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Query: UMLS:C0006142 (breast cancer)
 160,383 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Breast tissue obtained from 18 of 246 women (7.3%) having localization biopsy for microcalcification contained crystals of Weddellite (calcium oxalate dihydrate). This was characterized by microscopic infra-red spectroscopy in three cases. Weddellite calcification was associated with benign lesions in 16 cases, but incidental atypical lobular hyperplasia and lobular carcinoma in situ were present, each in one case. Pathologists should be aware of this common non-haematoxyphilic, birefringent form of breast micro-calcification. Its presence has implications for the examination of biopsy specimens resulting from breast cancer screening using mammography.
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PMID:Weddellite calcification in the breast: eighteen cases with implications for breast cancer screening. 232 32

Calcification of the fibrous capsule surrounding silicone breast implants is a well-recognized occurrence that increases with time following implantation. These mineralized deposits potentially confound mammographic breast cancer surveillance already made difficult by the obscuring effects of silicone breast implants. The authors performed elemental analysis of silicone breast implant-associated calcifications to define better their chemical composition as related to mammographic and clinical significance. Electron probe microanalysis and infrared spectroscopy revealed all of the calcification deposits to be calcium complexed with tribasic phosphate. No evidence of calcium oxalate, calcium carbonate, silicone, or talc was observed. Caution must be employed in interpreting mammograms in women with silicone breast implants as well as those who have had their silicone breast implants removed. High-density mammographic calcifications indicative of calcium phosphate associated with a silicone breast implant may represent an accepted consequence of implantation or nearby carcinoma. We recommend baseline mammography on women who have had their silicone breast implants removed to prevent unnecessary fine-needle aspiration or tissue biopsy of retained breast capsule calcifications during subsequent routine surveillance for carcinoma.
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PMID:Elemental analysis and clinical implications of calcification deposits associated with silicone breast implants. 1002 72

alpha-Tocopheryl succinate (TS) is known to induce apoptosis in various cells and has attracted attention as a chemotherapeutic agent. Recently, we reported the structural significance of the terminal dicarboxylic moiety for the action of TS [J. Nutr. Sci. Vitaminol. 49 (2003) 310-314]. In this study, to determine details of the relationship between the structure and the function of the terminal ester moiety of alpha-tocopherol (alpha-T), we synthesized four novel esters, alpha-tocopheryl oxalate (TO), alpha-tocopheryl malonate (TM), alpha-tocopheryl pimelate (TP) and alpha-tocopheryl succinate ethyl ester (TSE), and compared their apoptogenic activities with those of TS, alpha-T, gamma-tocopherol (gamma-T) and two commercially available alpha-T derivatives, alpha-tocopheryl nicotinate (TN) and alpha-tocopheryl acetate (TA), in vascular smooth muscle cells and a mouse breast cancer cell line C127I. TO and TM in addition to TS, but not the others, induced apoptosis in both cells. Particularly, TO was the most potent of all alpha-T derivatives used. The addition of exogenous superoxide dismutase (SOD) significantly prevented the apoptosis induced by TM as well as that by TS as reported previously, but did not affect TO-induced apoptosis. These results suggest that O(2)(-) generated exogenously participates in TM-induced apoptosis but not in TO-induced apoptosis. The difference in their apoptotic effects is attributed to structural properties of the terminal dicarboxylic moiety, which has an inflexible plane conformation in TO, while it is highly flexible in TM and TS.
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PMID:Structural characteristic of terminal dicarboxylic moiety required for apoptogenic activity of alpha-tocopheryl esters. 1511 91

Radiographic mammary calcifications occur in 30-50% of breast cancers and constitute one of the most important diagnostic markers of both benign and malignant lesions of the breast. The presence of oxalate-type microcalcification appears to be a reliable criterion in favor of the benign nature of the lesion or, at most, of a lobular carcinoma in situ. In contrast, calcium hydroxyapatite (HA) crystals are associated with both benign and malignant breast tumors. Although the diagnostic value of microcalcifications in breast cancer is of great importance, the genesis of these calcifications is unclear. Despite numerous histological ultrastructure studies of HA deposits in breast carcinomas, to date there have been limited investigations of the potential role of these crystals in breast cancer. We review the literature examining the biological effects of HA crystals in breast cancer cell lines, specifically the mechanism of HA-induced mitogenesis and upregulation of gene expression.
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PMID:Microcalcifications associated with breast cancer: an epiphenomenon or biologically significant feature of selected tumors? 1602 24

Breast calcifications are found in both benign and malignant lesions and their composition can indicate the disease state. Calcium oxalate (dihydrate) (COD) is associated with benign lesions, however calcium hydroxyapatite (HAP) is found mainly in proliferative lesions including carcinoma. The diagnostic practices of mammography and histopathology examine the morphology of the specimen. They can not reliably distinguish between the two types of calcification, which may indicate the presence of a cancerous lesion during mammography. We demonstrate for the first time that Kerr-gated Raman spectroscopy is capable of non-destructive probing of sufficient biochemical information from calcifications buried within tissue, and this information can potentially be used as a first step in identifying the type of lesion. The method uses a picosecond pulsed laser combined with fast temporal gating of Raman scattered light to enable spectra to be collected from a specific depth within scattering media by collecting signals emerging from the sample at a given time delay following the laser pulse. Spectra characteristic of both HAP and COD were obtained at depths of up to 0.96 mm, in both chicken breast and fatty tissue; and normal and cancerous human breast by utilising different time delays. This presents great potential for the use of Raman spectroscopy as an adjunct to mammography in the early diagnosis of breast cancer.
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PMID:Depth profiling of calcifications in breast tissue using picosecond Kerr-gated Raman spectroscopy. 1718 Jan 79

