Identification of pro-MMP-7 as a serum marker for renal cell carcinoma by use of proteomic analysis.

Background: No validated renal cell carcinoma (RCC) marker is known for detection of asymptomatic disease in selected populations or for prognostic purposes or treatment monitoring. We identified immunogenic proteins as tumor markers for RCC by combining conventional proteome analysis with serological screening, and we investigated the diagnostic clinical value of such markers in serum.

Methods: We studied the immunogenic protein expression profile of CAL 54, a human RCC cell line, by 2-dimensional electrophoresis combined with immunoblotting using sera from healthy donors compared with RCC patients.

Plasma level and tissue expression of vascular endothelial growth factor in renal cell carcinoma: a prospective study of 50 cases.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is the major factor involved in angiogenesis. Although it is known that one of the functions of VEGF is to regulate neovascularization in renal cell carcinomas, the relationship between the production of VEGF in tumor tissue and its concentration in blood has not yet been studied. The aims of this study were to determine, in a series of conventional renal cell carcinoma (CRCC) cases, (1) VEGF expression and VEGF pattern in tumor cells, (2) the relationship between VEGF expression/pattern and VEGF levels in plasma (pVEGF), and (3) the association with usual clinical and pathologic prognostic factors.

A new staging system for locally advanced (pT3-4) renal cell carcinoma: a multicenter European study including 2,000 patients.

Purpose: We provide an adequate prognostic stratification for locally advanced renal cell carcinoma and propose a new TNM classification.

Materials And Methods: We analyzed clinical and pathological data on a large series of patients undergoing radical nephrectomy for pT3-4 renal cell carcinoma at 12 European centers. Cancer specific survivals were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method.

Laparoscopic partial nephrectomy with clamping of the renal parenchyma: initial experience.

Objectives: Partial nephrectomy by laparoscopy offers patients conservative surgery and a mini-invasive approach; however, clamping of the renal pedicle and the induced warm ischaemia can damage the renal parenchyma. We present a technique of laparoscopic partial nephrectomy with haemostasis obtained by clamping of the renal parenchyma.

Methods: The procedure was performed by an intraperitoneal or a retroperitoneal approach.

[Is tumour expression of VEGF associated with venous invasion and survival in pT3 renal cell carcinoma?].

Study Objective: To determine whether there is a relationship between VEGF expression and renal vein and vena cava invasion in stage pT3 renal cell carcinoma and to evaluate the impact of VEGF expression on survival in pT3 renal cell carcinoma.

Material And Methods: 78 patients with a pT3a or pT3b tumour without vena cava invasion or pT3b tumour with vena cava invasion were compared for age, gender, Fuhrman grade and immunohistochemical expression of VEGF. All these variables were submitted to univariate and multivariate analysis to establish their impact on survival.

Collecting duct renal cell carcinoma: a matched analysis of 41 cases.

Objectives: Collecting duct renal cell carcinoma (CDRCC) is a rare but reportedly aggressive histologic subtype. We assessed the stage and histologic features of patients with CDRCC and compared cancer-specific mortality in CDRCC and matched patients with clear-cell renal cell carcinoma (CRCC).

Methods: Forty-one (0.

Prognostic ability of simplified nuclear grading of renal cell carcinoma.

Background: The Fuhrman grading system is an established predictor of survival in patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC). The predictive accuracy of various Fuhrman grading schemes was tested with the intent of improving the prediction of RCC-specific survival (RCC-SS).

Methods: The analyses targeted 5453 patients from 14 institutions.

Interleukin-6 and vascular endothelial growth factor release by renal cell carcinoma cells impedes lymphocyte-dendritic cell cross-talk.

Anti-tumour T cell response requires antigen presentation via efficient immunological synapse between antigen presenting cells, e.g. dendritic cells (DC), and specific T cells in an adapted Th1 cytokine context.

[A method for segmental gross examination of the liver].

Segmental localization of hepatic tumours by the pathologists is often approximate. However this information is essential to analyze the impact of preoperative treatments. We describe a new technique for gross examination of the liver, based on hepatic segmental anatomy.

Laparoscopic management of a transitional cell carcinoma arising in a right ectopic ureter.

Ectopic ureter is a rare abnormality, so presenting a transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) arising from an ectopic ureter is extremely rare. We report here a case of a man with an invasive transitional cell carcinoma arising from a right ectopic ureter and managed by laparoscopy. To our knowledge, this is the fourth case described in the literature, and the second case of a TCC arising in a right ectopic ureter.

Understanding the importance of smart drugs in renal cell carcinoma.

Objective: To understand the mode of action of the currently most investigated new drugs in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and ultimately to analyze what should be the role of the urologist in this new therapeutic era.

Methods: A comprehensive review of the peer-reviewed literature was performed on the topic of molecular pathways involved in RCC angiogenesis, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) and targeted molecular therapy for RCC.

Results: Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease has provided a model for understanding that the early inactivation of the VHL gene was responsible for accumulation of hypoxia-inducible factor and therefore activation of hypoxia-inducible genes such as VEGF, platelet-derived growth factor, erythropoietin, carbonic anhydrase IX and tumor growth factor alpha.

Prognostic value of thrombocytosis in renal cell carcinoma.

Purpose: We correlated platelet count to renal tumor characteristics, and evaluated the potential prognostic value of thrombocytosis in localized and metastatic tumors.

