Current opinion in hematology
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Until recently, little was known about the long-term outcome of pulmonary embolism. Long-term mortality and recurrence rates, the case fatality rate of recurrent events, and the frequency of persistent vascular defects remained largely unknown. Improvements in our knowledge of these aspects may help to define the optimal long-term treatment of pulmonary embolism. This review will address these issues. ⋯ Pulmonary embolism has a higher mortality rate than deep venous thrombosis. Patients with pulmonary embolism have no higher risk of recurrence, but any recurrence is more likely to be a new pulmonary embolism than a deep venous thrombosis. A significant number of patients develop persistent perfusion defects after pulmonary embolism.
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To review the available clinical and biological advances of umbilical cord blood allogeneic stem cell transplantation in pediatric and adult patients. ⋯ Umbilical cord blood is a valuable alternative source of hematopoietic stem cells for patients that require allogeneic transplantation in the absence of readily available human leukocyte antigen matched marrow or blood hematopoietic stem cells. The current advances in clinical and biological research will further expand its application in pediatric and adult hematopoietic stem cells transplantation for treating hematologic disorders.
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The present review summarizes the current therapies and controversies in the management of newly diagnosed and relapsed classical and lymphocyte predominant Hodgkin lymphoma and briefly describes novel agents in development for Hodgkin lymphoma. ⋯ Current trials employing risk-adapted therapy on the basis of interim fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose-positron emission tomography scans have the potential of improving outcomes for all patients with Hodgkin lymphoma, either by improving cure rates, minimizing toxicity, or both.
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The discovery of a novel class of gene regulators, named microRNAs, has changed the landscape of human genetics. In hematopoiesis, recent work has improved our understanding of the role of microRNAs in hematopoietic differentiation and leukemogenesis. ⋯ There is now strong evidence that miRNAs modulate not only hematopoietic differentiation and proliferation but also activity of hematopoietic cells, in particular those related to immune function. Extensive miRNA deregulation has been observed in leukemias and lymphomas and mechanistic studies support a role for miRNAs in the pathogenesis of these disorders.
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Curr. Opin. Hematol. · May 2008
ReviewPleiotrophin, a multifunctional angiogenic factor: mechanisms and pathways in normal and pathological angiogenesis.
This study seeks to integrate recent studies that identify new critical mechanisms through which the 136 amino acid secreted heparin-binding cytokine pleiotrophin (PTN, Ptn) stimulates both normal and pathological angiogenesis. ⋯ Recent studies have identified new mechanisms dependent on activation of the PTN signaling pathway that regulate angiogenesis and new targets to use PTN to both stimulate angiogenesis and block its activity to control pathological angiogenesis.