BACKGROUND/AIMS: Recently an increasing number of young colorectal carcinoma patients attending the University Hospital, Kuala Lumpur were noted. This report represents our experience with patients suffering from colorectal cancer aged 30 years or younger.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: All cases of primary carcinoma of the colon and rectum admitted to the University Hospital during 1990 to 1994 were respectively reviewed. Inclusion criteria was that the patient had been 30 years or younger. Data collected included age, gender, race, site of tumour, presenting symptomatology, duration of symptoms, histology, extension of tumour and nodal involvement predisposing factors, treatment and follow-up.
RESULTS: 21 patients were included, 5 patients (24%) were 30 years old at diagnosis, 12 (57%) patients were aged 20-29 years and 4 patients (19%) were less than 20 years old. Thirteen of the 21 patients were female, and 8 (38%) were male, 6 of the 21 patients (29%) were Malaysian, while 1 was Indian (4%). The remainder were Chinese, 14 patients (67%). Six patients (29%) had their primary tumour located in the rectosigmoid, 4 (19%) in the left colon, 1 (4%) in the splenic flexure, 2 in the transverse colon (9%), 1 in the hepatic flexure (4%) and 5 in the caecum 24(%). One patient had a tumour too diffuse to detect a primary site at the time of operation. One patient with a family history of polyps had his entire colon removed at age 14. He had 3 separate foci of tumour. The 5-year survival rate was 25%.
DISCUSSION: Most patients with extensive disease and mucinous histology. Lesions are commonly seen beyond the transverse colon (57%). Presentation included most commonly abdominal pain, haematochezia or haemoccult positive stools.
CONCLUSION: The symptoms above should alert surgeons to colorectal carcinoma as a differential diagnosis
Helicobacter pylori antigen was prepared from an isolate from a patient with a duodenal ulcer. Serum samples were obtained from culture-positive H. pylori infected patients with duodenal ulcers, gastric ulcers and gastritis (n=30). As controls, three kinds of sera without detectable H. pylori IgG antibodies were used: 30 from healthy individuals without history of gastric disorders, 30 from patients who were seen in the endoscopy clinic but were H. pylori culture negative and 30 from people with other diseases. OFF-GEL electrophoresis, SDS-PAGE and Western blots of individual serum samples were used to identify protein bands with good sensitivity and specificity when probed with the above sera and HRP-conjugated anti-human IgG. Four H. pylori protein bands showed good (≥ 70%) sensitivity and high specificity (98-100%) towards anti-Helicobacter IgG antibody in culture- positive patients sera and control sera, respectively. The identities of the antigenic proteins were elucidated by mass spectrometry. The relative molecular weights and the identities of the proteins, based on MALDI TOF/ TOF, were as follows: CagI (25 kDa), urease G accessory protein (25 kDa), UreB (63 kDa) and proline/pyrroline- 5-carboxylate dehydrogenase (118 KDa). These identified proteins, singly and/or in combinations, may be useful for diagnosis of H. pylori infection in patients.
AIM:
To determine the safety and effectiveness of biphasic insulin aspart 30 (BIAsp 30) in the ASEAN cohort of the A₁chieve study.
METHODS:
Type 2 diabetes patients from Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore prescribed BIAsp 30 therapy were included. The primary outcome was evaluation of serious adverse drug reactions including major hypoglycaemia over 24 weeks. Secondary outcomes were changes in hypoglycaemic events, serious adverse events (SAEs) and effectiveness parameters.
