Local Recurrence of Low-Grade Myofibroblastic Sarcoma of the Chest Wall:Report of a Case and Literatures Review

Myofibroblastic sarcoma, composed primarily of myofibroblast, is a rare malignant tumor. Low-grade myofibroblastic sarcoma （LGMS） has been defined properly as a distinct entity in the 2002 WHO classification of soft tissue tumors. Primary sarcoma of the chest wall is also a rare disease. This article describes a case of locally recurrent LGMS of the chest wall.

The Clinical Pathologic Analysis of Radiotherapy for Cutaneous B-cell Lymphoma

OBJECTIVE To report results of radiation therapy treatment of 30 B-cell lymphoma patients with an initial cutaneous presentation according to the new classification by the WHO/EORTC. METHODS Thirty patients with cutaneous B-cell lymphoma （CBCL） were treated by cutaneous irradiation based on the number and location of the lesions and the stage of their tumor. Treatment was conducted using a Satume Clinac. RESULTS A complete response （CR） from the treatment for our series was 86%. The length of complete remission ranged from 4 to 301 months. Three patients （11%） developed a partial response （PR）. One patient was progressive. Disease-free survival（DFS） at 10 years was 87%. Three patiens died [One PCMZL two PCLBCL leg type （29%）]. Radiotherapy was generally well tolerated. CONCLUSION According to the WHO/EORTC classification, the survivor results were good for PCMZL and PCFCL. The PCLBCL leg type had a poor prognosis. Localized field irradiation is an effective treatment for some localized forms of primary cutaneous B-cell lymphoma, and this mode of therapy can produce prolonged remissions.The patients with wide-spread skin involvement are usually candidates for extended field irradiation and/or chemotherapy. For advanced stages of cutaneous B-cell lymphoma, where chemotherapy is the treatment of choice, a degree of palliation can be achieved using local field irradation.

The Establishment and Characterization of a Continuous Cell Line of Mouse Cervical Carcinoma

OBJECTIVE To establish a murine uterine cervical cancer cell line and to define its biological characters. METHODS Transplanted tumor tissue was used for in vitro primary culture of U14 cervical carcinoma cells. After 20 passages, we examined its morphology, chromosomes, tumorigenicity and produced a growth curve. CK was detected by immunohistochemistry, the cell cycle determined by flow cytometry and the metastatic potential assessed in 615 and C57BL/c mice. We also transfected the cells with the pEGFP-N1 plasmid. RESULTS A newly established murine cell line was passaged 50 times over a period of 10 months. The cells grow as a partially suspended culture, and are immunohistochemically CK（＋）. The cell line is characterized by a hypotetraploid karyotype, a chromosomal number of 64-68 and a doubling time of 21.8 h. Exponential growth occurs by the third and forth day of culture. Cell cycle analysis showed G1 34%, G2 26%, and 40% in the S phase. The tumorigenicity was 100% upon implantation. No mycoplasma contamination was detected. A monoclonal continuous U14-GFP cell strain which was 100% GFP （＋） was also produced. CONCLUSION We successfully established a new murine cervical U14 carcinoma cell line and an U14-GFP monoclonal strain. These cell lines are ideal for combined in vivo and in vitro tumor research.

Experimental study of destruction to porcine spleen in vivo by microwave ablation

