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AIM The aim is to examine the prevalence of low bone mineral density (BMD) (osteoporosis and osteopenia) of lumbar and femoral bones in puerperal women for the prenatal and postnatal care to ensure their optimal bone health. METHODS We analyzed the first scan data of 1079 Japanese puerperal women without bone fracture (mean age 33.5 ± 4.5 years) who had undergone deliveries at Niigata City General Hospital for 10 years. We measured BMDs of the lumbar spine [LS], femoral neck [FN], and total hip [TH] with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) within 30 days after delivery. RESULTS The rates of osteoporosis of LS, FN, TH, and comprehensive diagnosis (CD) were 0.6%, 4.8%, 1.5%, and 5.4%, respectively, and osteopenia were 20.2%, 39.5%, 29.3%, and 44.3%, respectively. The multivariable-adjusted odds ratio (OR) for body mass index (BMI) before pregnancy reflected significant decreases in risk for low BMD with an OR of 0.78 (95% CI: 0.74-0.82) with the 1 kg/m2 increases. In lean women (BMI

Eribulin (ERI) treatment for leiomyosarcoma causes unexplained malaise and reduced quality of life (QoL) in about 40% of patients. There have been few reports suggesting the risk factors for occurrence of eribulin-associated malaise or effective treatment, whereas our present report focuses on this issue. We encountered two patients with advanced or recurrent uterine leiomyosarcoma who experienced severe malaise while receiving ERI therapy (ERI 1.4 mg/m(2) on days 1 and 8 of each 21-days cycle). We retrospectively reviewed these cases to examine the time of onset and change in the severity of malaise, and the change in QoL before and after ERI therapy. The first patient was a 70-year-old woman with severe malaise 3–6 days after ERI administration on day 1 of treatment. Malaise temporarily improved, but ERI resumption on day 8 caused severe malaise relapse on days 11–13. The second patient was a 58-year-old woman with severe malaise on days 4–5 and 11–12 of treatment. QoL worsened by the development of malaise. A bimodal pattern of malaise development was observed during ERI therapy, corresponding to 3–6 days after the administration of ERI. The pattern of malaise development in the present two patients treated with ERI was similar to that of myalgia in paclitaxel-treated patients. Both patients received l-glutamine/azulene combination for gastritis symptoms starting from cycle 2, relieving malaise, resulting in an improvement in the QoL score. Results from future prospective studies will be used to determine whether or not l-glutamine can alleviate ERI-caused malaise and improve the QoL of patients.

This report presents an unusual case of multiple paraovarian cysts that required emergency surgery due to a paraovarian cyst being entrapped by another paraovarian cyst. Laparoscopic surgery is considered useful for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes and is therefore recommended owing to difficulty in differentiating paraovarian cysts from ovarian cysts.

This clinical image presents an unusual report of simultaneous laparoscopic resection of a hydrocele of the canal of Nuck and an ovarian tumor. Laparoscopic treatment with a proper approach is a useful technique in some cases.

Aim The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of the traditional herbal medicine kamikihito for bone marrow suppression, particularly thrombocytopenia, during cancer chemotherapy. Methods This retrospective pilot study investigated changes in hemoglobin (Hb) and neutrophil and platelet (Plt) count from before to after kamikihito treatment in nine patients with advanced recurrent ovarian cancer who developed grade ≥3 thrombocytopenia during chemotherapy (13 and 16 cycles before and after kamikihito use, respectively). Results Although the nadir Hb did not change significantly, the degree of change in Hb (baseline – nadir) during respective chemotherapy cycles (before vs after kamikihito use: 1.8 vs 1.0 g/dL), was significantly mitigated after kamikihito use. The nadir neutrophil count and degree of change in neutrophil count did not differ with kamikihito use. The nadir Plt count was slightly higher after kamikihito use (before, 2.9 × 104/μL; after, 3.4 × 104/μL), and the degree of change in Plt count (before, 12.7 × 104/μL vs after, 10.9 × 104/μL), was significantly mitigated after kamikihito use. Finally, significantly fewer days were required for Plt recovery from the nadir to a ≤grade 2 Plt count decrease after kamikihito use (before, 9.3 days; after, 5.8 days). Conclusion In patients undergoing chemotherapy for advanced recurrent ovarian cancer, kamikihito could alleviate anemia and thrombocytopenia and reduce the risk of requiring blood transfusion. Future prospective studies with larger sample sizes are warranted to accumulate further data.

