Non-Organ Specific Autoantibodies in Malignant Diseases

1975 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 203-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth S. Gray ◽  
A. L. C. McLay ◽  
W. D. Thompson ◽  
D. Donald ◽  
C. H. W. Horne

A significant increase in non-organ specific autoantibodies is demonstrated in 13 per cent of the sera from 202 patients with histologically proven malignancies, as compared with only 4 per cent of sera from 214 age and sex matched control patients. It appears that the incidence of autoantibodies is related to the histological type of the tumour but not to the presence or absence of tumour dissemination. While the control group shows the expected increase in both incidence and titre of autoantibodies with increasing age, the malignant patients show no such pattern, i.e. in cancer patients autoantibodies occur with equal frequency and at similar titres regardless of age. The absence of an age related increase in incidence and titre of non organ specific autoantibodies does not appear to have been reported previously. Our findings lend support to the hypothesis that cancer is associated with a breakdown of immunological surveillance, not only in old but also in young cancer patients. Thus the finding of non organ specific autoantibodies, especially to smooth muscle antigen, in an apparently healthy adult could be considered evidence of such a breakdown, carrying with it an increased risk of neoplasia.

1998 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 397-404 ◽  
Author(s):  
O T Jóhannsson ◽  
J Ranstam ◽  
A Borg ◽  
H Olsson

PURPOSE Recent studies indicate that BRCA1 breast and ovarian tumors may have an advantageous survival. In this population-based study, the survival of carriers of a mutated BRCA1 gene was investigated. PATIENTS AND METHODS The survival of 71 BRCA1-associated cancer patients (33 breast cancer, seven breast and ovarian cancer, and 31 ovarian cancer patients from 21 families with BRCA1 germline mutations) diagnosed after 1958 was compared with that of a population-based comparison group that consisted of all other invasive breast (n = 28,281) and ovarian (n = 7,011) cancers diagnosed during 1958 to 1995, as well as an age- and stage-matched control group. RESULTS No apparent survival advantage was found for BRCA1-associated breast cancers upon direct comparison. After adjustment for age and calendar year of diagnosis, survival was equal to or worse than that of the comparison group (hazards ratio [HR], 1.5; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.9 to 2.4). In comparison with an age- and stage-matched control group, survival again appeared equal or worse (HR, 1.5; 95% CI, 0.6 to 3.7). For BRCA1-associated ovarian cancers, an initial survival advantage was noted that disappeared with time. Due to this time dependency, multivariate analyses cannot adequately be analyzed. Compared with the age- and stage-matched control group, survival again appeared equal or worse (HR, 1.2; 95% CI, 0.5 to 2.8). CONCLUSION The results suggest that survival for carriers of a BRCA1 mutation may be similar, or worse than, that for breast and ovarian cancer in general. This finding is in accordance with the adverse histopathologic features observed in BRCA1 tumors and underlines the need for surveillance in families that carry a BRCA1 mutation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 1595
Author(s):  
Mona Franke ◽  
Philip Hoole ◽  
Ramona Schreier ◽  
Simone Falk

Speech fluency is a major challenge for young persons who stutter. Reading aloud, in particular, puts high demands on fluency, not only regarding online text decoding and articulation, but also in terms of prosodic performance. A written text has to be segmented into a number of prosodic phrases with appropriate breaks. The present study examines to what extent reading fluency (decoding ability, articulation rate, and prosodic phrasing) may be altered in children (9–12 years) and adolescents (13–17 years) who stutter compared to matched control participants. Read speech of 52 children and adolescents who do and do not stutter was analyzed. Children and adolescents who stutter did not differ from their matched control groups regarding reading accuracy and articulation rate. However, children who stutter produced shorter pauses than their matched peers. Results on prosodic phrasing showed that children who stutter produced more major phrases than the control group and more intermediate phrases than adolescents who stutter. Participants who stutter also displayed a higher number of breath pauses. Generally, the number of disfluencies during reading was related to slower articulation rates and more prosodic boundaries. Furthermore, we found age-related changes in general measures of reading fluency (decoding ability and articulation rate), as well as the overall strength of prosodic boundaries and number of breath pauses. This study provides evidence for developmental stages in prosodic phrasing as well as for alterations in reading fluency in children who stutter.