AIM: To discuss the safety, feasibility and regularity of destruction to porcine spleen in vivo with congestion and tumescence by microwave ablation (MWA). METHODS: Ligation of the splenic vein was used to induce congestion and tumescence in vivo in five porcine spleens, and microwave ablation was performed 2-4 h later. A total of 56 ablation points were ablated and the ablation powers were 30-100 W. The ablation time (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 min) was performed at a power of 60 W. After ablation, the ablation size was measured in pigs A, C, D and E and spleen resection. In pig B, the ablation size was measuredand 2 ablation points were sent for pathology analysis and all tissues were sutured following ablation. Pig B was killed 1 wk later and the ablation points were sent for pathology analysis. Bleeding, tissue carbonization surrounding electrodes, and pathological changes were observed, and the effect on destruction volume relative to different ablation powers, times and positions was analyzed. RESULTS: The incidence of bleeding (only small amounts, < 20 mL) in the course of ablation was 5.4% (3/56) and was attributed to tissue carbonization surrounding electrodes, which also exhibited an incidence of 5.4% (3/56). The destruction volume was influenced by different ablation powers, times and points. It showed that the ablation lesion size increased with increased ablation time, from 1 to 10 min, when the ablation power was 60 W. Also, the ablation lesion size increased with the increase of ablation power, ranging from 30 to 100 W when the ablation time was set to 3 min. A direct correlation was seen between the destruction volume and ablation time by the power of 60 W (r = 0.97542, P < 0.0001, and also between the destruction volume and ablation powers at an ablation time of 3 min (r = 0.98258, P < 0.0001). The destruction volume of zone Ⅱ (the extra-2/3 part of the spleen, relative to the fi rst or second class vascular branches), which was near the hilum of the spleen, was noteably larger than the destruction volume of zoneⅠ(the intra-1/3 part of the spleen) which was distal from the hilum of the spleen (P = 0.0015). Pathological changes of ablation occurring immediately and 1 wk after MWA showed large areas of coagulation. Immediately following ablation, intact spleen tissues were observed in the areas of coagulation necrosis, mainly around arterioles, and there were no obvious signs of hydropsia and inflammation, while 1 wk following the ablation, the coagulation necrosis was well distributed and complete, as many nuclear fragmentations were detected, and there were obvious signs of hydropsia and inflammation.CONCLUSION: In vivo treatment of congestion and tumescence in the spleen using microwave ablation of water-cooled antenna is a safe and feasible method that is minimally invasive.

Reduced Popdc3 expression correlates with high risk and poor survival in patients with gastric cancer

AIM： To investigate the expression of Popeye domain containing 3 （Popdc3） and its correlation with clinicopathological features and prognosis of gastric cancer.METHODS： The method of immunohistochemistry was used to investigate the expression of Popdc3 in 306 cases of human gastric cancer and 84 noncancerous gastric tissues. Simultaneously, the relationship between Popdc3 expression and the survival of the patients was retrospectively analyzed.RESULTS： Popdc3 was detected in 72 （85.71%） of 84 human nontumor mucosa. High expression of Popdc3protein was detected in 78 （25.49%） of 306 human gastric cancer cases, and low expression was detected in 228 （74.51%）. Low expression of Popdc3 correlated with depth of invasion （P 〈 0.0001）, regional lymph nodes （P 〈 0.0001） and distant metastasis （P =0.02）, and tumor, nodes, metastasis （TNM） stages （P 〈 0.0001）. On multivariate analysis, only the patient＇s gender, regional lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, TNM stages, and the expression of Popdc3 were independent prognostic factors in patients with gastric cancer. The Kaplan-Meier plot showed that low Popdc3 expression had a much more significant effect on the survival of those patients with early-stage tumors X^2 = 104.741, P 〈 0.0001）, with a 〉 51.9% reduction in the three-year survival compared with high Popdc3 expression. In late stages, the difference was also significant X^2 = 5.930, P = 0.015）, with a 32.6% reduction in the three-year survival.CONCLUSION： Reduced expression of Popdc3 may play a significant role in the carcinogenesis and progression of gastric cancer. Popdc3 may be an independent prognostic factor.

Clinical and Pathological Features of Riedel's Thyroiditis

Objective To evaluate the clinical and pathological features of Riedel's thyroiditis(RT),and current diagnostic and treatment methods for that disease.Methods Five RT cases identified by surgery and pathological examinations at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from 1985 to 2009 were analyzed and compared with the cases reported in the literature in terms of clinical and pathological features.Immunohistochemical staining of kappa and lambda light chains was carried out for RT tissues from all the five patients.Results All the five cases were females,aged 45-55 years.Elevation of serum thyroid autoantibodies was found in only one patient,who had longer disease duration than the others.Pathological examination revealed invasive fibrosclerosis of the thyroid follicles,thyroid capsule,and the surrounding tissues.In RT tissues,the number of cells containing lambda chains was a little higher than those containing kappa chains.Conclusions RT is a rare disease which might be more common in middle-aged females than in other populations.Pathological features include the destruction of thyroid follicle,extension into surrounding tissues by inflammatory cells and fibrous tissues.Immunohistochemical staining of kappa and lambda chains could help diagnose RT.

