PURPOSE: Experimental studies have suggested that the stromal-derived factor-1 (SDF-1)/CXCR4 axis is associated with tumor aggressiveness and metastasis in several malignancies. We performed a meta-analysis to elucidate the relationship between CXCR4 expression and the clinicopathological features of prostate cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data were collected from studies comparing Gleason score, T stage, and the presence of metastasis with CXCR4 levels in human prostate cancer samples. The studies were pooled, and the odds ratio (OR) of CXCR4 expression for clinical and pathological variables was calculated. RESULTS: Five articles were eligible for the current meta-analysis. We found no relationship between CXCR4 expression and Gleason score (<7 vs. > or =7). The forest plot using the fixed-effects model indicated an OR of 1.585 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.793~3.171; p=0.193). Further, CXCR4 expression was not associated with the T stage ( or =T3), and the relevant meta-analysis showed OR=1.803 (95% CI: 0.756~4.297, p=0.183). However, increased CXCR4 expression was strongly associated with metastatic disease with a fixed-effects pooled OR of 7.459 (95% CI: 2.665~20.878, p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Our meta-analysis showed that the higher CXCR4 protein expression in prostate cancer specimens is significantly associated with the presence of metastatic disease. This supports previous experimental data supporting the role played by the SDF-1/CXCR4 axis in metastasis.
Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Humans ; Neoplasm Grading ; Neoplasm Metastasis* ; Odds Ratio ; Prostatic Neoplasms* ; Receptors, CXCR4

A 61-year-old man presented with a right renal mass with a vena caval thrombus on computed tomography that was consistent with renal cell carcinoma. The results of routine laboratory examinations and urinalysis were within normal limits. Preoperative planning was critical owing to the presence of the vena caval thrombus. A radical nephrectomy, vena caval thrombectomy, and regional lymphadenectomy were done. The pathologic report was consistent with a high-grade, invasive urothelial carcinoma, with sarcomatoid differentiation involving the renal vein and inferior vena cava (Stage IV, T4N0M0). Thus, this was a rare case of upper tract urothelial carcinoma. Adjuvant chemotherapy with the methotrexate, vinblastine, doxorubicin, cisplatinum regimen is scheduled. To our knowledge, this is the first report in Korea of upper tract urothelial carcinoma of the sarcomatoid type with a vena caval thrombus.
Carcinoma, Renal Cell/pathology ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Kidney Neoplasms/diagnosis/*pathology ; Lymph Node Excision/methods ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nephrectomy/methods ; Renal Veins/*radiography ; Thrombectomy/methods ; Thrombosis/*radiography ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Vena Cava, Inferior/*radiography

A 61-year-old man presented with a right renal mass with a vena caval thrombus on computed tomography that was consistent with renal cell carcinoma. The results of routine laboratory examinations and urinalysis were within normal limits. Preoperative planning was critical owing to the presence of the vena caval thrombus. A radical nephrectomy, vena caval thrombectomy, and regional lymphadenectomy were done. The pathologic report was consistent with a high-grade, invasive urothelial carcinoma, with sarcomatoid differentiation involving the renal vein and inferior vena cava (Stage IV, T4N0M0). Thus, this was a rare case of upper tract urothelial carcinoma. Adjuvant chemotherapy with the methotrexate, vinblastine, doxorubicin, cisplatinum regimen is scheduled. To our knowledge, this is the first report in Korea of upper tract urothelial carcinoma of the sarcomatoid type with a vena caval thrombus.
Carcinoma, Renal Cell/pathology ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Kidney Neoplasms/diagnosis/*pathology ; Lymph Node Excision/methods ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nephrectomy/methods ; Renal Veins/*radiography ; Thrombectomy/methods ; Thrombosis/*radiography ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Vena Cava, Inferior/*radiography

