Assessment of elasticity of XXXX tissue, clinical utility, pathological and phenotypical relevance.

@entity5 @entity1 @entity1970 @entity14
Generally, @entity5 tissue is palpated as a hard mass. However, the elastic nature of @entity5 tissue is not well understood. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the clinical utility of measuring the elastic modulus (EM) in @entity14 tissue. Using a tactile sensor, we measured the EM of 106 surgically resected @entity14 tissues. Data on the EM were compared with clinicopathological findings, including stromal features represented by Azan staining and the @entity1970 positive area ratio of the @entity5 area. Finally, a cDNA microarray profile of the @entity5 with high EM were compared with the findings of @entity5 with low EM. A higher EM in @entity5 was associated with pathological T, N, and M-stage @entity5 (P < 0.001, P = 0.001 and P = 0.011, respectively). @entity1 with high EM @entity5 had shorter disease-free survival than had @entity1 with low EM. The EM showed strongly positive correlation with the Azan staining positive area ratio (r = 0.908) and the @entity1970 positive area ratio (r = 0.921). Finally, the cDNA microarray data of the @entity5 with high EM revealed a distinct gene expression profile compared with data from those @entity5 with low EM. The assessment of the elasticity of @entity14 tissue may allow a more accurate clinical stage and prognosis estimation. The distinct phenotypical features of the high EM @entity5 and their strong association with stromal features suggest the existence of a biological mechanism involved in this phenomenon that may contribute to future therapy.