The therapeutic value of para-aortic lymphadenectomy (PAL) in women with endometrial cancer (EC) remains uncertain. We retrospectively analysed 25 patients with stage IIIc EC (17 stage IIIC1; 8 IIIC2) who were treated in our institution. All subjects had undergone pelvic lymphadenectomies in which para-aortic nodes were sampled, or removed only when these nodes were enlarged. Sampling of para-aortic nodes or PAL was performed in all patients with stage IIIC2 disease and one of 17 with stage IIIC1 disease. Para-aortic lymph nodes were the most frequent site of recurrence in stage IIIC1 patients, but no such recurrences occurred in stage IIIC2 patients. Overall survival tended to be shorter in stage IIIC1 patients than stage IIIC2 patients. Our findings indicate that PAL improves the outcomes of patients with EC and high risk of para-aortic lymph node metastasis, such as those with positive pelvic lymph nodes or enlargement of para-aortic lymph nodes. Impact statement Para-aortic lymph node (PALN) metastases are important prognostic factors in endometrial cancer. Overall survival of patients with stage IIIC1 disease is generally longer than for those with stage IIIC2 disease. Retrospective studies - but no prospective studies - have suggested that para-aortic lymphadenectomy (PAL) provides a survival benefit. In our institution, we had performed PAL or para-aortic sampling for patients with enlarged PALNs; therefore, as most IIIC1 patients had no enlarged PALNs, they underwent pelvic lymphadenectomy only, whereas all IIIC2 patients had enlarged PALNs and underwent pelvic lymphadenectomy and PAL or PALN sampling in addition to pelvic lymphadenectomy. However, under this policy, survival of stage IIIC1 patients was not better than for stage IIIC2 patients. Our retrospective study indicates a survival benefit for PAL in patients with pelvic node-positive or enlarged PALN. PAL warrants a prospective randomised trial to see whether it should be a standard treatment in these patients.

This study assessed the relief of uterine bleeding and clinical symptoms during cyclic administration of dienogest for the treatment of endometriosis.In total, 25 patients undergoing ovarian cyst enucleation and given dienogest participated in this study. Dienogest 2 mg/day was administered for 3 weeks, and the drug was then withdrawn for 1 week (cyclic administration of dienogest). This 4-week cycle was repeated six times. Patients' records were prospectively analyzed for the number of days on which any uterine bleeding occurred, as well as menstrual pain before and after the start of dienogest administration were evaluated with a view to using the data obtained herein as the basis.During the period of cyclic administration of dienogest, uterine bleeding occurred on 5.8 to 7.7 days per 4-week period on an average through cycles. Of uterine bleeding episodes, menstruation-like uterine bleeding was present in about 80% of patients. The visual analog scale (VAS) value for menstrual pain significantly decreased from 3.8 before dienogest administration after surgery to 1.5 at the completion of cycle 1, VAS remained low thereafter.These results raise the possibility that cyclic administration of dienogest may relieve lessen uterine bleeding, a major adverse event and menstrual pain.

Objective Taste disturbance is known to occur as one of the adverse events associated with chemotherapy for gynecological cancer, but few studies have attempted to assess it in practical terms. Therefore, a range of taste tests was performed in gynecological cancer patients. Methods The patients were 23 women with gynecological cancer being treated with anticancer agents. Subjective symptoms of altered taste were classified, and objective findings were obtained with the following four gustatory tests: serum trace element (zinc, copper, iron) levels, tongue cultures, electrogustometry, and the filter paper disc tests. Results Of the 23 subjects, 11 perceived taste disturbances. The serum zinc level was consistently below the lower limit of normal. On tongue cultures, indigenous bacteria were seen in all patients during the entire treatment period. Electrogustometry revealed a tendency for the development of hypogeusia in the chorda tympani nerve field. Conversely, hypergeusia tended to develop gradually in the greater petrosal nerve field. The filter paper disc test revealed a tendency for the development of hypergeusia for sweetness, saltiness, and sourness in the chorda tympani nerve field. Hypogeusia for bitterness tended to develop with increasing number of chemotherapy cycles. The glossopharyngeal nerve field exhibited the same tendencies as observed in the chorda tympani nerve field. In the greater petrosal nerve field, there was a tendency for the development of hypergeusia for sweetness, sourness, and bitterness. Conclusions Abnormal test results were seen in half of patients after cancer chemotherapy.

