Annals of Oncology 2006 17(1):1; doi:10.1093/annonc/mdj116
© 2005 European Society for Medical Oncology
in this issue
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Thyroid hormone receptors and breast cancer cell proliferation
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Data indicate that thyroid status affects tumor formation, growth
and metastasis in experimental animals and humans, but the relationship
between thyroid status and the pathogenesis of human breast
cancer is not understood. Indeed only a few reports have described
the presence of thyroid hormone receptors in breast tumors and
breast cancer cell lines. In this issue, Conde et al present
the results of a study that aimed to determine the protein expression
pattern of thyroid hormone receptors in different human breast
pathologies and to evaluate their possible relationship with
cellular proliferation. They evaluated the presence of thyroid
hormone receptors, by immunohistochemistry and Western-blot
analysis, in 84 breast samples that included 12 cases of benign
proliferative diseases, 20 carcinomas in situ and 52 infiltrative
carcinomas. The study reveals substantial changes in the expression
profile of thyroid hormone receptors suggesting a possible deregulation
that could trigger the breast cancer development.
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Gene expression profile of primary Hodgkin and Reed–Sternberg cells
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The characteristic morphologic feature of Hodgkin's lymphoma
is the cellular composition of the tumor tissue consisting of
a small number (approximately 0.1% to 1%) of neoplastic Hodgkin
and Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells. A number of reports have analyzed
the gene expression profile of cell lines derived from HRS,
but as outgrowth of such cell line from Hodgkin's lymphoma patient
tissues is rare, the few cell lines available may not fully
represent the clinical and pathologic features of this disease.
In this issue, Karube et al. report the use of laser-capture
microscopy, linear RNA amplification and cDNA microarray to
analyze the gene expression of primary HRS cells of representative
subtypes of Hodgkin's lymphoma. These authors report that HRS
cells tend to express mainly Th2 T cell-associated molecules
rather than those of Th1, and that the interleukin-11 receptor
C, a previously unknown HRS cell-specific gene, was additionally
detected.
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Recombinant human angiostatin plus paclitaxel and carboplatin for advanced NSCLC
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Angiostatin, a 38-kDa proteolytic fragment of plasminogen, is
a naturally occurring potent inhibitor of angiogenesis, tumor
growth and metastasis. Recombinant human angiostatin (rhAngiostatin)
was developed as a rational therapeutic agent for the treatment
of cancer. In vitro, rhAngiostatin inhibits endothelial cell
proliferation and migration in response to basic fibroblast
growth factor (bFGF) and bFGF-induced angiogenesis. In this
issue, Kurup et al. report the results of a randomized, open-label,
phase II study of two doses of subcutaneous rhAngiostatin administered,
in combination with paclitaxel and carboplatin, to patients
with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). These authors
report that in these patients the overall response rate was
39.1%, with 39.1% stable disease, and 21.7% progressive disease.
The median time to progression was 144 days, and 1-year survival
was 45.8%.
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Quote
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"There are, in truth, no specialties in medicine, since to know
fully many of the most important diseases a man must be familiar
with their manifestations in many organs."
Sir William Osler, Regius Professor of Medicine at Oxford University, 1905–1919, consider the issue of specialties in The Army Surgeon.
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