Porcelain gallbladder is regarded as a risk factor of gallbladder cancer. A porcelain gallbladder with calcified regional lymph nodes was found using computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in a 43-year-old man who presented with nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. His cholecystectomy specimen showed diffuse wall thickening and contained small gallstones. Histological examination revealed diffuse infiltrative adenocarcinoma with extensive intratumoral calcification (calcified carcinoma). The majority of the calcified material was located within or replaced the tumor glands, and was not found in the stroma. A lymph node was totally replaced with a calcified metastatic adenocarcinoma. To the best of our knowledge, only one case of calcified lymph node metastasis from a calcified carcinoma of the gallbladder has been previously reported in the literature. We herein add a case of calcified carcinoma of the gallbladder with calcified lymph node metastasis, presenting as a porcelain gallbladder on CT and MRI.
Abdominal Pain ; Adenocarcinoma ; Adult ; Cholecystectomy ; Dental Porcelain ; Gallbladder ; Gallbladder Neoplasms ; Gallstones ; Humans ; Lymph Nodes ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Nausea ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Risk Factors ; Vomiting

High-dose methotrexate (MTX) chemotherapy extends the duration of hospitalization and introduces the risks of serious complications related to delayed MTX excretion. The treatment of delayed MTX excretion is largely dependent on invasive measures such as hemodialysis because the clinical data regarding the efficacy or safety of carboxypetidase G2 is limited. We report here on the cases of two pediatric osteosarcoma patients with delayed MTX excretion and who were successfully managed using supportive measures. Potential life-threatening complications were prevented by administering high doses of leucovorin.
Child ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Leucovorin ; Methotrexate ; Osteosarcoma ; Renal Dialysis

PURPOSE: Various tumor antigens can be loaded onto dendritic cells (DCs) to induce a potent cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response in DC-based immunotherapy against breast cancer. However, in the clinical setting, obtaining a sufficient number of autologous tumor cells as a source of tumor antigens is a laborious process. We therefore investigated the feasibility of immunotherapy using breast-cancer-specific CTLs generated in vitro by use of alpha-type 1 polarized DCs (alpha DC1s) loaded with ultraviolet B-irradiated cells of the breast cancer cell line MCF-7. MATERIALS AND METHODS: alphaDC1s were induced by loading allogeneic tumor antigen generated from the MCF-7 UVB-irradiated breast cancer cell line. Antigen-pulsed alphaDC1s were evaluated by morphological and functional assays, and the breast-cancer-specific CTL response was analyzed by cytotoxic assay. RESULTS: The alphaDC1s significantly increased the expression of several molecules related to DC maturation without differences according to whether the alphaDC1s were loaded with tumor antigens. The alphaDC1s showed a high production of interleukin-12 both during maturation and after subsequent stimulation with CD40L, which was not significantly affected by loading with tumor antigens. Breast-cancer-specific CTLs against autologous breast cancer cells were successfully induced by alphaDC1s loaded with apoptotic MCF-7 cells. CONCLUSION: Autologous DCs loaded with an allogeneic breast cancer cell line can generate potent breast-cancer-specific CTL responses. This may be a practical method for cellular immunotherapy in patients with breast cancer.
Antigens, Neoplasm ; Breast ; Breast Neoplasms ; CD40 Ligand ; Cell Line ; Dendritic Cells ; Humans ; Immunotherapy ; Interleukin-12 ; Lymphocytes ; T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic

PURPOSE: The pharmacological activities, notably the anticancer properties, of bioactive constituents fromfresh American ginseng berry have not yet been well studied. In this study, we investigated the antiproliferative effects of fresh American ginseng berry extract (AGBE) and its representative triterpenoid glycosides using the human colorectal cancer cell line SW480. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), the contents of 8 ginsenosides in AGBE were determined. The cell growth inhibitory effects of AGBE and three triterpenoid glycosides (ginsenosides Rb3, Re, and Rg3) were evaluated by proliferation assay and 3H-thymidine incorporation assay. Cell cycle and apoptotic effects were analyzed by using flow cytometry after staining with propidium iodide and annexin V. RESULTS: HPLC analysis data showed that AGBE has a distinct ginsenoside profile. AGBE inhibited SW480 cell growth significantly in a time-dependent (24-96 hours) and concentration-dependent (0.1-1.0 mg/mL) manner. Ginsenosides Rb3, Re, and Rg3 also possess significant antiproliferative activities on SW480 cells. 3H-thymidine incorporation assay indicated that AGBE and ginsenosides Rb3, Re, and Rg3 might inhibit the transferring and duplication of DNA in SW480 cells. Flow cytometric assay data suggested that AGBE arrested SW480 cells in S and G2/M phases, and significantly induced cell apoptosis. CONCLUSION: AGBE and ginsenosides Rb3, Re, and Rg3 possessed significant antiproliferative effects and induced changes of morphological appearance on SW480 cells. The mechanisms of the antiproliferation of AGBE and tested ginsenosides involved could be cell cycle arrest and induction of apoptosis.
Apoptosis ; Cell Cycle ; Cell Cycle Checkpoints ; Cell Line ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Chromatography, Liquid ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; DNA ; Flow Cytometry ; Fruit ; Ginsenosides ; Glycosides ; Humans ; Panax ; Propidium

