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The occurrence of cerrado (as tree and shrub savanna is called in Brazil) and forest formations side by side is common at the southern margin of the Brazilian Amazonian Forest, and previous studies have demonstrated the advance of forests over cerrado areas. The aim of the present study is to provide an accurate documentation of the transition process between the two major biomes. Tree data (≥ 5 cm diameter at 0.3 m above soil level) from three plots of cerrado sensu stricto lying near three of cerradão (the taller, denser form of cerrado) were inventoried starting in 2002 in an area of 1.5 ha made up of 150 subplots of 10 × 10 m (50 in each area). This showed that the most important species of the cerradão were invading areas previously occupied by smaller, lower forms of cerrado (although it is sometimes difficult to define which are ‘forest’ and which ‘cerrado’ species as many are flexible in size – for instance Emmotum nitens can often be intermediate, establishing in cerrado that develops into cerradão and on to forest). Some typical species such as Eriotheca gracilipes and Emmotum nitens, established since the first inventories, have increased their populations (between 27 and 210%). Tachigali vulgaris, a typical, weedy, adventive species of the Cerrado–Amazonian Forest transition, showed the largest increase in abundance in areas of cerrado sensu stricto (between 100 and 1200%), and is probably the most important pioneer species in the initial advance of the forest into cerrado at the Southern Amazonian border. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The incidence of anal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) has been increasing over the last decades. Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection accounts for more than 90% of anal cancers, and HIV co-infection increases the risk of invasive cancer. Men who have sex with men (MSM) with HIV are the highest risk group for developing anal high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (aHSILs), which can be found in 45%-50% of these patients and are precursor lesions for invasive cancer. Anal cytology is an effective screening tool, but it lacks sensitivity. High-resolution anoscopy (HRA) is the gold standard procedure for diagnosis and treatment of aHSILs. Recent data suggest that early detection and treatment of aHSILs could prevent the development of invasive cancer in this population., Objective: The objective of the study was to describe the implementation of an office-based screening program for anal cancer prevention in a Comprehensive Cancer Center in Brazil., Methods: Training included participation in the International Anal Neoplasia Society (IANS) HRA course at UCSF Medical Center Mount Zion in San Francisco, CA, USA, by three colorectal cancer surgeons. In-person and hands-on training was provided by a specialist through the AIDS Malignancy Consortium (AMC) of the US NIH. Equipment purchased and provided by the AMC included a colposcope with a digital camera, a hands-free mouse pedal, and a photo documentation imaging software program that allows images to be recorded for documentation and training purposes., Results: The program was implemented in 2022 after a delay of more than two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. An average of 24 exams are performed monthly. Patients with HIV aged 35 years or older who are undergoing antiretroviral therapy were recruited from the metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro and referred by primary care providers for screening. Patients diagnosed with aHSILs are scheduled for in-office ablative treatment in the clinic. From March 2022 to June 2024, 324 exams were performed, and aHSIL was found in 38.2% of 220 high-risk patients, including 45 of 129 MSMs (34.9%), 6 of 19 transgender women (31.6%), and 33 of 72 women living with HIV (45.8%). A total of 69 treatments for aHSIL were performed in 62 patients. Patients are followed on a regular basis and long-term results are awaited, including the effectiveness of local therapy for aHSIL., Conclusions: The screening and treatment program was successfully implemented in a tertiary comprehensive Cancer Center. Team training and external proctorship were decisive for the achievement of benchmark standards. The program aims to permanently provide screening for the prevention of anal cancer through the detection and treatment of aHSIL within the National Cancer Institute of Brazil for populations considered at-risk for anal cancer., (© 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Background: Anal canal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is a relatively uncommon neoplasia, and it is mostly a local-regional cancer, of low metastatic potential (only 15%), resulting in cure in most cases treated with definitive chemoradiation. On the other hand, its incidence has been steadily increasing over the last decades, which makes it an important public health problem. In an effort to provide surgeons and oncologists who treat patients with anal cancer with the most updated information based on the best scientific evidence, the Brazilian Society of Surgical Oncology (SBCO) has produced the present guideline for the management of anal canal SCC, focused on the main topics related to daily clinical practice., Objectives: The SBCO developed the present guidelines to provide recommendations on the main topics related to the management of anal canal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) based on current scientific evidence., Methods: Between October 2022 and January 2023, 14 experts met to develop the guidelines for the management of anal canal cancer. A total of 30 relevant topics were distributed among the participants. The methodological quality of a final list with 121 sources was evaluated, all the evidence was examined and revised, and the management guidelines were formulated by the 14-expert committee. To reach a final consensus, all the topics were reviewed in a meeting that was attended by all the experts., Results: The proposed guidelines contained 30 topics considered to be highly relevant in the management of anal canal cancer, covering subjects related to screening recommendations, preventive measures, tests required for diagnosing and staging, treatment strategies, response assessment after chemoradiotherapy, surgical technique-related aspects, and follow-up recommendations. In addition, screening and response assessment algorithms, and a checklist were proposed to summarize the important information and offer an updated tool to assist surgeons and oncologists who treat anal canal cancer and in providing the best care to their patients., Conclusion: These guidelines summarize recommendations based on the most current scientific evidence on relevant aspects of anal canal cancer management and are a practical guide to help surgeons and oncologists who treat anal canal cancer make the best therapeutic decisions., (© 2023 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Primary colorectal diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is very rare colon malignancy. It is important to know the main demographic and clinical characteristics of these patients. We conducted a retrospective analysis of 18 patients diagnosed with primary colorectal DLBCL during a 17-year period at the National Cancer Institute of Brazil (INCA) between 2000 and 2018. Demographic characteristics, tumor localization, HIV status, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels, treatment modality and follow-up status were obtained from medical records. Survival was estimated from the date of diagnosis until death. There were 11 male and seven female patients in our cohort, the median age at diagnosis was 59.5 years and four patients were HIV positive. Tumor was mainly localized in the right colon. Patients were treated with chemotherapy (CT) and/or surgical resection. Eleven patients died during a median follow-up of 59 months and the median survival time was 10 months. Six or more cycles of CT (HR=0.19; CI 95% 0.054-0.660, p = 0.009), LDH levels below 350 U/L (HR=0.229; CI 95% 0.060-0.876, p = 0.031) and surgical resection (HR=0.23; CI 95% 0.065-0.828, p = 0.030) were associated with reduced risk of death in univariate analysis. Patient's age and DLBCL right colon localization should be considered at diagnosis to distinguish between DLBCL and other diseases for differential diagnosis. Six cycles of CT, LDH levels below 350 U/L and surgical resection were associated with better survival. Our results are consistent with previous publications and address the importance of correct colorectal DLBCL diagnosis and treatment., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal reli..ionships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

INDUCTION: chemotherapy (IC) followed by chemoradiation (CRT) is an attractive approach in high-risk locally advanced rectal cancer. Additionally, ASA has shown potential to improve outcomes alongside CRT in rectal cancer. The ICAR trial aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of IC followed by CRT with or without ASA on MRI tumor response., Methods: Single-center, double-blind, randomized phase II trial to evaluate induction treatment with CAPOX, followed by capecitabine-based chemoradiotherapy with ASA (arm 1) or placebo (arm 2) in high-risk stage II-III rectal adenocarcinoma staged by MRI. The primary endpoint was MRI tumor regression grade (mrTRG). Secondary endpoints were pathological response, surgical outcomes, postoperative complications, treatment tolerance, DFS, and OS., Results: Between January 2018 and August 2019, 27 patients were eligible, 25 (92.5%) completed IC, and 23 patients were randomly assigned (12 to ASA group; 11 to placebo group). In the ASA arm, 3 pts (25%) presented distant disease progression at restaging. Seven patients (30.4%) had cCR after neoadjuvant treatment. All 13 patients submitted to surgery after neoadjuvant treatment underwent R0 resections except for 1 patient with positive CRM, and 12 patients (92.3%) had sphincter preservation. After a median follow-up of 34.9 months, the 2-year DFS was 83.1% and 3-year OS was 81.5%., Conclusion: There was good compliance in both treatment arms and encouraging cCR rate. ASA during CRT was safe but failed to improve on MRI tumor response. The study was closed due to the absence of benefits., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Background: Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (neoCRT) followed by surgery is the standard of care for locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC), but the emergence of different drug regimens may result in different response rates. Good clinical response translates into greater sphincter preservation, but quality of life (QOL) may be impaired after treatment due to chemoradiotherapy and surgical side effects., Objective: To prospectively evaluate the impact of clinical response and surgical resection on QOL in a randomized trial comparing two different neoCRT regimens., Methods: Stage II and III rectal cancer patients were randomized to receive neoCRT with either capecitabine (group 1) or 5-Fu and leucovorin (group 2) concomitant to long-course radiotherapy. Clinical downstaging was accessed using MRI 6-8 weeks after treatment. EORTCs QLQ-C30 and CR38 were applied before treatment (T0), after neoCRT (T1), after rectal resection (T2), early after adjuvant chemotherapy (T3), and 1 year after the end of treatment or stoma closure (T4). The Wexner scale was used for fecal incontinence evaluation at T4. A C30SummaryScore (Geisinger and cols.) was calculated to compare QOL results., Results: Thirty-two patients were assigned to group 1 and 31 to group 2. Clinical downstaging occurred in 70.0% of group 1 and 53.3% of group 2 (p = 0.288), and sphincter preservation was 83.3% in group 1 and 80.0% in group 2 (p = 0.111). No significant difference in QOL was detected when comparing the two treatment groups after neoCRT using QLQ-C30. However, the CR38 module detected differences in micturition problems (15.3 points), gastrointestinal problems (15.3 points), defecation problems (11.8 points), and sexual satisfaction (13.3 points) favoring the capecitabine group. C30SummaryScore detected significant improvement comparing T0 to T1 and deterioration comparing T1 to T2 (p = 0.025). The mean Wexner scale score was 9.2, and a high score correlated with symptoms of diarrhea and defecation problems at T4., Conclusions: QOL was equivalent between groups after neoCRT except for micturition problems, gastrointestinal problems, defecation problems, and sexual satisfaction favoring the capecitabine arm after. The overall QOL using the C30SummaryScore was improved after neoCRT, but decreased following rectal resection, returning to basal levels at late evaluation. Fecal incontinence was high after sphincter preservation., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03428529., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third leading cause of cancer in North America, Western Europe, and Brazil, and represents an important public health problem. It is estimated that approximately 30% of all the CRC cases correspond to tumors located in the rectum, requiring complex multidisciplinary treatment. In an effort to provide surgeons who treat rectal cancer with the most current information based on the best evidence in the literature, the Brazilian Society of Surgical Oncology (SBCO) has produced the present guidelines for rectal cancer treatment that is focused on the main topics related to daily clinical practice., Objectives: The SBCO developed the present guidelines to provide recommendations on the main topics related to the treatment of mid-low rectal cancer based on current scientific evidence., Methods: Between May and June 2021, 11 experts in CRC surgery met to develop the guidelines for the treatment of mid-low rectal cancer. A total of 22 relevant topics were disseminated among the participants. The methodological quality of a final list with 221 sources was evaluated, all the evidence was examined and revised, and the treatment guideline was formulated by the 11-expert committee. To reach a final consensus, all the topics were reviewed via a videoconference meeting that was attended by all 11 of the experts., Results: The prepared guidelines contained 22 topics considered to be highly relevant in the treatment of mid-low rectal cancer, covering subjects related to the tests required for staging, surgical technique-related aspects, recommended measures to reduce surgical complications, neoadjuvant strategies, and nonoperative treatments. In addition, a checklist was proposed to summarize the important information and offer an updated tool to assist surgeons who treat rectal cancer provide the best care to their patients., Conclusion: These guidelines summarize concisely the recommendations based on the most current scientific evidence on the most relevant aspects of the treatment of mid-low rectal cancer and are a practical guide that can help surgeons who treat rectal cancer make the best therapeutic decision., (© 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

The standard treatment of locally advanced rectal cancer comprises neoadjuvant chemoradiation followed by total mesorectal excision. This strategy provides low local recurrence rate, however distant recurrence is still an issue and may impact on survival rates. Novel approaches in the neoadjuvant setting have been tested to improve early and late outcomes, as well as to reduce treatment-related toxicity and morbidity. In this review, we discuss the current literature of neoadjuvant treatment in locally advanced rectal cancer, including total neoadjuvant methods, protocols for radiation delivery, chemotherapy regimen and efforts to add novel targeted therapies, selective withdrawal of surgery or radiotherapy, and future perspectives. Moreover, we highlight relevant issues that have emerged with these new treatment possibilities., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Chemoradiotherapy (CRT) followed by surgery is the recommended approach in the last years for stage II and III rectal cancer with the intention to decrease the risk of local recurrence. However, fewer patients benefit from this strategy in terms of overall survival and long-term adverse outcomes because T3 rectal cancer has a broad range of prognosis, as shown by recent publications. Many patients with cT3 rectal cancer have a substantial risk of overtreatment with long-term toxicity related to radiotherapy that could be avoided in a subset group of cT3 tumors with good prognosis. These findings raised the question of whether all cT3 rectal cancer should receive preoperative radiotherapy and if a selected cT3 subgroup could be treated by surgery alone. This review addresses the rationale of selecting good prognosis cT3 rectal cancer for surgery alone and analyzes the data to support this recommendation., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The aim of this study was to estimate the contribution of the effect of age, period, and birth cohort on mortality from colorectal cancer. The study analyzed data on deaths from this cancer in individuals over 35 years of age in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil, obtained from the Mortality Information System (SIM) from 1980 to 2014. Mortality rates were calculated by gender and age bracket. The effect of age, period, and birth cohort was estimated by the method that uses estimable functions: deviations, curves, and drift in the Epi library of the R software. Standardized mortality rates from colorectal cancer were 27.37/100,000 men and 21.83/100,000 women in 2014. The data showed an increase in mortality from this cancer from 1980 to 2014, and mortality rates were higher in men than in women after the 1990s. Age effect was observed with an increase in the rates and aging. Generational analysis showed lower risk of death in older versus younger cohorts, possibly related to the adoption of the Western lifestyle. This scenario underscores the need for screening strategies aimed at early diagnosis and treatment of precursor lesions.

