Genetic and epigenetic alterations of the EGFR and mutually independent association with BRCA1, MGMT,and RASSF1A methylations in Vietnamese lung adenocarcinomas

Genetic and epigenetic alterations importantly contribute to the pathogenesis of lung cancer. In the study, we measured the frequency and distribution of molecular abnormalities of EGFR as well as the aberrant promoter methylations of BRCA1, MGMT, MLH1, and RASSF1A in Vietnamese lung adenocarcinomas. We investigated the association between genetic and epigenetic alteration, and between each abnormality with clinicopathologic parameters. Somatic EGFR mutation that was found in 49/139 (35.3%) lung adenocarcinomas showed a significant association with young age, female gender, and non-smokers. EGFR overexpression was identified in 82 tumors (59.0%) and statistical relationships with EGFR or BRCA1 methylation but not EGFR mutation. In addition, EGFR, BRCA1, MGMT, MLH1, and RASSF1A methylations were found in 33 (23.7%), 41 (29.5%), 46 (33.1%), 28 (20.1%), and 41 (29.5%) cases of a total of 139 lung adenocarcinomas, respectively. The RASSF1A methylation was found to be linked to the smoking habit. Methylations in MGMT and RASSF1A were also found to correlate with metastasis status. Furthermore, the distribution of EGFR mutation and that of BRCA1, MGMT or RASSF1A methylation were significantly exclusive in lung adenocarcinomas. The main finding of our study demonstrate that epigenetic abnormalities might play a critical role for the lung tumorigenesis in patients with smoking history and metastasis, and partly affect the predictive value of EGFR mutations through blocking expression due to promoter EGFR hypermethylation. Mutually exclusive distribution of genetic and epigenetic alterations reflects differently biological characteristics in the etiology of lung adenocarcinomas.     

甲状腺功能减退与子宫内膜癌的相关性分析

 目的 探讨甲状腺功能减退与子宫内膜癌（EC）的关系及EC患者癌组织分化程度和雌激素受体（ER）、孕激素受体（PR）的表达与甲状腺功能之间的关系。方法 选取2015年1月—2018年7月我院收治的EC患者113例，同时随机选取年龄与EC组相匹配的此段时间内我院健康体检的妇女156例作为对照组，检测血清促甲状腺激素（TSH）、甲状腺激素（FT4）。比较两组间甲状腺功能减退的患病率，并利用免疫组织化学法测定EC患者手术切除标本的癌组织中ER、PR的表达，分析EC患者癌组织分化程度及癌组织中ER、PR的表达与甲状腺功能之间的相关性。结果 EC组甲状腺功能减退的患病率较对照组高（P<0.000）。低分化EC患者的TSH高于中分化EC患者（P=0.025）。EC手术切除标本的癌组织中ER、PR阳性与阴性患者的TSH、FT4差异无统计学意义（P>0.05）。结论 甲状腺功能减退与EC具有相关性。     

Profilin 1, negatively regulated by microRNA-19a-3p,serves as a tumor suppressor in human hepatocellular carcinoma

Profilin 1 (PFN1) is a critical actin-regulatory protein; however, its functional role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression remains to be further elucidated. In the present study, we observed that the expression levels of PFN1 were significantly decreased in HCC tissues and cell lines. Low PFN1 expression was significantly correlated with aggressive clinicopathological characteristics and poor prognosis of HCC patients. Further in vitro experiments demonstrated that overexpression of PFN1 remarkably inhibited the proliferation, migration, invasion and EMT of HCC cells. Moreover, we also found that PFN1 was a direct target gene of miR-19a-3p, and in HCC tissues, and there was a significantly inverse correlation between PFN1 mRNA and miR-19a-3p expression. Collectively, our results showed that PFN1 functions as a tumor suppressor in HCC, and might serve as a diagnostic and therapeutic target for HCC patients.     

D-二聚体和中性粒细胞/淋巴细胞比值评估卵巢癌预后的临床价值

目的:研究D-二聚体（D-dimer,D-D）和中性粒细胞/淋巴细胞比值（neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio,NLR）与卵巢癌临床病理特征及预后的关系。方法:回顾性分析2012年1月至2015年12月于我院妇科行手术治疗的卵巢恶性肿瘤患者387例和卵巢良性肿瘤患者250例临床资料。比较血清D-D和外周血NLR在卵巢良、恶性肿瘤中的表达水平；确定D-D和NLR临界值，D-D+NLR=0（D-D≤0.555 mg/L和NLR≤2.792）,D-D+NLR=1（D-D>0.555 mg/L或NLR>2.792），D-D+NLR=2（D-D>0.555 mg/L和NLR>2.792），分析两者联合的评分系统与卵巢癌临床病理特征和预后的关系。结果:血清D-D和外周血NLR在卵巢良、恶性肿瘤患者中的表达水平有统计学差异（P＜0.001）。D-D高水平组与低水平组相比，患者的分期、分级、淋巴结转移、腹水、CA125水平、残余瘤大小有统计学差异（P＜0.05）。NLR高水平组与低水平组相比，患者的年龄、分期、淋巴结转移、腹水、CA125水平、残余瘤大小有统计学差异（P＜0.05）。D-D+NLR为0、1、2分的平均总生存期（OS）分别为70个月、58个月、40个月。D-D+NLR评分是影响OS的独立预后因素。结论:术前血清D-D和外周血NLR与卵巢癌临床病理特征和OS相关，D-D+NLR评分可以作为评估卵巢癌预后的指标。     

