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- Norlén, Olov
(författare)
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Small Intestinal Neuroendocrine Tumor : A Rare Malignancy with Favorable Outcome
- 2013
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Small intestinal neuroendocrine tumor (SI-NET) is the most common small bowel tumor in Europe and USA, with an annual incidence of around 0.3-1.3/100000 persons. SI-NETs are the most common type of gastroenteropancreatic NETs (GEP-NETs), and they are known for their ability to produce hormones such as tachykinins and serotonin, as well as for their favorable long-term prognosis in comparison to gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma. The overall aim of the thesis was to investigate unknown or unclear aspects of SI-NET disease, in connection with prognosis, treatment and follow-up. Paper I confirmed several known negative prognostic factors and also showed, for the first time, that para-aortal lymph node metastases and peritoneal carcinomatosis were associated with worse survival by multivariable analyses. Locoregional surgery was associated with a low post-operative mortality, and a prolonged long-term survival by multivariable analysis. In Paper II we continued to investigate peritoneal carcinomatosis and found it be a risk factor not only for death, but also for emergency re-surgery. Furthermore, genetic analyses of samples from primary tumors in patients with and without peritoneal carcinomatosis showed a difference in the DNA between these two groups. In Paper III the outcome after liver surgery and/or radiofrequency ablation of liver metastases was investigated. To summarize, no difference in survival was seen in patients treated with surgery/radiofrequency ablation in comparison with matched controls. However, a superior radiological response of liver metasases and lower U-5-HIAA values were seen in patients subjected to liver surgery and/or radiofrequency ablation compared to matched controls. Paper IV compared ultrasonography, computed tomography and 11C-5HTP-PET in the follow-up after radiofrequency ablation of NET liver metastases. The study concluded that 11C-5HTP-PET depicted all residual tumors after RFA and that it, if used, should be combined with computed tomography for easier interpretation, as RFA areas are not clearly distinguishable with 11C-5HTP-PET alone. Paper V studied gallstone complications after somatostatin analog treatment in SI-NET patients, and concluded that there was a rather high risk to be subjected to a cholecystectomy due to biliary colic, cholecystitis, cholangitis or pancreatitis after primary surgery in somatostatin analog treated patients.
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| 2. |
- Halin Lejonklou, Margareta, 1966-
(författare)
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The MEN 1 Pancreas : Tumor Development and Haploinsufficiency
- 2012
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia Type I Syndrome (MEN 1) is a monogenic autosomal dominantly inherited cancer syndrome caused by a heterozygous loss of the MEN1 gene, predisposing for endocrine cell proliferation and tumor formation. MEN 1 carriers classically develop tumors in endocrine organs; the parathyroids, the endocrine pancreas, and the pituitary. Other organs, endocrine and non-endocrine, may also be affected. The most common cause of death in MEN 1 is pancreatic endocrine tumor (PNET), which exhibit inactivation of both MEN1 alleles. The increased proliferation prior to loss of the wild-type allele indicates haploinsufficiency, and little is known concerning the mechanisms behind MEN 1 PNET development. The MEN1 protein, menin, lacking homology with other known proteins, is involved in several aspects of transcriptional regulation and chromatin organization.We report differential expression and subcellular localization of transcription factors important in pancreatic development, in human and mouse MEN 1 pancreas, compared to non-MEN 1 pancreas. A predominantly cytoplasmic localization of Neurogenin3 and NeuroD1 was observed in tumors as well as in MEN 1 non-tumorous pancreas.Notch signaling factor expression and localization were examined in the pancreas of a heterozygous Men1 mouse model, and compared with that of wild-type littermates. Nuclear Hes1 was lost in tumors, concomitant to weaker Notch1 NICD expression, and further, analyzed using qPCR, it was shown that Notch1 was less expressed in heterozygous islets compared to wild-type islets.Performing a global gene expression array, we identified differential gene expression in five-week-old heterozygous Men1 mouse islets, compared to islets from wild-type littermates. The array results for a subset of the differentially regulated genes were corroborated using qPCR, western blotting and in situ PLA. We additionally observed significantly accelerated proliferation in islets from young heterozygous animals.It is often problematic to determine prognosis for individual patients with PNET. This is especially true in the group of patients with well differentiated endocrine carcinomas. In the absence of metastases, morphological signs of malignancy are frequently lacking. We evaluated the expression of nuclear and cytoplasmic survivin in a clinically characterized patient material (n=111), and a high nuclear survivin expression proved to be a significant negative prognostic factor for survival.
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