PURPOSE: Dense breasts have been suggested as a risk factor for breast cancer, but controversy still remains. This study evaluates the association of reproductive and hormonal factors with dense breasts among Korean women. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using a cross-sectional design, 516 women were recruited and classified for breast density patterns as being either fatty or dense, using the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) of the American College of Radiology. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: In univariate logistic regression, older age, higher body mass index, older age at menarche, and oral contraceptive use were associated with more fatty breasts. On the contrary, longer duration of education, alcohol consumption, lower parity, menopause and use of hormone replacement therapy were associated with dense breasts. After adjustment, age and body mass index were inversely associated with breast density (p-value for trend <0.01, respectively), whereas nulliparous and premenopausal status were positively associated. Compared to women who had > or =2 children, nulliparous women had an 11.8-fold increase of dense breasts (p-value for trend <0.01). Compared to postmenopausal women, premenopausal women had 2.4-fold increase of dense breasts (odds ratio, 2.42; 95% confidence interval, 1.36 to 4.32). CONCLUSION: Young age, lower body mass index, lower parity, and premenopausal status were significantly associated with dense breasts in Korea.
Alcohol Drinking ; Body Mass Index ; Breast ; Breast Neoplasms ; Child ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; Hormone Replacement Therapy ; Humans ; Information Systems ; Korea ; Logistic Models ; Mammography ; Menarche ; Menopause ; Parity ; Risk Factors

Rituximab is a human/murine chimeric anti-CD20 mono- clonal antibody used to treat CD20-positive B-cell non- Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Although most of the adverse effects associated with rituximab are usually reversible and temporary infusion-related reactions, including fever, chills, flushing and skin reactions, there are several reports of pulmonary events after long-term administration of rituximab. We present a case of asymp-tomatic nodular organizing pneumonia occurring during rituximab-based chemotherapy in a patient with non- Hodgkin's lymphoma.
B-Lymphocytes ; Chills ; Drug Therapy ; Fever ; Flushing ; Hodgkin Disease ; Humans ; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin ; Pneumonia* ; Skin ; Rituximab

PURPOSE: Retinoids have been shown to be effective in suppressing tumor development when chemical carcinogens such as N-nitroso-N-methylurea (NMU) and N- nitroso-N-ethylurea (NEU) were used to induce mammary tumors in a variety of animal models. However, the molecular mechanisms associated with the retinoid- mediated chemopreventive process, as linked to transcription factor NF-kappa B activation, for chemoprevention have not been elucidated. The purpose of this study was to determine the implications of NF-kappa B activation on the chemopreventive role of retinoids and their effect on cellular NF-kappa B activity that's induced by known alkylating chemical carcinogens such as NMU and NEU in human transfectant squamous cell carcinoma (SCC-13) cells. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The activity of NF-kappa B, as regulated by chemical carcinogens and retinoids, was determined in cultured human SCC-13 keratinocytes that were transfected with the pNF-kappa B-SEAP-NPT plasmid; this permitted the expression of the secretory alkaline phosphatase (SEAP) reporter gene in response to the NF-kappa B activity, and the plasmid contained the neomycin phosphotransferase (NPT) gene, which confers resistance to geneticin. The reporter enzyme activity was measured using a fluorescence detection assay method. RESULTS: All-trans retinoic acid and 13-cis retinoic acid induced a reduction of NF-kappa B activity up to 64% and 65%, respectively, compared to the control. For the treatment of the human transfectant cells with chemical carcinogens, all-trans retinoic acid (5 mM) and 13-cis retinoic acid (5 mM) downregulated the cellular NF-kappa B activation up to 83% and 85% compared to the NF-kappa B activity that was upregulated by NMU (5 micro M) and NEU (5 micro M), respectively. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the chemopreventive effect of retinoids may be mediated by the down- regulated activation of NF-kappa B and that retinoids are implicated in the activation of NF-kappa B in human skin cells.
Alkaline Phosphatase ; Carcinogens ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Chemoprevention ; Fluorescence ; Genes, Reporter ; Humans* ; Kanamycin Kinase ; Keratinocytes* ; Models, Animal ; NF-kappa B* ; Plasmids ; Retinoids* ; Skin ; Transcription Factors ; Tretinoin

