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Ovarian cancer is the deadliest gynecologic cancer due predominantly to late diagnosis. Early detection of ovarian cancer can increase 5-year survival rates from 40% up to 92%, yet no reliable early detection techniques exist. Multiphoton microscopy (MPM) is a relatively new imaging technique sensitive to endogenous fluorophores, which has tremendous potential for clinical diagnosis, though it is limited in its application to the ovaries. Wide-field fluorescence imaging (WFI) has been proposed as a complementary technique to MPM, as it offers high-resolution imagery of the entire organ and can be tailored to target specific biomarkers that are not captured by MPM imaging. We applied texture analysis to MPM images of a mouse model of ovarian cancer. We also conducted WFI targeting the folate receptor and matrix metalloproteinases. We find that texture analysis of MPM images of the ovary can differentiate between genotypes, which is a proxy for disease, with high statistical significance (p

Ovarian cancer is the fifth leading cause of female cancer mortality in the U.S. and accounts for five percent of all cancer deaths among women. No environmental risk factors for ovarian cancer have been confirmed. We previously reported that ovarian cancer incidence rates at the state level were significantly correlated with the extent of pulp and paper manufacturing. We evaluated that association using county-level data and advanced geospatial methods. Specifically, we investigated the relationship of spatial patterns of ovarian cancer incidence rates with toxic emissions from pulp and paper facilities using data from the Environmental Protection Agency&rsquo, s Toxic Release Inventory (TRI). Geospatial analysis identified clusters of counties with high ovarian cancer incidence rates in south-central Iowa, Wisconsin, New York, Pennsylvania, Alabama, and Georgia. A bivariate local indicator of spatial autocorrelation (LISA) analysis confirmed that counties with high ovarian cancer rates were associated with counties with large numbers of pulp and paper mills. Regression analysis of state level data indicated a positive correlation between ovarian cancer and water pollutant emissions. A similar relationship was identified from the analysis of county-level data. These data support a possible role of water-borne pollutants from pulp and paper mills in the etiology of ovarian cancer.

Most solid cancers are treated by surgical resections to reduce the burden of disease. Surgeons often face the challenge of detecting small areas of residual neoplasm after resection or finding small primary tumors for the initial resection. Intraoperative molecular imaging (IMI) is an emerging technology with the potential to dramatically improve cancer surgery operations by allowing surgeons to better visualize areas of neoplasm using fluorescence imaging. Over the last two years, two molecular optical contrast agents received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval, and several more drugs are now on the horizon. Thus a conference was organized at the University of Pennsylvania to bring together oncologic surgeons from different specialties to discuss the current clinical status of IMI trials with a specific focus on phase 2 and phase 3 studies. In addition, phase 1 and experimental trials were also discussed briefly, to highlight other novel techniques. Our review summarizes the discussions from the conference and delves into the types of cancers discussed, different contrast agents in human trials, and the clinical value being studied. (C) The Authors. Published by SPIE under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Unported License.

An elevated risk of ovarian cancer has been observed in Norwegian pulp and paper workers who were possibly occupationally exposed to asbestos. The present study was initiated to investigate if the increased risk could be associated with asbestos fibers in ovarian tissue from workers in this industry. Normal ovarian tissue specimens from three groups of women were included in the study. The case group included specimens from 46 women diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the period 1953–2000, and who had been working in one or more pulp and paper mills between 1920 and 1993. Normal ovarian tissue specimens from two control groups without occupational history from pulp and paper work were selected from the Cancer Registry database. Tissue blocks were digested and prepared for transmission electron microscopy. Number of fibers per gram wet weight was calculated. Asbestos fibers were found in normal ovarian tissue from two subjects in the case group, while no fibers were found in the control groups. The two asbestos positive cases had been working as paper sorter/packer and chlorine plant worker, respectively. Both were possibly secondary exposed to asbestos from family members working as insulators. We conclude that the findings in this study did not allow drawing any firm conclusion about an association between occupational exposure to asbestos and ovarian cancer in Norwegian pulp and paper workers. Our study confirms that asbestos fibers may reach the ovaries and demonstrates that the applied method is appropriate for identification of the fibers

ObjectiveOvarian cancer is primarily a disease of the industrialized world. However, few factors associated with industrialization that contribute to the etiology of ovarian cancer have been identified. We sought to explore factors potentially associated with ovarian cancer by correlating ovarian cancer incidence rates in US states with the distribution of US manufacturing.MethodsData on age-adjusted incidence rates for ovarian cancer per state in the United States and manufacturing rates per state were analyzed using multiple linear regression controlling for access to ovarian cancer care, fertility rate, and other potential confounders.ResultsIn univariate analyses, ovarian cancer incidence rates were positively correlated with the extent of manufacturing, with dairy production, and with the manufacturing of pulp and paper. Using multiple linear regression, only the correlation of ovarian cancer with pulp and paper manufacturing industry was significant. The correlation of ovarian cancer with pulp and paper manufacturing industry remained significant after adjusting for access to ovarian cancer care, fertility rates, and other potential confounders (P< 0.05).ConclusionsPulp and paper mills are associated with exposures to known ovarian carcinogens. Further epidemiological study of exposures involved in the manufacturing of pulp and paper in relation to risk of ovarian cancer is warranted.

Background: Little is known about the preferences of at-risk Hispanic women to gain information on hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC). Aims: This study sought to qualitatively explore preferences for HBOC information among at-risk Mexican, Puerto Rican and Cuban women and to pilot a mock brochure aimed at Hispanic women. Methods: Hispanic women aged 18–65 years with a personal or family history of breast or ovarian cancer participated in a semistructured interview. Data were analyzed using a combination of open-coding and content analysis. Results: Fifty-three women participated in the study. For the majority of content areas, there were no major differences between the subethnicities. All women reported discussing cancer with a doctor after a family member had been diagnosed and discussing cancer within their families; however, the content of the discussion varied. Cuban and Puerto Rican women reported using the Internet routinely for health care information while Mexican women said they did not have access to computers and did not use them. All women liked the content and photos in the brochure but Mexican women thought the reading level was too high. Preferences for the spokesperson focused on the need for Spanish-speaking health care providers. Conclusions: While the data show some similarities, such as patterns of cancer discussion and appreciation of the mock brochure, there were differences between the groups on information preferences. In designing HBOC education information for Hispanic audiences, it is important to consider varied channels for dissemination and preferences for specific types of information across subethnicities.

To examine the range of clinical phenotypes, tumour associations, relevant investigations, response to therapy and outcome in a large series of non-selected patients with paraneoplastic neurological disease (PND) affecting the central nervous system (CNS) in the United Kingdom.Data were obtained on patients either through direct referral or through the British Neurological Surveillance Unit (BNSU) from February 2000 to January 2001. Physicians were asked to supply information about age and sex of patients, presenting neurological syndromes, the basis of the diagnosis of PND, any associated malignancy, and treatment. Case notes were reviewed and follow up data obtained where possible one year after notification.A total of 63 patients (48 females, 15 males) were identified, 48 through the BNSU and 15 through direct referral. Of these 52 were diagnosed as having definite PND, 10 probable PND, and 1 possible PND. The median age of onset of PND was 66 years (range 30-80 years) and only 7 patients (11%) were less than 50 years at presentation. In 53 patients (84%) the PND preceded the diagnosis of cancer. Paraneoplastic sensory neuronopathy, paraneoplastic encephalomyelitis, and paraneoplastic cerebellar degeneration (PCD) were the most common syndromes reported. The benefit of magnetic resonance imaging in the diagnosis of the disease was limited, while fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography was shown to be useful for the detection of an occult malignancy in 10 out of 14 patients. Antineuronal antibodies were positive in 44/57 (77%) of cases. The following tumours were diagnosed: small cell lung cancer (30%), breast cancer (14%), ovarian cancer (8%), non-small cell lung cancer (8%), Hodgkin's lymphoma (6%), other (16%). With the exception of PCD associated with mesothelioma all other tumours diagnosed in these patients had been previously documented as being associated with PND. Only treatment of the tumour was found to be associated with a stable or improved neurological outcome at last follow up (Fisher's exact test = 4.7, p0.03). Median survival time was 43 months (95% CI 28 to 57) from onset of neurological disease as calculated using the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis.PND has a striking female preponderance usually affecting patients in their sixth decade and above. The median survival in our study was 43 months. The majority of patients with PND are not known to have cancer at the time of diagnosis. Our study confirms the importance of diagnosing and treating the underlying tumour.

Aims—Chromosome 3p allele loss is a frequent event in many common sporadic cancers including lung, breast, kidney, ovarian, and head and neck cancer. To analyse the extent and frequency of 3p allelic losses in T1N0 and T1N1 invasive sporadic breast cancer, 19 microsatellite markers spread along 3p were analysed in 40 such breast carcinomas with known clinicopathological parameters. Methods—Loss of heterozygosity analysis was carried out using 3p microsatellite markers that were non-randomly distributed and chosen to represent regions that show hemizygous and/or homozygous losses in lung cancer (lung cancer tumour suppressor gene region 1 ( LCTSGR1) at 3p21.3 and LCTSGR2 at 3p12), and regions demonstrating suppression of tumorigenicity in breast, kidney, lung, and ovarian cancer. Results—Allelic loss was seen at one or more loci in 22 of these clinically early stage sporadic breast tumours, but none had complete 3p allele loss. Several regions with non-overlapping deletions were defined, namely: (1) 18 tumours showed loss at 3p21–22, a physical distance of 12 Mb; (2) 11 tumours showed loss at 3p12 within a physical distance of 1 Mb, this region is contained within LCTSGR2; (3) six tumours showed loss at 3p25–24, including the von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) locus; (4) five tumours showed loss at 3p14.2, including the fragile histidine triad (FHIT) locus. Conclusions—This is the largest study to date defining the extent and range of 3p allelic losses in early stage invasive breast cancer and the results indicate that region 3p21–22 containing LCTSGR1 and a region at 3p12 within LCTSGR2 are the most frequent sites of 3p allelic loss in these breast carcinomas. This suggests that tumour suppressor genes located in these regions may play important roles in the development of breast cancer. There was an association between increasing 3p allelic loss and increasing tumour grade and loss of progesterone (p = 0.0098) and oestrogen (p = 0.0472) receptor expression, indicating a link between 3p allelic loss and the regulation of differentiation.