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Biomedical subjects

T Masaoka

Publications and source records attributed to T Masaoka.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1999

Suicide risk among cancer patients: experience at one medical center in Japan, 1978-1994.

In order to identify the risks, methods and locations of suicide among Japanese cancer patients, we followed up 23,979 cancer patients aged 15 years and older, who were newly diagnosed at one medical center between 1978-94. Suicide risk was evaluated by comparing the observed number (O) with the expected number (E), which was calculated from the suicide mortality rate among Osaka residents. By the end of 1994, there were 48 suicide death among 109,374 person-years of follow-up. Suicide risk was significantly increased within the first five years following cancer diagnosis (male: O/E=1.62, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.03-2.43, female: O/E=2.13, 95% CI=1.22-3.47), and decreased to unity after five years had elapsed following the cancer diagnosis. Patients in their fifties (O/E=1.93, 95% CI=1.48-4.37), diagnosed between 1978-85 (O/E=1.93, 95% CI=1.19-2.95), having remote metastasis at their initial diagnosis (O/E=4.66, 95% CI=2.12-8.84), the site being in the female genital organs (O/E=3.58, 95% CI=1.54-7.06) or in the male genital organs (O/E= 5.86, 95% CI=1.58-15.05), had a significantly higher suicide risk within five years following cancer diagnosis. The highest suicide mortality was observed between the third and fifth months after cancer diagnosis (O/E=4.35, 95% CI=1.87-8.58); most of these suicides (7/8) occurred soon after discharge from hospital. Among the 39 patients who committed suicide within five years after their diagnosis, the most common method among those who took their lives while in hospital was by jumping to their death (10/16), and that among those who committed suicide in other locations was by hanging (14/23). These findings indicate that Japanese patients with cancer run the highest risk of suicide soon after having been discharged from hospital. Clinicians should assess cancer patients' psychological distress and potential risk of suicide before approving discharge from hospital.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Smooth muscle cell proliferation in the ductus arteriosus and the descending aorta, and effects of enalapril on SMC proliferation in perinatal rats.

This study was carried out to determine the proliferation profile of the smooth muscle cells (SMC) in the media of the ductus arteriosus (DA) and the descending aorta (Ao), and to examine the effects of the angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor enalapril on the proliferation of these cells in perinatal rats. The proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) index of the DA peaked in 19-day-old fetuses at 75%, and the index significantly declined in 20-day-old fetuses. The PCNA index of the Ao showed a similar profile until pups reached 1 day of age; however, the index of the Ao then increased in 3-day-old pups. The PCNA indices of the DA and Ao decreased significantly after maternal oral treatment with enalapril (10 mg/kg for 7 days), with a more marked decline in the DA than in the Ao. The PCNA indices of these vessels in 20-day-old fetuses were not altered by maternal treatment with enalapril. These results indicate that the SMC proliferation rate in the DA was similar to that in the Ao until pups reached the age of 1 day, and that the inhibitory effect of enalapril on the SMC proliferation was age-dependent and more prominent in the DA than in the Ao.

Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors↗
PubMed1999

Expression of vascular endothelial growth factor in N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl)nitrosamine-induced rat bladder carcinogenesis.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) are proteins implicated in tumor-associated microvascular angiogenesis. Expressions of VEGF and bFGF in various stages of chemical-induced rat bladder carcinogenesis were immunohistochemically investigated. Thirty-two male 6-week-old Wistar rats were given drinking water containing 0.05% N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl)nitrosamine (BBN) for 20 weeks. VEGF and bFGF were not detected in the normal bladder epithelium. In simple hyperplasia, intensive expression of VEGF was observed in a few epithelial cells, and the expression of epithelial VEGF became more pronounced in papillary or nodular (PN) hyperplasia and papilloma. In carcinoma, heterogeneous expression of VEGF was observed in focal tumor cells, intensely expressed in the invading tumor cells. Ultrastructurally, carcinoma cells showed VEGF immunoreactivity in the cytoplasmic matrix and some rough endoplasmic reticulum, and VEGF-positive and -negative carcinoma cells were also clearly defined. High levels of VEGF mRNA were observed in the carcinoma. However, bFGF was not detected in the epithelium throughout the carcinogenesis. Increased microvessel counts appeared at simple hyperplasia and became more pronounced in PN hyperplasia, papilloma, and carcinoma (F-test; P < 0.05). In the carcinoma, the microvessel counts of the VEGF-expressing tumor areas were significantly higher than that of the non-VEGF-expressing tumor areas (U-test; P < 0.05). The present study suggests that upregulation of epithelial VEGF may begin at a quite early stage in BBN-induced rat bladder carcinogenesis, but bFGF may not be involved.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

[New quinolone versus vancomycin/tobramycin for intestinal sterilization in patients who undergo allogeneic bone marrow transplantation].

