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Gastrointestinal stromal tumour (GIST) of the stomach is extremely rare in the elderly. Surgical resection of the stomach by partial gastrectomy or wedge resection is the standard treatment. Today the resection can also be performed laparoscopically, especially in the case of small tumours as well as for larger GIST though there are unclearly defined oncological limits. The authors report the successful treatment of a large 7.5 cm GIST of the stomach by laparoscopic wedge resection in a 78-year-old patient. The GIST was almost entirely located intraperitoneally between the stomach and the spleen and could be radically resected with a minimal touch technique. The patient recovered promptly and manifested no recurrence at a 2-year follow-up. The authors focus on the main factors supporting the indication for laparoscopic resection of large gastric GIST, especially in the elderly. The surgical risk/benefit ratios of the different approaches, the surgeon's skills in laparoscopically respecting the rules of oncological surgery, and informed consent of the patient in relation to the limited scientific evidence concerning the main risk factors of recurrence are all important considerations.

Traumatic lesions involving the rectum, perineum and anus are infrequent but difficult to treat, requiring experience with trauma and colo-proctological surgery. The aim of the treatment is to repair the lesions and to minimise the early complications which are the main cause of failure and of late complications and disability. The most complicated lesions present problems concerning either the surgical strategy or the surgical timing, both of which are essential for a successful outcome. The Authors analyse their recent clinical experience with 7 patients with complex traumatic lesions involving the rectum, perineum and anus, excluding those of gynaecological/obstetric origin and those not involving the sphincter. They evaluated the clinical history, causes and types of lesions, as well as treatment, complications and outcomes. Five of the lesions were caused by impalement, one by an explosion and one by a motorboat propeller blade. Six of the patients (85.7%) were treated by direct primary repair and one (14.3%) by secondary repair after a previous colostomy. All 7 patients achieved complete recovery of the lesions. Only two cases (28.6%) of early complications and one case (14.3%) of persistent minimal sphincter dysfunction occurred. On the basis of these good results, the clinical experience and the literature, the Authors suggest that these perineo-ano-rectal lesions, though often complex, may often be cured by early surgery, confining colostomy only to particular cases. In addition to experience with trauma and the timing of colo-proctological surgery, a knowledge of all the available surgical options is mandatory to achieve the best results.

Pancreatic trauma is a rare event, accounting for approximately 3% of all blunt abdominal traumas. The related mortality is quite high, around 5-30%, mostly due to the associated haemorrhagic lesions and to the delay in establishing the diagnosis, while pancreatic damage is directly responsible for death in only 5-10% of cases. We report here on a case of severe pancreatic trauma, underestimated initially and treated surgically at a later stage. The literature shows that the main difficulty in cases of pancreatic trauma is still related to failure recognizing the injury or to the frequent delay in diagnosing the condition, above all in haemodynamically unstable patients. In these cases, as in the one treated in this report, the clinical evidence and the priority accorded to the treatment of the shock are factors that tend to limit thorough examination. In haemodynamically stable patients, on the other hand, the multislice CT-scan and MR pancreatography-wirsungography are useful for the diagnosis. The treatment can be either conservative or surgical, depending on the extent of the damage, especially to the Wirsung duct. Surgical treatment with preservation of the entire pancreatic parenchyma, as performed in our case, even if technically demanding, makes it possible to maintain the function of the pancreas, thus reducing the risk of metabolic complications.

All haemodynamically stable patients with blunt abdominal trauma can be managed conservatively by non-operative management which is the treatment of choice in 80% of liver trauma. Non-operative management, when feasible, yields very good results in terms of survival, need for blood transfusions, morbidity and reduction of hospital stay. The Authors retrospectively analyse their recent experience with liver trauma. Of 53 patients with blunt liver trauma, 36 underwent surgical treatment whereas 17 haemodynamically stable patients received non-operative management. After CT scans, all patients on non-operative management underwent haemodynamic monitoring, US and blood examinations. A percentage of 47.1 % had a > or = grade III trauma. The mortality and morbidity rates were 0% and no blood transfusions were needed. The efficacy of non-operative management was 100% and none of the patients needed subsequent surgical treatment. Our clinical experience demonstrates that non-operative management is feasible and effective even for higher grade traumas, but always requires strict clinical, haemodynamic and US monitoring and careful patient selection. Current progress in the field and recent evidence reported in the literature indicate the likelihood of further developments and more widespread utilisation of non-operative management in liver trauma.

We report a rare case of a patient operated on with a diagnosis of hepatic tumour and gallstone disease, which postoperatively was found to be a hepatocellular carcinoma associated with a gallbladder carcinoma. Spiral CT at admission showed only a hepatic mass in the 4th segment, compatible with hepatocellular carcinoma and gallbladder lithiasis. Cholecystectomy was performed followed by a wedge resection of the 4th segment of the liver. The histopathological examination revealed a well-differentiated hepatocellular carcinoma and, surprisingly, an adenocarcinoma of the gallbladder confined to the mucosa. The association of a hepatocellular carcinoma and gallbladder adenocarcinoma is extremely rare. This association, together with an analysis of the literature showing the increased incidence of gallstones in cirrhotic patients and the consequent greater surgical risk when undergoing subsequent cholecystectomy after liver resection, would suggest that cholecystectomy should be performed routinely during liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma or cirrhosis, even for minor resections and when there are no evident signs of gallbladder disease.

Squamous cell carcinoma of the liver, bile ducts and gallbladder is extremely rare. We report a case of squamous cell carcinoma of the common bile duct manifesting atypically without jaundice, despite its large size and proximal bile duct dilation. A review of the literature concerning all other squamous carcinoma of the biliary tract is presented including 3 other bile duct cancers, 17 intrahepatic and 30 gallbladder cancers. Compared to the more common adenocarcinoma these rare biliary cancers seem to present particular clinical features and prognostic differences which may be important for planning treatment.