The diagnosis of PTC is usually difficult to establish on a simple histological examination in the absence of specific cytological, architectural or immuno-histochemical markers. This diagnosis must therefore be based on a combination of clinical, radiological and histological signs in a context of atypical presentation of parathyroid tumour.

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Background: Lymphomas represent the fifth most frequent cancer in Lebanon. However, little is known concerning epidemiologic characteristics and distribution of lymphoid neoplasms according to the 2008 WHO classification. Materials and Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of lymphoma cases diagnosed from 2008 till 2012 at Hôtel-Dieu de France University Hospital. Results: A total of 502 new cases of lymphoma were diagnosed at our institution during a five year period: 119 cases (24%) were Hodgkin lymphomas (HL) and 383 cases (76%) were non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL). HLs were equally distributed in both sexes with a mean age at diagnosis of 30 years. Among NHL, 87% (332 cases) were B cell lymphomas, 9% (34 cases) were T cell lymphomas and 4%(17 cases) were classified as precursor lymphoid neoplasms. Among B cell lymphomas, 44% (147 cases) were diffuse large B cell lymphomas (DLBCL), 20% (65 cases) follicular lymphomas and 8% (27 cases) mantle cell lymphomas. DLBCL were equally distributed in both sexes with a mean age of 58 years. Follicular lymphomas were characterized by a male predominance (57%) and a mean age of 60 years. Mantle cell lymphomas showed a pronounced male predominance (85%) with a mean age of 60 years in men and 70 years in women. Some 72% of patients having T cell lymphomas were men, with a mean age of 57 years in men and 45 years in women, while 65% of patients having precursor lymphoid neoplasms were women with a mean age of 22 years in women and 30 years in men. Conclusions: The lymphoma subtype distribution in Lebanon is unique when compared to other countries from around the world. In fact, Hodgkin and follicular lymphomas are more frequent than in most Far Eastern, European and American countries, while T-cell lymphomas and DLBCL are less frequent.

We investigated whether gingival fibroblasts (GFs) can modulate the differentiation and/or maturation of monocyte-derived dendritic cells (DCs) and analyzed soluble factors that may be involved in this immune modulation. Experiments were performed using human monocytes in co-culture with human GFs in Transwell® chambers or using monocyte cultures treated with conditioned media (CM) from GFs of four donors. The four CM and supernatants from cell culture were assayed by ELISA for cytokines involved in the differentiation of dendritic cells, such as IL-6, VEGF, TGFβ1, IL-13 and IL-10. The maturation of monocyte-derived DCs induced by LPS in presence of CM was also studied. Cell surface phenotype markers were analyzed by flow cytometry. In co-cultures, GFs inhibited the differentiation of monocyte-derived DCs and the strength of this blockade correlated with the GF/monocyte ratio. Conditioned media from GFs showed similar effects, suggesting the involvement of soluble factors produced by GFs. This inhibition was associated with a lower stimulatory activity in MLR of DCs generated with GFs or its CM. Neutralizing antibodies against IL-6 and VEGF significantly (P<0.05) inhibited the inhibitory effect of CM on the differentiation of monocytes-derived DCs and in a dose dependent manner. Our data suggest that IL-6 is the main factor responsible for the inhibition of DCs differentiation mediated by GFs but that VEGF is also involved and constitutes an additional mechanism.

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Human papillomavirus rate was lower than reported rates in Western populations. Possible explanations include differences in social and cultural behaviours.

The case was analyzed in the light of a review of the literature, focusing on the diagnostic and anatomopathologic problems encountered, and the physiopathology and treatment of this pathology. Any parotid mass found in a patient of Far-Eastern origin showing hypereosinophilia should suggest a diagnosis of intraparotid Kimura disease.

Background: To compare the current histologic distribution of lung cancer in Lebanon to the worldwide trends, according to the 2004 WHO Classification. Materials and Methods: 1,760 patients with a pulmonary pathology examination at Hotel-Dieu de France University Hospital between July 2009 and July 2014 were included. Results: Some 676 out of the total investigated patients (38.4%) had a lung tumor. In 665 (98.4%) the tumors were malignant, with a mean age at diagnosis of 63.8 years and a male/female (M/F) sex ratio of 1.7:1. Among the malignant tumors, 86.2% were epithelial tumors with a mean age at diagnosis of 64.8 years and an M/F sex ratio of 1.9. Other malignant tumors consisted of metastatic tumors (10.2%), lymphoproliferative tumors (2.1%) and mesenchymal tumors (1.5%). Most common carcinoma subtypes were adenocarcinoma (48.0%), squamous cell carcinoma (23.0%) and small cell carcinoma (13.3%). Carcinoid tumors were the only carcinoma subtype with an M/F sex ratio below 1 (0.7). Salivary gland tumors were the carcinoma with lowest mean age at diagnosis (45.5 years). Conclusions: The histologic distribution of lung tumors in Lebanon is similar to that in developed countries. We believe this resemblance is due to common smoking habits, known to be responsible for the increase of lung adenocarcinoma at the expense of other subtypes.