Chromophobe cell renal carcinoma with acquired cystic disease of the kidney in a long-term hemodialysis patient

We report a rare case of chromophobe cell renal carcinoma found in a 52-year-old female who had received hemodialysis therapy for 13 years. She was diagnosed as having a left renal tumor 7.5 cm in diameter with acquired cystic disease of the kidney (ACDK) by ultrasonographic examination during periodical systemic screening. As abdominal computed tomography scanning and enhanced color Doppler ultrasonography suspected that the hypervascular tumor was renal cell carcinoma, she underwent translumbar nephrectomy in July 2000. The histopathological diagnosis was chromophobe cell carcinoma with pT2 and grade 2 malignancy. Chromophobe cell carcinoma is uncommon among renal tumors with ACDK found in long-term hemodialysis patients.     

Congenital Malformations in Newborns from Diabetic Mothers*

It has been well known that there is a high incidence of congenital malformations in newborns from diabetic mothers when the mothers' diabetes control before and during pregnancy is poor. We treated 438 pregnant diabetics who bore 443 children between February 1964 and June 1992. Among these children, there were 51 cases (11.5%) with congenital malformations, 21 cases with major anomalies (4.7%) and 30 cases with minor anomalies (6.8%). The type of malformations are not related to special organs; heart malformations and cleft lips are relatively frequent compared to other types of malformations. The mechanism of the congenital malformations in newborns from diabetic mothers remains unclear. However, clinically and experimentally it has been found to be due to fuel-mediated teratogenesis. Since October 1978, HbAi has been used as an index of diabetic control and the relationship between congenital malformations and the mother's diabetes control has been observed. 1) There is no difference in the incidence of malformations in children from IDDM and NIDDM mothers. However, there are more severe malformations in the children from IDDM mothers compared to those from NIDDM mothers. 2) Mothers who bore children with major malformations had all made their first visit to our hospital after pregnancy. HbAi in the IDDM mothers who had children with malformations at the first visit was 11%. 3) In the NIDDM mothers, even if HbAi levels are near normal, children with major malformations were born and there was little relationship between congenital malformations and the mothers' diabetes control. These data suggest that there are two kinds of congenital malformations in children from diabetic mothers, fuel-mediated teratogenesis, and malformations as seen in children from non-diabetic mothers.     

Accidental transmission of HCV and treatment with interferon

Accidental transmission of contagious pathogens, especially hepatitis C virus (HCV), by needlestick or other means as an occupational hazard for medical staff is of concern. We retrospectively analysed cases of work-related accidental injury with pathogens such as hepatitis B virus (HBV), HCV, syphilis and human immunode?ciency virus (HIV) reported to the centres for disease control at 15 hospitals (total 5776 beds) in the Gunma prefecture, Japan, from December 1990 to August 1993 (24.7 months). There were 416 such cases (16.8 cases/month), with an incidence of 0.2–3.5 accidents per month per hospital. Such accidents occurred in 297 (71.2%) nurses, 98 (23.5%) medical doctors, 13 (3%) laboratory technicians, four (1.0%) hospital maintenance workers, one (0.2%) assistant nurse, one secretary and two others. There were 323 (77.6%) injuries caused by needlestick, 42 (10.1%) from suture needles or surgical knife cuts, 17 (4.1%) from blood splatters from patients into the eyes or mouth, 10 (2.4%) from contact with injured skin and 24 (5.8%) simple skin contacts. Of the pathogens, 60.3% were HCV, 22.6% HBV, 5.8% syphilis, 0.7% HIV and 10.6% were of unknown origin. Four cases (1.6%) of HCV infection were found and treated with one or two courses of interferon therapy, and HCV was subsequently cleared. All four patients were cured with interferon therapy. None of the HBV-injured cases resulted in infection, possibly because of prophylaxis with HB immunoglobulin and HB vaccine. No HIV or syphilis infection was contracted. In summary, chronic HCV infection acquired as an occupational hazard can be cured by appropriate treatment, such as with interferon, after early detection of the infection.     

A history of investigation on the mood stabilizing effect of carbamazepine in Japan

Abstract A history of investigation on the antimanic and prophylactic effects of carbamazepine in Japan is described. Following the initial open trials in the early 1970s in which the antimanic and prophylactic effects of carbamazepine were indicated for the first time in the world, the mood stabilizing effect was confirmed by the double blind studies which were performed with a multi-institutional cooperation in Japan in the late 1970s. During the course of the double blind trials, the problem of different therapeutic dosages of psychotropic drugs between Japan and Western countries emerged; that is, the doses of chlorpromazine and lithium carbonate, which were used as the control drugs to carbamazepine in the two double-blind group-comparison studies in Japan, were both much lower than the dosage used in most of the Western countries. The low dosage of control drugs made the evaluation of the results of the double blind studies performed in Japan difficult, and caused a delay of publication in the Western journals of the results. Whether the difference is due to biological factors or to psychosocial and cultural factors is an important problem in psychopharmacology and should be investigated further.     