Rational: In the treatment of colorectal cancer, from 1982 Heald proposed standardization of the total mesorectal excision, with a significant reduction in the recurrence rate. But the treatment of lower rectal lesions is still a challenge., Aim: To describe the association of robotic low anterior resection- TATA (Transanal Abdominal Transanal Resection), with transanal access using Transanal Endoscopic Operations - TEO in the treatment of lower rectal cancer., Method: The TATA performs robotic abdominal approach and the TEO performs the perineal approach, developing total mesorectal excision (TME) transanally (TaETM)., Result: The TaETM technique was applied in a woman with rectal adenocarcinoma 5 cm from the anal verge that had been submitted to chemoradiation. The procedure was performed with satisfatory operative time and favorable oncological outcome (grade 3 mesorectal excision)., Conclusion: This is a promising minimally invasive procedure in the armamentarium of rectal cancer treatment, specially in challenging scenarios such as narrow pelvis, obesity and very low rectal tumors.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of videolaparoscopy (VLP) in gastric cancer staging, particularly for the detection of peritoneal cancer, to verify its impact in changing the therapeutic conduct, as well as defining the characteristics of the group that can benefit from VLP as staging method., Patients and Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted from May 2011 to March 2013. Thirty-two patients with gastric adenocarcinoma underwent conventional staging together with VLP staging., Results: VLP identified peritoneal disease in 22.6% of patients. Sensitivity was 86%, and specificity was 100%. In the group with non-Borrmann IV, <8 cm tumors, and without evidence of lymphadenomegaly, VLP identified peritoneal implants in 23.1% of cases., Conclusions: VLP is a safe procedure capable of improving the accuracy of gastric cancer staging. There is no justification for failing to perform laparoscopy in patients with <8 cm, non-Borrmann type IV tumors and without evidence of lymphadenomegaly on preoperative examinations.

Imatinib therapy has undoubtedly contributed to the treatment of metastatic gastrointestinal stromal (GIST) tumors that were previously untreatable. However, disease progression during treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors remains an issue in clinical practice not fully explained by KIT and PDGFRA mutation status. We investigated the role of three important signaling molecules (insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor [IGF1R], protein kinase C-θ [PKCθ], and Raf kinase inhibitor protein [RKIP]) that have been implicated in GIST pathogenesis as potential biomarkers for prediction of response to imatinib treatment. We retrospectively reviewed 76 patients with metastatic GIST submitted to imatinib treatment between 2002 and 2007, and analyzed 63 of them. Insulin-like growth factor 1, total PKCθ, phosphorylated PKCθ, and RKIP immunohistochemical expression were correlated with objective response to imatinib treatment and progression-free and overall survival. Median follow-up was 31.2 mo (95% confidence interval, 26.3-36.1 mo). There was a statistically significant association between IGF1R expression and type of response to imatinib treatment (P = 0.05)-that is, higher IGF1R expression was related to lower objective response. However, IGF1R higher expression did not affect progression-free and overall survival. Insulin-like growth factor 1, but not PKCθ and RKIP, emerges as a potential biomarker for prediction of response to imatinib treatment in metastatic GISTs. Validation studies are warranted., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To evaluate the treatment of GIST in INCA., Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of all cases of GIST treated at INCA in the period from 1997 to 2009., Results: We analyzed 146 patients with a mean age of 44.5 years and female predominance. The main symptom was abdominal pain. We observed the occurrence of a second primary tumor in 22% of cases and 92% of the immunohistochemistry exams were positive for CD117. The most frequent location was in the stomach and the high-risk group was predominant. Surgery was considered R0 (extensive) in 70% of the cases and the main sites of metastases were liver and peritoneum. Overall survival in two and five years was, respectively, 86% and 59%. There was a significant difference between overall survival (p = 0.29) of the high-risk group versus the other., Conclusion: Our patients presented mainly in the form of high-risk disease, with obvious impact on survival. The use of imatinib improved survival of patients with recurrent and metastatic disease. We should study its use in the setting of adjuvant and neoadjuvant therapy to improve results of the high risk group. The creation of reference centers is a need for the study of rare diseases.

