Severe Phlebitis Accompanying Vascular Rejection Type Acute T Cell-Mediated Rejection in Renal Transplantation.

Purpose: Renal transplant patients with vascular rejection type acute T cell-mediated rejection (ATCMR) grade II have a poor prognosis. Vascular lesions in those cases are thought to randomly occur, thus we searched for a novel pathological marker related to vascular rejection in kidney transplantation.

Methods: We determined pathological characteristics in 14 ATCMR grade II patients treated during an acute phase from 2004 to 2013.

Role of Androgen Receptor in Prostate Cancer: A Review.

Androgen receptor (AR) is a steroid receptor transcriptional factor for testosterone and dihydrotestosterone consisting of four main domains, the N-terminal domain, DNA-binding domain, hinge region, and ligand-binding domain. AR plays pivotal roles in prostate cancer, especially castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Androgen deprivation therapy can suppress hormone-naïve prostate cancer, but prostate cancer changes AR and adapts to survive under castration levels of androgen.

Angiomyolipoma rebound tumor growth after discontinuation of everolimus in patients with tuberous sclerosis complex or sporadic lymphangioleiomyomatosis.

Introduction: The EXIST-2 (NCT00790400) study demonstrated the superiority of everolimus over placebo for the treatment of renal angiomyolipomas associated with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) or sporadic lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM). This post hoc analysis of EXIST-2 study aimed to assess angiomyolipoma tumor behavior among patients who submitted to continued radiographic examination following discontinuation of everolimus in the noninterventional follow-up phase.

Methods: For patients who discontinued everolimus at the completion of extension phase for reasons other than angiomyolipoma progression, a single CT/MRI scan of the kidney was collected after 1 year of treatment discontinuation.

Urinary biomarkers of prostate cancer.

The development of more specific biomarkers for prostate cancer and/or high-risk prostate cancer is necessary, because the prostate-specific antigen test lacks specificity for the detection of prostate cancer and can lead to unnecessary prostate biopsies. Urine is a promising source for the development of new biomarkers of prostate cancer. Biomarkers derived from prostate cancer cells are released into prostatic fluids and then into urine.

Results of weekday-on and weekend-off administration schedule of sunitinib therapy for advanced renal cell carcinoma.

Background: Sunitinib is widely prescribed as first-line therapy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma. To reduce the ratio of severe adverse events and improve the relative dose intensity, we prospectively tried our own alternative medication schedule, which we called the "weekday-on and weekend-off regimen". Here we report the results of this regimen compared to the conventional medication schedule.

STAT3 expression is a prognostic marker in upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma.

Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) plays a prominent role in the growth and invasion of several types of solid tumors. In this study, to assess the expression status and prognostic significance of the STAT3 pathway in upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC), we immunohistochemically stained for STAT3 and STAT3 pathway proteins, sphingosine-1-phosphate receptor 1 (S1PR1) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), in a tissue microarray containing 99 UTUC specimens. There were no significant associations between STAT3, S1PR1, or IL-6 expression pattern and tumor grade or pT stage.

Clinical evaluation of two consecutive UroVysion fluorescence in situ hybridization tests to detect intravesical recurrence of bladder cancer: a prospective blinded comparative study in Japan.

Background: We evaluated the use of UroVysion fluorescence in situ hybridization tests to detect the intravesical recurrence of bladder cancer during follow-up after a transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT).

Methods: In this prospective, blinded, comparative study, 486 patients treated by TURBT within the prior 2 years were registered at 12 centers. Urine cytology and UroVysion tests were performed once or twice at a central testing laboratory.

High-Fat Diet-Induced Inflammation Accelerates Prostate Cancer Growth via IL6 Signaling.

High-fat diet (HFD) could induce prostate cancer progression. The aim of this study is to identify mechanisms of HFD-induced prostate cancer progression, focusing on inflammation. We administered HFD and celecoxib to autochthonous immunocompetent Pb-Cre;(fl/fl) model mice for prostate cancer.

Increased level and fragmentation of plasma circulating cell-free DNA are diagnostic and prognostic markers for renal cell carcinoma.

Background: Reliable biomarkers for renal cell carcinoma (RCC) have yet to be found. Circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) is an emerging resource for the diagnosis and prognosis of various cancers. This study aims to identify novel blood biomarkers for RCC.

Comparison of Sensitivity of Immunocomplex Capture Fluorescence Analysis for Detecting Donor-specific Anti-HLA Class II Antibodies in Kidney Transplant Patients.

Background: Immunocomplex capture fluorescence analysis (ICFA) detects donor-specific antihuman leukocyte antigen (HLA) antibodies (DSA), but the detection sensitivity of HLA class II antibodies using conventional ICFA is as low as 57%. The aim of the study was to improve the detection sensitivity of HLA class II antibodies by ICFA, and compare the ICFA results with the Luminex single-antigen bead test.

Methods: Six DSA-negative kidney transplant donors and recipient pairs and 10 HLA class II DSA-positive pairs were included in the study.

[Midline Cyst of the Prostate with Increased Urinary Frequency and Urgency : A Case Report].

A 40-year-old man presented to our institution with a few-month history of increased urinary frequency, urgency and voiding difficulty. He had severe lower urinary tract symptoms with an International Prostate Symptom Score of 28 and quality of life score of 6. The mean urinary frequency and voided volume was 20 times per day and 150 ml, respectively.

[A Case of Bilateral Angiomyolipoma Accompanied by Tuberous Sclerosis Complex Successfully Treated with Transcatheter Arterial Embolization Using Functional Kidney Mapping Images Consisting of SPECT-CT and Contrast Enhanced CT Images].

Renal angiomyolipoma (AML) and aneurysm are common in tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) and represent the main causes of morbidity in adults with TSC. Herein, we report a 22-year-old woman with TSC-associated AMLs and renal aneurysms. She was referred to our hospital for the treatment of multiple renal aneurysms larger than 5 mm in diameter.

Expression of Phospho-ELK1 and Its Prognostic Significance in Urothelial Carcinoma of the Upper Urinary Tract.

Using preclinical models, we have recently found that ELK1, a transcriptional factor that activates downstream targets, including proto-oncogene, induces bladder cancer outgrowth. Here, we immunohistochemically determined the expression status of phospho-ELK1, an activated form of ELK1, in upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma (UUTUC). Overall, phospho-ELK1 was positive in 47 (47.

Uridine 5'diphospho-glucuronosyltransferase 1A expression as an independent prognosticator in urothelial carcinoma of the upper urinary tract.

Objective: To determine the expression status of uridine 5'diphospho-glucuronosyltransferase 1A, a major phase II drug metabolism enzyme, in upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma, as well as to assess its prognostic significance.

Methods: We immunohistochemically stained for uridine 5'diphospho-glucuronosyltransferase 1A in tissue microarray consisting of 99 upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma samples and paired non-neoplastic urothelial tissues. We also assessed the effect of uridine 5'diphospho-glucuronosyltransferase 1A knockdown on urothelial cancer cell growth.

[LAPAROSCOPIC BILATERAL ADRENALECTOMY FOR REFRACTORY CUSHING DISEASE: A CASE REPORT].

A 64-year-old man was diagnosed as having Cushing's disease due to multiple lumbar compression fracture in 2009. Although various treatments including three times transsphenoidal surgery and twice radiotherapy were performed, his serum cortisol level rose again and intractable cutaneous ulcer occurred. Just after discontinuation of medication to treat the progression due of severe hepatic dysfunction, deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary artery embolism occurred.

[Successful Embolization for Recurrent Varicocele of Testis after Microsurgical Subinguinal Varicocelectomy].

Microscopic subinguinal varicocelectomy has a recurrence of less than 1%, and varicocele recurrence is supposed to be an uncommon post-surgery adverse event. At present, no guidelines exist for the management of recurrent varicoceles after surgery. In this report, we present two cases of post-surgery recurrent varicocele of the testis.