The frequency of infection in recipients of allogeneic bone marrow transplants (BMT) who received oral new quinolones (NQ) was compared with that in BMT recipients who were given oral vancomycin/tobramycin (V/T). Between 1984 and 1997, our hospital treated 79 patients with V/T and 90 patients with NQ. Number of febrile days, duration of intravenous antibiotics administration, and frequency of documented infections were statistically the same for both groups. However, the frequency of grampositive bacterial infections, especially staphylococcal infections, was slightly higher in patients receiving NQ than in patients receiving V/T (p = 0.12). Of the patients who received NQ, those who underwent unrelated donor BMT procedures were generally febrile for slightly longer periods than those who underwent related donor BMT procedures (p = 0.10). These results suggest that oral NQ is as effective as oral V/T for the prevention of serious gramnegative bacterial infections in patients who undergo BMTs.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1999

Use of PCR serum in diagnosing and monitoring cytomegalovirus reactivation in bone marrow transplant recipients.

We previously reported that the use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in detecting cytomegalovirus (CMV) DNA in serum (sPCR) enables the detection of CMV viremia, which has not been possible with other methods. In this study, the clinical usefulness of sPCR was investigated by comparison with the results of three other diagnostic methods, i.e., antigenemia assay (AG), shell vial culture test (shell vial), and complement-fixing (CF) antibody titer. The present study included 26 patients with hematological diseases who had undergone allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT). A total of 347 samples were collected, and the results of the sPCR and AG methods were in agreement in 91.1% of the samples. When a subject was positive in both the sPCR and AG tests, and the other two tests (shell vial and CF) were also positive, CMV reactivation was surmised as definite. When only the result of the shell vial test or the CF test was positive, these results were taken as false-positives. The time at which the samples became positive in each of these four tests was 7.5 weeks post-BMT for sPCR, 7.0 weeks post-BMT for the AG test, 7.4 weeks post-BMT for the shell vial test, and 9.7 weeks post-BMT for the CF test. Thus, it was found that samples became positive at almost the same time for the sPCR, AG, and shell vial tests. Interstitial pneumonitis (IP) due to CMV developed in 3 subjects. These cases were positive in the sPCR, AG, and shell vial tests prior to the manifestation of symptoms of IP. The CF test did not become positive until after the onset of the disease. As the IP due to CMV was controlled with treatment, the sPCR and AG tests became negative. With the shell vial and CF tests, on the other hand, the test results continued to be positive even after the IP was cured. These findings demonstrate that the sPCR test method--like the AG test--yields few false-positive results. Therefore, the sPCR method is useful in early diagnosis of reactivation of CMV and for evaluation of the efficacy of therapy administered for IP. In addition, sPCR can be performed simultaneously on a large number of samples, and the evaluation of the test results is simple. We conclude that the sPCR test may be superior to the three other diagnostic methods for evaluation of serum samples from multiple institutions.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

A prospective randomized trial of KRN8602 and cytosine arabinoside vs. daunorubicin and cytosine arabinoside in adult patients with newly diagnosed acute myelogenous leukemia. The KRN8602 Leukemia Study Group.

