Expression of cancer susceptibility candidate 11 in ovarian cancer tissues and its role in doxorubicin resistance.

We aimed to investigate the expression of cancer susceptibility candidate 11 (CASC11) in ovarian cancer (OC) tissues and its role in doxorubicin (Dox) resistance. A total of 98 patients were included as subjects. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction was employed to determine the expressions of CASC11 in OC and para-OC tissues, and in OC cells (A2780, SKOV3, OVCAR3 and A547) and human normal ovarian epithelial cells (IOSE-80) from these patients. OC SKOV3/R cell line with Dox resistance was established and transfected with small interfering (si)-CASC11 to down-regulate CASC11 expression. Based on the constructed nude mouse model of orthotopic transplanted tumor, the growth curves were plotted, and the changes in tumor volume and apoptosis were observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining. OC tissues had a significantly higher mRNA expression of CASC11 than that of para-OC tissues (P < 0.05). A547, OVCAR3, A2780 and SKOV3 cells had significantly higher mRNA expressions of CASC11 than that of IOSE-80 cells (P < 0.05). The transplanted tumor was significantly smaller in volume in the si-CASC11 group than that in the si-normal control (NC) group from the 8th days after transplanted tumor inoculation (P < 0.05). The tumor growth inhibition rate significantly rose in the si-CASC11 group in comparison with that in the si-NC group (P < 0.05). CASC11 has high expression in OC tissues. Knockout of CASC11 weakens the proliferative, invasive and migratory potentials and enhances the apoptotic potential of Dox-resistant OC cells, thereby reversing their Dox resistance.

Unilateral ovarian recurrence 5 years after hysterectomy for microinvasive squamous cervical cancer stage IA1: a rare case report.

BACKGROUND: Ovarian metastasis or recurrence of cervical microinvasive squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is very rare. We report a case of unilateral ovarian recurrence 5 years after hysterectomy for the SCC stage IA1 without lymph vascular space invasion (LVSI). CASE PRESENTATION: A 49-year-old female patient suffered from a dull pain in the left lower abdomen for 3 months. And five years ago, she received a laparoscopic hysterectomy for the treatment of stage IA1 (without LVSI) SCC of the cervix. The level of squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCC-Ag) in serum was significantly elevated (10.60 ng/mL). Pelvic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a left ovarian solid tumor measuring 5.5 × 3.9 × 5.6 cm with heterogeneous enhancement. During laparotomy, the left ovarian tumor was measured about 5.0 × 4.5 × 3.0 cm and seemed densely adherent to the posterior peritoneal wall, including the left ureter. The tumor and pelvic lymph node were carefully removed. Postoperative anatomy revealed a solid mass with a greyish-white section. Postoperative pathology showed recurrent moderately differentiated ovarian SCC with negative pelvic lymph nodes. Immunohistochemistry showed that the tumor cells were positive for P16, P63, P40, and CK5/6 markers, and the positive rate of Ki67 was about 80%. CONCLUSIONS: Ovary preservation is reasonable and appropriate in young patients with microinvasive SCC. Ovarian recurrence is rare, but gynecological oncologists should not overlook its possibility. The serum SCC-Ag is an important indicator for monitoring postoperative disease progression.

Comparison of learning curves for laparoendoscopic single-site myomectomy performed by 2 surgeons.

We aimed to compare the learning curves of 2 surgeons with different endoscopic bases when performing laparoendoscopic single-site myomectomy (LESS-M). We retrospectively analyzed and compared 2 groups of patients who underwent LESS-M performed by 2 surgeons with different bases in multi-port laparoscopic surgery (MLS) from October 2019 to December 2020 at West China Second Hospital of Sichuan University. Patients' characteristics and related surgical indicators were compared, and surgeons' learning curves were analyzed using a cumulative sum analysis. All of the patients completed LESS-M without converting to MLS or laparotomy, despite Surgeon A being MLS-unqualified and Surgeon B being MLS-qualified. There were no significant differences in patients' characteristics or surgical indicators between the 2 groups (P > 0.05 for all). Surgeons A and B crossed the learning curve after 21 and 18 cases, respectively. LESS-M is safe and feasible. Approximately 20 cases are required for surgeons to achieve LESS-M proficiency, and surgeons without MLS experience can still master LESS-M.

