gastrins and Carcinoma--Hepatocellular

Gastrin is a trophic factor within the normal gastrointestinal tract and is also a mitogen for a number of gastrointestinal and non-gastrointestinal tumours. Precursor forms of gastrin including progastrin (proG) and glycine-extended gastrin (G-gly) as well as the fully processed amidated gastrin (G-NH2) are expressed by tumours. There has been little study of the role of gastrin in either normal liver or liver tumours. The aim of this study was to identify the expression of CCK-B/gastrin receptor (CCK-BR), proG, G-gly and G-NH2 in normal liver and liver tumours.. Tissue sections from patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, fibrolamellar carcinoma, cholangiocarcinoma as well as normal liver biopsies were assessed for expression of CCK-BR and gastrin isoforms.. Most liver tumours express CCK-BR and are able to process gastrin as far as proG and G-gly, although not as far as the amidated form. There appears to be little expression of the receptor and no expression of precursor forms of gastrin in normal liver.. Liver tumours express the CCK-BR and precursor forms of gastrin. This expression may be associated with tumour proliferation.

Topics: Bile Duct Neoplasms; Bile Ducts, Intrahepatic; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular; Cholangiocarcinoma; Gastrins; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Liver; Liver Neoplasms; Protein Processing, Post-Translational

Three Zollinger-Ellison syndrome patients were treated during the period January 1977 to June 1978. The first patient is in good health 11 years 3 months after a total gastrectomy as is the second patient, 11 year after the enucleation of a cephalo-pancreatic gastrinoma. However the third patient died from malignancy 5 years after a total gastrectomy and enucleation of a cephalo-pancreatic gastrinoma followed by therapeutic cycles with streptozotocin and 5-fluorouracil. The decline in the Zollinger-Ellison syndrome over the last ten years is examined and the type of surgical treatment is discussed. Total gastrectomy once advocated as the preferred treatment, is now reappraised because of the effectiveness of medical therapy in controlling ulcers and because of the frequent malignancy of pancreatic gastrinomas.

Topics: Adult; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Gastrins; Humans; Italy; Liver Neoplasms; Male; Middle Aged; Zollinger-Ellison Syndrome

Topics: Carcinoma, Hepatocellular; Gastrins; Humans; Liver Neoplasms; Middle Aged

A 44-year-old woman with hepatocellular carcinoma presented with intractable watery diarrhea and her condition was evaluated angiographically. Surgical ablation of the tumor resulted in complete resolution of the diarrhea. The tumor cells of the hepatocellular carcinoma were found to contain vasoactive intestinal polypeptide, gastrin, and prostaglandinlike immunoactivity. To our knowledge, this is the first report of such an association.

Topics: Adult; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular; Diarrhea; Dinoprostone; Female; Gastrins; Histocytochemistry; Humans; Liver Neoplasms; Paraneoplastic Endocrine Syndromes; Prostaglandins E; Radiography; Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide