A rare breed: Wild-type braf and ighv expression in a 29 year old lady with classical hairy cell leukemia

The V600 BRAF mutation has been described as a key mutation in the pathogenesis of classical hairy cell leukemia (c-HCL) cases without expression of a mutant immunoglobulin heavy chain (IgHV). Here we present a rare case of c-HCL with neither V600 BRAF mutation nor the aforementioned IgHV variant successfully treated with cladribine and review the current literature on its use in women of childbearing age/pregnancy

Functional specialization of Piwi proteins in Paramecium tetraurelia from post-transcriptional gene silencing to genome remodelling

Proteins of the Argonaute family are small RNA carriers that guide regulatory complexes to their targets. The family comprises two major subclades. Members of the Ago subclade, which are present in most eukaryotic phyla, bind different classes of small RNAs and regulate gene expression at both transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. Piwi subclade members appear to have been lost in plants and fungi and were mostly studied in metazoa, where they bind piRNAs and have essential roles in sexual reproduction. Their presence in ciliates, unicellular organisms harbouring both germline micronuclei and somatic macronuclei, offers an interesting perspective on the evolution of their functions. Here, we report phylogenetic and functional analyses of the 15 Piwi genes from Paramecium tetraurelia. We show that four constitutively expressed proteins are involved in siRNA pathways that mediate gene silencing throughout the life cycle. Two other proteins, specifically expressed during meiosis, are required for accumulation of scnRNAs during sexual reproduction and for programmed genome rearrangements during development of the somatic macronucleus. Our results indicate that Paramecium Piwi proteins have evolved to perform both vegetative and sexual functions through mechanisms ranging from post-transcriptional mRNA cleavage to epigenetic regulation of genome rearrangements

Number Recognition in the Saudi License Plates using Classification and Clustering Methods

This study is conducted for the purpose of recognizing numbers printed on the license plates images. The size of different patterns in the Saudi license plates is 20: the Arabic and English numbers. It is hard to classify all the numbers due to the similarity between specific numbers. This paper will propose to use a clustering technique called X-Means in order to regroup the numbers that have the same characteristics. Later develop a specific classification technique for each cluster. The experimentation of the proposed approach is applied on our constructed dataset gave us some limitation in classification. The results are improved by constructing a reference image for each class selected using a specific criteria from the training dataset. Moreover, the experimental results ensure better recognition accuracy by using the proposed methods rather than classifying the same dataset using other classical classifier in the state-of-art

Phase II Study: Induction Chemotherapy & Transoral Surgery as Definitive Treatment (Tx) for Locally Advanced Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma (OPSCC): a Novel Approach

Background: The standard of care for OPSCC includes chemoradiation (CRT) or surgery with adjuvant radiation (RT). However, RT is associated with significant life long morbidity. We assessed the efficacy of a two-drug induction regimen, followed by transoral robotic assisted surgery (TORS) & neck dissection for locally advanced OPSCC. Methods: This is an IRB approved single-arm phase II study for untreated stage III or IVA OPSCC patients (pts) with an ECOG \u3c 2 and GFR \u3e50 cc. Induction chemotherapy consisted of cisplatin 75 mg/m2 and taxotere 75 mg/m2 every 21 days for 3 cycles. Tumor shrinkage was examined after each cycle. If the primary tumor was \u3e 80% smaller, pts underwent TORS and neck dissection(s). At post-op visits, flexible laryngoscopy, blood work, and imaging with PET/CT and/or MRI were done. Short and long term toxicity, progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), and quality of life (QOL) were evaluated. Results: Nineteen pts were treated and 14 are available for analysis. Thirteen were male, 12 were Caucasian, and 13 were HPV+. Median age at diagnosis was 57. Tumors involved the tonsil (11 pts) and base of tongue (3 pts). Three pts were stage III, and 11 were stage IVA. Tumor size was reduced on average by 58%, 84% and 92% after the 1st, 2nd and 3rd induction cycles respectively. Pathologic complete remission of primary disease occurred in 11 pts and in 7 pts with cervical lymph node disease. Four pts were given dose-reduced chemo and one pt was changed to carboplatin per protocol because of renal dysfunction. Pre vs post tx QOL scores did not change. At a mean follow-up (f/u) of 13 months (range 2.5 to 19.7), 13 pts are alive and well. Three pts recurred, and were treated with salvage CRT. One pt died of metastatic disease. Conclusions: 1) Cisplatin + Taxotere is an effective induction tx for OPSCC, 2) Induction tx followed by transoral & neck resections without RT is a promising tx model for OPSCC. It appears effective while avoiding adverse effects of RT. Longer f/u is required to assess its true efficacy

American Cancer Society Colorectal Cancer Survivorship Care Guidelines

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common malignant disease in the United States (U.S.). Almost two-thirds of CRC survivors are living 5 years following diagnosis. The prevalence of CRC survivors is likely to increase dramatically over the coming decades with further advances in early detection and treatment and the aging and growth of the U.S. population. Survivors are at risk for a CRC recurrence, a new primary CRC, other cancers, as well as both short and long-term adverse effects of the CRC and the modalities used to treat it. CRC survivors may also have psychological, reproductive, genetic, social, and employment concerns following treatment. Communication and coordination of care between the treating oncologist and the primary care clinician is critical to effectively and efficiently manage the long-term care of CRC survivors. The following guidelines are intended to assist primary care clinicians in delivering risk-based health care for CRC survivors who have completed active therapy