A New Model Including AMH Cut-off Levels to Predict Post-treatment Ovarian Function in Early Breast Cancer: A Prospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND

Breast cancer (BC) treatment decreases fertility capacity, but unnecessary fertility preservation procedures in women who would not be infertile after treatment would be a waste of time and resources and could cause the unwarranted exposure of cancer cells to exogenous sex hormones. It has been largely shown that post-treatment ovarian reserve is directly associated with pre-treatment anti-mullerian hormone levels (AMH0). A threshold for AMH0, or a model including AMH0 and patient characteristics that could distinguish the patients who will be infertile after treatments, still needs to be defined. Accordingly, this study was performed to specifically target this high-priority concern.

METHODS

Women≤45 years old with newly diagnosed non-metastatic BC were entered in this multicenter prospective cohort study. AMH0 and two-year post-treatment AMH (AMH2) were measured, and hormonal patient features were recorded as well. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, decision tree (DT), and random forest analyses were performed to find a cut-off point for AMH0 and define a model involving related features for the prediction of AMH2.

RESULTS

The data from 84 patients were analyzed. ROC curve analysis revealed that AMH0>3 ng/mL (Area under the curve=0.69, 95% CI: 0.54‒0.84) was the best indicator for predicting AMH2≥0.7 (sensitivity=79%, specificity=60%). The best model detected by DT and random forest for predicting an AMH2>0.7 with a probability of 93% consisted of a combination of AMH0>3.3, menarche age<14, and age<31.

CONCLUSION

This combination model can be used to withhold fertility preservation procedures in BC patients. Performing larger studies is suggested to further test this model.

Spectrum of ultrasound findings in patients with history of breast conservative treatment

Breast conservative treatment (BCT) is currently accepted as the standard treatment option for breast cancer. Targeted ultrasound helps detect recurrent lesions, postoperative changes, and scarring tissue. In this pictorial essay, we review the ultrasound features of benign (seroma, hematoma, fat necrosis, traumatic neuroma, fibrosis/scarring) and malignant (recurrence, new primary cancer) causes of palpable lumps after BCT and provide images from our patients to illustrate some typical findings of common pathologies. Ultrasound, especially as an adjunct to mammography, can make a specific diagnosis in most cases.

Concurrent anorectal and cervical cytology in women with positive and negative cervical smear test results: A cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVE

Considering the exponentially growing concerns about the increase of anal cancer rates in women with human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, the authors evaluated concurrent anorectal and cervical cytology in women with positive and negative cervical smear tests.

METHOD

The current investigation was designed as a cross-sectional study conducted in Arash Women's Hospital, Tehran, Iran, between November 2020 and November 2021. Cervical cytology, HPV test, and anal cytology samples were prepared. Then women with abnormal cervical cytology and/or positive high-risk HPV were referred to a colposcopy clinic for further evaluation.

RESULTS

Five hundred and forty-three women were recruited during the study period. These women were divided into two groups of positive cervical cytology (n = 161) and negative cervical cytology (n = 382). There were no cases of anal intraepithelial neoplasia in either group. Negative anal cytology was reported in 99 (61.5%) of participants with a positive cervical cytology and 254 (66.7%) of participants with a negative cervical cytology. A total of 62 (38.5%) anal samples in the positive group and 127 (33.3%) in the negative group were unsatisfactory for further evaluation.

CONCLUSION

We were unable to show any correlation between abnormal cervical cytology, dysplasia, or cervical high-risk HPV with anal abnormal cytology.

Successful management of a patient with ovarian ectopic pregnancy by the end of the first trimester: a case report

BACKGROUND

Among all ectopic pregnancies, between 0.5% and 3.5% are ovarian ectopic pregnancies, a potentially life-threatening condition when ruptured due to its serious potential for hemorrhaging. A majority of ovarian ectopic pregnancies are diagnosed by the 7th week of pregnancy when the patient becomes symptomatic, and ultrasound can be used to diagnose this condition.

CASE PRESENTATION

We present the case of a 39-year-old Persian woman in the 12th week of gestation who presented with vaginal bleeding and abdominal pain and was diagnosed with ovarian ectopic pregnancy. Her notable laboratory finding was β-human chorionic gonadotropin > 15,000, which indicates definite pregnancy. Transvaginal ultrasound (TVS) revealed no evidence of intrauterine pregnancy, but a well-circumscribed gestational sac in the left ovary. The patient was successfully treated with resection of the gestational sac and partial left salpingo-oophorectomy. Histopathological studies confirmed the diagnosis of ovarian ectopic pregnancy.

CONCLUSION

The case emphasizes the ability of ovarian ectopic pregnancy to develop asymptomatically through the course of pregnancy and points to the necessity for high-quality prenatal care and the importance of determining the fetal site during pregnancy.

Comparison of cytopathologic findings in patients with negative Pap test and positive high-risk HPV infection among three groups

PURPOSE

Comparison of colposcopy-guided biopsy and endocervical cytologic (ECC) results in patients with negative Papanicolaou (Pap) and positive high-risk (HR) HPV tests in the three groups of HPV 16/18, non-16/18 HR-HPV (other HR-HPV), and concurrent infection of either HPV 16/18 and at least one subtype of other HR-HPVs.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted among women aged 30-65 who had negative Pap and positive HR-HPV DNA tests. Pap test was performed using liquid cytology. For HPV DNA testing, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method was used.

RESULTS

Among 394 participants, 111 (28.2%) were in the HPV 16/18, 226 (57.4%) in the Other HR-HPV, and 57 (14.4%) in the concurrent group. The mean age of participants was 35.71 ± 7.1 years. Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) grade 2/3 were seen in 29 (26.1%) patients of HPV 16/18, 60 (26.5%) of other HR-HPV, and 18 (31.6%) of concurrent infection group (P = 0.593). HPV 52 was the most common subtype in the other HR-HPV group (15%).

CONCLUSIONS

The risk of high-grade CIN lesions in patients with negative Pap test and positive other HR-HPV was not significantly less than patients with positive HPV 16/18. Besides, the risk of losing the patients to 1-year follow-up seems high.

Ovarian mature cystic teratoma with malignant transformation: two case reports

BACKGROUND

Mature Cystic Teratoma (MCT) is a benign tumor that can lead to malignant transformation (MT) in 1-3% of cases. Management of MT is a big challenge for gynecologic oncologists due to the lack of specific diagnostic and treatment protocols.

CASE PRESENTATION

We reported two Iranian cases of MT of MCT with two different stages and prognosis. Our both cases presented the same symptoms, including chronic abdominal pain and distention, loss of appetite, and weight loss. In case number 1, despite the large size of the tumor, the disease was at stage Ia and had a good prognosis; while, case number 2 was at stage IIIc of the disease with a poor prognosis.

CONCLUSION

The stage of the disease is the most important prognostic factor, and early diagnosis and treatment are very critical for better survival.

New-Onset Type 2 Diabetes and Virilization in a Benign Sex Cord Tumor

The stromal leydig cell tumor (SLCT) is a very rare benign tumor of ovary which occurs more often in young women in reproductive age. In this report, we describe a SLCTin a postmenopausal woman with high level of testosterone and triggering of type 2 diabetes, occurring 3 months after removal of the tumor.

Lactating breast abscess: a rare presentation of adenosquamous breast carcinoma

We report the case of a 33-year-old lactating woman who presented with a 10-cm breast abscess. Biopsy of the abscess wall revealed a poorly differentiated invasive ductal carcinoma. The patient had no family history of breast cancer or other risk factors for breast cancer. The disease was considered to be a large noninflammatory invasive breast cancer, for which the patient received neoadjuvant chemotherapy, breast-conserving surgery using axillary dissection (the patient did not consent to a mastectomy), and postoperative radiotherapy. Final histologic examination revealed a 4-cm, triple negative, high-grade adenosquamous carcinoma. At follow-up four years after surgery, the patient was doing well with no signs of recurrence. Adenosquamous carcinoma is an extremely rare disease that mainly presents in low-grade forms. High-grade forms are aggressive and frequently present with axillary involvement. To the best of our knowledge, there has been no report of adenosquamous carcinoma presenting as a breast abscess in the literature. The case we report highlights that, although rare, cancer should be considered in lactating breast abscesses.

Levels of serum 25-hydroxy-vitamin d in benign and malignant breast masses

BACKGROUND

The true association between breast cancer and vitamin D is currently under investigation. We compared serum 25-hydroxy-vitamin D levels in women with benign and malignant breast masses and controls.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Levels of vitamin D were measured by electrochemiluminescense. Serum levels >35 ng/ml, 25-35 ng/ml, 12.5-25 ng/ml and <12.5 ng/ml were considered as normal, mild, moderate and severe vitamin D deficiency, respectively.

RESULTS

Overall, 364 women were included in the control, 172 in the benign and 136 in the malignant groups. The median serum vitamin D level was significantly lower in breast cancers than controls. Levels were also lower in malignant than benign cases and in benign cases than controls although statistically non-significant.

CONCLUSIONS

Multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that severe vitamin D deficiency causes a three-fold increase in the risk of breast cancer while this was not the case for moderate and mild deficiency.

Risk factors and prevalence of vitamin d deficiency among Iranian women attending two university hospitals

BACKGROUND

Several studies indicated that there is a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in Middle East countries.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and assess some risk factors of vitamin D deficiency among women attending our clinics in Tehran, the capital of Iran.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Five hundred and thirty-eight women aged 20-80 years were entered in this cross-sectional study from 2011 to 2012. Serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D levels were measured in all participants after recruiting their demographic and anthropometric data and past medical histories. Deficiency was defined as levels less than 35 nmol/L and classified as mild (≥ 25 nmol/L), moderate (12.5-25 nmol/L) and severe (≤ 12.5 nmol/L).

RESULTS

The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was 69%; mild, moderate and severe degrees were seen in %10.4, %38.3, and %20.3 respectively. Analysis of logistic regression shows that age (OR:0.96, CI: 0.93-0.97), menopause (OR: 0.44, CI: 0.21-0.99) and consumption of multivitamin supplements (OR: 2.67, CI: 1.4-5) were independent predictive factors for Vitamin D deficiency.

CONCLUSIONS

This study showed a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among Iranian women especially in reproductive ages.