PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

M L Carcangiu

Publications and source records attributed to M L Carcangiu.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Hypercalcemia in breast cancer. Reassessment of the mechanism.

Hypercalcemia in patients with breast cancer is usually attributed to osteolytic bone metastases. Seventeen patients with biopsy-proved breast cancer and hypercalcemia were identified in a prospective, unselected manner. Biochemical and clinical evaluation included measurements of parathyroid hormone, nephrogenous cAMP, vitamin D metabolites, fasting calcium excretion, and maximal tubular phosphate reabsorption, and bone radionuclide scanning. Tumor histologic findings were also reviewed. Four of the 17 patients (23.5 percent) had no evidence of bone involvement by bone scanning or radiography. Two additional patients (a total of 35 percent) appeared to have a humoral component to their hypercalcemia as determined by the presence of elevated nephrogenous cAMP excretion. These observations suggest that humoral, tumor-derived products may play a more important role in the hypercalcemia of breast cancer than has been previously recognized.

Aged↗

Bladder carcinoma arising from regenerated urothelium over lyophilized dura patch.

Lyophilized human dura was used for augmentation cystoplasty in a woman who had a scarred bladder because of multiple resections and fulgurations of superficial bladder tumors. Thirty months later, two sessile tumors developed from the urothelium regenerated over the dura patch, together with infiltrating recurrences elsewhere in the bladder, and a radical cystectomy was performed. This case supports the concept that implantation of tumor cells is a factor in the recurrence of superficial bladder carcinoma.

Carcinoma, Transitional Cell↗

Patterns of axillary metastases in breast cancer.

Thirty-seven (4.1%) cases of nodal metastases skipping the first level are reported in a consecutive series of 912 breast cancer axillary dissections including 392 N+ cases. First level nodes examination is sufficiently accurate in assessing the quality of nodal status (negative or positive) but not the extent of nodal involvement (number of involved nodes).

Axilla↗

An insight into post-gastrectomy "alkaline reflux gastritis".

One hundred and ten partially-gastrectomized patients were studied in order to assess prevalence of symptoms, entero-gastric reflux, endoscopic erythematous changes and histological gastritis and to explore some aspects of the pathogenesis of gastritis syndrome. Prevalence of symptoms (37.2% of the patients) was lower than prevalence of reflux (86.9% and 72.9% of patients with fasting bile reflux or scintigraphic assessment, respectively) endoscopic hyperaemia (72.7% of patients) and remnant chronic gastritis (88.3% of patients). Histological appearance in the perianastomotic area was mostly identifiable as hyperplastic-regenerative. While histological findings, gastric pH, bacteria and nitrite concentration and patients' age were reciprocally correlated, symptoms, endoscopic changes, remnant chronic gastritis and gastric environmental changes were not more severe in patients with more abundant enterogastric reflux. Therefore, as far as the methods for reflux assessment used in the present study are concerned, postgastrectomy findings (symptoms, extent of erythematous changes, severity of remnant chronic gastritis) are not related to reflux. These results suggest that the term "alkaline reflux gastritis syndrome", at this stage of knowledge, should be used with caution.

Adult↗

Papillary carcinoma of the thyroid. A clinicopathologic study of 241 cases treated at the University of Florence, Italy.

A clinicopathologic study of 241 cases of papillary thyroid carcinoma treated at the University of Florence Medical School, Florence, Italy is presented. The features of greatest prognostic value were patient's age at presentation, small tumor size, total encapsulation, extrathyroid extension, multicentricity, and presence of distant metastases. The prognosis of the disease was not influenced by the pattern of tumor growth, presence of solid areas, initial presence or subsequent development of cervical lymph node metastases, type of initial thyroid operation, performance of neck dissection, or prophylactic administration of radioactive iodine. It is concluded that conservative thyroid surgery in the form of lobectomy, without neck dissection or prophylactic administration of iodine 131 (131I), constitutes adequate therapy for most cases of papillary thyroid carcinoma. More extensive therapy should be considered for older patients and for those in whom the tumor exhibits extrathyroid extension or easily detectable multicentricity.

Adolescent↗

Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma. A study of 70 cases.

Seventy cases of anaplastic thyroid carcinomas studied at the Universities of Florence (Italy) and Minnesota are presented. Three morphologic patterns were seen: spindle, giant cell, and squamoid, sometimes in combination. Ultrastructurally, evidence of epithelial differentiation was seen in most but not all cases studied. Immunohistochemically, a stain for cytokeratin using a monoclonal antibody was found the most useful adjunct to diagnosis. Unexpected positivity for carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) was found in several squamoid tumors. The alleged frequent positivity of this tumor type for thyroglobulin and calcitonin was not confirmed. A third of the tumors were associated with a better differentiated component, of which, presumably, they represented a dedifferentiation. The extremely aggressive behavior of anaplastic thyroid carcinomas was confirmed amply in this series: all of the patients in whom follow-up information was available died of their tumor. Small cell tumors should not be included into the anaplastic category, since they invariably belong to other groups, i.e., malignant lymphoma, medullary carcinoma, and poorly differentiated ("insular") carcinoma.

Adult↗

Clear cell change in primary thyroid tumors. A study of 38 cases.

Thirty-eight primary thyroid neoplasms with extensive (greater than or equal to 50%) clear cell changes were studied. These were divided into four categories: 1) Hürthle cell tumors, 10 cases; 2) follicular tumors, 17 cases (two of them having a signet-ring or lipoblast-like appearance); 3) papillary carcinomas, seven cases; and 4) undifferentiated carcinomas, four cases. These were compared with eight cases of renal cell carcinoma metastatic to the thyroid. Factors resulting in the cytoplasmic clear cell changes were: 1) formation of medium-sized vesicles, many of apparent mitochondrial derivation; 2) accumulation of glycogen (with or without accompanying fat); and 3) deposition of intracellular thyroglobulin. Vesicle formation was the most common cause of clear cell change in Hürthle cell and follicular tumors; glycogen accumulation in papillary, undifferentiated, and metastatic tumors; and thyroglobulin deposition in the subgroup of follicular tumors with a signet-ring or lipoblast-like appearance. However, several exceptions were noted. The results of this study refute the commonly held belief that all thyroid tumors containing clear cells are malignant, and do not support the concept of "clear cell carcinoma" of the thyroid as a specific microscopic entity. We believe that the natural history of thyroid tumors containing clear cells is more dependent on their basic cytoarchitectural features than on the presence, amount, or type of clear cells, and we suggest for these tumors to be evaluated for carcinoma by using standard morphologic criteria for their respective types. The importance of thyroglobulin staining for the differential diagnosis with metastatic renal cell carcinoma is emphasized, but the pitfalls inherent to this technique are also pointed out.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Papillary carcinoma.

In addition to a description of the basic criteria for the diagnosis of papillary carcinoma, a review of discussions by all workshop participants on the illustrative cases is presented. Areas of consensus included the following: classification of mixed papillary and follicular carcinomas as papillary, regardless of follicular dominance; recognition of three morphological variants--follicular, encapsulated, and diffuse sclerosing; nonspecificity of individual histological criteria, with the necessity to utilize a combination of characteristic features as guidelines for establishing a diagnosis; citing of nuclear features as probably the most important diagnostic criteria, ie, increased N/C ratio, irregularity in outline, and paleness of staining (ground glass appearance); grading of tumors on the basis of either cytological or architectural characteristics remains of unproven prognostic value. (Gross extent of tumor at the first operation remains the most valuable single prognostic criterion.); defining small carcinomas by size rather than using the imprecise term "occult" with its variable definitions including some clinically evident tumors; classifying as undifferentiated those carcinomas presenting a mixed papillary and anaplastic appearance at the time of the first operation, and retaining the papillary designation for papillary cancers which later undergo dedifferentiation; and recognition that thyroglobulin is a constant and keratin an inconstant tumor cell marker, with the latter not specific for distinguishing papillary carcinomas from follicular carcinomas or from hyperplastic adenomas.

