Performing Quality Control on Magnetic Resonance Imaging Liver Fat/Iron Quantification Studies: A Critical Requirement.

Objective: Nonalcoholic fatty liver and iron overload can lead to cirrhosis requiring early detection. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging utilizing chemical shift-encoded sequences and multi-Time of Echo single-voxel spectroscopy (SVS) are frequently used for assessment. The purpose of this study was to assess various quality factors of technical acceptability and any deficiencies in technologist performance in these fat/iron MR quantification studies.

Aberrant Vascular Anatomy Associated With Artifactual Focal Avidity in the Liver on PSMA PET.

68 Ga-prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) PET/CT is a valuable tool for staging and restaging of prostate cancer. Prostate-specific membrane antigen expression is not specific to prostate cancer, as it is expressed in normal tissues as well as in neoplastic and nonneoplastic processes. Awareness of the broad possibility of lesions with PSMA avidity is necessary to recognize normal variants and avoid potential pitfalls in image interpretation.

Gastrointestinal malignancies in pregnancy.

Gastrointestinal malignancies, though uncommon in pregnancy, present several unique challenges with regards to diagnosis, staging, and treatment. Imaging the pregnant patient with a suspected or confirmed GI malignancy requires modifications to the radiologic modality of choice and protocol in order to minimize harm to the fetus, ensure accuracy in diagnosis and staging and guide treatment decisions. In this review article, we discuss the imaging approach to the pregnant patient with GI cancer, including safe radiologic modalities and modifications to imaging protocols.

Successful Liver Transplantation of Recurrent Fibrolamellar Carcinoma following Clinical and Pathologic Complete Response to Triple Immunochemotherapy: A Case Report.

Introduction: Fibrolamellar carcinoma (FLC) is a rare liver cancer that predominantly affects younger patients without a history of liver disease. Surgical resection is the cornerstone of therapy and represents the best potentially curative treatment option. Modest objective responses with cytotoxic chemotherapy alone or combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have been reported; however, there are no established systemic therapy regimens for unresectable or metastatic FLC.

Molecular characterization of scant lung tumor cells using iron-oxide nanoparticles and micro-nuclear magnetic resonance.

Unlabelled: Advances in nanotechnology and microfluidics are enabling the analysis of small amounts of human cells. We tested whether recently developed micro-nuclear magnetic resonance (μNMR) technology could be leveraged for diagnosing pulmonary malignancy using fine needle aspirate (FNA) of primary lesions and/or peripheral blood samples. We enrolled a cohort of 35 patients referred for CT biopsy of primary pulmonary nodules, liver or adrenal masses and concurrently obtained FNA and peripheral blood samples.

Safety and effectiveness of chemoembolization with drug-eluting beads for advanced-stage hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background: According to the Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) algorithm, patients with advanced stage (BCLC-C) hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are recommended for systemic treatment or palliative therapy. However, chemoembolization with drug-eluting beads (DEB-TACE) has been shown to be safe in high-risk patients. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of DEB-TACE in patients with an advanced-stage HCC.

Comparison of select cancer biomarkers in human circulating and bulk tumor cells using magnetic nanoparticles and a miniaturized micro-NMR system.

Unlabelled: Circulating tumor cells (CTC) harvested from peripheral blood have received significant interest as sources for serial sampling to gauge treatment efficacy. Nanotechnology and microfluidic based approaches are emerging to facilitate such analyses. While of considerable clinical importance, there is little information on how similar or different CTCs are from their shedding bulk tumors.

Factors affecting survival following chemoembolization with doxorubicin-eluting microspheres for inoperable hepatocellular carcinoma.

Purpose: To assess factors associated with better overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) following chemoembolization with doxorubicin-eluting microspheres for inoperable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data of 130 patients (104 men; median age, 62 y) with inoperable HCC who underwent successful DEB chemoembolization with 100-300 -μm LC Bead particles loaded with 50 mg doxorubicin per vial were reviewed following human research committee approval. Effects of various clinical, imaging, and response factors on OS and PFS were assessed by univariate Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. Multiple Cox regression with backward elimination was performed for terms found significant (P ≤ .

Diabetes revealed: multisystem danger.

Objective: The purpose of this article is to review the role of diagnostic imaging in the evaluation of women with diabetes.

