Vascular invasion is an independent prognostic factor for distant recurrence-free survival in papillary thyroid carcinoma: a matched-case comparative study.

Objective: It is still unclear whether the clinicopathological and outcome characteristics of vascular invasion (VI) (+) papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) differ from VI (-) PTC. This study aims to establish distinguishing features of patients with VI (+) and VI (-) PTC and to investigate the biological and clinical aggressiveness of the disease in these patient groups.

Design: A matched-case comparative study.

Circulating Methylated XAF1 DNA Indicates Poor Prognosis for Gastric Cancer.

Background: Methylated DNA in fluids may be a suitable biomarker for cancer patients. XAF1 has been shown to be frequently down-regulated in human gastric cancer (GC). Here, we investigated if XAF1 methylation in GC could be a useful biomarker.

[Methylation status of CDH1 gene in preoperative abdominal lavage of patients with gastric cancer and its clinical significance].

Objective: To explore the association between the progression of gastric cancer and the aberrant methylation of CDH1 gene in preoperative abdominal lavage fluid.

Methods: Real-time methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction(qMSP) was used to investigate the methylation status of the CDH1 gene promoter 5'-CpG islands from preoperative abdominal lavage fluid in 92 patients with gastric cancer. The associations between methylation of CDH1 genes and clinicopathologic features and prognosis were investigated.

Stepwise cumulation of RUNX3 methylation mediated by Helicobacter pylori infection contributes to gastric carcinoma progression.

Background: Helicobacter pylori has been recognized as a definite carcinogen for gastric cancer (GC); however, the pathogenesis of H. pylori infection remains unclear. Runt-related transcription factor 3 (RUNX3) is a candidate tumor suppressor gene whose deficiency is causally related to GC.

CDH1 methylation in preoperative peritoneal washes is an independent prognostic factor for gastric cancer.

Background And Objectives: To investigate the clinical value of CDH1 methylation in preoperative peritoneal washes (PPW) from gastric cancer patients.

Methods: CDH1 methylation was detected by real-time methylation specific-PCR in tumor tissues and corresponding PPW from 92 gastric cancer patients, gastric mucosa from 40 chronic gastritis patients and 48 normal persons.

Results: CDH1 methylation was found in 75 of 92 (81.

Heterogeneity of chemosensitivity in esophageal cancer using ATP-tumor chemosensitivity assay.

Aim: Current chemotherapy for esophageal cancer is conducted on the basis of empirical information from clinical trials, which fails to take into account the known heterogeneity of chemosensitivity between patients. This study was aimed to demonstrate the degree of heterogeneity of chemosensitivity in esophageal cancers.

Methods: A total of 42 esophageal cancer specimens were collected.

Hypermethylation-modulated downregulation of RASSF1A expression is associated with the progression of esophageal cancer.

Background And Aims: Chromosome 3p21 is an important locus harboring critical tumor suppressor genes (TSGs) implicated in the pathogenesis of multiple tumors including esophageal carcinoma (EC). Aberrant promoter methylation is a fundamental mechanism of inactivation of TSGs in cancer. RASSF1A, a candidate tumor suppressor gene, recently cloned from the lung tumor locus at 3p21.

Aberrant methylation of different DNA repair genes demonstrates distinct prognostic value for esophageal cancer.

Background: DNA mismatch repair (MMR) deficiency results in a strong mutator phenotype and high-frequency microsatellite instability (MSI-H), which are the hallmarks of many tumors.

Aim: The objective of this study is to investigate the promoter CpG island methylation status of mismatch repair genes human mutL homolog 1 (hMLH1), human mutS homolog 2 (hMSH2), and O(6)-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and its roles in alkylating agents chemotherapy.

Methods: Real-time methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) (real-time MSP) was employed to detect promoter CpG island methylation of the hMLH1, hMSH2, as well as MGMT genes in 235 surgical tumor tissue samples from ESCC patients and their corresponding normal tissue samples.

Hypermethylation-modulated down-regulation of CDH1 expression contributes to the progression of esophageal cancer.

CDH1, a cell adhesion molecule, which plays a key role in maintaining the epithelial phenotype, is regarded as an invasion-suppressor gene in light of accumulating evidence from in vitro experiments and clinical observations. In an attempt to clarify the mechanism responsible for inactivation of this gene in carcinomas, we investigated the methylation status of the CDH1 gene 5'-CpG islands and its regulatory mechanism in the progression of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. Real-time methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (qMSP) and treatment with the demethylating agent 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (5-Aza-CdR) were conducted to analyze the methylation status at the CDH1 promoter region in the human esophageal carcinoma cell lines, EC1 and EC9706.

[Sentinel lymph node detection and intra-operational diagnosis in patients with early stage cervical cancer].

Objective: To study the effective method for rapid detection of sentinel lymph nodes in patients with early stage cervical cancer and clinical value thereof.

Methods: Thirty female patients with early stage cervical cancer, 14 at FIGO stage IB1 and 16 at stage IIA, underwent injection of 99mTc-labelled sulfur colloid 0.4 mci/0.