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Programmed cell death 4 (PDCD4) is a RNA-binding protein that acts as a tumor suppressor in many cancer types, including colorectal cancer (CRC). During CRC carcinogenesis, PDCD4 protein levels remarkably decrease, but the underlying molecular mechanism for decreased PDCD4 expression is not fully understood. In this study, we performed bioinformatics analysis to identify miRNAs that potentially target PDCD4. We demonstrated miR-181b as a direct regulator of PDCD4. We further showed that activation of IL6/STAT3 signaling pathway increased miR-181b expression and consequently resulted in downregulation of PDCD4 in CRC cells. In addition, we investigated the biological effects of PDCD4 inhibition by miR-181b both in vitro and in vivo and found that miR-181b could promote cell proliferation and migration and suppress apoptosis in CRC cells and accelerate tumor growth in xenograft mice, potentially through targeting PDCD4. Taken together, this study highlights an oncomiR role for miR-181b in regulating PDCD4 in CRC and suggests that miR-181b may be a novel molecular therapeutic target for CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Human leiomyomata (fibroids) are benign tumors of the uterus, represent the most common neoplasms of reproductive-aged women and have a prevalence of ∼70% in the general population. This disorder conveys a significant degree of morbidity and remains the leading indication for hysterectomy in the USA. Prior investigations of aberrant microRNA (miRNA) expression in various malignancies have provided invaluable insight into the role of this class of small non-coding RNAs in tumor growth. Evidence of irregular miRNA expression in uterine fibroids has garnered recent interest for diagnostic and therapeutic applications. Since miRNA gene targets modulate several processes implicated in the genesis of uterine fibroids, more focused investigation has the potential to elucidate the functional significance of miRNA in the genesis and pathology of the disease. METHODS Comprehensive electronic searches of peer reviewed published literature in PubMed (US National Library of Medicine, National Institute of Health; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/) were performed for content related to the biologic functions of miRNA, the roles of miRNA in human disease and studies investigating miRNA in the context of uterine leiomyomata. Herein, this article will review the current evidence supporting the use of miRNA expression profiling as an investigative tool to assess the pathobiology of uterine fibroids and will discuss potential future applications of miRNAs as biomarkers and therapeutic targets. RESULTS Mounting evidence supports a functional role for miRNA as either indirect or direct regulators of gene expression which impacts the pathobiology of uterine fibroids. Specifically, miRNAs let-7, 200a, 200c, 93, 106b and 21 have been implicated in cellular proliferation, apoptosis, extracellular matrix turnover, angiogenesis and inflammation. Preliminary data provide evidence to suggest that respective in vitro miRNA expression in leiomyomata and myometrium is regulated by sex steroids. CONCLUSIONS Collectively, the identification of aberrantly expressed miRNAs in uterine leiomyomata and accumulating data derived from mining of gene target prediction models and recent functional studies support the concept that miRNAs might impact the genesis and progression of disease. However, the specific biologic functions of differential miRNA expression have yet to be confirmed in vivo. Further functional studies and developing miRNA technology may provide the basis for future applications of miRNAs in clinical medicine as biomarkers and therapeutic targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of our study was to investigate the relationship between nasal irrigation techniques (NIT) and the survival rate and the quality of life (QOL) in patients with nasal sinusitis (NS), Methods: We studied data from 1134 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) who received radical radiotherapy, which were randomly divided into three groups (A, B and C). Group A used nasal irrigator; Group B used homemade nasal irrigation (Nl) connector combined with enemator; and Group C used nasal sprayer. The clinical effects, 5-year overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were observed. Furthermore, the QOL in patients with NS was evaluated using the Sino-Nasal Outcome Test 20. Results: The median follow-up time was 69 months. The 5-year OS and PFS were 80.5% and 73.2%, respectively, for all patients. There was no significant difference in OS, PFS, xerostomia and neck skin toxicity grade 3 and greater among groups. There was no difference among groups. The incidence of NS was the highest in group C. Conclusion: The symptoms of NS seriously affected the QOL period of 1 year. Group C showed no improvement during the follow-up period, which for A and B, by contrast, had after 1 year. Although the exact mechanism remains to be explored in NIT, our findings suggest that patients with NPC should nasal irrigate for 2 years after radiotherapy. Advances in knowledge: Our study shows that a nasal irrigator is necessary for patients with NPC for a high QOL in terms of NS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: We aimed to evaluate the relationships between primary tumour, maximum standardised uptake value, metabolic tumour volume and seventh edition American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) classification in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients. Methods: Fluorine-18 fludeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET)-CT scans of 41 consecutive newly diagnosed OSCC patients were retrospectively reviewed. Maximum standard uptake value (SUVmax) and metabolic tumour volume (MTV) were recorded. Two-tailed Spearman’s correlation was used to analyse