Conclusion: Diabetic patients present a challenging population for the performance of various imaging studies and special considerations need to be made to obtain adequate studies. Imaging plays a significant role in assessing the multisystem morbidity of diabetes.

The management of stage I nonseminomatous testicular germ cell tumors.

Testicular germ cell tumors represent the most common malignancies in young males; 70% of patients with seminomas and 50% of those with nonseminomatous germ cell tumors (NSGCT) have clinical stage I at diagnosis. Lymphovascular invasion, embryonal-cell carcinoma component, absence of yolk sac histology and MIB1 proliferation rate represent predictors of micrometastatic diseasein stage I NSGCT. Therapeutic options following orchiectomy in patients with stage I NSGCT comprise nerve-sparing retroperitoneal lymph node dissection, surveillance or adjuvant cisplatin-based chemotherapy.

Cisplatin-based chemotherapy for merkel cell carcinoma of the skin.

Purpose: Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC), a rare tumor of the skin with aggressive behavior, is usually fatal when advanced disease is present. The role of chemotherapy (CT) in the treatment of patients with MCC is unclear.

Methods: Over 15 years, 9 patients with locally advanced or metastatic disease were treated with carboplatin (CBDCA) (300 mg/m(2) of AUC 5 on Day 1) and etoposide (VP-16) (100 mg/m(2) on Days 1-3) every 3 weeks.

Systemic chemotherapy in locally advanced and/or metastatic bladder cancer.

Transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder is a common malignancy. Advanced urothelial cancer is a chemosenstive neoplasm. Whereas the MVAC (methotrexate, vinblastine, doxorubicin, and cisplatin) regimen was long-considered the standard of care for patients with advanced disease, the evaluation of newer agents with retained activity and improved tolerability has been the focus of much investigation over the past decade.

Dermatomyositis associated with breast cancer.

An increased risk of underlying malignancy has been found in patients with dermatomyositis (DM). The risk is increased even in patients with DM aged 45 or younger and remains high for many years after diagnosis. Breast carcinoma does not represent the most common solid tumor associated with this autoimmune disorder.

HER-2/neu status of primary breast cancer and corresponding metastatic sites in patients with advanced breast cancer treated with trastuzumab-based therapy.

Background: The aim of this prospective study was to investigate whether there were changes in HER-2/neu status in newly-developed metastatic lesions following treatment with trastuzumab in advanced breast cancer patients overexpressing HER-2/neu. The utility of serological assays for HER-2/neu in such patients was also studied.

Patients And Methods: Sixteen patients with HER-2/neu-overexpressing tumors (15 were 3+ by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and one 2+ by IHC and positive by the chromogenic in situ hybridization (CISH) test) were included in the study.

Optimal therapy for platinum-resistant recurrent ovarian cancer: doxorubicin, gemcitabine or topotecan?

Ovarian cancer is more fatal than all the other gynaecological malignancies combined. Although most patients respond to first-line combination chemotherapy, the vast majority (50-75%) of patients with advanced disease will relapse. The management of patients with recurrent ovarian cancer is based on their response profile to platinum: patients with platinum-sensitive disease can be rechallenged with platinum-based chemotherapy, whereas the management of patients with platinum-resistant or -refractory disease remains an area of active investigation.

Merkel cell cancer of the skin.

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare malignant cutaneous tumor of the elderly with rapidly growing skin nodules found predominantly on sun-exposed areas of the body. The vast majority of patients present with localized disease, while up to 30% have regional lymph node metastases. Despite local excision and the incidence of local recurrence, regional lymph node metastases and distant metastases is high and usually occurs within 2 years of primary diagnosis.

Brain metastases from epithelial ovarian cancer: a review of the literature.

Background: Brain metastases from epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) are rare. This report is based on a review of the literature.

Methods And Results: This review summarizes the incidence, clinical features, pathophysiology, and diagnostic evaluation of EOC.

Adjuvant and neoadjuvant chemotherapy in muscle invasive bladder cancer: literature review.

Radical cystectomy is the standard treatment for patients with clinically localized muscle invasive bladder cancer, providing a 5-year survival rate of approximately 50%. Failure to cure is often due to the presence of occult metastases beyond the margins of local therapy, indicating a need for eradication of micrometastatic disease with systemic treatment, in order to improve survival. Combined chemotherapy regimens, such as methotrexate-vinblastine-cisplatin (CMV), methotrexate-vinblastine-cisplatin-doxorubicin (M-VAC) and gemcitabine-cisplatin (GC) have already demonstrated their effectiveness in patients with advanced or metastatic disease and have been considered as appropriate regimens in the peri-operative setting.

