Inverse associations between serum concentrations of zeaxanthin and other carotenoids and colorectal neoplasm in Japanese.

BACKGROUND: To investigate the associations between serum concentrations of carotenoids and the presence of colorectal polyps and cancers in Japanese using a cross-sectional study. METHODS: 893 subjects who underwent colorectal endoscopy between 2001 and 2002 provided serum samples and information on lifestyle factors. Serum concentrations of six carotenoids were compared among patients with polyps, cancers, and controls. RESULTS: In males, high serum zeaxanthin was associated with decreased rates of polyps [odds ratio (OR) = 0.48, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 0.27-0.87] and cancer (OR = 0.35, 95 % CI 0.12-1.06), adjusting for age, body mass index, serum cholesterol, smoking status, and alcohol intake. In females, zeaxanthin (OR = 0.25, 95 % CI 0.07-0.82), lutein (OR = 0.30, 95 % CI 0.10-0.94), alpha-carotene (OR = 0.30, 95 % CI 0.10-0.90), and beta-carotene (OR = 0.27, 95 % CI 0.09-0.85) showed significant inverse associations with cancer development. These associations were consistent with findings of inverse associations between the ingestion of green-yellow vegetables (OR = 0.44, 95 % CI 0.23-0.84), carrots and pumpkins (OR = 0.46, 95 % CI 0.25-0.86), and fruits (OR = 0.53, 95 % CI 0.30-0.94) and polyp in males, and between carrots and pumpkins (OR = 0.30, 95 % CI 0.09-0.99), legumes (OR = 0.14, 95 % CI 0.04-0.44), and seaweed (OR = 0.23, 95 % CI 0.07-0.75) and cancer development in females. CONCLUSIONS: These results provide further support for the protective effects of carotenoids contained in green-yellow vegetables and fruits against colorectal neoplasm in Japanese.

Rapid development of diffuse large B-Cell lymphoma after successful eradication of Helicobacter pylori for gastric MALT lymphoma.

Primary low-grade mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma of the stomach has a potential to transform to high-grade diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). However, the clonal relation between MALT lymphoma and de novo DLBCL is still controversial. We report here three patients with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori)-positive gastric MALT lymphoma rapidly progressing to DLBCL at the same site after successful eradication of H. pylori. Although MALT lymphomas in our cases did not possess t(11; 18)(q21;q21), sequence analysis of the rearranged immunoglobulin heavy chain gene showed no clonal relation between preceding MALT lymphoma cells and de novo DLBCL cells at the same site. These findings question the scenario of direct clonal progression of low-grade MALT lymphomas without t(11; 18)(q21;q21) to DLBCL and serve as a reminder of the risk of the progression of DLBCL with a distinct clonality immediately after H. pylori eradication for low-grade MALT lymphoma.