Factor analysis identifies subgroups of constipation

AIM:To determine whether distinct symptom groupings exist in a constipated population and whether such grouping might correlate with quantifiable pathophysiological measures of colonic dysfunction.METHODS:One hundred and ninety-one patients presenting to a Gastroenterology clinic with constipation and 32 constipated patients responding to a newspaper advertisement completed a 53-item,wide-ranging selfreport questionnaire.One hundred of these patients had colonic transit measured scintigraphically.Factor analysis determined whether constipation-related symptoms grouped into distinct aspects of symptomatology.Cluster analysis was used to determine whether indi-vidual patients naturally group into distinct subtypes.RESULTS:Cluster analysis yielded a 4 cluster solution with the presence or absence of pain and laxative unresponsiveness providing the main descriptors.Amongst all clusters there was a considerable proportion of patients with demonstrable delayed colon transit,irritable bowel syndrome positive criteria and regular stool frequency.The majority of patients with these characteristics also reported regular laxative use.CONCLUSION:Factor analysis identified four constipation subgroups,based on severity and laxative unresponsiveness,in a constipated population.However,clear stratification into clinically identifiable groups remains imprecise.

Clinical Analysis of 10 AIDS Patients with Malignant Lymphoma

Objective This work summarizes the clinical features and treatment of 10 AIDS patients with malignant lymphoma. Methods A total of 10 AIDS patients with malignant lymphoma seen in Beijing Ditan Hospital since 2009 were enrolled. Clinical manifestations, pathological examinations, immunity levels, Epstein-Barr virus antibody examinations, complications, treatments, and outcomes were retrospectively analyzed. Results The main clinical manifestations of these patients included intermittent fever in 2 cases, neck masses and fever in 3 cases, auxiliary lymph node enlargement in 2 cases, and abdominal pain and bloating with fever in 3 cases. Up to 7 patients were pathologically diagnosed with diffuse large B cell lymphoma （DLBCL）, and 3 patients were pathologically diagnosed with Burkitt＇s lymphoma. Up to 8 patients had CD4 cell counts below 200/μL, and 2 patients had a level of more than 200/μL. Up to 7 patients were negative for EBV-IgM antibodies and 3 patients were not examined. Six patients underwent different chemotherapy and their prognoses were different. One patient with Burkitt＇s lymphoma alternatively took CODOXM and IVAC for 3 turns after VP chemotherapy; 1 patient with liver metastasis took R-CHOP 5 times, then changed therapy regimen to R-MINE and MINE. One patient with adrenal DLBCL took CHOP 6 times. Three patients with DLBCL took CHOP 1 or 2 times. Four patients gave up treatment. Various infections and side effects occurred, including bone marrow suppression, gastrointestinal bleeding, and renal dysfunction during chemotherapy. Six patients took HAARI, and 4 did not. Six patients died, whereas 3 patients got improved; and 1 patient was discharged. Conclusions AIDS patients with malignant lymphoma had various clinical manifestations, were immunocompromised, and had multiple metastases when they were admitted; they were already in the interim or late stage of lymphoma. Chemotherapy was not effective, and additional complications occurred. HAART failed to improve patient prognosis, and the overall prognosis was poor.

A CLINICOPATHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF 22 CASES OF MULTIPLE MALIGNANT TUMORS

To get a better understanding of the location,pathophysiology,etiology and prognosis of multiple malignant tumors (MPMT),we evaluated the medical records of 22 patients with MPMT.Our results suggested that radiotherapy and chemotherapy might play an important role in the pathogenesis of MPMT and follow up is important in detecting a secondary primary malignant tumor (PMT) at an early stage.Surgical removal of tumors is the first choice therapy for MPMT.