Recent advances in conventional-dose salvage chemotherapy in patients with cisplatin-resistant or refractory testicular germ cell tumors.

Testicular germ cell tumors represent the most frequent malignancy in young males aged 20-35 years. Despite the considerably high cure rates provided by platinum-based chemotherapy, 20-30% of cases with advanced disease do not achieve a long-term disease-free survival with first-line chemotherapy. These patients are candidates for conventional-dose or high-dose salvage chemotherapy.

Comparison of docetaxel and docetaxel-irinotecan combination as second-line chemotherapy in advanced non-small-cell lung cancer: a randomized phase II trial.

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate whether docetaxel (taxotere) treatment with or without irinotecan improved patient outcomes with similar toxicity in recurrent non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Patients And Methods: Patients with recurrent platinum-refractory NSCLC with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0-2 were randomized to either docetaxel 30 mg/m(2) and irinotecan 60 mg/m(2) (days 1 and 8) or docetaxel 75 mg/m(2) (day 1), both administered every 3 weeks.

Results: A total of 130 patients were randomized.

Oxaliplatin plus high-dose leucovorin and 5-fluorouracil (FOLFOX 4) in platinum-resistant and taxane-pretreated ovarian cancer: a phase II study.

Objective: A prospective phase II study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of oxaliplatin plus 5-fluoruracil (5-FU) and high-dose leucovorin (LV) (FOLFOX-4) in patients with platinum-resistant, taxane-pretreated recurrent ovarian cancer.

Patients And Methods: Thirty-eight patients, with a median age of 58 years (range 33-77), were treated with oxaliplatin 85 mg m(-2) as a 2-h infusion on day 1, LV 200 mg m(-2) day(-1) as a 2-h infusion followed by bolus 5-FU 400 mg m(-2) day(-1) and a 22-h infusion of 5-FU 600 mg m(-2) day(-1) for 2 consecutive days. Treatment was repeated every 3 weeks.

Oxaliplatin and irinotecan plus granulocyte-colony stimulating factor as third-line treatment in relapsed or cisplatin-refractory germ-cell tumor patients: a phase II study.

Objective: To investigate the efficacy and tolerability of the combination of oxaliplatin and irinotecan in patients with relapsed or cisplatin-refractory germ cell tumors (GCT).

Patients And Methods: Eighteen patients with relapsed or cisplatin-refractory GCT were treated with oxaliplatin 85 mg/m(2) on days 1 and 15, followed by irinotecan 80 mg/m(2) on days 1, 8 and 15, every four weeks for a maximum of six cycles.

Results: All patients were assessable for response and toxicity.

Gemcitabine and oxaliplatin (GEMOX) in patients with cisplatin-refractory germ cell tumors: a phase II study.

Background: To investigate the efficacy and toxicity of the combination of gemcitabine and oxaliplatin (GEMOX) in patients with relapsed or cisplatin-refractory non-seminomatous germ cell tumors (NSGCT).

Patients And Methods: Twenty-nine patients with relapsed or cisplatin-refractory NSGCT were treated with gemcitabine 1000 mg/m2 on days 1 and 8 followed by oxaliplatin 130 mg/m2 on day 1 every 3 weeks for a maximum of six cycles. Twenty-four patients (83%) were considered refractory and five (17%) absolutely refractory to cisplatin.

Testicular function in patients with testicular cancer treated with bleomycin-etoposide-carboplatin (BEC(90)) combination chemotherapy.

Objective: To investigate the impact of bleomycin-etoposide-carboplatin combination chemotherapy on long-term fertility in patients with testicular germ cell tumors.

Methods: Twenty-five patients with high risk stage I and IM non-seminomatous germ cell tumors (NSGCT, Group A) and 44 with advanced seminoma or NSGCT (Group B) were treated with bleomycin 30 mg (days 2, 9, 16), etoposide 165 mg/m(2) (days 1-3) and carboplatin 400mg/m(2) or AUC 5 (day 1) (BEC(90)). Treatment was repeated every 3 weeks.