Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia associated with etanercept treatment in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a retrospective review of 15 cases and analysis of risk factors.

OBJECTIVES: The association of anti-tumor necrosis factor therapy with opportunistic infections in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients has been reported. The goal of this study was to clarify the clinical characteristics and the risk factors of RA patients who developed Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PCP) during etanercept therapy. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter, case-control study in which 15 RA patients who developed PCP were compared with 74 RA patients who did not develop PCP during etanercept therapy. RESULTS: PCP developed within 26 weeks following the first injection of etanercept in 86.7% of the patients. All PCP patients presented with a rapid and severe clinical course and the overall mortality was 6.7%. Independent risk factors were identified using multivariate analysis and included age ≥65 years [hazard ratio (HR) 3.35, p = 0.037], coexisting lung disease (HR 4.48, p = 0.009), and concomitant methotrexate treatment (HR 4.68, p = 0.005). In patients having a larger number of risk factors, the cumulative probability of developing PCP was significantly higher (p < 0.001 for patients with two or more risk factors vs. those with no risk factor, and p = 0.001 for patients with one risk factor vs. those with no risk factor). CONCLUSION: Physicians must consider the possibility of PCP developing during etanercept therapy in RA patients, particularly if one or more risk factors are present.

Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia associated with etanercept treatment in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a retrospective review of 15 cases and analysis of risk factors.

Objectives The association of anti-tumor necrosis factor therapy with opportunistic infections in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients has been reported. The goal of this study was to clarify the clinical characteristics and the risk factors of RA patients who developed Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PCP) during etanercept therapy. Methods We conducted a multicenter, case-control study in which 15 RA patients who developed PCP were compared with 74 RA patients who did not develop PCP during etanercept therapy. Results PCP developed within 26 weeks following the first injection of etanercept in 86.7% of the patients. All PCP patients presented with a rapid and severe clinical course and the overall mortality was 6.7%. Independent risk factors were identified using multivariate analysis and included age ≥ 65 years [hazard ratio (HR) 3.35, p = 0.037], coexisting lung disease (HR 4.48, p = 0.009), and concomitant methotrexate treatment (HR 4.68, p = 0.005). In patients having a larger number of risk factors, the cumulative probability of developing PCP was significantly higher (p < 0.001 for patients with two or more risk factors vs. those with no risk factor, and p = 0.001 for patients with one risk factor vs. those with no risk factor). Conclusion Physicians must consider the possibility of PCP developing during etanercept therapy in RA patients, particularly if one or more risk factors are present.

Merkel cell carcinoma on the upper lip of a 100-year-old woman.

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare skin tumor that usually occurs on the head, neck, or extremities of elderly patients; it has a high incidence of local recurrence, regional lymph node metastasis, and subsequent distant metastasis. We report a MCC that developed rapidly on the left corner of the upper lip of a 100-year-old woman. An incisional skin biopsy was performed to confirm MCC. Computed tomography showed no metastasis. The tumor was widely excised with a margin of 1 cm. Immediate reconstruction with a reverse Estlander flap from the lower lip was performed under general anesthesia. Additional surgery was also performed under general anesthesia 2 weeks later to widen the patient's lips. The surgical results were satisfactory. The patient died of senile deterioration a year after hospitalization for long-term medical treatment, without any recurrence or metastasis of MCC. Despite the patient's age, we considered it necessary to resect the tumor widely because of its rapid growth. The tumor margin was 1 cm. No radiotherapy was performed, but we believe that surgery alone was effective in allowing this patient to live an additional year without recurrence or metastasis. To the best of our knowledge, this patient is the oldest person with MCC yet described.

Ruptured distal middle cerebral artery aneurysm filled with tumor cells in a patient with intravascular large B-cell lymphoma.

The authors describe a very rare case of intravascular large B-cell lymphoma in a woman whose ruptured distal middle cerebral artery (MCA) aneurysms were filled with lymphoma cells. A 69-year-old woman who had undergone artificial graft replacement for an aortic aneurysm presented with transient left hemiparesis. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a small fresh cerebral infarction in the right frontal lobe, although major cervical and cerebral arteries were shown to be intact on MR angiography. Antiplatelet and anticoagulation treatments commenced. On the 21st day after onset, the patient suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage, and a digital subtraction angiogram revealed aneurysmal lesions in the distal MCA. Based on the histological examination of the resected aneurysms, proliferation of large B-cell lymphoma was identified in the dilated arterial lumen. On the 71st day after ischemic onset, intracranial hemorrhage recurred, and she died. Postmortem examination revealed similar lymphoma cells only in the intimal layer that had grown on the artificial graft, and it was decided that the patient had had intravascular large B-cell lymphoma. The preceding cerebral infarction was thought to be due to occlusion of the distal MCA by tumor embolus, which may be the initial pathological stage in aneurysm formation. For patients with incomprehensible ischemic cerebral stroke, neoplasm must be taken in consideration.