A clinicopathological analysis in unsuspected gallbladder carcinoma: A report of 23 cases

AIM： To study the clinicopathological characteristics of unsuspected gallbladder carcinoma （UGC）. METHODS： We retrospectively studied 23 cases of UGC in Tongji Hospital, and compared their clinicopathological characteristics with 33 cases of preoperatively diagnosed gallbladder carcinoma （PDGC）. RESULTS： The proportion of UGC coexisting with cholecystolithiasis was significantly higher than that of PDGC （x^2 = 13.53, P 〈 0.01）. The infection rate of hepatitis B virus was 21.74% （5/23） in UGC and 30.30% （10/33） in PDGC. Nine （39.13%） of 23 patients with UGC and 8/33 （24.24） PDGC had contact with schistosome pestilent water. The rate of multiple pregnancies was 56.52% （13/23） in the patients with UGC and 42.42% （14/33） in PDGC. The primary location of the UGC was mostly in the neck and body of the gallbladder, and that of the PDGC was often in the body and bottom. The incidence of Nevin stage I and 11 UGC was significantly higher than that of PDGC （x^2 = 4.44, P 〈 0.05 and 2 = 4.96, P 〈 0.05） while that of Nevin stage V UGC was significantly lower than that of PDGC （x^2 = 7.59, P 〈 0.01）. According to the grading of carcinoma, the incidence of well-differentiated UGC was significantly higher than that of PDGC （2 = 4.16, P 〈 0.05）, and that of poorlydifferentiated UGC was significantly lower than that of PDGC （x^2 = 4.48, P 〈 0.05）.CONCLUSION： There are different characteristics between UGC and PDGC, such as in primary location, malignant degree and incidence of coexistence with cholecystolithiasis. Cholecystolithiasis, hepatitis B, schistosome and multiple pregnancies were high risk factors for gallbladder carcinoma.

A Combined Clinicopathologic Analysis of 658 Urothelial Carcinoma Cases of Urinary Bladder

Objective To study the clinicopathological features of patients with urothelial carcinoma of the urinary bladder (UCB), and analyze the association of clinicopathological characteristics with tumor recurrence and progression. Methods Altogether 658 UCB cases in Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center were collected from January 2006 to December 2010. The histopathologic materials and the clinical records were reviewed. Univariate and multivariate analyses were preformed to detect the association. Results The mean age of the patients was 61.97±12.97 years (range, 20-90 years). Male to female ratio was about 5:1. A total of 517 cases (78.6%) were superficial at the time of diagnosis (stage Ta/T1). The mean follow-up period was 22.36±24.92 months. Twenty-five patients lacking follow-up information were excluded in calculating recurrence and progression rates, the recurrence rate was about 37.0% (234/633), and progression rate about 6.2% (39/633). Three variables (grade, tumor growth pattern, and pathological stage) were found to be significant risk factors for tumor progression in univariate and multivariate analyses (P<0.05). Conclusions Most of the newly diagnosed UCB cases may be superficial diseases. Grade, tumor growth pattern, and pathological stage are associated with tumor progression of UCB.

Applications of gray relational analysis in gastroenterology

ABM: To introduce the basic methods of gray relational analysis (GRA) and to illustrate its applications in gastroenterology. METHODS: With the essential formulae of GRA and several typically practical examples, the procedure of GRA was introduced. Examples were drawn from the gastroenterological studies. Thus the trait of GRA could be demonstrated. RESULTS: The superiority of GRA in gastroenterological study was proved by the examples. CONCLUSION: GRA can be applied mechanically or flexibly in gastroenterology.

