Oncology
Chapters
« previous | page 2 of 4 pages | next »Hyperthermic Isolated Limb Perfusion
Michele De Simone* and Marco Vaira
In this overview we describe surgical procedures and hypertermic-isolated limb perfusion technique for the treatment of in transit metastases from melanoma and sarcoma of the limbs. We also briefly analyze the rationale of limb perfusion procedure. The procedures are divided, for teaching purpose...
Identification of Molecular Determinants of Tumor Sensitivity and Resistance to Anticancer Drugs
Luigi Quintieri, Marianna Fantin and Csaba Vizler
Resistance to drugs is a major problem in cancer chemotherapy. Various cellular mechanisms of drug resistance have been identified in cultured tumor cell lines selected for growth in the presence of sublethal concentrations of various anticancer drugs. They involve drug transport and detoxification,...
Influence of Tumor Microenvironment on Thermoresponse: Biologic and Clinical Implications
Gian Franco Baronzio, Alberto Gramaglia, Attilio Baronzio and Isabel Freitas
Solid tumours tend to have a more acidic and hypoxic microenvironment than normal tissue. This hostile microenvironment results from a disparity between oxygen supply and demand of the tumor tissue. Overcoming hypoxia tumor induces a new vascular supply. This new vasculature is however inefficien...
Insulin-Like Growth Factors and Breast Cancer Therapy
Xianke Zeng and Douglas Yee
Despite improvements in breast cancer therapy in recent years, additional therapies need to be developed. New therapies may have activity by themselves or may have utility in combination with other agents. Population, preclinical, and basic data suggest the insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system fu...
Integrin-Mediated Adhesion: Tipping the Balance between Chemosensitivity
Mary M. Zutter
The integrin family of extracellular matrix receptors plays an important role in normal development, epithelial morphogenesis, angiogenesis, and in tumor progression and metastasis. Integrins cooperate with growth factor receptors to control many cellular functions including proliferation and cell s...
Interactions between Lipid A and Serum Proteins
Jörg Andrä, Thomas Gutsmann, Mareike Müller and Andra B. Schromm
Entry of endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or lipid A) into the blood stream is causative for the emergence of sepsis and septic shock with all its pathophysiological consequences.1 Serum contains a whole variety of proteins that interact with endotoxin. As large as the number of different protein...
Intracavitary Hyperthermic Perfusion
E. Dieter Hager
Direct intra-peritoneal (IP) installation of anticancer agents for the treatment of patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis or sarcomatosis has pharmacological advantages compared to intravenous systemic therapy in terms of local drug concentrations (Table 1). The ratio of antineoplastic agent in th...
Lipid A in Cancer Therapies Preclinical Results
Daniéle Reisser
Studies in animal models showed that the antitumoral effect of LPS and of their biologically active moiety, lipid A, is indirect and relies on the induction of an immune response both innate and specific, leading to cytokine production. They also affect tumor development by inhibiting tumor blood fl...
Lipid A Receptor TLR4‑Mediated Signaling Pathways
Masahiro Yamamoto and Shizuo Akira
Lipid A is a strong activator of monocytes to release immune stimulators such as proinflammatory cytokines. Overproduction of inflammatory cytokines such as TNF and IL‑6 is known to cause septic shock that frequently leads to multiple organ failure and finally to death. In recent years, Lipid ...
Locoregional Hyperthermia
E. Dieter Hager
Locoregional hyperthermia can be differentiated into external, interstitial and endocavitary hyperthermia. Different heat delivery systems are available: antennae array, capacitive coupled, and inductive devices. Depending on localization and size of the tumour different methods and techniques c...
MALT Lymphoma: Genetics and Biology
Francesco Bertoni, Finbarr E. Cotter and Ming-Qing Du
Extranodal marginal zone B-cell lymphoma arising in mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) is a discrete clinicopathologic entity, with unique pathogenetic, histologic and clinical features.1-3 MALT B-cell lymphoma occurs more often in organs, such as th...
MALT Lymphomas: Epidemiology and Infectious Agents
Mario Luppi and Riccardo Negrini
In 1983 Isaacson and Wright1 observed that low grade lymphomas arising from the stomach, thyroid, salivary glands and lung exhibit histological features that reproduce the architecture of mucosa associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) rather than that of simila...
Manufacturing of Microarrays
David W. Petersen* and Ernest S. Kawasaki
DNA microarray technology has become a powerful tool in the arsenal of the molecular biologist. Capitalizing on high precision robotics and the wealth of DNA sequences annotated from the genomes of a large number of organisms, the manufacture of microarrays is now possible for the average academic l...
Melanoma and Nonmelanoma Skin Cancers and the Immune System
Diana Santo Domingo and Elma D. Baron
A connection between tumorigenesis and the immune system has been known to exist since the late 1960s. Two pioneers in this concept were Lewis Thomas and F. Macfarlane Burnett. In 1967 Burnett introduced the concept of immunosurveillance. This idea is based on the concept that an intact immune syste...
Microarrays for Cancer Diagnosis and Classification
Ainhoa Perez-Diez, Andrey Morgun and Natalia Shulzhenko
Microarray analysis has yet to be widely accepted for diagnosis and classification of human cancers, despite the exponential increase in microarray studies reported in the literature. Among several methods available, a few refined approaches have evolved for the analysis of microarray data for can...
Molecular Biology of Basal and Squamous Cell Carcinomas
Jingwu Xie
Basal cell carcinomas and Squamous cell carcinomas are the two most common human cancers. The incidence of these two types of cancer is estimated to double within 20 years. Identification of the key molecular events is critical in helping us design novel strategies to treat and to prevent these canc...
Molecular Biology of Malignant Melanoma
Mar Pons, Pablo Mancheño-Corvo, Pilar Martín-Duque and Miguel Quintanilla
The incidence of melanoma has increased more rapidly than any other type of cancer. In this review, we summarize the most important genetic alterations that contribute to the development of malignant melanoma. Our knowledge of the genetic and biological events involved in the genesis and progression...
Molecular Mechanisms of ErbB2-Mediated Breast Cancer Chemoresistance
Ming Tan and Dihua Yu
The erbB2 (also known as HER2 or neu) gene encodes a 185-kDa transmembrane glyco-protein, which belongs to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) family. ErbB2 is a receptor tyrosine kinase with intrinsic tyrosine kinase activity. The mammalian EGFR family comprises four receptors (EGFR, ErbB2,...
Monophosphoryl Lipid A (MPL) as an Adjuvant for Anti‑Cancer Vaccines: Clinical Results
Christopher W. Cluff
A variety of vaccines designed for cancer immunotherapy have been tested in clinical trials for more than two decades. Investigators realized early on that addition of adjuvants to cancer vaccines would be required to overcome the poor immune responses that are generally elicited to antigens contain...
Novel Approaches for Chemosensitization of Breast Cancer Cells: The E1A Story
Yong Liao, Dihua Yu and Mien-Chie Hung
The adenoviral E1A-mediated sensitization to a variety of anti-cancer drug-induced apoptosis is a well-established phenomenon on different types of cell systems. However, the mechanisms underlying E1A-mediated chemosensitization are still not fully understood. Recent studies demonstrate that E1A-med...
On the Biochemical Basis of Tumour Damage by Hyperthermia
P. Pietrangeli and B. Mondovi
Tumour cells are selectively inhibited by hyperthermia (41-42.5¡C) in the same conditions where normal cells are not damaged. At higher temperature, also normal cells are injured. In spite of the large number of reports on the cytotoxic effect of hyperthermia the mechanisms of heat cytotoxicity ar...
Optimal Serum 25‑Hydroxyvitamin D Levels for Multiple Health Outcomes
Heike A. Bischoff-Ferrari
Recent evidence suggests that higher vitamin D intakes beyond current recommendations may be associated with better health outcomes. In this chapter, evidence is summarized from different studies that evaluate threshold levels for serum 25(OH)D levels in relation to bone mineral density (BMD), lower...
Overview of Resistance to Systemic Therapy in Patients with Breast Cancer
Ana Maria Gonzalez-Angulo, Flavia Morales-Vasquez and Gabriel Hortobagyi
Breast cancer is the most common cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death in American women. It was the second most common cancer in the world in 2002, with more than 1 million new cases. Despite advances in early detection and the understanding of the molecular bases of breast cancer bio...
P53 Protein and Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer
Vladislava O. Melnikova and Honnavara N. Ananthaswamy
Skin cancer is the most common type of human cancer today, and its incidence has been increasing with an astonishing rate. It is estimated that about 70% of nonmelanoma skin cancers (NMSC) are induced by ultraviolet (UV) radiation, as a consequence of exposure to sunlight. Stratospheric ozone blo...
p53 Protein and Pathogenesis of Melanoma and Nonmelanoma Skin Cancer
Cara L. Benjamin, Vladislava O. Melnikova and Honnavara N. Ananthaswamy
The p53 tumor suppressor gene and gene product are among the most diverse and complex molecules involved in cellular functions. Genetic alterations within the p53 gene have been shown to have a direct correlation with cancer development and have been shown to occur in nearly 50% of all cancers. p53 ...
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