Analysis of p53 and Bak gene mutations in lymphoproliferative disorders developing in rheumatoid arthritis.

PURPOSE: Individuals affected by rheumatoid arthritis (RA) occasionally develop lymphoproliferative disorders (RA-LPD). To study the molecular changes underscoring the RA-LPD, mutations of p53 and Bak gene were analyzed in RA-LPD with (MTX-LPD) or without methotrexate treatment for RA (non-MTX-LPD). METHODS: Histology and immunophenotype were immunohistochemically examined in 32 cases of MTX-LPD and 21 of non-MTX-LPD. Polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) followed by direct sequencing was employed to detect the mutations of p53 and Bak gene. RESULTS: Frequency of p53 mutations in non-MTX-LPD (47.6%) was significantly higher than that in MTX-LPD (15.6%) (P < 0.05). Among the cases with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL), the largest category of RA-LPD, the frequency of p53 mutations in the non-MTX-NHL (47.6%) was significantly higher than that in the MTX-NHL (14.8%) (P < 0.05). Interval between the onset of RA and LPD development was significantly longer in LPD with p53 gene mutations (median 228 months) than that without mutations (133 months). LPD with p53 gene mutations had more advanced diseases and an unfavorable prognosis than those without mutations. CONCLUSIONS: MTX-LPD and non-MTX-LPD show similar findings in clinical characteristics, histology, EBV positive rate, and frequency of Bak gene mutations. Whereas the non-MTX-LPD is distinct from the MTX-LPD in its significantly higher p53 mutation frequency.

NK-cell related neoplasms in Osaka, Japan.

The frequency of NK-cell related neoplasms was estimated among lymphoproliferative diseases diagnosed and treated in Osaka, Japan, from 1999 to 2003. The total number of registered cases was 1,400, among which 1,092 patients were diagnosed as having malignant lymphomas. There were 987 cases of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) and 105 (9.6%) of Hodgkin's lymphoma. Immunophenotypic analysis revealed that 743 patients had B-cell lymphomas and 209 T/NK-cell lymphomas. Among the T/NK-cell lymphomas, 40 showed positive immunoreactivity for CD56, and thus they were judged to be NK/T-cell lymphomas. They included one blastic NK-cell lymphoma and 39 NK/T-cell lymphomas. NK/T-cell lymphomas were further divided into three categories based on the main site of lesions: nasal type (23 cases), non-nasal extranodal type (11 cases), and nodal type (5 cases). The positive rate of infection with the Epstein-Barr virus determined by in situ hybridization was 83%, 36%, and 25% in the nasal, non-nasal, and nodal type, respectively. A mosquito allergy was found in one patient with EBV-positive non-nasal NK/T-cell lymphoma. The present study showed that the frequency of NK-cell related neoplasms among all NHLs was 4% in an ATL-non-endemic area of Japan.

Expression of CCL28 by Reed-Sternberg cells defines a major subtype of classical Hodgkin's disease with frequent infiltration of eosinophils and/or plasma cells.

Classical Hodgkin's disease (HD) is characterized by rare neoplastic Hodgkin and Reed-Sternberg (H-RS) cells within abundant reactive cellular backgrounds. In most cases, H-RS cells originate from the B-cell lineage, but their immunophenotypes are unusual. Here we newly found frequent expression of chemokine receptors CXCR6 and CCR10 and their respective ligands CXCL16 and CCL28 in HD-derived cell lines. CCR10 is known to be selectively expressed by plasma cells, whereas CCL28 attracts eosinophils via CCR3 and plasma cells via CCR10 and CCR3. Therefore, we examined their expression in HD tissues by immunohistochemistry. We found that H-RS cells in 15 of 19 cases were positive for CCL28. Among them, seven cases were also positive for CCR10, suggesting a potential autocrine effect. In situ hybridization confirmed the expression of CCL28 mRNA in H-RS cells. The CCL28 positivity in H-RS cells did not significantly correlate with that of LMP-1, CCL17, CCL22, or CCL11. However, it significantly correlated with the background accumulation of eosinophils, plasma cells, and CCR10+ cells. Thus, the production of CCL28 by H-RS cells may play a major role in tissue accumulation of eosinophils and/or plasma cells in classical HD. The frequent expression of CCR10 in H-RS cells themselves also supports their close relationship to plasma cells.

