Clinical Research of a Modified Midfacial Degloving in a Maxillectomy （with a Report of a Typical Case）

OBJECTIVE To investigate the feasibility of employing a modified midfacial degloving in maxillectomy. METHODS Eight patients with carcinoma of the maxillary sinus underwent a modified midfacial degloving operation.The tumors were classified according to the 2002 AJCC system.The TNM staging of the cases was as follows:1 T4aN0M0,2 T3N0M0 and 5 T2N0M0.Of the 8 cases,1 patient underwent extended maxillectomy;exenteration of the orbit;tumorectomy of the sphenomaxillary and infratemporal fossae.Two patients received a total maxillectomy,and 5 a partial resection of the maxilla. Postoperative pathological report:4 well-di?erentiated squamous carcinoma,2 moderately-differentiated squamous carcinoma,1 mucoepidermoid carcinoma and 1 adenoid cystic carcinoma. RESULTS A modified midfacial degloving operation can sufficiently expose a field of operation,resect the tumor within a safe margin,and leave no facial cicatricles.One patient died of intracranial metastasis 8 months a er operation.We observed no recurrences or metastasis in other patients during the period of follow-up. CONCLUSION The major advantages of employing the modified midfacial degloving in maxillectomy is that a facial incision can be avoided.It has an advantage of minimal invasive surgery.     

Pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma as a component of a temporal lobe cystic ganglioglioma: a case report

We report a case of pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma (PXA) as a component of a ganglioglioma in a 13-year-old Japanese boy. Magnetic resonance imaging showed a large cystic lesion with an enhanced mural nodule of the left temporal lobe. Microscopic examination of the tumor showed that it was composed of two distinct neoplastic components: dysplastic ganglion cells and a PXA. There were gradual transitions between the two neoplastic components, and the PXA constituted the gliomatous component of the ganglioglioma. The PXA component showed spindle-shaped and pleomorphic large cells with lipidized cytoplasm. The tumor cells were surrounded by numerous reticulin fibers. Immunohistochemically, the ganglion cells were negative for glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), but showed positive staining for a 70-kDa neurofilament protein, synaptophysin, and NeuN. In contrast, PXA cells were positive for GFAP but negative for neuronal markers. Our case is therefore histologically classified as ganglioglioma with PXA as the glial component. These results suggested that PXA and ganglioglioma share a common origin and that the combination of PXA-ganglioglioma would be positioned along the spectrum between PXA and ganglioglioma. Alternatively, these results may support the hypothesis that PXA originates from glioneuronal progenitor cells capable of generating astrocytic and neuronal cell types.     

Leptospirosis: a report on a series of five autochthonous cases in a Greek region

Leptospirosis is a worldwide zoonotic disease difficult to diagnose both to the clinic and the laboratory. Many risk factors have been involved, such as planting, hunting, harvesting and butchering or sports, such as rafting. We reported our experience through a period of 20 months and we tried to investigate prognostic factors predicting clinical outcomes. Five male patients were admitted to our Department with a median age of 40 years. Overall, three out of five patients presented to other hospital and were transferred to ours with a wrong or delayed diagnosis. In terms of clinical signs and symptoms, all presented with fever, myalgia, headache and jaundice, whereas conjunctival suffusion was present in 80% of them. Acute renal injury and liver deficiency were diagnosed in all subjects. Acute renal failure management required dialysis in 3/5 patients, whereas renal recovery was achieved soon after clinical improvement. However, clinical awareness and serology are the most important tools for accurate and quick diagnosis in order to administer the appropriate therapy.     

Cantuzumab mertansine in a three-times a week schedule: a phase I and pharmacokinetic study

PURPOSE: Cantuzumab mertansine (SB-408075; huC242-DM1) is a conjugate of the maytansinoid drug DM1 to the antibody huC242, which targets CanAg antigen. In previous studies, cantuzumab mertansine was considered safe and tolerable, but transaminitis precluded tolerance of higher doses. Based on those studies, it was suggested that treatment at intervals of the half-life of the intact immunoconjugate may allow a higher dose density. This provided the rationale for the three-times weekly treatment explored in this protocol. METHODS: Patients with advanced solid tumors and documented CanAg expression were treated with escalating doses of cantuzumab mertansine IV administered three-times a week in a 3 out of 4 weeks schedule. Plasma samples were assayed to determine pharmacokinetic parameters. RESULTS: Twenty patients (pts) with colon (11/20), rectal carcinomas (2/20), or other malignancies (7/20) were treated with doses ranging from 30 to 60 mg/m(2) per day of cantuzumab mertansine IV three-times a week. The maximum tolerated dose (MTD) was 45 mg/m(2), and the dose-limiting toxicity was grade 3 transaminitis. Hepatic, hematologic, and neurosensory effects occurred, but were rarely severe with repetitive treatment at doses of 45 mg/m(2). CONCLUSIONS: Treatment with cantuzumab mertansine at 45 mg/m(2) per day three-times weekly x 3-every-4-week schedule proved that a dose-intense treatment with an immunoconjugate can be safely administered. The pharmacokinetic profile of the intact immunoconjugate indicates that the linker is cleaved with a half-life of about 2 days, resulting in faster clearance of the maytansinoid relative to the antibody. Therefore, with the development of second-generation immunoconjugates, there is a need for improvement of the immunoconjugate linker to take full advantage of the slow clearance of full-length antibody molecules.     