the relationships between the metabolic parameters and the AJCC staging system. Results: Positive correlations were observed between SUVmaxmax, MTV and tumour (T) stage, in addition to node (N) stage and AJCC stage. Both metabolic parameters were independent variables that significantly affected the N stage and AJCC stage, and SUVmax was the only independent variable that significantly affected the T stage. Conclusion: The metabolic parameters derived from 1818F-FDG PET-CT were positively correlated with T, N and AJCC stage in primary OSCC. Our findings may suggest a complementary role of these parameters to seventh-edition AJCC staging in the prognostication of OSCC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) has been shown to improve outcomes for stage III–IV nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients compared with radiotherapy (RT) alone, but the effectiveness of the combined therapy for stage II NPC patients is unknown. Methods Patients with Chinese 1992 stage II NPC were randomly assigned to receive either RT alone (n = 114) or CCRT (n = 116). The CCRT patients were given concurrent cisplatin (30 mg/m2 on day 1) weekly during RT. The primary endpoint was overall survival (OS). Secondary endpoints were progression-free survival (PFS), distant metastasis-free survival, and locoregional relapse-free survival. All patients were analyzed by the intent-to-treat principle. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and in multivariable analyses to test the independent statistical significance of treatment intervention. Toxic effects and the response to treatment were analyzed using the χ2 test. All statistical tests were two-sided. Results With a median follow-up of 60 months, adding chemotherapy statistically significantly improved the 5-year OS rate (94.5% vs 85.8%; HR of death = 0.30, 95% CI = 0.12 to 0.76; P = .007), PFS (87.9% vs 77.8%; HR of progression = 0.45, 95% CI = 0.23 to 0.88; P = .017), and distant metastasis-free survival (94.8% vs 83.9%; HR of distant relapse = 0.27, 95% CI = 0.10 to 0.74; P = .007); however, there was no statistically significant difference in the 5-year locoregional relapse-free survival rate (93.0% vs 91.1%; HR of locoregional relapse = 0.61, 95% CI = 0.25 to 1.51; P = .29). Multivariable analysis showed that the number of chemotherapy cycles was the only independent factor that was associated with OS, PFS, and distant control in stage II NPC. The CCRT arm experienced statistically significantly more acute toxic effects (P = .001), although the rate of late toxic effects did not increase statistically significantly. Conclusion Concurrent chemotherapy and radiotherapy is associated with a considerable survival benefit for patients with stage II NPC. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Objectives: Xerostomia is a common post-radiotherapy (post-RT) complication in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients. This study evaluated the relation of post-RT parotid gland changes with the dose received. Methods: Data from 18 NPC patients treated by radiotherapy between 1997 and 2001 were collected. Parotid gland volumes were measured and compared between their pre-RT and post-RT CT images; both sets of CT were conducted with the same scanning protocol. Doppler ultrasound was used to assess the haemodynamic condition of the glands after radiotherapy. Doppler ultrasound results were compared against 18 agematched normal participants. A questionnaire was used to evaluate the patients' comments of xerostomia condition. Radiotherapy treatment plans of the participants were retrieved from the Eclipse treatment planning system from which the radiation doses delivered to the parotid glands were estimated. The correlations of parotid gland doses and the post-RT changes were evaluated. Results: The post-RT parotid glands were significantly smaller (p,0.001) than the pre- RT ones. They also demonstrated lower vascular velocity, resistive and pulsatility indices (p,0.05) than normal participants. The degree of volume shrinkage and subjective severity of xerostomia demonstrated dose dependence, but such dependence was not definite in the haemodynamic changes. Conclusion: It was possible to predict the gland volume change and subjective severity of xerostomia based on the dose to the parotid glands for NPC patients. However, such prediction was not effective for the vascular changes. The damage to the gland was long lasting and had significant effects on the patients' quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radiation recall is an acute inflammatory reaction confined to previously irradiated areas that can be triggered when chemotherapy agents are administered after radiotherapy. It remains a poorly understood phenomenon, but increased awareness may aid early diagnosis and appropriate management. A diverse range of drugs used in the treatment of cancer has been associated with radiation recall. As most data come from case reports, it is not possible to determine the true incidence, but to date the antineoplastic drugs for which radiation recall reactions have been most commonly reported include the anthracycline doxorubicin, the taxanes docetaxel and paclitaxel, and the antimetabolites gemcitabine and capecitabine. Radiation recall is drug-specific for any individual patient; it is not possible to predict which patients will react to which drugs, and rechallenge does not uniformly induce a reaction. There are no identifiable characteristics of drugs that cause radiation recall, and thus, it is a possibility that must be kept in mind with use of any drug after radiotherapy, including those from new drug classes. Although it is not yet possible to design treatment regimens to eliminate the risk of radiation recall, it seems likely that risks can be minimized by prolonging the interval between completion of radiotherapy and initiation of chemotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]