Immunohistochemical detection of TGF-alpha, EGF-R, c-erbB-2, c-H-ras, c-myc, estrogen and progesterone in benign and malignant human breast lesions: a concomitant expression.

The expression of transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha), epidermal growth factor receptor (EGF-R) and oncogenes c-erbB-2, c-H-ras, c-myc, as well as estrogen (ER) and progesterone (PR) receptors were studied immunohistochemically in the tissue of 21 benign and 58 malignant human breast lesions. Twenty nine (50%) of 58 carcinomas were positive for EGF-R and c-erbB-2 product, 55 (94.8%) for c-myc product, 9 (15.5%) for c-H-ras product and 17 (29%) for TGF-alpha. Eighteen of 58 (31%) carcinomas were estrogen receptor positive and 22 (38%) were positive for progesterone receptor. No correlation was found between expression of each investigated parameter and the clinical stage or degree of histological differentiation of the carcinomas. However, a significant positive correlation was observed between lymph node involvement and c-erbB-2 and EGF-R/c-erbB-2 positive tumors. A strong correlation was also observed between high levels of EGF-R and low levels of estrogen receptor. In 15 of 17 cases we found simultaneous expression of EGF-R and TGF-alpha. We also found interesting patterns in concomitant expression of the investigated parameters suggesting a possible cascade of events that occur in breast cancer cells.

Correlation between the blood pool tomoscintigraphy (SPECT) and planar scintigraphy in the diagnostic of the liver hemangioma.

The aim of the study was the estimation of diagnostic importance of the hepatic blood pool tomoscintigraphy (SPECT) and planar scintigraphy in patients investigated under suspicion of the liver hemangioma. In the diagnostic procedure the correlation between radiocolloidal scintigraphy, blood pool planar scintigraphy (early and late) and SPECT was made. Sixty-seven patients with focal lesions in the liver were investigated. The blood pool scintigraphy was made after application of traser dose of 99mTc and equilibration of tagged red blood cells in circulation. The planar scintigraphy was made 20 min after the red cells tagging and again 2 hours later (early and late scintigrams). SPECT was also applied to make the diagnostic procedure more accurate. From 31 hemangiomas detected by SPECT only 19.4% were clearly visible by planar scintigraphy. The diagnostic of very small hemangiomas is enabled by SPECT too.

[Scintigraphy of the vascular supply of the liver in the differential diagnosis of hemangioma, in malignant processes and cystic formations in the liver]. / Scintigrafija vaskularnih prostora jetre u diferencijalno-dijagnostickom postupku hemangioma, u malignim procesima i cisticnim formacijama u jetri.

The aim of the research is to establish and confirm the diagnoses of patients with suspected haemangioma of the liver with completed ultrasonography. A group of 92 patients were checked by scintigraphy after the equilibration of marked eritrocytes in the circulation. After the marking dose of 99mTc-Sn-PYP in a dose of 555 MBq scintigraphy and static scintigram of the liver (early and late, after 3 hours) were done. During the clinical studies the classic scintigraphy of the liver by 99mTc-S-coloid was done in all the patients. After the study it was concluded that there was a partial gathering of the radioisotopes in early scintigrams which was more evident in the late ones especially in the areas which represented focal-cold zones in the classic scintigrams.

[Inhalation scintigraphy in the diagnosis of pulmonary thromboembolism]. / Doprinos inhalacione scintigrafije u dijagnostici plucnog tromboembolizma.

The purpose of this report is to realize the role of inhalation scintigraphy in the diagnostics of the pulmonary thromboembolic disease, as an addition to perfusion lung scintigraphy in the assessment of the nature of perfusion disturbances discovered by the perfusion scintigram. Perfusion lung scintigraphy, in itself, is a very sensitive indicator of a recent pulmonary thromboembolism but it is not sufficiently specific. The combining of perfusion and inhalation lung scintigraphy increases the specific quality of scintigraphic examinations in the diagnostics of lung thromboembolism.

[Inhalation scintigraphy of the lungs and its clinical aspects]. / Inhalaciona scintigrafija pluca i njeni klinicki aspekti.

The aim of the work was to examine the new Taplin's system for the production and inhalation of radioactive aerosol in routine diagnostic application. For that purpose a new commercially produced system of the firm CADEMA was used with a small modification which made possible its repeated application. The advantage of this system is a high level of aerosol particles of optimal size from 0.7-0.8 micron and inhalation is carried out only on the basis of air circulation caused by natural breathing. Total of 125 inhalation scintigrams was made. The results show that one can get aerosol of a high quality the distribution of which does not depend significantly on the sort of material marked with 99mTc. The distribution itself is even and scintigrams of high quality can be obtained. Inhalation scintigram of high quality combined with a perfusion scintigram enables reliable estimation of regional relationship between ventilation and perfusion of the lungs which is of special interest in the diagnostic of lung thromboembolism.