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Pulmonary arteriovenous malformations are rare, abnormal, low-resistance vascular structures that connect a pulmonary artery to a vein. They are common in patients with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia; however, acquired malformations can occur in patients with underlying diseases such as chest trauma, hepatic cirrhosis, and mitral stenosis. Pulmonary arteriovenous malformations bypass the normal pulmonary capillary bed and result in intrapulmonary right-to-left shunts, which may cause central nervous system complications such as brain abscesses or ischemic stroke. Brain abscesses related to pulmonary arteriovenous malformations are not uncommon; however, reports of their occurrence during chemotherapy are limited. Here, we report the case of a 68-year-old woman with bilateral pulmonary arteriovenous malformations and appendiceal adenocarcinoma who developed a bacterial brain abscess during chemotherapy. The infection was treated using abscess drainage and antibiotic therapy. After the brain abscess healed, catheter embolization was performed on the pulmonary arteriovenous malformations and chemotherapy was resumed. The present case suggests that if a patient with a malignancy has a pulmonary arteriovenous malformation, clinicians should pay special attention to complications such as brain abscesses during chemotherapy. For patients who do not urgently need chemotherapy, embolization of the pulmonary arteriovenous malformation before chemotherapy may be a better treatment option.

Various locoregional treatments for localized hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have been developed. This retrospective study investigated the safety and feasibility of combining on-demand selective locoregional treatment for residual lesions after tumor shrinkage (complete response [CR] oriented) or for solitary or few drug-resistant lesions (progressive disease (PD) salvage) with first-line atezolizumab plus bevacizumab (atezo/bev) for unresectable HCC. Twenty-nine patients with unresectable HCC were included. Fourteen locoregional treatments were performed (CR oriented, 7; PD salvage, 7) in ten patients in the combination-therapy group. All patients in the combination-therapy group successfully achieved a CR or PD salvage status after the planned locoregional treatment. The objective response rate of the combination-therapy group (80.0%) was higher than that of the atezo/bev alone group (21.1%; p = 0.005). Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were longer in the combination group (medians for PFS and OS not reached) than in the atezo/bev alone group (median PFS, 7.4 months; median OS, 19.8 months) (PFS, p = 0.004; OS, p < 0.001). The albumin–bilirubin score did not change, and no severe complications occurred after locoregional treatment. When performed in a minimally invasive manner, on-demand selective locoregional treatment combined with first-line atezo/bev could be safe and feasible for unresectable HCC.

As a new perspective on the influences of the electrically charged air and electric field on the air flow, the natural air flow on a negatively charged forward-inclined step is analyzed. The electric field formed by the charged step pushes away the negative charge and attracts the positive charge in natural air, so that only the positive charge density is analyzed. A two-dimensional model of flow and electric field is set and solved on COMSOL Multiphysics FEM solver coupling three physics, that is, flow, electrostatics, and charge-transport. The pressure power spectra at the point around the vortex shedding region are calculated in the case of neutral air / uncharged step and charged air / charged step combinations. Whereas the former has large power below 1Hz, the latter has small power below 1Hz but with a larger peak at 30Hz, that is the vortex shedding frequency. In order to analyze the cause of the difference, the electric force effects are evaluated. The result shows that the upper portion of the vortex has forces in the same direction to the mainstream, and it degrades to the lower portion, which accelerates the vorticity of the vortex. Also, the vortex region has a strong downward force. Adding that, the curl of the electric force on the charged air is calculated to show that the upstream half of the vortex has the same direction curl as the vortex rotation, and the downstream half has an opposite curl because of the gradient charge density. These forces strengthen the vortices and raise their negative pressures and are estimated to suppress the fluctuation of the pressures so that the pressure’s spread spectrum reduces. In addition, the results of an experiment using a desktop wind tunnel are given as extra information.

Abstract Background After orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT), complications such as hepatic artery stenosis, thrombosis, and bleeding are possible. Hepatic artery pseudoaneurysms (HAP) are prone to rupture, rupture hemorrhage, and increased mortality risk. Endovascular treatment of HAP may result in recurrence, even after successful embolization with thrombin. Formation of a HAP in the common hepatic artery (CHA) is challenging because the CHA is the only artery in the liver graft after OLT. Therefore, CHA embolization in HAP is not an initial option. We report a case of HAP at the CHA after OLT that was treated with endovascular therapy, resulting in the occlusion of the CHA with coil embolization, achieving a radical cure. Case presentation A 59-year-old man with decompensated hepatitis C virus cirrhosis underwent deceased donor whole-liver transplantation after graft failure of a living donor liver transplantation. After the second transplantation, the patient developed infectious narrow-necked HAP at the CHA associated with postoperative pancreatic fistula. Repeated transcatheter arterial embolization with thrombin and n-butyl-2-cyanoacrylate was unsuccessful, as confirmed by postprocedure angiography, which revealed recanalization and regrowth of the HAP. Eight months after the first transcatheter arterial embolization, the patient presented with a chief complaint of abdominal pain due to an enlarged HAP. Angiography of the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) revealed a collateral bypass around the bile duct from the SMA to the liver graft. Coil embolization of the HAP in the CHA completely occluded the HAP without complications. More than 2 years after coil embolization, the liver graft function test results remained within normal limits without HAP recurrence. Conclusions HAP at the CHA after liver transplantation can be fatal if ruptured. Because the liver is a highly angiogenic organ, even if initial treatment is not successful, radical treatment to occlude the CHA with HAP is possible if sufficient collateral vessels are developed.

Abstract Introduction Success of next generation sequencing (NGS) analysis is becoming indispensable in the treatment of advanced lung cancer. However, the advantages and disadvantages of each sampling method in the NGS analysis have not yet been clarified. Methods We compared the success rates of NGS analysis, and DNA and RNA yields for transbronchial biopsy (TBB), endobronchial ultrasound‐guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS‐TBNA), computed tomography (CT)‐guided biopsy, fluid sample, and surgical biopsy for NGS analysis in patients through the lung cancer genomic screening project for individualized medicine (LC‐SCRUM)‐Asia, a nationwide NGS screening project. In case, sufficient samples could not be collected by TBB and EBUS‐TBNA, re‐biopsy (genome re‐biopsy) was performed. Results A total of 223 patients were enrolled and success rates of NGS analysis were not different between samples obtained through TBB, EBUS‐TBNA, and CT‐guided biopsy; however, success rates for fluid samples and surgical biopsy samples were significantly higher than those of other methods. The risk of genome re‐biopsy was higher with TBB for centrally located lesions. CT‐guided biopsy yielded more samples but had a lower success rate for analysis of RNA‐based NGS than TBB. Conclusions TBB is the mainstay of sampling methods, but for centrally located lesions, EBUS‐TBNA may be a better strategy. For CT‐guided biopsy, the success rate of RNA‐based NGS analysis is low. Fluid samples are expected to yield successful results as surgical biopsy samples, but the latter are better for sample preservation. Determining the optimal method for genome biopsy for each case is important.

The rabbit VX2 is a large animal model of cancer used for decades by interventional radiologists to demonstrate the efficacy of various locoregional treatments against liver tumors. What do we know about this tumor in the new era of targeted therapy and immune-oncology? The present paper describes the current knowledge on the clinics, biology, histopathology, and tumor microenvironment of VX2 based on a literature review of 741 publications in the liver and in other organs. It reveals the resemblance with human cancer (anatomy, vascularity, angiogenic profile, drug sensitivity, immune microenvironment), the differences (etiology, growth rate, histology), and the questions still poorly explored (serum and tissue biomarkers, genomic alterations, immune checkpoint inhibitors efficacy).