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Biomedical subjects

L Rosenberg

Publications and source records attributed to L Rosenberg.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1995

Relation of benzodiazepine use to the risk of selected cancers: breast, large bowel, malignant melanoma, lung, endometrium, ovary, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, testis, Hodgkin's disease, thyroid, and liver.

Some animal data have raised the possibility that benzodiazepines influence the risk of selected cancers. With data collected in 1977-1991 in a US hospital-based study, the authors assessed the relation of benzodiazepine use to the risk of 11 cancers: breast (6,056 patients), large bowel (2,203), malignant melanoma (1,457), lung (1,365), endometrium (812), ovary (767), non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (382), testis (314), Hodgkin's disease (299), thyroid (111), and liver (37). Cases were compared with cancer controls (3,777 patients with other cancers) and noncancer controls (1,919 patients admitted for acute nonmalignant disorders). Relative risks were estimated for benzodiazepine use at least 4 days a week for at least 1 month, initiated at least 2 years before admission (sustained use) by multiple logistic regression with control for confounding factors. Results derived with noncancer controls were similar to those derived with cancer controls. For sustained benzodiazepine use relative to no use, relative risk estimates for all 11 cancers were compatible with 1.0 at the 0.05 level of significance. Relative risk estimates for durations of at least 5 years were also compatible with 1.0, with the exceptions of an increased estimate, of borderline statistical significance, for endometrial cancer, and a decreased estimate for ovarian cancer. Relative risk estimates both for sustained use that continued into the 2-year period before admission and for sustained use that ended up to > or = 10 years previously were compatible with 1.0, suggesting a lack of tumor promotion and no increase in the risk after a latent interval. Results were also null for diazepam, chlordiazepoxide, and other benzodiazepines considered separately. The results suggest absence of association between benzodiazepine use and the cancers considered, with the evidence stronger for the cancers with larger numbers of subjects. The similarity of results derived with cancer and noncancer controls suggests that benzodiazepines do not influence the risk of cancer as a whole.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Adult height and risk of breast cancer among US black women.

Adult height has been positively associated with the risk of breast cancer in a number of recent investigations. The authors assessed height in relation to breast cancer risk in a case-control study of US black women aged 25-69 years; 674 hospital patients with newly diagnosed breast cancer and 1,155 controls hospitalized for nonmalignant conditions unrelated to height were interviewed. After control for multiple confounders, the relative risk estimate for women < 61 inches (< 154.9 cm) tall was 0.5 (95% confidence interval (Cl) 0.3-0.7) relative to the median height of 64-65 inches (162.6-165.1 cm). Among women > or = 61 inches (> or = 154.9 cm) tall, there was little indication of any variation in risk with increasing height. The findings suggest that short stature is associated with a decreased risk of breast cancer in US black women.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Coffee consumption and myocardial infarction in women.

Whether coffee consumption increases the risk of coronary heart disease has not yet been established. In a case-control study of nonfatal myocardial infarction among Massachusetts women aged 45-69 years in 1986-1990, 858 cases with first infarctions were compared with 858 community controls matched on age and town precinct. Detailed information on coffee drinking, cigarette smoking, and other factors was obtained by telephone interview. Relative risks (as estimated by odds ratios) and their 95% confidence intervals were computed from multiple logistic regression analyses that controlled for smoking and other risk factors. The risk of myocardial infarction increased with increasing number of cups per day among both drinkers of any type of coffee and drinkers of caffeine-containing coffee only: tests for trend, p = 0.002 and p = 0.0004, respectively. For consumption of caffeine-containing coffee alone, the relative risk estimates for 5-6 cups, 7-9 cups, and 10 or more cups per day relative to less than 1 cup per day were 1.4 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.8-2.5), 2.1 (95% CI 0.9-4.9), and 2.5 (95% CI 1.0-6.5), respectively. No increase was observed for fewer than 5 cups per day. The positive association with heavy coffee drinking was present among nonsmokers as well as smokers. These findings and other recent studies suggest that heavy coffee consumption increases the risk of myocardial infarction.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

Low dose octreotide and tamoxifen in the treatment of adenocarcinoma of the pancreas.

BACKGROUND: Data from experimental studies suggest that a combination of octreotide, the long acting somatostatin analogue, octreotide, and tamoxifen improves the survival of animals with pancreatic cancer. METHODS: Twelve patients with a tissue diagnosis of ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas were treated with 100 micrograms of octreotide three times per day and tamoxifen 10 mg twice daily. The survival of the octreotide-tamoxifen group was compared with a historic cohort of 68 untreated patients with pancreatic cancer, matched for age, sex, and TNM stage. RESULTS: The median survival times for the octreotide-tamoxifen-treated group compared with the historic cohort were 12 and 3, months respectively. Actuarial one-year survival rates for the octreotide-tamoxifen-treated group compared with the historic cohort were 59% and 16%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, patients with unresectable and resected ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas had an apparently increased survival when treated with a combination of octreotide and tamoxifen. A randomized controlled trial to examine this potential therapeutic benefit is now indicated.

Actuarial Analysis↗
PubMed1995

Oral contraceptive use and breast cancer risk among African-American women.

Recent epidemiologic studies, most of them in predominantly White populations, have suggested that long duration of oral contraceptive (OC) use may increase the risk of breast cancer at young ages. We assessed the relationship of OC use to the risk of breast cancer in African-American women aged 25 to 59 years, using interview data from a multipurpose hospital-based case-control study. Five hundred and twenty-four cases hospitalized for invasive breast cancer were compared with 1,021 controls with nonmalignant conditions unrelated to OC use. Relative risks (RR) and 95 percent confidence intervals (CI) were estimated relative to a reference category of use for less than 12 months; potential confounders were controlled by multiple logistic regression analysis. Among women under age 45, three or more years of OC use was associated with an increased risk of breast cancer: the RR estimate was 2.8 (CI = 1.5-5.0) for three to four years of use, and declined to 1.5 (CI = 08.3.0) for 10 or more years of use. Recency and timing of use did not explain the observed association. Among women aged 45 to 59, OC use was associated with little or no increase in risk: the RR estimate for three or more years of use was 1.3 (CI = 0.7-2.4). The findings add to the evidence from studies of White women and a recent study of Black women which have suggested an increased risk of breast cancer at young ages for moderate or long duration use of OCs.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Parental ages at birth in relation to a daughter's risk of breast cancer among female participants in the Framingham Study (United States).

Data from the Framingham Heart Study, collected in Framingham, MA (United States) during 1948-86, were used to evaluate the relation of parental age at birth to the risk of breast cancer among daughters. After 38 years of follow-up, 149 breast cancer cases occurred among 2,662 women. All but two cases were confirmed by histologic report. The rate of breast cancer increased among daughters with increasing maternal age at birth up to the mid-30s, where the rate levelled off. A similar pattern was observed with paternal age. After adjustment for other confounding factors and paternal age, the rate ratios for breast cancer in daughters whose mothers were aged 26 to 31 years and 32 or more years at their birth, relative to women whose mothers were aged 25 years or younger, were 1.5 (95 percent confidence interval [CI] = 1.0-2.4) and 1.3 (CI = 0.8-2.2), respectively. However, there was no longer an association between paternal age at birth and risk of breast cancer after controlling for maternal age and other risk factors.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Expression of Reg gene in the Syrian golden hamster pancreatic islet regeneration model.