RESULTS:
This sub-analysis included 2798 patients (insulin-naive, 1903; insulin-experienced, 895) with mean age ± SD, 55.3 ± 10.8 years, BMI, 24.9 ± 4.6 kg/m(2) and diabetes duration, 7.5 ± 5.9 years. Baseline HbA1c in the entire cohort was poor (9.9%, 85 mmol/mol). A total of 15 SAEs were reported in 7 insulin-experienced patients (1 moderate event was related to BIAsp 30). Overall hypoglycaemia at Week 24 was 0.88 events/patient-year compared to 1.71 events/patient-year reported at baseline (change in proportion of patients affected, p < 0.0001). No major hypoglycaemia was reported at Week 24. BIAsp 30 significantly improved glucose control (HbA1c, fasting plasma glucose and postprandial plasma glucose, p < 0.001) at Week 24. The proportion of patients achieving HbA1c <7.0% at Week 24 was 35.3% compared to 3.5% at baseline. The lipid profile and systolic blood pressure also improved significantly (p < 0.001). Quality of life was positively impacted (mean change in visual analogue scores from EQ-5D = 10.6 ± 13.8 points, p < 0.001).
CONCLUSION:
BIAsp 30 was well-tolerated and improved glucose control while decreasing the risk of hypoglycaemia.
Matched MeSH terms: Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/diagnosis
Aim: To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of biphasic insulin aspart 30 (BIAsp 30) in ASEAN type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients switched from biphasic human insulin (BHI) in the non-interventional 24-week A₁chieve study.
Methods: Indonesian, Malaysian, Filipino and Singaporean patients switched from BHI to BIAsp 30 at their physicians' discretion were included. The incidence of serious adverse drug reactions (SADRs), including major hypoglycaemia was the primary endpoint. Changes in hypoglycaemia, glycated haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), postprandial plasma glucose (PPPG), lipids, body weight and systolic blood pressure were also evaluated. Quality of life (QoL) was measured using the EQ-5D questionnaire.
Results: For the 465 patients included (mean ± SD age: 56 ± 10.3 years, diabetes duration: 9.7 ± 7.1 years, baseline HbA1c: 9.4 ± 1.8%), the mean pre-study BHI dose was 0.62 ± 0.28 IU/kg and 63.4% were dosing BHI twice daily (bid). The mean baseline BIAsp 30 dose was 0.65 ± 0.27 U/kg, titrated up to 0.71 ± 0.28 U/kg over 24 weeks, and most patients continued bid dosing. No SADRs or major hypoglycaemic episodes were reported. The proportion of patients reporting overall hypoglycaemia decreased significantly from 10.8% at baseline to 3.4% at Week 24 (p < 0.0001). Significant improvements in glycaemic control were noted (HbA1c: -1.4 ± 1.7%, FPG: -56.7 ± 72.5 mg/dL, post-breakfast PPPG: -84.8 ± 82.8 mg/dL, p < 0.001). Mean QoL improved by +6.6 ± 14.6 points (p < 0.001).
Conclusion: BIAsp 30 was well-tolerated and significantly increased glycaemic control in this ASEAN subgroup poorly controlled on BHI.
Matched MeSH terms: Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/diagnosis
AIM:
To examine the clinical safety and effectiveness of insulin aspart (IAsp) therapy in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients from the ASEAN cohort of the international, 24-week, non-interventional A₁chieve study.
METHODS:
T2D patients from Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore, who started IAsp therapy with or without oral glucose-lowering drugs, were included. The primary endpoint was the incidence of serious adverse drug reactions (SADRs), including major hypoglycaemic events. Secondary endpoints included hypoglycaemia, glycated haemoglobin A1c [HbA1c], fasting plasma glucose [FPG], postprandial plasma glucose [PPPG], systolic blood pressure [SBP], body weight and lipids. Quality of life (QoL) was assessed using the EQ-5D questionnaire.
RESULTS:
Overall, 312 T2D patients (222 insulin-naive and 90 insulin-experienced) with a mean ± SD age of 56.6 ± 11.2 years, BMI of 24.2 ± 3.9 kg/m(2) and diabetes duration of 7.0 ± 5.7 years were included. The mean daily IAsp dose was 0.51 ± 0.31 U/kg at baseline titrated up to 0.60 ± 0.29 U/kg at Week 24. No SADRs or major hypoglycaemic events were reported in the entire subgroup. The proportion of patients who reported overall hypoglycaemia decreased from baseline to Week 24 (7.1% vs. 0.3%, p < 0.0001). The mean HbA1c improved from 9.5 ± 1.6% at baseline to 7.6 ± 1.3% after 24 weeks (p < 0.001). The mean FPG, post-breakfast PPPG and SBP also improved (p < 0.001). Health-related QoL scores increased in the entire subgroup (mean increase: 9.8 ± 14.6 points, p < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS:
Starting IAsp therapy was well-tolerated and was associated with significantly improved overall glycaemic control in the ASEAN cohort.
Matched MeSH terms: Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/diagnosis
AIM:
To determine the safety and effectiveness of insulin detemir (IDet) in type 2 diabetes patients from the ASEAN cohort of the A1chieve study.
METHODS:
Patients from Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore prescribed IDet at the discretion of their physicians were included. The primary outcome was the incidence of serious adverse drug reactions including major hypoglycaemia over 24 weeks. Secondary endpoints included changes in the frequency of hypoglycaemia, serious adverse events and effectiveness assessments.
RESULTS:
This sub-analysis included 1540 patients (insulin-naive, 1239; insulin-experienced, 301) with mean age ± SD 56.4 ± 10.9 years, BMI 25.4 ± 4.6 kg/m(2) and diabetes duration 6.9 ± 5.3 years. Insulin-naive patients received a baseline IDet dose of 0.24 ± 0.11 U/kg titrated up to 0.37 ± 0.21 U/kg by Week 24. The pre-study insulin dose in insulin-experienced patients was 0.41 ± 0.25 U/kg and baseline IDet dose was 0.31 ± 0.24 U/kg titrated up to 0.40 ± 0.20 U/kg by Week 24. Overall hypoglycaemia decreased from 1.73 to 0.46 events/patient-year from baseline to Week 24 (change in proportion of patients affected, p < 0.0001). At Week 24, 1 major hypoglycaemic event was reported in 1 insulin-experienced patient. IDet significantly improved glucose control (p < 0.001) at Week 24. The lipid profile and systolic blood pressure improved (p < 0.001) and body weight did not change significantly. Quality of life was positively impacted (p < 0.001).
CONCLUSION:
IDet was well-tolerated and improved glycaemic control without increasing the risk of hypoglycaemia or weight gain.
Matched MeSH terms: Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/diagnosis
To determine the risk of hypoactive sexual desire (HSD) in depressed female patients treated with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, comparing escitalopram and fluoxetine. The associated factors were also examined.
Matched MeSH terms: Sexual Dysfunctions, Psychological/diagnosis
Transgender women (TGW) face compounded levels of stigma and discrimination, resulting in multiple health risks and poor health outcomes. TGW identities are erased by forcing them into binary sex categories in society or treating them as men who have sex with men (MSM). In Malaysia, where both civil and religious law criminalise them for their identities, many TGW turn to sex work with inconsistent prevention methods, which increases their health risks. This qualitative study aims to understand how the identities of TGW sex workers shapes their healthcare utilisation patterns and harm reduction behaviours. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 male-to-female transgender (mak nyah) sex workers in Malaysia. Interviews were transcribed, translated into English, and analysed using thematic coding. Results suggest that TGW identity is shaped at an early age followed by incorporation into the mak nyah community where TGW were assisted in gender transition and introduced to sex work. While healthcare was accessible, it failed to address the multiple healthcare needs of TGW. Pressure for gender-affirming health procedures and fear of HIV and sexually transmitted infection screening led to potentially hazardous health behaviours. These findings have implications for developing holistic, culturally sensitive prevention and healthcare services for TGW.
Matched MeSH terms: AIDS Serodiagnosis/statistics & numerical data; HIV Infections/diagnosis
The discovery that certain high-risk strains of human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) cause nearly 100% of invasive cervical cancer has spurred a revolution in cervical cancer prevention by promoting the development of viral vaccines. Although the efficacy of these vaccines has already been demonstrated, a complete understanding of viral latency and natural immunity is lacking, and solving these mysteries could help guide policies of cervical cancer screening and vaccine use. Here, we examine the epidemiological and biological understanding of the natural history of HPV infection, with an eye toward using these studies to guide the implementation of cervical cancer prevention strategies.
Trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine (TIV) is reformulated annually to contain representative strains of 2 influenza A subtypes (H1N1 and H3N2) and 1 B lineage (Yamagata or Victoria). We describe a sentinel surveillance approach to link influenza variant detection with component-specific vaccine effectiveness (VE) estimation.
Ber e 1, a major Brazil nut allergen, has been successfully produced in the yeast Pichia pastoris expression system as homogenous recombinant Ber e 1 (rBer e 1) with similar physicochemical properties and identical immunoreactivity to its native counterpart, nBer e 1. However, O-linked glycans was detected on the P.pastoris-derived rBer e 1, which is not naturally present in nBer e 1, and may contribute to the allergic sensitisation. In this study, we addressed the glycosylation differences between P. pastoris-derived recombinant Ber e 1 and its native counterparts. We also determined whether this fungal glycosylation could affect the antigenicity and immunogenicity of the rBer e 1 by using dendritic cells (DC) as an immune cell model due to their role in modulating the immune response. We identified that the glycosylation occurs at Ser96, Ser101 and Ser110 on the large chain and Ser19 on the small polypeptide chain of rBer e 1 only. The glycosylation on rBer e 1 was shown to elicit varying degree of antigenicity by binding to different combination of human leukocyte antigens (HLA) at different frequencies compared to nBer e 1 when tested using human DC-T cell assay. However, both forms of Ber e 1 are weak immunogens based from their low response indexes (RI). Glycans present on rBer e 1 were shown to increase the efficiency of the protein recognition and internalization by murine bone marrow-derived dendritic cells (bmDC) via C-type lectin receptors, particularly the mannose receptor (MR), compared to the non-glycosylated nBer e 1 and SFA8, a weak allergenic 2S albumin protein from sunflower seed. Binding of glycosylated rBer e 1 to MR alone was found to not induce the production of IL-10 that modulates bmDC to polarise Th2 cell response by suppressing IL-12 production and DC maturation. Our findings suggest that the O-linked glycosylation by P. pastoris has a small but measurable effect on the in vitro antigenicity of the rBer e 1 compared to its non-glycosylated counterpart, nBer e 1, and thus may influence its applications in diagnostics and immunotherapy.
To our knowledge, data are lacking on the role of 18F-FDG PET/CT in the localization and prediction of neuroendocrine tumors, in particular the pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma (PCC/PGL) group.
Diagnosis of prostate cancer (PCa) is currently much reliant on the invasive and time-consuming transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsy of the prostate gland, particularly in light of the inefficient use of prostate-specific antigen as its biomarker. In the present study, we have profiled the sera of patients with PCa and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) using the gel- and lectin-based proteomics methods and demonstrated the significant differential expression of apolipoprotein AII, complement C3 beta chain fragment, inter-alpha-trypsin inhibitor heavy chain 4 fragment, transthyretin, alpha-1-antitrypsin, and high molecular weight kininogen (light chain) between the two groups of patients' samples. Our data are suggestive of the potential use of the serum proteins as complementary biomarkers to effectively discriminate PCa from BPH, although this requires further extensive validation on clinically representative populations.
BACKGROUND:
Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is reportedly the leading cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) worldwide. However, non-diabetic renal diseases (NDRD) are not uncommon among T2DM patients with renal involvement. Our study aimed to examine the prevalence of NDRD in T2DM and clinical markers for diabetic nephropathy (DN) and NDRD and to determine the role of renal biopsy in T2DM patients and its impact on clinical practice.
METHODS:
We conducted a retrospective analysis of T2DM patients in whom renal biopsies were performed from January 2004 to March 2008 (n = 110).
RESULTS:
Biopsy results were divided into three groups: group I/pure DN (62.7%), group II/isolated NDRD (18.2%), and group III/mixed lesions (19.1%). The causes of NDRD in decreasing order of frequency were acute interstitial nephritis, glomerulonephritides, hypertensive renal disease, and acute tubular necrosis. Significant clinical markers for DN are presence of diabetic retinopathy and longer duration of diabetes. For NDRD, useful clinical markers include the presence of acute renal failure and microscopic hematuria. In the DN subgroup, Indians had significantly shorter duration of diabetes on biopsy compared with Malays and Chinese.
CONCLUSIONS:
NDRD is prevalent in T2DM patients, and given its potentially treatable nature, renal biopsy should be considered in T2DM patients with nephropathy, especially in those with atypical features.
Esophageal cancer (ECA) is an important cancer in Malaysia. The aim of the study is to review the demographic data and clinical presentation of patients with ECA seen at the University of Malaya Medical Centre, Kuala Lumpur.
The traditional classification of infiltrating breast carcinomas into ductal and lobular can be diagnostically challenging in a small proportion of cases with equivocal histological features and in in-situ lesions with overlapping features. Distinguishing between the infiltrating ductal (IDC) and lobular (ILC) carcinomas is clinically important because of the different pattern of systemic metastases and prognostic evaluation. E-cadherin is a potentially useful immunohistochemical marker which may serve to differentiate between the two tumour types. We therefore studied E-cadherin expression in 32 cases of breast carcinomas comprising 16 IDCs and 16 ILCs. The correlation between E-cadherin expression and the histological grade of IDCs was also analysed. Our results showed complete loss of E-cadherin expression in all ILCs, while the IDCs consistently showed variable E-cadherin positivity. No significant correlation was found between E- cadherin expression and the histological grade of IDCs. We conclude from this study that E-cadherin is a useful marker to differentiate between IDC and ILC of the breast. A larger study of IDCs is now needed to further evaluate the correlation between E-cadherin and tumour grade to estimate its prognostic potential.
The differentiation between cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 3 (CIN 3) and early squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the cervix may be difficult in certain situations. Identification of invasion beyond the basement membrane is the gold standard for the diagnosis of the latter. The objective of this study was to determine whether the use of Ki-67 and p53 could help in solving the above dilemma. This was a retrospective study on 61 cases of cervical neoplasms comprising of 25 cases of CIN 3 and 36 SCC. All cases were evaluated by immunohistochemistry using Ki-67 and p53 monoclonal antibodies. Results showed that the differences of Ki-67 and p53 expression between CIN 3 and SCC were statistically significant. In conclusion, Ki-67 and p53 may serve as helpful adjuncts to routinely-stained histological sections in differentiating between CIN 3 and SCC.
Metastatic eyelid tumours are rare and account for less than 2% of all eyelid neoplasms. We report a case of metastatic breast carcinoma to the eyelid in a 60-year-old Chinese lady presenting with a 2-year history of enlarging, painless nodular lower eyelid swelling. The 1 cm diameter lesion was provisionally diagnosed as a sebaceous cyst. However the excision biopsy revealed a mucinous carcinoma expressing oestrogen receptor protein. She had a past history of mastectomy one year previously and histology showed an infiltrating ductal carcinoma (oestrogen receptor status negative) without evidence of axillary lymph node metastasis. She had completed adjuvant radio- and chemotherapy. Further treatment of the current lesion involved a wide excision which did not show any residual malignancy. She had no other evidence of metastasis and was treated with letrozol. We highlight this case to create awareness among clinicians and opthalmologists on the possibility of metastatic disease as a cause of eyelid swelling, especially in patients with a history of cancer. It may also be the first sign of metastatic disease of an internal malignancy. A review of the literature is also presented.
A 28-year old Malay man with evidence of an upper motor neuron cord lesion was diagnosed to have a C7 to T2 spinal arterio-venous malformation and associated cutaneous vascular lesion. He finally agreed for treatment after 5 years of progressive spastic right lower limb weakness leading to inability to mobilize. A two staged intravascular procedure was done followed by surgery with recovery of ASIA impairment scale grade B.