Circulating endothelial cells (CEC) represent a restricted peripheral blood (PB) cell subpopulation with high potential diagnostic value in many endothelium-involving diseases. However, whereas the interest in CEC studies has grown, the standardization level of their detection has not. Here, we undertook the task to align CEC phenotypes and counts, by standardizing a novel flow cytometry approach, within a network of six laboratories. CEC were identified as alive/nucleated/CD45negative/CD34bright/CD146positive events and enumerated in 269 healthy PB samples. Standardization was demonstrated by the achievement of low inter-laboratory Coefficients of Variation (CVL), calculated on the basis of Median Fluorescence Intensity values of the most stable antigens that allowed CEC identification and count (CVL of CD34bright on CEC ~ 30%; CVL of CD45 on Lymphocytes ~ 20%). By aggregating data acquired from all sites, CEC numbers in the healthy population were captured (medianfemale = 9.31 CEC/mL; medianmale = 11.55 CEC/mL). CEC count biological variability and method specificity were finally assessed. Results, obtained on a large population of donors, demonstrate that the established procedure might be adopted as standardized method for CEC analysis in clinical and in research settings, providing a CEC physiological baseline range, useful as starting point for their clinical monitoring in endothelial dysfunctions.

To assess whether the immune derangement previously observed in SAPHO syndrome could be linked to variations in blood TH1, TH2 or TH17 lymphocytes frequency. Seven SAPHO patients with a protracted course of the disease were studied ex-vivo for intracellular cytokines production by means of flow-cytometry and compared with matched groups of Psoriatic Arthritis patients and healthy controls. The Kruskal-Wallis test on the median of the three categories showed that there is a significant association between the TH17 levels and the category (p value = 0.02474). The mean and variance for the proportion of IL-17 producing CD4+ cells were compared between groups showing significant differences between SAPHO versus PsA subgroup (p = 0.05) and SAPHO versus healthy controls (p = 0.008). Interestingly, activation of TH17 axis, but not of TH1 and TH2, has been found, and can be observed both in patients with different activity of the disease or treated with different drugs. The TH17 increase in peripheral blood of our SAPHO subjects resembles the one recently found in patients with different AIDs. Novel therapeutic options in these patients may therefore include IL-17 blockade.

This study assesses the effects of Guided Written Disclosure Protocol on psychological distress in mothers and fathers of off-therapy acute lymphoblastic leukemia children. An experimental group participated in the writing intervention with a control group subject only to test-taking standards. The Symptom Questionnaire and Profile of Mood States were administered at baseline, post-intervention, and follow-up. Guided Written Disclosure Protocol had significant effects on the progressive reduction of anxiety, depression, somatic symptoms, hostility, tension-anxiety, and fatigue-inertia within the experimental group. However, the control group distress levels tended to worsen over time. The mediating role of emotional processing was highlighted.

Temporality is a fundamental dimension of each narrative process of meaning making. In fact, the narration constructs and organizes temporal frames that connect one’s own experiences. From this point of view, oncological illness is experienced as a traumatic experience that interrupts the sense of continuity of one’s own life, resulting in the configuration of different temporal frames, which are not always able to support the processes of elaboration of this experience. The aim of this article is to ex- plore the way the modal verbal predicates (must, can, will, know) are organized and work in relation to the representation of time in narrations of cancer patients. The modal verbal predicates—introducing the meanings of possibility, knowledge, will, desire, duty, need, or ability—allow us to organize the relationship between the subject, action, and context. Six narrations of cancer experience were analyzed—one for each time frame (linear, circular, fragmentary, static, cyclic, and spiral) proposed by Brockmeier (2000)—by means of quali-quantitative analysis of the use of modal verbs. Narrations show specific modal positioning: dispersion, plasticity, focusing, rigidity, and poverty. It is possible organize them along a continuum from plasticity to rigidity. The modal plasticity is the capacity to reconfigure a new temporal relation between subject and context, whereas modal rigidity shows a repetition of a specific and same modality in connecting subject and context. This preliminary research allows us to reflect about some possible clinical implications to support and foster processes of meaning making of cancer conditions

