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Biomedical subjects

A Tsuchiya

Publications and source records attributed to A Tsuchiya.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

[The evaluation of pamidronate therapy for bone metastases from breast cancer].

We devised a method to evaluate comprehensively the therapy to alleviate the pain of bone metastases from breast cancer according to the three items of bone pain and effects of analgesia and radiology. In 12 patients, we evaluated the therapeutic effect of pamidronate as an alleviative treatment for the pain of bone metastases from breast cancer. Bone pain was evaluated on a 6-grade scale, as was use of analgesics. Improvement in bone pain, in addition to improvement in use of analgesia, was evaluated as markedly improved, improved, unchanged, aggravated, no pain or undeterminable. Radiological improvement in bone lesions was evaluated as markedly improved, improved, unchanged, aggravated or undeterminable. An overall evaluation was made by combining the above two. In this evaluation method, pamidronate therapy resulted in an evaluation of markedly improved in 2 patients, improved in 5, unchanged in 4 and aggravated in 1, demonstrating that the therapy was very useful as an alleviative treatment for the pain of bone metastases from breast cancer. The evaluation method, in which pain, a subjective complaint, is combined with use of analgesics, an objective factor, and to which radiological evaluation is added for further objectively, may in the future to be applicable for evaluation of various alleviative treatments of pain of bone metastases.

Adult↗

[A randomized long-term comparative study of clinical efficacy of alpha 1-blocker with or without antiandrogen therapy for benign prostatic hyperplasia: focusing on improvement of I-PSS].

This study was conducted to examine the efficacy of administration of tamsulosin hydrochloride alone or in combination with chlormadinone acetate (CMA) against lower urinary tract symptoms for a period of 52 weeks in 33 patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia. The patients were randomly allocated into a group administered tamsulosin alone and a group administered tamsulosin in combination with CMA. Based on the assessment of the total I-PSS (International Prostate Symptom Score), significant symptomatic improvement was noted 4 weeks after the commencement of drug administration in the tamsulosin + CMA group, whereas no significant improvement was observed in the tamsulosin group. Both irritative and obstructive bladder symptoms improved significantly at any time of assessment after 4 weeks of drug administration in the tamsulosin + CMA group; however, significant improvement was noted only at week 16 and week 52 for irritative symptoms and at week 16 for obstructive symptoms in the tamsulosin group. In particular, obstructive symptoms showed significant improvement at week 4 in the tamsulosin + CMA group, as compared with that in the tamsulosin group. The average value of peak urinary flow rate was significantly increased in the tamsulosin + CMA group (10.4 ml/s to 15.6 ml/s) as compared with that in the tamsulosin group (8.5 ml/s to 10.5 ml/s). These findings indicate that combined administration of tamsulosin and CMA resulted in early improvement of lower urinary tract symptoms in these patients. Long-term combined administration of tamsulosin and CMA thus appears to be a promising treatment strategy for the improvement of obstructive symptoms and peak urinary flow rate, particularly, 16 weeks onward after administration in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia.

Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists↗

Prognostic Relevance of Tn Expression in Breast Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Abnormal glycosylation patterns have been recognized as a featureof carcinomaassociated mucins. The expression of the Tn antigen in breast cancer tissue was investigated to assess its prognostic relevance. METHODS: Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded materials from 219 patients with breast cancer were used. Immunohistochemical staining of the Tn antigen was retrospectively investigated and a lesion staining 10% or more was considered positive RESULTS: Tn antigen expression was present in 99 (45%) of 219 lesions. There were no correlations between Tn antigen expression and mean patient age, nodal status, estrogen receptor status, or menopausal status, but there was a slightly significant association between Tn and tumor size. Patients negative for the Tn antigen had a significantly better survival rate than those who were positive. Multivariate analysis also indicated that Tn expression correlated significantly with overall survival in addition to nodal status and tumor size. CONCLUSION: Tn expression was a significant prognostic factor in breast cancer, but the significance was lost on multivariate analysis. The biological implication of Tn expression in breast cancer needs further investigation.

Journal Article↗

Breast Cancer in Two Patients with Poland's Syndrome.

Poland fs syndrome is characterized by a congenital defect of the pectoralis major associated with various types of anomalies of the ipsilateral upper extremity. Furthermore, there have been reports of Poland fs syndrome associated with malignancies such as leukemia, malignant lymphoma, and leiomyosarcoma. We describe two cases of Poland fs syndrome associated with breast cancer. The first patient developed right breast cancer associated with ipsilateral breast hypoplasia, defects of the pectoralis major and minor, and syndactyly. She underwent mastectomy and dissection of the axillary nodes. The second patient had left breast cancer associated with ipsilateral breast hypoplasia, defects of the pectoralis major and minor, and syndactyly. She underwent breast-conserving surgery and dissection of the axillary nodes without irradiation of the breast. Both patients are currently alive and free of disease. Although previously there has been no evidence that links Poland fs syndrome and breast cancer, elucidating the molecularmechanism that causes Poland fs syndrome may further clarify the relationship between Poland fs syndrome and malignancies.

Journal Article↗

A Case of Breast Cancer Metastatic to the Head of the Pancrea.

A case of breast cancer that metastasized to the head of the pancreas 6 yearsand 8 months after mastectomy is reported. The pancreas head metastasis was associated with general fatigue and obstructive jaundice. The serum levels of CEA, CA15-3 and NCC-ST-439, tumor markers of breast cancer, were within normal limits, but CA15-3 was immunohistochemically demonstrated in the resected metastatic lesion, in a manner similar to lobular carcinoma of the breast.

Journal Article↗

Prognostic impact of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p27kip1 in node-positive breast cancer.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: p27kip1 (p27) plays an important role as a negative regulator of cell cycle-dependent kinase activity during progression of the cell cycle. The most important prognosticator of breast cancer is nodal status, and the aim of this study was to determine the prognostic implication of p27 in breast cancer patients with lymph node metastases. METHODS: Immunohistochemical staining for p27 was performed on tissues from 102 patients with node-positive breast cancer. RESULTS: A nuclear staining over 50% was defined as high expression. High expression of p27 was shown in 59 patients (57.8%). A significant correlation was found between high p27 and positive estrogen receptor status, but there was no correlation between p27 staining and age, menopausal status, nodal status, or tumor size. Low expression of p27 was significantly associated with shorter survival. A multivariate analysis also showed that the only independent variable was p27. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicated that low expression of p27 was an independent factor associated with poor prognosis. Therefore, p27 can be an important tool in making therapeutic decisions.

Adult↗

Endosalpingiosis of nonmetastatic lymph nodes along the stomach in a patient with early gastric cancer: report of a case.

We report herein the case of a 32-year-old woman who underwent distal gastrectomy with D2 lymph node dissection for gastric cancer. Microscopic examination of the resected specimen revealed signet-ring cell carcinoma of the stomach with lymph node metastases, and endosalpingiosis in the normal lymph nodes. There was no evidence of malignancy in the peritoneal cavity. To our knowledge, no other case of endosalpingiosis in the lymph nodes along the stomach has ever been reported. The possible significance of endosalpingiosis is discussed following this case report.

Adult↗

Malignant rhabdoid tumor of the colon: report of a case.

A malignant rhabdoid tumor of the colon is very rare and only three cases have been previously described. A 76-year-old man was admitted to the hospital complaining of epigastralgia. An elastic mass was palpable in the right upper abdomen. A barium enema and endoscopic examination showed a giant gyrate tumor arising from the cecum. Abdominal ultrasonography and a computed tomography scan revealed the tumor to be located in the colon associated with multiple liver metastases and gallbladder stones. A right colectomy and cholecystectomy were thus performed. The tumor was histologically composed of sheets of large round and polygonal nuclei with vesicular chromatin, and abundant acidophilic cytoplasm, often containing hyalin-like inclusion. The cytoplasm was positive for vimentin and neuron-specific enolase, and hyaline globules of the rhabdoid tumor cells stained positive for cytokeratin in some cells. Transmission electron microscopy showed characteristic rhabdoid cells with an aggregation of intermediate filaments. A histologic diagnosis of malignant rhabdoid tumor of the colon was made. The tumor demonstrated several unusual findings for malignant rhabdoid tumors including diploidy by a flow cytometric analysis, and positive nuclear immunohistochemical staining for p53 protein and Ki-67 antigen. We report herein the third known case of a pure colonic rhabdoid tumor.

Aged↗

Age-related preferences and age weighting health benefits.

This paper deals with the relevance of age in the paradigm of quality adjusted life years (QALYs). The first section outlines two rationales for incorporating age weights into QALYs. One of them is based on efficiency concerns; and the other on equity concerns. Both of these are theoretical constructs. The main purpose of this paper is to examine the extent of published empirical support for such age weighting. The second section is a brief survey of nine empirical studies that elicited age-related preferences from the general public. Six of these quantified the strength of the preferences, and these are discussed in more detail in the third section. The analysis distinguishes three kinds of age-related preference: productivity ageism, utilitarian ageism and egalitarian ageism. The relationship between them and their relevance to the two different rationales for age weighting are then explored. It is concluded that, although there is strong prima facie evidence of public support for both types of age weighting, the empirical evidence to support any particular set of weights is at present weak.