Microarray-based analysis for hepatocellular carcinoma: From gene expression profiling to new challenges

Accumulation of mutations and alterations in the expression of various genes result in carcinogenesis,and the development of microarray technology has enabled us to identify the comprehensive gene expression alterations in oncogenesis.Many studies have applied this technology for hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC),and identified a number of candidate genes useful as biomarkers in cancer staging,prediction of recurrence and prognosis,and treatment selection.Some of these target molecules have been used to develop new serum diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets against HCC to benefit patients.Previously,we compared gene expression profiling data with classification based on clinicopathological features,such as hepatitis viral infection or liver cancer progression.The next era of gene expression analysis will require systematic integration of expression profiles with other types of biological information,such as genomic locus,gene function,and sequence information.We have reported integration between expression profiles and locus information,which is effective in detecting structural genomic abnormalities,such as chromosomal gains and losses,in which we showed that gene expression profiles are subject to chromosomal bias.Furthermore,array-based comparative genomic hybridization analysis and allelic dosage analysis using genotyping arrays for HCC were also reviewed,with comparison of conventional methods.

Stress-induced intestinal necrosis resulting from severe trauma of an earthquake

AIM:To investigate the possible reasons and suggest therapeutic plan of stress-induced intestinal necrosis resulting from the severe trauma.METHODS:Three patients in our study were trapped inside collapsed structures for 22,21 and 37 h,respectively,The patients underwent 3-4 operations after sustaining their injuries,Mechanical ventilation,intermittent hemodialysis and other treatments were also provided.The patients showed signs of peritoneal irritation on postoperative days 10-38.Small intestinal necrosis was confirmed by emergency laparotomy,and for each patient,part of the small bowel was removed.RESULTS:Two patients who all performed 3 operations died of respiratory complications on the first and second postoperative days respectively.The third patient who performed 4 operations was discharged and made a full recovery.Three patients had the following common characteristics:(1) Multiple severe trauma events with no direct penetrating gastrointestinal injury;(2) Multiple surgeries with impaired renal function and intermittent hemodialysis treatment;(3) Progressive abdominal pain and tenderness,and peritoneal irritation was present on post-traumatic days 10-38;(4) Abdominal operations confirmed segment ulcer,necrosis of the small intestine,hyperplasia and stiffness of the intestinal wall;and(5) Pathological examinations suggested submucosal hemorrhage,necrosis,fibrosis and hyalinization of the vascular wall.Pathological examinations of all 3 patients suggested intestinal necrosis with fistulas.CONCLUSION:Intestinal necrosis is strongly associated with stress from trauma and post-traumatic complications;timely exploratory laparotomy maybe an effective method for preventing and treating stressinduced intestinal necrosis.

Pure Mucinous Carcinoma of the Breast:a Clinicopathologic Analysis with 56 Patients

Objective To assess recent trends and prognostic features in the treatment of pure mucinous carcinoma(PMC) of the breast.Methods Fifty-six patients diagnosed with PMC of the breast in our hospital from December 1982 to June 2008 were included.We evaluated the general information and tumor characteristics of the patients,examined the relationship between these factors and prognosis.Fisher's exact test was applied to analyze tumor characteristics.Results The mean age of the patients was 53.7 years.The majority of the patients presented with early stage disease.Tumor size was found not a significant prognostic factor in this study.Mean follow-up period was 39 months and no breast cancer-related deaths were identified in the patient cohort.Conclusions PMC of the breast has a favorable prognosis.Tumor size does not appear to significantly impact survival.

Magnetic resonance imaging:A new tool for diagnosis of acute ischemic colitis?

AIM： To define the evolution of ischemic lesions with 7T magnetic resonance imaging （7T-MRI） in an animal model of acute colonic ischemia. METHODS： Adult Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into two groups. Group I underwent inferior mesenteric artery （IMA） ligation followed by macroscopic observa- tions and histological analysis. In group H, 7T-MRI was performed before and after IMA ligation and followed by histological analysis. RESULTS： Morphological alterations started to develop 1 h after IMA ligation, when pale areas became evident in the splenic flexure mesentery and progressively wors-ened up to 8 h thereafter, when the mesentery was less pale, and the splenic flexure loop appeared very dark. The 7T-MRI results reflected these alterations, showing a hyperintense signal in both the intraperitoneal space and the colonic loop wall 1 h after IMA ligation; the lat- ter progressively increased to demonstrate a reduction in the colonic loop lumen at 6 h. Eight hours after IMA ligation, MRI showed a persistent colonic mural hyper- intensity associated with a reduction in peritoneal free fluid. The 7T-MRI findings were correlated with histolog- ical alterations, varying from an attenuated epithelium with glandular apex lesions at 1 h to coagulative necro- sis and loss of the surface epithelium detected 8 h after IMA ligation. CONCLUSION： MRI may be used as a substitute for invasive procedures in diagnosing and grading acute ischemic colitis, allowing for the early identification of pathological findings.

