Immunostaining of p53, p16, and Stat3 might serve as potential adjuncts in pathologic evaluation of oral tumors to predict risk of relapse.

No abstract

The present study sought to explore the occurrence of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Stat3) in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (n=135) and its potential relationship with clinicopathological parameters and survival. Stat3 expression was studied by immunohistochemistry. Cytoplasmic or nuclear localization of Stat3 was observed in 62% of patients, whereas only nuclear Stat3 expression was found in 44%. Stat3 positivity in early-stage patients was 45% compared to 79% in advanced-stage patients. However, early-stage Stat3-positive patients showed a gradual increase in staining intensity, with intense staining seen in 52% of the tumors compared to 18% in Stat3-positive advanced-stage patients, where a gradual decrease in intensity expression was observed (p=0.001). Stat3 showed a significant positive correlation with disease stage (p=0.001), nodal status (p=0.033) and tumor size (p=0.001). Multivariate survival analysis using the Cox proportional hazard regression model showed that nuclear Stat3 was a significant independent prognosticator for both relapse-free survival (p=0.014) and overall survival (p=0.042) in early-stage patients. Our results indicated that Stat3 activation is an early event in oral squamous cell carcinoma and represents a potential risk factor for poor prognosis in early-stage patients.

Primary angiosarcoma of the breast is a rare entity forming 0.04% of primary breast tumors. It is a highly aggressive tumor with a high propensity for locoregional and distant metastasis. Surgery in the form of mastectomy or wide excision remains the cornerstone of treatment. Radiotherapy and chemotherapy have been tried with varying results.

Preliminary results suggest an important role of CD44v6 in our series of patients. Down-expression of CD44v6 may be associated with the tumor cell phenotype, facilitating aggressive growth properties that affect the prognosis.

Carcinoid tumors of ampulla are rare clinical entities. They form 0.35% of all the gastrointestinal carcinoids. So far, only 109 cases have been reported in the literature, mostly as individual case reports. Since the metastatic potential and the tumor size have no correlation, unlike in duodenal carcinoids, pancreatoduodenectomy is considered the treatment of choice. Here we present a case of carcinoid of ampulla presenting to our department.

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a clonal hematopoietic disorder caused by an acquired genetic defect in a pluripotent stem cell. A series of discoveries led to the recognition that the BCR-ABL protein, which results from a reciprocal translocation involving chromosomes 9 and 22, has a central role in the pathogenesis of chronic myelogenous leukemia. The BCR-ABL protein functions as a constitutively activated tyrosine kinase (TK) and this knowledge led to the development of imatinib (STI-571), a drug that specifically inhibits the BCR-ABL TK. Common side effects of imatinib are low blood counts, nausea and vomiting, edema (swelling of the face, feet, and hands), muscle cramps and bone pain, diarrhea, hemorrhage, skin rash, and fever. Headache, fatigue, joint pain, indigestion, and abdominal pain are occasionally seen, and liver toxicity is a rare complication. We here report a case of multiple small bowel perforations in a patient of Ph +ve chronic myeloid leukemia-chronic phase on imatinib. Bowel perforation is a known complication for targeted therapy agents like bevacizumab, sunitinib, and sorafenib, which act on vascular endothelial growth factor receptor but imatinib having no anti VEGF receptor activity leading to such complication is a mystery. Physician treating their patient with imatinib should be aware of this complication and should act accordingly.

No abstract