Cancer Science & Therapy

Lactoferrin (Lf) is a natural occurring iron binding protein present in many mammalian excretions and involved in various physiological processes. Lf is used in the transport of iron along with other molecules and ions from the digestive system. However its the modulatory functions exhibited by Lf in connection to immune response, disease regression and diagnosis that has made this protein an attractive therapeutic against chronic diseases. Further, the exciting potentials of employing nanotechnology in advancing drug delivery systems, active disease targeting and prognosis have also shown some encouraging outcomes. This review focuses on the role of Lf in diagnosing infection, cancer, neurological and inflammatory diseases and the recent nanotechnology based strategies.

Objective: To analyze the characters of breast pure mucinous carcinomas on high-frequency ultrasonography with Virtual Touch Tissue Quantification (VTQ).

Methods: A total of 12 patients (with breast pure mucinous carcinomas) and a group of 30 patients (with adenofibroma of breast) underwent breast examination with high-frequency ultrasonography to analyze the characters of images, and with VTQ to analyze the elastic character.

Results: In the conventional ultrasound imaging, statistical differences were found between two groups in the shape, the boundary and the internal echo of the lesions. In the VTQ, the mean of shearing wave speed (Vs) in pure mucinous carcinomas is less than in adenofibroma of breast.

Conclusion: Conventional high-frequency ultrasonography combining with VTQ have significant value in diagnosis of breast pure mucinous carcinoma.

Background: For the application of gold nanoparticles (GNPs) in therapy and drug delivery, it is necessary to characterize histological lung tissue alterations after the administration of GNPs. These histological lung alterations have not been previously documented. The present study attempted to characterize histological lung tissue alterations after intraperitoneal administration of different GNP sizes to understand their bioaccumulation and toxicity role and determine whether these alterations are related to GNP size and exposure duration.

Methods: A total of 40 healthy male Wistar-Kyoto rats received 50 μl infusions of 10, 20, and 50 nm GNPs for 3 or 7 days. Animals were randomly divided into four groups: three GNP-treated groups and one control group. Groups 1, 2 and 3 received 50 μl infusions of 10, 20 and 50nm for 3 or 7 days GNPs, respectively.

Results: GNP-treated rats that received 50 μl of 10 and 20 nm particles for 3 or 7 days demonstrated more diffuse interstitial pneumonia, fibrosis, chronic inflammatory cell infiltrates of small lymphocytes, congested and dilated blood vessels, scattered dense extravasation of red blood cells, and foci of hemosiderin granules compared with rats that received 50 μl of 50 nm particles for 3 or 7 days.

Conclusions: These histological alterations are size-dependent; smaller particles induce more damage and are also related to the duration of exposure to GNPs. Histological lung tissue alterations are due to toxicity induced by exposure to GNPs; the tissue becomes unable to deal with the accumulated residues resulting from metabolic and structural disturbances caused by these particles. The histological lung alterations suggest that GNPs might interact with proteins and enzyme of the lung tissue, interfering with the antioxidant defense mechanism and leading to free radical and reactive oxygen species generation and lipid peroxidation.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women and the second leading cause of the cancer death. It may cause physical, psychological disorders and it may damage the body image. As well as, it is of great importance to estimate the risk and demand patient to seek specialist’s opinion, after making a diagnosis and before starting treatment.

This study aimed to asses the adjuvant therapy on quality of life in (100) patients with breast cancer. The patients were divided into two groups those who had mastectomy with chemotherapy and other group with mastectomy receiving radiation therapy.

The questionnaires were developed on the basis of other previous studies and previous researchers experiences; it was design and filled by the researchers through interview technique. They were tested for validity and reliability.

This study revealed that the quality of life (QOL) of both groups were impaired but there were no significant differences between the two groups regarding the psychosocial wellbeing domain, while regarding the other two domains the physical complains and the daily activities, There were significantly differences between them P = 0.002 for the physical complains and P = 0.004 for the daily activities domain. Most of them were unable to having fun, they didn’t have normal life, and in addition, the highest percentages were worried about their future and both groups were not satisfying about their lives. The researchers recommended further researches about the relationships between the socio-demographic variables and the quality of life for patients receiving adjutants’ therapy.