Goblet cell carcinomas of the appendix: rare but aggressive neoplasms with challenging management.

Goblet cell carcinomas (GCC) are a rare, aggressive sub-type of appendiceal tumours with neuroendocrine features, and controversy exists with regards to therapeutic strategy. We undertook a retrospective review of GCC patients surgically treated at two tertiary referral centres. Clinical and histopathological data were extracted from a prospectively maintained database.

Predicting the survival of patients with small bowel neuroendocrine tumours: comparison of 3 systems.

Neuroendocrine tumours (NET) are clinically challenging due to their unpredictable behaviour. Nomograms, grading and staging systems are predictive tools with multiple roles in clinical practice, including patient prognostication. The NET nomogram allocates scores for various clinicopathological parameters, calculating percentage estimates for 5- and 10-year disease-specific survival of patients with small bowel (SB) NET.

Myometrial cytokines and their role in the onset of labour.

Human labour is an inflammatory event, physiologically driven by an interaction between hormonal and mechanical factors and pathologically associated with infection, bleeding and excessive uterine stretch. The initiation and communicators of inflammation is still not completely understood; however, a key role for cytokines has been implicated. We summarise the current understanding of the nature and role of cytokines, chemokines and hormones and their involvement in signalling within the myometrium particularly during labour.

Hyperprolactinemia induced by hCG leads to metabolic disturbances in female mice.

The metabolic syndrome is a growing epidemic; it increases the risk for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, fatty liver, and several cancers. Several reports have indicated a link between hormonal imbalances and insulin resistance or obesity. Transgenic (TG) female mice overexpressing the human chorionic gonadotropin β-subunit (hCGβ+ mice) exhibit constitutively elevated levels of hCG, increased production of testosterone, progesterone and prolactin, and obesity.

Noncoding RNAs and the control of hormonal signaling via nuclear receptor regulation.

Despite its identification over 100 years ago, new discoveries continue to add to the complexity of the regulation of the endocrine system. Today the nuclear receptors (NRs) that play such a pivotal role in the extensive communication networks of hormones and gene expression remain an area of intense research. By orchestrating core processes, from metabolism to organismal development, the gene expression programs they control are dependent on their cellular context, their own levels, and those of numerous co-regulatory proteins.

Interplay between steroid signalling and microRNAs: implications for hormone-dependent cancers.

Hormones are key drivers of cancer development. To date, interest has largely been focussed on the classical model of hormonal gene regulation, but there is increasing evidence for a role of hormone signalling pathways in post-translational regulation of gene expression. In particular, a complex and dynamic network of bi-directional interactions with microRNAs (miRs) at all stages of biogenesis and during target gene repression is emerging.