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This report documents the 4th case in the world literature of a malignant melanoma metastatic to the esophagus. The value of gallium scanning in the evaluation of known cancer patients is exemplified by this patient.

Twenty patients in whom the determination of right and left lung function was advisable for management of their pulmonary disease underwent lateral position testing, quantitative ventilation/perfusion radionuclide studies, and bronchospirometry. An excellent correlation existed between the radionuclide perfusion study and the differential oxygen uptake measured by bronchospirometry. Similarly, there was excellent correlation between the radionuclide single-breath ventilation study and vital capacity measured by bronchospirometry. The lateral position test was statistically inferior in both areas. There was no difference between the lateral position test and the radionuclide rebreathing ventilation study in predicting differential minute ventilation. The routine use of quantitative radionuclide studies along with preoperative pulmonary function studies in patients with marginal pulmonary reserve is encouraged since it provides a simple, accurate method of determining differential pulmonary function and is well accepted by the patient.

Intrahepatic hematoma is an uncommonly recognized, yet clinically significant, complication of percutaneous liver biopsy. An intrahepatic hematoma occurred after percutaneous liver biopsy and was documented by serial liver scans, hepatic angiography, and peritoneoscopy. In a subsequent prospective study, 7% (3/40) of patients having liver biopsy demonstrated solitary liver scan defects not present on the prebiopsy liver scan. Diagnostic confusion may ensue if liver scans are not obtained prior to percutaneous liver biopsy, and may result in otherwise unnecessary diagnostic procedures.

Excerpt To the editor: The possibility of sexual transmission of type B hepatitis has been raised by several recent articles (1-3). In one of these studies the hepatitis B antigen (HB Ag) was found...