Hepatitis viruses and the acquired immunodeficiency viruses often infect intravenous drug addicts (IVDAs). Our study includes 255 IVDAs (26 females and 229 males, aged 20-35 years) from Cagliari. Of 255 subjects examined, 207 (81.1%) were positive for anti-HCV and 84 (32.9%) for anti-HIV. Nineteen (7.4%) subjects were HBsAg carriers, and 12 of these (63%) had an HDV superinfection. Markers of previous HBV infections were tested in 223 cases and 137 (61.4%) were found positive; of these 14 (10.2%) also had HDV infection. Of the 223 drug addicts examined for all infection markers, 18 (8%) were negative to all markers, 46 (20.6%) were positive to only one, 89 (39.9%) were positive to two, 64 (28.7%) to three and 6 (2.6%) were positive to all. Subjects with a single infection were significantly fewer than those with multiple infections. The correlations studied among the various markers did not point out any statistically significant associations. Even so, a previous HBV infection was more common while active HBV/HDV infections were less common among subjects with anti-HCV; HDV infection was more common among HIV-positive subjects. In HBsAg carriers neither HBV-DNA nor HCV-RNA was detected; HCV-RNA was found more frequently in anti-HIV positive subjects than in subjects with the anti-HCV isolate.

Within a semiotic and psychodynamic frame, we present and discuss the psychological construct of modal articulation. By modality, we mean the way a subject organizes the meaning of his/her own experience according to categories of necessity, possibility, opportunity, will, knowledge, permission, and duty. Modality is a relevant topic in some branches of philosophy, logics, linguistics, and semiotics, but there is no systematic discourse about it in psychology. The proposal of this work is to deal with some interesting and promising features of modal categories in the sensemaking process of subjective experience. Modalization is presented as a relevant semiotic organization in each contextual and dynamic sensemaking process in order to perform three functions: (a) connection between affective matrix and subjective experience, (b) mediation between subjective positioning in intersubjective context, and (c) vectorialization of action, namely orienting subjective agency in becoming temporal. Theoretical, methodological, and clinical implications are discussed.

A diagnosis of breast cancer is considered a potential traumatic event associated with physical and psychological effects. In literature, an exploration of breast cancer experience in young women is lacking, able to shed light on the narrative processes of meaning-making of the experience in specific phases of treatment, as may be the initial impact with the onset of the cancer. Meaning-making processes are determinant aspects when dealing with traumatic events. The research took place at National Cancer Institute Pascale of Naples. We collected 50 ad hoc narrative interviews to explore the different domains of the experience with under-fifty women at the first phase of the hospitalization. The Narrative Interviews were analyzed through a qualitative methodology constructed ad hoc . Starting from the functions of meaning-making that the narrative mediate we have highlight the different modes to articulate the narrative functions: The Organization of Temporality: chronicled (38%), actualized (26%), suspended (18%), interrupted (16%), and confused (2%). The Search for Meaning: internalized (42%); generalized (24%); externalized (18%); suspended (16%). The Emotional Regulation: disconnected (44%), splitted (28%), pervasive (26%), and connected (2%). The Organization of self-other Relationship: supportive (46%), avoidant (22%), overturned (16%), and sacrificial (16%). The Finding Benefit: revaluating (38%), flattened (34%), and postponed (28%). The Orientation to Action: combative (38%), blocked (36%), and suspended (26%). Findings capture the impact with the onset of the cancer, identifying both risk and resource aspects. The study allows to identify a specific use of narrative device by under-fifty women who impacted with the experience of breast cancer. The ways in which meaning-making functions are articulated highlight the specificity of the first phase of the treatment of the cancer. From a clinical psychology point of view, our findings can be used as clinical narrative markers to grasp, in a diachronic way, the process of meaning-making, integration, and coping during the first phase of breast cancer experience in young women. We consider it valuable to increase longitudinal studies with young women to highlight trajectories of meaning-making during the different phases of the treatment to think about personalized intervention practices diachronically to the experience.

Research into the change processes underlying the benefits of expressive writing is still incomplete. To fill this gap, we investigated the linguistic markers of change in cognitive and emotional processing among women with breast cancer, highlighting the differences and peculiarities during different treatment phases. A total of 60 writings were collected from 20 women: 10 receiving chemotherapy and 10 receiving biological therapy. We performed a series of repeated measures ANOVA for the most meaningful LIWC linguistic categories, including positive/negative emotions and cognitive processes, to assess change over three sessions. Results demonstrated a significant increase in the positive emotions category for the entire group of women, with particular relevance for the biological therapy group of women, and a marginally significant (p = .07) greater use of words indicating cognitive processes for women receiving biological therapy. For the negative emotions category time was significant for the whole group of women, showing a peak of use in the second session of writing. Peculiar differences in the linguistic markers of processing trauma were observed between the two groups. Although the writing intervention is a support for both groups of women, it seems to be beneficial when there is a large time gap since the administration of chemotherapy and, thus, when the patient can revisit the experience. The relationship of the illness with life can be rearticulated, and the writing becomes a space for resignifying the traumatic cancer experience.