Espresión de la ciclooxigenasa-2 en los carcinomas mamarios caninos primarios metastáticos y no metastáticos

The aim of this study was to detect the expression of ciclooxigenase-2 (COX-2) in metastatic primary carcinoma and non metastatic carcinoma, taking into consideration the relation between COX-2 and the progression of cancer. Evaluation of the COX-2 expression was achieved by immunohistochemistry analysis, using the primary polyclonal antibody anti-PGHS-2, clone PG 27, (Oxford Biomedical Research). The number of marked cells by the COX-2 antibody was higher (P < 0.001) in the metastatic primary carcinoma (81.25%) than non-metastatic (60.3%). There was a positive correlation between the number of labeled cells.

Linkage to chromosome 2q32.2-q33.3 in familial serrated neoplasia (Jass syndrome)

Abstract Causative genetic variants have to date been identified for only a small proportion of familial colorectal cancer (CRC). While conditions such as Familial Adenomatous Polyposis and Lynch syndrome have well defined genetic causes, the search for variants underlying the remainder of familial CRC is plagued by genetic heterogeneity. The recent identification of families with a heritable predisposition to malignancies arising through the serrated pathway (familial serrated neoplasia or Jass syndrome) provides an opportunity to study a subset of familial CRC in which heterogeneity may be greatly reduced. A genome-wide linkage screen was performed on a large family displaying a dominantly-inherited predisposition to serrated neoplasia genotyped using the Affymetrix GeneChip Human Mapping 10 K SNP Array. Parametric and nonparametric analyses were performed and resulting regions of interest, as well as previously reported CRC susceptibility loci at 3q22, 7q31 and 9q22, were followed up by finemapping in 10 serrated neoplasia families. Genome-wide linkage analysis revealed regions of interest at 2p25.2-p25.1, 2q24.3-q37.1 and 8p21.2-q12.1. Finemapping linkage and haplotype analyses identified 2q32.2-q33.3 as the region most likely to harbour linkage, with heterogeneity logarithm of the odds (HLOD) 2.09 and nonparametric linkage (NPL) score 2.36 (P = 0.004). Five primary candidate genes (CFLAR, CASP10, CASP8, FZD7 and BMPR2) were sequenced and no segregating variants identified. There was no evidence of linkage to previously reported loci on chromosomes 3, 7 and 9.

Melanoma mouse model implicates metabotropic glutamate signaling in melanocytic neoplasia

To gain insight into melanoma pathogenesis, we characterized an insertional mouse mutant, TG3, that is predisposed to develop multiple melanomas. Physical mapping identified multiple tandem insertions of the transgene into intron 3 of Grm1 (encoding metabotropic glutamate receptor 1) with concomitant deletion of 70 kb of intronic sequence. To assess whether this insertional mutagenesis event results in alteration of transcriptional regulation, we analyzed Grm1 and two flanking genes for aberrant expression in melanomas from TG3 mice. We observed aberrant expression of only Grm1. Although we did not detect its expression in normal mouse melanocytes, Grm1 was ectopically expressed in the melanomas from TG3 mice. To confirm the involvement of Grm1 in melanocytic neoplasia, we created an additional transgenic line with Grm1 expression driven by the dopachrome tautomerase promoter. Similar to the original TG3, the Tg(Grm1)EPv line was susceptible to melanoma. In contrast to human melanoma, these transgenic mice had a generalized hyperproliferation of melanocytes with limited transformation to fully malignant metastasis. We detected expression of GRM1 in a number of human melanoma biopsies and cell lines but not in benign nevi and melanocytes. This study provides compelling evidence for the importance of metabotropic glutamate signaling in melanocytic neoplasia.