Age Factors↗

Extragonadal germ cell tumor of the prostate associated with Klinefelter's syndrome.

PURPOSE: We report on a case of extragonadal germ cell tumor of the prostate associated with Klinefelter's syndrome. METHODS/RESULTS: The patient was a 33-year-old man. A transrectal prostate biopsy suggested combined germ cell tumor (yolk sac tumor + teratoma). Because there was no tumor except from the prostate, we considered this case to be a primary extragonadal germ cell tumor of the prostate. The prostate tumor responded to systemic chemotherapy with cisplatin, vinblastine and bleomycin and elevated lactate dehydrogenase and alpha-fetoprotein levels normalized. In addition to chemotherapy, the patient also underwent radiation therapy. CONCLUSION: The patient has survived for approximately 4 years since the diagnosis.

Adult↗

Clinical evaluation of serum tissue polypeptide specific antigen in patients with thyroid carcinoma.

There is no specific marker for diagnosis of thyroid cancer with the exception of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and calcitonin for medullary thyroid carcinoma. Tissue polypeptide antigen (TPA) is known to be a diagnostic marker of malignant neoplasms. TPA is also one of the tumor markers for thyroid cancer, but serum TPA shows poor specificity because of polyclonal antibody. Tissue polypeptide specific antigen (TPS) is detected by the monoclonal antibody M3, directed at 1 of the 35 epitopes in TPA. TPS appears in proliferative tumor cells. We examined 72 patients (32 thyroid carcinoma, 20 thyroid adenoma, 5 adenomatous goiter, and 15 diffuse goiter) and 24 healthy volunteers for serum TPS, TPA, and thyroglobulin (Tg). The TPS in thyroid carcinoma was significantly higher than in healthy controls and thyroid adenoma (p < 0.05). The mean value of TPS for all diseases except thyroid carcinoma was below the cutoff value (95 U/L). The TPS sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy for thyroid carcinoma was 37.5%, 100%, and 64.9% respectively. There were no significant differences in mean values of serum Tg and TPA between thyroid carcinomas and adenomas. Positive rates of tissue TPS expression in thyroid carcinomas and adenomas were 87.5% (7/8) and 14.3% (1/7), respectively. The positive rates for serum TPS and immunoreactive TPS in the tissue correlated significantly (p < 0.0001). It is concluded that TPS is a useful marker for diagnosis of thyroid carcinoma.

Adenocarcinoma, Follicular↗

Antineoplastic activity of 1,25(OH)2D3 and its analogue 22-oxacalcitriol against human anaplastic thyroid carcinoma cell lines in vitro.

Anaplastic carcinoma of thyroid is uncommon and is associated with a poor prognosis. an effective treatment of this carcinoma has not been found. We have examined the inhibition of promotion by 1, 25(OH)2D3 and its analogue without hypercalcemia, 22-oxacalcitriol (OCT) in the thyroid anaplastic carcinoma cell line. TTA-1, thyroid anaplastic carcinoma cell line, and TAC-1, thyroid anaplastic carcinoma cells. TPC-1,2,3,4, which are all papillary carcinoma of thyroid were used as control. Tumor growth was measured by MTT assay. 1,25(OH)2D3 additive cell growth was observed in diphasic pattern in 3/4 papillary carcinoma cell lines. OCT was more effective, showing dose-dependent inhibition of cell growth in anaplastic carcinoma cell lines, than that in papillary carcinoma cells. Conclusively, OCT might be useful for the inhibition of growth in anaplastic thyroid cancer.

Antineoplastic Agents↗

[CT findings of localized lymphatic spread of lung cancer: correlation with pathologic findings].

PURPOSE: The appearance of localized lymphatic spread of lung cancer as evaluated by computed tomography (CT) was correlated with the pathologic specimens in 178 patients. Clinical significance was also studied, with emphasis on nodal staging (N factor). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eighteen of 178 patients histopathologically demonstrated severe lymphatic spread of lung cancer along the bronchovascular bundles. CT findings of localized lymphatic spread of lung cancer and nodal staging of 18 patients were retrospectively reviewed and compared with 160 patients with no severe localized lymphatic spread of lung cancer. RESULTS: All 18 patients with severe lymphatic spread showed linear opacities extending from the tumor to the pulmonary hilum or peripheral pleura depending on the location of lung cancer. Ten of the 18 patients also showed regional thickening of bronchovascular bundles. The nodal staging of these 18 patients was more aggressive than that of other patients without severe lymphatic spread. CONCLUSION: If linear opacities and regional thickening of bronchovascular bundles extending from the tumor to pulmonary hilum or peripheral pleura are demonstrated on CT, severe lymphatic spread of lung cancer can be strongly suspected, and lung cancer staging should be done carefully.