We have reported previously that cellophane wrapping of the hamster pancreas is a stimulus that leads to the induction of duct epithelial cell proliferation, followed by endocrine cell differentiation and new islet formation. Reg is a candidate gene that has been reported to be expressed in regenerating pancreatic islets, suggesting a role in islet growth. We examined Reg gene expression in the cellophane-wrap model by isolating total RNA from hamster pancreata at various times after wrapping. Northern blot analysis using a rat cDNA Reg probe showed no expression of Reg in control non-wrapped hamster pancreas, whereas a strong signal was detected in control wrapped rat pancreas. Using reverse transcription of RNA followed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) we amplified, isolated and sequenced a 194 base pair product which showed homology to rat Reg in both control and wrapped hamster pancreas. When the PCR product was used as a probe for Northern blot analysis, no signal was detected in control non-wrapped pancreata. In contrast, a strong signal was detected 1 and 2 days after wrapping, which then returned to basal between 4 and 6 days after wrapping. A similar temporal pattern was observed using in situ hybridization to localize the Reg gene. One- and 2-day wrapped but not control pancreas expressed Reg in acinar cells, but not in islets.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1994

The self-association of biglycan from bovine articular cartilage.

Biglycan is a small dermatan sulfate proteoglycan present in the extracellular matrix of a variety of connective tissues. Sedimentation velocity and equilibrium studies were carried out to determine the monomer molecular weight of biglycan in denaturing solvents and to define the oligomeric states of biglycan in physiologic solvents in the presence and absence of Zn2+. In 6 M guanidine chloride, biglycan is a monomer with s0(20,w) = 2.9 S and Mz = 93,100 (where Mz is z-average molecular weight). In 0.15 M NaCl, 50 mM Tris, pH 7.5, in the absence of divalent metal ions, and at concentrations above 1 mg/ml, biglycan is predominantly dimer (s0(20,w) = 4.8 S). Under these same conditions in solvent containing 5 mM Zn2+, biglycan exists predominantly as a hexamer, with s0(20,w) = 9.4 S and Mz approximately 600,000. In either case, the oligomers dissociate reversibly. In order to determine whether the glycosaminoglycan chains or the core protein was responsible for self-association, sedimentation velocity and sedimentation equilibrium studies were conducted on the isolated components. Dermatan sulfate chains prepared from biglycan, examined in both denaturing and physiologic solvents, show no significant difference in molecular weight (Mz approximately 22,000), whether or not the solvents contain Zn2+. However, biglycan core protein strongly self-associated in physiologic solvents. Thus, the self-association of biglycan appears to be mediated by the core protein and not by its glycosaminoglycan chains.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

The relation of vasectomy to the risk of cancer.

We previously reported a strong positive association between vasectomy and the risk of prostatic cancer that arose in multiple comparisons made within data collected from 1976 to 1988 in an ongoing hospital-based surveillance study of many exposures and diseases. We have reassessed this association with data collected in the surveillance study during 1988-1992 from a new set of patients (355 cases of prostatic cancer and 2,048 controls with nonmalignant conditions). Because some studies have reported increased relative risks of lung cancer and testicular cancer in vasectomized men, we also used the surveillance database (4,126 men with various cancers, 7,027 men with nonmalignant conditions) to assess the relation of vasectomy to the risk of these and other cancers. In the newly collected data, the multivariate relative risk estimate for prostatic cancer in vasectomized men was 1.2 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.6-2.7). For lung cancer and testicular cancer, the relative risk estimates were 1.3 (95% CI 0.8-2.1) and 0.8 (95% CI 0.4-1.9), respectively; for lung cancer occurring > or = 15 years after vasectomy, the relative risk estimate was 1.9 but it was not statistically significant (95% CI 0.7-5.0). For pancreatic cancer, the relative risk estimate was 1.8 (95% CI 1.0-3.1). For each of the other cancers considered--malignant melanoma, large bowel cancer, bladder cancer, kidney cancer, lymphoma, leukemia, and other cancers--the relative risk estimate was 1.3 or less and compatible with a value of 1.0. The present data provide little support for an association of vasectomy with the risk of prostatic cancer or other cancers. In addition, the data from two sets of cases of prostatic cancer and controls interviewed consecutively illustrate that increased relative risks detected in screening for statistically significant associations may tend to have an upward bias and to be lower in subsequent data.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

A case-control study of oral contraceptive use and invasive epithelial ovarian cancer.

