Prognostic significance of smac/DIABLO in endometrioid endometrial cancer.

Apoptosis may occur via a death receptor-dependent or independent (mitochondrial) pathway. The mitochondrial pathway is regulated by small molecules, such as smac/Diablo, which activates caspase cascades. This study examined smac/DIABLO expression in 76 patients with endometrioid endometrial cancers. Presence of smac/DIABLO was quantified by Western blot analysis using nonfixed fresh frozen tissues. Its appearance was found in 55 (72%) of examined tumors. Smac/DIABLO expression significantly correlated with tumor grade (

Prognostic value of serum levels of SCC-Ag and CYFRA 21-1 in early-stage squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix

Several markers present in tumor tissues and body fluids considerably aid in early diagnosis, enabling both correct decision- making qualifying patients to high-risk groups, monitoring of the patients’ response to treatment implemented and heralding the possibility of distant metastases or local recurrence. The paper presents correlations of elevated serum levels of CYFRA 21-1 and SCC-Ag with clinical stage, histological differentiation grade and survival rates of 89 patients with FIGO stage IB/IIA squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix. Marker levels were assessed prior to surgery using immunoenzymatic assay kits. Two groups of patients were defined: I (n=31; 35%) surviving less than 5 years and II (n=58; 65%) surviving more than 5 years. CYFRA 21-1 levels exceeding 3.5 ng/ml were present in 42% of patients. Elevation of SCC-Ag level above 1.5 ng/ml was seen in 48% of patients. No correlations were noticed between elevation of serum levels of markers studied and clinical stage nor histological differentiation grade. Patients presenting marker levels below reference values benefited from longer survival. Patients surviving less than 5 years had a statistically significant elevation of baseline serum SCC-Ag levels (p5 lat. Stężenia CYFRA 21-1 wyższe niż 3,5 ng/ml stwierdzono u 42% chorych. Wzrost SCC-Ag powyżej 1,5 ng/ml wykazano u 48% pacjentek. Nie ujawniono zależności pomiędzy wzrostem stężeń badanych markerów a stopniem zaawansowania klinicznego, jak również zróżnicowaniem histologicznym raka. U chorych, u których stwierdzono niższe od wartości referencyjnych stężenia obu markerów, odnotowano dłuższy czas przeżycia. W grupie leczonych z czasem przeżycia krótszym niż 5 lat wykazano istotny statystycznie wzrost wartości wyjściowych stężeń SCC-Ag (p<0,001). Wyniki badań sugerują, że chore na raka płaskonabłonkowego szyjki macicy we wczesnych stadiach zaawansowania klinicznego, u których przed leczeniem odnotowano podwyższone stężenia CYFRA 21-1 i SCC-Ag, wymagają neoadiuwantowej chemioterapii poprzedzającej leczenie operacyjne. Słowa kluczowe: płaskonabłonkowy rak szyjki macicy, CYFRA 21-1, SCC-Ag, surowica

Prognostic significance of smac/DIABLO in endometrioid endometrial cancer.

Apoptosis may occur via a death receptor-dependent or independent (mitochondrial) pathway. The mitochondrial pathway is regulated by small molecules, such as smac/Diablo, which activates caspase cascades. This study examined smac/DIABLO expression in 76 patients with endometrioid endometrial cancers. Presence of smac/DIABLO was quantified by Western blot analysis using nonfixed fresh frozen tissues. Its appearance was found in 55 (72%) of examined tumors. Smac/DIABLO expression significantly correlated with tumor grade (p&lt;0.001). Patients with positive smac/DIABLO tumors had a longer disease-specific survival when compared with those with negative tumors in the 10-year follow-up (p=0.043). The study demonstrated that negative smac/DIABLO expression was a poor prognostic sign

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha and its receptors in epithelial ovarian cancer.

The aim of the present study was to characterize the expression pattern of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha and its receptors (TNF-Rs) in the epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) and compare these results with the outcome of 126 patients. Presence of TNF-alpha, TNFR-1 and TNFR-2 were studied by Western blotting and immunohistochemistry. The proportion of samples positive for TNF-alpha and TNF-R2 was higher in epithelial ovarian cancer patients than in benign ovarian diseases (

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha and its receptors in epithelial ovarian cancer.

The aim of the present study was to characterize the expression pattern of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha and its receptors (TNF-Rs) in the epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) and compare these results with the outcome of 126 patients. Presence of TNF-alpha, TNFR-1 and TNFR-2 were studied by Western blotting and immunohistochemistry. The proportion of samples positive for TNF-alpha and TNF-R2 was higher in epithelial ovarian cancer patients than in benign ovarian diseases (p&lt;0.001 and p=0.016, respectively). Immunostaining intensity of TNF-R2 were correlated with tumor stage (p&lt;0.001) and with reduced mean survival time (MST) (p=0.002). The results of the present study suggested that tissue expression of TNF-R2 in epithelial ovarian cancer was correlated with the highest risk of cancer progression. Thus, the clinical value of activated TNF system in epithelial ovarian cancer needs to be further investigated