Background/aim: Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (EGIST) are mesenchymal tumors which may originate in sites outside the gastrointestinal tract with clinico-pathological and molecular profiles similar to GISTs. Here is a series of case reports from The National Cancer Institute (INCA) about this rare type of tumor., Methodology: We retrospectively analyzed 142 patients with a diagnosis of GIST who were treated at INCA between 1997 and 2009, among which 9 were confirmed as having EGIST., Results: We identified 9 patients with a diagnosis of EGIST, 7 of which (77.8%) were female patients with an average age of 56.8 (36-81) years. All patients were symptomatic, with abdominal pain present in 55% of cases. The tumors were located in the pancreas (n=2), in the retroperitoneum (n=3), and in the mesocolon, in the mesentery of the small intestine, in the spleen and in the pelvis (all n=1), respectively. The average tumor size was 18(8.5-27)cm. Immunohistochemistry revealed CD 117 positive in 100% of cases and CD34 positive in 62.5%. Five patients were treated surgically, three of which were submitted to R0 resection. Among those patients, all recurred after 31, 23 and 17 months respectively, and the most frequent sites were the liver and the peritoneum. Out of these three recurrences, two were "rescued" surgically (66%). Five patients were given imatinib (three patients considered unresectable, one submitted to R2 resection and another patient with recurrent disease not amenable to surgery) two patients did not receive any treatment due to compromised clinical conditions. The average overall survival was 26.4 (04-114) months., Conclusion: The occurrence of EGIST is extremely rare and little is known about their actual origin. They manifest through bulky masses, which compromise the prognosis. Aggressive surgical intervention is the most effective treatment associated with the use of imatinib, and a strict followup is necessary due to high recurrence rates.

Objective: Evaluate the presence of other tumors in cohort of patients with GIST treated at a cancer treatment referral center - INCA., Methods: We reviewed the medical records of patients diagnosed with GIST who were treated at INCA between 1998 and 2008. Immunohistological diagnosis was confirmed by a pathologist specialized in sarcomas. Patients presenting second non-GIST tumors were identified. Age, sex, tumor location, risk groups (according to the National Institutes of Health criteria), characteristics of non-GIST tumors and treatment results were analyzed., Results: Among the 101 patients diagnosed with GIST who were evaluated during the study period, 14 (13.8%) had other non-GIST tumors, 9 females (64.3%), with a median age of 68 years (10-79 years). The stomach was the location of GISTs in 8 cases (57.1%), followed by the small bowel in 4 cases (28.5%), colon and mesentery with 1 case (7.1%) each. The mean size of lesions was 4.79 cm (0.3-15 cm), with malignant potential low/very low in 7 cases (50%), intermediate in 5 cases (35.7%) and high in 2 cases (14.3%). The diagnosis of GIST was incidental in 6 cases and in one case the non-GIST tumor was incidental. The non-GIST tumors were most frequent in the stomach (adenocarcinoma), in 4 cases (28.5%) and colon/rectum (adenocarcinoma) in 4 other cases. The other sites involved were breast (ductal carcinoma), kidney (clear cell carcinoma), prostate (adenocarcinoma), endometrium (adenocarcinoma), ovary (adenocarcinoma) and adrenal (neuroblastoma), with one case each. The tumors were synchronous in 7 cases (50%). With a median follow-up after GIST resection of 41 months (2-87 months), 9 patients were alive without evidence of disease, 2 died due to GIST, 2 died due to non-GIST tumors and the remaining patient died due to postoperative complications., Conclusions: We discovered a 13.8% incidence of non-GIST tumors in a series of 101 GIST cases under our care. This association should always be considered in the management of patients with GIST., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This papers is a retrospective analysis of all cases of colorectal GIST treated at our institution. Considering the increased interest in this pathology, in 2008, we recently established a unit supported by Novartis in our department to research and treat GIST. Since then, there was a dramatic increase in the referral of this type of tumor to our center. Before initiating our research group, we had the permission of the ethics committee and the medical directors to study and publish the analysis of our cases. Now, we have a cohort of 98 patients treated during the last 10 years and from that, we selected all cases of Colorectal GIST's. They numbered 13 cases. We performed an analysis of these cases from the presentation to the results of treatment.