The relation of oral contraceptive use to the risk of ovarian cancer was assessed with data collected during 1977-1991 from patients under 65 years of age in hospitals in Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. We compared 441 women with recently diagnosed invasive epithelial ovarian cancer to 2,065 control women. Logistic regression was used to control risk factors for ovarian cancer. The multivariate relative risk estimate decreased with the increasing duration of oral contraceptive use (p < 0.05): the estimate was close to 1.0 for duration categories of less than 3 years; it was reduced for the categories of 3-4 years of use and greater, but it did not decline further as the duration of use increased. For > or = 3 years of use, the estimate was 0.6 (95% confidence interval 0.4-0.8). The inverse association of risk with > or = 3 years of use was consistently present across categories of age, parity, interview year, and geographic area. It was apparent for as long as 15-19 years after cessation. Many different specific oral contraceptive formulations appeared related to a decreased risk; however, data were sparse for the newer types, particularly phasic preparations, and the ability to assess specific preparations in the context of use of multiple preparations was limited. The present data confirm previous reports of an inverse association of ovarian cancer risk with oral contraceptive use of several years in duration. They also suggest that the association may persist for as long as two decades and that it is not confined to any particular type of oral contraceptive formulation.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

An outbreak of phytophotodermatitis due to celery.

BACKGROUND: Celery is known to contain psoralens, a group of substances that cause a toxic dermal reaction on exposure to ultraviolet A rays (UVA). An outbreak of phytophotodermatitis amongst 11 workers in a celery harvest in southern Israel is reported. METHODS: Analysis of the trigger factors was carried out. The patients were questioned regarding their working conditions. Samples of the celery that the workers had been harvesting were analyzed for levels of total psoralens by means of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Levels of UVA were measured. RESULTS: It was found that the celery harvested in the south of the country contained 84 micrograms/g fresh weight (f.wt.) total psoralens as compared to 35 micrograms/g f.wt. in celery harvested in the north of the country at the same time. The following year the celery harvested in the south contained only 26 micrograms/g f.wt. total psoralens. Other risk factors noted were that the subjects had fair skin, wore no protective clothing, and worked with moist hands. In addition, the days were clear and sunny thus ensuring maximal UV radiation for that time of the year. CONCLUSIONS: Multiple factors contributed to the outbreak of phytophotodermatitis. A late harvest in the south of the country is incriminated as the cause of the unusually high levels of psoralens in the celery of that year.

Agricultural Workers' Diseases↗
PubMed1994

Cyclosporine A blockade of the induction of ornithine decarboxylase activity as a cause of failure of islet cell proliferation and differentiation.

Maintenance of islet cell mass may be one factor that contributes to long-term islet allograft viability. It is important, therefore, to determine whether transplant-related events, such as immunosuppression, interfere with the regenerative capacity of the hormone-producing cellular elements of the islet. To investigate this possibility, we utilized a well-characterized model of islet cell growth in which partial obstruction of the hamster pancreatic duct leads to the induction of duct epithelial cell proliferation in association with endocrine cell differentiation and new islet formation. These changes appear to be mediated by a specific trophic activity (TA) that can be extracted from the pancreas following obstruction. Since the trophic effects of many growth factors are mediated through the polyamine pathway, we postulated that the trophic effect of TA is associated with the induction of ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) activity, the rate-limiting step in polyamine biosynthesis. The effect of TA on pancreatic ODC activity was studied alone, and after pretreatment with cyclosporine A (CsA), an immunosuppressive agent that is known to inhibit ODC activity. Eight h following the administration of TA, pancreatic ODC activity increased approximately 6-fold. Pretreatment with CsA for 7 d at a daily dose of 20 mg/kg prevented the induction of pancreatic ODC activity. We conclude that, in this model, CsA can block islet cell proliferation, and that this may be mediated by inhibition of TA-stimulated ODC activity.

Animals↗