Survival in patients undergoing surgical resection for brain metastasis from lung cancer and utility of different prognostic scales.

Brain metastases (BM) from lung cancer are among the most common intracranial tumors. Several studies have published scales to estimate the survival of patients with BM. Routine access to molecular diagnostics and modern oncologic treatments, including targeted therapy and immunotherapy, is limited in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs); therefore, incorporating them into recent prognostic scales may diminish the reliability of the scales in LMICs.

DNA rare copy number alterations in Reinke's Edema.

Introduction: Reinke's Edema (RE) is a laryngeal lesion related to excessive tobacco smoking, voice overuse, and laryngopharyngeal reflux. Although the risk of malignancy has been considered low in literature, RE is classified among precancerous lesions.

Objectives: We investigated DNA Copy Number Alterations (CNAs) in specimens of RE and its potential association with malignant progression.

Bacteriophages M13 and T4 Increase the Expression of Anchorage-Dependent Survival Pathway Genes and Down Regulate Androgen Receptor Expression in LNCaP Prostate Cell Line.

Wild-type or engineered bacteriophages have been reported as therapeutic agents in the treatment of several types of diseases, including cancer. They might be used either as naked phages or as carriers of antitumor molecules. Here, we evaluate the role of bacteriophages M13 and T4 in modulating the expression of genes related to cell adhesion, growth, and survival in the androgen-responsive LNCaP prostatic adenocarcinoma-derived epithelial cell line.

The expression landscape of cachexia-inducing factors in human cancers.

Background: Cachexia is a multifactorial syndrome highly associated with specific tumour types, but the causes of variation in cachexia prevalence and severity are unknown. While circulating plasma mediators (soluble cachectic factors) derived from tumours have been implicated with the pathogenesis of the syndrome, these associations were generally based on plasma concentration rather than tissue-specific gene expression levels. Here, we hypothesized that tumour gene expression profiling of cachexia-inducing factors (CIFs) in human cancers with different prevalence of cachexia could reveal potential cancer-specific cachexia mediators and biomarkers of clinical outcome.

MicroRNA expression profiles in the esophagus of children with caustic stenosis: A pathway towards esophageal cancer?

Background: Eighty percent of caustic ingestions occur in children and esophageal neoplasms may develop as a late complication of such injury. The identification of biomarkers is a promising strategy to improve early diagnosis of esophageal cancer or caustic lesions that are at an increased risk of progression.

Study Design/aims: This study aimed at identifying global microRNA (miRNA) expression changes in esophageal mucosa from children with caustic stenosis.

Telomere-associated genes and telomeric lncRNAs are biomarker candidates in lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC).

In the past decade, research efforts were made to identify molecular biomarkers useful as therapeutic targets in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC), the most frequent type of lung carcinoma. NSCLC presents different histological subtypes being the most prevalent LUSC (Lung Squamous Cell Cancer) and LUAD (Lung Adenocarcinoma), and only a subset of LUAD patients' present tumors expressing known targetable genetic alterations. Telomeres and its components, including telomerase, the enzyme that replenishes telomeres, have been considered potential cancer biomarkers due to their crucial role in cell proliferation and genome stability.

Tumor Transcriptome Reveals High Expression of IL-8 in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients with Low Pectoralis Muscle Area and Reduced Survival.

Cachexia is a syndrome characterized by an ongoing loss of skeletal muscle mass associated with poor patient prognosis in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, prognostic cachexia biomarkers in NSCLC are unknown. Here, we analyzed computed tomography (CT) images and tumor transcriptome data to identify potentially secreted cachexia biomarkers (PSCB) in NSCLC patients with low-muscularity.

The Pathway to Cancer Cachexia: MicroRNA-Regulated Networks in Muscle Wasting Based on Integrative Meta-Analysis.

Cancer cachexia is a multifactorial syndrome that leads to significant weight loss. Cachexia affects 50%-80% of cancer patients, depending on the tumor type, and is associated with 20%-40% of cancer patient deaths. Besides the efforts to identify molecular mechanisms of skeletal muscle atrophy-a key feature in cancer cachexia-no effective therapy for the syndrome is currently available.

