Colorectal carcinoma in patients under 40 years and over 70 years of age is unusual but not rare. The prognosis of these two groups, compared with remainder of patients, is thought to be unfavorable. From Jan. 1981 to Dec. 1997, 541 patients with primary colorectal cancer who were treated by surgical resection were analyzed retrospectively. They were divided into three age groups according to the age at admission, i.e. under 40 years, over 70 years and between 40 and 69 years(control group). Among three age groups, sex ratio, tumor characteristics(size, location , depth of invasion, lymph node metastasis, liver metastasis, peritoneal metastasis, histopathologic classification, stage, DNA ploidy pattern), serum CEA level and survival were compared and analyzed. The results were as follows: 1) In the young patient group(52 cases), female predominence, large tumor size, high proportion of mucinous adenocarcinoma in histopathologic classification, more frequent metastasis to regional lymph node, frequent peritoneal metastasis and high incidence in tumor location at transverse colon were noted(p<0.05). 2) In the elderly group(69 cases), deep invasion of tumor(T4) was noted (p<0.05). In addition, among them, concomittent diseases were presented in 25 patients(36%). They were diabetes(8), cardiac arrhythmia(4), old myocardial infarction(2), liver cirrhosis(5), COPD(3), previous cancer(3). 3) The 5-year survival rates of the young patient group and that of elderly patient group were lower than that of the other(p<0.01). 4) There was no significant differences in liver metastasis, tumor stage, DNA ploidy pattern, serum CEA level among three age groups.
Adenocarcinoma, Mucinous ; Aged* ; Classification ; Colon, Transverse ; Colorectal Neoplasms* ; DNA ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Liver ; Lymph Nodes ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Ploidies ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Sex Ratio ; Survival Rate

Twelve patients with inflammatory bowel disease had been operated at the department of surgery, Chonnam University Hospital during the period from March 1988 to February 1997. In this study, we report on the operative cases regarding age, sex, symptoms, duration of disease, location of disease, preoperative diagnosis, operative indication, frequency of operation, histopathologic findings and follow up. The results were as follows: 1) The male to female ratio in ulcerative colitis was 1 : 1, and the mean age was 54.5 years. In Crohn's disease, male to female ratio was 2.3 : 1 and the mean age was 42.1 years. 2) The mean duration of symptoms in ulcerative colitis was 39 months and in Crohn's disease was 13.9 months. The common symptoms in ulcerative colitis were abdominal pain, bloody diarrhea, indigestion, weight loss and in Crohn's disease abdominal pain, palpable mass, weight loss, indigestion. Extraintestinal symptoms in Crohn's disease were cholelithiasis like symptom, anal fistula, anal fissure. 3) The involvement site in ulcerative colitis was large bowel only, but in Crohn's disease small bowel (50%), large bowel (20%), small and large bowel (30%) were involved. 4) Preoperative diagnosis in ulcerative colitis was accurate, but in Crohn's disease accurate diagnosis was made only in 20% and the other cases were operated under the impression of different diseases or conditions (intestinal tuberculosis (50%), bowel perforation (20%), mechanical ileus (10%)). 5) The indication of surgery in ulcerative colitis was intractability to medical treatment, on the other hand, in Crohn's disease most operative cases were made under the emergentconditions (bowel perforation, bowel obstruction, enterocutaneous fistula, abdominal mass). The frequency of operation in ulcerative colitis were two times in one case, three times in one cases. In Crohn's disease half of cases experienced two or three times of surgery. The method of operation in ulcerative colitis was total proctocolectomy with J-pouch ileoanal anastomosis. In Crohn's disease resection of diseased bowel segment was performed.
Abdominal Pain ; Cholelithiasis ; Colitis, Ulcerative ; Colonic Pouches ; Crohn Disease ; Diagnosis ; Diarrhea ; Dyspepsia ; Female ; Fissure in Ano ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hand ; Humans ; Ileus ; Inflammatory Bowel Diseases* ; Intestinal Fistula ; Jeollanam-do ; Male ; Rectal Fistula ; Tuberculosis ; Weight Loss

Recently, abnormalites in DNA content have been considered as a new prognostic factor in gastric cancer. However, whether abnormal DNA content can be used as a prognostic tool for gastric cancer is still unknown .For that reason, the relationship between the DNA ploidy pattern and the conventional clincopathologic findings was studied and the corresponding survival rates were compared. A group of 690 newly diagnosed and surgically resected gastric cancer specimens obtained from January 1986 to June 1996 were examined for DNA content by flow cytometry. The results showed that 411 cases (59.6%) had DNA diploidy and 279 cases (40.4%) had aneuploidy; DNA aneuploidy was significantly correlated to well differentiated adenocarcinoma, whereas diploidy was correlated to signet ring cell carcinoma. The DNA diploidy group was differentiated from the aneuploidy group by depth of invasion and nodal involvement. Tumor cells confined to mucosa and no involvement of the lymph node (N0) were significant in the diploidy group of gastric cancer. In addition, stage Ia was predominant in the diploidy group. However the results of surgical resection and the 5-year survival rates of patients in the two groups were not signifcantly different (p>0.05). We, therefore, propose that the DNA ploidy pattern is useful for evaluating tumor growth, including lymph-node involvement, but not for determining the survival and prognosis.
Adenocarcinoma ; Aneuploidy ; Carcinoma, Signet Ring Cell ; Diploidy ; DNA* ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Lymph Nodes ; Mucous Membrane ; Ploidies* ; Prognosis ; Stomach Neoplasms* ; Survival Rate

BACKGROUND: Extended radical dissection of gastric cancer offers a more accurate stage, and complete removal of the metastatic lymph nodes raises the rate of curability. It has been thought for a long time that gastric cancer with paraaortic lymph-node metastasis is impossible to cure. However, with several reports of long-term survival of cases with paraaortic lymph-node metastasis, recently the procedure of paraaortic node dissection has become prevalent in Japan. METHODS: The study group was comprised with 348 patients of stage IV gastric cancer from among total of 2,015 patients with gastric cancer who had undergone gastric resection between 1979 and 1997 at the Department of Surgery, Chonnam University Hospital. Thirty-eight (38) of the 348 patients were paraaortic lymph-node positive (group I), 233 presented peritoneal metastasis (group II), and the remaining 77 presented liver metastasis (group III). The following factors were taken into consideration: age, sex, size of tumor, histopathologic classification, Borrmann type, location of tumor, DNA ploidy pattern, and survival rate. RESULTS: 1) In sex distribution, the third group (III) showed a statistically significant male predominence compared with the other groups (I=63.2%, II=67.4%, III=87.0%) (p<0.01). 2) In histopathologic classifications, well-differentiated tubular adenocarcinomas were more common in group III (I=10.5%, II=6.4%, III=22.0%). Poorly differentiated tubular adenocarcinomas were more common in group II (I=44.7%, II=59.2%, III=27.3%) (p<0.01). 3) In Borrmann types, type IV was more common in group II (I=7.9%, II=27.8%, III=9.1%) (p<0.01). 4) In tumor location, antral involvement of the tumor was presented in 55.3% of group I, 54.7% of group II, and 67.5% of group III whereas whole involvement of stomach was presented in 5.3% of group I, 15.0% of group II, and 5.2% of group III (p<0.01). 5)Group I had a significantly higher (37.9%) two-year survival rate than the other groups (II=10.9%, III=12.8%) (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests a greater prognostic benefit for radical surgery in cases of paraaortic lymph-node metastsis than in cases involving other stage IV gastric cancers.
Adenocarcinoma ; Classification ; DNA ; Humans ; Japan ; Jeollanam-do ; Liver ; Lymph Nodes ; Male ; Neoplasm Metastasis* ; Ploidies ; Sex Distribution ; Stomach ; Stomach Neoplasms* ; Survival Rate

Colorectal Neoplasms*

No abstract available.
Colorectal Neoplasms* ; Leptin*

No abstract available.
Colon* ; Colonic Neoplasms* ; Humans ; Ligation*

BACKGROUND: The nm23 gene was originally identified by screening of cDNA libraries from murine melanoma cell lines of varying metastatic potential. Gene expression of nm23 has been investigated in a number of tumors. Its down-regulation has been shown to be associated with metastasis or disease progression in some of the tumors. METHODS: We evaluated the nm23 mRNA levels in 23 surgically resected primary gastric cancers, in the matched adjacent mucosa, and in lymph nodes or distant metastatic foci by using Northern blot analyses and immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: The expression of nm23 mRNA was lower in the matched normal adjacent mucosa than in the primary tumor. The expressions of the nm23 gene were higher in normal lymph nodes and in lymph nodes with metastasis than in primary tumors. This result was due to the high expression in normal lymph nodes. The expression of nm23 in distant metastatic foci was lower than it was in primary tumor tissues (p<0.05). The expression of the nm23 protein in a primary tumor with distant metastasis was higher than it was in a primary tumor with lymphnode metastasis only (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: It is suggested that down-regulation of the nm23 gene might have a role in distant metastasis in gastric cancer, possibly leading to a poor prognosis.
Blotting, Northern ; Cell Line ; Disease Progression ; Down-Regulation ; Gene Expression ; Gene Library ; Lymph Nodes ; Mass Screening ; Melanoma ; Mucous Membrane ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Prognosis ; RNA, Messenger ; Stomach Neoplasms*

Telomerase, an enzyme associated with cellular immortality, is expressed by most malignant cells and is inactive in most normal somatic cells, with the exception of proliferative stem cells, germ cells and activated lymphocytes. Measuring telomerase activity clinically may provide useful diagnostic and prognostic information of cancer. The purpose of this study was to investigate the change in telomerase activity following chemoradiation in rectal cancer, which almost always produces positive enzymatic activity. A total of 24 tumor tissue samples were used in this study, consisting of 12 paired specimens before and 4 week after chemoradiation. Telomerase activity was determined by PCR-based telomeric repeat amplification protocol (TRAP) assay. The telomerase activity was positive in 10 out of 12 patients (83%) in pre-irradiated and post-irradiated states. The levels of telomerase activity was decreased in 8 out of 10 patients after chemoradiation (80%) and two cases showed no change in enzymatic activity. One case showed no activity in either sample. The other case showed no enzymatic activity in the pre-irradiated sample, but showed weak activity in the post-irradiated sample. These data indicate that telomerase activity in rectal cancer is reduced after neoadjuvant chemoradiation therapy, possibly suggesting a mechanism of downstaging following chemoradiation therapy in cancer.
Adult ; Aged ; Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic/administration & dosage ; Antineoplastic Agents/administration & dosage ; Cisplatin/administration & dosage ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Enzyme Activation/radiation effects ; Enzyme Activation/drug effects ; Female ; Fluorouracil/administration & dosage ; Gene Amplification ; Human ; Male ; Middle Age ; Rectal Neoplasms/radiotherapy* ; Rectal Neoplasms/enzymology* ; Rectal Neoplasms/drug therapy ; Telomerase/metabolism*

PURPOSE: Recurrent disease after curative surgery for primary colorectal cancer is well-known problem. Recurred colorectal cancer, even hepatic metastasis, can be operable in case of non-systemic metastasis. In those cases, a favorable prognosis is expected. But, regrettably in most cases which showed recurrence after curative surgery poor prognosis was remained. METHODS: In our hospital, we have experienced 98 patients with recurred colorectal cancer among 607 patients who had curative operation from Jan. 1980 to Feb. 1998. We analyzed retrospectively those patients and considered factors which influenced recurrence of disease and prognosis (type of recurrence, age, sex, location of tumor, histology of tumor, size of tumor, depth of tumor invasion, lymph node involvement, tumor stage, DNA ploidy pattern, serum CEA level, oncogene expression of tumor and reoperation). RESULTS: 1) The Mean of disease-free interval after curative operation was 15.9 months (range: 3.0~44.5 months). 2) Among total patients with recurrence, patients with local recurrence were 29 cases (29.6%), those with liver metastasis were 29 cases (29.6%), lung metastasis were 7 cases (7.1%), lung and liver metastasis were 7 cases (7.1%), peritoneal metastasis were 18 cases (18.4%), lymph node metastasis were 7 cases (7.1%), brain metastasis was 1 case (1.0%). 3) The curative reoperation was performed in 19 patients (19.4%). Those procedures were abdominoperineal resection (4), local perineal resection (6), hepatic resection (2), Hartmann's procedure (2), segmental resection of ileum (2), Whipple's operation (1), resection of ileal pouch in patient with FAP (1), oophorectomy (1). 4) Those factors which influenced recurrence were tumor stage, histologic type of tumor, depth of tumor invasion, lymph node status, preoperative serum CEA level. 5) The mean survival time of patients with recurred colorectal cancer was 25.1 months. The 36 months survival rate of patients with recurred colorectal cancer among various sites of recurrence was different significantly (p=0.04). Those patients with local recurrence showed most favorable prognosis (42.0% in 36 months survival rate) and those with liver metastasis showed worst prognosis (4.7%). 6) The 36 months survival rate of reoperative group was 54.3% and that of non-operative group was 20.5 months. The result of two groups was statistically different (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: We concluded that those factors which influenced recurrence in colorectal cancer were tumor stage, histologic type, invasion depth, lymph node status, and preoperative serum CEA level. Also the survival rate of reoperative group was higher than that of non-operative group statistically.
Brain ; Colorectal Neoplasms* ; DNA ; Female ; Humans ; Ileum ; Liver ; Lung ; Lymph Nodes ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Oncogenes ; Ovariectomy ; Ploidies ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Reoperation ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate