CpG Island Methylator Phenotype—A Hope for the Future or a Road to Nowhere?

The CpG island methylator phenotype (CIMP) can be regarded as the most notable emanation of epigenetic instability in cancer. Since its discovery in the late 1990s, CIMP has been extensively studied, mainly in colorectal cancers (CRC) and gliomas. Consequently, knowledge on molecular and pathological characteristics of CIMP in CRC and other tumour types has rapidly expanded. Concordant and widespread hypermethylation of multiple CpG islands observed in CIMP in multiple cancers raised hopes for future epigenetically based diagnostics and treatments of solid tumours. However, studies on CIMP in solid tumours were hampered by a lack of generalisability and reproducibility of epigenetic markers. Moreover, CIMP was not a satisfactory marker in predicting clinical outcomes. The idea of targeting epigenetic abnormalities such as CIMP for cancer therapy has not been implemented for solid tumours, either. Twenty-one years after its discovery, we aim to cover both the fundamental and new aspects of CIMP and its future application as a diagnostic marker and target in anticancer therapies.

From LI-RADS Classification to HCC Pathology: A Retrospective Single-Institution Analysis of Clinico-Pathological Features Affecting Oncological Outcomes after Curative Surgery

Background: The latest Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (LI-RADS) classification by the American College of Radiology has been recently endorsed in the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease (AASLD) guidelines for Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) management. Although the LI-RADS protocol has been developed as a diagnostic algorithm, there is some evidence concerning a possible correlation between different LI-RADS classes and specific pathological features of HCC. We aimed to investigate such radiological/pathological correlation and the possible prognostic implication of LI-RADS on a retrospective cohort of HCC patients undergoing surgical resection. Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of the pathological characteristics of resected HCC, exploring their distribution among different LI-RADS classes and analyzing the risk factors for recurrence-free, overall and cancer-specific survival Results: LI-RADS-5 (LR-5) nodules showed a higher prevalence of microvascular invasion (MVI), satellitosis and capsule infiltration, as well as higher median values of alpha-fetoprotein (αFP) compared to LI-RADS-3/4 (LR-3/4) nodules. MVI, αFP, satellitosis and margin-positive (R1) resection resulted as independent risk factors for recurrence-free survival, while LI-RADS class did not exert any significant impact. Focusing on overall survival, we identified patient age, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status (ECOG-PS), Model for End Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score, αFP, MVI, satellitosis and R1 resection as independent risk factors for survival, without any impact of LI-RADS classification. Last, MELD score, log10αFP, satellitosis and R1 resection resulted as independent risk factors for cancer-specific survival, while LI-RADS class did not exert any significant impact. Conclusions: Our results suggest an association of LR-5 class with unfavorable pathological characteristics of resected HCC; tumor histology and underlying patient characteristics such as age, ECOG-PS and liver disease severity exert a significant impact on postoperative oncological outcomes.

Clinical and Pathological Features of Immune-Mediated Necrotising Myopathies in a Single-Centre Muscle Biopsy Cohort

Objective Immune-mediated necrotising myopathy (IMNM) is a recently entitled novel subset of idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) characterized by significant elevated creatine kinase (CK) level, muscle weakness and predominant muscle fibre necrosis in muscle biopsy. This study aimed to investigate the clinical and pathological characteristics of patients with IMNM in our single-centre muscle biopsy cohort. Methods A total of 860 patients who had muscle biopsy reports in our centre from May 2008 to December 2017 were enrolled in this study. IMNM was diagnosed in according with 2018 European Neuromuscular Centre (ENMC) clinicopathological diagnostic criteria for IMNM. Results The muscle biopsy cohort consisted of 531 patients with IIM (61.7%), 253 patients with non-IIM (29.4%), and 76 undiagnosed patients (8.8%). Among IIM patients, polymyositis (PM), dermatomyositis(DM), amyopathic dermatomyositis, juvenile DM, and inclusion body myositis were 182(21.2%), 236(27.4%), 83(9.7%), 18(2.1%) and 3(0.3%), respectively. In PM subgroup, 59 patients met serological and pathological characteristics of IMNM according to 2018 ENMC criteria including 29 anti-SRP-positive patients,10 anti-HMGCR-positive patients and 20 MSA-negative patients. Limb girdle muscular dystrophy (LGMD) 2B and lipid storage myopathy (LSM) were 29 and 16 respectively, which present similar manifestations of IMNM with elevated CK levels and muscle weakness among non-IIM group. IMNM patients had older age of onset (mean: 42.25 vs 21.66 and 24.56, p<0.0001), shorter duration of diseases (mean: 22.56 vs 66.69 and 48.94, p<0.0001) and more frequent of dysphagia (33.9% vs 3.4% and 6.3%, p<0.0001) compare to patients with LGMD 2B and LSM. Muscle biopsy from IMNM patients showed frequent muscle fibre necrosis (96.6% vs 72.4% and 56.3%, p<0.0001), overexpression of MHC-I on sarcolemma (81.4% vs 37.9% and 12.9%, p<0.0001) and CD4+ T cell endomysial infiltration (89.9% vs 53.6% and 50%, p<0.0001) compared with LGMD 2B and LSM patients. Conclusions It is easy to distinguish IMNM from other subtype of IIM according to clinical symptoms and MSAs profiles. However, distinguishing IMNM from disorders clinically similar non-IIM need to combine with clinical, serological and pathological features.

Association between hyperuricemia and clinical pathological characteristics of patients with IgA nephropathy

Published in August 2021

Morphological features of invasion of tumor cells of invasive ductal breast cancer

Background. Nowadays, it has been proven that along with the invasion of individual tumor cells, their group migration occurs in the invasive front of the tumor, and this is an important factor in tumor progression. Objective: to determine the features of tumor cell invasion in the invasive front (IF) of invasive ductal breast cancer (BCa) without special specific features (IC NST) and to establish associative links between them and the clinical and pathological characteristics of the disease. Methods. The study was performed on BCa samples (after hematoxylin and eosin stained) from 120 patients with invasive ductal BCa I-II stage with G2 grade of tumor differentiation that didn’t receive neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Results. Tumors were divided into 3 groups: with predominance of parenchymal component (PC), with the larger component of connective tissue, and relatively equivalent ratio of these components. Within the IF of the studied tumors of patients with ІІ stage of the tumor process, group invasion of tumor structures was mainly determined, both separately and in combination. In particular, an increase in solid structures in tumors with a predominance of the PC, and in neoplasms with expressed desmoplastic changes in connective tissue and their advantage, - alveolar, tubular, discrete. Conclusion. In tumors of patients with invasive ductal BCa in the invasive front is dominated by collective migration of tumor cells, which is the starting mechanism of tumor progression and the first step of the metastatic process. Defined associative links between the features of tumor cell invasion and the clinical and pathological characteristics of the tumor process in BCa patients can be used in predicting this form of cancer.

Transcriptomic Regulation of Lung Lavage Cells from Pulmonary Fibrosis Patients under the Inhibition of PI3K

Pneumoconiosis refers to a series of lung diseases caused by inhalation of mineral dust and the main pathological characteristics are chronic lung inflammation and progressive pulmonary fibrosis

Merkel Cell Carcinoma: Evaluation of the Clinico-Pathological Characteristics, Treatment Strategies and Prognostic Factors in a Monocentric Retrospective Series (n=143)

BackgroundMerkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare neuroendocrine tumor of the skin. The incidence of the disease has undergone a significant increase in recent years, which is caused by an increase in the average age of the population and in the use of immunosuppressive therapies. MCC is an aggressive pathology, which metastasizes early to the lymph nodes. These characteristics impose an accurate diagnostic analysis of the regional lymph node district with radiography, clinical examination and sentinel node biopsy. In recent years, there has been a breakthrough in the treatment of the advanced pathology thanks to the introduction of monoclonal antibodies acting on the PD-1/PD-L1 axis. This study aimed to describe the clinico-pathological characteristics, treatment strategies and prognostic factors of MCC.MethodsA retrospective cohort study was conducted involving 143 consecutive patients who were diagnosed and/or treated for MCC. These patients were referred to the Veneto Institute of Oncology IOV-IRCCS and to the University Hospital of Padua (a third-level center) in the period between December 1991 and January 2020. In the majority of cases, diagnosis took place at the IOV. However, some patients were diagnosed elsewhere and subsequently referred to the IOV for a review of the diagnosis or to begin specific therapeutic regimens.Results143 patients, with an average age of 71 years, were affected mainly with autoimmune and neoplastic comorbidities. Our analysis has shown that age, autoimmune comorbidities and the use of therapy with immunomodulating drugs (which include corticosteroids, statins and beta-blockers) are associated with a negative prognosis. In this sense, male sex is also a negative prognostic factor.ConclusionsAutoimmune and neoplastic comorbidities were frequent in the studied population. The use of drugs with immunomodulatory effects was also found to be a common feature of the population under examination. The use of this type of medication is considered a negative prognostic factor. The relevance of a multidisciplinary approach to the patient with MCC is confirmed, with the aim of assessing the risks and benefits related to the use of immunomodulating therapy in the individual patient.