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Purpose the aim of this study is to find a safer surgical approach in cataract surgery on eyes previously treated with radial keratotomy using clear corneal incisions. Setting Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Imaging, Ophthalmology Clinic, University of Messina, Messina, Italy. Design Prospective study. Methods A prospective study was conducted on a group of 20 patients, 21 eyes with 16 RK incisions were evaluated for cataract phacoemulsification. Samples were divided into two groups: Group 1 underwent surgery with pre-operative one corneal stitch along radial keratotomy incisions near the main access site whereas Group 2 underwent modified surgery with two corneal stitches. Results After surgery, visual acuity, corneal hysteresis and corneal strength was evaluated. In all cases, an increased visual acuity was observed. Group 1 showed an UCVA of logMAR 0.22 ± 0.14, while group 2 presented a logMAR of 0.1 ± 0.07. Data did not show a statistically significant difference in UCVA after surgery between the two groups ( P = 0.133). Instead, a significant difference in corneal hysteresis (CH), respectively with values of 8.65 ± 1.6 mmHg in group 1 and 9.2 ± 1.8 in group 2 ( P = 0.031), and a corneal resistance factor (CRF) with values of 7.87 ± 1.4 mmHg in the first group and 8.65 ± 1.6 mmHg in the second one ( P = 0.039) was observed. Conclusions Double safe suture technique offers better stabilization of corneal structure during surgery in patients preventively treated with 16 incisions RK.

Background Colorectal cancer is the third most common and the third most lethal cancer in both men and women in developed countries. About 75% of cases are first diagnosed when the disease is classified as localized or regional, undergo potentially curative treatment and enter a post-treatment surveillance program. Although such programs drain significant resources from health systems, empirical evidence of their efficacy is scanty. Patients and methods Dukes B2-C colorectal cancer patients who had no evidence of disease at the end of their front-line treatment (surgery and adjuvant radiochemotherapy, if indicated) were eligible for the trial and randomized to two different surveillance programs. These programs differed greatly in the frequency of diagnostic imaging. They had similar schedules of physical examinations and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) assessments. Patients received baseline and yearly health-related quality-of-life (HR-QoL) questionnaires. Primary outcomes were overall survival (OS) and QoL. Results From 1998 to 2006, 1228 assessable patients were randomized, 933 with colon cancer and 295 with rectal cancer. More than 90% of patients had the expected number of diagnostic procedures. Median follow-up duration was 62 months [interquartile range (IQR) 51–86] in the minimal surveillance group and 62 months (IQR 50–85) in the intensive group. At primary analysis, 250 patients had recurred and 218 had died. Intensive surveillance anticipated recurrence, as shown by a significant difference in mean disease-free survival of 5.9 months. Comparison of OS curves of the whole intention-to-treat population showed no statistically significant differences. HR-QoL of life scores did not differ between regimens. Conclusion Our findings support the conclusions of other randomized clinical trials, which show that early diagnosis of cancer recurrence is not associated with OS benefit. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02409472.