Comparison of cervical and blood T-cell responses to human papillomavirus-16 in women with human papillomavirus-associated cervical intraepithelial neoplasia

Human papillomaviruses (HPVs) are obligate epithelial pathogens and typically cause localized mucosal infections. We therefore hypothesized that T-cell responses to HPV antigens would be greater at sites of pathology than in the blood. Focusing on HPV-16 because of its association with cervical cancer, the magnitude of HPV-specific T-cell responses at the cervix was compared with those in the peripheral blood by intracellular cytokine staining following direct ex vivo stimulation with both virus-like particles assembled from the major capsid protein L1, and the major HPV oncoprotein, E7. We show that both CD4 + and CD8 + T cells from the cervix responded to the HPV-16 antigens and that interferon-γ (IFN-γ) production was HPV type-specific. Comparing HPV-specific T-cell IFN-γ responses at the cervix with those in the blood, we found that while CD4 + and CD8 + T-cell responses to L1 were significantly correlated between compartments (P = 0.02 and P = 0.05, respectively), IFN-γ responses in both T-cell subsets were significantly greater in magnitude at the cervix than in peripheral blood (P = 0.02 and P = 0.003, respectively). In contrast, both CD4 + and CD8 + T-cell IFN-γ responses to E7 were of similar magnitude in both compartments and CD8 + responses were significantly correlated between these distinct immunological compartments (P = 0.04). We therefore show that inflammatory T-cell responses against L1 (but not E7) demonstrate clear compartmental bias and the magnitude of these responses do reflect local viral replication but that correlation of HPV-specific responses between compartments indicates their linkage.

Risk factors for ocular surface squamous neoplasia recurrence after treatment with topical mitomycin C and interferon alpha-2b

Purpose To determine the rate of recurrence and associated risk factors following the use of mitomycin C (MMC) and/or interferon alpha-2b (IFN) for management of non-invasive ocular surface squamous neoplasia (OSSN). Design Retrospective non-comparative interventional case series. Methods Clinical practice setting of 135 patients treated consecutively with topical MMC (0.4 mg/mL) and/or IFN (1 million units/mL) for OSSN observed for clinical recurrence. Results Clinical recurrences were diagnosed in 19 of 135 (14.1%) eyes following topical treatment. The mean time to recurrence was 17.2 months (range 4 - 61) with 14 (73.7%) recurring within a two year period. There was no greater risk of recurrence identified for variables including lesion size, lesion location, gender, age, treatment type or duration. Post-hoc log-Rank pairwise comparisons revealed that lesions initially treated using surgery alone had significantly reduced time to recurrence (21.1 ± 5.6 months) compared to previous topical treatment with MMC (with or without surgery) (29.6 ± 4.7 months) (p = 0.04) and primary OSSN (23.2 ± 1.8 months) (p = 0.09). Conclusions Topical MMC and IFN are an effective treatment modality for a wide range of non-invasive OSSN. Topical therapy avoids the morbidity of excisional surgery with equivalent or reduced recurrence rates and should be considered as primary therapy.

Platelet-derived endothelial cell growth factor expression and angiogenesis in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix

Growth and metastatic spread of invasive carcinoma depends on angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels. Platelet-derived endothelial cell growth factor (PD-ECGF) is an angiogenic growth factor for a number of solid tumors, including lung, bladder, colorectal, and renal cell cancer. Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) is the precursor to squamous cell cervical carcinoma (SCC). Mean vessel density (MVD) increases from normal cervical tissue, through low- and high-grade CIN to SCC. We evaluated PD-ECGF immunoreactivity and correlated its expression with MVD in normal, premalignant, and malignant cervical tissue. PD-ECGF expression was assessed visually within the epithelial tissues and scored on the extent and intensity of staining. MVD was calculated by counting the number of vessels positive for von Willebrand factor per unit area subtending normal or CIN epithelium or within tumor hotspots for SCC. Cytoplasmic and/or nuclear PD-ECGF immunoreactivity was seen in normal epithelium. PD-ECGF expression significantly increased with histologic grade from normal, through low- and high-grade CIN, to SCC (P < .02). A progressive significant increase in the microvessel density was also seen, ranging from a mean of 28 vessels for normal tissue to 57 for SCC (P < .0005). No correlation was found between PD-ECGF expression and MVD (P = .45). We conclude that PD-ECGF expression and MVD increase as the cervix transforms from a normal to a malignant phenotype. PD-ECGF is thymidine phosphorylase, a key enzyme in the activation of fluoropyrimidines, including 5-fluorouracil. Evaluation of PD-ECGF thymidine phosphorylase expression may be important in designing future chemotherapeutic trials in cervical cancer. Copyright (C) 2000 by W.B. Saunders Company.