Although primary carcinoid tumor of the ovary is an extremely rare neoplasm, survival is excellent if the disease is confined to one ovary. Herein, we present a case of primary strumal carcinoid tumor of the ovary, stage IA, borderline malignancy, in a 34-year-old woman. Histological findings of the right ovary indicated higher atypical nuclei, higher mitotic rate and focal necrosis of tumorous cells in some areas, findings that are compatible with atypical carcinoid of the lung. Immunohistochemical staining was positive for synaptophysin, neuron-specific enolase, chromogranin A, Ki-67, topoisomerase IIalpha, peptide YY, and thyroglobulin. Three and a half years postoperatively, multiple bone and breast metastases were found and anticancer chemotherapy was ineffective. The results in the present case indicate that an ovarian carcinoid tumor found to be 'atypical carcinoid' according to pulmonary carcinoid criteria or immunohistochemical staining (i.e. highly positive for topoisomerase IIalpha and Ki-67) may have a poor prognosis.

To evaluate the outcomes of patients treated with cyclic administration of dienogest after ovarian endometriotic cystectomy, following the completion of treatment. We retrospectively evaluated 26 patients treated with dienogest (2 mg/day) after cystectomy (revised American Society for Reproductive Medicine [r-ASRM] stage III-IV) in a pilot study. Dienogest was administered cyclically, for a total of six cycles, each comprising three weeks on and one week off. Outcomes of interest included severity of menstrual pain and recurrence of cysts at baseline, during the immediate post-treatment period and at the final outpatient follow-up. The mean outpatient follow-up period was 45.0 months. The visual analog scale score for menstrual pain following 6 cycles of dienogest treatment was significantly lower than that at baseline; it remained low at the final follow-up. The recurrence rates of cysts were 4% and 21% at 24 and 48 months after the completion of dienogest treatment, respectively. Six patients with recurrent disease were all classified as having r-ASRM stage IV. Our results suggest that cyclic dienogest for six months after cystectomy could relieve menstrual pain and reduce the recurrence of cysts, for approximately four years. The necessary treatment period for patients with r-ASRM stage IV disease requires further study.

Dear Editor, Systemic chemotherapy has not been established for metastatic brain tumors from primary ovarian cancer. Here, we report our experience with an important case in which the efficacy of systemic chemotherapy was enhanced and prolonged survival with a good quality of life (QOL) was achieved by using nifedipine to inhibit P-glycoprotein. The patient was a 53-year-old woman. In July 1998, she underwent an optimal surgery for stage IIIc ovarian cancer (serous adenocarcinoma). In August 2006, the disease recurred as metastasis in the para-aortic lymph nodes. Although these lesions disappeared after chemotherapy with paclitaxel plus carboplatin (CBDCA), four metastatic brain tumors were observed in July 2007: a lesion in the cerebellar vermis; an asymptomatic nodular lesion in the left basal ganglion; and an asymptomatic nodular lesion in the right and left cerebellar hemisphere, each. These lesions disappeared after Gamma Knife radiosurgery. In June 2008, yet another asymptomatic metastatic lesion was found in the cortex of the apical portion of the right temporal lobe, which disappeared after Gamma Knife radiosurgery. However, in March 2011, another asymptomatic metastatic lesion (8×5 mm) was observed in the medial portion of the sensory region of the right parietal lobe (Fig. 1a). We opted to administer systemic chemotherapy, anticipating that it would not only have therapeutic effects on brain metastases but also exert a preventive effect against both metastasis to other organs and recurrence. Pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD) plus CBDCA, which has been shown to be effective for recurrent ovarian cancer, was selected. However, because of the previously reported poor outcomes for brain metastasis from primary ovarian cancer [3], we decided to combine PLD plus CBDCA with nifedipine in the hope of increasing the anti-cancer drug efficacy. The patient provided informed consent and was prescribed a sustained-release nifedipine tablet (20 mg) to be taken every morning and evening for 7 days, starting on day 1 of each cycle of chemotherapy. After two cycles, contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed a 75 % reduction in lesion size (Fig. 1b). After four cycles, the lesion was no longer visible on contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) (Fig. 1c). After five cycles, its disappearance was confirmed by contrast-enhanced MRI (Fig. 1d). The serum cancer antigen 125 level, which was 162.7 U/ml initially, normalized to 19.3 U/ml after three cycles. There were no variations in blood pressure during nifedipine treatment and no adverse events such as palpi tations, nausea, or facial f lushing. The chemotherapy-related adverse events were minor. Treatment was completed after seven cycles in November 2011. As of this writing, the patient is completely independent in her activities of daily living, with a performance status of 0. She has a good QOL and is under outpatient management. * Toru Yanase toyanase@gmail.com

