Publications by authors named "Lorena Marimon"

Objective: Endocervical curettage (ECC) is the gold standard for predicting the persistence of high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL) after cervical conization. However, ECC has a high rate of unsatisfactory samples and may be uncomfortable for women. Endocervical sampling with brush (ECB) has been proposed as an alternative to ECC, which, in addition to the cytological evaluation, allows performing HPV testing using the same sample.

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  • Perinatal mortality is notably high in low- and middle-income countries, with accurate fetal gestational age assessment essential for differentiating between prematurity and intrauterine growth restriction for better management strategies.
  • The study conducted in Barcelona sought to validate post-mortem ultrasound measurements of the cerebellum as a method for estimating gestational age in cases of fetal and perinatal deaths.
  • Findings demonstrated a strong correlation between various cerebellar measurements and gestational age, with the extrauterine transcerebellar diameter emerging as the most reliable predictor, regardless of the trimester in which the measurement was taken.
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  • Scientists don't know much about vulvar squamous cell carcinoma (VSCC), a cancer mostly found in older women, especially about its mutations and how different types affect survival.
  • In a study of 60 patients, they found three main types of VSCC related to the human papillomavirus (HPV) and some common gene mutations, particularly in the TP53 gene.
  • Patients with mutations in TP53 and CCND1 had a much higher chance of their cancer coming back, suggesting that these changes could help doctors find better treatments for VSCC.
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  • - Penile squamous cell carcinoma (PSCC) is divided into two main types: HPV-associated and HPV-independent, with the prognosis being influenced by the status of the p53 protein, which is somewhat debated.
  • - A study involving 122 PSCC patients explored the correlation between HPV and p53 status, categorizing tumors into three subtypes based on immunohistochemistry and HPV tests.
  • - Results showed that patients with HPV-independent tumors and abnormal p53 patterns had significantly worse outcomes, with a higher rate of disease-related deaths compared to those with HPV-associated or HPV-independent/p53-normal tumors.
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p53 immunohistochemistry (IHC) has been proposed as a surrogate for mutations in penile squamous cell carcinomas (PSCC). We aimed to evaluate the performance of a pattern-based evaluation of p53 IHC in PSCC. Human papilloma virus (HPV) DNA testing, p16 and p53 IHC, and whole exome sequencing were performed in a series of 40 PSCC.

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Introduction: Based on their etiological relationship with human papillomavirus (HPV), the 2020 WHO classification has divided vulvar squamous cell carcinomas (VSCC) into two distinct types, HPV-associated and HPV-independent, and HPV-independent tumours have recently been divided according to p53 status. Nevertheless, the clinical and prognostic significance of this classification has not been clearly established. We analysed the differential clinical, pathological, and behavioural characteristics of these three types of VSCC in a large series of patients.

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Women with high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions/cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (HSIL/CIN) are at high risk of anal human papillomavirus HPV infection, and it has also been suggested that self-inoculation of the virus from the anal canal to the cervix could explain HPV recurrence in the cervix after treatment of HSIL/CIN. We aimed to evaluate the bidirectional interactions of HPV infection between these two anatomical sites. We evaluated 68 immunocompetent women undergoing excisional treatment for HSIL/CIN.

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Aims: Each category of vulvar squamous cell carcinoma (VSCC), human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated and HPV-independent, arises on a specific intra-epithelial precursor: high-grade squamous intra-epithelial lesions (HSIL) and differentiated vulvar intra-epithelial neoplasia (dVIN), respectively. However, a subset of HPV-independent VSCC arises on an intra-epithelial precursor closely mimicking HSIL. We aimed to explore the clinicopathological features of the HPV-independent tumours with HSIL-like lesions and compare them with HPV-independent VSCC with dVIN and HPV-associated tumours with HSIL.

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Penile squamous cell carcinomas (PSCC) are classified by the World Health Organization into two categories based on their relationship with the human papillomavirus (HPV): HPV-associated and HPV-independent. We compared a cohort of PSCC from Mozambique, a sub-Saharan country in southeast Africa with a high prevalence of HPV and HIV infection, and Spain, a country in southwestern Europe with a low prevalence of HPV and HIV, to study the distribution of the etiopathogenic categories of these tumors in both sites. A total of 79 PSCC were included in the study (28 from Mozambique and 51 from Spain).

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  • Two pathways for vulvar squamous cell carcinomas (VSCC) are identified: one linked to HPV and the other not; the study compares cases from Mozambique, which has high HPV and HIV prevalence, to Spain with lower rates.
  • In the study, 97% of VSCC cases in Mozambique were HPV-associated, compared to only 19% in Spain, highlighting a significant difference (P < .001).
  • Additionally, the average age of patients was much younger in Mozambique (45 years) than in Spain (72 years), emphasizing the differing demographics and potential implications for VSCC prevention strategies worldwide.
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Several questions regarding the role of vaccination in women treated for high-grade cervical intraepithelial lesion (HSIL) have not been clarified. One of the main queries is whether the time at which the vaccine is administered (before or after treatment) influences the protection against post-treatment HSIL. A second unanswered question is whether the vaccine has any effect in women with persistent HPV after treatment.

