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In the bodybuilding and fitness communities, anecdotal evidence suggests that some take ‘steroid holidays’, traveling to and living in foreign countries so as to have greater access to performance ...

Eczema of the nipple is an important symptom presenting to the general surgeon in the out-patient department. The diagnosis of Paget's disease of the nipple has traditionally been made by incision biopsy necessitating at least a local anaesthetic. We present 14 patients with nipple skin change, in whom the technique of scrape cytology was used to identify patients with Paget's disease. In our series eight cases of Paget's disease were successfully identified by scrape cytology with no false negatives or positives. We suggest that this is a quick, easy, non-invasive method of screening eczema of the nipple in the out-patient clinic.

During the first 2 years (July 1989 to July 1991) of the Avon Breast Screening Service, fine-wire localization biopsy was indicated in 213 impalpable breast lesions. A total of 144 lesions were benign and 69 malignant. Only four of 213 lesions (1.9 per cent) were not excised at the first localization. Factors influencing reoperation in the 69 patients with malignant impalpable lesions were examined. There was a significant association (P < 0.001) between parenchymal disturbances on mammography and invasive carcinoma, and between non-invasive carcinoma and microcalcification (P < 0.001). In 31 patients the localization biopsy was the only surgical procedure. Thirty-eight patients required further surgery: 12 underwent further local excision and 26 mastectomy. Reoperation was more frequent in patients with calcification than in those with parenchymal disturbance (P < 0.001). The most frequent indications for mastectomy were inadequate excision of widespread comedo ductal carcinoma in situ or invasive ductal carcinoma combined with extensive ductal carcinoma in situ. Fine-wire localization biopsy was a combined therapeutic and diagnostic procedure in 31 of 69 women with impalpable screen-detected lesions. The majority of patients required further surgery because radiological abnormalities underestimated the extent of disease.

Epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor status is a useful prognostic indicator in women with breast cancer. Lack of standardization and correlation of methodology for the detection of EGF receptor has hampered its further evaluation. EGF receptor status was ascertained by immunohistochemistry and radioligand assay in 120 breast cancers. Of 52 tumours negative for EGF receptor on radioligand assay, 47 were negative on immunohistochemistry and, of 68 tumours positive for the receptor on assay, 52 were positive on immunohistochemistry. If the more widely evaluated radioligand assay is assumed to be the ‘gold standard’, immunohistochemistry has a sensitivity of 81 per cent and a specificity of 91 per cent.

A total of 393 nipple discharge or scrape smears from 360 women were examined cytologically over a 12-year period. Twenty-nine breast cancers (8 per cent) have been histologically confirmed in this group, of which 16 had malignant smear cytology (sensitivity 55 per cent). Nine patients with breast cancer and positive cytology had impalpable tumours. Two of these cancers were not detected by any other investigation. Thirteen patients with nipple discharge had false-negative cytology, but there were no false-positive results (specificity 100 per cent). All patients with expressible or spontaneous nipple discharges and those with skin changes at the nipple should undergo examination of cytological smears.

Medullary thyroid carcinoma accounts for 5–10 per cent of thyroid malignancies and occurs sporadically, and in three familial settings with autosomal dominant inheritance. Calcitonin, a 32 amino acid 3.5-kDa protein, is a biochemical marker of the tumour. Serum levels correlate with disease burden. Treatment initiated by screening allows disease removal at a premalignant phase: C cell hyperplasia. Genetic linkage studies locate the multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A gene near the centromere of chromosome 10. Flanking genetic markers may allow polymorphic probes to examine DNA from a once-only blood sample to identify affected individuals. At what age thyroidectomy should be carried out in these patients is unclear.

The first successful clinical cardiac transplant was performed by Barnard in 1967 in an adult1. In the same year Kantrowitz et al. reported a clinical transplant in a 16-day-old child with tricuspid atresia2. The following year Cooley et al. reported a transplant in a 2-month-old child with an atrioventricular canal defect3. Both of these pediatric transplants were ultimately unsuccessful.

One of the exciting recent trends in the field of special physical education is the development of appropriate learning experiences for students with severe handicapping conditions. Until very recently those who deviated significantly from the societal norm were frequently committed to institutions where they would reside for their entire lives. Unfortunately, the institutions into which the severely handicapped were placed were usually underfunded and understaffed. The conditions in many of these institutions were dehumanizing and without the necessary resources to provide treatment, rehabilitation, and educational programs. Fortunately, today there is a new international commitment to accept the severely handicapped as citizens with the same basic needs and rights as all citizens.