PURPOSE: In breast cancer, response to endocrine therapy depends on estrogen receptor and progesterone receptor status. However, poor prognosis is conferred on patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive breast cancer. We aimed to examine weakly positive HR breast cancer by comparing weakly positive HR to strongly positive HR and negative HR breast cancer. METHODS: We examined the clinical and biological features of 1,496 women with breast cancer, and these patients were categorized according to HR status as weakly positive, strongly positive, and negative HR breast cancer. RESULTS: In this study, among 1,496 patients with breast cancer, negative HR breast cancer was found in 374, weakly positive HR breast cancer in 90 and strongly positive HR breast cancer in 1,032 patients. Our multivariate analysis showed that there were differences in T stage, tumor-node-metastasis stage, vascular invasion, histologic grade and type, and Ki-67 index. Patients with weakly positive HR breast cancer had an increased risk of death and recurrence compared with those with strongly positive HR breast cancer and had similar prognosis as patients with negative HR breast cancer. CONCLUSION: Patients with weakly positive HR breast cancer received endocrine therapy because they were regarded as having positive HR breast cancer. However, their prognosis of overall survival and relapse-free survival was similar to that in patients with negative HR breast cancer. Therefore, we need to closely observe and consider active treatment for patients with weakly positive breast cancer.
Breast Neoplasms ; Breast ; Estrogens ; Female ; Humans ; Multivariate Analysis ; Prognosis ; Receptors, Estrogen ; Receptors, Progesterone ; Recurrence ; Triple Negative Breast Neoplasms

Plasmacytoma in patients with multiple myeloma usually develops in the advanced stage of the disease. We report herein an atypical case of extramedullary relapse of multiple myeloma that presented as mechanical obstruction of the small bowel in a patient who had achieved complete remission after chemotherapy. A 75-year-old man was diagnosed with multiple myeloma 25 months previously and treated with a bortezomib-containing chemotherapy regimen. He presented for evaluation of abdominal pain. A circumferential mass resulting in mechanical ileus was observed by abdominal computed tomography. Biopsy after surgical resection confirmed the diagnosis of plasmacytoma. The patient was subsequently treated with thalidomide-containing chemotherapy, but he died of disease progression after 6 months. We suggest careful observation of unusual relapses of multiple myeloma in patients who have achieved complete remission after antimyeloma therapy.
Abdominal Pain ; Aged ; Biopsy ; Diagnosis ; Disease Progression ; Drug Therapy ; Humans ; Ileus ; Intestinal Obstruction ; Multiple Myeloma* ; Plasmacytoma ; Recurrence*

Morganella morganii is a facultative gram-negative and anaerobic rod. It may be a cause of devastating infections in neonates and immunocompromised hosts. Some bacterial infections such as Clostridium and Vibrio are associated with hemolysis. However, massive hemolysis caused by M. morganii sepsis has not yet been reported. We observed a 59-yr-old man who had chemotherapy-induced neutropenia and was found to have massive hemolysis and metabolic acidosis due to sepsis. He died 6 hr after admission in spite of aggressive treatment. Two sets of blood cultures revealed the growth of M. morganii. We report here that M. morganii sepsis can cause fatal massive hemolysis leading to death.
Antineoplastic Agents/adverse effects ; Bacteremia/*complications ; Enterobacteriaceae Infections/*complications ; *Hemolysis ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; *Morganella morganii ; Neutropenia/complications