Emerging role of m6A methylation modification in ovarian cancer

Abstractm6A (N6-methyladenosine) methylation, a well-known modification in tumour epigenetics, dynamically and reversibly fine tunes the entire process of RNA metabolism. Aberrant levels of m6A and its regulators, which can predict the survival and outcomes of cancer patients, are involved in tumorigenesis, metastasis and resistance. Ovarian cancer (OC) ranks first among gynaecological tumours in the causes of death. At first diagnosis, patients with OC are usually at advanced stages owing to a lack of early biomarkers and effective targets. After treatment, patients with OC often develop drug resistance. This article reviews the recent experimental advances in understanding the role of m6A modification in OC, raising the possibility to treat m6A modification and its regulators as promising diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets for OC. Graphical Abstract

Evaluation of a predictive thrombotic risk and thromboprophylaxis score in cancer patients in a third level hospital.

Introduction: We aimed to analyse the application of Khorana score in cancer patients. We also tried to evaluate the prescription of primary thromboprophylaxis in cancer patients at risk of venous thromboembolic disease (VTE). Methods: A retrospective observational study on survival of hospitalized patients diagnosed with pulmonary embolism (PE) at the Hospital Central de la Defensa from January 2009 to March 2018. They were stratified into tumour PE (TPE) and non-tumour PE (nTPE). A case-control study was also carried out with TPE patients and non PE cancer patients (nPEC). Results: 108 patients were diagnosed with TPE, 260 nTPE and 324 nPEC. Gynaecological tumours were the most frequent (23.1%), followed by lung, digestive and urological cancer (20.4% each) in TPE group. Death risk was 1,9 times higher in cancer patients (95%CI: 1.23-2.8) (p <0.001). Khorana score was ≥3 points in 9.7% of TPE and 3.1% of nPEC compared to 26.2% of TPE and 9.9% of nPEC with Khorana score ≥2 points (p<0.001). 7.4% of TPE patients received thromboprophylaxis. Khorana score in TPE patients without thromboprophylaxis was ≥3 points in the 9% and ≥2 points in the 24%. Conclusions: There is a trend towards underuse of thromboprophylaxis in our cancer patients and mainly in those with high risk of VTE, as well as poor adherence to the Khorana score. More studies are needed to validate these findings and to optimize predictive strategies in the management of these patients.

Research Progress of microRNA in Regulating Gynecological Tumours

The incidence of gynaecological tumours, the main factor threatening women ’s health and safety, is increasing with the daily heavier pressure of women’s life and work; Due to its serious threat to women, the disease has grasped increasingly more vigilance and attention. The discovery and research of micro ribonucleic acid (microRNA), a general term for a class of small-molecule RNA, showed that there was a close relationship between microRNA and the occurrence and development of gynaecological tumours. In this paper, based on the recent researches on the relationship between microRNA and gynaecological tumours, a comprehensive analysis was made to do a favour for scientific research and clinical treatment of gynaecological tumours.

Pathology of tumours of the female genital tract

Pathology reports include not only histopathological diagnoses but also specific information relating to prognosis and treatment; thus, pathologists must have sufficient familiarity with the staging classification and management of gynaecological cancers to assure that their reports communicate clinically relevant information. On the other hand, full understanding of the pathology report by the gynaecologist requires familiarity with the terminology used in gynaecological pathology. This chapter summarizes the pathological features of the most common gynaecological tumours.