Reconstruction of the chest wall

In cases of malignant disease of the chest wall, such as primary tumors or extensive metastases, a particularly large resection is necessary. This leads to great problems in restoring an adequately functional chest wall. In addition to the cosmetic effect one must pay particular consideration to the dynamic parameters of pulmonary function. In a 54 years old male suffering from recurrent malignant schwannoma we performed an extensive chest wall resection. It included the ribs 3-8 on the right. The extension of the defect was 15 X 22 cm. We reconstructed the pleura with Vicryl-mesh. The covering was done with musculus pectoralis major, musculus rectus abdominis and a musculocutaneous obliquus externus abdominis flap. Three months after operation a small restriction of vital capacity is observed. In a 29 years old male partial resection of the right chest wall had to be done for a local extended chondro-sarcoma. The tumor included the ribs 4-9: chest wall defect after resection amounted to 15 X 18 cm. We performed a primary reconstruction using Vicryl-mesh as substitute for the pleura. We covered the pleura with a musculocutaneous latissimus dorsi flap. Three months after successful reconstruction the parameters of pulmonary function reached normal values again. In these and further cases the combination of Vicryl-mesh as a resorbable substitute for the pleura and musculocutaneous flaps for the chest wall has been successful in restoring a good pulmonary function.     

Endoscopic Doppler ultrasound after injection therapy for peptic ulcer hemorrhage

BACKGROUND/AIMS: A positive Doppler signal in endoscopic Doppler ultrasound at index endoscopy predicts a high risk for rebleeding from peptic ulcer. The aim of this study was to evaluate if a negative Doppler status immediately after injection therapy may exclude a rebleeding from peptic ulcer in a high-risk cohort. METHODOLOGY: Twenty consecutive patients (pts) (age: 68 (33-91) yrs; 11 female) with peptic ulcer bleeding were enrolled. All patients with an actively bleeding ulcer and those with a non-actively bleeding, but Doppler-positive ulcer were treated by injection of adrenaline (1:10,000 dilution). Treatment was performed during index endoscopy until the Doppler status was negative. Patients were followed-up clinically and endoscopically (including Doppler ultrasound) for bleeding recurrence. RESULTS: Patients were treated by injection of 12 (6 to 20) mL of adrenaline solution until Doppler scan was negative. During follow-up four pts (20%) had a clinically overt rebleeding episode. At control endoscopy three ulcers were actively bleeding and another two were Doppler positive without rebleeding (total: five of eighteen (27.7%) Doppler-positive ulcers). Two of the twenty pts required surgical therapy due to rebleeding (10%). CONCLUSIONS: A negative endoscopic Doppler status immediately after injection therapy is not helpful to identify patients with no risk for rebleeding from peptic ulcer.     

IL-2 activated NK cell immunotherapy of three children after haploidentical stem cell transplantation

Natural killer (NK) cells are thought to be of benefit in HLA-mismatched hematopoietic transplantation (H-SCT). Therefore, we developed a protocol for clinical-use expansion of highly enriched and IL-2-stimulated NK cells. Purification of unstimulated leukaphereses by a two-step T cell depletion with a final CD56 enrichment procedure leads to a mean purity of 95% CD56(+)CD3- NK cells with a four- to five-log depletion of T cells. So far, three pediatric patients with multiply relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) or acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) were treated with repeated transfusions post-H-SCT. Directed killer immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR) mismatches were demonstrated in all three cases. Although all patients showed blast persistence at the time of transplant, they reached complete remission and complete donor chimerism within 1 month post-H-SCT. NK cell therapy was tolerated well without graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) induction or other adverse events. The AML patient died of early relapse on day +80, while the ALL patients died of thrombotic-thrombocytopenic purpura and atypical viral pneumonia on days +45 and +152, respectively. This initial trial showed the feasibility of good manufacturing practice (GMP)-compliant NK cell isolation and expansion for clinical applications. We now launch a clinical phase I trial with activated NK cells post-H-SCT.     

Pediatric apheresis with a novel apheresis device with electronic interface control

BACKGROUND: Cancer in children, and specifically cancer requiring autologous stem cell transplantation, is rare. As a consequence, though, experience with pediatric stem cell apheresis collections is limited. Challenges of apheresis in small children (<20 kg) include small total blood volume, issues with venous access, concerns about tolerable anticoagulant doses, and limitations in product volumes that can safely be collected. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: This article presents a small series of autologous “stem cell” apheresis procedures in infants and toddlers weighing between 5.5 and 20 kg, the first ones performed with a novel leukapheresis device (Spectra Optia MNC v.3.0, Terumo BCT) to be reported. Some features of the system are described that can be used to achieve favorable apheresis outcomes in small children. RESULTS: Apheresis procedures were uneventful and successful with similar extraction efficiencies (median preapheresis collection efficiency [CE2], 36%) as in adult patients. At 58%, platelet attrition was considerable. CONCLUSION: Our data indicate that stem cell apheresis with the Spectra Optia MNC v.3.0 in very small donors is feasible, safe, and associated with very small product volumes.     

Successful regrafting of a transplanted liver

We report on the successful regrafting of a transplanted liver. The donor liver was first grafted into a patient suffering from cryptogenic cirrhosis; the patient died 1 day after the elective transplantation of cerebral bleeding. The well-functioning graft was harvested again and transferred to our institution. After another 12 h of cold ischemia, the liver was reperfused in an urgently registered patient with recurrence of hepatitis B in his first graft. The transplantation was successfully performed and the patient is now doing well, more than 5 months after regrafting with the reused liver. Received: 21 October 1996 Received after revision: 9 January 1997 Accepted: 27 January 1997