Hydatid disease: an unusual breast lump

Hydatid disease of the breast is rare, but it should be included under differential diagnosis of a breast lump especially in endemic areas of this disease. Fine needle aspiration cytology can provide a safe pre-operative diagnosis, although mammogram, ultrasonography of breast, magnetic resonance imaging and serological tests like Casoni's test can also be done. Complete excision of the cyst without spillage can be a curative procedure for primary hydatid cyst of the breast. It is important to explore other common sites like liver and lung by means of ultrasonography and chest x-ray and treat accordingly. Here in this report, a lady of 27 years old presented with a painless lump of the left breast. Fine needle aspiration cytology was inconclusive. Lumpectomy was done. Histopathological examination confirmed it to be a case of hydatid disease involving the left breast.     

Dendritic cells pulsed with HER-2/neu-derived peptides can induce specific T-cell responses in patients with gastric cancer.

PURPOSE: We have previously reported (K. Kono et al., Int. J. Cancer, 78: 202-208, 1998) that HER-2/neu-derived peptides are naturally processed as tumor-associated antigens recognized by tumor-specific, human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A2-restricted CTLs in gastric cancer. In the present study, we described a Phase-1 vaccination trial in gastric cancer patients using dendritic cells (DCs) pulsed with the immunodominant HER-2/neu(p369) peptides. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Nine enrolled patients, who had HER-2/neu-overexpressing tumors and who were HLA-A2 positive, received four vaccinations by DCs pulsed with HER-2(p369) peptide at 2-week intervals intradermally. RESULTS: There were no serious adverse effects noted in the immunized patients. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells, preimmunization and after the fourth immunization, were cultured with autologous, HER-2(p369)-pulsed antigen-presenting cells for 12 days. Thereafter, peptide specificity was evaluated by IFN-gamma secretion assay from cultured T cells against T2 cells pulsed with HER-2(p369) peptide. HER-2/neu peptide-specific recognition could be demonstrated in six of nine patients after immunization, whereas there was no HER-2/neu peptide-specific recognition before immunization. The peptide-specific CTL lines isolated from two of the patients could also lyse a HER2/neu-transfected cell line. Furthermore, a peptide-specific delayed-type hypersensitivity response occurred in three of nine patients. One of the patients underwent a partial clinical response concurrent with a decrease of tumor marker. Another patient demonstrated a stabilization of disease status for a period of 3 months. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, tumor vaccination therapy with DCs pulsed with HER-2/neu-peptides may be a potential candidate for the novel treatment of gastric cancer patients.     

Potential transmission of the cytogenetic effects of cisplatin in the male germline cells of Swiss mice

Cisplatin (CP) (in Oncoplatin), a widely used drug in cancer chemotherapy, and cyclophosphamide (CY) (in Endoxan), another anticancer drug, were investigated as the test chemical and positive control, respectively, for their cytogenetic effects on spermatogonia of mice at 24 hours post-treatment after a single exposure. The different doses of the chemicals tested were CP 2, 3, 5 mg/kg and CY 40 mg/kg b.w. of mice. Each of the doses of CP induced a significant number of chromosomal aberrations, mostly chromatid breaks and fragments. The potential transmission of such cytogenetic effects of the chemicals from spermatogonia to spermatocytes was assessed at week 4 post-treatment from the primary spermatocytes, which showed a significant number of aberrant spermatocytes with atypical bivalents viz. spermatocytes with autosomal and/or XY univalents, tetravalents and with extra elements. The probable causes of the formation of univalents and tetravalents are discussed. The transmission of the cytogenetic effects of the chemicals from spermatogonia up to sperm was assessed at week 8 post-treatment from the morphology of sperm collected from vas. Quantitatively the transmission of such effects was found decreased substantially by the time the exposed spermatogonia became sperm. Still there was the occurrence of a few abnormal sperm at week 8 post-treatment. The probable causes of the quantitative decrease in the transmission of the effects from spermtogonia to sperm are discussed.     

Total gastric necrosis in a neonate.

Necrosis of the entire stomach is extremely rare in neonates. We report a case of total gastric necrosis in a full-term neonate. The possible pathophysiology, diagnostic features and therapeutic options for gastric necrosis in a newborn are discussed.     

Heterotopic spinal cord?

Unusual morphological findings were encountered in a high cervical meningomyelocele sac of a neonate. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed a massive liquid-filled sac traversed by a linear structure. The spinal cord was seen to be located normally within the spinal canal. At operation, a spinal cord-like structure was identified within the sac. This cord terminated posteriorly at the neural tissue lining the meningomyelocele sac. There were fibrous strands connecting the cord to the sac like the rigging of a ship. The anterior end of this cord terminated in a fibrous band. It extended upwards into the spinal canal through the narrow neck of the meningoyelocele sac above the arch of the atlas. The whole of this cord, along with the meningomyelocele sac, was excised. Histological analysis confirmed that this spinal cord-like structure consisted of glial tissue with an ependymal-lined cavity. The excised sac was lined by neural tissue.     

Indian Council of Medical Research. Task Force on Hormonal Contraception: Phase II randomized clinical trial with norethisterone oenanthate 50 mg alone and in combination with 5 mg or 2.5 mg of either estradiol valerate or cypionate as a monthly injectable contraceptive

A Phase II multicentric study was carried out to compare the different contraceptive treatment schedules of the monthly injectable consisting of norethisterone oenanthate (NET OEN) 50 mg either given alone or in combination with estrogen esters, 2.5 or 5 mg of estradiol valerate (E2 Val.) or estradiol cypionate (E2 Cyp.). A total of 364 women were observed for 1686 months of use. Analysis of the bleeding pattern data indicated that NET OEN 50 mg when given alone gave rise to delayed cycles and/or amenorrhoea. However, the addition of estrogen esters in a dose of either 2.5 or 5 mg provided significantly better bleeding patterns. Of the different treatment schedules investigated, the combination of NET OEN 50 mg with E2 Val. 5 mg provided more consistent and better cycle control. These findings however need further validation on a larger study sample.     

Male breast carcinoma: an updated experience at a Veterans Administration Hospital and review of the literature

Ten cases of male breast carcinoma are reviewed. Male patients with breast cancer on the average are 10 years older than females, and they delay twice as long as females after noting a breast mass before seeking medical attention. Because of this patient's delay, male breast cancer tends to be more advanced at the time of diagnosis and initial therapy than female breast cancer.     

Pathogenesis of unilateral proptosis

A series of 34 patients presenting with unilateral proptosis has been studied in order to evaluate the mechanism of proptosis. It is observed that symmetrical (axial) proptosis is usually the result of generalised increase in intraorbital contents and occurs in thyroid disease and with intracranial lesions lying remote from the orbit. Rarely, in myasthenia gravis, it may be caused by myogenic paralysis of the extraocular muscles. Asymmetrical proptosis is the result of localised increase in intraorbital contents, and this occurs with expanding lesions of the orbit and in lesions arising from neighbouring structures and enroaching the orbit.