2012 ◽  
Vol 30 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. e12018-e12018
Author(s):  
Bruno Gustavo Muzzi Carvalho Carneiro ◽  
Andy Petroianu ◽  
Rafael Augusto Ribeiro Carvalho ◽  
Thiago Neto Ribeiro ◽  
Ana Maria Santos Rodrigues

e12018 Background: Many studies have suggested an inverse association between allergies and cancer, while others have found no relation between them, and still others have shown an increased risk of cancer in allergy patients. The conflicting findings from prior studies are partially due to the chosen research method, such as different definitions and measures for atopy, in addition to variations in the control of confusion factors, such as smoking and obesity. Objectives: Verify if there is a relation between certain types of cancer and allergies; investigate if there is a difference between individuals with and without cancer in relation to allergies. Methods: Case-control study carried out at the Alberto Cavalcanti Hospital of the Hospital Foundation of the State of Minas Gerais (FHEMIG), Brazil, from 2009 to 2011. The study included patients over 18 years of age, from both genders, who presented a diagnosis of cancer, as compared to healthy individuals, paired by gender and age. An anamnesis was gathered considering the medical history of the allergy, as diagnosed by a doctor, as well as the patients’ habits, associated illnesses, and the use of medications. For cancer patients, data concerning the tumor were recorded. Subsequently, an allergy percutaneous test was performed in each group to detect allergic hyperreactivity toward common inhalable, bacterial, and food antigens within our everyday environment. A blood sample was collected to quantitatively evaluate the eosinophils. Results: Both groups were paired according to interest variables, and eventual deviations were adjusted by means of multivariate analysis. Reports of allergies occurred in 30% of the patients in the cancer group, as compared to 53% in the control group (p<0.05), whereas in the cutaneous tests, a greater positivity occurred in the cancer group (69%) than in the control group (51%, p<0.05). No difference in the eosinophil values could be observed within the groups. Conclusions: Cancer patients present fewer allergies. By contrast, in cancer patients, positive cutaneous tests detected allergies which did not correspond to the clinical findings. Therefore, in cancer patients, the positive cutaneous test for allergies does not present a direct relation to the presence of clinically detectable allergies.


2004 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 332-337 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Balmer ◽  
Michelle Falconer ◽  
Paula McDonald ◽  
Nick Andrews ◽  
Emily Fuller ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Asplenic individuals are known to be at increased risk of infection with encapsulated bacteria. Recent United Kingdom recommendations stated that this at-risk group should receive one dose of the meningococcal serogroup C conjugate (MCC) vaccine. However, the immune response of asplenic individuals to MCC vaccine is unknown. The immune response of asplenics (n = 130) to immunization with the MCC vaccine was investigated. Asplenic individuals had a significantly lower geometric mean titer (GMT) (157.8; 95% confidence interval [CI], 94.5 to 263.3) of bactericidal antibody in serum (SBA) than an age-matched control group (n = 48) (1448.2; 95% CI, 751.1 to 2792.0). However, 80% of asplenic individuals achieved the proposed protective SBA titer of ≥8. No differences were observed between the two groups in the serogroup C-specific immunoglobulin G geometric mean concentration. A significant reduction in SBA GMT or the number of responders achieving an SBA titer of ≥8 was observed if the reason for splenectomy was a medical cause or if MCC vaccination occurred <10 years after splenectomy. Individuals (n = 29) who did not achieve an SBA titer of ≥16 were offered a second dose of MCC vaccine. Analysis of the SBA response revealed that 61% (14 of 23) of the individuals who received a second dose achieved a protective titer. In total, 93% of asplenic individuals achieved a titer of ≥8 following MCC vaccination (one or two doses combined). We recommend that, following vaccination of asplenics, either the level of functional antibody should be determined, with a second dose of MCC vaccine offered to nonresponders, or two doses of MCC vaccine should be routinely offered.


1998 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. 3731-3735 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Chang ◽  
A U Buzdar ◽  
S D Hursting

