Tropomyosin-Related Kinase Receptor and Neurotrophin Expression in Cutaneous Melanoma Is Associated with a Poor Prognosis and Decreased Survival.

OBJECTIVE: Normally, activation of tropomyosin-related kinase (TRK) receptors by neurotrophins (NTs) stimulates intracellular pathways involved in cell survival and proliferation. Dysregulation of NT/TRK signaling may affect neoplasm prognosis. Data on NT and TRK expression in melanomas are limited, and it is unclear whether NT/TRK signaling pathways are involved in the origin and progression of this neoplasm. METHODS: We examined whether NT/TRK expression differs across different cutaneous melanoma grades and subtypes, and whether it is associated with melanoma prognosis and survival. A cross-sectional study was performed in which the expression of TrkA, TrkB, nerve growth factor (NGF), and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) was analyzed by immunohistochemistry of 154 melanoma samples. We investigated NT/TRK expression associations with prognostic factors for melanoma, relapse-free survival (RFS), and overall survival (OS). RESULTS: Of the 154 melanoma samples, 77 (55.4%) were TrkA immunopositive, 81 (58.3%) were TrkB immunopositive, 113 (81.3%) were BDNF immunopositive, and 104 (75.4%) were NGF immunopositive. We found NT/TRK expression associated strongly with several clinical prognostic factors, including the tumor-node-metastasis stage (p < 0.001), histological subtype (p < 0.001), and Clark level (p < 0.05), as well as with a worse OS (p < 0.05 for all, except TrkB) and RFS (p < 0.05 for all). CONCLUSIONS: Our results show strong associations of NT/TRK expression with melanoma stage progression and a poor prognosis.

Immunohistochemical expression of HER2 in adenocarcinoma of the stomach.

BACKGROUND: Worldwide, gastric cancer is the fourth cancer in incidence and the second most common cause of cancer death. Gastric cancer is asymptomatic in the early stages and very often diagnosed at advanced stages, determining a dismal prognosis. Expression of the HER2 gene has been identified in about 20% of gastric cancer cases, and its hyper-expression is associated with poor prognosis. OBJECTIVE: To investigate HER2 immunohistochemical expression in gastric adenocarcinoma and its relationship to the histological type and anatomic location. METHODS: A cross-sectional retrospective study analyzed the immunohistochemical expression of HER2 in a sample of 48 specimens of gastric cancer. Immunohistochemical analysis were performed using avidin-biotin-peroxidase method with C-erb B2 (clone EP1045Y), as a primary antibody (Biocare Medical, USA). Standardized gastric adenocarcinoma's HER2 expression criteria has been used in the analysis of samples. RESULTS: There were seven cases with reactivity for HER2. Five were of intestinal-type while two cases were of mixed-type in which the expression occurred in the intestinal component. It was identified a significant association of HER2 expression in the intestinal subtype of gastric adenocarcinoma (P=0.003). Regarding the anatomical site, HER2 was positive in only one (16.6%) of the six proximal cases and six (14.28%) of the 42 distal cases (P=0.88). CONCLUSION: HER2 immunoexpression was identified in 14.6% of the samples, and the expression was significantly associated to Lauren's intestinal subtype.

Immunohistochemccal expression of her2 in adenocarcinoma of the stomcch / Expressão imunoistoquímica do HER2 no adenocarcinoma de estômago

Background Worldwide, gastric cancer is the fourth cancer in incidence and the second most common cause of cancer death. Gastric cancer is asymptomatic in the early stages and very often diagnosed at advanced stages, determining a dismal prognosis. Expression of the HER2 gene has been identified in about 20% of gastric cancer cases, and its hyper-expression is associated with poor prognosis. Objective To investigate HER2 immunohistochemical expression in gastric adenocarcinoma and its relationship to the histological type and anatomic location. Methods A cross-sectional retrospective study analyzed the immunohistochemical expression of HER2 in a sample of 48 specimens of gastric cancer. Immunohistochemical analysis were performed using avidin-biotin-peroxidase method with C-erb B2 (clone EP1045Y), as a primary antibody (Biocare Medical, USA). Standardized gastric adenocarcinoma‘s HER2 expression criteria has been used in the analysis of samples. Results There were seven cases with reactivity for HER2. Five were of intestinal-type while two cases were of mixed-type in which the expression occurred in the intestinal component. It was identified a significant association of HER2 expression in the intestinal subtype of gastric adenocarcinoma (P=0.003). Regarding the anatomical site, HER2 was positive in only one (16.6%) of the six proximal cases and six (14.28%) of the 42 distal cases (P=0.88). Conclusion HER2 immunoexpression was identified in 14.6% of the samples, and the expression was significantly associated to Lauren’s intestinal subtype. .

