[Myxoid dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans in childhood]

Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans is a locally aggressive skin tumor that affects young and middle-aged adults. A number of histological variants have been described, the myxoid type being one of the least common. Microscopically it is formed of a neoplastic growth that is located in the dermis and hypodermis and has a predominant myxoid component. Peripherally there are infiltrating bundles of spindle-shaped cells that are diffusely positive for the CD34 immunohistochemical marker. We report a case of myxoid dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans on a finger of the left hand of a 14-year-old girl. The tumor had been present for at least 10 years. This is the first pediatric case of myxoid dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans at this site. This histological subtype has mainly been described on the extremities in adults and is very rare in children. We discuss the differential diagnosis with other CD34(+) myxoid mesenchymal tumors.

Array CGH and gene-expression profiling reveals distinct genomic instability patterns associated with DNA repair and cell-cycle checkpoint pathways in Ewing's sarcoma

Ewing's sarcoma (ES) is characterized by specific chromosome translocations, the most common being t(11;22)(q24;q12). Additionally, other type of genetic abnormalities may occur and be relevant for explaining the variable tumour biology and clinical outcome. We have carried out a high-resolution array CGH and expression profiling on 25 ES tumour samples to characterize the DNA copy number aberrations (CNA) occurring in these tumours and determine their association with gene-expression profiles and clinical outcome. CNA were observed in 84% of the cases. We observed a median number of three aberrations per case. Besides numerical chromosome changes, smaller aberrations were found and defined at chromosomes 5p, 7q and 9p. All CNA were compiled to define the smallest overlapping regions of imbalance (SORI). A total of 35 SORI were delimited. Bioinformatics analyses were conducted to identify subgroups according to the pattern of genomic instability. Unsupervised and supervised clustering analysis (using SORI as variables) segregated the tumours in two distinct groups: one genomically stable (< or =3 CNA) and other genomically unstable (>3 CNA). The genomic unstable group showed a statistically significant shorter overall survival and was more refractory to chemotherapy. Expression profile analysis revealed significant differences between both groups. Genes related with chromosome segregation, DNA repair pathways and cell-cycle control were upregulated in the genomically unstable group. This report elucidates, for the first time, data about genomic instability in ES, based on CNA and expression profiling, and shows that a genomically unstable group of Ewing's tumours is correlated with a significant poor prognosis.

Interpretation of expression-profiling results obtained from different platforms and tissue sources: examples using prostate cancer data

The analysis of expression signatures is a powerful tool for the classification of cancer and other tissue samples. Several protocols and platforms are available on the market, and these lead to both confirmatory and complementary results. We review the main processing techniques for cross-platform comparisons and the different tissue sources for cancer profiling. Some examples and the cross-interpretation of bibliographic data related to prostate cancer are also presented.