Expression of suppressor of cytokine signaling-3 and caspase-3 in endometriosis and their correlation / 中华病理学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the expression of suppressor of cytokine signaling(SOCS)-3 and caspase-3 and their correlative significance in endometriosis.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Immunohistochemical EnVision method was used to detect the SOCS-3 and caspase-3 protein expression in ectopic and eutopic endometrium (n = 32) of patients with endometriosis, as well as normal endometrium (n = 30) of women without endometriosis.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>SOCS-3 and caspase-3 proteins were expressed in all three groups and not affected by the menstrual cycles. The expression of SOCS-3 in ectopic endometrium (5.54 ± 2.12) was significantly lower than that in eutopic (7.39 ± 1.09, P = 0.001) and control group (7.48 ± 1.26, P < 0.01), but without difference between the eutopic and control group (P = 0.756). SOCS-3 expression in ectopic and eutopic endometrium was significantly lower in III/IV stages than that in I/II stages of endometriosis (P < 0.05). Significantly lower expression of caspase-3 protein was found in ectopic (3.20 ± 1.24) and eutopic endometrium (3.88 ± 1.93) as compared with the control group (6.49 ± 1.85, P < 0.01), however ectopic and eutopic endometrium showed no significant difference (t = 1.66, P = 0.10). There was no significant difference of the expression of caspase-3 in ectopic and eutopic endometrium at different disease stages (P > 0.05). Positive correlation was found between the expression of SOCS-3 and caspase-3 proteins in ectopic endometrium (r = 0.655, P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>SOCS-3 may be involved in the development of endometriosis through inhibition of apoptosis of ectopic endometrial cells.</p>

A case report of primary small cell carcinoma of the breast and review of the literature / 癌症

Primary small cell carcinoma (SCC) of the breast, an exceedingly rare and aggressive tumor, is often characterized by rapid progression and poor prognosis. We report a case of primary SCC of the breast that was diagnosed through pathologic and immunohistochemical examinations. Computed tomography (CT) scans failed to reveal a non-mammary primary site. Due to the scant number of relevant case summaries, this type of tumor is proved to be a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge. Therefore, we also reviewed relevant literature to share expertise in diagnosis, clinicopathologic characteristics, treatment, and prognosis of this type of tumor. Future studies with more cases are required to define more appropriate treatment indications for this disease.

Establishment and evaluation of a prognostic prediction model for patients after complete resection of non-small cell lung cancer and multidisciplinary therapy / 中华肿瘤杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>A bias may be produced when only TNM stage is used to predict the prognosis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after complete resection and multidisciplinary treatment. The reason is that histological type, differentiation, and postoperative treatment which may also affect the survival are excluded in the prognosis prediction. The aim of this study is to establish and evaluate a prognostic prediction model for NSCLC patients based on pathological parameters after completely resection and postoperative treatment.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>According to the theory of Nottingham index model, a prognostic prediction model was established based on the pathological parameters and postoperative management of 899 NSCLC patients after complete resection and multidisplinary treatment in our hospital from Jan.1, 1997 to April, 2001, and its efficiency and feasibility were evaluated.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Univariate analysis and multivariate analysis showed that histological type (H), T stage (T), N stage (N), M stage (M), and postoperative mediastinal radiotherapy for positive lymph node (R) were independent factors affecting the survival of NSCLC after complete resection and multidisciplinary treatment. The prognostic prediction model based on these parameters is: S = 0.338H + 0.178T + 0.549N + 0.647M-0.361R. The high and low risks of prognostic index (PI) were 1.6695 and 1.1160, respectively. The 5-year survival rates of the patients in the low, middle and high risk groups stratified by this model were 70.1%, 54.5%, and 22.5%, respectively, with a significant difference among the groups (chi(2) = 132.091, P = 0.000).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>A model based on the pathological parameters and postoperative management has been established, which may be helpful in predicting the prognosis for NSCLC after complete resection and multidisciplinary management.</p>

Methods of preserving intercostobrachial nerve during breast cancer operation and its clinical value / 中华外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the methods and the clinical value of preserving intercostobrachial nerve during the axillary lymph nodes excision in breast cancer operations.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred and sixty-two cases of stages I, II, IIIa breast cancer patients were divided into experimental group and control group respectively. The intercostobrachial nerves were preserved in experimental group and not in control group. Both groups were treated following the practice guideline of breast cancer, and found no recurrence during 4 to 36 months following up.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The postoperative arm sensory disturbance was 22.2% in the experimental group, which was significantly different from that of the control group 73.3% (chi(2) = 41.80, P < 0.01), the incidence of pain is 12.5% in experimental group, which was also significantly different from that of control group 31.1% (chi(2) = 7.86, P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Preserving intercostobrachial nerves may significantly decrease the postoperative morbidity of arm sensory disturbance and pain during axillary excision of stage I, II, IIIa breast cancer patients.</p>