A rare cause of vomiting in an adolescent: gastric Burkitt`s lymphoma

Altay D, Özcan A, Ünal E, Deniz K, Özkan KU, Patıroğlu T, Arslan D. A rare cause of vomiting in an adolescent: gastric Burkitt`s lymphoma. Turk J Pediatr 2019; 61: 431-435. Burkitt`s lymphoma, which is the most commonly diagnosed pediatric gastrointestinal tumor, usually affects the intestinal tract. However, the diagnosis of gastric Burkitt`s lymphoma in childhood is extremely rare. Here, we have reported the case of an adolescent male patient with vomiting and weight loss symptoms who was diagnosed with Burkitt`s lymphoma of the pyloric antrum. The patient responded very well to chemotherapy and he did not develop tumor lysis syndrome. Based on this case report, gastric Burkitt`s lymphoma might be included in the differential diagnoses of pediatric patients who experience vomiting that results in significant weight loss.

Novel IRF-1 Mutations in a Small Cohort of Leukaemia Patients From Saudi Arabia

Involvement of the Interferon Regulatory Factor 1 (IRF-1) gene in regulation of cell differentiation and proliferation made it a potential target in cancer research. IRF-1 acts as a tumor suppressor gene, and is inactivated in chronic (CML) and non-chronic myelogenous leukemia (non-CML). In the light of numerous reports on genetic changes in the noncoding region of the IRF-1 gene, this study aimed to explore possible genomic changes in coding and non-coding regions of IRF-1 in a random sample of leukemic Saudi patients, in order to obtain insights into potential impact of genetic changes on clinicopathological characteristics. Patients were classified into two major leukemia subtypes: CML (8 cases; 36.4%) and non-CML (14 cases; 63.6%). Sequencing results revealed two novel mutations in the coding area of the IRF-1 gene likely to influence the IRF-1/DNA binding affinity. In addition, three mutational sites in the noncoding region between exon 5&6 (8985(T>G), 8,990(T>G) and 8995(A>G) were identified. In conclusion, a larger representative study might help provide better understanding of the possible contribution of the identified genetic changes in IRF-1 to disease prognosis and outcomes in leukemic patients.