OBJECTIVES: This study was performed to determine the levels of quality of life (QOL) according to the grade of long-term care service for the elderly people who were admitted from long-term care insurance, and to reveal its association with the physical and mental functioning such as the Activity of Daily Living (ADL), the Instrumental Activity of Daily Living (IADL), the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), and the Mini-Mental State Examination-Korean version (MMSE-K). METHODS: The interviews were performed during the period from March 1 to May 31, 2009, for 958 elderly people in urban and rural areas. The questionnaire items included various indices such as the ADL, IADL, CES-D, and MMSE-K, as independent variables and the index of QOL, as the dependent ones. For statistical analysis, t-tests were used for the mean scores of QOL according to gender and the grade of long-term care services, and Spearman's correlation was used for each variable. The effects of physical and mental functioning for QOL were assessed by covariance structure analysis. The statistical significance was set at p<0.05. RESULTS: The mean scores of QOL among all the subjects was 55.4 +/- 15.62 (Grade I: 49.7 +/- 14.17, Grade II: 56.8 +/- 14.62, Grade III: 59.4+/-16.36), and it was lower according to the higher grade of long-term care insurance. In terms of the correlation matrix of the QOL and the physical and mental function factors, the QOL showed positive correlation with the ADL, IADL and MMSE-K, while it had negative correlation with depression. On the analysis of covariance, mental functioning (depression and the MMSE-K) had a greater influence on the level of QOL than the physical functioning (ADL and IADL). CONCLUSIONS: The level of the QOL in the elderly people who were admitted from long-term care insurance was lower according to higher the grade of long-term care insurance. Also, the mental functioning (depression and MMSE-K) was more influential on the level of the QOL than the physical functioning (ADL and IADL).
Activities of Daily Living/psychology ; Aged ; Depression/psychology ; Female ; *Health Status ; Humans ; Insurance, Long-Term Care/*statistics & numerical data ; Long-Term Care/*psychology/*statistics & numerical data ; Male ; *Mental Health ; Quality of Life/*psychology ; Residence Characteristics ; Socioeconomic Factors

OBJECTIVES: This study was conducted to find out the frequency of urinary incontinence among the rural elderly people and its related factors. METHODS: Informations have been obtained through interviews from the 464 rural residents of advanced age over 65 years on September 1st through November 30th, 2007, in Chungnam Province. RESULTS: As for the rate of experiencing urinary incontinence, the group with the experience rate of 'every day' were 9.5% and 'occasionally' 35.5%, with the total of 45.0%. The higher rates of urinary incontinence were in the elderly women(58.5%) than in the elderly men (29.8%), in the more advanced in age, in the higher educated, and in the groups with higher monthly income. Based on life styles, the rate of experiencing urinary incontinence was significantly higher in smoking groups and non-drinking groups. Based on subjective senses of health, it was more highly associated with the groups who reported that they were not healthy, that they concerned themselves about health, that they had physical disability, that they had forgetfulness, and they needed assistance in terms of activity of daily living(ADL) and instrumental activity of daily living(IADL) than their respective counterparts. By the result of multiple logistic regression, sex, age, smoking status, anxiety, physical disability, amnesia, and IADL was indicated the affecting factors to the prevalence of urinary incontinence. CONCLUSIONS: The above results reveal that the rate of urinary incontinence was higher in the elderly women than the elderly men, and in more advanced age. Moreover, its rate increases in the groups with undesirable life styles or lower senses of subjective and physical health conditions. It is highly suggested that efforts to manage urinary incontinence of the elderly need to be narrowed to the more advanced, especially those with lower standards of health conditions.
Aged ; Amnesia ; Anxiety ; Female ; Humans ; Life Style ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Prevalence ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Urinary Incontinence

OBJECTIVES: We evaluated the level of psychosocial stresses and fatigue symptoms among clerical public officers and its related factors. METHODS: The self-administered questionnaires were performed, during the period between Dec. 5th, 2005 and Jan. 31st, 2006, to 1,005 individuals in the service of general administration located in Daejeon Metropolitan City. The survey items included subjects' socio-demographic and job-related characteristics, health-related behavior, degree of job demand, job autonomy, social support in work, type A behavior pattern, locus of control, sense of self-esteem, psychosocial distress and degree of fatigue. RESULTS: The study results indicated that the level of stress or fatigue is so complicatedly influenced by variable factors as well as job-related characteristics such as socio-demographic characteristics, rank in work, or job career, to a greater extent, by job specifications and personality traits(type A) like whether performing health-related behavior or not, job demand, job autonomy, social support in work, or sense of self-esteem. CONCLUSIONS: Thus the effective strategy for psychosocial distress and fatigue symptoms reduction among governmental employees requires additional programs focusing on innovated job specifications and managed personality trait.
Fatigue ; Internal-External Control ; Surveys and Questionnaires