Materials And Methods: A total of 804 patients operated on for a renal tumor in 2 French centers were included in this study. In all cases TNM stage, Fuhrman grade, tumor size, nodal invasion, ECOG score, histological subtype and platelet count were recorded.

[Molecular pathways of tumour angiogenesis and new targeted therapeutic approaches in renal cancer].

The conventional form of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a highly vascular tumour with an extremely poor prognosis in the presence of metastases. Significant progress has recently been made in the understanding of the molecular mechanisms leading to the vascular phenotype of renal cancer In particular, VHL disease constitutes a useful study model, as inactivation of the VHL gene leads to accumulation of HIF factor, inducing activation of genes such as: VEGF, PDGF, EPO, CaIX and TGF-alpha. The fact that VHL inactivation has been found in about 70% of sporadic renal cancers constitutes the best rationale to target the products of these genes.

Importance of the detection method for intact dimeric human chorionic gonadotropin without interference with the free human chorionic gonadotropin beta subunit for pregnancy exclusion before liver transplantation in a woman with cholangiocarcinoma.

Assay of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is mainly used for the detection and monitoring of pregnancy, and for the follow-up of trophoblastic tumors. The serum free beta-hCG subunit (hCGbeta) is also a tumor marker in many non-trophoblastic tumors, including gastrointestinal cancers. In this work, we compared the performance of several immunoassays for pregnancy exclusion before liver transplantation and in the follow-up of a woman with cholangiocarcinoma.

The utility of Ki-67 expression in the differential diagnosis of prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia and ductal adenocarcinoma.

Cribriform and/or papillary prostatic lesions observed on limited tissue, such as needle biopsy, can pose diagnostic dilemmas. One such area of difficulty is the distinction between papillary and/or cribriform prostatic high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (HG-PIN) and ductal adenocarcinoma. Over 48 months, we identified 17 cases of ductal adenocarcinoma and 17 cases of HG-PIN from radical retropubic prostatectomy specimens.

Prognostic value of histologic subtypes in renal cell carcinoma: a multicenter experience.

Purpose: To analyze to what extent histologic subtype is of prognostic importance in renal cell carcinoma based on a large, international, multicenter experience.

Patients And Methods: Four thousand sixty-three patients from eight international centers were included in this retrospective study. Histologic subtype (1997 International Union Against Cancer [UICC] criteria of tumor response), age, sex, TNM stage, Fuhrman grade, tumor size, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Goup performance status (ECOG PS), and overall survival were determined in all cases.

Accuracy of preoperative imaging methods in a retrospective series of 14 patients with operated intraductal papillary mucinous tumors of the pancreas.

Unlabelled: Accuracy of preoperative imaging methods for the diagnosis of intraductal papillary mucinous tumor of the pancreas (IPMT) is not well known.

Aims: To compare diagnostic accuracy of various preoperative imaging methods with pathology data following surgical resection.

Patients And Methods: Fourteen consecutive patients underwent pancreatic surgical resection for IPMT between January 1988 and May 2002.

[Recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (Hallopeau-Siemens) with IgA nephropathy: 4 cases].

Background: The Hallopeau-Siemens type of recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (HS-RDEB) is a severe hereditary dermatosis, associated with a collagen VII deficiency. A chronic inflammatory syndrome, secondary to recurrent cutaneous infections, may be the cause of AA amyloidosis, with chronic renal failure, involving life prognosis. Less frequently, an IgA glomerulonephritis may occur and induce renal failure.

Immunohistochemical analysis of tumor polyamines discriminates high-risk patients undergoing nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma.

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is known to display a wide variation in biological behavior and clinical outcome. Although usual bioclinical prognostic parameters (eg, nuclear grade, tumor stage) are to a certain extent useful in predicting the outcome of RCC after radical nephrectomy, they now appear to be insufficient. The polyamines (spermidine, spermine, and putrescine) are ubiquitous polycations that are essential for cell proliferation.

Human endocrine gland-derived vascular endothelial growth factor: expression early in development and in Leydig cell tumors suggests roles in normal and pathological testis angiogenesis.

Angiogenesis is essential for tumor growth and metastasis. A new human angiogenic mitogen, endocrine gland-derived vascular endothelial growth factor (EG-VEGF), has been recently identified; its expression pattern is restricted to endocrine glands, with the highest expression in testis. We used in situ hybridization and newly generated monoclonal antibodies to investigate the expression of EG-VEGF in normal human prenatal and adult testis and in 48 human testicular tumors of different subtypes.

Prospective evaluation of a new rapid urease test (Pronto Dry) for the diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori infection.

Aim: Rapid urease tests are commonly used to establish the diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori infection during upper endoscopy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of a new rapid urease test (Pronto Dry) compared with histology as the gold standard.

Methods: Six gastric biopsies (three in the antrum and three in the fundus) were performed in 113 consecutive patients.

[Clinical and histological prognostic factors of renal cancer with caval thrombus].

Objectives: The objective of this study was to determine the clinical and histological factors influencing survival of patients with renal cancer and caval thrombus.

Material And Methods: The clinical and pathological data of 46 patients operated for renal cancer with caval thrombus were reviewed. The following prognostic factors were studied: tumour stage and grade, tumour diameter, invasion of the perirenal fat or adrenal gland, presence of lymph node involvement or distant metastases, level of the thrombus, invasion of the wall of the vena cava, partial or complete nature of the resection.