A prospective randomized study was conducted to compare the efficacy and toxicity of two anthracyclines for the treatment of patients with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). Fifty-eight patients were randomized and received induction therapy consisting of cytosine arabinoside (AraC) 100 mg/m2/day for 7 days combined with either KRN8602 (3'-deamino-3'-morpholino-13-deoxo-10-hydroxycarminomycin hydrochloride [KRN]) 15 mg/m2/day for 5 days (KRN/AraC group) or daunorubicin (DNR) 40 mg/m2/day for 3 days (DNR/AraC group). Complete remission rate was 78.6% (22/28) in the KRN/AraC group and 73.1% (19/26) in the DNR/AraC group. There was a higher incidence of nausea/vomiting and anorexia observed in the KRN/AraC group compared to the DNR/AraC group, while the incidence of other adverse effects (stomatitis, diarrhea, and infectious complications) were similar between both groups. No electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormalities were observed after treatment in the KRN/AraC group, while in the DNR/AraC group, one patient showed ECG abnormality and three patients exhibited either arrhythmia, heart failure, or tachycardia. Mental disorder was reported in two cases in the KRN/AraC group. These findings suggest that KRN/AraC is similar in effectiveness to DNA/AraC but more toxic in central nervous system and gastrointestinal symptoms and less toxic regarding cardiac function in patients with previously untreated AML.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

[Preservation, thawing and infusion of hematopoietic stem cells].

Peripheral blood stem cells can be stored by the following 3 methods: liquid storage, non-rate controlled freezing and rate controlled freezing. Methods of processing of these cells including thawing, ex vivo purging and infusion are described in detail.

Cryopreservation↗
PubMed1999

[Clinical effect of idarubicin on malignant lymphoma].

The anti-tumor efficacy and safety of idarubicin (IDR) were investigated among patients in whom the standard therapy for malignant lymphoma had failed or who had suffered a recurrence. IDR was administered at a dose of 12 mg/m2 or 15 mg/m2 by a single i.v. bolus, and this dosage regimen was repeated every 3 weeks. Among total of 21 evaluable patients, there were 3 CRs and 1 PR, for an overall response rate of 19.0% (4/21). All patients who attained CR were cases which had recurred after receiving combination chemotherapy including doxorubicin. Adverse reactions were bone marrow suppression, including leucopenia (90.5%), neutropenia (95.2%), and thrombocytopenia (47.6%); gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea/vomiting (42.9%) and stomatitis (9.5%); alopecia (23.8%) and fever (19.0%). These results indicate that IDR is effective against refractory malignant lymphoma.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

[Chronic myelogenous leukemia and blood stem cell transplantation].

Blood stem cell transplantation has become an important treatment modality for the complete cure of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). Favorable factors for the success of transplants are: (1) young patients, (2) treatment within 1 year of diagnosis, (3) CML in the chronic phase, (4) an allogeneic transplant from a matched sibling (BMT). Interferon treatment may be another effective therapy, however, it is not yet confirmed whether it can produce a complete cure or not. The most serious problem with BMT is considered to be early death. Informed consent and selection of treatment by the patient is very important.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Asian Pacific cooperative study of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation.

The first cooperative study of the Asian Pacific bone marrow transplantation group included 75 patients with early leukemia who received human leukocyte antigen-matched sibling bone marrow transplants and were randomized into granulocyte colony-stimulating factor and control groups. The selected patients were registered from 10 centers in six countries and areas within Asia (Beijing, Taipei, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, and Malaysia). The incidence of grades II-IV acute graft-vs.-host disease was 22.2%, and the 2-year survival rate was 62.7%. The period of protective isolation (27.1-66.7 days), period of hospitalization (38.6-130.5 days), and medical costs for 4 months (US $10,300-US $80,803) varied considerably. Good cooperation, i.e., low rate of protocol violation or rapid and precise presentation of case reports, was obtained.

Bone Marrow Transplantation↗
PubMed1998

Pregnancy among long-term survivors of acute leukemia. A second nationwide survey.

A second nationwide survey was conducted to determine the outcome of pregnancy in long-term survivors of acute leukemia and to clarify the influence of treatment on the offspring of long-term survivors. In July 1996, 336 survey responses were received from the 498 Japanese institutions surveyed. A total of 89 cases (39 spouses of male patients and 50 female patients) who had babies during their first remission were analyzed, including 43 patients from the first survey in 1991. Median age at the birth of first baby was 30.7 years for male patients and 28.6 years for female patients. A total of 109 of the 117 pregnancies resulted in live births and eight resulted in abortions. A total of 58 cases had single children and 23 cases had two or more, generally from separate pregnancies, but including two pairs of twins. The infant was male in 59 cases, female in 37 and gender was not reported in 13 cases. Ages of children ranged from 2 months to 20 years at the time of this study and all children were in good health. There were two minor anomalies, both of which were surgically corrected. Of the 81 parents bearing live infants, 75 remained in complete remission. Five fathers died (four of relapse and one of another disease). In conclusion, there was no apparent increase in pregnancy complications or congenital anomalies in the children of long-term survivors with acute leukemia.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1998

Tc-99m MIBI localization in bone marrow: a marker of bone marrow malignancy.

