Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0027627 (metastases)
 103,950 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Therapeutic options for the treatment of malignant brain tumors have been limited, in part, because of the presence of the blood-brain barrier. For this reason, the Sixth Annual Meeting of the Blood-Brain Barrier Disruption Consortium, the focus of which was the "Importance of Dose Intensity in Neuro-Oncology Clinical Trials," was convened in April 2000, at Government Camp, Mount Hood, Oregon. This meeting, which was supported by the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, brought together clinicians and basic scientists from across the U.S. to discuss the role of dose intensity and enhanced chemotherapy delivery in the treatment of malignant brain tumors and to design multicenter clinical trials. Optimizing chemotherapy delivery to the CNS is crucial, particularly in view of recent progress identifying certain brain tumors as chemosensitive. The discovery that specific constellations of genetic alterations can predict which tumors are chemoresponsive, and can therefore more accurately predict prognosis, has important implications for delivery of intensive, effective chemotherapy regimens with acceptable toxicities. This report summarizes the discussions, future directions, and key questions regarding dose-intensive treatment of primary CNS lymphoma, CNS relapse of systemic non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, anaplastic oligodendroglioma, high-grade glioma, and metastatic cancer of the brain. The promising role of cytoenhancers and chemoprotectants as part of dose-intensive regimens for chemosensitive brain tumors and development of improved gene therapies for malignant gliomas are discussed.
 ...
PMID:Importance of dose intensity in neuro-oncology clinical trials: summary report of the Sixth Annual Meeting of the Blood-Brain Barrier Disruption Consortium. 1130 17

Intracranial metastases from malignant fibrous histiocytoma (MFH) are rare, particularly with associated hemorrhage. This article reports one case and presents a review of the literature on this topic. A 55-year-old man presented with acute drowsiness, aphasia and right homonymous hemianopsia and hemiparesis. The first CT scan showed a left occipitoparietal hematoma and the second one, nodular, contrast-enhanced lesions. He had been previously operated on soft tissues MFH. Lung metastases developed subsequently. A craniotomy was performed with evacuation of the hematoma and total gross resection of the mass lesions. Microscopic examination disclosed a metastasis from a MFH. Neoangiogenesis, stimulated by angiogenic growth factors, seems to take part in this vascular, stroke-like event. Due to longer survivals of patients harboring systemic sarcomas, these tumors should be considered in the differential diagnosis of intracranial neoplasms, whether hemorrhagic or not. In particular, history of a previous soft tissue or heart tumor associated with lung metastasis should evoke the possibility of MFH metastasis.
 ...
PMID:Brain metastases of a malignant fibrous histiocytoma presenting as an acute cerebral hemorrhage. 1132 99

We report a man in whom a 15 cm. renal tumor was excised at the age of 49. The pathological examination showed a clear cell carcinoma. Five years later, he presented with headache, vomiting and unilateral palpebral ptosis. Imaging studies showed a sellar tumor with pituitary apoplexy. The tumor was excised and the pathological study disclosed a clear cell tumor, positive for vimentin, cytokeratins AE1 and AE3 and immunohistochemically negative for LH, TSH, ACTH and GH. Considering the similar histopathological features, it was considered as a metastasis of the renal tumor. The patient was supplemented with thyroid, adrenal and gonadal hormones. Seven years later, he presented a new tumor in the remaining kidney, that corresponded to a cystic papillary renal cell carcinoma. Afterwards, he presented a transitional urinary bladder tumor. Mortality associated to renal cell tumors is 90% at 5 years, and pituitary metastases are extraordinarily uncommon.
 ...
PMID:[Apoplexy in pituitary metastasis of renal cell carcinoma. Clinical case followed for 7 years]. 1134 89

A 61 year old hypertensive woman presented in 1986 with a right scapular chondrosarcoma. She developed type 1 diabetes mellitus in 1991 and suffered a stroke in 1991. Chest radiography showed pulmonary metastases in 1997. Further radiological staging detected a right sided phaeochromocytoma, which was subsequently removed in 1998. Before this, repeated urine estimations of vanillylmandelic acid had been normal. Her diabetes was cured by adrenalectomy. It is believed that the combination of phaeochromocytoma and extrapulmonary chondrosarcoma represents a new variant of Carney's triad.
 ...
PMID:A new variant of Carney's triad: phaeochromocytoma and chondrosarcoma. 1147 Sep 35