Clinicopathological Analysis of 155 Patients with Persistent Isolated Hematuria

Objectives To reveal etiologies of persistent isolated hematuria （PIH） through ultrastructural pathological examination, to disclose clinicopathological correlation in cases with PIH, and to summarize appropriate management of patients with PIH. Methods we retrospectively studied 155 P1H patients receiving renal biopsy between January, 2003 and December, 2008 in Peking Union Medical College Hospital. All the clinical data and follow-up result were analyzed. Results All subjects included 38 children and 117 adults, with mean age of 11.38±3.25 years for children and 35.17±8.44 years for adults. Thin basement membrane nephropathy （TBMN） was the most common pathology （55.3% of children and 49.6% of adults）, followed by IgA nephropathy （18.4% of children and 32.5% of adults, mainly grade 2-3） and mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis （MsPGN） without IgA deposition （13.2% of children and 12.8% of adults）. Besides, A1port syndrome （2.6% of children） and membrane nephropathy （2.6% of children and 0.9% of adults） were demonstrated as other causes of PIH. Elevated mean arteral pressure or protein excretion rate, as well as episodic macrohematuria, indicated higher risk for MsPGN rather than TBMN. On the other hand, severity of microhematuria was irrelevant to pathological types of PIH. Totally, 86 patients were followed up and 37 cases therein stayed on track for long term （mean duration 41.11±28.92 months, range 8-113 months）. Most cases had benign clinical course except 3 cases with TBMN, 5 cases with IgA nephropathy, 1 case with MsPGN （without IgA deposition）, and 1 case with Alport syndrome, who developed hypertension or proteinuria. All of them were administered timely intervention. Conclusions Close follow-up should be required as the primary management for PIH. Equally important is careful monitoring for early identification of undesirable predictors; while renal biopsy and other timely intervention are warranted if there is hypertension, significant proteinuria or renal impairment.

Myofibrillogenesis regulator-1 overexpression is associated with poor prognosis of gastric cancer patients

AIM: To investigate the expression of myofibrillogenesis regulator-1 (MR-1) in relation to clinicopathological parameters and postoperative survival in a group of Chinese patients with gastric cancer. METHODS: In our previous study of human wholegenome gene expression profiling, the differentially expressed genes were detected in the gastric cancer and its adjacent noncancerous mucosa. We found that MR-1 was associated with the location and differentiation of tumors. In this study, MR-1 protein expression was determined by immunohistochemistry in specimens of primary cancer and the adjacent noncancerous tissues from gastric cancer patients. A set of real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction assays based on the Universal ProbeLibrary-a collection of 165 presynthesized, fluorescence-labeled locked nucleic acid hydrolysis probes-was designed specifically to detect the expression of MR-1 mRNA. The correlation was analyzed between the expression of MR-1 and other tumor characteristics which may influence the prognosis of gastric cancer patients. A retrospective cohort study on the prognosis was carried out and clinical data were collected from medical records. RESULTS: MR-1 mRNA and protein could be detected in gastric cancer tissues as well as in matched noncancerous tissues. MR-1 was up-regulated at both mRNA (5.459 ± 0.639 vs 1.233 ± 0.238, P < 0.001) and protein levels (34.2% vs 13.2%, P = 0.003) in gastric cancer tissues. Correlation analysis demonstrated that high expression of MR-1 in gastric cancer was significantly correlated with clinical stage (P = 0.034). Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that the postoperative survival of the MR-1 positive group tended to be poorer than that of the MR-1 negative group, and the difference was statistically significant (P = 0.002). Among all the patients with stageⅠ-Ⅳ carcinoma, the 5-year survival rates of MR-1 positive and negative groups were 50.40% and 12.70%, respectively, with respective median survival times of 64.27 mo (95%CI: 13.41-115.13) and 16.77 mo (95%CI: 8.80-24.74). Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to compare the impact of MR-1 expression and other clinicopathological parameters on prognosis. In a univariate analysis on all 70 specimens, 6 factors were found to be significantly associated with the overall survival statistically: including MR-1 expression, depth of invasion, distant metastasis, lymph node metastasis, vascular invasion and the tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage based on the 7th edition of the International Union against Cancer TNM classification. To avoid the influence caused by univariate analysis, the expressions of MR-1 as well as other parameters were examined in multivariate Cox analysis. Clinicopathological variables that might affect the prognosis of gastric cancer patients were analyzed by Cox regression analysis, which showed that MR-1 expression and TNM stage were independent predictors of postoperative survival. The best mathematical multivariate Cox regression model consisted of two factors: MR-1 expression and TNM stage. Our results indicated that MR-1 protein could act as an independent marker for patient overall survival [Hazard ratio (HR): 2.215, P = 0.043]. CONCLUSION: MR-1 is an important variable that can be used to evaluate the outcome, prognosis and targeted therapy of gastric cancer patients.