PURPOSE No studies have investigated the etiology of inflammatory breast cancer (IBC), the most lethal form of breast cancer. Because high body mass index (BMI) is associated with decreased risk of premenopausal breast cancer but increased risk of postmenopausal breast cancer, we evaluated whether high BMI was a risk factor for IBC. PATIENTS AND METHODS In a case-comparison study, we matched by ethnicity and registration date 68 IBC patients treated at The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center from 1985 to 1996 with 143 patients with non-IBC and 134 patients with cancer at sites other than the breast or reproductive tract (non-breast cancer). The non-breast cancer group was used in lieu of a population-based, healthy control group, which was not available. RESULTS IBC patients were younger at menarche and the time of their first live birth than non-IBC and non-breast cancer patients. The proportion of premenopausal IBC patients was higher than the proportion of premenopausal women in the comparison groups, although differences were not significant. There were no differences in height, but IBC patients were heavier (77.6 kg) than non-IBC (70.0 kg) and non-breast cancer patients (68.0 kg). After adjusting for other factors, women in the highest BMI tertile (BMI > 26.65 kg/m2) relative to the lowest tertile (BMI < 22.27) had significantly increased IBC risk (IBC v non-IBC, odds ratio [OR] = 2.45, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.05 to 5.73; IBC v non-breast cancer, OR = 4.52, 95% CI = 1.85 to 11.04). This association was not significantly modified by menopausal status and was independent of age at menarche, family history of breast cancer, gravidity, smoking status, and alcohol use. CONCLUSION Our investigation showed that high BMI was significantly associated with an increased risk of IBC. This association did not vary by menopausal status, although IBC patients were more likely to be premenopausal. Confirming our findings and identifying other IBC risk factors may provide directions for future research on the aggressive nature of IBC.


CNS Spectrums ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (04) ◽  
pp. 453-459 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mao-Hsuan Huang ◽  
Mu-Hong Chen ◽  
Kai-Lin Huang ◽  
Ju-Wei Hsu ◽  
Ya-Mei Bai ◽  
...  

BackgroundResearch suggests an association between metabolic disorders, such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and schizophrenia. However, the risk of metabolic disorders in the unaffected siblings of patients with schizophrenia remains unclear.MethodsUsing the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database, 3135 unaffected siblings of schizophrenia probands and 12,540 age-/sex-matched control subjects were included and followed up to the end of 2011. Individuals who developed metabolic disorders during the follow-up period were identified.ResultsThe unaffected siblings of schizophrenia probands had a higher prevalence of T2DM (3.4% vs. 2.6%, p = 0.010) than the controls. Logistic regression analyses with the adjustment of demographic data revealed that the unaffected siblings of patients with schizophrenia were more likely to develop T2DM (odds ratio [OR]: 1.39, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.10–1.75) later in life compared with the control group. Moreover, only female siblings of schizophrenia probands had an increased risk of hypertension (OR: 1.47, 95% CI: 1.07–2.01) during the follow-up compared with the controls.DiscussionThe unaffected siblings, especially sisters, of schizophrenia probands had a higher prevalence of T2DM and hypertension compared with the controls. Our study revealed a familial link between schizophrenia and T2DM in a large sample. Additional studies are required to investigate the shared pathophysiology of schizophrenia and T2DM.


2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 85-90
Author(s):  
Samiha Ashreen ◽  
Akash Ahmed ◽  
Nadimul Hasan ◽  
Waheed Akhtar ◽  
M Mahboob Hossain

Cancer is one of the non-communicable lethal diseases which affects millions of people worldwide and is responsible for the majority of global deaths. Among the types of cancers occurring in humans, oral cancer has a higher incident rate which is significantly alarming. Oral cancer sites are associated with increased risk of metastasis, along with making the cancer site susceptible to infection by a vast number of opportunistic pathogens. Gram-negative opportunistic bacilli can dwell in these cancer ulcer sites since the patient becomes immune compressed due to radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatments, which prolong the infection. The present study was undertaken to find the most prevalent gram-negative bacilli in oral cavity cancer sites. Swab samples from 50 oral cancer patients were taken to check the presence of the opportunistic organisms. While the control group was set with people with no cancer, only 4 bacteria were isolated from 40 healthy volunteers. Among the isolates from both test group and control group, the most prevalent organism was Klebsiella species 37(45%), followed by Pseudomonas species 29 (34.5%) and Proteus species 8(9.5%). The least prevalent was Escherichia coli 5(6%). The isolates were all taken for antibiotic sensitivity testing (AST) against 15 antibiotics from 11 different groups used in hospitals. Results of the AST were as follows: 100% of the isolates from cancer patients were resistant to vancomycin, clindamycin, amoxicillin, penicillin G, and metronidazole. It was followed by azithromycin, where 86.25% of the isolates were resistant to it. The least resistance was seen against aminoglycoside antibiotic group, amikacin (6.25%), then gentamicin having a resistance percentage of 7.5. A substantial amount of qualitative data on medical history, clinical examination, and treatment, etc. was documented and presented in this study. Bangladesh J Microbiol, Volume 36 Number 2 December 2019, pp 85-90


BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. e044565
Author(s):  
Nina Weis ◽  
Terese L Katzenstein ◽  
Mathilde Ørbæk ◽  
Merete Storgaard ◽  
Gitte Pedersen ◽  
...  

