Cutaneous Metastases from Primary Hepatobiliary Tumors as the First Sign of Tumor Recurrence following Liver Transplantation.

Cutaneous metastasis from hepatobiliary tumors is a rare event, especially following liver transplantation. We report our experience with two cases of cutaneous metastases from both hepatocellular carcinoma and mixed hepatocellular/cholangiocarcinoma following liver transplantation, along with a review of the literature.

A proof of principle clinical trial to determine whether conjugated linoleic acid modulates the lipogenic pathway in human breast cancer tissue.

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is widely used as a "nutraceutical" for weight loss. CLA has anticancer effects in preclinical models, and we demonstrated in vitro that this can be attributed to the suppression of fatty acid (FA) synthesis. We tested the hypothesis that administration of CLA to breast cancer patients would inhibit expression of markers related to FA synthesis in tumor tissue, and that this would suppress tumor proliferation. Women with Stage I-III breast cancer were enrolled into an open label study and treated with CLA (1:1 mix of 9c,11t- and 10t,12c-CLA isomers, 7.5 g/d) for ≥ 10 days before surgery. Fasting plasma CLA concentrations measured pre- and post-CLA administration, and pre/post CLA tumor samples were examined by immunohistochemistry for Spot 14 (S14), a regulator of FA synthesis, FA synthase (FASN), an enzyme of FA synthesis, and lipoprotein lipase (LPL), the enzyme that allows FA uptake. Tumors were also analyzed for expression of Ki-67 and cleaved caspase 3. 24 women completed study treatment, and 23 tumors were evaluable for the primary endpoint. The median duration of CLA therapy was 12 days, and no significant toxicity was observed. S14 expression scores decreased (p = 0.003) after CLA administration. No significant change in FASN or LPL expression was observed. Ki-67 scores declined (p = 0.029), while cleaved caspase 3 staining was unaffected. Decrements in S14 or Ki-67 did not correlate with fasting plasma CLA concentrations at surgery. Breast tumor tissue expression of S14, but not FASN or LPL, was decreased after a short course of treatment with 7.5 g/day CLA. This was accompanied by reductions in the proliferation index. CLA consumption was well-tolerated and safe at this dose for up to 20 days. Overall, CLA may be a prototype compound to target fatty acid synthesis in breast cancers with a "lipogenic phenotype".

Prolonged oxaliplatin exposure alters intracellular calcium signaling: a new mechanism to explain oxaliplatin-associated peripheral neuropathy.

BACKGROUND: Oxaliplatin is a platinum-based cytotoxic agent commonly used to treat colorectal cancers. Despite its effectiveness, oxaliplatin administration is associated with the development of cold-induced peripheral neuropathy. This potentially permanent side effect is provoked by cold exposure and can range from mild and self limited to severe and debilitating. Even with tumor shrinkage, these painful side effects can force dose reduction or discontinuation of treatment. Neither the mechanism of action of oxaliplatin nor that of cold-induced neuropathy is understood. Paclitaxel, an entirely different chemotherapeutic agent used to treat a variety of malignancies, also is associated with the development of peripheral neuropathy. Unlike oxaliplatin, neurotoxicity arising from paclitaxel treatment was previously found to have profound effects on intracellular calcium signaling. METHODS AND RESULTS: In this study we examined the effects of oxaliplatin on calcium signaling pathways and found that acute exposure of either a neuroblastoma cell line or primary neurons with therapeutic concentrations of oxaliplatin had no effect on intracellular calcium signaling. We also found that cellular temperature sensors (transient receptor potential [TRP] channels) were also not activated by oxaliplatin. Interestingly, prolonged exposure of oxaliplatin sensitized cells to subsequent stimuli and enhanced the magnitude of intracellular calcium responses. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, our results suggest that acute oxaliplatin exposure will not induce abnormal calcium signaling but oxaliplatin-primed cells do exhibit enhanced sensitivity. These findings provide new insight to the mechanism behind oxaliplatin-induced neuropathy.

Effect of initiating a multidisciplinary care clinic on access and time to treatment in patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

PURPOSE: Neoadjuvant therapy for pancreatic adenocarcinoma requires referral to multiple specialists before initiating therapy. We evaluated the effect of establishing a multidisciplinary clinic (MDC) for patients with newly diagnosed pancreatic adenocarcinoma on treatment access and time to therapy. METHODS: Patients with newly diagnosed pancreatic adenocarcinoma diagnosed and treated at our center were included. Two patient groups were defined: preclinic represented those patients diagnosed before 2008 and MDC represented those patients diagnosed since 2009 who were treated in the newly created MDC and were initially candidates for neoadjuvant therapy. The primary outcomes were days from diagnosis to first treatment (initiation of chemotherapy or external beam radiation), days to completion of all required consultations, and number of visits needed before initiation of therapy. RESULTS: Ninety-seven patients were diagnosed and treated at our medical center from 2003 to 2008; 22 were treated in 2009 after the implementation of the MDC. Compared with the preclinic group, patients treated in the MDC had shorter times from biopsy to treatment (7.7 days v 29.5 days, P < .001), shorter time to completion of all required pretreatment consultations (7.1 days v 13.9 days, P < .001), and fewer visits to complete all consultations (1.1 v 4.3, P < .001). Thirty-three percent of patients seen in the MDC enrolled onto clinical research trials. CONCLUSION: In patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma undergoing neoadjuvant therapy, the establishment of a multidisciplinary pancreas tumor clinic led to improved patient access to consultations and shorter time to initial treatment.