OBJECTIVES: This study was performed to determine the levels of depression symptoms among the community elderlies and to reveal its related factors, specifically aimed at revealing psycho-social factors such as social support net-work, sense of self-esteem, state anxiety, interpersonal behavior trait and locus of control. METHODS: The interviews were performed during the period from April 1st to June 30th, 2007 to the 790 elderlies in urban and rural areas. RESULTS: The mean scores of depression (CES-D) among all subjects were 16.65+/-10.97(urban: 18.81+/-10.31, rural: 14.49+/-11.20) and they were higher in urban than rural. The level of depression symptoms was influenced by the variables of educational level, with or without spouse, bear for living expenses, sense of satisfaction in daily life. As for health related behaviors, they were influenced by the variables of with or without regular exercise. As for health status, they were influenced by the subjective health status, with or without disability of body, visual acuity, hearing ability, ability of food mastication, urinary incontinence, with or without help in activity of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activity of daily living (IADL). As for social support net-work and social activities, they were influenced by number of offspring, frequency of offspring contents, frequency of going out and activity of hobbies. As for psycho-social factors, they were influenced by sense of self-esteem, state anxiety and social support, especially, the level of depression symptoms was higher influenced by the variables of psycho-social factors than other variables. CONCLUSIONS: Lower of the level of depression symptoms among the community elderlies would require development and application of programs to keep under management psycho-social factors as well as looking for ways to promoting the present health status.
Aged ; Anxiety ; Depression ; Hearing ; Hobbies ; Humans ; Internal-External Control ; Mastication ; Self Concept ; Spouses ; Urinary Incontinence ; Ursidae ; Visual Acuity

Kinky hair disease is X-linked recessive neurodegenerative disorder produced by defects in a gene(ATP7A) that encodes an intracellular copper-transporting ATPase. About 90-95% of the patients have a severe clinical course leading to death in early childhood. ATP7A mutations associated with Menkes disease show great variety from cytogenetic abnormalities to partial gene deletions to single base-pair changes. We experienced a 15 month-old boy with loss of developmental milestones, hypotonia, seizures and failure to thrive. On laboratory findings, the levels of serum copper and ceruloplasmin were low. Electron microscopy of hair illustrated pathognomic pili torti and other abnormalities such as trichorrhexis nodosa and trichoptilosis(longitudinal splitting of the shaft). Brain magnetic resonance image showed diffuse cerebral and cerebellar atrophy with tortousity of cerebral blood vessels. Genetic defect was evaluated. Our sequencing data on the amplified exon 19 of ATP7ase genomic DNA confirmed point mutation, G1255A, resulting in a glycine-to-arginine conversion. So, we report a brief view with the related literatures.
Adenosine Triphosphatases ; Atrophy ; Blood Vessels ; Brain ; Ceruloplasmin ; Chromosome Aberrations ; Copper ; DNA ; Exons ; Failure to Thrive ; Gene Deletion ; Hair ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Menkes Kinky Hair Syndrome* ; Microscopy, Electron ; Muscle Hypotonia ; Neurodegenerative Diseases ; Point Mutation ; Seizures

OBJECTIVE: Human papillomavirus (HPV) has been identified in the majority of invasive cervical cancer patient and has been found to contribute in a significant way to the genesis of human cervical cancer. HPV has two transforming genes that encode the oncoproteins E6 and E7, E6 can form complexes with p53 and promote p53 degradation, E7 inhibit retinoblastoma protein (RB). The p53 protein is as a phosphoprotein which co-immunoprecipitated with the SV40 T-Antigen. The wild type p53 protein is capable of suppressing the tumorigenic phenotype and regulating cell cycle. Adeno-associated virus(AAV) is a linear single stranded DNA parvovirus which is dependent upon cotransfection by a second unrelated virus to undergo productive infection. It has been well documented that AAV DNA integrates into cellular DNA as one to several tandem copies joined to cellular DNA through the termini. In order to introduce wild type p53 through AAV virus into a cervical cancer patient for gene therapy, we had constructed recombinant p53 adeno associated virus plasmid (pAAVCMVp53). METHODS: pAAVCMVp53 was created new AAV-vector system, pRc/CMVp53 including p53 cDNA and AAV-derivative vector, pASPA-AAV-CMV-polyA were made to HindIII/blunt fragments. Eluated 1.8 kb fragment of wild type p53 cDNA was ligated to pAAV-CMV-polyA, 4.9 kb fragment deprived hASPA cDNA. RESULT: Recombinant AAVCMVp53 was constructed by using pRc/CMVp53 andpASPA-AAV-CMV-polyA. This pAAVCMVp53 was confirmed by various restriction enzyme-digestions and Southern-blotting. This new vector system will be studied on expression, stability in cervical cancer cell lines and animals. CONCLUSION: This system will be one of the useful vector system for cervical cancer gene therapy.
Animals ; Antigens, Viral, Tumor ; Cell Cycle ; Cell Line ; Clone Cells ; DNA ; DNA, Complementary ; DNA, Single-Stranded ; Genetic Therapy* ; Humans ; Oncogene Proteins ; Oncogenes ; Parvovirus ; Phenotype ; Plasmids ; Retinoblastoma Protein ; Satellite Viruses ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms*

No abstract available.
Female ; Ovarian Cysts*