Efficacy of Endoscopic Prosthesis in T4 Cancer of the Intrathoracic Esophagus

No remarkable improvement has yet been achieved in the survival of patients with advanced intrathoracic esophageal cancer. In particular, patients with complications such as esophago-bronchial fistula or invasion into the mediastinum have an especially miserable prognosis, even with surgical treatment. To improve the quality of life (QOL) of such patients, extensive palliative therapy should be provided. Thus, we have introduced an endoscopic esophageal intubation technique for the treatment of stenosis or perforation in patients with T4 esophageal cancer. Nine patients with unresectable intrathoracic esophageal cancer, complicated by stenosis or perforation, were treated with an endoscopic esophageal prosthesis. Four cases had an esophago-bronchial fistula, and in three the tumor had perforated the mediastinum. The prosthesis was successfully placed under endoscopic guidance in all nine cases. Six patients (66.7%) subsequently resumed oral intake without discomfort, while two had reasonably good outcomes in this regard (efficacy rate; 88.9%). Complications were seen in three patients: mainly chest discomfort, reflux esophagitis and migration of the prosthesis in one patient each. Six patients required prolonged administration of chemotherapeutic agents following prosthesis placement. Mean survival was 123.4±77.0 days. Four of the nine patients died in the hospital. Palliative endoscopic esophageal prosthesis was considered to be useful for patients with advanced esophageal cancer. With this technique, an improvement in QOL was achieved, as sufficient oral intake was facilitated and pulmonary and mediastinal complications due to perforation were diminished.     

The Results of Questionnaire about Endoscopic Mucosal Resection in the Stomach

Isolated exfoliation method of gastric endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) as a new technique has not yet reached the popularity of the conventional EMR techniques. From the results of a questionnaire about EMR in the stomach, the isolated exfoliation method has the advantage of permitting en bloc and histologically complete resection regardless of lesion size. However, this method has the disadvantage of long performance time and high frequency of complication as well as the need for a high level of technical skill. New devices and ideas are needed for the development of the isolated exfoliation method.     

Outcome analysis for conservative management of Peyronie''s disease

BACKGROUND: We retrospectively analysed the outcomes of conservative management of Peyronie's disease and determined the factors predicting successful outcome. METHODS: The study involved 31 patients with Peyronie's disease who were treated at our institute between 1985 and 2003. We assessed the efficacy of vitamin E for the improvement of the symptoms, and the factors which contributed to successful outcome with conservative management using multivariate analysis. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference in the relief rate between the vitamin E and no-medication groups. The overall estimated relief rate was 67.5% at 2 years from presentation. The multivariate analysis revealed plaque size to be the only significant factor predicting the relief from all symptoms in patients with conservative management. The rate was 100% in patients having a plaque size of 20 mm or smaller and 20.0% in those having a size of larger than 20 mm (P=0.005). CONCLUSIONS: We could not confirm the benefit of vitamin E for Peyronie's disease. Plaque size was the only significant factor predicting the relief from all symptoms. Patients with larger plaque might fail to respond to the conservative management.     

Experimental acute glomerulonephritis induced in the rabbit with a specific streptococcal antigen

FITC-labelled IgG obtained from patients convalescing from acute poststreptococcal glomerulonephritis (APSGN) stains glomeruli of patients with early APSGN. We previously reported a streptococcal antigen (preabsorbing antigen (PA-Ag)) that preabsorbed the stain out of sera from the convalescent patients and thus prevented glomerular staining. To confirm the nephritogenicity of PA-Ag, we administered up to 40 mg of this antigen to rabbits for 8 days and observed them for up to 9 weeks. Immunohistological analysis showed diffuse and global glomerular staining for C3 without notable staining for γ-globulin. Light microscopic examinations revealed slight to moderate proliferative glomerulonephritis with exudative change. Control rabbits, which received similar doses of bovine serum albumin, did not show significant staining for C3. A transient and significant decrease in CH₅₀ was observed from weeks 3 to 7 (9.7 ± 0.3 U/ml at week 3; normal range 12.9 ± 0.6 U/ml). This experimental model showed a resemblance to immunological and immunohistological features of APSGN in humans. Although the precise mechanisms are yet to be determined, complement activation by PA-Ag seems to hold a key position in this model and in the human disease.     

Blood Vessel Invasion in the Primary Site and Involved Lymph Nodes of Breast Cancer: Its Significance to Hematogenous Metastases

One hundred sixty-nine patients who had had radical mastectomywere investigated for blood vessel invasion in the primary tumorsites (TBVI); and 72 of these patients with regional lymph nodemetastasis were examined for blood vessel invasion within andin the vicinity of the involved lymph node (NBVI). Although distant metastases occurred more frequently in thepatients with blood vessel invasion in the tumor than in thosewith no blood vessel invasion, the differences were rather smallwithin respective negative and positive node metastasis subgroups. Analysis of blood vessel invasion in the involved lymph nodeshowed higher incidences of distant metastases in the subgroupswith positive blood vessel invasion in the lymph node than inthe subgroups with no such invasion; 42.1% 5s. 9.5% (negativeTBVI subgroup) and 47.4% 5s. 15.4% (positive TBVI subgroup). ^* This work was supported by a grant-in-aid for cancer researchfrom the Ministry of Health and Welfare.