[A Case of Adrenal Leiomyosarcoma].

A 61-year-oldman presentedwith a chief complaint of abdominal pain. Enhancedcomputed tomography andmagnetic resonance imaging showeda left adrenal mass with a diameter of 7 cm with heterogeneous enchancement. He was referredto our hospital for further treatment.

Can bladder preservation therapy come to the center stage?

Decision-making in urological cancer care requires a multidisciplinary approach for refinement, but its impact on urothelial carcinoma of the bladder has not been fully addressed for the past three decades, except for the latest immunological checkpoint inhibitor approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for metastatic muscle-invasive bladder cancer that is resistant to platinum-based chemotherapy.

Active heavy cigarette smoking is associated with poor survival in Japanese patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma: sub-analysis of the multi-institutional national database of the Japanese Urological Association.

Objective: The association between cigarette smoking and survival in patients with renal cell carcinoma is not well studied. We examined the impact of cigarette smoking on survival of patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma using the multi-institutional national database of the Japanese Urological Association.

Methods: From 340 Japanese institutions, 963 patients with renal cell carcinoma of clinical Stage 3 or higher were analyzed.

A novel model to predict positive prostate biopsy based on serum androgen level.

Circulating levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and testosterone are widely used for the detection of prostate cancer prior to prostate biopsy; however, both remain controversial. Effective screening strategies based on quantitative factors could help avoid unnecessary biopsies. Here, we sought to clarify the predictive value of free testosterone (FT) vs total testosterone (TT) in identifying patients likely to have positive biopsies.

Expression level of CXCL7 in peripheral blood cells is a potential biomarker for the diagnosis of renal cell carcinoma.

There are no blood biomarkers for the diagnosis of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in routine clinical use. We focused on the gene expression profile of peripheral blood cells obtained from RCC patients to discover novel biomarkers for RCC diagnosis. Using microarray analysis and quantitative verification, CXCL7 was shown to be significantly upregulated in the peripheral blood cells of RCC patients.

Extracellular vesicles isolated from human renal cell carcinoma tissues disrupt vascular endothelial cell morphology via azurocidin.

Cancer-associated extracellular vesicles (EVs) are intimately involved in establishment of tumor microenvironment and occurrence of metastasis. However, previous studies have mainly relied on experiments with cultured cell lines or mouse models, making it difficult to gain a full understanding of EV functions in human body. Hence, we extracted EVs directly from surgically resected viable clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) tissues and adjacent normal renal tissues (n = 20).

Immunological classification of renal cell carcinoma patients based on phenotypic analysis of immune check-point molecules.

Objectives: To clarify comprehensive immunological signature patterns of tumour tissue-infiltrating lymphocytes in patients with renal cell carcinoma and show its clinical significance.

Materials And Methods: We investigated the surface marker expressions of tumour tissue-infiltrating lymphocytes quantitatively and classified them based on their functional populations. We extracted 109 sets of tumour tissue-infiltrating lymphocytes from 80 patients who underwent surgical resection of renal cell carcinoma, of which 44 tumour tissue-infiltrating lymphocytes were multiply extracted from 15 patients.

Peripheral blood monocyte count reflecting tumor-infiltrating macrophages is a predictive factor of adverse pathology in radical prostatectomy specimens.

Background: Tumor-infiltrating macrophages, which are thought to be derived from blood monocytes, interact with tumor cells to promote cancer progression. The aim of this study was to assess the association of peripheral blood monocyte count with pathological findings and local tumor-infiltrating macrophages in prostatectomy specimens.

Methods: Preoperative peripheral blood monocyte counts were retrospectively assessed for their associations with pathological findings (pathological T stage, Gleason Score, extraprostatic extension, seminal vesicle invasion, and surgical margin) and biochemical recurrence of 248 patients who underwent radical prostatectomy.