Background: Prediction of biological behavior is crucial for selection of new therapeutic modalities in GIST. Here, we aimed to assess whether KIT and PDGFRA mutations have survival impact in gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST)., Patients and Methods: Fifty-five Brazilian patients with completely resected GIST were examined for KIT and PDGFRA mutations. The 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) was analyzed., Results: KIT and PDGFRA mutations were identified in 74.5% and 7.3% of patients, respectively. The 5-year DFS rate for all patients was 52.8%. The 5-year DFS rate was lower in patients with tumors having in-frame deletions or concomitant in-frame deletions and insertions affecting codons 557-558 than in patients with tumors having other exon 11 KIT mutations (p=0.023). Conversely, when the patients with concomitant deletion-insertion mutations affecting codons 557-558 were excluded from the analysis, deletions involving codons 557-558 had no influence on 5-year DFS rates., Conclusion: Our findings indicate that a specific KIT mutation may be associated with unfavorable behavior in GIST. This finding may have implications on selecting patients for adjuvant therapy.

Recent progress in gastrointestinal stromal tumor's (GIST) treatment were responsible for changing GIST's natural history. Knowledge acquirement of molecular mechanism-based systemic therapy gave rise to the development of targeted antineoplastic drugs capable of reaching outcomes that had never been reached before. The introduction of imatinib in the clinical practice not only changed GIST's patients survival but also shifted paradigms. However, besides all these new advances and the improved results with imatinib, the surgeon still plays a pivotal role in the management of the primary GIST tumor and even in the metastatic setting.

Background/aims: So many variables have been identified as prognostic factors influencing survival after curative resection in gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST), but the role of lymph node metastasis remains uncertain., Methodology: Twenty-nine patients with c-Kit positive gastric GIST who underwent surgical resection at the Brazilian National Cancer Institute between 1983 and 2004 were reviewed retrospectively. The prognostic significance of lymph node metastasis was investigated. The endpoints were overall survival and disease free survival., Results: The median follow-up was 35 months. The 5-years estimate survival rate was 53%. Three patients presented lymph node metastasis and developed recurrence disease. Univariate analysis for overall survival identified the size >13.5cm (p = 0.01) and recurrence (p = 0.03) as prognostic factors. Size > 13.5cm and recurrence were independent factors (p = 0.01 and p = 0.03, respectively) in the multivariate analysis. Univariate analysis for disease free survival identified the size > 13.5cm (p = 0.04) and the grade (p = 0.04) as prognostic factors but, only the size > 13.5cm was an independent factor in the multivariate analysis. Lymph node metastasis had no prognostic significance for overall and disease free survival (p = 0.65 and p = 0.57, respectively)., Conclusions: GIST lymph node metastasis was not related to poor survival in this study, but more studies are needed to identify the real incidence and the proper role of the GIST metastatic nodal disease.

Objective: this study was made with the medical students of the "Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais" (UFMG), to get their social economic profile, and their reasons for studying medicine, choosing the specialty, doing medical residence, and showing preferences for being a liberal professional or a salaried employee., Methods: In 1997, a study was made comparing UFMG's medical students beginning their clinical practice (5th semester) and those medical students during the internship in the last term of clinical practice. Both groups were given questionnaires for evaluation., Results: The results were similar for both groups and showed that women constituted almost 50% of the students and about 50% of them were from Belo Horizonte, the State capital of Minas Gerais, Brazil, and from small families with less than three children, and whose parents held a college degree. These students passed the college entrance exams on their first try. Two thirds of their families had income of about 10 to 50 Brazilian minimum wages, and approximately 12% of the families had an income of less than 10 minimum wages. The majority of the students decided to study medicine for altruism or vocational reason; very few (<5%) chose to study medicine for financial reasons. Almost all students (98%) preferred a liberal medical practice; however 80% would accept civil-service employment as an alternative. Nearly all of them (98%) chose to do medical residence to specialize. Most students would prefer to be specialists and only less than 20% would prefer to do general practice in areas such as adult and pediatric clinic, gynecology-obstetric and general surgery., Conclusion: This study shows that medical students from UFMG have an elite social economic profile and a preference for specialized medical practice.