A metastatic neuroendocrine anaplastic small cell tumor in a patient with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 syndrome : assessment of disease status and response to doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, etoposide chemotherapy through scintigraphic imaging with 111In-pentetreotide

Extrapulmonary small cell and small cell neuroendocrine tumors of unknown primary site are, in general, aggressive neoplasms with a short median survival. Like small cell lung cancer (SCLC), they often are responsive to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Small cell lung cancer and well differentiated neuroendocrine carcinomas of the gastrointestinal tract and pancreas tend to express somatostatin receptors. These tumors may be localized in patients by scintigraphic imaging using radiolabeled somatostatin analogues. A patient with an anaplastic neuroendocrine small cell tumor arising on a background of multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 syndrome is reported. The patient had a known large pancreatic gastrinoma and previously treated parathyroid adenopathy. At presentation, there was small cell cancer throughout the liver and skeleton. Imaging with a radiolabeled somatostatin analogue, 111In- pentetreotide (Mallinckrodt Medical B. V., Petten, Holland), revealed all sites of disease detected by routine biochemical and radiologic methods. After six cycles of chemotherapy with doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, and etoposide, there was almost complete clearance of the metastatic disease. 111In-pentetreotide scintigraphy revealed uptake consistent with small areas of residual disease in the liver, the abdomen (in mesenteric lymph nodes), and posterior thorax (in a rib). The primary gastrinoma present before the onset of the anaplastic small cell cancer showed no evidence of response to the treatment. The patient remained well for 1 year and then relapsed with brain, lung, liver, and skeletal metastases. Despite an initial response to salvage radiotherapy and chemotherapy with carboplatin and dacarbazine, the patient died 6 months later.

Fumarate Hydratase and Succinate Dehydrogenase in Neoplasia

Germline mutations in fumarate hydratase (FH) cause hereditary leiomyomatosis and renal cell cancer (HLRCC). FH is a nuclear encoded enzyme which functions in the Krebs tricarboxylic acid cycle, and homozygous mutation in FH lead to severe developmental defects. Both uterine and cutaneous leiomyomas are components of the HLRCC phenotype. Most of these tumours show loss of the wild-type allele and, also, the mutations reduce FH enzyme activity, which indicate that FH is a tumour suppressor gene. The renal cell cancers associated with HLRCC are of rare papillary type 2 histology. Other genes involved in the Krebs cycle, which are also implicated in neoplasia are 3 of the 4 subunits encoding succinate dehydrogenase (SDH); mutations in SHDB, SDHC, and SDHD predispose to paraganglioma and phaeochromocytoma. Although uterine leiomyomas (or fibroids) are very common, the estimations of affected women ranging from 25% to 77%, not much is known about their genetic background. Cytogenetic studies have revealed that rearrangements involving chromosomes 6, 7, 12 and 14 are most commonly seen in fibroids. Deletions on the long arm of chromosome 7 have been reported to be involved in about 17 to 34 % of leiomyomas and the small commonly deleted region on 7q22 suggests that there might be an underlying tumour suppressor gene in that region. The purpose of this study was to investigate the genetic mechanisms behind the development of tumours associated with HLRCC, both renal cell cancer and uterine fibroids. Firstly, a database search at the Finnish cancer registry was conducted in order to identify new families with early-onset RCC and to test if the family history was compatible with HLRCC. Secondly, sporadic uterine fibroids were tested for deletions on 7q in order to define the minimal deleted 7q-region, followed by mutation analysis of the candidate genes. Thirdly, oligonucleotide chips were utilised to study the global gene expression profiles of uterine fibroids in order to test whether 7q-deletions and FH mutations significantly affected fibroid biology. In the screen for early-onset RCC, 214 families were identified. Subsequently, the pedigrees were constructed and clinical data obtained. One of the index cases (RCC at the age of 28) had a mother who had been diagnosed with a heart tumour, which in further investigation turned out to be a paraganglioma. This lead to an alternative hypothesis that SDH, instead of FH, could be involved. SDHA, SDHB, SDHC and SDHD were sequenced from these individuals; a germline SDHB R27X mutation was detected with loss of the wild-type allele in both tumours. These results suggest that germline mutations in the SDHB gene predispose to early-onset RCC establishing a novel form of hereditary RCC. This has immediate clinical implications in the surveillance of patients suffering from early-onset RCC and phaeochromocytoma/paraganglioma. For the studies on sporadic uterine fibroids, a set of 166 fibroids from 51 individuals were collected. The 7q LOH mapping defined a commonly deleted region of about 3.2 mega bases in 11 of the 166 tumours. The deletion was consistent with previously reported allelotyping studies of leiomyomas and it therefore suggested the presence of a tumour suppressor gene in the deleted region. Furthermore, the high-resolution aCGH-chip analysis refined the deleted region to only 2.79Mb. When combined with previous data, the commonly deleted region was only 2.3Mb. The mutation screening of the known genes within the commonly deleted region did not reveal pathogenic mutations, however. The expression microarray analysis revealed that FH-deficient fibroids, both sporadic and familial, had their distinct gene expression profile as they formed their own group in the unsupervised clustering. On the other hand, the presence or absence of 7q-deletions did not significantly alter the global gene expression pattern of fibroids, suggesting that these two groups do not have different biological backgrounds. Multiple differentially expressed genes were identified between FH wild-type and FH-mutant fibroids, and the most significant increase was seen in the expression of carbohydrate metabolism-related and hypoxia inducible factor (HIF) target genes.

