The detection of melanoma cells in peripheral blood has been proposed to select patients with a high risk of relapse. In this study, tyrosinase and melanoma antigen recognized by T cells 1 (MART-1) mRNA expression was...The detection of melanoma cells in peripheral blood has been proposed to select patients with a high risk of relapse. In this study, tyrosinase and melanoma antigen recognized by T cells 1 (MART-1) mRNA expression was evaluated in serial samples obtained before definitive surgery and during follow-up in patients with American Joint Committee on Cancer stage I-II melanoma. Serial samples (n = 2,262) were collected from 236 patients from 1997 to 2002. Analyses of the RNA samples were performed with a calibrated reverse transcriptase-PCR assay. Gender, age, primary tumor site, ulceration, thickness, Clark level, and histological subtype were analyzed together with tyrosinase and MART-1 mRNA treated as updated covariates in a Cox proportional-hazard model. After a median follow-up time of 66 months, 42 out of 236 patients (18%) had relapsed. The following variables were significantly associated with relapse free survival in the univariate analyses: tyrosinase, MART-1, gender, ulceration, thickness, Clark level, and histological subtype. Entering these covariates into a multivariate Cox analysis resulted in thickness as the single independent prognostic factor (P < 0.0001), whereas MART-1 (P = 0.07) approached significance at the 5%significance level. The serial measurements of tyrosinase and MART-1 mRNA in peripheral blood of stage I-II melanoma patients cannot be demonstrated to have independent prognostic impact on relapse free survival.展开更多
Background: Androgen excess may provoke or aggravate acne by inducing seborrhea. In women, androgen disorders are frequently suspected when acne is accompanied by hirsutism or irregularities of the menstrual cycle. In...Background: Androgen excess may provoke or aggravate acne by inducing seborrhea. In women, androgen disorders are frequently suspected when acne is accompanied by hirsutism or irregularities of the menstrual cycle. In men, however, acne may be the only sign of androgen excess. Objective: Our aim was to investigate whether male patients with acne display pathologic androgen blood values. Methods: This case-control study at a university dermatology department with referred and unreferred patients investigated male acne patients (n = 82, consecutive sample) in whom the diagnosis of mild to severe acne was made, as well as a control group of men without acne (n= 38). The main outcome measures were androgen parameters including morning values of testosterone, luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, androstenedione, and 17-hydroxyprogestero-ne; as well as a corticotrophin stimulation test. Results: 17-Hydroxyprogesteronelevels were significantly higher (P = .01) in acne patients than in the control group, whereas the other parameters did not differ significantly. In addition, the corticotropin stimulation test revealed abnormal 17-hydroxyprogesterone induction values in 10 of 82 patients. Limitations: The analysis is limited to a selection of androgen parameters. Conclusion: The results suggest that in men irregularities of adrenal steroid metabolism may be a factor contributing to acne.展开更多
文摘The detection of melanoma cells in peripheral blood has been proposed to select patients with a high risk of relapse. In this study, tyrosinase and melanoma antigen recognized by T cells 1 (MART-1) mRNA expression was evaluated in serial samples obtained before definitive surgery and during follow-up in patients with American Joint Committee on Cancer stage I-II melanoma. Serial samples (n = 2,262) were collected from 236 patients from 1997 to 2002. Analyses of the RNA samples were performed with a calibrated reverse transcriptase-PCR assay. Gender, age, primary tumor site, ulceration, thickness, Clark level, and histological subtype were analyzed together with tyrosinase and MART-1 mRNA treated as updated covariates in a Cox proportional-hazard model. After a median follow-up time of 66 months, 42 out of 236 patients (18%) had relapsed. The following variables were significantly associated with relapse free survival in the univariate analyses: tyrosinase, MART-1, gender, ulceration, thickness, Clark level, and histological subtype. Entering these covariates into a multivariate Cox analysis resulted in thickness as the single independent prognostic factor (P < 0.0001), whereas MART-1 (P = 0.07) approached significance at the 5%significance level. The serial measurements of tyrosinase and MART-1 mRNA in peripheral blood of stage I-II melanoma patients cannot be demonstrated to have independent prognostic impact on relapse free survival.
文摘Background: Androgen excess may provoke or aggravate acne by inducing seborrhea. In women, androgen disorders are frequently suspected when acne is accompanied by hirsutism or irregularities of the menstrual cycle. In men, however, acne may be the only sign of androgen excess. Objective: Our aim was to investigate whether male patients with acne display pathologic androgen blood values. Methods: This case-control study at a university dermatology department with referred and unreferred patients investigated male acne patients (n = 82, consecutive sample) in whom the diagnosis of mild to severe acne was made, as well as a control group of men without acne (n= 38). The main outcome measures were androgen parameters including morning values of testosterone, luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, androstenedione, and 17-hydroxyprogestero-ne; as well as a corticotrophin stimulation test. Results: 17-Hydroxyprogesteronelevels were significantly higher (P = .01) in acne patients than in the control group, whereas the other parameters did not differ significantly. In addition, the corticotropin stimulation test revealed abnormal 17-hydroxyprogesterone induction values in 10 of 82 patients. Limitations: The analysis is limited to a selection of androgen parameters. Conclusion: The results suggest that in men irregularities of adrenal steroid metabolism may be a factor contributing to acne.