Simian virus 40 sequences in malignant lymphomas in Japan.

Recent studies showed that SV40 is detected in >40% of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) in United States, suggesting SV40-contaminated poliovaccines widely used during the period 1955-1963 to be a major source of SV40 in NHL. We examined the presence of SV40 sequences in 122 cases with NHL and 3 with Hodgkin's lymphoma from Japan. The detection rate of SV40 sequences in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (19%) was higher than that in peripheral blood cells of normal healthy volunteers in Japan (4.7%; P < 0.05) reported previously as controls for comparison with the study results from cancer patients, suggesting a role for SV40 in the development of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. In contrast, the frequency of SV40 sequences in NHL cases born between 1951 and 1963 (12%), during which SV40-contaminated poliovaccines might have been inoculated, is not significantly different from that in cases born before 1950 (11%) or after 1964 (15%). SV40 is a new candidate etiologic factor for malignant lymphoma not only in the United States but also in Japan.

Mutant type glutathione S-transferase theta 1 gene homologue to mTOR in myelodysplastic syndrome: possible clinical application of rapamycin.

In this study, we observed the expression of the GSTT-1 gene in patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) at the messenger RNA level. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for GSTT-1 was performed with a pair of primers complementary to the 5' coding section and the 3' coding section of the GSTT-1 cDNA for amplifying the 623-bp band. Among 20 patients with MDS, 8 patients showed the expected 623-bp band on RT-PCR, and 12 patients showed a 500-bp band on RT-PCR, indicating that a 123-bp sequence was deleted as a mutant of the GSTT-1 gene. Furthermore, a BLAST DNA search showed that the deletion of a 123 bp sequence creates a sequence that is 63% homologous to human FKBP-rapamycin associated protein (FRAP); this protein has been termed a mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). We respectively transfected the wild type and the mutant type GSTT-1 gene in an expression vector to two cell lines (K562 and HL-60). The stable transformants for the wild type and the mutant type GSTT-1 genes were made by G418 selection. Interestingly, rapamycin could induce significant growth inhibition of the stable transformants for mutant type GSTT-1, which was indicative of apoptosis, but not that of those for wild type GSTT-1. These results suggest that rapamycin could be included in the therapeutic modality for the patients with MDS who have the mTOR sequences in GSTT-1 gene.

Follicular lymphoma in Osaka, Japan: histological features and chronological change.

Follicular lymphoma (FL) is defined as a neoplastic proliferation of follicle center cells with varying follicular areas. To learn the time trend of FL in the Osaka area, an adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL) nonendemic area of Japan, we examined the frequency of FL among all non-Hodgkin's lymphomas (NHLs) during the period 1964 to 1987 (n = 1,000) and 1999 to 2001 (n = 659). The frequency of FL with varying follicular areas increased from 1964-1987 to 1999-2001. There was a significant difference in frequency of total cases of FL (14.2% versus 18.8%) (P < .05) and FL with no to 25% follicular area (2.3% versus 5.0%) (P < .01). According to the Berard criteria, cytologic grade of FL was defined by counting the number of centroblasts (CB) in 10 neoplastic follicles as follow: < or = 5 CB per high power field (HPF), grade 1; 6-15 CB, grade 2; >15 CB, grade 3. Immunohistochemical staining with monoclonal antibodies for bcl-2 and CD10 was performed. There was an inverse correlation between follicular area and cytological grade (P < .0001) and bcl-2 expression and cytological grade (P < .01). That is, the larger the follicular area in cases with a lower cytological grade, the stronger was bcl-2 expression in a lower cytological grade. There was a significant correlation between follicular area and stage of disease (P < .05). That is, the follicular area was larger in cases in an advanced stage. This study showed the increase in frequency of FL in Osaka, Japan. Change of lifestyle in Japan may be one of the causative factors for the increase.