Double-hit lymphomas: clinical, morphological, immunohistochemical and cytogenetic study in a series of Brazilian patients with high-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Background: Double-hit lymphomas (DHL) are rare high-grade neoplasms characterized by two translocations: one involving the gene MYC and another involving genes BCL2 or BCL6, whose diagnosis depends on cytogenetic examination. This research studied DHL and morphological and/or immunophenotypic factors associated with the detection of these translocations in a group of high-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma cases.

Method: Clinical and morphological reviews of 120 cases diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and Burkitt lymphoma were conducted.

PHF21B as a candidate tumor suppressor gene in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas.

A significant association between DNA losses on 22q13.31 and head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) was previously reported by our group. Our data indicated that PHF21B gene, mapped on 22q13.

Claudin 1 overexpression increases invasion and is associated with aggressive histological features in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: The authors have previously shown that overexpression of claudin 1 (CLDN1) is associated with advanced disease stage in oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCCs). Their goal was to examine CLDN1 expression in a large series of primary OSCCs and to further investigate whether CLDN1 overexpression plays a role in invasion in OSCC.

Methods: CLDN1 gene expression levels were determined by quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (QRT-PCR) in 100 primary OSCCs.

Predictive and pharmacodynamic biomarker studies in tumor and skin tissue samples of patients with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck treated with erlotinib.

PURPOSE Pharmacodynamic tissue studies were conducted on a phase I/II trial of erlotinib and cisplatin in patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Levels of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), downstream signaling components, and markers of angiogenesis and apoptosis were evaluated to determine the relationship between correlative end points and clinical outcomes. PATIENTS AND METHODS Pretreatment and during-treatment tumor and skin biopsies, and archival tumor specimens were evaluated for EGFR, phosphorylated (p) -EGFR, extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), p-ERK, Akt, p-Akt, Ki67, p27, p-nuclear factor kappa B (NFkappaB), p-signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), and EGFR gene copy number.

Large-scale transcriptome analyses reveal new genetic marker candidates of head, neck, and thyroid cancer.

A detailed genome mapping analysis of 213,636 expressed sequence tags (EST) derived from nontumor and tumor tissues of the oral cavity, larynx, pharynx, and thyroid was done. Transcripts matching known human genes were identified; potential new splice variants were flagged and subjected to manual curation, pointing to 788 putatively new alternative splicing isoforms, the majority (75%) being insertion events. A subset of 34 new splicing isoforms (5% of 788 events) was selected and 23 (68%) were confirmed by reverse transcription-PCR and DNA sequencing.

Classic and molecular cytogenetic analyses reveal chromosomal gains and losses correlated with survival in head and neck cancer patients.

Purpose: Genetic biomarkers of head and neck tumors could be useful for distinguishing among patients with similar clinical and histopathologic characteristics but having differential probabilities of survival. The purpose of this study was to investigate chromosomal alterations in head and neck carcinomas and to correlate the results with clinical and epidemiologic variables.

Experimental Design: Cytogenetic analysis of short-term cultures from 64 primary untreated head and neck squamous cell carcinomas was used to determine the overall pattern of chromosome aberrations.

DNA gains at 8q23.2: a potential early marker in head and neck carcinomas.

Gains or amplifications involving chromosome arm 8q are one of the most recurrent chromosomal alterations in head and neck tumors. To characterize previously reported gains, we performed fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) using the sequences BAC RP1179E1 and 8-centromere PMJ 128 as probes. Gains and/or amplifications were detected in all 19 cases evaluated by FISH.

Distinct regions of loss of heterozygosity on 22q in different sites of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas.

Background: Frequent loss of heterozygosity (LOH) has been reported in many types of cancer, including head and neck carcinomas. Somatic deletions involving specific chromosomal regions are strongly associated with inactivation of the allele of a tumor suppressor gene located within the deleted region. In most studies concerning LOH in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) the different anatomical sites are not distinguished.