Identifying molecular features for prostate cancer with Gleason 7 based on microarray gene expression profiles.

Prostate cancer represents the first leading cause of cancer among western male population, with different clinical behavior ranging from indolent to metastatic disease. Although many molecules and deregulated pathways are known, the molecular mechanisms involved in the development of prostate cancer are not fully understood. The aim of this study was to explore the molecular variation underlying the prostate cancer, based on microarray analysis and bioinformatics approaches. Normal and prostate cancer tissues were collected by macrodissection from prostatectomy pieces. All prostate cancer specimens used in our study were Gleason score 7. Gene expression microarray (Agilent Technologies) was used for Whole Human Genome evaluation. The bioinformatics and functional analysis were based on Limma and Ingenuity software. The microarray analysis identified 1119 differentially expressed genes between prostate cancer and normal prostate, which were up- or down-regulated at least 2-fold. P-values were adjusted for multiple testing using Benjamini-Hochberg method with a false discovery rate of 0.01. These genes were analyzed with Ingenuity Pathway Analysis software and were established 23 genetic networks. Our microarray results provide new information regarding the molecular networks in prostate cancer stratified as Gleason 7. These data highlighted gene expression profiles for better understanding of prostate cancer progression.

A primer of bone metastases management in breast cancer patients.

Bone is the most common site for distant spread of breast cancer. Following a diagnosis of metastatic bone disease, patients can suffer from significant morbidity because of pain and skeletal related events (SRES). Bisphosphonates are potent inhibitors of osteoclastic function and the mainstay of bone-directed therapy for bone metastases. The aims of bisphosphonates are to prevent and delay SRES, to reduce bone pain, and to improve quality of life. Bisphosphonate therapy appears to have revolutionized treatment of bone metastases, but bisphosphonate use has several limitations. Those limitations include the high cost of the agents and the need for return trips to the clinic for intravenous treatment. Moreover, many uncertainties surround bisphosphonate use-for example, the timing of bisphosphonate initiation, the choice of bisphosphonate to use, the optimal duration of treatment, and the appropriate means to identify patients who will and will not benefit. In addition, potentially serious adverse effects have been associated with bisphosphonate use-for example, renal toxicity, gastrointestinal side effects, and osteonecrosis of the jaw. The present review is intended as a primer for oncology specialists who treat patients with bone metastases secondary to breast cancer. It focuses on bisphosphonate treatment guidelines, the evidence for those guidelines, and a discussion of new therapeutic agents. It also discusses the use of biochemical markers of bone metabolism, which show promise for predicting the risk of a patient's developing a SRE and of benefiting from bisphosphonate treatment.