Journal of investigative medicine : the official publication of the American Federation for Clinical Research
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Comparative Study
Prevalence of fibromyalgia syndrome in patients referred to a tertiary pain clinic.
Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), the prototypical central pain augmentation syndrome, is characterized by widespread pain and tenderness. Although patients referred to tertiary care pain clinics are recognized as suffering from chronic pain, they are generally considered to have pain attributable to discrete peripheral, nociceptive, or neuropathic etiology.The purpose of the current study was to assess the prevalence of FMS among consecutive patients referred to a tertiary pain clinic and to evaluate the contribution of central pain to the clinical impact upon such patients. ⋯ A significant proportion of patients referred to a tertiary pain clinic were found to fulfill the ACR criteria for classification of FMS and thus exhibit an important element of central pain. Central pain augmentation should be actively searched for and therapeutically addressed in the evaluation and management of all patients with chronic pain.
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With the continued failures of both early diagnosis and treatment options for pancreatic cancer, it is now time to comprehensively evaluate the role of the immune system on the development and progression of pancreatic cancer. It is important to develop strategies that harness the molecules and cells of the immune system to treat this disease. ⋯ We hypothesize that the role of the immune system in tumor development and progression is tissue specific. Our hope is that better understanding of this process will lead to better treatments for this devastating disease.
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Oxidative stress and free radicals have been indicated to be associated with increased risk of various cancers. Paraoxonase 1 (PON1) gene, encoding PON1 protein, plays an important role as an endogenous free-radical scavenging molecule. The aim of the present study was to determine whether genetic polymorphisms of the PON1 gene are associated with the risk and prognosis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). ⋯ The Q192R polymorphism of the PON1 gene may be associated with the risk and prognosis of NSCLC in a Chinese Han population.
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In 2005, results from the Arimidex, Tamoxifen Alone or in Combination (ATAC) trial ushered in a new era of endocrine therapy for hormone-responsive malignancies. This study demonstrated that, compared with tamoxifen (a selective estrogen receptor modulator), anastrozole (aromatase inhibitor [AI]) prolonged time to recurrence and disease-free survival for postmenopausal women with breast cancer. The advantage was even greater for those with estrogen receptor-positive (ER) tumors, and anastrozole was better tolerated than tamoxifen. ⋯ Aromatase inhibitors and CYP17A1 inhibitors will be widely used by oncologists, yet fellowship programs provide little training in steroid biosynthesis, compared with training in the biology of standard chemotherapies. Consequently, these drugs might be used without an appreciation of their caveats and pitfalls. The purpose of this review was to acquaint practicing oncologists with the fundamental principles and pathways of steroid biosynthesis, to improve their understanding of how and why these drugs work, and to alert these physicians to potential problems related to the drugs' mechanisms of action.
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This study investigated the prognostic value of neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). ⋯ High NGAL levels may be associated with poor prognosis after PCI in patients with STEMI. However, further studies with larger numbers of patients and longer follow-up are required to evaluate the usefulness of plasma NGAL level for predicting prognosis of STEMI.