Carcinoma, Papillary↗

Poorly differentiated ("insular") thyroid carcinoma. A reinterpretation of Langhans' "wuchernde Struma".

Twenty-five cases of a distinctive type of thyroid carcinoma are presented. The key microscopic features are: formation of solid clusters ("insulae") of tumor cells containing a variable number of small follicles; small size and uniformity of the tumor cells; variable, but consistently present mitotic activity; capsular and blood vessel invasion; and frequent necrotic foci, sometimes leading to the formation of "peritheliomatous" structures. Metastases to regional lymph nodes, lung, and bones are common, and these often lead to the patients' death. We view this tumor as a poorly differentiated carcinoma, situated morphologically and biologically in an intermediate position between the well-differentiated (papillary and follicular) and the totally undifferentiated thyroid tumors. We believe that it is closely related, if not identical, to the tumor type described by Langhans in 1907 as "wuchernde Struma."

Adenocarcinoma↗

Adrenal myelolipoma.

The case of a 46-year-old man with a 6 cm right adrenal myelolipoma is described. This benign tumor presents a "fatty" density at c.t. scan, and can be easily recognized at intraoperative biopsies.

Adrenal Gland Neoplasms↗

Papillary carcinoma of the thyroid. A discussion of its several morphologic expressions, with particular emphasis on the follicular variant.

Papillary carcinoma of the thyroid has been classically defined on the basis of the presence and even the predominance of papillary formations within the tumor. Changes in this traditional concept have evolved along two separate but related lines. The first is the realization that well-differentiated tumors having a papillary component, however minimal, will exhibit the behavior of papillary carcinoma even in the presence of extensive areas with a sclerosing, solid, or follicular pattern of growth. The second is an increased reliance on cytologic criteria (particularly the ground-glass nucleus) rather than architectural features for the identification of papillary carcinoma. Through the use of these criteria in association with various clinical features, evidence is put forward in support of the concept of a follicular variant of papillary carcinoma, i.e., a tumor type in which papillae are nil or absent but which still belongs by cell type and clinicopathologic behavior to the group of papillary carcinomas.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Bilateral cancer of the breast.

The authors reviewed a series of 2311 primary breast cancers followed-up from 1 to 11 years after radical mastectomy. Twenty-eight simultaneous and 40 metachronous controlateral breast cancers were observed in the study period with an average annual incidence rate of 4.5%. Younger age and histologic evidence of lobular carcinoma at first cancer diagnosis was significantly associated with contralateral cancer, whereas first cancer stage did not seem to be a risk factor. Contralateral metachronous cancer significantly worsened the expected prognosis, which was not true for simultaneous bilateral cancers. The possible reasons for this negative prognostic influence of a second breast cancer and the role of preventive measures such as contralateral mastectomy are discussed. At the present time, an accurate annual clinico-mammographic follow-up seems to be a most advisable course of action.

Breast Neoplasms↗

Leiomyosarcoma of the kidney: report of two cases with common angiographic findings.

Two cases of renal leiomyosarcoma are described. At angiography both cases presented common findings consisting of: (1) central hypovascularity surrounded by peripheral tumor neovascularity and (2) oval-shaped areas that rapidly filled with contrast medium. This angiographic appearance, although not previously described in such tumors, cannot be claimed to offer a key to preoperative diagnosis because it may be found in the more common hypernephromas with central necrosis.

Adult↗

Carcinoma of the nasopharynx: results of radiation therapy.

Of a series of 186 patients with nasopharyngeal neoplasm 138 cases were treated with curative irradiation between 1959 and 1978. All cases were reviewed and retrospectively classified according to the TNM system. The 5-year crude survival rate was 39.5 per cent. A better prognosis was found for women and for younger age groups. The degree of neck node involvement had more prognostic value than the extent of the primary tumor. The causes of failure were analyzed. In 35 cases distant metastases were observed.

Adolescent↗