The role of AIP and CDKN1B/p27Kip1 in endocrine neoplasia

Identification of genes predisposing to tumor syndromes has raised general awareness of tumorigenesis. Genetic testing of tumor susceptibility genes aids the recognition of individuals at increased risk of tumors. Identification of novel predisposing genes enables further studies concerning the classification of potential associated tumors and the definition of target patient group. Pituitary adenomas are common, benign neoplasms accounting for approximately 15% of all intracranial tumors. Accurate incidence estimation is challenging since a great portion of these adenomas are small and asymptomatic. Clinically relevant adenomas, that cause symptoms due to the expansion of the cell mass or the over-secretion of normally produced hormones, occur in approximately one of 1 000 individuals. Although the majority of pituitary adenomas are sporadic, a minority occur as components of familial syndromes, such as Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) and Carney complex (CNC). MEN1 syndrome is caused by germ-line mutations in the MEN1 gene, whereas most of the CNC patients carry the mutated protein kinase A (PKA) regulatory subunit-1-α (PRKAR1A) gene. Recently, other conditions predisposing to endocrine tumors have been identified: Pituitary Adenoma Predisposition (PAP) and MEN type 4 (MEN4). PAP was originally identified in a genetically homogeneous Finnish population. In a population based cohort from Northern Finland, aryl hydrocarbon receptor-interacting protein (AIP) gene mutations were found in 16% of all patients diagnosed with growth hormone (GH) producing pituitary adenoma, and in 40% of the subset of patients who were diagnosed under the age of 35 years. Since AIP mutations were originally described in a defined, homogeneous population from Northern Finland, it was relevant to study whether mutations also occur in more heterogeneous populations. In patient cohorts with different ethnic origins and variable clinical phenotypes, germ-line AIP mutations were detectable at low frequencies (range 0.8-7.4%). AIP mutation-positive patients were often diagnosed with a GH-producing adenoma at a young age, and usually had no family history of endocrine tumors. The low frequency of AIP mutations in randomly selected patients, and the lack of any family history of pituitary adenomas create a challenge for the identification of PAP patients. Our preliminary study suggests that AIP immunohistochemistry may serve as a pre-screening tool to distinguish between the AIP mutation-negative and the mutation-positive tumors. Tumors of various endocrine glands are components of MEN1 and CNC syndromes. Somatic MEN1 and PRKAR1A mutations in sporadic pituitary adenomas are rare, but occur in some of the other tumors related to these syndromes. The role of AIP mutations in endocrine neoplasia was studied and our results indicated that somatic AIP mutations are rare or non-existent in sporadic tumors of endocrine glands (0 of 111). Furthermore, germ-line AIP mutations in prolactin producing adenomas (2 of 9) confirmed the role of this pituitary tumor type in the PAP phenotype. Thyroid disorders are common in the general population, and the majority of them are sporadic. Interestingly, it has been suggested that thyroid disorders might be more common in PAP families. For this reason we studied germ-line AIP mutations in 93 index cases from familial non-medullary thyroid cancer (NMTC) families. The underlying gene or genes for familial NMTC have not been identified yet. None of the patients had any potentially pathogenic AIP mutation. This suggests that AIP is unlikely to play a role in familial NMTCs. A novel multiple endocrine syndrome was originally described in rats with phenotypic features of human MEN type 1 and 2. Germ-line mutations of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1B (CDKN1B also known as p27Kip1) gene were reported later in these rats and a germ-line mutation was also identified in one human family with MEN1-like phenotype (later named MEN4). To confirm the importance of this gene’s mutations in humans, we performed a mutation screening in MEN-like patients and in patients with pituitary adenoma. Our results indicate that CDKN1B/p27Kip1 mutations appear in a small portion of MEN1-like patients (one of 36), and that such mutations are rare or non-existent in both familial (0 of 19) and sporadic pituitary adenoma patients (0 of 50). In conclusion, this work strengthens the tumor susceptibility role of AIP and CDKN1B/p27Kip1 in endocrine neoplasia. Clarifying the PAP phenotype facilitates the identification of potential AIP mutation carriers. Genetic counseling can be offered to the relatives and follow-up of the mutation carriers can be organized, hence an earlier diagnosis is feasible.

Diet, cell signalling, and tumourigenesis in multiple intestinal neoplasia mice

The incidence of colon cancer is high in Western societies, and in Finland it is among the three most common cancer types in both females and males. Environmental factors, including diet, affect colon cancer development. During the last few years, a vast amount of new, functional foods have been introduced to the consumers. Several products are already available that are marketed as promoting intestinal health. To be able to reliably call a dietary compound a chemopreventive substance it is of fundamental importance to understand the mechanism by which it affects tumour formation and the integrity of the epithelial cells. In this thesis, three different dietary compounds were studied in an experimental model of colon cancer. Inulin is a non-digestible fibre found naturally in chicory roots, artichokes and onions, amongst others. Nowadays it is widely used as an added dietary fibre in several food products. Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is a conjugated form of the fatty acid linoleic acid. CLA is formed by bacterial fermentation of linoleic acid in the rumen of cows and other ruminants. Concomitantly, it can naturally be found in milk and meat of ruminants. White currant is a colourless berry low in phenolic compounds that are believed to prevent cancer formation. Contrary to what was expected, inulin and the conjugated linoleic acid isomer trans-10, cis-12, were tumour growth promoting dietary constituents when fed to Min mice. Both diets decreased the NF-kappaB levels in the mucosa, but physiological adenoma development did not affect NF-kappaB. Diet altered beta-catenin and p53 signalling in the adenomas, confirming their involvement in adenoma growth. White currant, on the other hand, was chemopreventive, despite its low contents of phenolic compounds. The chemopreventive effect was accompanied by increased p53 levels in the mucosa, and decreased beta-catenin and NF-kappaB levels in the adenoma. This could explain the reduced adenoma number and size. The results underline the importance of carefully testing new dietary compounds in different settings to reliably confirm their health benefits. In this study two compounds that are consumed and believed to add to our health proved to be cancer promotive. A berry with low phenolic contents, on the other hand, was chemopreventive.

Cancer incidence, mortality, and pregnancy outcome among women treated for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia

Cervical cancer develops through precursor lesions, i.e. cervical intraepithelialneoplasms (CIN). These can be detected and treated before progression to invasive cancer. The major risk factor for developing cervical cancer or CIN is persistent or recurrent infection with high-risk human papilloma virus (hrHPV). Other associated risk factors include low socioeconomic status, smoking, sexually transmitted infections, and high number of sexual partners, and these risk factors can predispose to some other cancers, excess mortality, and reproductive health complications as well. The aim was to study long-term cancer incidence, mortality, and reproductive health outcomes among women treated for CIN. Based on the results, we could evaluate the efficacy and safety of CIN treatment practices and estimate the role of the risk factors of CIN patients for cancer incidence, mortality, and reproductive health. We collected a cohort of 7 599 women treated for CIN at Helsinki University Central Hospital from 1974 to 2001. Information about their cancer incidence, cause of death, birth of children and other reproductive endpoints, and socio-economic status were gathered through registerlinkages to the Finnish Cancer Registry, Finnish Population Registry, and Statistics Finland. Depending on the endpoints in question, the women treated were compared to the general population, to themselves, or to an age- and municipality-matched reference cohort. Cervical cancer incidence was increased after treatment of CIN for at least 20 years, regardless of the grade of histology at treatment. Compared to all of the colposcopically guided methods, cold knife conization (CKC) was the least effective method of treatment in terms of later CIN 3 or cervical cancer incidence. In addition to cervical cancer, incidence of other HPV-related anogenital cancers was increased among those treated, as was the incidence of lung cancer and other smoking-related cancers. Mortality from cervical cancer among the women treated was not statistically significantly elevated, and after adjustment for socio-economic status, the hazard ratio (HR) was 1.0. In fact, the excess mortality among those treated was mainly due to increased mortality from other cancers, especially from lung cancer. In terms of post-treatment fertility, the CIN treatments seem to be safe: The women had more deliveries, and their incidence of pregnancy was similar before and after treatment. Incidence of extra-uterine pregnancies and induced abortions was elevated among the treated both before and after treatment. Thus this elevation did not occur because they were treated rather to a great extent was due to the other known risk factors these women had in excess, i.e. sexually transmitted infections. The purpose of any cancer preventive activity is to reduce cancer incidence and mortality. In Finland, cervical cancer is a rare disease and death from it even rarer, mostly due to the effective screening program. Despite this, the women treated are at increased risk for cancer; not just for cervical cancer. They must be followed up carefully and for a long period of time; general health education, especially cessation of smoking, is crucial in the management process, as well as interventions towards proper use of birth control such as condoms.

