Is nasopharyngeal cancer really a "Cantonese cancer"? / 癌症

Nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) is endemic in Southern China, with Guandong province and Hong Kong reporting some of the highest incidences in the world. The journal Science has called it a "Cantonese cancer". We propose that in fact NPC is a cancer that originated in the Bai Yue ("proto Tai Kadai" or "proto Austronesian" or "proto Zhuang") peoples and was transmitted to the Han Chinese in southern China through intermarriage. However, the work by John Ho raised the profile of NPC, and because of the high incidence of NPC in Hong Kong and Guangzhou, NPC became known as a Cantonese cancer. We searched historical articles, articles cited in PubMed, Google, monographs, books and Internet articles relating to genetics of the peoples with high populations of NPC. The migration history of these various peoples was extensively researched, and where possible, their genetic fingerprint identified to corroborate with historical accounts. Genetic and anthropological evidence suggest there are a lot of similarities between the Bai Yue and the aboriginal peoples of Borneo and Northeast India; between Inuit of Greenland, Austronesian Mayalo Polynesians of Southeast Asia and Polynesians of Oceania, suggesting some common ancestry. Genetic studies also suggest the present Cantonese, Minnans and Hakkas are probably an admixture of northern Han and southern Bai Yue. All these populations have a high incidence of NPC. Very early contact between southern Chinese and peoples of East Africa and Arabia can also account for the intermediate incidence of NPC in these regions.

Three Cases of Lymphoepithelial Carcinoma / 대한이비인후과학회지

Lymphoepithelial carcinoma was first reported in 1962. Since then, about 130 cases have been reported in the English-language literature. Lymphoepithelial carcinoma is a rare tumor of the major salivary gland. Most reported cases have occurred in Asians and Eskimos. We report two cases of lymphoepithelial carcinoma of the major salivary glands and one case of lymphoepithelial carcinoma of unknown origin. They received operation and postoperative radiotherapy. At follow-up, they remained free of disease.

A Case of Hemolytic Disease of the Newborm due to Anti - Dib Antibody

The Diego blood group system consists of two pairs of antigens, Dia and Dib The incidence of Dia is low among pure Caucasian, Blacks, Polynesian and Eskimo, however, the rnongolians and American indians have both Dia and Dib. We report a case of two days old male who was admitted on first day of life for jaundice and subsquently exchange transfusion was performed on second day of life for bilirubin of 20 mg/dl. The blood groups of patient and his mother were both Rh D positive 0 type. Direct and indirect Coombstest were strong positive in the patient and indirect Coombstest was positive in his mother. We found anti-Dib antibody in his rnother's serum. The phenotype of Diego blood group system of the patient and his mother were Di (a+b+) and Di (a+b- ), respectively and hemolytic anemia in this case was due to anti-Dib antibody.

Distúrbios específicos de culturas / Culture specific illnesses

Alguns distúrbios mentais ocorrem especificamente em culturas restritas, como por exemplo: pibloktop, windigo, latah, amok e susto. Säo quadros peculiares praticamente ausentes em outras culturas, tornando impossível uma comparaçäo. Alguns distúrbios säo täo frequentes em determinada populaçäo, que por vezes os observadores deixam de reconhercer seus aspectos patológicos, como acontece na Suíça com a Neurose Obsessiva de Putzwut. Outros quadros aparecem numa determinada populaçäo em determinado período, como por exemplo a calentura dos marinheiros, um frenesi súbito e às vezes epidêmico que os afetava entre os séculos XVIII E XIX. Estas peculiaridades näo se restringem somente aos distúrbios, pois aparecem também no comportamento individual e social de algumas culturas. Neste artigo eu relaciono os principais distúrbios mentais estudados pela etnopsiquiatria, conhecidos como Distúrbios Específicos de Culturas, Síndromes Exóticas ou Desordens Étnicas