BACKGROUND: The objectives of the current study were to determine the prognostic factors associated with disease‐specific survival (DSS) and to analyze the role of lymphadenectomy (LND) and oophorectomy in the management of uterine leiomyosarcomas (LMS).METHODS: Data were abstracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database (1988–2003). Kaplan‐Meier and Cox proportional hazards regression models were used for analyses.RESULTS: The median age of the 1396 patients was 52 years. There were 951 patients (68.1%) with International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage I disease, 43 patients (3.1%) with stage II disease, 99 patients (7.1%) with stage III disease, and 303 patients (21.7%) with stage IV disease. Distribution by tumor grade included 87 patients with grade 1 tumors, 208 with grade 2, and 509 patients with grade 3 tumors. The 5‐year DSS rates for patients with stage I, II, III, and IV disease were 75.8%, 60.1%, 44.9%, and 28.7%, respectively. Lymph node metastases were identified in 23 of 348 patients (6.6%) who underwent LND. The 5‐year DSS rate was 26% in patients who had positive lymph nodes compared with 64.2% in patients who had negative lymph nodes (P < .001). Of 341 patients aged <50 years with stage I or II disease, 240 (70.4%) underwent oophorectomy. There was no difference in 5‐year DSS based on oophorectomy. On multivariate analysis, older age at diagnosis, more recent year of diagnosis, African‐American race, higher tumor grade, higher stage of disease, and lack of primary surgical treatment all were associated significantly with worse survival.CONCLUSIONS: Independent predictors of DSS in patients with uterine LMS included age, race, stage, grade, and primary surgery. Oophorectomy was not found to have an independent impact on survival. Cancer 2008. © 2008 American Cancer Society.

In testicular germ cell tumor type II (TGCT), a seminoma subtype expresses an induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) panel with four upregulated genes, OCT4/POU5F1, SOX17, KLF4, and MYC, and embryonal carcinoma (EC) has four upregulated genes, OCT4/POU5F1, SOX2, LIN28, and NANOG. The EC panel can reprogram cells into iPSC, and both iPSC and EC can differentiate into teratoma. This review summarizes the literature on epigenetic regulation of the genes. Epigenetic mechanisms, such as methylations of cytosines on the DNA string and methylations and acetylations of histone 3 lysines, regulate expression of these driver genes between the TGCT subtypes. In TGCT, the driver genes contribute to well-known clinical characteristics and the driver genes are also important for aggressive subtypes of many other malignancies. In conclusion, epigenetic regulation of the driver genes are important for TGCT and for oncology in general.

Metastatic cancer to the penis is rare, its optimum treatment remains poorly defined and the outcome of patients with such metastases is poor. Hyperthermia in conjunction with radiation therapy has been shown to be an effective modality in the treatment of locally advanced or recurrent cancer and hyperthermia alone is under evaluation in treating benign disorders, such as hypertrophy of the prostate. Recently, 4 patients with symptomatic metastatic lesions to the penis (3 had primary prostatic cancer and 1 had rectal cancer) were treated with radiation therapy and hyperthermia. Treatment was well tolerated except for pain during hyperthermia, which limited the temperatures that could be obtained. All of the patients improved symptomatically, 1 achieved a complete response and 2 had partial responses. No significant complications were noted. Symptomatic control was maintained in all patients for the duration of their survival. This limited series suggests the possible role of local hyperthermia as an adjunct to radiation therapy in the treatment of metastases to the penis.

Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) are at elevated risk for acute leukemia, whereas solid tumors are uncommon, and most types, including breast cancers, have significantly lower-than-expected age-adjusted incidence rates. This article reports on a man with DS and breast cancer, thought to be the first in the literature, and presents the management of his cancer. The literature on malignancies in patients with DS is reviewed and the major epidemiologic studies that have examined the spectrum of cancer risk in individuals with DS are summarized. Potential environmental and genetic determinants of cancer risk are discussed, and the potential role of chromosomal mosaicism in cancer risk among patients with DS is explored. Trisomy of chromosome 21, which causes DS, provides an extra copy of genes with tumor suppressor or repressor functions. Recent studies have leveraged mouse and human genetics to uncover specific candidate genes on chromosome 21 that mediate these effects. In addition, global perturbations in gene expression programs have been observed, with potential effects on proliferation and self-renewal. Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) are at elevated risk for acute leukemia, whereas solid tumors are uncommon, and most types, including breast cancers, have significantly lower-than-expected age-adjusted incidence rates. This article reports on a man with DS and breast cancer, thought to be the first in the literature, and presents the management of his cancer. The literature on malignancies in patients with DS is reviewed and the major epidemiologic studies that have examined the spectrum of cancer risk in individuals with DS are summarized. Potential environmental and genetic determinants of cancer risk are discussed, and the potential role of chromosomal mosaicism in cancer risk among patients with DS is explored. Trisomy of chromosome 21, which causes DS, provides an extra copy of genes with tumor suppressor or repressor functions. Recent studies have leveraged mouse and human genetics to uncover specific candidate genes on chromosome 21 that mediate these effects. In addition, global perturbations in gene expression programs have been observed, with potential effects on proliferation and self-renewal.