Low-grade systemic inflammation may play a greater role in symptoms rather than radiographic changes in OA.

ects of ganopoly (a Ganoderma lucidum polysaccharide extract) on the immune functions in advanced-stage cancer patients. Immunological

No abstract

placebocontrolled, multicenter study of Ganoderma lucidum (w.curt.:fr.) Lloyd (aphyllophoromycetideae) polysaccharides (ganopoly) in patients with advanced lung cancer.

Angina bullosa hemorrhagica is a rare and benign disorder, usually localized in the subepithelial layer of the oral, pharyngeal and esophageal mucosa. The lesions are characterized by their sudden onset. They appear as a painless, tense, dark red and blood-filled blister in the mouth that rapidly expand and rupture spontaneously in 24-48 hours. The underlying etiopathology remains ill defined, although it may be a multifactorial phenomenon including diabetes, and steroid inhalers. The condition is not attributable to blood dyscrasias, nor other vesicular-bullous disorders. In this study, eleven patients with such blisters are described. Physical examination of the patients revealed a single blister with hemorrhagic content localized in the oral mucosa. Biopsy of the lesions showed sub epithelial blisters with a mild infiltrate. In general practice, dermatologists could face a blood-filled bullous lesion of the oral mucosa. Recognition is, therefore, of great importance for dermatologists.

Primary melanoma of the esophagus (PME) is an uncommon malignancy with less than 250 cases reported in the literature. Amelanotic PME is exceedingly rare and accounts for 10-25% of melanomas of the esophagus. A 59-year-old male with a history of mild dysphagia, heartburn, moderate anorexia and weight loss for 1 month is described. Barium swallow examination and videogastroscopy showed a polypoid, ulcerated mass located 30-38 cm from the incisors. No skin or eye melanoma lesions were found. Five biopsy samples were obtained. Histological examinations revealed proliferation of large, loosely cohesive cells of variable shapes and prominent central nucleoli in the deep mucosa. Immunohistochemical findings included positive vimentin, protein S-100, Melan A, and HMB-45, and negative AE1/AE3, CD 17, and desmin. A total transhiatal esophagectomy with high cervical esophagogastric anastomosis was performed. Peritumoral lymph nodes revealed malignant invasion. A diagnosis of primary amelanotic melanoma of the esophagus was made. Fourteen months after diagnosis the patient developed disseminated PME.

The use of laparoscopic surgery in the treatment of subfertility related to minimal endometriosis may increase the chances of future pregnancy and live birth.

Although tamoxifen (TAM) is routinely used in advanced melanoma, it is still uncertain whether evidence exists to support this practice. This review assesses the benefits and harms of systemic therapy with TAM vs. without TAM on response and mortality in patients with advanced melanoma. MEDLINE, The Cochrane Database of Systemic Reviews, The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, EMBASE and LILACS were searched for randomized controlled trials comparing chemotherapy using and not using TAM in any dose, in patients of any age with advanced melanoma. References lists, databases of ongoing trials and conference proceedings were hand-searched. All included trials were evaluated for quality assessment. Primary outcomes were response and mortality. Secondary outcomes were hematologic and non hematologic toxicity, treatment-related mortality and quality of life. A meta-analysis was performed and results were presented as relative risk with 95% confidence interval. Nine randomized controlled trials met the inclusion criteria. Patients treated with TAM were more likely to respond, with a relative risk 1.36 (95% CI: 1.04-1.77, P = 0.02). However, there was no improvement in 1-year mortality. The incidence of hematologic toxicity was higher in the TAM group. Subgroup analyses showed that female patients were more likely to respond. Chemotherapies with TAM improve overall and partial response, but do not improve mortality in 1 year in advanced melanoma. Further use of TAM in melanoma should be done only in the context of clinical trials.