Aspiration of oro-pharyngeal secretions and gastric content is the most frequent cause of formation of primary lung abscess. A compromised mental status (e.g. alcoholism, sedatives, stroke) and esophageal dysfunction (e.g. herniation, vomiting) are important risk factors. Aspiration pneumonia presents as a subacute disease and is usually not distinguishable from other causes of pneumonia, until typical radiological signs of cavitation and putrid sputum appear 8 to 14 days after the initial event of aspiration. Anaerobic bacteria play a pivotal role in an almost exclusively mixed spectrum of causative organisms. Aerobic pathogens are also frequently isolated, but whether they are an active part of infection or merely represent colonizers remains unclear in many instances. Differential diagnosis includes bronchial neoplasms, either as necrotizing carcinoma or as the cause of poststenotic cavernous pneumonia, other infectious diseases like tuberculosis, Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia or endocarditis with septic metastases, and lung artery embolism or vasculitis (M. Wegener). Fiberoptic bronchoscopy is extremely helpful in determining cause and etiology of the disease and should be carried out in all patients presenting with cavernous lung lesions. Bacteriological sampling should be performed using protected specimen brushing (PSB) technique. Broncho-alveolar lavage might serve as a less expensive but also less sensitive alternative measure. Since anaerobic bacteria resemble ubiquitous commensals of the oral cavity, sputum is of no use in anaerobic culture. Principal therapeutic strategy is antibiotic therapy for an extended period, usually four weeks to four months, unless radiologic changes and as well laboratory as clinical indicators of infection are completely resolved. Clindamycin, optionally supplemented with a second or third generation cephalosporin and Ampicillin/Sulbactam proved equally effective in treating aspiration pneumonia and primary lung abscess. The role of Moxifloxacin and other new flouroquinolones with their favorable pharmacodynamics is currently evaluated. Provided that antibiotics are prescribed for a sufficient period of time and patients' compliance is ensured, surgical procedures are limited to a negligible number of complications, e.g. recurrent severe hemoptysis, empyema or broncho-pleural fistula.
 ...
PMID:[Diagnosis and therapy of abscess forming pneumonia]. 1169 90

Carotid body tumors are rare neoplasms and must be considered in the evaluation of all lateral neck masses; early surgical removal has been recommended. In this study, the medical records of 29 patients with 34 carotid body paragangliomas who were treated at our institution between 1971 and 2001 were retrospectively reviewed. An overview is provided of this lesion, including diagnosis, classification, metastatic potential, possible secretory function, operative techniques, and nonsurgical methods of management. Carotid body tumors may be familial and are more often bilateral in these instances; five patients (17%) had bilateral tumors in this series. The criterion for malignancy is demonstrated by metastatic tumor in lymph nodes or distant organs. Three patients (10%) had malignant tumors, one with hepatic metastases. One patient (3%) in our series exhibited abnormal serotonin production. Vascular reconstruction was necessary in eight cases (28%). No stroke occurred, however, two arterial thromboses (7%), five permanent cranial nerve deficits (17%), and one death (3%) from massive pulmonary embolism were seen. Our experience demonstrates that early operative management is warranted to avoid the possibility of eventual metastasis and progressive local invasion to the point of inoperability.
 ...
PMID:Management of carotid body paragangliomas and review of a 30-year experience. 1195 9

Small focal ischaemic brain lesions are said to be easy to identify in the acute stage and to differentiate from older lesions using diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI). Brain metastases are common and the aim of this study was to evaluate the risk of misinterpretation as ischaemic lesions in a standard MRI protocol for clinical stroke. Of 26 patients investigated with MRI for possible metastases, 12 did have metastatic brain lesions, including most of the common tumours. On a 1.5 tesla imager, we obtained DWI, plus T2- and T1-weighted images, the latter before and after triple-dose contrast medium. Well-circumscribed brain lesions with a decreased apparent diffusion coefficient and a slightly or moderately increased signal on T2-weighted images were found in patients with metastases from a small-cell bronchial carcinoma and a pulmonary adenocarcinoma. The same features were also found in metastases from a breast carcinoma but the lesions were surrounded by oedema. With a standard DWI protocol, the features of common brain metastases may overlap with those of small acute and subacute ischaemic lesions.
 ...
PMID:Diffusion-weighted imaging of brain metastases: their potential to be misinterpreted as focal ischaemic lesions. 1213 57

