Potential role of transforming growth factor-beta 1/Smad signaling in secondary lymphedema after cancer surgery.

Secondary lymphedema often develops after cancer surgery, and over 250 million patients suffer from this complication. A major symptom of secondary lymphedema is swelling with fibrosis, which lowers the patient's quality of life, even if cancer does not recur. Nonetheless, the pathophysiology of secondary lymphedema remains unclear, with therapeutic approaches limited to physical or surgical therapy.

Body weight loss after surgery affects the continuity of adjuvant chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer.

Background: Postoperative chemotherapy is beneficial for many pancreatic cancer patients. However, some patients require dose reduction or the discontinuation of adjuvant chemotherapy because of adverse treatment-related effects. In this study, we aimed to evaluate two main outcomes.

Hepatic angiomyolipoma with early drainage veins into the hepatic and portal vein.

Hepatic angiomyolipoma (AML) is a rare stromal tumor composed of variable admixtures of thick-walled vessels, smooth muscles and adipose tissue. One of the specific radiological findings of hepatic AML is an early drainage vein noted via enhanced computed tomography (CT). We report a case of hepatic AML showing early drainage veins into both the hepatic and portal vein.

Lethal Bleeding from a Duodenal Cancerous Ulcer Communicating with the Superior Mesenteric Artery in a Patient with Pancreatic Head Cancer.

Pancreatic cancer often invades the duodenum and causes obstruction, but rarely causes massive duodenal bleeding. A 68-year-old male was admitted to our hospital because of vomiting. Enhanced abdominal CT showed a hypovascular tumor with air bubbles in the uncinate process of the pancreas.

Impact of CYP genotype and inflammatory markers on the plasma concentrations of tramadol and its demethylated metabolites and drug tolerability in cancer patients.

Purpose: Clinical responses to oral tramadol show a large variation in cancer patients. This study aimed to evaluate the impacts of cytochrome P450 (CYP) genotype and serum inflammatory markers on the plasma concentrations of tramadol and its demethylated metabolites and drug tolerability in cancer patients.

Methods: The predose plasma concentrations of tramadol and its demethylated metabolites were determined at day 4 or later in 70 Japanese cancer patients treated with oral tramadol.

Role of caveolin-1 in hepatocellular carcinoma arising from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

The molecular features of hepatocellular carcinoma arising from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD-HCC) are not well known. In this study, we investigated the mechanism by which NAFLD-HCC survives in a fat-rich environment. We found that caveolin (CAV)-1 was overexpressed in clinical specimens from NAFLD-HCC patients.

Usefulness of four-dimensional flow-sensitive magnetic resonance imaging to evaluate hemodynamics in the pancreaticoduodenal artery.

Pancreaticoduodenal artery (PDA) aneurysm associated with celiac axis compression by the median arcuate ligament (MAL) is a rare disorder, but may be lethal if ruptured. Therefore, prophylactic surgical treatments need to be considered when MAL compresses the celiac axis. We herein report the usefulness of an arterial flow analysis for objectively evaluating this pathophysiology under four-dimensional flow-sensitive magnetic resonance imaging (4D-flow MRI).

Stearate-to-palmitate ratio modulates endoplasmic reticulum stress and cell apoptosis in non-B non-C hepatoma cells.

The increased prevalence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) without viral infection, namely, NHCC, is a major public health issue worldwide. NHCC is frequently derived from non-alcoholic fatty liver (NAFL) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, which exhibit dysregulated fatty acid (FA) metabolism. This raises the possibility that NHCC evolves intracellular machineries to adapt to dysregulated FA metabolism.

Accumulation of arachidonic acid-containing phosphatidylinositol at the outer edge of colorectal cancer.

Accumulating evidence indicates that cancer cells show specific alterations in phospholipid metabolism that contribute to tumour progression in several types of cancer, including colorectal cancer. Questions still remain as to what lipids characterize the outer edge of cancer tissues and whether those cancer outer edge-specific lipid compositions emerge autonomously in cancer cells. Cancer tissue-originated spheroids (CTOSs) that are composed of pure primary cancer cells have been developed.

Single-cell time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry reveals that human breast cancer stem cells have significantly lower content of palmitoleic acid compared to their counterpart non-stem cancer cells.

Lipids comprise the primary component of cell membranes. Imaging mass spectrometry is increasingly being used to visualize membranous lipids in clinical specimens, and it has revealed that abnormal lipid metabolism is related to the development of diseases. To characterize cell populations which are rare and sparsely localized in tissues, we conducted time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) analyses of individual cells sorted by fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) and applied the method to analyze breast cancer stem cells (CSCs).

Expression of indocyanine green-related transporters in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background: Indocyanine green (ICG), an organic anion used in liver function tests, is known to accumulate in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues after an intravenous injection. Because the intratumoral expression of transporters for chemical agents influences the behaviors of some malignant tumors, we investigated whether the expression of ICG-related transporters influenced the clinicopathologic features of HCC.

Materials And Methods: ICG accumulation patterns were examined using near-infrared spectroscopy and the protein expression of ICG-related transporters was assessed using immunohistochemistry and immunoblotting in 40 resected HCC specimens.

Detection of intrahepatic veno-venous shunts by three-dimensional venography using multidetector-row computed tomography during angiography.

Purpose: The hepatic vein (HV) can be removed during hepatectomy if there is an effective intrahepatic veno-venous shunt (vv-shunt). We evaluated the efficacy of vv-shunt detection by three-dimensional (3D) venography reconstructed from multidetector-row computed tomography (MDCT) during angiography.

Methods: 3D venography was reconstructed using computer software in 88 patients with intrahepatic tumors.

Anomalous arterial ramification in the right liver.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate whether individual arterial and portal venous division during hepatectomy is always safe by examining the presence of the anomalous arterial ramification in the right liver.

Methods: The ramifications of the right hepatic artery (RHA) were investigated by three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction imaging using a computer software program in 87 patients undergoing computed tomography during angiography as a preoperative assessment of intrahepatic tumors.

Results: The anterior view showed that the RHA bifurcated into the anterior and posterior sector arteries at the hilum in 76 patients.

Pancreatic metastases of cerebellar hemangiopericytoma occurring 24 years after initial presentation: report of a case.

Hemangiopericytoma (HPC) preferentially developing in soft tissues and the meninges has been gradually recognized to be an aggressive, highly metastatic tumor. We herein report the case of a 65-year-old male with pancreatic metastases of cerebellar HPC that developed following two resections of intracranial local recurrent foci, 24 years after the initial craniotomy and 7 years after resection of metastases to the lungs and kidneys. Follow-up abdominal computed tomography scanning and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a solitary tumor in the pancreatic body.

[A case of advanced gastric cancer responding to S-1 therapy, leading to pathologically complete response].

Our patient was a 74-year-old man with abdominal pain. A gastrofiberscope revealed type 2 advanced gastric cancer. An abdominal computed tomography(CT)demonstrated liver and lymph node metastases.

Necrotizing fasciitis caused by a primary appendicocutaneous fistula.

We report a case of necrotizing fasciitis in the loin of a 76-year old man with several coexisting or past health issues, including diabetes mellitus, hypertension, alcohol-related liver cirrhosis, gastrectomy for gastric cancer, subarachnoid hemorrhage, normal pressure hydrocephalus, and cerebral infarction. Incision of the necrotizing fasciitis was successful, but it revealed an appendicocutaneous fistula; thus, we performed appendectomy and fistulectomy. We think that the necrotizing fasciitis was caused by appendicitis perforation involving the retroperitoneum, inducing the formation of an appendicocutaneous fistula.