RESUMO
The incidence of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) was examined with the use of data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program of the National Cancer Institute. KS is a manifestation of the recent epidemic of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) that has occurred particularly among homosexual men. The incidence of KS in 1973-79 was found to be higher (0.29 male and 0.07 female cases/100,000/yr) than is usually cited for the pre-AIDS KS incidence rates. Collectively, the 9 SEER registries in the United States showed only a slight increase in the incidence of KS between 1973-79 and 1980-81. However, the SEER registry covering San Francisco, which is a high-risk area for AIDS, showed a marked excess of KS in 1981. The KS case rate among never-married men younger than 50 years old, a surrogate index of homosexuality, was found to be markedly elevated in the post-AIDS period, compared with the case rate of a reference disease, mycosis fungoides. Never-married men younger than 50 years old, therefore, constitute a SEER-identifiable population who can be monitored for risk of KS and other neoplasms that might be related to AIDS. In addition, the incidence rate of KS in the SEER registry of Puerto Rico was generally higher than that in the U.S. SEER registries, despite data that suggested that KS may be underreported. The demographic characteristics of patients diagnosed as having KS in Puerto Rico suggested the classical rather than the AIDS-related form of KS.
Assuntos
Micose Fungoide/epidemiologia , Sarcoma de Kaposi/epidemiologia , Síndrome da Imunodeficiência Adquirida/epidemiologia , Fatores Etários , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Casamento , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , National Institutes of Health (U.S.) , Porto Rico , Sistema de Registros , Fatores Sexuais , Estados UnidosRESUMO
Four prepubertal children, all members of melanoma-prone families, developed pigmented scalp lesions that were diagnosed as dysplastic nevi. In three cases, the scalp lesions were the only evidence that the children were affected by the dysplastic nevus syndrome, a distinctive clinicopathologic entity that identifies persons at increased risk of malignant melanoma. In general, the skin of family members with dysplastic nevus syndrome does not show characteristic lesions until just prior to or with the onset of puberty. The presence of dysplastic nevi on the scalp may permit identification of at least some high-risk family members well prior to puberty. This should facilitate the early implementation of a melanoma prevention program for susceptible individuals and help ensure that melanomas are diagnosed early in their natural history, at a time when they are surgically curable.
Assuntos
Melanoma/genética , Nevo Pigmentado/patologia , Lesões Pré-Cancerosas/patologia , Couro Cabeludo/patologia , Neoplasias Cutâneas/patologia , Criança , Pré-Escolar , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Nevo Pigmentado/genética , Linhagem , Neoplasias Cutâneas/genéticaRESUMO
Prospectively collected drug abuse trend surveillance data suggest that the rate of heroin use in Washington, D.C. is rising following a two year decline in the magnitude of this problem. Supportive data include increased potency of street level heroin, increased numbers of heroin-related deaths, increased detection of heroin positive urine specimens in the D.C. Superior Court arrestee population, increased demand for addiction treatment services and rising property crime rates. Increased prevalence of heroin use has not yet been associated with an increase in incidence, suggesting that former heroin users have begun to use once again following a period of abstinence. Analysis of heroin specimens seized across the United States suggests that cities formerly dependant upon European (white) heroin have now developed a new heroin distribution system which supplies Mexican (brown) heroin. This has offset the reduction in heroin use observed during 1972-1973 concomitant with the East Coast heroin shortage and widespread introduction of addiction treatment services.