Suppression of pulmonary metastasis by angiogenesis inhibitor TNP-470 in murine osteosarcoma.

We treated a murine osteosarcoma cell line, LM8, which preferentially metastasizes to the lungs, with a new angiogenesis inhibitor, TNP-470, to evaluate the efficacy of this compound in the suppression of pulmonary metastasis of osteosarcoma. In an in vivo experiment, tumor cells were inoculated i.v.

Clonal analysis of benign and malignant human breast tumors by means of polymerase chain reaction.

Clonal analysis was conduced on a variety of benign and malignant human breast tumors using the method based on restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) of the X 120 chromosome-linked phosphoglycerokinase gene and on random inactivation of the gene by methylation. Breast carcinoma was shown to be monoclonal in origin, consistent with a somatic mutational theory. Precancerous lesions such as atypical ductal hyperplasia and multiple intraductal papilloma were also found to be monoclonal, indicating that certain genetic changes had been accumulated in these lesions.

Endoscopic ultrasonography in diagnosis and staging of pancreatic cancer.

The accuracy of endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) for diagnosis of pancreatic cancers was evaluated in consecutive 232 patients with possible pancreatic cancer, and that for assessment of their locoregional spread was evaluated in 28 patients with pancreatic cancer subjected to pancreatectomy, in comparison with the accuracies of transabdominal ultrasonography (US) and computed tomography (CT). EUS was found to be significantly more accurate than US or CT and was especially useful for detecting small pancreatic cancers of less than 2 cm in diameter. With EUS, pancreatic cancers could be detected as a hypoechoic mass with a relatively unclear margin and irregular internal echoes.

[Long-term clinical study on TAP-144-SR, an LH-RH agonist depot formulation, in premenopausal patients with advanced or recurrent breast cancer. TAP-144-SR Breast Cancer Study Group].

Efficacy and safety of long-term treatment with an LH-RH agonist, TAP-144-SR were studied in premenopausal patients with advanced or recurrent breast cancer. The drug was given sc every 4 week at the dose of 3.75 or 7.

[A dose-comparative study on TAP-144-SR, an LH-RH agonist depot formulation, in premenopausal patients with advanced or recurrent breast cancer. TAP-144-SR Breast Cancer Study Group].

A comparative phase II study was performed with different doses of TAP-144-SR in ER-positive or ER-unknown premenopausal patients with advanced or recurrent breast cancer. One hundred and six patients were randomly allocated to either 3.75 mg or 7.

Effects of Helicobacter pylori infection on healing and recurrence of gastric ulcers.

Objectives: The effects of Helicobacter pylori infection on the healing and recurrence of gastric ulcers were investigated.

Methods: Eighty-five and 17 patients with endoscopically-proven gastric ulcer with and without H. pylori infection, respectively, received 800 mg of cimetidine daily.

High prevalence of bcl-2 oncoprotein expression in small cell lung cancer.

Bcl-2 oncoprotein, a member of a new category of oncogenes associated with the regulation of programmed cell death (apoptosis), has been considered to be involved in biological processes such as tumorigenesis and tumor development. To determine the role of bcl-2 oncoprotein in lung cancer, we preliminarily examined the expression of this protein in various histological types. Immunohistochemical staining using monoclonal bcl-2 oncoprotein antibody was performed in surgically resected frozen specimens.

Orthopaedic management of spinal metastases.

Spinal metastases result in severe spinal pain, neurologic deficits, or both. These symptoms usually are caused by spinal instability, in which conservative therapy can have no effect, and surgical treatment is required to restabilize the destroyed spinal segments. Surgical indications are instability of the spine, pain and/or paresis resistant to radiation therapy, acute progressing paresis, and unknown histologic diagnosis.

[A case of pulmonary tumorlet with tuberculoma misdiagnosed as small cell lung carcinoma by transbronchial lung biopsy].

A 59-year-old woman was picked up by chest X-ray findings. Her CT scan film showed a tumor shadow in the upper lobe of the left lung, and by transbronchial lung biopsy, she was diagnosed as a small cell lung carcinoma. Lobectomy was performed, but the lesion was diagnosed as tuberculoma by frozen section.

Association of p53 gene mutations with short survival in pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

Mutations of the p53 gene have been found in a variety of human cancers and are implicated in the biologic functions of cancer. To investigate the clinical implications of p53 mutations in pancreatic adenocarcinoma, we examined the association of mutations of the p53 gene with patients' prognosis. Single-strand conformational polymorphism analysis and direct DNA sequencing were used to detect p53 gene mutations in 37 pancreatic adenocarcinomas.

Protection against alloxan diabetes by low-dose 60Co gamma irradiation before alloxan administration.

We evaluated the protective effects of a single low-dose whole body 60Co gamma irradiation against alloxan-induced hyperglycemia in rats. i) In rats that did not receive alloxan, the superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in the pancreas significantly increased after irradiation at a dose of 0.5 or 1.

[A case of occult cancer of pancreas which was appropriately resected by intra operative cytodiagnosis using a balloon catheter].

A new method of intraoperative cytodiagnosis was performed for one patient with occult neoplasms of the pancreas in order to locate the original site of cancer cells, using a balloon catheter. Cancer cells were detected in the pancreatic juice obtained from the pancreatic body only. The pancreatic body was removed, and the tail of the pancreas was anastomosed to the stomach.

Covalently-bound human C4b dimers consisting of C4B isotype show higher hemolytic activity than those of C4A in the C3-bypass complement pathway.

The ability to form a covalent dimer of human C4b was investigated with purified isotypes C4A and C4B, and antibody-sensitized liposomes supplemented with C1. In this system, no C4A or C4B formed a complex with the antibody or C1. Whereas both C4A and C4B isotypes formed dimers to a similar extent, C4B formed an ester-linked dimer and C4A an amide-linked dimer.

Purification and characterization of a human membrane protein that activates the alternative complement pathway and allows the deposition of homologous complement C3.

A human myeloid cell subline, P39+, is found to be a target for human complement (C) via the alternative pathway and to allow the deposition of multiple C3 fragments on its membranes, though expressing the complement regulatory proteins decay-accelerating factor and membrane cofactor protein. The parent cell line, P39-, which is phenotypically similar to the P39+ subline, does not allow the deposition of homologous C3 fragments. In this study, we established a monoclonal antibody, M161 Ab, which reacted with P39+ but not P39- cells.