Effects of Serum Leptin and Resistin Levels on Cancer Cachexia in Patients With Advanced-Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

INTRODUCTION: Cancer cachexia is one of the most frequent effects of malignancy, is often associated with poor prognosis, and may account for up to 20% of cancer deaths. The aim of our study was to evaluate the relationship of cancer cachexia and serum levels of resistin and leptin in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer. METHODS: A total of 67 chemotherapy-naïve patients with advanced-stage non-small cell cancer and a control group containing 20 healthy individuals without a known chronic disease were enrolled in this study. All individuals in the control group were age and sex matched. Demographic, anthropometric, laboratory data and serum levels of adipokines were measured for 2 groups. Progression-free survival and overall survival were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Survival among various factors was calculated using the log-rank test. RESULTS: Patients presented significantly higher serum resistin (P = .0001) and lower serum leptin levels (P = .025) than the control group. Lower serum levels of leptin were correlated with overall survival (P = .011). CONCLUSIONS: Serum leptin and resistin levels play key role as proinflammatory cytokines in lung cancer and cancer cachexia; however, their use as diagnostic or prognostic markers is not possible yet, and further large-scale studies are required to confirm our findings.

Occurrence of an intrathoracic desmoid tumor following breast cancer treatment: A case report.

Desmoid tumors are rarely observed tumors that develop from deep muscle and aponeurotic tissues. They are histologically intermediate, and exhibit a local aggressive course. These tumors have been observed in the abdominal region, and are rarely encountered in the thoracic wall. The most effective treatment appears to be surgery. A 59-year-old female patient was admitted with the complaint of right breast pain and a palpable mass. The patient had undergone a modified radical mastectomy surgical procedure of the right breast due to invasive breast carcinoma 10 years before. A mass with a soft tissue density and a size of 44×22 mm was detected in the thoracic computed tomography of the patient, which subsequently resulted in biopsy followed by surgery. As a result of the pathological examination of the mass, the diagnosis was determined as desmoid tumor. Due to the closeness of the tumor to the surgical margin, the patient was administered radiotherapy and maintenance imatinib treatment was started.

Evaluation of quality of life of breast cancer patient next- of-kin in Turkey.

INTRODUCTION: Quality of life (QoL) issues are of importance in relatives of women with breast cancer (BC)as caregivers in neglecting their own needs due to care of a patient and also as women regarding the potential risk of themselves developing BC. The objectives in the present study were to compare the QoL of female relatives of women in treatment for breast cancer. To date, no study had examined multi-dimensional QoL in accompanying people as compared them into two groups of female relatives whose first degree and second degree. METHODS: QoL of female relatives was assessed using the Quality of Life-Family Version (QOL-FV) scale. Relationships between socio-demographic characteristics and QoL scores were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal Wallis and Crosstabs tests. RESULTS: The mean age of the female relatives was 37.6 years, and nearly 48% had a university education. It was found that first degree relatives had worse QoL in all domains except physical well- being than second degree relatives. CONCLUSION: This study showed that being female relatives of BC, especially first-degree, affect QoL negatively. Health care providers are of an important role in the stage of information related to genetic influence of BC.

MDR1 single nucleotide polymorphism C3435T in Turkish patients with non-small-cell lung cancer.

We assessed whether single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in MDR1 gene C3435T predicted the outcome of platinum-based chemotherapies and survival in our non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. A total of 79 non-small cell lung cancer patients were enrolled to study. We determined the MDR1 C3435T single nucleotide gene polymorphisms. Median age was 60years: 91.7% male, 8.9% female. We found that CC, CT, TT genotype and T, C allele frequencies in lung cancer patients as 24.1%, 62%, 13.9% and 44.3%, 55.7%, respectively. Patients with CT genotype had a higher response rate (11.4%) than the other genotypes. However, this difference is not statistically significant (p=0.743). Cox regression analysis for overall survival showed that ECOG PS status 0 (HR PS 1 vs. 0, 5.68 p=0.002; HR of PS 2 vs. 0 is 21.579, p=0.001; HR of PS 3 vs. 0 is 35.35, p=0.001), stage ≤II (HR of stage III vs. I+II is 17.77; p=0.016, HR of stage IV vs. I+II is 26.97, p=0.006), and albumin level ≥3g/dl (HR of albumin <3g/dl vs. ≥3g/dl is 2.46, p=0.044) were the most important prognostic factors (also, time to progression was related to these factors). There was no significant association between the genotypes and clinicopathologic parameters; however, good performance status, early stage and ≥3g/dl albumin level were found to be the most important prognostic factors for overall survival and progression-free survival.

Bilateral renal infarctions complicating fibromuscular dysplasia of renal arteries in a young male.

Fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD) is an uncommon disorder, accounting for less than 10% of cases of renal artery stenosis, and typically presenting with hypertension in young women. This article reports the case of a previously healthy 37-year-old man presenting with acute-onset, severe, bilateral flank pain. Initially treated for ureteral colic and urinary tract infection, he was transferred to the nephrology clinic upon recognition of a rising serum creatinine. He was found to have FMD of bilateral renal arteries with a stenotic pattern on the right side and a dissecting aneurysm on the left side with resultant infarctions in both kidneys. On the basis of negative serological markers of vasculitis, a diagnosis of FMD complicated by bilateral renal infarctions was made. A stent was placed to the right stenotic renal artery, which resulted in sufficient lumen patency. No invasive procedure was performed on the other side owing to the complexity of the lesion. After 2.5 years of follow-up, the patient remained in good condition with normal renal function and adequate blood pressure control with dual antihypertensive therapy. Renal infarction complicating FMD of renal arteries is rare in the literature, with most of the cases having causative cardiovascular risk factors including coagulopathy, ischaemic heart disease, atrial fibrillation or structural cardiac abnormalities, none of which was present in this case. In conclusion, FMD may occur in atypical asymmetric presentations causing renal infarctions in both kidneys. Radiological interventions in such cases should focus on stabilizing renal lesions and renal function.