[Liver Herniation through a Diaphragmatic Defect Mimicking Pleural Tumor;Report of a Case].

Liver herniation is rare and sometimes difficult to differentiate from pleural or diaphragmatic tumor. A 64-year-old woman was admitted due to a mass-like shadow in the right lower lung field. Computed tomography, coronal view, showed a well-defined mass forming an acute angle with the right diaphragm, mimicking pleural tumor.

Nontuberculous mycobacterial disease concomitant with a pulmonary artery occlusion caused by Takayasu's arteritis.

We herein describe a surgical case of pulmonary involvement in Takayasu's arteritis with pulmonary infections of nontuberculous mycobacteria. A 24-year-old female was admitted to our hospital because of a recurrent fever, and contrast-enhanced computed tomography of the chest revealed the occlusion of the right pulmonary artery and cavitary lesions in the right lower lobe of the lung. A further examination of the neck revealed the occlusion of aortic branches, and the patient was diagnosed with Takayasu's arteritis.

Targeting ceramide synthase 6-dependent metastasis-prone phenotype in lung cancer cells.

Sphingolipids make up a family of molecules associated with an array of biological functions, including cell death and migration. Sphingolipids are often altered in cancer, though how these alterations lead to tumor formation and progression is largely unknown. Here, we analyzed non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) specimens and cell lines and determined that ceramide synthase 6 (CERS6) is markedly overexpressed compared with controls.

The Significance of the Prognostic Nutritional Index in Patients with Completely Resected Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Objectives: Immunological parameters and nutritional status influence the outcome of patients with malignant tumors. A prognostic nutritional index, calculated using serum albumin levels and peripheral lymphocyte count, has been used to assess prognosis for various cancers. This study aimed to investigate whether this prognostic nutritional index affects overall survival and the incidence of postoperative complications in patients with completely resected non-small cell lung cancer.

The ABO blood group is an independent prognostic factor in patients with resected non-small cell lung cancer.

Background: The ABO blood group is reported to be associated with the incidence and patient survival for several types of malignancies. We conducted a retrospective study to evaluate the prognostic significance of the ABO blood group in patients with resected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Methods: A total of 333 patients (218 men and 115 women) with resected NSCLC were included in this study.

Surgical management of locally advanced lung cancer.

Majority of cases of lung cancer are detected at an advanced stage; such patients are usually treated with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and the prognosis is frequently poor. Surgical resection remains the only reliable curative method for the treatment of lung cancer, and combined resection of the primary tumor and involved neighboring structures is performed when possible in patients with locally advanced disease. In the TNM classification, tumors with direct extrapulmonary extension are subdivided based on the anatomic extent of disease and its potential for surgical treatment: T3 lesions with limited, circumscribed extension are thought to be potentially surgically resectable, whereas T4 tumors with extensive extension are considered unresectable.

Preoperative plasma D-dimer level is an independent prognostic factor in patients with completely resected non-small cell lung cancer.

Purpose: The plasma D-dimer (D-dimer) level, a marker of hypercoagulation, has been reported to be associated with survival in several types of cancers. This retrospective study was conducted to evaluate the prognostic significance of the preoperative D-dimer level in patients with completely resected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Methods: A total of 237 completely resected NSCLC patients were included in this study.

Micronodular thymoma with lymphoid stroma: an immunohistochemical study of the distribution of Langerhans cells and mature dendritic cells in six patients.

Aims: Micronodular thymoma with lymphoid stroma (MNT) is an uncommon variant of thymoma, characterized by multiple small nodules consisting of type A thymoma-like cells, which are separated by abundant B lymphocytes. The aim of the study was to elucidate the pathogenesis of the stromal lymphoid hyperplasia, which is currently unclear.

Methods And Results: We retrieved six cases of MNT, and immunohistochemically examined the number and distribution of Langerhans cells (LCs) and mature dendritic cells (DCs), and compared them with those in type A and type AB thymomas.

Risk assessment of perioperative mortality after pulmonary resection in patients with primary lung cancer: the 30- or 90-day mortality.

Objectives: Although 30-day mortality rate is adapted to evaluate perioperative mortality after surgery, whether 90-day mortality rate adequately evaluates perioperative mortality remains unknown. Therefore, we analyzed 30- and 90-day mortality rates after pulmonary resection in patients with primary lung cancer.

Methods: A total of 2207 pulmonary resections for primary lung cancer performed between 1996 and 2010 at the Aichi Cancer Center Hospital were analyzed and divided into two groups of almost equal number: the early period group (1070 patients, 1996-2004) and the late period group (1137 patients, 2005-2010).

Spinal epidural hematoma during anticoagulant therapy for pulmonary embolism: postoperative complications in a patient with lung cancer.

Spinal epidural hematoma (SEH) is rare but causes neurological disorders. Rapid diagnosis and treatment maximize neurological recovery. We present the case of SEH after lung cancer surgery under epidural and general anesthesia.

Prognostic impact of tumor size eliminating the ground glass opacity component: modified clinical T descriptors of the tumor, node, metastasis classification of lung cancer.

Introduction: The presence of ground glass opacity (GGO) on high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) is well known to be pathologically closely associated with adenocarcinoma in situ. Recently, measuring the tumor diameter including areas of GGO on HRCT has been reported to possibly overestimate the T status. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the significance of the tumor size measured eliminating the area of GGO on HRCT as a prognostic factor and to propose a refined TNM classification based on modified T descriptors.

FDG PET/CT is useful for detecting infiltration to the port site in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Objective: One reason for the poor outcomes of multimodality therapies, including macroscopic complete resection, in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is the difficulty of correctly staging the disease, which can result in incomplete resection. The purpose of this study was to investigate the aspects of tumor infiltration to the port site and the usefulness of preoperative FDG PET/CT for diagnosing MPM.

Methods: Between June 2007 and May 2013, 21 patients who underwent surgical treatment with curative intent for MPM that had been previously diagnosed on a video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) biopsy were included in this study.

The association between baseline clinical-radiological characteristics and growth of pulmonary nodules with ground-glass opacity.

Introduction: Pulmonary nodules with ground-glass opacity (GGO) are frequently encountered; there is little consensus on appropriate monitoring of them. The purpose of this study was to clarify which baseline clinical and radiological characteristics were associated with growth of these nodules.

Methods: We retrospectively studied patients with pulmonary nodules that met the following criteria: (1) lesion diameter of ≤3 cm, (2) GGO proportion of ≥50%, and (3) observation without treatment in the prior 6 months.

Significance of the serum carcinoembryonic antigen level during the follow-up of patients with completely resected non-small-cell lung cancer.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to elucidate the detectability of recurrence and the prognostic significance of the serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels in patients with completely resected non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Methods: Five hundred and eighteen NSCLC patients who underwent complete resection at Aichi Cancer Center between April 2001 and March 2006 were enrolled in this study. The patient characteristics were as follows: the median age was 63 years; 331 tumours were classified as pathological stage I, 88 tumours were pathological stage II and 99 tumours were pathological stage III; 140 tumours were adenocarcinomas with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations, 268 tumours were adenocarcinomas with EGFR wild-type mutations and 110 tumours were other NSCLCs.

How long should small lung lesions of ground-glass opacity be followed?

Introduction: Pulmonary ground-glass nodules are frequently encountered. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the natural history of them and to gain some insights on how to follow them up.

Methods: We retrospectively studied patients with pulmonary nodules that met the following criteria: (1) tumor diameter of 3 cm or less, (2) ground-glass opacity proportion of 50% or more, and (3) observation without treatment for 6 months or more.

Solitary pulmonary metastasis from lung cancer harboring EML4-ALK after a 15-year disease-free interval.

It is often difficult to differentiate metachronous primary lung cancers from local pulmonary recurrences when the histopathological findings are similar. A 43-year-old man underwent right upper lobectomy with lymph node dissection for primary lung adenocarcinoma (p-T2aN0M0, stage IB). Fifteen years later, he developed a lung nodule in his right middle lobe.

Diagnostic reproducibility of thymic epithelial tumors using the World Health Organization classification: note for thoracic clinicians.

Objective: Histopathological diagnosis of thymic epithelial tumors according to the current World Health Organization classification is not adequately reproducible; however, most thoracic clinicians are unaware of this. We illustrate this problem in practical settings to raise clinician awareness.

Methods: An expert pathologist specialized in thymic pathology and a trained general pathologist independently diagnosed 158 resected thymic epithelial tumors.

TIMELESS is overexpressed in lung cancer and its expression correlates with poor patient survival.

TIMELESS (TIM) is a mammalian homolog of a Drosophila circadian rhythm gene, but its circadian properties in mammals have yet to be determined. TIM appears to be essential for replication protection and genomic stability. Recently, the involvement of TIM in human malignancies has been reported; therefore, we investigated the role of TIM in lung cancer.

Membranous expression of activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule contributes to poor prognosis and malignant phenotypes of non-small-cell lung cancer.

Background: Activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM) has been shown to correlate with the prognosis of patients with various types of human malignancies. However, the relationship between ALCAM expression and progression of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has not been investigated. This study was designed to clarify the prognostic impact of ALCAM expression of NSCLC cells.

Activated leukocyte cell-adhesion molecule (ALCAM) promotes malignant phenotypes of malignant mesothelioma.

Introduction: Cell-adhesion molecules play important roles involving the malignant phenotypes of human cancer cells. However, detailed characteristics of aberrant expression status of cell-adhesion molecules in malignant mesothelioma (MM) cells and their possible biological roles for MM malignancy remain poorly understood.

Methods: DNA microarray analysis was employed to identify aberrantly expressing genes using 20 MM cell lines.

An anomalous segmental vein of the left upper lobe of the lung: preoperative identification by three-dimensional computed tomography pulmonary angiography.

A number of variations in the pulmonary arteries and veins have been documented, and the information is very important for performing a safe lung resection. This report describes a case of an anomalous segmental vein of the left upper lobe of the lung. The patient was a 75-year old male who was suspected to have lung cancer in the left upper lobe.