Socioeconomic inequality of cancer mortality in the United States: a spatial data mining approach

Background  

The objective of this study was to demonstrate the use of an association rule mining approach to discover associations between selected socioeconomic variables and the four most leading causes of cancer mortality in the United States. An association rule mining algorithm was applied to extract associations between the 1988–1992 cancer mortality rates for colorectal, lung, breast, and prostate cancers defined at the Health Service Area level and selected socioeconomic variables from the 1990 United States census. Geographic information system technology was used to integrate these data which were defined at different spatial resolutions, and to visualize and analyze the results from the association rule mining process.     

Chemoprevention of spontaneous tumorigenesis in nullizygous p53- deficient mice by dehydroepiandrosterone and its analog 16alpha-fluoro- 5-androsten-17-one

Transgenic mice with both alleles of the p53 tumor suppressor gene product 'knocked out' by gene targeting are susceptible to early development of tumors, chiefly lymphomas and sarcomas. Compared with the control group, administration of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) at 0.3% of the diet to male p53-deficient mice extended their lifespan by delaying death due to neoplasms (from 105 to 166 days on study, P = 0.002), primarily by suppressing lymphoblastic lymphoma (from 45 to 6% of neoplastic deaths, P = 0.010). Treatment with a synthetic DHEA analog, 16alpha-fluoro-5-androsten-17-one (compound 8354), at 0.15% of the diet also increased lifespan, to 140 days for mice that developed tumors (P = 0.037). The effects of these steroids on lifespan and tumor development did not appear to be strongly related to inhibition of food consumption and weight gain, in that a group pair-fed with control diet to the reduced food consumption of the DHEA-treated group developed and died of the same types of neoplasms at the same rate as the controls fed ad libitum. The chemopreventive effect of these steroids has been proposed to be due to suppression of DNA synthesis by inhibition of glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase, the rate-limiting enzyme of the pentose phosphate pathway. Although DHEA and its analog are strong non- competitive inhibitors of this enzyme in vitro, treatment with DHEA did not deplete cellular nucleotide pools in the liver, as would have been predicted. The chemopreventive effect of DHEA in this model may be due to steroid-induced thymic atrophy and suppression of T cell lymphoma, permitting these mice to survive long enough to develop tumors with longer latency.      

Prevalence and impact of chronic childhood conditions in Auckland, New Zealand

Objective : To establish the prevalence of specific chronic conditions of childhood in the Auckland area and to quantify resource use by these children.
Methodology : Estimates were made from available registry data and published data sources of the population of children with selected chronic conditions resident in the Auckland Area Health Board area. Resource use data were extracted for admissions to Auckland public hospitals and from providers of community based technology services.
Results : The largest community prevalence groups are those with asthma, intellectual handicap, congenital heart disease and epilepsy. Children aged 0-14 with chronic conditions accounted for at least 14340 hospital days stay in Auckland in 1992 at an estimated minimum cost of $7.9 million. Over 200 children are dependent on technological aids at home.
Conclusions : There are sparse data on the numbers and needs of children with chronic conditions in the population. A non-categorical approach which crosses disease entities may be the best method of meeting common needs.     

Induction Of ovulation

Sixty-one patients with anovulation as a cause of infertility were selected for our study. Various ovulation-inducing drugs were used like clomiphene citrate, human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG), human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), bromergocryptine and leptadene. The response of the different drugs was observed by serial sonography for ovulation. Indeed there was a good response to clomiphene citrate, but those patients who failed to respond to clomiphene citrate and were frustrated with the use of hMG and hCG due to the cost and the complications of the therapy were put on Aloe compound and leptadene - an ayurvedic drug which enhances fertility in different ways.     

Glutaric aciduria type I associated with learning disability

The authors report a 7-year-8-months-old boy with glutaric aciduria type I who had associated dyslexia, dysgraphia and dyscalculia. The diagnosis of glutaric aciduria type I was confirmed on the basis of characteristic neuroimaging and biochemical findings. Axial T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging scan of the brain showed fronto-temporal atrophy, open opercula and bat-wing dilatation of the sylvian fissures. Axial T[2]-weighted and FLAIR imaging showed hyperintense signal abnormality in both putamen and in the fronto-parietal deep white matter. Urinary aminoacidogram by thin layer chromatography revealed a generalized aminoaciduria. Urinary organic acid analysis by gas chromatography- mass spectroscopy revealed a marked excretion of glutaric acid. Psychoeducational testing was used to diagnose the learning disability. We postulate that the accumulation of glutaric acid and other metabolites was responsible for the child developing the associated learning disability.     

Systemic humicolus cryptococcosis

We report a 71/2-year-boy with disseminated systemic cryptococcosis. Although other species have been incriminated, this appears to be the first report of Cryptococcus humicolus. The child was HIV negative. He was treated with amphotericin B and fluconazole with intensive supportive care. The child responded after 6 weeks and is now on maintenance fluconazole therapy.     

Murine neuronal progenitor cells are preferentially recruited to tumor vasculature via alpha4-integrin and SDF-1alpha-dependent mechanisms

Recent studies have described neuronal progenitor cell recruitment to tumors in vivo, however, the mechanisms mediating this recruitment are not yet understood. When C17.2 murine neuronal progenitors stably expressing luciferase (C17.2-luc) were adoptively transferred into mice carrying subcutaneous Lewis lung carcinomas they accumulated at 1% injected dose/g of tumor tissue. C17.2-luc demonstrated significantly greater accumulation and transmigration on tumor-derived endothelium (TEC) than on normal endothelium under physiologically relevant flow conditions. Function blocking of alpha4-integrin reduced recruitment of C17.2-luc cells to normal endothelium but not to TEC, however, function blocking of SDF-1alpha reduced overall accumulation of C17.2-luc on TEC and specifically reduced transendothelial migration. Together, these data suggest that recruitment of C17.2-luc cells to TEC is mediated via SDF-1alpha/CXCR4 activation that results in modification of alpha4-integrin and results in improved recruitment of C17.2-luc cells.