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  • The study focuses on HPV-independent penile squamous cell carcinomas (PSCCs) and their possible origins from an intraepithelial precursor known as differentiated penile intraepithelial neoplasia.
  • Out of 55 surgical PSCC specimens from 2000 to 2021, 36 (65%) were found to be HPV-independent, with 26 of those containing a precursor lesion and 5 of them showing features similar to high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL) typically associated with HPV.
  • The research highlights the importance of using p16 immunohistochemical staining to identify these unique lesions in PSCC, which are morphologically similar to HPV-associated HSIL, an aspect not previously detailed
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  • Penile squamous cell carcinoma (PSCC) is a rare and aggressive type of cancer that can be linked to the human papillomavirus (HPV) or occur without it.
  • Researchers reviewed genetic changes in PSCC, looking at DNA mutations and differences in gene numbers but found that studies varied a lot in methods and results.
  • The study suggests that treating PSCC might work better if different biological pathways are targeted together, and more comprehensive research is needed to understand this cancer better.
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Background: Minimally invasive tissue sampling (MITS), an alternative to complete diagnostic autopsy, is a pathology-based postmortem examination that has been validated in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and can provide accurate cause of death information when used with other data. The MITS Surveillance Alliance was established in 2017 with the goal to expand MITS globally by increasing training capacity, accessibility, and availability in LMICs. Between January 2019 and May 2020, the MITS Surveillance Alliance convened a multidisciplinary team of technical advisors to attain this goal.

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Background: Infectious diseases' outbreak investigation requires, by definition, conducting a thorough epidemiological assessment while simultaneously obtaining biological samples for an adequate screening of potential responsible pathogens. Complete autopsies remain the gold-standard approach for cause-of-death evaluation and characterization of emerging diseases. However, for highly transmissible infections with a significant associated lethality, such as COVID-19, complete autopsies are seldom performed due to biosafety challenges, especially in low-resource settings.

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Background: Available information on the causes of death among people living with human immunodeficiency virus (PLHIV) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) remains scarce. We aimed to provide data on causes of death in PLHIV from two LMICs, Brazil and Mozambique, to assess the impact of clinical misdiagnosis on mortality rates and to evaluate the accuracy of minimally invasive tissue sampling (MITS) in determining the cause of death in PLHIV.

Methods: We performed coupled MITS and complete autopsy on 164 deceased PLHIV (18 children, 36 maternal deaths, and 110 adults).

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  • Minimally invasive tissue sampling (MITS) is a postmortem procedure that can replace complete autopsy (CA) for analyzing COVID-19 deaths, especially in high-infection settings.
  • The study involved 12 COVID-19 positive deceased individuals and showed that MITS effectively matched CA diagnoses, confirming COVID-19's role in causing lung damage in most cases.
  • MITS is deemed a safe and effective alternative to CA, with all medical personnel testing negative for COVID-19 throughout the study.
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Objective: To evaluate whether E7 mRNA can predict the risk of progression in women with HPV16 infection.

Design: A prospective observational study.

Setting: A tertiary university hospital.

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Vulvar squamous cell carcinoma (VSCC) is a rare malignancy with dual pathogenesis, Human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated and HPV-independent, with a poorly explored molecular landscape. We aimed to summarize the findings of the series analyzing molecular hallmarks of this neoplasm. In January 2021, we conducted a comprehensive literature search using Pubmed Medline and Scopus to identify publications focused on genomic profiling of VSCC.

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  • Global malaria mortality estimates are often unreliable due to issues with verbal autopsy and clinical records; this study evaluates the accuracy of these methods alongside minimally invasive autopsy (MIA) in Mozambique.
  • The study analyzed 264 deaths, revealing that malaria was directly responsible for only 2.3% of cases, but the MIA was highly effective with 100% sensitivity and specificity in identifying malaria infections.
  • The findings suggest that using the MIA could enhance the reliability of malaria mortality estimates in regions where the disease is prevalent.
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Postmortem studies are crucial for providing insight into emergent diseases. However, a complete autopsy is frequently not feasible in highly transmissible diseases due to biohazard challenges. Minimally invasive autopsy (MIA) is a needle-based approach aimed at collecting samples of key organs without opening the body, which may be a valid alternative in these cases.

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Background: Histoplasmosis is acquired by inhalation of spores of the dimorphic fungus Histoplasma spp. Although this pathogen is distributed worldwide, it is more prevalent in the Americas. However, the real burden of histoplasmosis remains undefined in many endemic regions.

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Malacoplakia is an uncommon chronic granulomatous inflammation that rarely affects the female genital tract. A case of a 78-year-old woman with malacoplakia involving the uterine cervix and the vagina is described. The patient complained of vaginal bleeding.

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Recently published guidelines stratify the risk of high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion/grade 3 cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (HSIL/CIN3) based on hrHPV detection and Pap smear results. However, colposcopic impression could also provide valuable information for risk estimation. We aimed to analyze the value of adding colposcopic impression to screening tests for the diagnosis of HSIL/CIN3 in 302 women referred for colposcopy due to an abnormal Pap smear.

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