Prevalence, course and factors associated with delirium in elderly patients with advanced cancer: a longitudinal observational study.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of delirium on admission, the course of delirium during a 2-week period after admission and factors associated with delirium on admission, among elderly patients with advanced cancer.

Methods: Patients aged ≥ 65 years with incurable lung or gastroenterological cancer and the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status 2 or greater were continuously sampled after admission to a university hospital. Participants were evaluated for DSM-IV-TR delirium by trained psychiatrists and the delirium subtype was assessed using the Delirium Motor Subtype Scale within 4 days after admission and again 2 weeks later.

Significance of c-MET overexpression in cytotoxic anticancer drug-resistant small-cell lung cancer cells.

The c-MET receptor tyrosine kinase is the receptor for hepatocyte growth factor. Recently, activation of the c-MET/hepatocyte growth factor signaling pathway was associated with poor prognosis in various solid tumors and was one of the mechanisms of acquired resistance to epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor, gefitinib. But the link between c-MET activation and the cytotoxic anticancer drug has not been fully examined.

Transformed lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma involving the main carina: A case report.

A 41-year-old male was admitted to Nagoya City University Hospital subsequent to experiencing a cough with bloody sputum for a few days. The patient had a 4-year history of lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma (LPL) and had achieved a good partial response to anticancer chemotherapy. Chest computed tomography (CT) showed an endobronchial tumor of the main carina.

Involvement of intermediate filament nestin in cell growth of small-cell lung cancer.

Background: Nestin is a class VI intermediate filament protein expressed in stem/progenitor cells during the development of the central nervous system. Nestin is detected in various types of tumors and is involved in malignant processes. This study investigated the expression and function of nestin in small-cell lung cancer (SCLC).

Thymidylate synthase gene copy number as a predictive marker for response to pemetrexed treatment of lung adenocarcinoma.

Background: Pemetrexed is a key drug for therapy of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Materials And Methods: In a search for biomarkers for study of the efficacy of pemetrexed treatment, we examined the thymidylate synthase (TYMS) copy number in NSCLC cell lines and in clinical NSCLC samples treated with pemetrexed, combined with platinum drugs.

Results: TYMS copy numbers in lung adenocarcinoma cell lines were significantly lower than in squamous cell carcinoma (p=0.

Histology and smoking status predict survival of patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer. Results of West Japan Oncology Group (WJOG) Study 3906L.

Introduction: Smoking status is one of the prognostic factors in advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Currently, adenocarcinoma (Ad) histology is considered a predictive factor in advanced NSCLC. We investigated the correlation between histology or smoking status and survival of NSCLC patients receiving chemotherapy.

Analgesic effect of switching from oral opioids to a once-a-day fentanyl citrate transdermal patch in patients with lung cancer.

A new once-a-day fentanyl citrate transdermal patch was developed in Japan. We retrospectively investigated analgesic and adverse effects of this drug in 24 patients with lung cancer. All patients were started on this patch by switching from an oral opioid.

Diagnosis of ovarian cancers using thoracoscopy: Three case reports and review of the literature.

Thoracoscopy is a useful method for diagnosing plural lesions. We diagnosed 3 cases of ovarian adenocarcinoma by thoracoscopy. All patients were middle-aged and elderly women.

Preclinical rationale for synergistic interaction of pemetrexed and cytotoxic nucleoside analogues.

Cytotoxic nucleoside analogues are widely used in cancer chemotherapy. We used the cytosine arabinoside (Ara-C)-resistant erythroleukaemia cell line K562 and the Ara-C-sensitive myeloid leukaemia cell line HL60 to examine the differential expression of molecular markers. We found increased expression levels of deoxycytidine kinase (dCK) and human equilibrative nucleoside transporter 1 (hENT1) and decreased levels of multidrug resistance protein 5 (ABCC5) and ribonucleoside reductase subunit M1 (RRM1) expression in Ara-C-sensitive HL60 cells.

S-1 monotherapy for previously treated non-small cell lung cancer: A retrospective analysis by age and histopathological type.

S-1, an oral fluoropyrimidine derivative, has been approved for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in Japan. In the present study, the efficacy and safety of S-1 monotherapy for elderly patients with previously treated NSCLC were retrospectively evaluated, and the efficacy of S-1 monotherapy was compared by histopathological type. This retrospective study included 54 patients with advanced or recurrent NSCLC who had received S-1 monotherapy following the failure of previous chemotherapy regimens at our institutes.

C609T polymorphism of NAD(P)H quinone oxidoreductase 1 as a predictive biomarker for response to amrubicin.

Introduction: Amrubicin is a promising agent in the treatment of lung cancer, but predictive biomarkers have not yet been described. NAD(P)H:quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1) is an enzyme known to metabolize amrubicinol, the active metabolite of amrubicin, to an inactive compound. We examined the relationship between NQO1 and amrubicinol cytotoxicity.

Over-expression of MDR1 in amrubicinol-resistant lung cancer cells.

Purpose: Amrubicin, a totally synthetic 9-aminoanthracycline anticancer drug, has shown promising activity for lung cancer, but little is known about the mechanism of resistance for this agent. This study was aimed to clarify the role of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) in amrubicinol, an active metabolite of amrubicin, resistance in lung cancer cells.

Methods: Amrubicinol-resistant cell line PC-6/AMR-OH was developed by continuously exposing the small-cell lung cancer cell line PC-6 to amrubicinol.

Amrubicin monotherapy for elderly patients with previously treated lung cancer.

