Survival rates of familial and sporadic prostate cancer patients

Aim: To compare cancer-specific survival rates for familial and sporadic prostate cancer patients. Materials and Methods: Gleason score and age at diagnosis of familial group and sporadic group were compared by χ² and t-test. Cancer-specific survival rates were analyzed by the Kaplan — Meier method and compared by log-rank test. Statistically significant level was set at p < 0.05. Results: Among 1175 prostate cancer patients, familial group consisted of 215 (18.3%) patients, the sporadic group consisted of 960 (81.7%) patients. The familial group patient’s mean age at diagnosis (58.9 years old, 95% confidence interval (CI) 57.8–60.1) was significantly younger than that of sporadic group patients (67.2 years old, 95% CI 66.7–67.6) (p < 0.0001). Comparing Gleason score between familial group and sporadic group revealed no statistically significant difference. The analysis showed that 92% (95% CI 0.88–0.97) of familial group patients had a 10-year cancer-specific survival rates, which was a significantly better outcome than that of sporadic group with 69% (95% CI 0.60–0.78) 10-year cancer-specific survival rates (p = 0.0237). Conclusion: The study data demonstrate statistically significant difference between familial group and sporadic group concerning age and cancer-specific survival rates, but not Gleason score. Key Words: prostate cancer, hereditary, familial, survival rates

The CHEK2 del5395 is a founder mutation without direct effects for cancer risk in the latvian population

Our objective was to determine: 1) whether the checkpoint kinase 2 (CHEK2) del5395 (g.27417113-27422508 del, NC_000022.11) is a founder mutation in the Latvian population, 2) if there is an association between CHEK2 del5395 mutation and cancer risk, and 3) and whether the CHEK2 del5395 mutation impacts cancer predisposition in Chernobyl disaster liquidators (the civil and military personnel who were called upon to deal with consequences of the 1986 nuclear disaster) as well as geriatric populations. We recruited 438 breast cancer patients, 568 colorectal cancer patients, 399 ovarian cancer patients, 419 prostate cancer patients, 526 healthy blood donors, 480 Chernobyl disaster liquidators and 444 geriatric cancer-free participants. DNA samples were isolated from blood samples and subjected to multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The truncation of del5395 was estimated by fragment size of the multiplex PCR.All groups were compared to the healthy blood donors using Fisher’s exact test. All p values were two-sided and the odds ratios (OR) calculated by two-by-two table. In cancer groups, the del5395 mutation was most frequently observed in the ovarian cancer group (1.00%, OR = 1.32). In control groups, the del5395 mutation was most frequent (0.76%) in the healthy donors, which exceeded its frequency in the Chernobyl liquidators group and the geriatric group by 0.01 and 0.08%, respectively. For all groups, the OR appeared to be >1 only in ovarian cancer patients. However, OR rates showed no statistical significance in either cancer or control groups, with the p value fluctuating within the range of 0.39-1.00. The CHEK2 gene del5395 is a founder mutation in the Latvian population, which, however, does not have a direct impact on genetic predisposition toward colorectal, breast, ovarian and prostate cancer

Von Hippel-Lindau Syndrome: Diagnosis and Management of Hemangioblastoma and Pheochromocytoma

Introduction. Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) syndrome is a pathological condition that causes various clinical symptoms and is difficult to diagnose. The most common pathological lesions are hemangioblastomas of the central nervous system, retinal angiomas, renal clear cell carcinomas, and pheochromocytomas. Case Report. A 23-year-old female had a syncope episode in 2008. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a right temporal hemangioblastoma, which was treated surgically. Genetic screening identified a VHL gene mutation, and computed tomography (CT) revealed a left adrenal mass. Since it was unclear whether the mass was a pheochromocytoma, or another benign or malignant tumors, laparoscopic adrenalectomy was performed. A month after surgery, the patient complained of general fatigue, poor concentration, loss of appetite, and insomnia. After careful clinical investigation, the patient was referred to a psychiatrist due to suspected depression, which was confirmed. Conclusions. VHL genetic screening should be performed in cases of hemangioblastoma. In VHL syndrome cases, pheochromocytoma cannot always be diagnosed by biochemical catecholamine analyses; therefore, CT or MRI scanning of the abdomen must be performed. Due to the long treatment period, some patients may develop episodes of depression, which can simulate VHL syndrome

Intermittent versus continuous cyproterone acetate in bone metastatic prostate cancer: results of a randomized trial

To compare intermittent treatment (IT) versus continuous treatment (CT) using cyproterone acetate (CPA) in bone metastatic prostate cancer patients, we conducted an open-label, multicenter randomized trial. Continuous androgen deprivation therapy is the standard treatment in metastatic prostate cancer. Intermittent treatment might maintain efficacy while toxicity and costs are reduced. Patients received CPA 100 mg tid in the prephase. Patients with a PSA decline of a parts per thousand yen90 % or PSA < 4 ng/ml were randomized. If patients were progressive, LHRH analogues were added. Primary end point was time to PSA progression. A total of 366 patients were recruited; 258 reached a good response after 3 or 6 months and were randomized. A total of 131 patients randomized to IT and 127 to CT. Patients on IT had an average of 1.7 episodes on CPA, before LHRH analogues were started. The mean time without treatment in IT was 463 days versus 422 days on treatment. There were statistical significant differences between IT and CT in 3 of the 5 functional scales of EORTC QLQ C 30; however, the clinical relevance of this finding appears modest. Symptom and potency scales showed significant advantages for IT. There were no differences in time to PSA progression on CPA, time to PSA and/or clinical progression on LHRH analogues and time to cancer-specific and overall survival. IT by CPA is associated with less symptoms and modest advantages in QOL domains. There were no differences in time to PSA progression, clinical progression or survival

Hypoxia-selective targeting by the bioreductive prodrug AQ4N in patients with solid tumors: results of a phase 1 study

NoPURPOSE: AQ4N is a novel bioreductive prodrug under clinical investigation. Preclinical evidence shows that AQ4N penetrates deeply within tumors and undergoes selective activation to form AQ4, a potent topoisomerase II inhibitor, in hypoxic regions of solid tumors. This proof-of-principle, phase I study evaluated the activation, hypoxic selectivity, and safety of AQ4N in patients with advanced solid tumors. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Thirty-two patients with cancer (8 glioblastoma, 9 bladder, 8 head and neck, 6 breast, and 1 cervix) received a single 200 mg/m(2) dose of AQ4N before elective surgery. AQ4 and AQ4N levels in 95 tissues (tumor, healthy tissue) were assessed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Tissue sections were also analyzed for AQ4 fluorescence using confocal microscopy, and for expression of the hypoxia-regulated glucose transporter, Glut-1. RESULTS: Activated AQ4 was detected in all tumor samples with highest levels present in glioblastoma (mean 1.2 microg/g) and head and neck (mean 0.65 microg/g) tumors; 22 of 32 patients had tumor AQ4 concentrations > or = 0.2 microg/g, levels previously shown to be active in preclinical studies. In 24 of 30 tumor samples, AQ4 was detected at higher concentrations than in adjacent normal tissue (tumor to normal ratio range 1.1-63.6); distant skin samples contained very low concentrations of AQ4 (mean 0.037 microg/g). Microscopic evaluation of tumor sections revealed that AQ4 colocalized within regions of Glut-1+ hypoxic cells. CONCLUSIONS: AQ4N was activated selectively in hypoxic regions in human solid tumors. Intratumoral concentrations of AQ4 exceeded those required for activity in animal models and support the evaluation of AQ4N as a novel tumor-targeting agent in future clinical studies