Extramammary Paget's disease

Extramammary Paget's disease is an in situ skin and mucosal carcinoma frequently associated with and probably arising in a subjacent or regionally proximate carcinoma. Microscopic spread of tumor cells almost always extends beyond clinically apparent disease. Surgical treatment requires carefully planned, systematic excision under precise histologic control. An ideal treatment method remains to be developed. Inadequate excision usually results in recurrences that can be successfully treated by reexcision. Associated invasive carcinomas occur frequently, and mortality is high in these patients.     

Mithramycin therapy in Paget's disease

Nine patients with symptomatic Paget''s disease were treated with mithramycin in doses of 15 μg/kg/day for 10 days. All but one had considerable symptomatic improvement and, in some, pain relief was dramatic after only a few days. A progressive decrease in serum alkaline phosphatase levels and urinary hydroxyproline excretion was seen at the same time. Bone scans with technetium-99m stannous polyphosphate were performed in six patients and were grossly abnormal in all, showing increased uptake in areas approximately co-extensive with the radiological changes. In five cases improvement in the scans was seen during therapy. In those cases in which the scans had not returned to normal by the end of therapy the improvement continued and was associated with a further decrease in serum alkaline phosphatase levels. We suggest that mithramycin is effective therapy for Paget''s disease and, in the dose used, is safe.     

Influence of pet ownership on opinions towards the use of animals in biomedical research

Abstract

The present study investigated the relationship between pet ownership and opinions on the use of animals in medical research. A questionnaire was answered by 484 schoolteacher students and 156 pre-school teacher students from Uppsala University, Sweden. Animal use was found to be of significant importance for developing treatments for human disease by 59 percent of respondents, but 15 percent did not agree. Forty-four percent thought that it was morally acceptable to use animals in biomedical research, while 25 percent did not. A significantly higher proportion of those who reported experience in the use of animals in research from university teaching morally accepted and understood the importance of using animals in biomedical research, compared with students without this background. Fifty-eight percent of the students were pet owners and the most common species owned were the cat and the dog. A lower proportion of pet owners (39%) found it acceptable to use pet species in biomedical research than did non-pet owners (52%).     

Paget's disease of the breast.

Criteria of the morphological diagnosis as well as the histogenesis of the lesions in Paget's disease are presented; the authors claim that the initial lesion occurs in the lactiferous ducts, the skin being secondarily involved. Likewise, the dyskeratotic lesions are considered as secondary to the neoplastic process, either by neoplastic induction or by mobilization and proliferation of cancerous cells from lactiferous ducts. The utility of biopsies in all cases of nipple eczema, and of the histologic investigation of the profound tissues is pointed out. In this way the canalicular starting point in the vicinity of the nipple can be noticed.