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Background: Lung cancer (LC) is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths. Oxidative DNA damage may contribute to the cancer risk. The antioxidant paraoxonase (PON1) is an endogenous free radical scavenger in the human body. The aim of this study was to determine serum PON1 and arylesterase (ARE) activities in patients with newly diagnosed LC.

In conclusion, the viral etiology (hepatitis B and C infections) in Turkish population is found to be an important factor in HCC development. The Child-Pugh classification, AFP levels, TNM classification, being female and treatment were determined to be important prognostic factors in HCC patients.

The underlying molecular mechanism of carcinogenesis in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is poorly understood and appears to be controlled on many genetic, environmental, and hormonal factors. Obestatin and ghrelin, two recently discovered hormones, are co-expressed in endocrine cells. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the immunohistochemical features of OSCCs in relation to the tissue concentration of ghrelin and obestatin. The association between OSCC and Epstein Barr Virus (EBV) status was also explored. The expression of ghrelin and obestatin was examined by immunohistochemistry and immunoassay in oral biopsy specimens: 10 benign squamous epithelial cell samples, 10 microinvasive squamous cell carcinomas, and seven well-differentiated and seven poorly differentiated OSCCs. The presence of EBV was evaluated in these samples using immunohistochemistry. The concentrations of ghrelin and obestatin in tissue homogenates were measured by RIA and ELISA, respectively. Squamous cell carcinomas and benign tissue samples were positive for anti-EBV antibody, and obestatin and ghrelin were shown to be co-expressed in all stratified squamous epithelium samples. Expression of ghrelin and obestatin was decreased or absent in OSCCs in relation to the invasiveness of the carcinoma; ghrelin and obestatin levels in cancerous tissue homogenates were lower than in benign tissue homogenates. These results indicate that the concentrations and distribution of immunoreactive obestatin and ghrelin might be helpful in distinguishing OSCC from benign tumors. Maintaining normal levels of these hormones might be required for regulation of normal cell division. However, detailed studies will be required for better understanding of the complex mechanism of carcinogenesis relating to OSCCs.

The prevalence of depressive symptoms in elderly cancer patients receiving chemotherapy was similar to that in the geriatric population without cancer. It was also consistent with previous studies on elderly cancer population. Pain was found to be a factor related to depressive symptoms. The prevalence of depression may be reduced by pain control. The treatment of depression may both improve the patient's quality of life and enhance their compliance with treatment.

Ghrelin and obestatin are two peptide hormones with opposing roles in the control of appetite: orexigenic and anorexigenic, respectively. Loss of appetite is a common, serious complication of many forms of malignancy. The goals of this study were to investigate: (i) whether there are differences in ghrelin and obestatin peptide expression in thyroid tissues from a series of papillary carcinoma cases and normal controls, and (ii) whether there are correlations between tissue ghrelin and obestatin levels in series of papillary carcinoma cases and normal controls. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that in sections of benign human thyroid tissue, anti-ghrelin antibody reacted with intense staining in colloid-filled follicles. In benign thyroid tissues, colloids displayed plentiful dispersion in comparison with papillary microcarcinomas, whereas colloids in malignant thyroid tissues were uncommon. We found markedly lower tissue ghrelin levels in thyroid tissue of patients with papillary carcinomas, compared with normal thyroid tissues (P = 0.001). Immunohistochemical analysis also showed that obestatin in papillary carcinoma stained positively to various degrees. Obestatin tissue levels in papillary carcinomas tended to be slightly higher than those in normal thyroid tissue, but this was not statistically significant (P = 0.29). We also report that thyroid tissue of patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis produced ghrelin and obestatin at similar levels as in normal thyroid tissue, even though colloid in Hashimoto's disease is scarce. We conclude that depressed expression of ghrelin, but not obestatin, is specific to papillary carcinoma, and this difference might constitute a diagnostic tool to differentiate papillary carcinoma from normal thyroid tissue. We currently do not know how these peptides are regulated and what factors are involved in papillary carcinoma, which inhibit the expression of ghrelin but not obestatin. This issue warrants further studies.

Background: Cisplatin (CDDP) is one of the most active cytotoxic agents in the treatment of cancer. We investigated the effect of selenium (Se) with high dose vitamin E (VE) administration to prevent CDDP-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. Materials and Methods: In this study, 40 female Wistar rats were randomly divided into five equal groups. The first group, which served as the control, was administered physiological saline (2.5 cc/day, 5 days) intraperitoneally (IP), while group A was administered cisplatin (6 mg/kg BW/ single dose) plus physiological saline IP. Groups B, C, D received IP five doses of Se (1.5 mg/kg BW), and a high dose of VE (1000 mg/kg BW) (Se-VE) in combination before, simultaneously, and after CDDP, respectively. The rats were sacrificed five days after CDDP administration. Plasma malondialdehide (MDA), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), reduced glutathione (GSH), catalase, urea, creatinine levels, renal histopathological changes were measured. Results: The histopathological injury score, plasma levels of MDA, urea, creatinine were found to increase in group A compared to the control (p<0.05), while plasma levels of GSH-Px, GSH and catalase decreased (p<0.05). In contrast, plasma levels of MDA decreased (p<0.05) in groups B, C, D, which were treated with Se-VE, whereas levels of GSH-Px, GSH were found to increase only for group D (p<0.05). Plasma urea, creatinine levels improved in the treatment groups compared to group A (p<0.001). Histopathological changes caused by CDDP were also significantly improved after Se-VE treatment (p<0.05). Conclusions: Oxidative stress increases with CDDP-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. Se-VE supplementation might thus play a role in the prevention of CDDP-induced nephrotoxicity in patients.