Melatonin as a radioprotective agent: a review

Melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine), the chief secretory product of the pineal gland in the brain, is well known for its functional versatility. In hundreds of investigations, melatonin has been documented as a direct free radical scavenger and an indirect antioxidant, as well as an important immunomodulatory agent. The radical scavenging ability of melatonin is believed to work via electron donation to detoxify a variety of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, including the highly toxic hydroxyl radical. It has long been recognized that the damaging effects of ionizing radiation are brought about by both direct and indirect mechanisms. The direct action produces disruption of sensitive molecules in the cells, whereas the indirect effects ( approximately 70%) result from its interaction with water molecules, which results in the production of highly reactive free radicals such as *OH, *H, and e(aq)- and their subsequent action on subcellular structures. The hydroxyl radical scavenging ability of melatonin was used as a rationale to determine its radioprotective efficiency. Indeed, the results from many in vitro and in vivo investigations have confirmed that melatonin protects mammalian cells from the toxic effects of ionizing radiation. Furthermore, several clinical reports indicate that melatonin administration, either alone or in combination with traditional radiotherapy, results in a favorable efficacy:toxicity ratio during the treatment of human cancers. This article reviews the literature from laboratory investigations that document the ability of melatonin to scavenge a variety of free radicals (including the hydroxyl radical induced by ionizing radiation) and summarizes the evidence that should be used to design larger translational research-based clinical trials using melatonin as a radioprotector and also in cancer radiotherapy. The potential use of melatonin for protecting individuals from radiation terrorism is also considered.     

Circumcision: a review and a new technique

Numerous techniques for circumcision have been described in the literature. They range from the dorsal slit incision, the squeeze technique using the Gomco clamp or Plastibell, the sleeve resection technique, and the guillotine technique. An alternative technique, which has not been previously described, is presented.     

术者之行始于扶镜

胸外科手术技术已发生革命性变化,胸腔镜手术（video-assisted thoracic surgery, VATS）已经、正在成为各类胸部手术的主流方式。安全、高质、艺术化的VATS离不开扶镜手与术者默契的团队配合,如果说优秀的开放手术是术者脑、眼、手、体并用并无缝连接的整体配合的结果,那么,VATS的扶镜手则担负着两个人的眼睛,即本人和术者,这比照顾一个人脑、眼、手、体更为精细,更为困难。当然,优秀的扶镜手必将成长为不久将来优秀的术者。     

Acute appendicitis as a sign of a colorectal carcinoma

The relationship of acute appendicitis occurring previous to cancer in colon and rectum was studied in the consecutive records of 561 patients, of 40 years of age and older, operated upon with an appendectomy because of acute appendicitis. Sixteen (2.9%) of these patients were readmitted within three years because of a carcinoma in colon or rectum. The incidence of carcinoma in the colon and rectum in the population, of the same age, is only 0.1%, according to the Swedish Cancer Registry (1). This difference is statistically significant. Where acute appendicitis and colon carcinoma co-exist, the danger is that the carcinoma may be missed. Therfore, any patient over the age of 40 presenting with acute appendicitis should be carefully checked for carcinoma in the colon.     

Complications of a temozolomide overdose: a case report

Purpose and background This is a report of a 53 year-old man with a glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) treated with an excessive dose of temozolomide (TMZ).Methods This is a single case review of all clinically relevant records. O ⁶-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase activity was determined by a biochemical assay.Results Following conventional radiotherapy (RT) without concurrent chemotherapy, the patient received 5,500 mg of TMZ over 2 days. At the standard dose of 200 mg/m²/day his total 5-day dose should have been 1,940 mg. Acutely he had nausea, vomiting and diarrhea for 2 days which cleared. The dominant severe toxicity was pancytopenia between one and four weeks after TMZ which was complicated by secondary infections that were successfully managed. Transient transaminitis occurred but there were no significant pulmonary, renal or other systemic toxicities. His progression free survival was 22 months and overall survival 24 months.Conclusion His outcome suggests that TMZ may prove to be a good agent for dose-escalation trials with hematopoietic stem cell rescue.     

How a bronchoscopy avoided a pediatric pneumonectomy!

Primary Lung pathology without any intraluminal lesion needs extensive lung resections but It is always necessary to rule out any intraluminal pathology before submitting the patient to a Pneumonectomy. The case described illustrates how a last minute, on the table Exploratory Bronchoscopy revealed a Broncholith which avoided an extensive surgery thus reducing the morbidity     

Establishing a breast clinic in a developing country: effect of a collaborative project.

This paper describes a project funded by DFID (Department of International Development of the United Kingdom) for the establishment of breast clinic in an oncological center in a developing country, Sri Lanka. In Sri Lanka the commonest female cancer is breast cancer, with an incidence of 7.7 per 100,000. The project utilized a link with an existing breast clinic at the Royal Marsden UK. The principal methods used for establishing the clinic included, assessment of possible barriers by the exchange of senior staff, the development of guidelines, and regular review of progress by both link partners. As a result of these interactions, the first breast clinic in Sri Lanka was established. In has shown results in an increase in the pick up rate of new patients with breast cancer.     

Using a Culture Committee to Improve and Maintain a Positive Workplace Environment During a Pandemic

Workplace culture is often overlooked in interventions to improve the delivery of health care efficiency. Burnout and employee morale have been longstanding issues in health care and can negatively affect both provider and patient health. To address employee wellness and promote department unity, a culture committee was established within a radiation oncology department. After the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, burnout and social isolation among health care workers have increased substantially, affecting job performance and stress levels. This report revisits the efficacy of a workplace culture committee 5 years after its establishment, while also outlining its role during the pandemic and in the transition to a peripandemic workplace. The initiation of a culture committee has been pivotal to identifying and improving workplace stressors that may enable burnout. We suggest health care environments implement initiatives that encompass tangible and actionable solutions to feedback provided by employees.