Relationship between plasma cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and prognosis of TACE for primary hepatocellular carcinoma

BackgroundOur study aims to investigate changes in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) concentration and integrity in primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC) patients before and after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) treatment and their influence on the evaluation of prognosis of the disease.MethodsA total of 84 PHC patients admitted to the Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine from December 2016 to December 2017 were included as the study group, while 55 healthy people served as the control group. Plasma cfDNA concentration and integrity were determined using qRT-PCR. The correlation between cfDNA concentration/integrity and clinical characteristics of PHC patients were analyzed. A ROC curve was used to investigate the sensitivity and specificity of cfDNA as detection indices. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to analyze factors affecting recurrence in PHC patients and compare recurrence-free survival (RFS) of PHC patients with high cfDNA expression and low cfDNA expression.ResultsPlasma cfDNA concentration and integrity were significantly higher in PHC patients before TACE treatment than in healthy people and significantly lower after treatment than before (P<0.05). The cfDNA concentration was significantly correlated with tumor size, lymph node metastasis, TNM stage, and BCLC stage, while cfDNA integrity was significantly correlated with tumor size, TNM stage, and BCLC stage (P<0.05). ROC results showed that the area under the curve (AUC) value of cfDNA concentration was the largest, with an optimal cut-off of 10.51 ng/mL. Multivariate regression analysis for COX showed that the TNM stage, cfDNA concentration, and AFP were independent risk factors that affected PHC patients’ survival.ConclusionsPlasma cfDNA concentration in PHC patients is more sensitive and specific than any other tumor marker. It is an independent risk factor for PHC patients treated with TACE. Therefore, it is hypothesized cfDNA is a potential biomarker for prognostic evaluation of PHC patients treated with TACE.     

Impact of Patients’ Gender on Efficacy of Immunotherapy in Patients With Metastatic Kidney Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Recent meta-analyses on checkpoint inhibitors in cancer report conflicting data regarding the association of patient gender with inhibitor efficacy. In advanced kidney cancer, checkpoint inhibitors have shown improved outcomes in first- and second-line settings compared with standard of care, but the role of patient gender on treatment outcome is unclear. We aimed to assess the efficacy of immunotherapy according to patient gender in advanced kidney cancer.We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. A literature search was performed using PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and The Cochrane Library to identify eligible studies published through February 16, 2019. Studies were included if they reported on the differential outcomes of male and female patients with metastatic kidney cancer receiving immunotherapy. Our outcomes of interest were overall survival (OS) or progression-free survival (PFS).Four randomized controlled trials comprising a total of 3664 patients (2715 males and 949 females) met our inclusion criteria. Both men and women with metastatic kidney cancer had an OS and PFS advantage with immunotherapy compared with standard-of-care, but no statistically significant difference between the genders was observed (OS hazard ratio [HR] for men, 0.69; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.59-0.8; P = .40; HR for women, 0.62; 95% CI, 0.48-0.81; P = .13; PFS HR for men, 0.7; 95% CI, 0.59-0.82; P = .24; HR for women, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.52-0.90; P = .105).In patients with advanced kidney cancer receiving checkpoint inhibitors, there seems to be no association of patient gender with treatment outcome.     

Tumor-to-tumor metastases: Latent renal cell carcinoma discovered after elective surgical resection of a convexity meningioma

BackgroundTumor-to-tumor metastases are extremely rarely reported lesions, which usually involve an indolent lesion hosting a more aggressive neoplasm. We present an unusual initial manifestation of a previously unknown clear cell renal cell carcinoma as a tumor-to-tumor metastasis in a typical meningothelial meningioma.Case reportA 73-year old patient with transient left slight monoparesis was addressed to our Neurosurgical Department after being evaluated by his general practitioner and passing a cerebral MRI which revealed a right frontotemporal mass attached to the meninge. At presentation, no deficits were identified; therefore an elective surgery was proposed. Histological analysis revealed a typical meningothelial meningioma containing a metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma. Additional thoraco-abdominal computer tomography identified a 6 cm diameter lesion within the right kidney with radiological features highly suggestive of a primary clear cell renal cell carcinoma.ConclusionOur case highlights the need for a specialized neuropathological approach to clinical and imagistic indolent meningiomas, as they may require important differential diagnosis that can highly impact the treatment and follow-up of brain tumor patients.     

The role of WNT signalling in urothelial cell carcinoma

Urothelial cell carcinoma (UCC) of the bladder is one of the most common malignancies, causing considerable morbidity and mortality worldwide. It is unique among the epithelial carcinomas as two distinct pathways to tumourigenesis appear to exist: low grade, recurring papillary tumours usually contain oncogenic mutations in FGFR3 or HRAS whereas high grade, muscle invasive tumours with metastatic potential generally have defects in the pathways controlled by the tumour suppressors p53 and retinoblastoma. Over the last two decades, a number of transgenic mouse models of UCC, containing deletions or mutations of key tumour suppressor genes or oncogenes, have helped us understand the mechanisms behind tumour development. In this summary, I present my work investigating the role of the WNT signalling cascade in UCC.