alpha-Crystallin is a major chaperone lens protein to which has been ascribed antioxidant functions. In the present work we have evaluated the antioxidant and free radical scavenging properties of bovine alpha-crystallin in a series of in vitro models: zimosan-induced, luminol-enhanced chemiluminescence response of polymorphonuclear leukocytes, the autoxidation of brain homogenate, bleaching of 2,2'-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)-derived radical cations, trapping of peroxyl radicals, and reactivity toward hypochloric acid. In all these systems, the reactivity of alpha-crystallin is higher than or similar to that of bovine serum albumin. It is concluded that, given the high concentrations of ol-crystallin in the lenses, its capacity to interact with free radicals and to remove hypochlorous acid could contribute to the maintenance of the lens functionality.
We report a case of metastases from a cancer of unknown primary whose primary site could not be identified during the appropriate pretreatment evaluation. The patient was a 58-year-old woman with a history of passive smoking and with no history of cancer in the family. Her current condition started with asthenia, adynamia, and pallor, followed by palpitations. An abdominopelvic computed tomography (CT) scan was performed, showing multiple osteolytic lesions distributed in all bone structures and axillary adenopathy on the left side. As part of the approach and given the high suspicion of multiple myeloma, tests were performed. The results were negative for multiple myeloma. A PET-CT scan was performed and showed left axillary adenopathy. The breasts and other organs were not affected. Left axillary lymph node resection revealed breast primary metastatic pleomorphic lobular carcinoma. Due to the metastatic disease (caused by the primary breast cancer), it was decided to start chemotherapy.
The use of administrative datasets can be a useful tool in cancer surveillance by providing disease patterns, utilization of services, and patient characteristics. This study explores characteristics of treatment and staging among lung cancer patients in the US using hospital-based services. METHODS: A crosssectional study of chemotherapy treated lung cancer patients receiving in or outpatient services from hospitals in MedAssets' health data from July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011 were assessed for staging and treatment characteristics. The Thomas, et al. staging algorithm was applied to patient services to estimate stage of lung cancer. Descriptive statistics were calculated for the sample by stage, treatment characteristics, procedures and hospital characteristics. Patterns of care were tabulated and compared by cancer stage. RESULTS: The sample included 14,628 unique patients who received chemotherapy during the study period spanning over 217,000 hospital visits. The majority (75%) of hospital visits were classified as stage 1-2 compared to stage 3-4 (25%). Stage 1-2 patients experienced fewer hospital visits (5.9 vs. 12.5, p Ͻ0.0001) and had a significantly higher proportion of inpatient stays (22.1% vs. 6.7%, p Ͻ0.0001). Most visits (88.7%) occurred in hospitalbased outpatient facilities. There were 52,289 (3.1 visits per patient) chemotherapy related visits. Primary chemotherapies included: pemetrexed disodium (16.2 %), carboplatin (34.3%) and cisplatin (11.0%). Blood transfusions and other non-surgical procedures made up the largest portion (25.4%) of all procedures performed on both groups. Finally, both groups were treated in primarily in large (Ͼ300 beds, 75.1%), urban (90.1%), and teaching (59.1%) hospitals. CONCLUSIONS: The crosssectional analysis demonstrates the possible value of large-scale administrative data sets in illuminating differences in treatment characteristic in a chemotherapy-treated lung cancer population. Future analysis should evaluate the use of these data to help predict utilization and treatment patterns in larger populations.
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