No abstract

Low breast cancer screening rates are often found among ethnic minority groups and those born outside the host country. This is of particular concern for high-risk groups, who should benefit from ongoing trials aimed at optimizing screening strategies for breast, as well as ovarian cancer. Both of these issues are germane for Jewish women in Europe. We systematically review the literature concerning breast cancer early detection practices (BCEDP) among Jewish women, and examine European surveillance studies of high-risk for breast and/or ovarian cancer that had imaging in the surveillance protocol, in order to assess the likelihood of adequately including women from minority ethnic groups. No studies were found about BCEDP among Jewish women in Europe. Twenty-one research groups from Israel or the US addressed BCEDP among Jewish women. Some Jewish women in the US and Israel, including recent immigrants, are under-screened. Twenty-four research groups reported imaging surveillance of women at increased risk for breast and/or ovarian cancer in Europe. There was a clear benefit to magnetic resonance imaging and/or more intensive screening for women with increased breast cancer risk. Some of these surveillance studies considered ethnic minority groups at high risk, including Jewish women, but none provided adequate outreach to ensure that these groups were included in their programs. The specific screening needs of Jewish and other high-risk ethnic minority groups in Europe have not been met regarding breast and ovarian cancer. A European-wide, population-based approach is suggested, with cultural sensitivity being vital for these efforts.

Abstract. Some clinical results indicate that somatostatin (sms) might be useful in the treatment of advanced prostate cancer (HRPC). Because of its transient in vivo half-life only more stable derivatives of sms are of interest in this context. Recent studies have shown that natural sms can be conjugated to a carbohydrate (smsdx) with preservation of sms-like effects on the prostatic tumor cell proteome. The present study identifies some of the affected proteins in an effort to elucidate pathways and proteins that might be of importance for the potential usefulness of sms treatment in HRPC. After incubating the LNCaP cell-line with sms14/smsdx, comparative proteomics was used for analysing and identifying affected proteins. Protein expression patterns were analysed with two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry. Catalytic mitochondrial and mitochondrial-associated proteins were significantly affected (fold change ~2 or higher) and they were in general up-regulated. Apoptosis-related proteins were both up-regulated (VDAC1, VDAC2) and down-regulated (PRDX2, TCTP). The fold change was >2 for PRDX2 and <2 for the others. There was a strong agreement between sms and smsdx on the up-and down-regulation of proteins. Sms/smsdx triggered up-regulation of catalytic mitochondrial proteins and seemed to affect apoptosis-related proteins. This could indicate important pathways on which smsdx might be able to curb the progression of HRPC. The results encourage a pending clinical phase II study.

Somatostatin (SMS), binds to its specific receptors (SSTRs) and transduces growth inhibitory, anti-secretory and apoptotic signals. Several human cancers express SSTRs, including prostate cancer, and therefore SMS is of interest for anti-cancer therapy. DNA methylation and histone modifications are involved in normal cell development, gene imprinting and human carcinogenesis. Reversing DNA methylation is an attractive therapeutic possibility, since epigenetic modifications change gene expression without changing the gene function. DNA methylation inhibitors such as 5-aza-2'deoxycytidine (5'-aza, decitabine) have been used to treat several types of haematological malignancies. Histone deacetylase inhibitors such as trichostatin (TSA), are a new class of 'targeted anti-cancer agents'. TSA and decitabine can induce growth arrest, apoptosis or terminal differentiation in a variety of solid and haematological cancers in advanced disease patients. In the present study, the LNCaP cell line (prostate cancer) was incubated with SMS or Somadex (an SMS polymer conjugate) for three days, 1 nM per day, and the untreated cells were the negative control. For DNA demethylation, cells were grown in the presence of 2.5 μM 5-aza for 120 h, and re-fed with 5-aza-containing fresh medium at day 3. The total incubation time with 5-aza was 120 h. TSA at 1.0 μM was added into the cultured cells for 24 h. The combined treatment of 5-aza and TSA was performed by incubating the cells with 5-aza for 120 h followed by a 24-h exposure to TSA. Using cDNA obtained from these cell lines, the difference in the expression level of SSTR mRNA transcripts before and after 5-aza and TSA treatments was analyzed by RT-PCR. An increased induction of mRNA expression of the five SSTR subtypes was observed in the LNCaP cells when incubated with SMS/Somadex (dose-dependent). The inhibition of DNA methylation and histone acetylation resulted in the up-regulation of SSTR5 mRNA expression. The results demonstrate a positive feedback loop between SMS and its receptors. This regulation pathway may enhance the antitumor activity of somatostatin. To benefit from this effect in a clinical setting, the dose, dose frequency and pan affinity of the SMS derivative are important factors. The epigenetic manipulation with DNA methylation or histone deacetylase inhibitors, combined with SMS, may offer a novel alternative for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer.