Clinical outcome of surgical management for patients with renal cell carcinoma involving the inferior vena cava

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcome after surgical management of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) extending to the inferior vena cava (IVC). METHODS: This study included a total of 55 patients (41 men and 14 women; mean age, 59.3 years) with RCC (39 right- and 16 left-sided tumors) involving the IVC, who underwent radical nephrectomy and tumor thrombectomy between 1983 and 2005 at a single institution in Japan. The level of thrombus was classified as follows: level I, infrahepatic; level II, intrahepatic; level III, suprahepatic; and level IV, extending to the atrium. Clinicopathological data from these patients were retrospectively reviewed to identify factors associated with survival. RESULTS: There were 11 and 18 patients who were diagnosed as having lymph node and distant metastases, respectively. Twenty-two patients had tumor thrombus in level I, 20 in level II, 10 in level III, and 3 in level IV. Pathological examinations demonstrated that 34 and 21 patients had clear cell carcinoma and non-clear cell carcinoma, respectively, 42, 9 and 4 were pT3b, pT3c and pT4, respectively, and 6, 35 and 14 were Grades 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Cancer-specific 1-, 3- and 5-year survival rates of these 55 patients were 74.5%, 51.4% and 30.3%, respectively. Among several factors examined, clinical stage (P = 0.047), lymph node metastasis (P = 0.016), histological subtype (P = 0.034) and tumor grade (P < 0.001) were significantly associated with cancer-specific survival by univariate analysis. Furthermore, multivariate analysis demonstrated clinical stage (P = 0.037) and tumor grade (P < 0.001) as independent predictors of cancer-specific survival irrespective of other significant factors identified by univariate analysis. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with RCC involving the IVC, biological aggressiveness characterized by tumor grade rather than tumor extension would have more potential prognostic importance; therefore, more intensive multimodal therapy should be considered in patients with high grade RCC with tumor thrombus extending into the IVC.     

Immunohistochemical localization of cathepsin D, proliferating cell nuclear antigen and epidermal growth factor receptor in human breast carcinoma analysed by computer image analyser: correlation with histological grade and metastatic behaviour

 

Aims:

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between immunohistochemical localization of cathepsin D (CD), proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGF-R) in 65 cases of breast carcinoma in Japanese women and traditional prognostic factors such as histological grade, lymph node status, mitotic rate and clinical stage, in order to possibly identify some indicator(s) that may be specifically associated with prognosis.  

Methods and results:

Serial sections of 5-μm thick were cut from the archival formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue blocks, and processed for CD, PCNA and EGF-R immunostaining. The results were analysed by computer-based image analysis system. All samples showed a positive immunoreaction for cathepsin D in both the parenchyma and stroma. However, the staining area and intensity varied from cell to cell in the parenchyma and stroma as well as among samples. Subsequently, the evaluation of immunostaining for CD was separately performed in both the parenchyma and stroma (CDpar and CDstr, respectively) and the combination of both components (CDtotal). PCNA and EGF-R showed positive immunostaining almost exclusively in the parenchymal component of the carcinoma tissue specimens. CDtotal significantly correlated with the histological grade, PCNA index (PI), mitotic rate (MR), EGF-R and lymph node metastasis. Significant correlation was also demonstrated between CDpar and the histological grade, EGF-R and lymph node metastasis, or between CDstr and MR, EGF-R and lymph node metastasis. EGF-R correlated highly with the histological grade, MR score, lymph node metastases and recurrence-free survival.  

Conclusions:

Both the CD parameters and EGF-R are valuable indicators for predicting the biological behaviour of human breast carcinoma.     

Design of a Centrifugal Blood Pump with Magnetic Suspension

Abstract: A new concept blood pump, whose impeller is suspended by permanent magnets and a mechanical pivot without seals or ball bearings, is presented in this paper. The primary aim of the blood pump is an application to implantable artificial hearts. The prototype model is of a centrifugal type with a four-vaned semiopen impeller 50 mm in diameter. Since this mechanism has no seals or ball bearings, flow stagnation or heat generation that might cause blood cell denaturation is expected to be small. The results of performance testing for the prototype model 2 were satisfactory regarding pump head and efficiency. The radial-suspension magnets and the magnetic coupling were stable. As a result, the present mechanism has been verified to be a candidate applicable to implantable artificial hearts.     

Early experience with a novel plaque excision system for the treatment of complex coronary lesions.