Adult↗

Tamoxifen-induced apoptosis in breast cancer cells relates to down-regulation of bcl-2, but not bax and bcl-X(L), without alteration of p53 protein levels.

Tamoxifen (TAM) has been shown to induce apoptosis in breast cancer cells. bcl-2 family genes, which can interact with each other, have been shown to interfere with apoptosis after various stimuli. In this study, we investigated the effects of TAM on bcl-2 family gene products bcl-2, bax, and bcl-X(L) and on p53 levels in estrogen receptor-positive MCF-7 breast cancer cells. We found that TAM induced time- and concentration-dependent down-regulation of bcl-2 at both the mRNA and protein level. Down-regulation of bcl-2 correlated with TAM-induced apoptosis. In addition, estradiol treatment significantly increased bcl-2 protein expression and blocked the reduction of bcl-2 by TAM. TAM did not, however, affect bax, bcl-X(L), or p53 expression at the mRNA or protein level. Our results demonstrate that TAM can induce apoptosis in a time- and dose-dependent manner by modulating bcl-2 levels in breast cancer cells, and down-regulation of bcl-2 induced by TAM was not accompanied by alterations in p53 levels.

Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal↗

Results of screening for cancer in Japanese in the prime of life--an analysis of nationwide MHTS and human dry dock statistics--Preventive Medicine Committee of the Japan Hospital Association.

The nationwide survey of institutions with MHTS and human dry dock capabilities was analyzed and the following results have been obtained. 1) The relative rates of cancer detection by sex and organ were the stomach > colon > rectum > lung > kidney > esophagus for men and the stomach > breast > uterus > colon > thyroid > lung for women. 2) Gastric cancer takes first place in the ranking of rates of cancer detection in the population of both sexes, followed by colon cancer. The difference in rate of detection between these cancers has been narrowed from year to year. In 1997, the ratio of gastric to colon cancers was 10:7. 3) Early cancers account for 74% of gastric cancer patients and 75% of colon cancer patients. 4) Since gastric and colon cancers are detected early, the proportions of persons with gastrointestinal symptoms are as low as 28% for gastric cancer patients and 26% for colon cancer patients. 5) The relative rates of cancer detection by the degree obesity are normal > obese > lean person. The rates of gastric and colon cancers are 2- and 3-fold higher for obese persons than for lean persons, respectively. Gastric and colon cancers are detected with higher frequency in well-nourished persons. The present review of the national MHTS and human dry dock statistics has confirmed the efficacy of MHTS and human dry dock, especially in the examination for gastrointestinal cancers.

Adult↗

Desmoplastic response in biopsy specimens of early colorectal carcinoma is predictive of deep submucosal invasion.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of histopathology of biopsy specimens in predicting depth of infiltration in early colorectal carcinomas before treatment. METHODS: Early colorectal carcinomas that had been resected surgically or endoscopically between 1984 and 1995 were analyzed. Histopathologic findings, including differentiation of adenocarcinoma and a desmoplastic response were investigated. RESULTS: One hundred nine early colorectal carcinomas consisted of 73 lesions of carcinoma in situ, 13 submucosal carcinomas with minimum invasion, 8 lesions with moderate invasion, and 15 lesions with deep invasion. Of 73 carcinoma in situ lesions, 72 (approximately 99 percent) showed well-differentiated adenocarcinomas and no desmoplastic response. Twelve (92 percent) of 13 submucosal carcinomas with minimum invasion also revealed well-differentiated adenocarcinoma without a desmoplastic response. Sixty-three percent (5/8) of lesions with moderate invasion revealed well-differentiated adenocarcinoma. None of the lesions had a desmoplastic response. Among lesions with deep invasion, 73 percent (11/15) demonstrated moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma, and 11 lesions had a prominent desmoplastic response (73 percent; P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that if histopathologic findings of biopsy specimens taken from them before treatment demonstrated adenocarcinoma associated with a desmoplastic response, the lesions had at least deep invasion carcinomas. These lesions should be resected surgically. Submucosal carcinomas with minimum invasion, which have no desmoplastic response, could be treated endoscopically.

Adenocarcinoma↗