cancer in these patients.

Adenomatous Polyposis Coli↗

Upper gastrointestinal cancer in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis.

102 patients with familial adenomatous polyposis underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy as a screening test for gastroduodenal adenomas. 100 had duodenal abnormalities (dysplasia in 94, and hyperplasia in 6), usually in the second and third parts of the duodenum (91%). The periampullary area was abnormal in 87 of 97 patients who had a biopsy specimen taken from this site (dysplasia 72, hyperplasia 13, and inflammation 2). By contrast, gastric dysplasia was found in only 6 patients. Classification of duodenal polyposis on a 5-grade scale (stages 0-IV), based on polyp number, size, histology, and severity of dysplasia, showed that 11 had stage IV disease: these patients are at greatest risk of malignant change and require close surveillance. The pattern of dysplasia observed in the upper gastrointestinal tract resembled the pattern of mucosal exposure to bile.

Adenoma↗

Cancer and the Peutz-Jeghers syndrome.

Among 72 patients with the Peutz-Jeghers syndrome malignant tumours have developed in 16 (22%) of whom all but one have died. There were nine gastrointestinal and seven nongastrointestinal tumours. The relative risks of death from gastrointestinal cancer and all cancers were 13 (95% CI 2.7-38.1) and 9 (95% CI 4.2-17.3) respectively. The chance of dying of cancer by the age of 57 was 48%. There is evidence for a hamartoma/carcinoma sequence in the Peutz-Jeghers syndrome, suggesting that the gene locus involved is relevant to the development of malignancy in general.

Adult↗

Upper intestinal surveillance in familial adenomatous polyposis.

Our understanding of the natural history of upper gastrointestinal (GI) involvement in familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) is still evolving, although we know that the main cause of death after colectomy in FAP is upper GI malignancy, affecting 5% of patients. The aim of duodenal surveillance is to target high risk individuals and identify cancers early. We have screened 200 patients prospectively and have observed that duodenal polyposis progresses slowly, but there are some young people who have severe disease who merit close observation. We pay particular attention to endoscopic technique and histological detail, and use a duodenal staging system. Patients are offered randomisation to studies of chemopreventive agents, and those with advanced disease are considered for surgery. Successful management is inhibited by our deficient knowledge of the natural history of upper gastrointestinal polyposis, and by our inability to identify high risk individuals with histological markers rather than because of any technological deficiencies in endoscopic equipment.

Adenomatous Polyposis Coli↗