Contexto O câncer gástrico ocupa o quarto lugar em incidência no mundo e é a segunda causa de óbito por neoplasia maligna. Por ser assintomático nas fases iniciais, na maioria das vezes, é diagnosticado em fases avançadas. A expressão do gene HER2 tem sido identificada em cerca de 20% dos casos de câncer gástrico e, sua hiper-expressão está associada a um pior prognóstico nestes pacientes. Objetivo Investigar a expressão imunoistoquímica do HER2 em espécimes de adenocarcinoma gástrico e sua relação com a classificação histológica e localização anatômica. Métodos Estudo transversal, retrospectivo, no qual foi analisada a expressão imunoistoquímica para o HER2, em uma amostra de 48 espécimes de câncer gástrico, através da técnica de imunoistoquímica, pelo método avidina-biotina-peroxidase utilizando anticorpo primário C-erb B2, clone EP1045Y (Biocare Medical, USA). Resultados Foram encontrados sete casos reativos para o HER2; destes, cinco eram casos de adenocarcinoma do tipo intestinal e dois eram casos do tipo misto, porém, nestes, a expressão ocorreu no componente intestinal, o que determinou uma associação significante da expressão de HER2 com o componente intestinal do adenocarcinoma gástrico (P=0,003). Em relação ao local anatômico, HER2 foi reativo em apenas um (16,6%) de seis casos proximais e seis (14,28%) dos 42 casos distais (P=0,88). Conclusão A expressão de HER2 ocorreu em 14,6% da amostra, associada significativamente ao subtipo intestinal de Lauren. .

No evidence of HPV DNA in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in a population of Southern Brazil.

AIM: To investigate the association between human papillomavirus (HPV) and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) in southern Brazil. METHODS: We studied 189 esophageal samples from 125 patients from three different groups: (1) 102 biopsies from 51 patients with ESCC, with one sample from the tumor and another from normal esophageal mucosa distant from the tumor; (2) 50 esophageal biopsies from 37 patients with a previous diagnosis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC); and (3) 37 biopsies from esophageal mucosa with normal appearance from 37 dyspeptic patients, not exposed to smoking or alcohol consumption. Nested-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with the MY09/11 and GP5/6 L1 primers was used to detect HPV L1 in samples fixed in formalin and stored in paraffin blocks. All PCR reactions were performed with a positive control (cervicovaginal samples), with a negative control (Human Genomic DNA) and with a blank reaction containing all reagents except DNA. We took extreme care to prevent DNA contamination in sample collection, processing, and testing. RESULTS: The histological biopsies confirmed the diagnosis of ESCC in 52 samples (51 from ESCC group and 1 from the HNSCC group) and classified as well differentiated (12/52, 23.1%), moderately differentiated (27/52, 51.9%) or poorly differentiated (7/52, 13.5%). One hundred twenty-eight esophageal biopsies were considered normal (51 from the ESCC group, 42 from the HNSCC group and 35 from dyspeptic patients). Nine had esophagitis (7 from the HNSCC and 2 from dyspeptic patients). Of a total of 189 samples, only 6 samples had insufficient material for PCR analysis: 1 from mucosa distant from the tumor in a patient with ESCC, 3 from patients with HNSCC and 2 from patients without cancer. In 183 samples (96.8%) GAPDH, G3PDH and/or ß-globin were amplified, thus indicating the adequacy of the DNA in those samples. HPV DNA was negative in all the 183 samples tested: 52 with ESCC, 9 with esophagitis and 122 with normal esophageal mucosa. CONCLUSION: There was no evidence of HPV infection in different ESCC from southern Brazil.

Tratamento paliativo do adenocarcinoma gástrico / Palliative treatment of gastric adenocarcinoma

INTRODUÇÃO: Embora decrescendo nos países do chamado primeiro mundo, o adenocarcinoma gástrico mantém-se como terceiro tumor mais frequente no sexo masculino mundialmente. Sua mortalidade é muito elevada, fruto do diagnóstico tardio em lesões muito avançadas, o que frequentemente torna paliativo seu tratamento, motivos pelos quais se justificam estudos no sentido de melhorar estes resultados. MÉTODO: Revisão da literatura através do portal de periódicos da CAPES indicados por busca no sites da Bireme e PubMed. Além disso, foram consultados os sumários do 8º Congresso Internacional de Câncer Gástrico em 2009. Foi apresentada uma sugestão de algoritmo de atendimento destes pacientes. CONCLUSÕES: O surgimento de novas drogas anticancer, mais efetivas, está propiciando novas alternativas para a ressecção gástrica como tratamento paliativo. Novos protocolos estão surgindo mostrando boas perspectivas para melhorar os resultados desta doença.

INTRODUCTION: Although decreasing in the well developed countries, gastric adenocarcinoma still represents the third most common cancer in males worldwide. Its mortality is very high because of the lateness of its diagnosis over advanced lesions, which turns palliative its treatment in the majority of the cases. METHOD: Literature review using CAPES, PubMed and Bireme sites as well as the abstracts of the 8 º International Gastric Cancer Congress which was held in Krakow in 2009. CONCLUSIONS: The release of new anticancer drugs against gastric cancer is providing a revival of gastrectomy as an effective palliative treatment of advanced gastric cancer. New protocols are being published, showing better results in the treatment of this disease.