Primary intestinal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma:A clinicopathologic analysis of 81 patients

AIM:To analyze the clinicopathologic features and the prognosis of primary intestinal lymphoma.METHODS:Patients were included in the study based on standard diagnostic criteria for primary gastrointesti-nal lymphoma,and were treated at Sun Yat-sen Univer-sity Cancer Centre between 1993 and 2008.RESULTS:The study comprised 81 adults.The most common site was the ileocaecal region.Twenty-two point two percent patients had low-grade B-cell lym-phoma.Fifty-one point nine percent patients had high-grade B-cell lymphoma and 25.9% patients had T-cell lymphoma.Most patients had localized disease.There were more patients and more early stage diseases in the latter period,and the origin sites changed.The ma-jority of patients received the combined treatment,andabout 20% patients only received nonsurgical therapy.The wverall survival and event-free survival rates after 5 years were 71.6% and 60.9% respectively.The mul-tivariate analysis revealed that small intestine and ileo-caecal region localization,B-cell phenotype,and normal lactate dehydrogenase were independent prognostic factors for better patient survival.Surgery based treat-ment did not improve the survival rate.CONCLUSION:Refined stratification of the patients according to the prognostic variables may allow indi-vidualized treatment.Conservative treatment may be an optimal therapeutic modality for selected patients.

Application of Real-time Ultrasound Elastography in Diagnosing Benign and Malignant Thyroid Solid Nodules

Objective Real-time ultrasound elastography(US-E) is a helpful tool in diagnosing thyroid nodules.This study aims to evaluate thyroid solid nodules,to establish the accuracy of US-E in providing information on the nature of these nodules,and to assess the clinical value of elasticity scores(ES) and strain ratio(SR) in differentiating thyroid solid nodules and to explore its distribution characteristics using pathological analysis as reference. Methods Traditional ultrasonography and US-E were performed on 131 thyroid solid nodules(99 benign ones and 32 malignant ones) in 120 patients(78 females and 41 males).Three radiologists evaluated the nodules based on a four-degree elasticity scoring system.The nodules were classified according to the ES as soft(ES 1-2) or hard(ES 3-4).The SR was calculated online. Results The sensitivity and specificity of the ES for thyroid cancer diagnosis were 78%and 80%,respectively.SR values > 2.9 used as a standard to distinguish benign from malignant nodules had a sensitivity of 87%and a specificity of 92%.The SR of the benign lesions was 1.64±1.37,which was significantly different from that of malignant lesions,which was 4.96±2.13(P<0.01). Conclusions Both the ES and SR were higher in malignant nodules than those in benign ones.Real-time US-E was a useful index in the differential diagnosis of thyroid solid nodules.It can provide quantitative information on thyroid nodule characterization and improve diagnostic confidence.