Clinical, surgical, and pathological findings in client-owned rabbits with histologically confirmed appendicitis: 19 cases (2015-2019).

Objective: To report clinical, surgical, and pathological findings in client-owned rabbits with histologically confirmed appendicitis.

Animals: 19 rabbits.

Procedures: Medical records for client-owned rabbits that had a histologic diagnosis of appendicitis were reviewed.

Circulating miR-21-5p and miR-148a-3p as emerging non-invasive biomarkers in thymic epithelial tumors.

Thymic epithelial cells give rise to both thymoma and thymic carcinoma. A crucial advance in thymic epithelial tumors (TET) management may derive from the identification of novel molecular biomarkers able to improve diagnosis, prognosis and treatment planning.In a previous study, we identified microRNAs that were differentially expressed in tumor vs normal thymic tissues.

Development of a prediction model and risk score for procedure-related complications in patients undergoing percutaneous computed tomography-guided lung biopsy.

Objectives: To propose a risk score predicting the potential occurrence of procedure-related complications in patients undergoing computed tomography (CT)-guided lung biopsy.

Methods: Institution review board approval was obtained. A total of 342 CT-guided lung biopsies were retrospectively evaluated taking into account procedure-related complications and associated risk factors, including patient gender and age, previous radiation therapy (RT) and/or chemotherapy (CHT), lesion size, depth and location, incomplete pulmonary fissures, associated diffuse lung diseases, previous pneumothorax (PNX), lung volumes, punctured fissures, thoracic access, needle size and operator experience.

Preliminary clinical experience with a dedicated interventional robotic system for CT-guided biopsies of lung lesions: a comparison with the conventional manual technique.

Objective: Evaluate the performance of a robotic system for CT-guided lung biopsy in comparison to the conventional manual technique.

Materials And Methods: One hundred patients referred for CT-guided lung biopsy were randomly assigned to group A (robot-assisted procedure) or group B (conventional procedure). Size, distance from entry point and position in lung of target lesions were evaluated to assess homogeneity differences between the two groups.

Unusual symptomatic inclusion cysts in a newborn: a case report.

Introduction: Dental lamina cysts are cysts that occur as white or pink small nodules, often multiple, approximately 1 to 3mm in diameter. They are typically located on the midpalatine raphe and less frequently on the maxillary and mandibular alveolar mucosa; in the latter case these can be appear to be neonatal teeth.On microscopic examination, these lesions show a stratified squamous epithelium (two to three cell layers); it is possible to find protein, keratin and/or exfoliated epithelial cells in the lumen of the lesions.

MicroRNA expression profiling of thymic epithelial tumors.

Background: Thymic epithelial tumors (TET) are the most frequent human primary mediastinal tumors in adults. A deep biological characterization of the processes at the basis of the transformed phenotype could strongly improve our understanding of the morphological and clinical heterogeneity of these diseases. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are non-coding RNAs involved in post-transcriptional regulation and their altered expression accounts for the pathogenesis of several tumors.

Outcome of surgically resected thymic carcinoma: a multicenter experience.

Objective: Thymic carcinoma (TC) is a rare and invasive mediastinal tumor, with poor prognosis. Most of the previous published papers are single-institution based, reporting small series of patient, sometimes including palliative resection. This study collected patients with TC treated in 5 high-volume Italian Thoracic Surgery Institutions.

External Quality Assessment (EQA) program for the preanalytical and analytical immunohistochemical determination of HER2 in breast cancer: an experience on a regional scale.

Background: An External Quality Assessment (EQA) program was developed to investigate the state of the art of HER2 immunohistochemical determination in breast cancer (BC) in 16 Pathology Departments in the Lazio Region (Italy). This program was implemented through two specific steps to evaluate HER2 staining (step 1) and interpretation (step 2) reproducibility among participants.

Methods: The management activities of this EQA program were assigned to the Coordinating Center (CC), the Revising Centers (RCs) and the Participating Centers (PCs).

von Hippel Lindau disease with colon adenocarcinoma, renal cell carcinoma and adrenal pheochromocytoma.

von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease is an autosomal dominant inherited tumor syndrome characterized by the presence of heterogeneous tumors derived from different organs. VHL is caused by germline mutations in the VHL tumor suppressor gene located on chromosome 3p25-26. The loss of functional VHL protein contributes to tumorigenesis.

Double localization of keratoacantho-ma on the cutaneous and mucosal sides of the lower lip: report of a case.

The clinical course and histological features of keratoacanthoma (KA) are well recognized by dermatologists and pathologists, but they are less familiar to dental professionals. The aims of this report were to describe an unusual case of simultaneous intraoral and labial KA and to identify the most important aspects of the clinical management of this lesion.

A woman with a solitary pulmonary nodule: is it a lung cancer?

