Materials and Methods: To determine the absolute lymphocyte count we retrospectively analyzed the preoperative blood count of 430 patients with a mean age of 60 years treated with primary surgical resection at our cancer center. Absolute lymphocyte count values as a continuous variable and at a level below 1,300 cells per mu l, which was our lowest reference value, were correlated with nuclear grade, pathological stage and TNM stage. We used the Kaplan-Meier method to estimate overall survival, stratified by absolute lymphocyte count status.

Results: As a continuous variable, see more low absolute lymphocyte count was associated with higher grade (p = 0.009), and higher pT stage (p = 0.034)

and TNM stage (p<0.0001). Lymphopenia below 1,300 cells per, mu l. was associated with high grade (p = 0.0043), pT stage (p = 0.051) and TNM stage (p<0.0001). At a median followup of 33.5 months lymphopenia was associated with inferior selleck inhibitor overall survival in a univariate model (p<0.0001),

and on multivariate analysis independent of pT, N and M stages, patient age, grade, smoking history and comorbidities (p = 0.0102). Lymphopenia was also associated with inferior overall survival in a subset of young patients (age 60 years or less) with no distant metastasis (p = 0.014).

Conclusions: In 430 patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma lymphopenia was associated with lower overall survival independent of pT and TNM stages, nuclear grade, age, tobacco smoking and comorbidity index.”
“Individuals almost with high-functioning autism often display deficits in social interactions and high-level cognitive functions. Such deficits may be influenced by poor ability to process feedback and rewards. The feedback-related negativity (FRN) is an event-related potential (ERP) that is more negative following losses than gains. We examined FRN amplitude in 25 individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and 25 age- and IQ-matched typically developing control participants

who completed a guessing task with monetary loss/gain feedback. Both groups demonstrated a robust FRN that was more negative to loss trials than gain trials; however, groups did not differ in FRN amplitude as a function of gain or loss trials. N1 and P300 amplitudes did not differentiate groups. FRN amplitude was positively correlated with age in individuals with ASD, but not measures of intelligence, anxiety, behavioral inhibition, or autism severity. Given previous findings of reduced-amplitude error-related negativity (ERN) in ASD, we propose that individuals with ASD may process external, concrete, feedback similar to typically developing individuals, but have difficulty with internal, more abstract, regulation of performance. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.