Zhong-Bing Ma

The Role of Adiponectin in Breast Cancer: A Meta-Analysis

Published results suggests that high adiponectin level may decrease the risk of breast cancer. However, available evidence on breast cancer is conflicting. Therefore a meta-analysis was performed to assess the association between blood adiponectin and breast cancer risk. PubMed database, Web of Science, Elsevier Science, Springer Link and bibliographies of retrieved articles were searched for epidemiological studies published up to March 2013. Meta-analysis was performed on the combined effect values (OR) as well as standardized mean difference (SMD) including 17 studies. Fixed or random effect pooled measure was selected on the basis of homogeneity test among studies. The publication bias was assessed by the Egger’s regression asymmetry test and Begg’s rank correlation test with Begg’s funnel plot. Subgroup analyses and sensitivity analysis were also performed. A total of 13 studies involving 3578 breast cancer cases and 4363 controls contributed to the OR analysis. The high adiponectin level did not significantly affect breast cancer risk (OR=0.902, 95% CI=0.773–1.053). After excluding articles that were the key contributors to between-study heterogeneity, the OR of high adiponectin level was associated with decreased breast cancer risk (OR=0.838, 95% CI=0.744–0.943). There was a significantly association between high adiponectin level and postmenopausal breast cancer women (OR=0.752, 95%CI=0.604-0.936); and it was not associated with premenopausal breast cancer women (OR=0.895, 95%CI=0.638-1.256). The result of pooled measure on SMD was that the high adiponectin level was associated with decreased breast cancer risk (SMD= -0.348, 95% CI= -0.533--0.614) after excluding articles which were the key contributors to between-study heterogeneity. Our findings indicate that high adiponectin level might decrease the risk of postmenopausal breast cancer. More randomized clinical trials and observational studies are needed to confirm this association with underlying biological mechanisms in the future.

The status and correlates of depression and anxiety among breast-cancer survivors in Eastern China: a population-based, cross-sectional case–control study

BackgroundBreast cancer presents specific challenges both physiologically and psychologically to women, and consequently affect the patients’ mental health. Psychosocial factors may play important roles in the symptoms and development of mental disorders among breast-cancer survivors. This study assesses the depression and anxiety status of breast-cancer survivors and further identifies the risk factors.MethodsA 1:1 matched, case–control study was conducted with a total sample of 222 individuals. Participants were selected from a national epidemiological survey. The Center for Epidemiological Studies—Depression Scale and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory were used to assess depression and anxiety. The Social Support Rating Scale and Perceived Social Support Scale were used as measures of social support and perceived social support, and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale as a measure of self-esteem. Coping style was assessed using the Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire. The predictive effect of these psychosocial factors for depression and anxiety was investigated with hierarchical linear regressions.ResultsBreast-cancer survivors experienced a high level of depressive and anxious symptoms. Multivariate analysis revealed that breast cancer functions as an independent but not a main risk factor of both depression and anxiety. Higher levels of depression and anxiety were positively associated with a higher level of passive coping style, and negatively with perceived social support, objective social support and an active coping style.ConclusionsThe mental health of breast-cancer survivors should be promoted through the transformation of coping styles and improvement of social support.

Breast cancer awareness among women in Eastern China: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundHigh breast cancer mortality has been attributed to lack of public awareness, which leads to late diagnoses. As little is known about the level of knowledge and awareness of breast cancer in China, this study was designed to explore it among women in Eastern China.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional survey covering 122,058 females around Shandong, Hebei, Jiangsu and Tianjin, in Eastern China, using in-person interviews based on a self-designed structured questionnaire. Student’s t-test, Pearson’s χ2 test, reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis, univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed in the statistical analysis.ResultsThe results showed poor awareness of breast cancer among women aged 25–70 years in Eastern China. Only 18.6% of women were highly aware in the study, whereas 81.4% were poorly aware. Among all participants, family history of breast cancer was the best accepted risk factor for breast cancer (awareness rate 31.5%), followed by menarche at age before 12 (11.2%), no parity or late childbirth (13.9%), menopause at a late age (13.7%), high-fat diets (19.1%), long time drinking (19.5%) and long-term use of estrogen drugs (20.7%). Multivariate logistic regression analysis (α = 0.05) identified nine variables that predicted awareness of breast cancer: age (OR = 0.975, 95% CI: 0.960–0.990), location (OR = 1.675, 95% CI: 1.602–1.752), occupation (OR = 4.774, 95% CI: 4.316–5.281), family history of breast cancer (OR = 1.234, 95% CI: 1.073–1.420), household annual income (OR = 0.418, 95% CI: 0.400–0.436), behavioral prevention score (OR = 4.137, 95% CI: 3.991–4.290), no smoking (OR = 2.113, 95% CI: 1.488–2.999), no drinking (OR = 1.427, 95% CI: 1.018–2.000), overall life satisfaction (OR = 0.707, 95% CI: 0.683–0.731).ConclusionsOur study indicates insufficient awareness of breast cancer among women in Eastern China, and an urgent need for health education programs on this subject.

Absence of Gamma-Interferon-Inducible Lysosomal Thiol Reductase (GILT) Is Associated with Poor Disease-Free Survival in Breast Cancer Patients

Tumor immunosurveillance is known to be of critical importance in controlling tumorigenesis and progression in various cancers. The role of gamma-interferon-inducible lysosomal thiol reductase (GILT) in tumor immunosurveillance has recently been studied in several malignant diseases, but its role in breast cancer remains to be elucidated. In the present study, we found GILT as a significant different expressed gene by cDNA microarray analysis. To further determine the role of GILT in breast cancer, we examined GILT expression in breast cancers as well as noncancerous breast tissues by immunohistochemistry and real-time PCR, and assessed its association with clinicopathologic characteristics and patient outcome. The absence of GILT expression increased significantly from 2.02% (2/99) in noncancerous breast tissues to 15.6% (34/218) in breast cancer tissues (P<0.001). In accordance with its proliferation inhibiting function, GILT expression was inversely correlated with Ki67 index (P<0.05). In addition, absence of GILT was positively correlated with adverse characteristics of breast cancers, such as histological type, tumor size, lymph nodes status, and pTNM stage (P<0.05). Consistently, breast cancers with reduced GILT expression had poorer disease-free survival (P<0.005). Moreover, significantly decreased expression of GILT was found in both primary and metastatic breast cancer cells, in contrast to normal epithelial cells. These findings indicate that GILT may act as a tumor suppressor in breast cancer, in line with its previously suggested role in anti-tumor immunity. Thus, GILT has the potential to be a novel independent prognostic factor in breast cancer and further studies are needed to illustrate the underlying mechanism of this relationship.

Adiponectin receptor 1 (ADIPOR1) rs1342387 polymorphism and risk of cancer: a meta-analysis.

Many studies have indicated possible associations between a polymorphism of adiponectin receptor 1 (ADIPOR1) rs1342387 and risk of cancer, but contradictory results have been reported. The main aim of this study was to draw a reliable conclusion about the relationship between the rs1342387 polymorphism and cancer incidence, by conducting a literature search of Pubmed, Embase, Wanfang and Cochrane libraries. Eleven studies including 3, 738 cases and 4, 748 controls were identified in this meta-analysis. The ADIPOR1 rs1342387 polymorphism was associated with risk of colorectal cancer for all genetic comparison models (GG vs AA, OR: 1.44, 95%CI: 1.21 -1.70; G carriers vs A carriers, OR: 1.23, 95%CI: 1.11 -1.36; dominant model, OR: 1.28, 95%CI: 1.10 -1.49 and recessive model, OR: 1.31, 95%CI: 1.12 -1.55). Stratified by ethnicity, the rs1342387 polymorphism was significantly associated with risk of colorectal cancer in Asian ancestry for all genetic comparison models (GG vs AA, OR: 1.56, 95%CI: 1.26-1.92; G carriers vs. A carriers OR: 1.30, 95%CI: 1.18 -1.43; dominant model OR: 1.31, 95%CI: 1.08 -1.60 and recessive model OR: 1.44, 95%CI: 1.26 -1.64), but not in Caucasian or mixed (Caucasian mainly) groups. In summary, the ADIPOR1 rs1342387 polymorphism is significantly associated with risk of colorectal cancer among individuals of Asian ancestry.

Distinct Effects of Body Mass Index and Waist/Hip Ratio on Risk of Breast Cancer by Joint Estrogen and Progestogen Receptor Status: Results from a Case‐Control Study in Northern and Eastern China and Implications for Chemoprevention

Obesity is a consideration in the pharmacologic intervention for estrogen receptor‐positive breast cancer risk. This case‐control study among women in Northern and Eastern China was conducted to clarify the possible associations between both general and central obesity and breast cancer risk.

Granulomatous lobular mastitis

Granulomatous lobular mastitis is an unusual breast benign inflammatory disorder with unknown aetiology. It is generally emerged with the clinical symptoms of breast mass, abscess, inflammation and mammary duct fistula. The diagnosis is made by histopathology with a chronic non-necrotizing granulomatous inflammation in lobules of the breast tissue as the microscopic feature. Therapy of granulomatous lobular mastitis consists of surgical, medication treatment or combination of both, but now researches suggest that observational management is an acceptable treatment.

Impact of phosphorylated insulin‑like growth factor‑1 receptor on the outcome of breast cancer patients and the prognostic value of its alteration during neoadjuvant chemotherapy

The expression of insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF-1R), which is involved in the genesis and progression of breast cancer, is thought to be associated with the overall survival (OS) of patients. However, the predictive and prognostic significance of the IGF-1R expression in breast cancer remains controversial. The present study aimed to identify the factors associated with the levels of phosphorylated (p)-IGF-1R in breast cancer, their impact on the outcomes of breast cancer patients, and the prognostic value of alterations of p-IGF-1R during neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC). The present study included 348 female breast cancer patients whose paraffin-embedded tumor tissue sections had been collected by biopsy and/or resection, among which the pre-NAC and post-NAC sections were available from 40 patients. Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) positivity and molecular subtype were significantly associated with the presence of p-IGF-1R in the tumor tissue (P<0.05). Patients with p-IGF-1R present in the tumor tissue had a shorter OS (P=0.003). The p-IGF-1R levels in the tumor after NAC differed significantly from those prior to NAC (P=0.005); however, this alteration in p-IGF-1R levels was not associated with a shorter OS. In parallel with HER2, p-IGF-1R appears to be a promising indicator for predicting clinical outcomes and may be an attractive target for improving the efficacy of antitumor therapy, particularly for patients with HER2-negative, estrogen receptor-positive and luminal B tumors.

Granulomatous Lobular Mastitis: Antituberculous Treatment and Outcome in 22 Patients

Background: Granulomatous lobular mastitis (GLM) is a rare chronic inflammatory condition of the breast. The purpose of this study was to describe antituberculous treatment of GLM and the long-term follow-up outcome. Methods: This retrospective study included 22 patients who had been histopathologically diagnosed with GLM at the Second Hospital of Shandong University from January 2011 to March 2015. Clinical characteristics, ultrasonography and mammography findings, laboratory tests, treatment regimens, follow-up information, and recurrences were recorded. Results: All patients were female with a median age of 29 (range 23-44) years. The most common symptom was a breast mass with or without pain. Large irregular hypoechoic masses could be found in the breast ultrasounds of 13 patients. All patients received triple antituberculous therapy. During a median follow-up period of 40 months, 3 patients were lost to follow-up; of the remaining 19 patients, 18 achieved clinical complete remission and no recurrences were observed. Conclusion: GLM is an unusual benign breast condition that mimics breast carcinoma in its clinical and imaging presentation. Antituberculous therapy seems to be an effective alternative option in the treatment of GLM.

Factors associated with insufficient awareness of breast cancer among women in Northern and Eastern China: a case–control study

Objectives To investigate the awareness and knowledge level of breast cancer among Chinese participants. Design Case–control study. Settings This study was based on the database of the minister-affiliated hospital key project of the Ministry of Health of the People’s Republic of China that included 21 Chinese hospitals between April 2012 and April 2013. Participants Matched study was designed among 2978 participants with Han ethnicity aged between 25 and 70. Primary and secondary outcome measures Student’s t-test, Pearson’s χ2 test, reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis, and univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to know the level of breast cancer knowledge and find the breast cancer awareness-associated factors. Results 80.0% (2383/2978) of the participants had poor awareness level of breast cancer. In-depth knowledge of breast cancer such as early symptoms and risk factors was poorly found among them. Television broadcast and relatives or friends with breast cancers were the main sources of information about breast cancer. Of all participants, 72.8% (2167/2978) had heard about breast cancer as a frequent cancer affecting women, and 63.3% (1884/2978) knew that family history of breast cancer was a risk factor for breast cancer. Over half of them were aware that a breast lump could be a symptom of breast cancer. Multivariate analysis identified the following variables that predicted awareness of breast cancer: young age (OR=0.843, 95% CI 0.740 to 0.961), occupation (agricultural worker) (OR=12.831, 95% CI 6.998 to 23.523), high household social status (OR=0.644, 95% CI 0.531 to 0.780), breast hyperplasia history (OR=1.684, 95% CI 1.273 to 2.228), high behavioural prevention score (OR=4.407, 95% CI 3.433 to 5.657). Conclusion Most women were aware of breast cancer as a disease, but their in-depth knowledge of it was poor. More publicity and education programmes to increase breast cancer awareness are necessary and urgent, especially for the ageing women and agricultural workers.