Search

Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) can be a complication of solid organ transplantation, but with an important incidence rate variability in different geographical areas. Here we analyzed the incidence rate, timing and clinical correlates of KS, in a cohort of Italian solid organ transplant recipients from four distinct transplantation centers. A total of 1721 renal, heart and liver transplant recipients were recruited between 1997 and 2004. KS was diagnosed in 40 patients, after a median follow up of 1 year (range 0.8-5.1). Visceral involvement was detected in 7/40 patients. Incidence rate of KS in the whole population was 2.3 cases per 1000 individuals per year. The standardized incidence rate (SIR) for KS in renal transplant recipients was 149.9 (95% CI 103.0-212.0), with the excess risk greater among women (SIR 316.0) than among men (SIR 133.6). In a Cox proportional hazard regression model, age at transplantation equal or older than 30 years and only combined immunosuppressive therapy with mycophenolate mofetil + cyclosporine + prednisolone were independently associated with KS. Italian organ transplant recipients have an increased risk (about 100 times greater) for KS compared to the general population, especially during the first two years after transplantation. Age older than 30 years at transplantation and a more aggressive immunosuppressive regimen were both independent risk factors for the disease.

The aim of this multicenter longitudinal study was to evaluate the pattern of recurrence in patients submitted to potentially curative surgery for intestinal-type and diffuse-type gastric cancer. The study included 412 patients surgically treated at three Italian surgical departments, subdivided into 273 intestinal-type cases (group A) and 139 diffuse-type cases (group B). Recurrence of disease was found in 41% of group A cases and 65% of group B cases (p < 0.0001). The incidence of locoregional, hematogenous, and peritoneal recurrence was 20%, 19%, and 9% in group A, and 27%, 16%, and 34% in group B, respectively; the difference between the two groups was statistically significant for peritoneal recurrence (p < 0.0001). Multivariate analysis identified as prognostic variables lymph node status, depth of invasion, extent of lymphadenectomy, advanced age, and male gender in group A; depth of invasion, extent of lymphadenectomy, tumor size, and lymph node status, in group B. Whereas in group A the incidence of peritoneal recurrence was limited in all subgroups examined, in group B very high rates were observed in cases with infiltration of the serosa, involvement of second-level lymph nodes, or large tumor size. The notable difference in the risk of peritoneal recurrence between the intestinal and diffuse types should be taken into consideration in the therapeutic approach to gastric cancer.

Background: Lymph node metastases are present in only about 15% of patients with early gastric cancer (EGC) and for this reason, the majority of these patients do not require lymphadenectomy. In Japan, EGC patients undergo less invasive treatment (endoscopic mucosal resection, wedge resection, laparoscopy). However, the indications for and results of these types of treatment are still uncertain. Methods: In a multicentre retrospective study, we analysed the clinicopathological data referring to 584 early gastric cancer patients who underwent D2 gastrectomy. A comparison was made between patients with and without lymph node metastases in relation to numerous preand postoperative variables. Long-term survival and risk factors for lymph node metastases were analysed. The primary aim was to compare our results with those of Western and Japanese authors; we also evaluated the possibility of identifying a subset of patients at low risk of lymph node metastases who may be candidates for endoscopic treatment. Results: The incidence of lymph node metastasis was 14.4%. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that submucosal infiltration, diffuse histotype, tumour size and Kodama Pen A type were all related to the presence of lymph node metastases. Patients with types I, IIa and IIb mucosal tumours did not present lymph node metastases. Postoperative mortality was 2.2%. Five-year survival in relation to lymph node groups was 95% in N0 patients, 77% in N1 patients and 60% in N2 patients (p = 0.0001, Japanese N-stage). The number of positive lymph nodes also had a prognostic value. Patients with three or fewer positive lymph nodes presented a better 5-year prognosis (83%) than those with more than three positive lymph nodes (48%) (p = 0.0001). Conclusions: Our study confirms that lymph node involvement is an extremely important prognostic factor. For this reason, the therapeutic strategy of our surgical units is as follows: 1) D2 gastrectomy is the standard treatment even in early gastric cancer (EGC); 2) endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) could be considered first in types I, IIa and IIb tumours that are diagnosed as limited to the mucosal layer.

In order to choose the optimal for gastric cancer patients it is very important to know the TNM stage of the tumour. The evaluation of N stage it is very difficult both preoperatively and intra-operatively and for this reason it becomes important the accurate staging of T. Recently the ultrasonography on the resected specimen allow us to correctly diagnose the depth of tumour invasion in more than 90% of the cases. Since there is a close correlation between the depth of tumour invasion and the incidence of node metastases, it is possible to identify to the most appropriate operation for each patient according to site and T of the tumour.

Carcinoma of the pancreas is the fourth leading cause of cancer related death in Western Countries. The 5-year survival for resectable tumors is 15-25%, while patients with unresectable neoplasms survive a median of 7 months. Only 30% of carcinomas of the head of pancreas and 10% of the body and tail are resectable for cure. Therefore, palliation of symptoms, namely obstructive jaundice, duodenal obstruction and pain, involve 80-90% of cases. Jaundice is frequent in tumors of the head. Palliative biliary decompression can be achieved by non surgical methods-endoscopically placed endoprostheses or percutaneous biliary drainage- or surgically. The former are indicated in patients with metastatic disease, high operative risk and short life expectancy. Surgical palliation which includes choledocho-duodenostomy, cholecystoduodenostomy, cholecystojejunostomy, hepato or choledocho-jejunostomy offers the advantage of providing a simple procedure that can treat or prevent all of the major symptoms: jaundice, duodenal obstruction and pain. Mechanical obstruction of the duodenum occurs in about 30% of cases in association with jaundice at the time of presentation and in 13-21% of patients previously subjected to biliary bypass after 8 months. Actual obstruction can be relieved by gastro-jejunostomy. Significant controversy remains concerning the role of prophylactic gastro-jejunostomy in patients requiring biliary diversion without signs of duodenal obstruction. Pain, which sooner or later affects the majority of patients, can be relieved by splanchnicectomy, either surgically or percutaneously.

Carcinoma of the cervical esophagus is invariably fatal because of its advanced stage at presentation. In our surgical division, 167 patients with primary squamous-cell carcinoma of the cervical esophagus were treated over the period between 1973 and June 1992. The tumor was localized in the cervical esophagus in only 37 cases, whereas it also involved the hypopharynx in 112 patients or extended to the cervico-thoracic segment in the remaining 18 subjects. Ninety-three patients underwent surgery (operability rate: 55.6%), and in 68 of these the tumor was resected (resectability rate: 73.1%). Over the 20-year study period, surgical techniques have evolved as a result of the experience gained with previous surgical therapies. Six of the 68 resected patients died (8.8%). Ten patients undergoing surgical resection subsequently presented with local recurrence: 3 after cervical esophagectomy (25%) and 7 after total esophagectomy (12.5%). Moreover, six patients treated by radical resection without laryngectomy had recurrent tumor (46.1%). The cumulative 5-year survival rate was 16.6%. The experience accumulated over the years suggests that the procedure of choice is laryngopharyngo-(total)-esophagectomy without thoracotomy, with gastric pull-up for reconstruction of the digestive tract. The other surgical procedures, in our experience as well in that of other authors, are associated with a higher incidence of relapse and a decreased survival rate. In an attempt to improve on the disappointing long-term results, we introduced a preoperative course of chemotherapy and radiotherapy in the management of the last 6 patients in our series.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)