Canadian survey of thyroid cancer

We report the results of a multicentre retrospective chart review of 2214 patients with thyroid cancer registered at 13 radiotherapy centres between 1958 and 1978. The data analysed included sex, age at the time of diagnosis, pathological diagnosis, extent of disease before treatment, types of treatment and their complications, and the rates of recurrence and survival up to 24 years after diagnosis. Although papillary cancers were most common, anaplastic and miscellaneous tumours were more frequent than expected, which reflects the type of patients referred by endocrinologists and surgeons to radiotherapy centres. There were marked differences in patterns of referral to the centres. Some patients with papillary and follicular thyroid cancers died of these cancers up to 20 years after diagnosis. The clinical manifestations, treatment and outcome of the rarer types of thyroid malignant tumours were of particular interest. The influence of age at the time of diagnosis on survival rates for patients with papillary or follicular thyroid cancer was highly significant, indicating much more aggressive behaviour of these cancers in older patients, particularly those beyond the age of 60 years. A more detailed analysis of tumour subtypes should provide new information on their natural history and lead to better management.     

Internal Radiation Exposure Dose in Iwaki City,Fukushima Prefecture after the Accident at Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant

As a result of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FNPP) on 11 March 2011, a huge amount of radionuclides, including radiocesium, was released and spread over a wide area of eastern Japan. Although three years have passed since the accident, residents around the FNPP are anxious about internal radiation exposure due to radiocesium. In this study, we screened internal radiation exposure doses in Iwaki city of Fukushima prefecture, using a whole-body counter. The first screening was conducted from October 2012 to February 2013, and the second screening was conducted from May to November 2013. Study participants were employees of ALPINE and their families who underwent examination. A total of 2,839 participants (1,366 men and 1,473 women, 1–86 years old) underwent the first screening, and 2,092 (1,022 men and 1,070 women, 1–86 years old) underwent the second screening. The results showed that 99% of subjects registered below 300 Bq per body in the first screening, and all subjects registered below 300 Bq per body in the second screening. The committed effective dose ranged from 0.01–0.06 mSv in the first screening and 0.01–0.02 mSv in the second screening. Long-term follow-up studies are needed to avoid unnecessary chronic internal exposure and to reduce anxiety among the residents by communicating radiation health risks.     

Environmental radioactivity damages the DNA of earthworms of Fukushima Prefecture,Japan

Radioactive materials released in 2011 during the accident at Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant are expected to become concentrated in wildlife via the food web, triggering DNA damage. However, the extent of this wildlife DNA damage remains unknown. We explored the effects of exposure to environmental radiation on the DNA of wild boars (Sus scrofa leucomystax) and earthworms (Megascolecidae) and examined the modes of transfer of radioactivity to these animals. We used a comet assay to analyze the DNA damage in animals collected from regions with low (0.28 μSv/h) and high (2.85 μSv/h) levels of atmospheric radiation. We constructed a model food web featuring the wild boar as the top predator, and we measured the radioactivity levels in soil, plant material, earthworms, and wild boar. The extent of DNA damage in wild boars did not differ significantly between animals captured in the two regions, but earthworms from the “high-dose” region had a significantly greater extent of DNA damage than did those from the “low-dose” region. Radioactive material can be accumulated either directly from the soil or indirectly via plant ingestion. Wildlife inhabiting radioactively contaminated areas is at high risk of DNA damage although the risk varies among species because of the differences in foraging habits. The long-term results of the observed DNA damage must be studied.     

Difference in cesium accumulation among rice cultivars grown in the paddy field in Fukushima Prefecture in 2011 and 2012

After the accident of the Fukushima 1 Nuclear Power Plant in March 2011, radioactive cesium was released and paddy fields in a wide area including Fukushima Prefecture were contaminated. To estimate the levels of radioactive Cs accumulation in rice produced in Fukushima, it is crucial to obtain the actual data of Cs accumulation levels in rice plants grown in the actual paddy field in Fukushima City. We herein conducted a two-year survey in 2011 and 2012 of radioactive and non-radioactive Cs accumulation in rice using a number of rice cultivars grown in the paddy field in Fukushima City. Our study demonstrated a substantial variation in Cs accumulation levels among the cultivars of rice.     

Individual radiation exposure dose due to support activities at safe shelters in Fukushima Prefecture

Immediately after the accidents in the nuclear power stations in Fukushima on March 11, the Japanese Government ordered the evacuation of the residents within a 20-km radius from the station on March 12, and asked various institutions to monitor the contamination levels of the residents. Hirosaki University, which is located 355 km north of Fukushima City, decided to send support staff to Fukushima. This report summarizes the results of the exposure of 13 individual teams from March 15 to June 20. The support teams surveyed more than 5,000 people during this period. Almost all subjects had external contamination levels of less than 13 kcpm on Geiger-Müller (GM) survey meter, which is categorized as "no contamination level." The 1(st) team showed the highest external exposure dose, but the 4(th) team onward showed no significant change. Subsequently, the internal radiation exposure was measured using a whole body counter that indicated undetectable levels in all staff members. Although the measured external radiation exposure dose cannot have serious biological effects on the health of an individual, a follow-up study of the residents in Fukushima and other regions where the radioactive material has spread will be required for a long time.     

The effect of fertilization on cesium concentration of rice grown in a paddy field in Fukushima Prefecture in 2011 and 2012

After the accident of the Fukushima 1 nuclear power plant in March 2011, radioactive cesium was released and paddy field in a wide area of Fukushima Prefecture was contaminated. To reduce radioactive Cs uptake by rice, it is important to understand factors that affect Cs uptake in rice. Here we describe our study in 2011 and 2012 to investigate Cs concentration in two rice cultivars, Koshihikari and Hitomebore, the top two cultivars in Fukushima prefecture, grown under different fertilizer conditions in the contaminated paddy field. Our study demonstrated that high nitrogen and low potassium conditions increase Cs concentrations both in straw and brown rice.     

Change in and Long-Term Investigation of Neuro-Otologic Disorders in Disaster-Stricken Fukushima Prefecture: Retrospective Cohort Study before and after the Great East Japan Earthquake

On March 11, 2011, Japan’s northeast Pacific coast was hit by a gigantic earthquake and subsequent tsunami. Soma City in Fukushima Prefecture is situated approximately 44 km north of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Soma General Hospital is the only hospital in Soma City that provides full-time otolaryngological medical care. We investigated the changes in new patients from one year before to three years after the disaster. We investigated 18,167 new patients treated at our department during the four years from April 1, 2010 to March 31, 2014. Of the new patients, we categorized the diagnoses into Meniere’s disease, acute low-tone sensorineural hearing loss, vertigo, sudden deafness, tinnitus, and facial palsy as neuro-otologic symptoms. We also investigated the changes in the numbers of patients whom we examined at that time concerning other otolaryngological disorders, including epistaxis, infectious diseases of the laryngopharynx, and allergic rhinitis. The total number of new patients did not change remarkably on a year-to-year basis. Conversely, cases of vertigo, Meniere’s disease, and acute low-tone sensorineural hearing loss increased in number immediately after the disaster, reaching a plateau in the second year and slightly decreasing in the third year. Specifically, 4.8% of patients suffering from these neuro-otologic diseases had complications from depression and other mental diseases. With regard to new patients in our department, there was no apparent increase in the number of patients suffering from diseases other than neuro-otologic diseases, including epistaxis, and allergic rhinitis. Patients suffering from vertigo and/or dizziness increased during the first few years after the disaster. These results are attributed to the continuing stress and tension of the inhabitants. This investigation of those living in the disaster area highlights the need for long-term support.     

Side population cells in anaplastic thyroid cancer and normal thyroid

Comparison of studies of cells derived from normal and pathological tissues of the same organ can be fraught with difficulties, particular with cancer where a number of different diseases are considered cancer within the same tissue. In the thyroid, there are 4 main types of cancer, three of which arise from follicular epithelial cells; papillary and follicular which are classified as differentiated, and anaplastic which is classified as undifferentiated.One assay that can be utilised for isolation of cancer stem cells is the side population (SP) assay. However, SP studies have been limited in part due to lack of optimal isolation strategies and in the case of anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC) are further compounded by lack of access to ATC tumors. We have used thyroid cell lines to determine the optimal conditions to isolate viable SP cells. We then compared SP cells and NSP cells (bulk tumour cells without the SP) of a normal thyroid cell line N-thy ori-3-1 and an anaplastic thyroid cancer cell line SW1736 and showed that both SP cell populations displayed higher levels of stem cell characteristics than the NSP. When we compared SP cells of the N-thy ori-3-1 and the SW1736, the SW1736 SP had a higher colony forming potential, expressed higher levels of stem cell markers and CXCR4 and where more migratory and invasive, invasiveness increasing in response to CXCL12.This is the first report showing functional differences between ATC SP and normal thyroid SP and could lead to the identification of new therapeutic targets to treat ATC.     

甲状腺癌患者血清促甲状腺激素和甲状腺激素表达水平及临床意义

目的:探讨甲状腺癌患者血清促甲状腺激素和甲状腺激素表达水平及临床意义。方法:应用电化学发光方法检测甲状腺癌组、甲状腺良性病变组和正常对照组血清促甲状腺激素(TSH)和甲状腺激素(TT3、FT3、TT4、FT4)水平。结果:①血清TSH在三组中比较有统计学意义(P〈0.001),甲状腺癌组血清TSH水平(3.56±0.93ulU/ml)明显高于甲状腺良性病变组(2.82±0.70ulU/ml)和正常对照组(2.04±0.56ulU/ml);TSH与肿瘤病理分期和肿瘤大小呈正相关(P<0.05)。②血清FT3、FT4水平在三组中有统计学意义(均P〈0.001),甲状腺癌组FT3、FT4水平处于较低水平,二者均明显低于甲状腺良性病变组和正常对照组(P<0.001);FT3与肿瘤病理分期和淋巴结转移呈负相关(P<0.05)。③TT3和TT4水平在三组之间比较均无统计学意义(P>0.05)。结论:高水平TSH可增加甲癌复发的危险性。低甲状腺激素水平在甲状腺癌形成中可能起到一定的作用,因此可以将其作为预测甲癌复发的重要指标之一。     

Radiotherapy in thyroid cancer.

Although resection is the mainstay of treatment of thyroid cancer, and radioactive iodine (131-1) is curative in a small number of patients with differentiated cancers, external irradiation is much more effective than is generally believed. This has been clearly shown in a review of 138 patients with thyroid cancer referred to a cancer centre, in most cases after an initial operation. External irradiation should be considered in all patients except those with pure papillary tumours that have been completely excised. It should be used (a) in conjunction with surgery if there is even a remote doubt as to the completeness of excision; (b) in conjunction with 131-1 in treating inoperable primary tumours or metastatic lesions; () alone for differentiated tumours (primary or metastatic) that do not take up 131-1; and, (d) perhaps combined with chemotherapy, for medullary and anaplastic tumours.     

Ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging in diagnosing recurrent and metastatic ovarian cancer

The paper deals with the capacities of ultrasonography (USG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in diagnosing recurrent and metastatic ovarian cancer along with routine clinical and laboratory studies (physical examination, measurement of the tumor-associated serum antigen CA-125) in 95 patients with ovarian cancer after primary special treatment. MRI is preferable to USG in evaluating the extent of a tumorous process and the invasion of a tumor into the adjacent tissues, which is of great value in defining a further treatment policy.     

Selenium,selenoproteins and cancer of the thyroid

Selenium is an essential mineral element with important biological functions for the whole body through incorporation into selenoproteins. This element is highly concentrated in the thyroid gland. Selenoproteins provide antioxidant protection for this tissue against the oxidative stress caused by free radicals and contribute, via iodothyronine deiodinases, to the metabolism of thyroid hormones. It is known that oxidative stress plays a major role in carcinogenesis and that in recent decades there has been an increase in the incidence of thyroid cancer. The anti-carcinogenic action of selenium, although not fully understood, is mainly attributable to selenoproteins antioxidant properties, and to the ability to modulate cell proliferation (cell cycle and apoptosis), energy metabolism, and cellular immune response, significantly altered during tumorigenesis. Researchers have suggested that different forms of selenium supplementation may be beneficial in the prevention and treatment of thyroid cancer; however, the studies have several methodological limitations. This review is a summary of the current knowledge on how selenium and selenoproteins related to thyroid cancer.     

Autoimmune thyroid diseases in women with breast cancer and colorectal cancer

The aim of the study was to compare the prevalence of autoimmune thyroid diseases in three groups of women (66 with breast cancer (CaB), 68 with colorectal cancer (CaC) and 49 without oncological diseases as a control group). Serum levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free thyroxin (fT4), antibodies to thyroglobulin (TGB-ab) and thyroperoxidase (TPO-ab) and tumor markers CEA, CA 15-3 and CA 19-9 were investigated in all subjects by using the chemiluminiscence method. In contrast to Graves' disease (no observed case), autoimmune thyroiditis was diagnosed in 24.2 % women with CaB (4.5 % euthyroid and 19.7 % with subclinical or overt hypothyroidism), compared to 16.7 % in women with CaC (2.0 % euthyroid and 14.7 % with subclinical or overt hypothyroidism) and 16.2 % controls (4.0 % euthyroid and 12.2 % with subclinical or overt hypothyroidism). Serum levels of TGB-ab were higher in the group with breast cancer as compared to those with colorectal cancer and the control group (medians: 35.80 vs. 31.75 vs. 27.70, p<0.001). Similarly, the percentage of positive TGB-ab and TPO-ab serum levels was higher in women with breast cancer as compared to those with colorectal cancer and the control group. The results of the study support the controversial theory that there is an increased prevalence of autoimmune thyroiditis in women with breast cancer.