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Pathological osteolyses are considered a consequence of a disturbance in the mechanisms that govern the bone remodeling, mainly the communication between osteoclasts and osteoblasts. Osteoprotegerin (OPG) and receptor activator of NF-kappaB ligand (RANKL) are newly discovered molecules that play a key role in these communications. RANKL is essential for osteoclast differentiation via its receptor RANK located on the osteoclast membrane. OPG is a soluble decoy receptor that inhibits osteoclast differentiation through its binding to RANKL. The aim of this study is the analysis of the RANKL/OPG balance by complementary methods (semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, immunohistochemistry, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) in human osteolysis associated to various bone etiologies (n = 60), tumoral (primitive, secondary) or not, compared to healthy tissues (n = 16). Results demonstrated that RANKL/OPG ratio was significantly increased in patients suffering from severe osteolysis compared to the control group and that this imbalance is involved in bone resorption mechanisms. In this study, OPG expression appears to reflect a protective mechanism of the skeleton to compensate increased bone resorption by inhibiting osteoclast formation and bone resorbing activity. Moreover, as revealed by immunohistochemistry, RANKL and OPG were colocalized in all of the tissues analyzed. To define the veracity of RANKL/OPG index in assessing and managing patients with severe osteolysis, an extended population of patients suffering from severe osteolysis must be now monitored.

Background: Radiotherapy and chemotherapy are associated with an increased risk of second malignant neoplasm (SMN). An association between SMN and familial aggregation has also been shown. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of familial factors in the risk of SMN and their potential interaction with the effect of treatment., Methods: We devised a case-control study of 25 children with SMN (cases) and 96 children with no SMN after a cancer treatment (controls), taken from a cohort of 649 children treated at our institution between 1953 and 1985. A complete family history was obtained for patients and controls and a familial index defined to evaluate the degree of familial aggregation. The radiation dose given at 151 sites in the body was estimated for each radiotherapy course for each child., Findings: Among family members of the 25 SMN cases, there were ten with early-onset (< or = 45 years) cancer, compared with eight among relatives of the 96 controls. Compared with patients who had no family history of early-onset cancer, those with one or more affected family members had an odds ratio for SMN of 4.7 (95% CI 1.3-17.1; p = 0.02). Adjustment for local radiation dose and exclusion of patients known to be predisposed to SMN (carriers of p53 mutation and those with Recklinghausen's disease) did not affect this risk substantially., Interpretation: Both genetic factors and exposure to ionising radiation have independent effects on the risk of SMN. Follow-up of children treated for cancer should be especially vigilant when there is a family history of early-onset cancer.