PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

Steven C Cunningham

Publications and source records attributed to Steven C Cunningham.

27 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Functional defects in the fanconi anemia pathway in pancreatic cancer cells.

Biallelic BRCA2-mutations can cause Fanconi anemia and are found in approximately 7% of pancreatic cancers. Recently, several sequence changes in FANCC and FANCG were reported in pancreatic cancer. Functional defects in the Fanconi pathway can result in a marked hypersensitivity to interstrand crosslinking agents, such as mitomycin C. The functional implications of mutations in the Fanconi pathway in cancer have not been fully studied yet; these studies are needed to pave the way for clinical trials of treatment with crosslinking agents of Fanconi-defective cancers. The competence of the proximal Fanconi pathway was screened in 21 pancreatic cancer cell lines by an assay of Fancd2 monoubiquitination using a Fancd2 immunoblot. The pancreatic cancer cell lines Hs766T and PL11 were defective in Fancd2 monoubiquitination. In PL11, this defect led to the identification of a large homozygous deletion in FANCC, the first cancer cell line found to be FANCC-null. The Fanconi-defective cell lines Hs766T, PL11, and CAPAN1 were hypersensitive to the crosslinking agent mitomycin C and some to cis-platin, as measured by cell survival assays and G(2)/M cell-cycle arrest. These results support the practical exploration of crosslinking agents for non-Fanconi anemia patients that have tumors defective in the Fanconi pathway.

Cell Cycle Proteins↗

Pyogenic liver abscess complicating biliary stricture due to chronic pancreatitis.

BACKGROUND: Chronic pancreatitis uncommonly causes common bile duct stricture, and common bile duct stricture rarely leads to pyogenic liver abscess. METHODS: We describe a 51-year-old man who developed a pyogenic liver abscess after the development of a common bile duct stricture due to chronic pancreatitis. RESULTS: The patient required open drainage of the liver abscess and decompressive choledochoduodenostomy. His infection was persistent and he required percutaneous and subsequent open drainage of a second hepatic abscess. The patient died of refractory sepsis and multi-organ failure. CONCLUSIONS: The relevant English literature concerning pyogenic liver abscesses, specifically in the setting of common bile duct stricture due to chronic pancreatitis, is reviewed and discussed.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Localization of the arcuate line from surface anatomic landmarks: a cadaveric study.

The arcuate line is a relevant structure when reconstructing the abdominal wall after rectus abdominis musculocutaneous flap harvest. Its location is classically taught to be half the distance from the pubic symphysis to the umbilicus, but recent anatomic literature provides evidence to the contrary. Better understanding of the relationship between the arcuate line and surface anatomic landmarks could facilitate better preoperative planning when harvesting a rectus abdominis musculocutaneous flap. A total of 32 arcuate lines were dissected in 18 cadavers, and the location was correlated to various surface anatomic landmarks. The arcuate line was found to lie at 74.6% of the distance from the pubic symphysis to the umbilicus, and 32.7% of the distance from the pubic symphysis to the xiphoid. This location was 1.8 +/- 1.7 cm superior to the level of the anterior superior iliac spines (ASIS). This study provides further support for the finding in the anatomic literature that the arcuate line is substantially more superior than classically described. This knowledge may prove useful in preoperative planning of rectus abdominis musculocutaneous flap harvest.

Abdomen↗

Isolated abdominal wound metastasis from a gastrointestinal stromal tumor.

BACKGROUND: Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) frequently recur even after complete resection. The typical pattern of failure from GISTs is both local and distant with hepatic and peritoneal metastases being most common. Isolated abdominal-wall recurrence from GISTs has not been previously described. AIM OF THE STUDY: To report an isolated abdominal-wound recurrence in the absence of widespread disease in a patient with GIST. METHODS: Case report of a GIST and isolated abdominal-wound recurrence after laparoscopic-assisted en bloc resection. RESULTS: Elderly male patient presented with an isolated abdominal wall incisional recurrence 18 mo after gastric resection and adjuvant imatinib mesylate therapy for a high-grade GIST. CONCLUSIONS: Complete resection of gastrointestinal stromal tumors followed by imatinib therapy may alter the extent of recurrence.

Abdominal Wall↗

Survival after gastric adenocarcinoma resection: eighteen-year experience at a single institution.

Gastric adenocarcinoma is the second leading cause of cancer death worldwide. In Western series, survival rates vary widely and are generally lower than those reported from Eastern series. We performed a retrospective analysis of cases operated on at the Johns Hopkins Hospital over the past 18 years and collected data on demographics, tumor characteristics, pathologic stage, treatment methods, complications, survival time, and other relevant factors. Survival according to stage of disease, Lauren tumor type, tumor location, time period, and administration of adjuvant therapy was analyzed, and results were compared with those of other Western series. During this period, 436 patients with gastric adenocarcinoma underwent resection. We have shown a statistically significant association between survival and margin status, stage of disease, and Lauren tumor type. Overall 5-year survival was 26%, and 5-year survival after R0 resection was 33%. No significant difference was detected between survival and tumor location, time period of treatment, or administration of adjuvant therapy. Analysis of various Western series reveals major differences between the cohorts under study, such as stage of disease, extent of resection, tumor type, and tumor location. Many of the reported differences among Western series may be due to cohort differences, such as stage of disease, extent of resection, tumor type, and tumor location.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Retroperitoneal paraganglioma: single-institution experience and review of the literature.

Paragangliomas are rare tumors arising from extra-adrenal chromaffin cells. We examined the clinical characteristics of all patients at our institution having paragangliomas resected from 1984 through 2005. Of 253 resections, 22 (9%) were retroperitoneal and were selected for further study. The ratio of males to females was 1.3:1, and the median age was 39 years. The average size, rate of metastasis (i.e., malignancy), and rate of function was 7.4 cm, 9.5%, and 57.1%, respectively. Tumors larger than 7 cm were more likely to require adjacent organ resection (P = 0.01). The overall 5-year survival was 73%. Survival was significantly worse after metastasis (P = 0.0023) but did not depend on the tumor diameter, the secreting function of the tumor, the status of surgical margins of resection, or status of the resected lymph nodes.

Digestive System Surgical Procedures↗