To determine the potential of Tc-99m MIBI for detecting bone marrow malignancy, MIBI imaging of the femur was evaluated. There was no detectable MIBI activity in 125 of 141 (89%) control patients. Clearly demonstrated focal or tubular MIBI activity indicating intramedullary accumulation was demonstrated in 44 of 45 (98%) patients with proven marrow malignancy: 9 patients with multiple myeloma, 10 patients with malignant lymphoma, 11 patients with acute leukemia, 1 patient with chronic leukemia, and 14 patients with skeletal metastases. No abnormal MIBI activity was observed in the femur in 19 of 22 (86%) patients who had no evidence of malignant involvement in the femoral marrow, in 3 patients with solitary plasmacytomas of the spine, sternum or iliac bone, or in 16 patients with malignant lymphoma. In 12 of 24 patients with acute leukemia in complete remission, no abnormal MIBI accumulation was shown in the femur, but in 12 patients, abnormal accumulation indicating residual leukemic activity was demonstrated. MIBI imaging correlated extremely well with MRI studies; 26 of 28 patients with focal or tubular increased MIBI activity in the femur showed decreased signal on T1-weighted images and a high signal on short inversion recovery images, and 11 patients with no abnormal activity showed a high signal on T1 images. MIBI imaging of the femoral bone marrow may be a new modality for detecting marrow malignancy.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

[Background and prognostic factors of fungemia in patients with hematological disease].

Sixty-two episodes of fungemia which occurred in patients with hematological disorders between 1976 and 1996 in our hospital were analyzed with respect to background and prognostic factors. Forty-four of the patients were male and 18 were female. The underlying diseases were acute leukemia in 36 cases, chronic myelogenous leukemia in 9, malignant lymphoma in 9 and others in 8 cases. Trichosporon beigelii and Candida tropicalis were the most frequently isolated fungal pathogens. The prevalence of C. crusei increased while that of C. albicans decreased after 1988. Fuungemia frequently occurred in patients with following factors: 1) advanced disease, such as relapse of acute leukemia or malignant lymphoma or blast crisis of chronic myelogenous leukemia; 2) neutrophil count less than 100/microliter; 3) administration of antibiotics; 4) focal infection, gastrointestinal hemorrhage or urinary catheterization; and 5) isolation of causative organisms from surveillance cultures obtained just before the onset of fungemia. The mortality rate of patients with fungemia was 74%. Absence of hypotension, increased neutrophil count for a week after the onset of fungemia, and the intravenous administration of Amphotericin B (AMPH) were good prognostic factors. Fungemia frequently occurred in patients with advanced disease and had a very poor prognosis. These results emphasized the importance of isolation of fungus from surveillance cultures, early initiation of AMPH administration, and attempts to increase neutrophil counts with G-CSF and other measures for improving the prognosis of fungemia in patients with hematological disorders.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Increased ductal responsiveness to PGE2 after maternal treatment with aspirin and ibuprofen.

This work was conducted to determine whether aspirin and ibuprofen, when administered prenatally may potentiate a reopening of the neonatal ductus arteriosus (DA) induced by PGE2 after postnatal closure. In the first experiment, a subcutaneous injection of PGE2 (4 microgram(s)) was administered to newborn rats 3 hr after a Cesarean delivery from pregnant females which had been orally given 100 or 300 mg/kg/day of aspirin and 10 or 30 mg/kg/day of ibuprofen on days 18, 19 and 20 of gestation. The ratio of the DA to the pulmonary artery (PA) was determined at intervals after the injection. The DA/PA ratio was significantly higher in newborn rats from mothers who were transplacentally administered these agents than the control. We also examined the hypothesis that maternal treatment with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID), such as aspirin and ibuprofen, inhibits the catabolism of PGE2 and that the increased reopening of the DA was partly due to this inhibition. 15-hydroxy prostaglandin dehydrogenase (15-PGDH) in neonatal lungs, the key enzyme involved in catalyzing PGE2 to convert it to its inactive metabolite 15-keto-PGE2, was not affected by maternal treatment with aspirin and ibuprofen. These results suggest that the increased ductal responsiveness to PGE2 in newborn rats was a common response after maternal NSAID treatment, but the catabolism of PGE2 in the lungs did not always contribute to this response.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1998

Enhancement of neonatal rat ductal responsiveness to prostaglandin E2 after maternal treatment with enalapril or captopril.

