Tumour-specific amplitude-modulated radiofrequency electromagnetic fields induce differentiation of hepatocellular carcinoma via targeting Ca3.2 T-type voltage-gated calcium channels and Ca influx.

Background: Administration of amplitude modulated 27·12 MHz radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (AM RF EMF) by means of a spoon-shaped applicator placed on the patient's tongue is a newly approved treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The mechanism of action of tumour-specific AM RF EMF is largely unknown.

Methods: Whole body and organ-specific human dosimetry analyses were performed.

Differentiating Intrarenal Ectopic Adrenal Tissue From Renal Cell Carcinoma in the Kidney.

Background: Adrenal rest (AR) is the presence of ectopic adrenal cortical tissue, often identified incidentally during autopsy (20% of postmortem examination). In the kidney, AR can be found in 6% of the general population. Ectopic adrenal tissue is of no functional significance but may in some cases, pose a diagnostic challenge for the pathologist, especially in the context of renal clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and small needle biopsies.

Mutational Landscapes of Smoking-Related Cancers in Caucasians and African Americans: Precision Oncology Perspectives at Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Cancers related to tobacco use and African-American ancestry are under-characterized by genomics. This gap in precision oncology research represents a major challenge in the health disparities in the United States. The Precision Oncology trial at the Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Cancer Center enrolled 431 cancer patients from March 2015 to May 2016.

Circulating mutational portrait of cancer: manifestation of aggressive clonal events in both early and late stages.

Background: Solid tumors residing in tissues and organs leave footprints in circulation through circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and circulating tumor DNAs (ctDNA). Characterization of the ctDNA portraits and comparison with tumor DNA mutational portraits may reveal clinically actionable information on solid tumors that is traditionally achieved through more invasive approaches.

Methods: We isolated ctDNAs from plasma of patients of 103 lung cancer and 74 other solid tumors of different tissue origins.

Cartilage-forming tumors.

Cartilage-forming tumors as a group are the most common primary bone tumors; this is largely due to the common occurrence of asymptomatic benign lesions such as osteochondroma and enchondroma. The common feature of these tumors is the presence of chondrocytic cells and the formation of cartilaginous tumor matrix. Some of these tumors are true neoplasms while others are hamartomas or developmental abnormalities.

Diagnosing bone lesions: a practical non-pathology centric formulaic approach.

Bone lesions are perceived to be some of the most difficult lesions that pathologists encounter. The reasons for this are multiple and include lack of experience/familiarity, the need to rely heavily on non-pathology information and data, and the fact that many lesions are associated with either procedures or treatments with significant morbidity. However, in fact, the majority of bone lesions can be accurately assessed on the basis of data not directly related to traditional pathologic based assessment.

Secondary chondrosarcoma of the pelvis arising from a solitary exostosis in an 11-year-old patient: a case report with 5-year follow-up.

Although conversion of an osteochondroma to chondrosarcoma is a well-described rare occurrence, it is usually associated with syndromes such as multiple hereditary exostoses and is much more common after maturity. We present here a rare case of secondary pelvic chondrosarcoma arising from a solitary exostosis in a pediatric patient. An 11-year-old, otherwise healthy, female was referred to our clinic for evaluation of a pelvic mass detected on a radiograph.

Relationship between HER-2 overexpression and brain metastasis in esophageal cancer patients.

Aim: To study if HER-2 overexpression by locally advanced esophageal cancers increase the chance of brain metastasis following esophagectomy.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of esophageal cancer patients who underwent esophagectomy at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics between 2000 and 2010. Data analyzed consisted of demographic and clinical variables.

Putative multifunctional signature of lung metastases in dedifferentiated chondrosarcoma.

Chondrosarcomas are among the most malignant skeletal tumors. Dedifferentiated chondrosarcoma is a highly aggressive subtype of chondrosarcoma, with lung metastases developing within a few months of diagnosis in 90% of patients. In this paper we performed comparative analyses of the transcriptomes of five individual metastatic lung lesions that were surgically resected from a patient with dedifferentiated chondrosarcoma.

Consensus statement on effective communication of urgent diagnoses and significant, unexpected diagnoses in surgical pathology and cytopathology from the College of American Pathologists and Association of Directors of Anatomic and Surgical Pathology.

Context: Recognizing the difficulty in applying the concept of critical values to anatomic pathology diagnoses, the College of American Pathologists and the Association of Directors of Anatomic and Surgical Pathology have chosen to reevaluate the concept of critical diagnoses.

Objective: To promote effective communication of urgent and significant, unexpected diagnoses in surgical pathology and cytology.

Design: A comprehensive literature search was conducted and reviewed by an expert panel.

Leiomyosarcoma of the head and neck: a population-based analysis.

Objectives: To describe the characteristics of head and neck leiomyosarcoma and to identify factors associated with survival.

Design: Retrospective population-based study.

Patients: The 17-registry Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database was used to identify 578 patients with leiomyosarcoma of the head and neck.