Esperança e sentido de vida em pacientes com neoplasia maligna

O trabalho tem como tema central o estudo teórico e a pesquisa empírica das variáveis esperança, crenças esperançosas e sentido de vida em pacientes com diagnóstico de câncer. No plano teórico, objetivou estudar a Teoria Antropológica La Espera y la Esperanza, de Laín Entralgo, procurando aplicá-la à experiência profissional em Psico-Oncologia; estabelecer uma relação teórica entre o conceito de esperança, de Laín Entralgo, e o conceito psicológico de crença; buscar um vínculo entre o conceito de esperança de Laín Entralgo e o conceito de sentido da vida de Viktor Frankl; e, desvelar a complementaridade da contribuição de Buber ao conceito de sentido de vida, de Frankl, no sentido de que a análise do encontro seria favorecedora do sentido da vida ou de uma mudança de um sentido já acolhido. No plano empírico, investigou os possíveis efeitos psicológicos e sua repercussão no estado de saúde geral do paciente oncológico, decorrente de uma intervenção psicológica fundamentada por esses princípios teóricos. Foi conduzido um estudo exploratório, de natureza qualitativa, baseado na estratégia da pesquisa-ação. Participaram, voluntariamente, quatro homens, com diagnóstico de neoplasia maligna (câncer de próstata = 2; câncer de intestino = 1; câncer de língua = 1), média de idade 62,8 (4,3) e escolaridade 6,8 (3,4). As informações foram coletadas através de entrevistas individuais semi-estruturadas, com frequência semanal e duração de 1h30. Empregou-se o Mini-Exame do Estado Mental (MEEM) para rastreio de déficit cognitivo e o Inventário Beck de Depressão (BDI) para identificação de presença de sintomatologia depressiva. O resultados obtidos no MEEM (28,31,7) revelaram ausência de declínio cognitivo. Os escores do BDI indicaram ausência de sintomas significativos de depressão. Os depoimentos dos participantes foram analisados com base no método de Análise de Conteúdo (Bardin), através da técnica de Análise Temática. Os achados indicam que: crenças esperançosas vinculam o sentido da vida à esperança; a busca de um sentido para a existência é variável importante quando se trata das condutas consequentes da esperança: passividade e atividade; o caráter complementar da contribuição de Buber ao conceito de sentido de vida de Frankl evidencia-se na convivência, em especial na relação dialógica, que se mostra favorecedora da descoberta do sentido da vida ou de uma mudança de um sentido já acolhido; os pacientes esperançosos são mais ativos sob diversos aspectos no sentido físico, psicológico e social, quando o seu estado físico assim o permite, do que aqueles que se mostram desesperançados; as pessoas esperançosas tendem a resignar-se e a encontrar alternativas psicologicamente mais saudáveis em face da doença do que aquelas que se mostram mais desesperançadas. Considerando a natureza da pesquisa, o reduzido número de participantes, usuários do SUS e sob os cuidados do mesmo médico, estes achados devem ser examinados com cautela posto que representam indícios reveladores de que exista uma relação entre crenças esperançosas e a evolução do câncer, favorecida pelo sentido da vida.