Head and neck cancer with dermatomyositis: a report of two clinical cases

Detection of Head and Neck Cancer Based on Longitudinal Changes in Serum Protein Abundance

BACKGROUND

Approximately 85% of the U.S. military active duty population is male and less than 50 years of age, with elevated levels of known risk factors for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC), including smoking, excessive use of alcohol, and greater numbers of sexual partners, and elevated prevalence of human papilloma virus (HPV). Given the recent rise in incidence of OPSCC related to the HPV, the Department of Defense Serum Repository provides an unparalleled resource for longitudinal studies of OPSCC in the military for the identification of early detection biomarkers.

METHODS

We identified 175 patients diagnosed with OPSCC with 175 matched healthy controls and retrieved a total of 978 serum samples drawn at the time of diagnosis, 2 and 4 years prior to diagnosis, and 2 years after diagnosis. Following immunoaffinity depletion, serum samples were analyzed by targeted proteomics assays for multiplexed quantification of a panel of 146 candidate protein biomarkers from the curated literature.

RESULTS

Using a Random Forest machine learning approach, we derived a 13-protein signature that distinguishes cases versus controls based on longitudinal changes in serum protein concentration. The abundances of each of the 13 proteins remain constant over time in control subjects. The AUC for the derived Random Forest classifier was 0.90.

CONCLUSIONS

This 13-protein classifier is highly promising for detection of OPSCC prior to overt symptoms.

IMPACT

Use of longitudinal samples has significant potential to identify biomarkers for detection and risk stratification.

Dermatomyositis as an antecedent sign of lung cancer in an eldly patient: a case report

Dermatomyositis (DM) is associated with an increased risk of lung cancer. Misdiagnosed the squamous carcinoma of lung with DM is illustrated by the case who was a 73-year-old male and underwent successful surgical lobectomy presented here. The lack of examination of chest computed tomography (CT) is also emphasized. DM in an adult is a rare clinical entity. To facilitate the preoperative diagnosis and avoid the misdiagnosis of this disease, more etiological factors need to be considered.

Dermatomyositis associated with malignancy: A report of 3 cases

The association between dermatomyositis (DMS) and various types of malignancies has been reported in several studies, with an estimated frequency of 20-25%. DMS may precede, accompany or follow the diagnosis of malignancy. In the present report, we have discussed three cases of dermatomyositis associated with malignancy. In the first case, DMS preceded the diagnosis of gastric adenocarcinoma while in the second and third cases, it followed the diagnosis of ductal carcinoma of the breast and transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder respectively. In all three patients, cutaneous and musculoskeletal features of DMS showed very good response to the treatment, irrespective of the course of malignancy.