Posttraumatic Coronary Artery‐Right Ventricular Fistula with Multiple Ventricular Septal Defects

Abstract The combination of posttraumatic coronary artery‐right ventricular fistula and multiple ventricular septal defects is a rare and interesting phenomenon. We describe a case of a 19‐year‐old male with these findings following a blunt chest trauma after a motorcycle accident . (J Card Surg 2010;25:670‐671)     

Giant cerebellar tuberculoma mimicking a malignant tumor

Background

Isolated central nervous system (CNS) tuberculoma is rare. Central nervous system tuberculosis (TB) is associated with high morbidity and mortality despite modern methods of detection and treatment. The authors report a case of a giant cerebellar tuberculoma mimicking a malignant tumor and review the literature.

Observation

A six-year-old girl, with no past medical history, vaccinated for her age, presented with a three-month history of occipitocervical cephalalgia, complicated by gait disturbances. The MRI showed a left cerebellar tumor suggestive of a medulloblastoma. At surgery, a nodular, avascular lesion was found and pathological examination confirmed tuberculoma. Intracranial tuberculoma is an uncommon variety of central nervous system tuberculosis. The prognosis is related to the rapidity of diagnosis, surgical resection and the complementary antituberculosis treatment.

Conclusion

Intracranial tuberculoma is an uncommon variety of central nervous system infection. Prognosis is improved by a quick diagnosis, surgical removal, and associated antituberculoma therapy.     

DNA repair: from genome maintenance to biomarker and therapeutic target

A critical link exists between an individual's ability to repair cellular DNA damage and cancer development, progression, and response to therapy. Knowledge gained about the proteins involved and types of damage repaired by the individual DNA repair pathways has led to the development of a variety of assays aimed at determining an individual's DNA repair capacity. These assays and their use in the analysis of clinical samples have yielded useful though somewhat conflicting data. In this review article, we discuss the major DNA repair pathways, the proteins and genes required for each, assays used to analyze activity, and the relevant clinical studies to date. With the recent results from clinical trials targeting specific DNA repair proteins for the treatment of cancer, accurate, reproducible, and relevant analysis of DNA repair takes on an even greater significance. We highlight the strengths and limitations of these DNA repair studies and assays, with respect to the clinical assessment of DNA repair capacity to determine cancer development and response to therapy.