PURPOSE: The diverse experimental environments in microarray technology, such as the different platforms or different RNA sources, can cause biases in the analysis of multiple microarrays. These systematic effects present a substantial obstacle for the analysis of microarray data, and the resulting information may be inconsistent and unreliable. Therefore, we introduced a simple integration method for combining microaray data sets that are derived from different experimental conditions, and we expected that more reliable information can be detected from the combined data set rather than from the separated data sets. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This method is based on the distributions of the gene expression ratios among the different microarray data sets and it transforms, gene by gene, the gene expression ratios into the form of the reference data set. The efficiency of the proposed integration method was evaluated using two microarray data sets, which were derived from different RNA sour-ces, and a newly defined measure, the mixture score. RESULTS: The proposed integration method intermixed the two data sets that were obtained from different RNA sources, which in turn reduced the experimental bias between the two data sets, and the mixture score increased by 24.2%. A data set combined by the proposed method preserved the inter-group relationship of the separated data sets. CONCLUSION: The proposed method worked well in adjusting systematic biases, including the source effect. The ability to use an effectively integrated microarray data set yields more reliable results due to the larger sample size and this also decreases the chance of false negatives.
Bias (Epidemiology) ; Dataset* ; Gene Expression* ; RNA ; Sample Size

PURPOSE: Bronchial wash fluid may be a useful for detecting lung cancer. To increase the detection rates, we performed molecular analysis with using MAGE A1-6 and SSX4 RT-PCR on bronchial wash fluid specimens. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We obtained 57 lung cancer tissue specimens by bronchoscopic biopsy and 131 bronchial washes from 96 patients with lung cancer and 35 patients with benign lung diseases. The MAGE A1-6 and SSX4 gene expressions were investigated in the cancer tissue specimens and bronchial wash fluids. We evaluated the positive detection rates of these methods according to the cytology results and the clinical findings. RESULTS: For the cancer tissue specimens and the bronchial wash fluid, the positive detection rate of MAGE or SSX4 was 91.2% and 75.0%, respectively. Combined MAGE and SSX4 PCR and cytology tests showed an 83.3% detection rate for the bronchial wash fluid. From bronchial washes of patients with benign lung diseases, the positive rates of using MAGE or SSX4 was 11.4%. In the bronchial wash fluid of lung cancer patients, 66.7% of the peripheral cancers were detected by MAGE or SSX4, while examination with cytology did not detect any peripheral lung cancer. CONCLUSION: The application of both MAGE and SSX4 showed high sensitivity and specificity for the detection of lung cancer. Thus, MAGE and SSX4 RT-PCR may be effectively utilized as additional methods to improve detection of lung cancer with using bronchial wash fluids.
Biopsy ; Gene Expression ; Humans ; Lung Diseases ; Lung Neoplasms* ; Lung* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Sensitivity and Specificity

PURPOSE: The goal of this study was to determine the clinical and therapeutic characteristics of women with a primary peritoneal carcinoma (PPC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective clinical study was conducted to evaluate 22 women diagnosed with a PPC from 1993 to 2007 at the Hospitals of The Catholic University of Korea. Diagnoses were based on the Gynecologic Oncology Group criteria and clinical data. We collected patient clinicopathological data including age, presenting symptoms, pretreatment CA-125 values (U/ml), clinical stage (based on the FIGO stage), performance status (using the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group scale), whether cytoreductive surgery was optimal or not, types of chemotherapy and response to treatment. We evaluated the clinical characteristics and response to treatment, time to treatment failure and overall survival. RESULTS: The median overall survival of all patients was 23.1 months. The estimated 3-year survival rate was 29% (SE, 13%). The response rate to first-line platinum-based chemotherapy was 79% and the median time to treatment failure was 9.9 months (95% confidence interval, 1.38~18.4 months). By univariate and multivariate analysis, performance status was the only significant factor associated with overall survival (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: We evaluated the clinical characteristics and treatment response of patients with a primary peritoneal carcinoma. Our results showed that it is possible to achieve long-term survival in patients with PPC. A further clinical study is to need to establish clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes.
Diagnosis ; Drug Therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Korea ; Multivariate Analysis ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate ; Time-to-Treatment ; Treatment Failure