Solitary pulmonary nodules present a real challenge for physicians. Due to the clinical implications and prognosis of a certain diagnosis, it should be pursued with any cost; a clear definition is not always simple and further investigations are often necessary to exclude the possibility of a malignancy. A diagnostic path must be followed and the clinical hypothesis should be reconsidered on the basis of the new information provided by the tests, always keeping in mind their limits! Sometimes only the surgical resection permits a definitive diagnosis.

Usefulness of the organ culture system when villous height/crypt depth ratio, intraepithelial lymphocyte count, or serum antibody tests are not diagnostic for celiac disease.

The existence of mild forms of celiac disease (CD) can make the histology-based diagnosis difficult to reach. Since anti-endomysium (EMA) and anti-tissue transglutaminase (anti-tTG) are detectable in culture supernatants of duodenal biopsies from CD patients, our aim was to assess if this system can support the histology in the diagnostic work-up. A total of 559 suspected CD patients underwent serum EMA/anti-tTG detection, upper endoscopy with duodenal biopsy sampling, histologic analysis, and organ culture to detect EMA/anti-tTG in supernatants.

Breast tuberculosis: rare but still present in Italy--a case of mycobacterium breast infection.

Breast tuberculosis is a rare disease in highly endemic countries, and it is even rarer in Western countries, where only occasionally the local population is affected. The rarity of the disease and particularly the lack of a typical clinical-radiological presentation may cause tuberculosis to be mistaken for breast cancer or a pyogenic abscess. The authors present a case of breast tuberculosis in a 27-year-old nulliparous woman, an Italian citizen of the Caucasian race, who has never resided in a tuberculosis endemic area.

Thymoma and thymic carcinoma.

Thymic tumors comprise a heterogeneous group of neoplasms with a wide spectrum of clinical presentations. The evolution of the disease is often unpredictable, ranging from an indolent attitude to the possibility of intra- and extrathoracic spread. From the histological point of view, thymoma and thymic carcinoma are the most frequent subtypes and arise only from thymic epithelial cells.

Caveolin-1 overexpression is associated with simultaneous abnormal expression of the E-cadherin/α-β catenins complex and multiple ErbB receptors and with lymph nodes metastasis in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas.

The presence of lymph node metastases is one of the most important prognostic indicators in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs). An alteration of the E-cadherin-catenins complex and EGFR is essential for the invasiveness of cancer cells. Caveolin-1, the major structural protein of the caveolae, represents a scaffolding molecule for several signaling proteins including EGFR.

Scedosporium apiospermum atrial mycetomas after lung transplantation for cystic fibrosis.

A 37-year-old patient with cystic fibrosis underwent double lung transplantation. She developed disseminated Scedosporium apiospermum infection 2 months after surgery. Along with multiple brain abscesses, lung infection, and chorioretinitis, a cardiac echo revealed 2 large intra-atrial mycetomas floating close to the right upper pulmonary vein orifice.

Efficacy and tolerability of long-acting octreotide in the treatment of thymic tumors: results of a pilot trial.

Objectives: Octreotide is a somatostatin analog, long-acting formulations of which have been used experimentally for the treatment of patients with invasive tumors and/or residual disease after conventional therapies. The objective of this retrospective study was to evaluate the efficacy of long-acting octreotide (Sandostatin LAR) for the treatment of thymic tumors, with a primary efficacy end point of progression-free survival.

Methods: Between 1994 and 2010, 44 patients with thymic malignancies were evaluated.

Synchronous B3 thymoma and lung bronchoalveolar carcinoma.

The association between thymic tumors and other intrathoracic or extrathoracic neoplasms is relatively rare; the synchronous occurrence of thymoma and bronchoalveolar carcinoma of the lung has never been described so far. A huge B3 cystic thymoma was found at thoracotomy to be associated with stage IV bronchoalveolar carcinoma (intraparenchymal and pleural metastases). The thymic tumor was completely resected; lung cancer was biopsied only for diagnosis and staging purposes.

Dermatomyositis as first clinical appearance for a thymic epidermoid cell carcinoma.

Primary thymic carcinoma is a rare and heterogeneous group of tumours of the anterior mediastinum that includes different histological types. Frequently, it first comes to clinical attention through paraneoplastic syndromes such as dermatomyositis. We report the case of a 54-year-old woman with several episodes of fever and chest pain in the previous 5 months.

Thymoma and thymic carcinoma.

Thymoma and thymic carcinoma are an extremely heterogeneous group of neoplastic lesions with an exceedingly wide spectrum of morphologic appearances. They show different presentations with a variable and unpredictable evolution ranging from an indolent non-invasive attitude to a highly infiltrative and metastasising one. Prognosis can be predicted on the basis of a number of variables, mainly staging, the WHO histological pattern and diameter of the tumour.

[Merkel cell carcinoma: an uncommon neuroendocrine cancer].

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC), firstly described by Torker in 1972, is an uncommon and aggressive neuroendocrine cancer of the skin. MCC tends to recur and precociously spread to lymph nodes. Five-year survival rate is between 35 and 75%.