PurposeThe purpose of the Danish HIV Birth Cohort (DHBC) is to investigate the significance of HIV-1 infection in pregnancy and after delivery in women living with HIV (WLWH) in Denmark and their children, in the era of antiretroviral therapy and other interventions for treatment and prophylaxis.ParticipantsAll WLWH giving birth to one or more children in Denmark after 31 December 1999 are included, with consecutive ongoing enrolment, if they are living with HIV and pregnant, or if they are diagnosed with HIV in relation to pregnancy, delivery or shortly after delivery.Findings to dateDHBC has been used to describe trends in the management of pregnancies in WLWH and their outcomes on a nationwide basis, mode of delivery and predictors of emergency caesarean section as well as risk factors during pregnancy in WLWH for birth-related complications compared with women from the general population (WGP). We have found that HIV-exposed, but uninfected (HEU) children born to WLWH had a lower median birth weight and gestational age and were at higher risk of intrauterine growth retardation than children born to WGP. We have investigated risk of in-hospital admission and use of antibiotics during the first 4 years of life among HEU children and showed that HEU children had an increased risk of overall hospital admission compared with a matched control group of unexposed children.Further, we compared anthropometric outcomes in children with a matched control group of children not exposed to HIV.Future plansTo continuously investigate the significance of HIV infection and antiretroviral therapy in pregnancy and after delivery in WLWH in Denmark and their HEU children and compare these findings with children born to WGP.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Xiaochun Li ◽  
Xiaoguang Cao ◽  
Yingying Yu ◽  
Yongzhen Bao

Purpose. The previous lab and clinical studies of the correlation between the ultraviolet B and age-related cataract (ARC) did not reach in the universal agreement, especially in different morphological types of ARC. It is important to systemically summarize those previous data of epidemiological studies, which might penetrate the relevance between three morphological types of ARC, cortical, nuclear, and posterior capsular (PSC), with sunlight exposure. Methods. PubMed, Web of Science, CNKI, Embase, and Cochrane were searched online. Data were extracted and recalculated, and quality check was performed by hand. Review Manager was used to perform the fixed effects meta-analysis on ARC and its morphological types. The highest exposed dose group was defined as the exposed group, and the lowest dose group as the control group as possible. Results. Finally, the number of analyzed studies was 31: 20 for ARC and twelve, eleven, and nine for the morphological types cortical, nuclear, and PSC, respectively. The pooled OR for ARC was 1.15 (range 1.00~43.78, 95% CI 1.09 to 1.21). The cortical cataract revealed a slightly higher risk, and pooled OR was 1.03 (range 0.67~2.91, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.03). But the pooled OR for nuclear and PSC were 1.00 (range 0.50~5.35, 95% CI 1.00 to 1.00) and 0.99 (range 0.57~1.87, 95% CI 0.95 to 1.01), respectively. Conclusions. The systemic analysis of epidemiological articles reported till now reveals a significantly increased risk of ARC for those exposed with more sunlight, especially the morphological type of cortical cataract.


2008 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 183-193
Author(s):  
Xavier Radvay ◽  
Stéphanie Duhoux ◽  
Françoise Koenig-Supiot ◽  
François Vital-Durand

Patients with Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) experience a large scotoma precluding central vision. In addition, 2/3 of these patients present visuomotor and balance deficits resulting in clumsiness and increased risk of falls. On the basis of previous work demonstrating that visual, vestibular and somatosensory functions involved in balance control can be rehabilitated by training, we attempted to improve these functions by balance training. We measured the impact of balance training on several visuomotor functions and reading speed. We compared balance status of 54 AMD patients to 55 normal controls. Sixteen of these patients and 14 controls subsequently received balance training sessions on a postural platform (Multitest®) stressing sensorimotor coordination by selectively inhibiting or disturbing either, visual, vestibular or somatosensory input. Producing a conflict between two inputs reinforces the use of the third. We assessed postural sway, pointing accuracy, reading performance and, for the patients, the effect of low vision training and balance training on the shift from several spontaneous Preferred Retinal Loci (PRLs) to one or more Trained Retinal Loci (TRL). Even after a limited number of sessions of cross-modal balance training, the results show a significant improvement for the vestibular input and fixation stability. A decrease of visual dependency was observed only in the control group. Apart from these improvements, pointing accuracy and reading speed were not significantly improved compared to controls, leading to the conclusion that more training sessions may be necessary to gain more significant improvement of visuo-motor functions.


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