It is of great importance to identify new objective markers significant for the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of human cancers. Cytometric assessment of the DNA content has been shown to be one parameter which correlates excellently with the clinical course of patients with solid cancers of the breast, prostate, and thyroid. However, additional specific marker polypeptides are needed in order to further improve the diagnostic and prognostic sensitivity. Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-DE) is a unique tool in this field of cancer research, but serious problems concerning intersample variations in the 2-DE pattern must be solved because quantitative variations of potential marker polypeptides are expected to occur at low levels. In this study we examined a modified preparation method for tumor tissues, focusing on the relation between histopathological properties and 2-DE gel quality. We selected a group of human lung cancers sharing similar prognosis; nevertheless, the 2-DE patterns showed significant intersample but low intrasample variations. It is concluded that histopathological features, such as a local homogeneity, and the amounts of connective tissue and serum proteins are critical factors for the successful preparation and high quality of 2-DE-gels.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Thyroid carcinoma after radioactive iodine therapy for Graves' disease.

Although the causal relation between radioactive iodine therapy (RIT) for Graves' disease and the subsequent occurrence of thyroid carcinoma is not definite, surgeons may be faced with the treatment of such patients. We studied the clinicopathologic features of patients with thyroid carcinoma following RIT for Graves' disease. From January 1983 to December 1991, 11 patients with thyroid carcinoma occurring 1 year or more after RIT for Graves' disease underwent surgery at Ito Hospital. These 11 patients accounted for 0.51% of 2146 surgical cases of thyroid carcinoma and 0.17% of 6419 RIT cases of Graves' disease during the period. They were all women, and their mean ages at RIT and surgery were 44.3 and 51.4 years, respectively. The administered dose of RI was 222.1 MBq and the absorbed dose 45.3 Gy on average. Total thyroidectomy was performed in two patients, subtotal thyroidectomy in three, and lobectomy in six. Bilateral modified neck dissection (MND) was added in two patients, and ipsilateral MND in seven. Histology revealed 10 papillary and 1 follicular carcinoma. The mean diameter of the tumor was 18.5 mm. Intraglandular dissemination of the tumor was noted in only one case and solid growth pattern in two. Nodal metastasis was disclosed in six cases, but in five of them only one node was involved. The present study indicated that thyroid carcinoma occurring after RIT for Graves' disease is not an aggressive variety, and thyroid lobectomy with ipsilateral MND would be sufficient as surgical treatment for such patients.

Adenocarcinoma, Follicular↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Staining for dipeptidyl aminopeptidase IV activity in nodular thyroid diseases.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effectiveness of staining for dipeptidyl aminopeptidase IV (DAP IV) activity in thyroid nodular diseases. STUDY DESIGN: Imprint smears were made in 76 cases of papillary carcinoma, 10 of follicular carcinoma, 32 of follicular adenoma and 48 of adenomatous goiter after surgery, and staining for DAP IV activity was performed in all cases. RESULTS: All papillary carcinomas stained positively, and most adenomatous goiter cases were negative. Follicular carcinoma and follicular adenoma cases exhibited various degrees of positivity, though the former tended to be stained more than the latter. Of the total 166 cases of thyroid nodules, 53 showed negative staining; of those 53, all except 1 were benign. Follicular carcinoma cases that had vascular invasion tended to show a high DAP IV staining pattern, but no statistically significant difference between it and follicular carcinoma that did not show vascular invasion was found. CONCLUSION: DAP IV activity staining might reveal malignant potential and could have some value in the preoperative diagnosis between thyroid nodular diseases. The DAP IV method is a reliable indicator of benign disease if negative results are obtained.

Adenoma↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Presence of Philadelphia (Ph) chromosome-negative cells in Ph-positive chronic myelogenous leukemia.

Six cases of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) with coexistence of cells with a Philadelphia (Ph) translocation and a normal karyotype are described. Molecular analyses were performed in 3 of the 6 cases at two phases with different cytogenetic findings. Among the 6 cases, 4 cases were late appearance of a Ph chromosome. Two of the 3 patients analyzed had major breakpoint cluster region (Mbcr) rearrangements; aberrant Mbcr fragments were observed whether the cells had a Ph translocation or not. The remaining one did not show any rearrangements within the Mbcr DNA sequences.

Adult↗