Objective: The novel anthracycline agent amrubicin, has been approved in Japan to treat small and non-small cell lung cancers (SCLC and NSCLC). The present study evaluates the toxicity and effect of amrubicin especially in elderly patients with previously treated lung cancer.

Patients And Methods: This retrospective study analyzed data from 51 patients (<70 years of age, n=29; > oor =70 years of age, n=22) with lung cancer (NSCLC, n=21; SCLC, n=30) who were treated with amrubicin at our hospital, between July 2003 and October 2009.

ABCC11/MRP8 confers pemetrexed resistance in lung cancer.

We have previously shown that overexpression of thymidylate synthetase (TS) resulted in pemetrexed (MTA) resistance. To investigate another mechanism of MTA resistance, we investigated the expression of ATP-binding cassette (ABC)-transporters in MTA-resistant lung cancer cell lines and found that the gene and protein expression of ABCC11/MRP8 (ABCC11) was higher in MTA-resistant cells than in the parental cells. The MTA resistant cells showed cross-resistance to methotrexate (MTX), which is a substrate for ABCC11, and intracellular MTX accumulation in MTA-resistant cells was lower than in the parental cells.

Efficacy of S-1 monotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer after the failure of two or more prior chemotherapy regimens.

The efficacy and safety of S-1 monotherapy for patients with advanced or recurrent non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after the failure of two or more prior chemotherapy regimens were investigated. Records of 36 patients with advanced or recurrent NSCLC who received S-1 monotherapy between January 2005 and December 2008, following the failure of previous chemotherapy, were reviewed retrospectively at two institutions. S-1 was given orally twice daily on days 1-28 every six weeks; the dose was based on body surface area.

[Two cases of recurrent non-small cell lung cancer successfully treated with S-1 as fifth-line chemotherapy].

There is at present no defined role for S-1 chemotherapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who previously failed chemotherapy. Two cases of multidrug-resistant, NSCLC that were successfully treated with S-1 as fifth-line chemotherapy are reported. A 75-year-old man was diagnosed as having pulmonary adenocarcinoma, cT1N3M0, stage III B.

Small-cell lung cancer arising after chemotherapy for a patient with lymphoma of pulmonary mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue-a case report.

A 76-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital with infiltrations evident in the right lower lobe on chest computed tomography. Bronchoscopic biopsy showed lymphoma of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT). Lymphoma of the pulmonary MALT became enlarged at 8 months after diagnosis and dyspnea developed.

Significance of thymidylate synthase for resistance to pemetrexed in lung cancer.

Pemetrexed (MTA) is a multitargeted antifolate with promising clinical activity in lung cancer. We exposed the small cell lung cancer cell line PC6 to stepwise-increasing pemetrexed concentrations of 0.4, 1.

Endobronchial metastasis from primary papillary serous carcinoma of the peritoneum.

A 59-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital with a left lower lobe opacity and mediastinal shift on the chest X-ray. She had been complaining of intermittent nonproductive cough and exertional dyspnea. Chest computed tomography (CT) showed an endobronchial tumor of the left main to the lower bronchus, atelectasis of the left lower lobe, and mediastinal shift.

ABCC10/MRP7 is associated with vinorelbine resistance in non-small cell lung cancer.

The non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells SK-LC6 and NCI-H23 were continuously exposed to vinorelbine (VNB), and the VNB-resistant clones, SK-LC6/VNB and H23/VNB were selected. Since SK-LS6/VNB and H23/VNB cells showed cross-resistance to certain anticancer drugs, such as paclitaxel and docetaxel, we examined the gene expression levels of drug efflux transporters of the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) family. We found that the gene expression of ABCB1/MDR1 and ABCC10/MRP7 in SK-LC6/VNB and H23/VNB cells was increased compared with that in SK-LS6 and NCI-H23 cells, whereas the expression of ABCC1/MRP1, ABCC2/MRP2, ABCC3/MRP3 and ABCG2/BCRP did not change among these cells.

Effects of FOXP3 gene polymorphism in sarcoidosis patients.

Background: FOXP3 is a critical regulator of the development and function of regulatory T (Treg) cells, which are capable of suppressing immune responses. A recent study showed that the presence of the (GT) n microsatellite polymorphism in the FOXP3 gene was associated with enhancer activity, resulting in an effect on type I diabetes mellitus. Furthermore, sarcoidosis reportedly increases the prevalence of Treg cells in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and peripheral blood.

MRP7/ABCC10 expression is a predictive biomarker for the resistance to paclitaxel in non-small cell lung cancer.

We used the paclitaxel-resistant human small cell lung cancer subline PC-6/TAX1-1, selected from PC-6 cells by paclitaxel, to test whether MRP7/ABCC10 (ABCC10) confers paclitaxel resistance. We found that gene expression of both ABCB1/MDR1 (ABCB1) and ABCC10 was higher in PC-6/TAX1-1 cells than in PC-6 cells. The expression levels of ABCC10 showed a significant inverse correlation with paclitaxel sensitivity (r = 0.

Alternative splicing due to an intronic SNP in HMSD generates a novel minor histocompatibility antigen.

Here we report the identification of a novel human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-B44-restricted minor histocompatibility antigen (mHA) with expression limited to hematopoietic cells. cDNA expression cloning studies demonstrated that the cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) epitope of interest was encoded by a novel allelic splice variant of HMSD, hereafter designated as HMSD-v. The immunogenicity of the epitope was generated by differential protein expression due to alternative splicing, which was completely controlled by 1 intronic single-nucleotide polymorphism located in the consensus 5' splice site adjacent to an exon.