Synovial sarcoma of the heart: Report of a case with diagnosis by endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy.

Background: Primary synovial sarcomas of the heart are aggressive and extremely rare tumors. At least 17 cases have been reported in the literature. In all the published cases the diagnosis was based on histologic sections.

Endoscopic ultrasound of the pancreas: tissue acquisition and intervention.

Endoscopic ultrasound is an established modality for staging gastrointestinal and pancreatic malignancies. Since the development of the linear array echoendoscope, the field of interventional endoscopy has continued to evolve as an adjunctive method to standard endosonography. The ability to sample extraluminal lesions or lymph nodes has overcome the initial limitations of endoscopic ultrasound and provided a list of attractive endoscopic ultrasound-guided therapeutic applications.

Preoperative evaluation of pancreatic cystic lesions: cost-benefit analysis and proposed management algorithm.

Background: This study was performed to develop a management algorithm that accurately predicts the necessity of operative intervention and results in significant cost savings for patients with cystic pancreatic tumors.

Methods: We reviewed 60 patients treated between 1992 and 2003. Accuracy rates of tests used to differentiate benign from premalignant and malignant cysts were calculated.