The use of directional coronary atherectomy (DCA) in current practice has been limited. The SilverHawk System is a newly developed plaque excision device that aims to overcome the drawbacks of prior DCA platforms. The device was evaluated in a porcine coronary model and in a series of patients. Procedural variables along with outcomes were reviewed. Quantitative angiography (QCA) was performed and excised tissue fragments were weighed and examined histologically. In porcine cases, pretreatment MLD increased from 0.51 +/- 0.26 to 2.36 +/- 0.59 mm postdebulking and 19.9 +/- 7.6 mg of tissue was retrieved. In human cases, pretreatment MLD increased from 0.8 +/- 0.4 to 2.2 +/- 0.5 mm postdebulking and 15.2 +/- 7.8 mg of tissue was retrieved without complications. These data show that the SilverHawk System may offer significant utility in treating a wide variety of complex coronary lesions.     

An Autopsy Case of Tracheal Agenesis with Broncho-esophageal Fistula

Abstract True incidence of this malformation is probably greater than that reported since the definitive diagnosis has been made at autopsy in most cases. Various hypotheses on the pathogenesis of tracheal agenesis have been proposed but they are still controversial.
In this report, we present a case of tracheal agenesis with a broncho-esophageal fistula and discuss the formal genesis.     

Improved Static Compression Behaviors and Tablettabilities of Spherically Agglomerated Crystals Produced by the Spherical Crystallization Technique with a Two-Solvent System

Purpose. Poorly compressible crystals of acebutolol hydrochloride were agglomerated by the spherical crystallization technique with a two-solvent system to improve the compressibility for direct tabletting. The mechanism of improvements in static compression behaviors and tablettabilities of the spherically agglomerated crystals were investigated. Methods. The improvement of static compression behaviors of the agglomerated crystals was determined by measuring the stress relaxations and elastic recoveries of compressed powder of original and agglomerated crystals. The improved tablettability of agglomerated crystals was evaluated by the pressure transmission ratio upon compression, the ejection pressure for releasing the tablet from the die and the tablet strength, i.e., tensile strength required for breaking. Results. The higher relaxation pressure and the lower elastic recovery of the agglomerated crystals than of the original crystals were found. The pressure transmission ratio data showed that the friction pressures of the two crystals were similar during the compression period. The ejection pressure of the agglomerated crystals was lower than that of the original crystals. The tensile strength of the tablet of agglomerated crystals was greater than that of the original crystals. Conclusions. The compressibility and tablettability of the spherically agglomerated crystals prepared by the spherical crystallization technique were much improved due to their increased plastic property and reduced adhesive property compared to the original crystals.     

Prognostic factors in patients with ipsilateral pulmonary metastasis from non-small cell lung cancer.

OBJECTIVE: Pulmonary metastasis of non-small cell lung cancer is classified as an advanced disease stage, with limited indications for surgical treatment. However, the prognosis of patients with pulmonary metastasis of non-small cell lung cancer is better than that of patients with distant metastases. The purpose of the present study was to analyze and detect possible prognostic factors in surgically treated patients with ipsilateral pulmonary metastasis of non-small cell lung cancer. METHODS: Among 1198 patients with non-small cell lung cancer who underwent surgery at Kurashiki Central Hospital (Okayama, Japan) from April 1982 to March 2004, a total of 48 (4.0%) patients with pathologically diagnosed ipsilateral pulmonary metastasis were retrospectively evaluated. The median follow-up time was 20.5 months (range 1-103 months) and 37 patients (77.1%) were completely followed up until their death or more than 5 years after the operation. RESULTS: Among the 48 patients, 31 (64.6%) patients had metastatic nodules in the same lobe as the primary tumor (PM1) and 17 (35.4%) patients had metastatic nodules in different ipsilateral lobes (PM2). There was no significant difference in survival between patients with PM1 and the other patients with pT4-stage IIIB, or between patients with ipsilateral PM2 and the other patients with stage IV. Univariate analysis of postoperative survival stratified according to clinicopathologic factors revealed significant differences for the radicality of resection (complete vs. incomplete), tumor size (0-30 vs. >30mm) and pathological nodal (pN) factor (among pN0, pN1 and pN2-3). Multivariate analysis revealed that tumor size (0-30 vs. >30mm) and pN factor (pN0-1 vs. pN2-3) were independent prognostic factors. CONCLUSIONS: The results of our study suggest that undergoing a complete resection, having a tumor size of 30mm or less and having no mediastinal lymph node metastases were better prognostic factors for surgically treated patients with ipsilateral pulmonary metastasis of non-small cell lung cancer.