Analysis of clinical outcomes of patients with primary rare carcinoma of Bartholin gland: six case series report and review of the literature.

Background: Bartholin gland carcinoma (BGC) is an unusual malignancy representing less than 5% of all vulval carcinomas. Due to the limited published information on the diagnosis and treatment of BGC, this tumor is prone to misdiagnosis; most cases are found in an advanced stage once the diagnosis is delayed. Methods: This was a retrospective study of six patients with BGC in the West China Second University Hospital between January 2011 to August 2021. Results: In our study, BGC was 4.4% in all vulvar malignancies. The average age of six patients was 40.83 years old, with the tumor size ranging from 2 to 5 cm, and time of onset ranging from 2 to 3 years. Based on the retrospective clinical staging, there were three patients in stage I, one in stage II, and two in stage IVb. The human papillomavirus (HPV) 16 was detected in tissue samples of three patients. Two patients with excision of the vulvar mass and wide local excision (WLE) had local recurrence at 32 and 18 months, respectively. One patient died of distant metastasis of tumor, one died of non-tumor cause, and the others survived to this day. Conclusions: Six patients with BGC were reviewed in this study, and their characteristics of baseline information, clinicopathology, treatment approaches, and prognosis were described and analyzed, hoping to provide new insights for the diagnosis or treatment in this rare malignancy.

Laparoendoscopic Single-site Radical Hysterectomy with Vaginal Closure and without Uterine Manipulator for FIGO IB1 Cervical Cancer.

OBJECTIVE: Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) for radical hysterectomy (RH) has been reported with inferior oncologic outcomes in the New England Journal of Medicine [1,2]. Some studies have suggested that the no-touch technique may be a useful procedure to prevent tumor spillage and improve survival. Therefore, we performed RH targeting early-stage cervical cancer using the laparoendoscopic single-site (LESS) approach with an enclosed colpotomy and without a uterine manipulator [3]. DESIGN: Video demonstration of the technique. SETTING: A hospital. INTERVENTIONS: A 48-year-old postmenopausal woman received a diagnosis of stage IB1 (International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 2018) cervical cancer [4]. After being fully informed of the benefits and risks of different surgical approaches (laparotomy and MIS), she consented to the MIS. The type C RH through the LESS approach was performed successfully. The final pathologic findings confirmed stage IB1 cervical carcinoma. The patient recovered quickly, albeit with slight pain, and the incision scar was hidden perfectly for cosmetic purposes. CONCLUSION: This video demonstrates that LESS-RH with vaginal closure and without a manipulator is feasible and safe. Suspension skills played a significant role in LESS-RH. In addition, this surgical procedure involved 4 specific techniques to prevent tumor spillage: creation of a vaginal cuff, avoidance of a uterine manipulator, standard type C radical hysterectomy, and bagging of the specimen. These adaptations were meant to minimize tumor manipulation and disruption for reducing the increased risk of recurrence. However, further verifications are still required.

Association between condom use and perspectives on contraceptive responsibility in different sexual relationships among sexually active college students in China: A cross-sectional study.

China has increasing incidence of unplanned pregnancies among college students these years. Increasing students' sense of responsibility to protect sexual partners may help reduce the rate of unplanned pregnancies.A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to students from 3 colleges in Sichuan, China. Among them, 559 of male students and 267 of female students were included in this study. The questionnaire collected participants' characteristics, usage of condom, and investigated male and female students' perceptions of who should be responsible for contraception use.We found that relationship status was closely related to students perceiving responsibility for reproductive health and condom using. Male students who were in casual relationships during their most recent sexual encounter and shared responsibility for contraception were more likely to use condoms than other male students (P < .001). Female students who were in steady relationships during their most recent sexual encounter and shared responsibility for contraception were more likely to use condoms than other female students (P = .007). The multivariate analysis revealed condom use was associated with greater odds of sharing responsibility for contraceptive use in different types of sexual relationships.Improving students' attitudes toward responsibility for contraception may increase condom use among students at risk for unplanned pregnancies. Programs providing targeted health education and services may help reduce the rate of unplanned pregnancies among students in China.

[Effects of hyperthermia combined platinum-based drugs on ovarian cancer cell lines SKOV3].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects and mechanisms of hyperthermia combined with various platinum-based drugs cis-platinum (DDP), carboplatin (CBP), oxaliplatin (OXA) on the proliferation and apoptosis of ovarian cancer cell lines SKOV3. METHODS: SKOV3 cells were treated with different concentrations of anticancer drugs DDP (final concentration respectively 0, 1.25, 2.5, 5.0, 10.0, 20.0 microg/mL), CBP and OXA (both final concentration respectively 0, 2.5, 5.0, 10.0, 20.0, 40 microg/mL) at a temperature of 42 degrees C for hyperthermia or 37 degrees C for normal temperature. Methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) method was used to test growth ratios of ovarian cancer cell lines SKOV3. Real-time PCR was adopted to detect the expression level of excision repair cross-complementing group 1 (ERCC1) and Survivin mRNA in SKOV3 cells. RESULTS: DDP, CBP and OXA inhibited the growth of SKOV3 in a dose-dependent manner (P < 0.05). Hyperthermia could increase the sensitivity of SKOV3 to cis-platinum, carboplatin and oxaliplatin (P < 0.05). The half inhibitory concentration (IC50) values of DDP, CBP and OXA were (7.271 +/- 0.096) microg/mL, (37.609 +/- 0.779) microg/mL and (28.328 +/- 0.698) microg/mL respectively. When combined with hyperthermia, the IC50 values of DDP, CBP, and OXA were (2.075 +/- 0.244) microg/mL, (19.591 +/- 0.453) microg/mL, (19.089 +/- 0.424) microg/mL (P < 0.05). The increased sensitivity index was 2.075 +/- 0.244 for cis-platinum, 1.92 +/- 0.044 for carboplatin, 1.484 +/- 0.039 for oxaliplatin. After the treatment of hyperthermia, the expression of ERCC1 and Survivin mRNA showed downward trend. ERCC1 decreased more significantly in the group of hyperthermia combined with carboplatin, and Survivin decreased more significantly in the group of hyperthermia combined with oxaliplatin (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Hyperthermia can enhance the sensitivity of ovarian cancer SKOV3 cells to platinum-based drugs, which may be related to the down regulation of ERCC1 and Survivin expression.

[Expression of CLIC1 and IGFBP7 in complete hydatidiform mole].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expression level of chloride intracellular channel 1 (CLIC1) and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 7 (IGFBP7) in complete hydatidiform mole (CHM) and estimate the relationship between the expression level and clinical prognosis. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry (IHC) method was used to detect the expression level of P57(KIP2) in order to differentiate CHM. CLIC1 and IGFBP7 expression level of CHM were measured by IHC method then. RESULTS: (1) According to the P57(KIP2) expression result 66 patients were diagnosed as CHM (85.71%). Fourteen of 66 patients progressed into gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (GTN), which accounted for 21.21%. (2) The results of IHC showed that CLIC1 significantly higher expressed in malignant group than spontaneous regressive group (P = 0.014). IGFBP7 significantly down-regulated in malignant group (P = 0.002). (3) Pearson correlation analysis results revealed that there were no relation between the expression of CLIC1 and IGFBP7 (P = 0.761). Logistic regression analysis indicated that down-regulation of IGFBP7 was the independent risk factors of CHM progression, P = 0.005, OR = 8.493 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.878-38.401); Serum hCG > 5 x 10(5) mIU/mL was the independent risk factors of CHM progression too, P = 0.011, OR = 11.251 (95% CI: 1.731-73.151). (4) Receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) results showed that the area under the curve (AUC) of CLIC1 was 0.707. The optimum cut off was 10.5, and correspondingly sensitivity was 42.90%, specificity 94.20%. AUC of IGFBP7 was 0.764. The optimum cut off was 7.0, and the correspondingly sensitivity and specificity were 64.30% and 78.80% respectively. Combining the two markers in series, the sensitivity of predicting the prognosis of CHM was 21.42%, while the specificity was 100%. When combining in parallel, the sensitivity and specificity were 85.71% and 71.15% respectively. CONCLUSION: Up-regulation of CLIC1 and down-regulation of IGFBP7 might pay an important role in progression of CHM, but there was no relationship between the expression levels of them. The predictive values of malignance transformation of CHM with the two biomarkers were with certain accuracy, and combining them in parallel test could improve accuracy. They are promising to be candidate prognostic markers of CHM.