Breast calcifications can be found in both benign and malignant lesions, and the composition of these calcifications can indicate the possible disease state. As current practices such as mammography and histopathology examine the morphology of the specimen, they cannot reliably distinguish between the two types of calcification, which frequently are the only mammographic features that indicate the presence of a cancerous lesion. Raman spectroscopy is an optical technique capable of obtaining biochemical information of a sample in situ. We demonstrate for the first time the noninvasive recovery of Raman spectra of calcified materials buried within a chicken breast tissue slab 16 mm thick, achieved using transmission Raman spectroscopy. The spectra of both calcium hydroxyapatite (HAP) and calcium oxalate monohydrate (COM) are obtained and chemically identified. The experimental geometry and gross insensitivity of the Raman signal to the depth of the calcified lesion makes the concept potentially well suited for probing human female breasts, in conjunction with existing mammography or ultrasound, to provide complementary data in the early diagnosis of breast cancer.
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PMID:Prospects for the diagnosis of breast cancer by noninvasive probing of calcifications using transmission Raman spectroscopy. 1747 23

Breast calcification is an important feature in the radiological assessment of breast lesions. There are well established diagnostic criteria basing on the morphology and distribution of the calcifications radiologically with recommendation protocols. Pathologically, calcifications in breast lesions are of dystrophic type, and may occur in either the secretory materials or necrotic debris, with inflammation and osteopontin being plausible mediators. Detection of calcium phosphate (hydroyapaptite) is considerably easier than calcium oxalate. Radiologically amorphous calcification represents a borderline type of calcification, and occurs in both benign and malignant (low grade) lesions, and warrants careful follow up and investigation. Clustering of calcification alone may not be an accurate predictor for malignancy, but when there are associated features like pleomorphism, branching, architectural distortion, and associated mass or density, the predictive value for malignant increases. Adequate sampling of calcification in the biopsy is crucial in the management of patients; in general, needle core biopsy or mammotome biopsy achieve satisfactory calcification retrieval. In a benign biopsy that fails to identify the calcifications visible in the mammography, further evaluation or cutting of the histologic block is recommended to minimize the potential of a false negative investigation.
Breast Cancer Res Treat 2008 Jul
PMID:Intermediate to highly suspicious calcification in breast lesions: a radio-pathologic correlation. 1767 89

Breast calcifications are often the only mammographic features indicating the presence of a cancerous lesion. Calcium oxalate (type I) may be found in and around benign lesions, however calcium hydroxyapatite (type II) is usually found within proliferative lesions, which can include both benign and malignant pathologies. However, the composition of type II calcifications has been demonstrated to vary between benign and malignant proliferative lesions, and could be an indicator for the possible disease state. Raman spectroscopy has previously been demonstrated as a powerful tool for non-destructive analysis of tissues, utilising laser light to probe chemical composition. Raman spectroscopy is traditionally a surface technique. However, we have recently developed methods that permit its application for obtaining sample composition to clinically relevant depths of many mm. We report the first demonstration of spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS) for potential in vivo breast analysis. This study evaluates the possibility of utilising SORS for measuring calcification composition through varying thicknesses of tissues (2 to 10 mm), which is about one to two orders of magnitude deeper than has been possible with conventional Raman approaches. SORS can be used to distinguish non-invasively between calcification types I and II (and carbonate substitution of phosphate in calcium hydroxyapatite) within tissue of up to 10 mm deep. This result secures the first step in taking this technique forward for clinical applications seeking to use Raman spectroscopy as an adjunct to mammography for early diagnosis of breast cancer, by utilising both soft tissue and calcification signals. Non-invasive elucidation of calcification composition, and hence type, associated with benign or malignant lesions, could eliminate the requirement for biopsy in many patients.
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PMID:Subsurface probing of calcifications with spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS): future possibilities for the diagnosis of breast cancer. 1771 Feb 65

A novel approach to noninvasively probe the composition of endogenous materials concealed deeply within mammalian tissue is presented. The method relies upon transmission Raman spectroscopy and permits the detailed characterization of the chemical composition of the probed volume. The technique has been enhanced by the deployment of chemometric methods and the use of a dielectric optical element at the surface to force escaping photons back into the tissue and, thus, enhance the relatively weak signals from the deeper tissue and its components. This permitted reaching both the clinically relevant depth and sufficient sensitivity in phantoms for the noninvasive identification of the calcification types associated with benign or malignant breast disease. Both calcium hydroxyapatite and calcium oxalate monohydrate have been chemically identified from depths of up to 2.7 cm within a breast phantom made up of porcine tissues. The technique has shown significant potential for probing human breasts to provide complementary data in the early diagnosis of breast cancer.
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PMID:Advanced transmission Raman spectroscopy: a promising tool for breast disease diagnosis. 1851 5

Mammographic mammary microcalcifications are routinely used for the early detection of breast cancer, however the mechanisms by which they form remain unclear. Two species of mammary microcalcifications have been identified; calcium oxalate and hydroxyapatite. Calcium oxalate is mostly associated with benign lesions of the breast, whereas hydroxyapatite is associated with both benign and malignant tumors. The way in which hydroxyapatite forms within mammary tissue remains largely unexplored, however lessons can be learned from the process of physiological mineralization. Normal physiological mineralization by osteoblasts results in hydroxyapatite deposition in bone. This review brings together existing knowledge from the field of physiological mineralization and juxtaposes it with our current understanding of the genesis of mammary microcalcifications. As an increasing number of breast cancers are being detected in their non-palpable stage through mammographic microcalcifications, it is important that future studies investigate the underlying mechanisms of their formation in order to fully understand the significance of this unique early marker of breast cancer.
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PMID:Microcalcifications in breast cancer: Lessons from physiological mineralization. 2333 83


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