e17029 Background: Vulvar cancer is a rare malignancy in women. During the past 30 years, large surveys of vulva cancer have not been performed in Japan. We therefore conducted a multicenter study to clarify the clinicopathological features of vulva cancer in Japan. Methods: In this multicenter retrospective cohort study, the clinical data of patients with vulva cancer were surveyed. The medical records of patients with vulvar cancer patients treated between 2001 and 2010 were retrospectively reviewed after obtaining approval from the Institutional Review Board of each institution. Survival analysis was performed using Kaplan-Meier curves. The effects of the clinical factors on overall survival were investigated using a Cox regression model. Results: A total of 1082 patients treated in 108 centers were studied. The median age was 72 years (range, 20 to 96). The disease stage was stage I in 415 patients (38.3%), stage II in 249 (23%), stage III in 255 (23.6%), and stage IV in 163 (15.1%) (FIGO 2009). The diagnosis was squamous cell carcinoma in 779 patients (72%), Paget’s disease in 158 (14.6%), adenocarcinoma in 63 (5.8%), and others in 82 (7.6%). Positive lymph nodes were found in 237 patients (21.9%). The median tumor diameter was 35 mm (range, 1 to 180). The 5-year overall survival was 86% in stage I, 74.7% in stage II, 48.2% in stage III, and 39.3% in stage IV (P < 0.001), and that according to histology was 63.9% in squamous cell carcinoma, 57.1% in adenocarcinoma, 79.7% in Paget’s disease, and 85.4% in others. The hazard ratio was 0.51 in patients with a histology of Paget’s disease or others (vs. squamous cell carcinoma or adenocarcinoma; P = 0.001; 95% CI, 0.35-0.75), 2.14 in patients with a the number of positive lymph nodes 2 or more (vs. 0 or 1; P < 0.001; 95% CI, 1.50-3.05), 2.10 in patients with a tumor diameter of ≥35mm (vs. < 35mm; P = 0.001; 95% CI, 1.36-3.25). Conclusions: Treatment outcomes in Japanese patients with vulvar cancer were similar to those reported previously. However, squamous-cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, positive lymph nodes, and bulky tumors were associated with poor outcomes. Multidisciplinary treatment might be required in patients with these characteristics. Clinical trial information: UMIN000017080.

The subject was a 75-year-old female who was receiving paclitaxel and carboplatin(TC)chemotherapy every other week after surgery for ovarian cancer. She greatly complained of taste disorders after four cycles(of every other week administration) of TC chemotherapy. To understand how the taste disorder was caused by chemotherapy objectively, taste examinations were conducted for the patient in our department. These examinations were conducted after receiving the informed consent from the patient. The authors conducted taste examinations for the patient using serum zinc measurement, tongue cell culture, electrogustometry, and filter paper disc tests(before and after starting chemotherapy), and found that her serum zinc level fell significantly after four cycles of chemotherapy. Orally disintegrating tablets of polaprezinc were then administered to the patient, after which the subjective symptom of taste disorder improved. Her serum zinc level increased, and the electrogustometric threshold rapidly fell(an improvement). The filter paper disc test showed some improvement, particularly in the glossopharyngeal nerve and the greater petrosal nerve field.

Although primary carcinoid tumor of the ovary is an extremely rare neoplasm, survival is excellent if the disease is confined to one ovary. Herein, we present a case of primary strumal carcinoid tumor of the ovary, stage IA, borderline malignancy, in a 34-year-old woman. Histological findings of the right ovary indicated higher atypical nuclei, higher mitotic rate and focal necrosis of tumorous cells in some areas, findings that are compatible with atypical carcinoid of the lung. Immunohistochemical staining was positive for synaptophysin, neuron-specific enolase, chromogranin A, Ki-67, topoisomerase IIalpha, peptide YY, and thyroglobulin. Three and a half years postoperatively, multiple bone and breast metastases were found and anticancer chemotherapy was ineffective. The results in the present case indicate that an ovarian carcinoid tumor found to be 'atypical carcinoid' according to pulmonary carcinoid criteria or immunohistochemical staining (i.e. highly positive for topoisomerase IIalpha and Ki-67) may have a poor prognosis.

Calcium transfer from the mother to the infant during pregnancy and lactation plays an extremely important role in the bone health of the mother and neonate. Calcium aids in bone health through all ages but is especially crucial during pregnancy and lactation. Changes in the structure and metabolism of bone during pregnancy and the early stage of postpartum are evaluated by investigating bone mineral density (BMD), bone histomorphometry and bone markers of human or animal models. The bone resorption increased at the end of pregnancy and lactation, and the bone formation increases and the bone structure is almost recovered after cessation of lactating in postpartum. Puerperal BMD remained static over the subsequent 5-10 years. If the women have a low BMD at this stage of their reproductive life, it tends not to improve over this time. Perhaps identification of this at-risk group may lead to effective interventions to reduce fracture risk in later life.

Torsion of adnexa usually manifests with severe abdominal pain and is treated as an acute surgical emergency. Asymptomatic torsion, necrosis and amputation of an ovary, and sometimes with other adnexal structures as well, are extremely rare.A 69-year-old Japanese woman presented to her practitioner complaining of dull lower abdominal pain. She was referred to us for presumed uterine tumor. Pelvic examination, ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a 7-cm, multicystic ovarian mass with solid component, and her serum CA125 and CA19-9 were elevated to 110.5 and 92 U/mL, respectively. Two months after the onset of abdominal pain, laparotomy was performed. In the cul-de-sac, the patient was found to have a mass with no ligamentous or direct connection with the pelvic organs. The right ovary seemed atrophic, with a rough surface. These findings were interpreted as an autoamputation of an ovarian cyst arising from the right ovary.Physicians should bear in mind the possibility of an autoamputated ovarian cyst even if the preoperative radiograph shows no calcification.

We report a retrospective study of 16 patients with uterine sarcoma from 1986 to 2001 in Niigata City General Hospital. Five-year survival rates in stage I, II, III and IV (FIGO) were 68% (n = 4), 50% (n = 2), 0% (n = 3), and 0% (n = 7), respectively. Overall survival for the patients with incomplete resection of tumor at primary laparotomy (n = 7) was significantly poorer than that with complete resection (n = 8). Patients with a high-LDH (lactic acid dehydrogenase) value tended to have poorer prognoses, but there was no significant difference of overall survival between the high-LDH group (n = 8) and the normal-LDH group (n = 8). Fifteen patients had postsurgical adjuvant chemotherapy. Out of 5 evaluable patients undergoing first-line chemotherapy, there were only 2 partial responders with IAP (ifosfamide, adriamycin, cisplatin) chemotherapy, and out of 11 evaluable patients undergoing second-line chemotherapy, there was only 1 partial responder with IAP. Out of 10 patients who had no evidence of disease after prior therapy, 6 patients had recurrences. Five patients underwent secondary surgery for recurrence and residual tumor. Of them, 3 patients did not have complete resection of residual tumor and died within 1 year after secondary surgery. Although prognosis of advanced uterine sarcoma and recurrence is poor, it is suggested that aggressive resection for recurrence and residual tumor improves prognosis.

We have reported good control of atypical genital bleeding when using a cyclic administration of dienogest (repeated 4-week cycles, each consisting of the administration of 2 mg/day of dienogest for 3 weeks, followed by 1 week of drug withdrawal) in patients with endometriosis. Herein, we report the effectiveness of the long-term cyclic administration (22 months) of dienogest in a case of pathological disappearance of intestinal endometriosis diagnosed by endoscopy and histology of the lower gastrointestinal tract. There is no recurrent sign after 16 months of the treatment being stopped. Atypical genital bleeding during treatment was 3–5 days a month in each cycle. Compliance was good, so we could continue the therapy. The long-term cyclic administration of dienogest in patients with intestinal endometriosis may have significant merit.