This work was conducted to determine whether the angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) (enalapril and captopril) administered to mother rats prenatally can potentiate a re-opening of the neonatal ductus arteriosus (DA) induced by prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) after postnatal closure. A subcutaneous injection of PGE2 (4 micrograms) was administered to newborn rats 3 hr after a Cesarean delivery from females which had been orally given 0.1, 1 or 10 mg/kg/day of enalapril or 15 or 150 mg/kg/day of captopril from day 14 to day 20 of gestation. The ratio of the DA to the pulmonary artery (PA) was determined at intervals after the injection. The DA/PA ratio was significantly higher in the newborn rats of mothers who were transplacentally administered these agents compared to the controls, except at the low dose (0.1 mg/kg) group of enalapril. We found that the level in the neonatal lungs of 15-hydroxy prostaglandin dehydrogenase, a key enzyme that catalyzes PGE2 to convert it to its inactive metabolite 15-keto-PGE2, was not affected after maternal treatment with enalapril or captopril. These results indicate that the increased ductal responsiveness to PGE2 in newborn rats was a common response after maternal ACEI treatment, but the catabolism of PGE2 in the lungs did not contribute to this response.

Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors↗
PubMed1998

Effect of combined fenthion and cimetidine use in rats on lethality, blood cholinesterase activities, and serum cholinesterase isoenzymes.

H2-receptor antagonists inhibit cholinesterase (ChE) activity. We examined perturbations in ChE isoenzyme patterns and ChE activities of rats from the combined effects of fenthion (FEN) and cimetidine (CIM). Sixty-four female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 8 groups. Four rat groups were given FEN or gum arabic solution and each group divided into 2 small groups according to the CIM or gum arabic administration. FEN was administered po at 12.3 mg/kg (1/20 LD50) or 24.5 mg/kg (1/10 LD50) for 14 days or 49 mg/kg (1/5 LD50) every 4 days. CIM was given po at 1,500 mg/kg from days 7 to 13. Samples were collected 3 h after CIM administration on days 8 and 13. CIM did not influence ChE isoenzyme patterns or ChE activity. FEN inhibited both the ChE isoenzyme patterns and ChE activities without producing clinical signs. Although 1 rat in the 12.5 mg FEN/kg + CIM group died on day 10, all rats in other FEN (24.5 mg/kg or 49 mg/kg) + CIM groups died on days 8-10. Differences in suppression of ChE isoenzyme patterns were detectable between the FEN-dosed and FEN + CIM-dosed groups. There were no differences in ChE activities between the FEN-dosed and FEN + CIM-dosed groups. The i.p. administration of 500 mg CIM/kg (LD50) did not suppress ChE activities.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

[Remarkable increase of CD8+ CD11a+ and CD8+ CD57- T cells in patients with post-transfusion graft-versus-host disease].

We analyzed the distribution of two T cell subsets, CD8+ CD11a+ (CD8+ cytotoxic effector population) and CD8+ CD57- cells, in the peripheral lymphocytes of 3 post-operative patients with post-transfusion graft-versus-host disease (PT-GVHD) and 5 post-operative patients without PT-GVHD. The percentage of CD8+ CD11a+ cells in the PT-GVHD-negative control was 19 +/- 4%, and in the 3 patients with PT-GVHD, 69%, 66%, and 59%, respectively. The percentage of CD8+ CD57- cells in the PT-GVHD-negative control was 19 +/- 6%, and in the 3 PT-GVHD patients, 59%, 58%, and 55%, respectively. Significantly higher proportions of the two T cell subsets were consistently observed in the patients with PT-GVHD than in the PT-GVHD-negative control. These results suggest that the analysis of CD8+ T cell subsets may be useful for the simple and rapid laboratory diagnosis of PT-GVHD.

Acute Disease↗