c-FLIP expression in bladder urothelial carcinomas: its role in resistance to Fas-mediated apoptosis and clinicopathologic correlations.

Objectives: To investigate the incidence of Fas (exon 9) mutations and the expression of Fas, Fas-Fas ligand (FasL) system, and cellular FLICE-like inhibitory protein (c-FLIP) in relation to standard clinicopathologic parameters and patient outcome in bladder carcinoma. Disruption of apoptotic cell death has been implicated in tumor aggressiveness in bladder urothelial carcinomas. The FasL system is involved in the execution of apoptosis induced by the immune system.

Aneurysmatic dilatation of ascending aorta in a patient with beta-thalassemia and a pseudoxanthoma elasticum-like syndrome.

The development of a diffuse elastic tissue defect resembling pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) is a recently established and frequently encountered clinical entity in beta-thalassemia. The clinical spectrum of this disorder is not yet completely understood as it is continuously being enriched with novel complications that are often serious. We present here a thalassemia intermedia patient with typical PXE manifestations and a fusiform aneurysmatic dilatation of the ascending thoracic aorta, a previously unknown complication in these patients.

Prognostic implications of aberrations in p16/pRb pathway in urothelial bladder carcinomas: a multivariate analysis including p53 expression and proliferation markers.

Objective: To assess the prognostic value of the expression of two negative regulators of the cell cycle, namely CDKN2/INK4a gene product (p16) and retinoblastoma gene product (pRb), in urinary bladder cancer in relation to clinicopathological parameters, proliferative fraction and p53 protein accumulation.

Methods: Paraffin sections from 139 patients with urothelial carcinomas were stained immunohistochemically with antibodies to p16 (F12), pRb (PMG3-245), p53 (DO1), PCNA (PC10) and Ki-67 (MIB-1).

Results: Diminished p16 and pRb expression occurred in 29 and 74% of cases, respectively, being associated with advanced stage but not with histological grade, papillary status or proliferation rate.

WAF1/p21 protein expression is an independent prognostic indicator in superficial and invasive bladder cancer.

The inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinases WAF1 gene product p21 is able to arrest mammalian cell cycle by mediating p53 and other factors. The prognostic value and interrelationships between p21 expression and various parameters in bladder cancer have not been fully elucidated. We retrospectively investigated the immunohistochemical expression of p21 protein in consecutive paraffin sections from 131 transitional cell carcinomas (TCCs) and related it to p53 protein expression, clinicopathologic parameters, proliferative fraction, and survival.

Apoptosis in bladder carcinomas detected with monoclonal antibody to single-stranded DNA: relation to cell cycle regulators and survival.

Objectives: To investigate the incidence of baseline apoptosis in relation to p27(Kip1), p53, and p21(Cip1) expression, proliferation status, standard clinicopathologic parameters, and patient outcome. Cell cycle regulators and apoptotic cell death have been implicated in tumor aggressiveness in many human malignancies. Their interaction, however, in the prognosis of patients with transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the urinary bladder has not yet received intense scrutiny.