ABSTRACT
In postmenopausal women with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer, long-term tamoxifen administration has proved beneficial after surgical treatment and subsequent chemotherapy. One of the major adverse effects of tamoxifen is the development of endometrial pathology (polyps, endometrial hyperplasia and endometrial cancer). PvuII and XbaI polymorphisms of the estrogen receptor-alpha gene (ERalpha) and RsaI and AluI polymorphisms of the estrogen receptor-beta gene (ERbeta) have been associated with breast cancer. Thus the present study aimed to identify whether ER gene polymorphisms are associated with breast cancer stage or endometrial responsiveness to long-term tamoxifen treatment in 87 postmenopausal, tamoxifen-treated women with ER-positive breast cancer. The mean age of the patients was 58.7 +/- 4.7 years and the mean duration of tamoxifen treatment was 3.9 +/- 1.1 years. At diagnosis, the stage of breast cancer was determined as follows: 29 women (32%) at Stage I, 49 (58%) at Stage II and 9 (10%) at Stage III. The frequency distributions of the estrogen receptor polymorphisms in all women with breast cancer were not different from those predicted by the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium hypothesis (p > 0.10). None of the ER polymorphisms studied was linked to either the presence of endometrial pathology or the stage of breast cancer.
Subject(s)
Breast Neoplasms/genetics , Endometrium/pathology , Estrogen Receptor alpha/genetics , Estrogen Receptor beta/genetics , Polymorphism, Genetic/genetics , Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators/adverse effects , Tamoxifen/adverse effects , Breast Neoplasms/pathology , Endometrial Neoplasms/etiology , Endometrial Neoplasms/pathology , Female , Genetic Predisposition to Disease , Humans , Middle Aged , Neoplasm Staging/adverse effectsABSTRACT
Our objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of a late or emergency (salvage) cerclage after tissue reinforcement with Pelvicol natural implant, in preventing premature rupture of the fetal membranes and advancing pregnancy prolongation. A flat sheet of Pelvicol, a sterile acellular natural (porcine) implant was used in an emergency cerclage to reinforce the thin tissues of a widely dilated cervix in a 24 weeks' twin gestation with prolapsed unruptured membranes, without contractions, placental abruption, or intrauterine infection. The gestation was extended to 38 weeks without any complications. Two live healthy newborns were delivered by elective cesarean section due to a nonvertex/vertex presentation. The implant was found to be attached almost unaltered firmly on the outer surface of the membrane sac just opposite to the internal os. It seems that Pelvicol is safe and apparently protects by clothing the thinned, soft, and weak wall of a significantly dilated uterine cervix and the bulging or protruding gestational membranes. It also reinforces and strengthens the tissue thickness and resistance, rendering more accurate and safe the otherwise delicate and risky late cerclage. The technique gives hopes that it can help in pregnancy prolongation.