Patients with malignancy often present with a variety of coagulation abnormalities which may ultimately lead to recurrent arterial and venous thromboses. Recently the presence of antiphospholipid antibodies in cancer patients has been proposed as one of the potential mechanisms promoting hypercoagulability. Here we report two consecutive patients with localized tumors, one suffering from breast cancer and another presenting with colorectal cancer, who experienced dramatic exacerbation of the antiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APAS) within 4 weeks after surgery. In the first patient who had also received one course of adjuvant chemotherapy, major ischemic stroke and recurrent venous thromboembolism were paralleled by the development of ulcerative livedoid vasculitis and pancytopenia, constituting the diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus with secondary APAS. In the second patient, progressive thrombotic occlusion of the superior and inferior vena cava was associated with bilateral pulmonary embolism, acute renal failure, and disabling soft tissue edema. Although not fulfilling the classic criteria of "catastrophic" APAS, the clinical features were life threatening and appeared to be refractory to oral anticoagulation with phenprocoumon. In addition, a diagnosis of Trousseau's syndrome was unlikely due to missing evidence of gross metastatic disease. Besides a suggested treatment strategy comprising high doses of low-molecular-weight heparin, potential pathogenic mechanisms are discussed in consideration of a recently proposed "thrombotic storm," which may cause multiple thromboses after an initial provocation in patients with known hypercoagulability.
 ...
PMID:Exacerbation of antiphospholipid antibody syndrome after treatment of localized cancer: a report of two cases. 1248 70

The effectiveness and toxicity of many drugs can vary depending on the time of administration in relation to 24-hour rhythms of biochemical, physiological and behavioural processes under the control of the circadian clock. Such chronopharmacological phenomena are influenced by not only the pharmacokinetics but also pharmacodynamics of medications. Chronotherapy is especially relevant when the risk and/or intensity of the symptoms of disease vary predictably over time as exemplified by allergic rhinitis, arthritis, asthma, myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, stroke and peptic ulcer disease. Morning, once-daily administration of corticosteroids results in little adrenocortical suppression, while the same daily dose split into four equal doses to coincide with daily meals and bedtime results in significant hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis suppression. In a randomised, multicentre trial involving patients with previously untreated metastases from colorectal cancer, the chronomodulated infusion of oxaliplatin, fluorouracil and folinic acid was compared with a constant-rate infusion method. Adverse effects such as stomatitis and peripheral sensory neuropathy were lower and objective response was higher with chronotherapy as compared with the fixed-rate infusion. The merit of chronomodulated infusion is supported by the 24-hour rhythm of DNA synthesis and the activity of dehydropyrimidine dehydrogenase, which brings about the intracellular catabolism of fluorouracil. On the other hand, haloperidol and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors have diverse effects on sleep continuity and nocturnal arousals. Although interferon also alters the clock function, this disruptive effect can be overcome by devising an administration regimen that minimises adverse drug effects on clock function. Thus, one approach to increasing the efficiency of pharmacotherapy is the administration of drugs at times at which they are most effective and/or best tolerated.
 ...
PMID:Changes in toxicity and effectiveness with timing of drug administration: implications for drug safety. 1458 62

Brain metastases from hepatocarcinoma are exceptional and only a few cases have been reported in the literature, mainly from Far-Eastern countries. Clinical diagnosis in asymptomatic patients with preserved liver function is difficult and usually late. In some cases, cerebral metastasis is the initial manifestation of HCC and patients may develop intracerebral hemorrage and have a stroke-like presentation. We report on the first Italian case of cerebral metastases from multifocal hepatocellular carcinoma in an asymptomatic HbsAg negative patient with unknown HCV related chronic hepatitis and no evidence of liver cirrhosis. For many years he had a mild liver enzyme elevation and the presence of multiple misinterpreted hypoechogenic hepatic lesions. The hepatic tumor spread to the lungs and the brain and the patient developed two major episodes of intracranial hemorrage. He had two nodular lesions in the brain and alpha-fetoprotein levels were more than 10,000 ng/ml. He died from neurologic causes, without major signs of liver failure.
 ...
PMID:Intracranial hemorrage due to brain metastases in an Italian HCV patient with hepatocellular carcinoma. 1505 9


<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next >>