Micro-recanalization in a biodegradable graft for reconstruction of the vas deferens is enhanced by sildenafil citrate.

This study investigated the effect of sildenafil citrate on micro-recanalization and neovascularization, which were previously demonstrated in a rat model using biodegradable grafts (BGs) for vas deferens reconstruction. A total of 24 male rats underwent bilateral vasectomy with removal of a 0.5-cm vasal segment and were randomly assigned to four groups.

Antibody expiration in the context of resource limitation: what is the evidence basis?

The implementation and enforcement of the College of American Pathologists Survey Checklist ANP 22432 has renewed attention on the issue of outdating of antibodies used for immunohistochemical analysis. The current study examined the staining patterns of 26 recently acquired primary antibodies and their expired counterparts. Two reviewers examined sequential sections of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue samples for staining intensity and percentage of positivity.

Frequent attenuation of the WWOX tumor suppressor in osteosarcoma is associated with increased tumorigenicity and aberrant RUNX2 expression.

The WW domain-containing oxidoreductase (WWOX) is a tumor suppressor that is deleted or attenuated in most human tumors. Wwox-deficient mice develop osteosarcoma (OS), an aggressive bone tumor with poor prognosis that often metastasizes to lung. On the basis of these observations, we examined the status of WWOX in human OS specimens and cell lines.

Pathology education: quo vadis?

The teaching of pathology and the face of pathology as a career are changing rapidly. A short questionnaire was constructed covering key areas impacted by curricular change to collect data for a workshop to be held at the Annual Meeting of the West and Mid-West Region of the Association of Pathology Chairs. Questions included the ongoing existence of pathology as a separate discipline, the degree of 'control' exercised by pathology faculty, the length of the course (hours), the use of microscopes, and selected outcomes data, specifically National Board of Medical Examiners graphs of comparative performance of disciplines and US Medical Licensing Examination Step 1 data.

RDP58 inhibits T cell-mediated bladder inflammation in an autoimmune cystitis model.

Interstitial cystitis (IC) is a chronic inflammatory condition of the urinary bladder with a strong autoimmune component. Currently, the major challenge in IC treatment is the development of effective therapies. RDP58 is a novel d-amino acid decapeptide with potent immunosuppressive activity.

Her-2/neu expression in salivary duct carcinoma: an immunohistochemical and chromogenic in situ hybridization study.

Salivary duct carcinoma (SDC) shares significant morphologic and immunophenotypic overlap with ductal carcinoma of the breast, including HER-2/neu expression. Previous studies have detected HER-2/neu at the protein level in SDCs; however, no study, to date, has assayed whether this expression is related to gene amplification detected by chromogenic in situ hybridization (CISH). Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections from 12 previously diagnosed SDCs were evaluated by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and CISH for HER-2/neu status.

Comparison of fungal culture versus surgical pathology examination in the detection of Histoplasma in surgically excised pulmonary granulomas.

Context: Granulomatous pulmonary nodules are common in areas endemic for Histoplasma infection, and may require surgical excision to exclude neoplasia. Surgeons may elect to routinely send material directly to the clinical microbiology laboratory for fungal and mycobacterial cultures.

Objective: To determine if tissue from surgically excised pulmonary granulomatous nodules removed from patients in a geographic area endemic for Histoplasma infection should be routinely submitted for fungal culture.

Emerging eosinophilic (allergic) esophagitis: increased incidence or increased recognition?

Context: Eosinophilic esophagitis is a disease of the esophagus with distinct histologic features (prominent intraepithelial eosinophils, particularly superficial with clustering) and characteristic endoscopic features (trachealization, white plaques). The presence of intraepithelial eosinophils had been recognized since 1982 as indicative of reflux esophagitis but little attention was initially paid to their numbers or location. Eosinophilic esophagitis has been recently described and there have been a number of reports that its incidence is on the rise.

Somatostatin receptor scintigraphy in surveillance of pediatric brain malignancies.

Background: Somatostatin receptor scintigraphy (SRS) has been successfully used in imaging PBTs and, as a functional imaging modality, may be better able to differentiate tumor from scar/necrosis. This retrospective study evaluates the role of SRS in post-treatment surveillance of PBTs.

Procedure: Twenty children (age range: 7 months to 24 years, mean: 9 years) with known brain malignancies underwent serial SRS and MRI.

Chondroblastoma of the femoral diaphysis: report of a rare phenomenon and review of literature.

Chondroblastoma (CB) is a relatively rare yet well-studied benign neoplasm of bone. The purported neoplastic cell is the chondroblast, a cell which normally populates areas of secondary ossification. Numerous studies have shown that CB overwhelmingly arises from the epimetaphyseal region of skeletally immature individuals.

Ethanol as a local adjuvant for giant cell tumor of bone.

Giant cell tumor is an aggressive benign neoplasm of bone. A number of adjuvant agents have been used to supplement intralesional curettage to reduce the otherwise high local recurrence rate. High concentration ethanol is more readily available and less toxic to use than some common alternatives.