Of 352 patients with colorectal carcinoma followed for a minimum of 5 years after surgery, 39 cases (11.1%; median age 60 years) had mucinous adenocarcinoma, and 4 (1.1%; median age 62 years) had signet-ring cell carcinoma. Mucinous carcinomas were most frequently located in the rectum (61.5%) and in the sigmoid colon (15.3%) and presented with stage C and D disease in 41 and 15% of the cases, respectively. Disease recurrence was more frequently observed in patients with mucinous (51.7%) or signet-ring lesions (100%) as compared with adenocarcinomas. Five-year survival was 45 (median 48 months), 28 (median 27), and 0% (median 15 months) in patients with adenocarcinomas, mucinous adenocarcinomas, and signet-ring cell carcinomas, respectively (p < 0.05). Mucinous carcinomas of the rectum had had a significantly worse prognosis (5-year survival 17%, median 33 months) as compared with adenocarcinomas of the same site (5-year survival 34%, median 25 months; p < 0.05).

Barrett's esophagus (BE) is an acquired disorder due to chronic gastroesophageal reflux. Environmental factors seem to play an important role in the pathogenesis of BE, especially in Western society. A multicenter case-control study was carried out between February 1995 and April 1999 in 8 Italian Departments of Gastroenterology gathered in a study group (GOSPE), in order to analyze the influence of some individual characteristics and life-style habits on the occurrence of BE. Three groups of patients were studied: 149 patients with BE, 143 patients with esophagitis (E) and 308 hospital controls (C) with acute, non-neoplastic, non-gastroenterological conditions. The diagnosis of BE was based on endoscopy and histology. E was defined by the Savary classification (grade I-III). Data collection was performed by using a questionnaire that focused on smoking, coffee and alcohol consumption, medical history, drugs history, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptoms (heartburn, regurgitation) and socio-economic status. Multivariate analysis showed that the frequency of weekly GERD symptoms was significantly associated with both BE and E (p<0.0001), such as the presence of hiatal hernia (p<0.001). Ulcer was significantly associated with BE (p‫.)100.0؍‬ Among patients with E, the risk was directly related to spirits consumption (p‫.)30.0؍‬ Patients with GERD symptoms that lasted more than 13 years were more likely to have BE than E (p‫.)10.0؍‬ In conclusion, results from our study point out that long-standing GERD symptoms, hiatal hernia and possibly alcohol consumption are risk factors in the development of the BE and E.

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The incidence of AC in BE is low, confirming recent data from the literature reporting an overestimation of cancer risk in these patients. In our patient cohort, surveillance involved a large expenditure of effort but did not prevent any cancer deaths. The benefit of surveillance remains uncertain.

Somatostatin receptors (SSTRs) have been detected in many normal and malignant tissues. This wide expression has been used for diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic purposes. Five SSTR subtypes (SSTR 1-5) have been identified whose activation is responsible for the signal transduction through many different intracellular pathways. In the present study the expression of SSTR mRNA was determined by reverse-transcriptase (RT)-PCR in 42 meningiomas. About 88% of the tumors analyzed (37/42) were positive for at least one of the five SSTR subtypes displaying a variable pattern of expression of the different SSTR subtypes. SSTRI and SSTR2 were the most frequently mRNA detected (69% and 79% of the sample analyzed, respectively). The other subtypes were found in the 43%, 33% and 33% of cases for SSTR3, SSTR4 and SSTR5, respectively. In 22, out of 42 patients (52%) three or more SSTRs were detected. The expression of the different SSTR subtypes did not correlate with the expression of bcl-2 (apoptosis-associated protein) and MIB-1 (a proliferation marker), assessed by immunohistochemistry in a series of 34 tumor samples, while a correlation between the expression of SSTR3 and p53 was observed (p = 0.08). To evaluate a possible role of SSTR in the control of human meningioma cell proliferation, seven primary cell cultures obtained from fresh meningioma surgical tissues, were analyzed for their proliferative behavior by MTT assay and for their response to SST by [3H]-thymidine incorporation. In four out of six tumors (in one case no SSTR were detected) the treatment with SST caused a significant inhibition of DNA synthesis induced by the tumor-promoter phorbol myristate acetate. The evidence of the expression of SSTRs, mainly of SSTR2, in this series of specimens we analyzed altogether with in vitro antiproliferative effects of SST may open interesting perspectives for the diagnosis and the therapy of meningiomas.