Role of FOXO3A in Trastuzumab Combination Chemotherapy in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Background/aim: Targeting of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) is suggested to be beneficial for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patients with HER2 amplification. In this study, we evaluated the effects of combination chemotherapy with HER2-targeted drug trastuzumab in ESCC cells and examined the underlying mechanism contributing to these effects.

Materials And Methods: HER2 expression was verified, and the efficacy of chemotherapy with and without trastuzumab was investigated in vitro and in vivo.

Pylorus-Preserving Surgery Based on the Sentinel Node Concept in Early Gastric Cancer.

Background: In patients with early stage gastric cancer in the middle third of the stomach, pylorus-preserving gastrectomy (PPG) can be an option as function-preserving surgery, although its oncologic safety is not definitively defined. This issues may be overcome using the sentinel node (SN) concept. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of the SN concept in early gastric cancer patients who are candidates for PPG.

CXCL12 expression promotes esophageal squamous cell carcinoma proliferation and worsens the prognosis.

Background: The chemokine CXCL12 and its corresponding receptor CXCR4 are key players in the development of several cancers. Therefore, we hypothesized that there is a functional causality between CXCL12 expression and tumor progression in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).

Methods: We performed an immunohistochemical analysis in 79 consecutive patients with ESCC.

Salvage endoscopic resection as a treatment for locoregional failure or recurrence following chemoradiotherapy or radiotherapy for esophageal cancer.

Radiotherapy (RT) or chemoradiotherapy (CRT) is a potentially curative, non-surgical treatment option for esophageal cancer, although the rate of local failure within the esophagus remains relatively high. Salvage esophagectomy is not regarded as a common treatment for esophageal cancer, since it is a high-risk surgery with a relatively high surgical mortality rate. Salvage endoscopic resection (ER) for local failure is used for treatment when esophageal cancer is localized and superficial.

Xanthogranulomatous gastritis of the remnant stomach mimicking a malignant tumor: A case report.

Xanthogranulomas are known to develop in the gallbladder and kidney. Xanthogranuloma of the stomach is a rare disease, and to the best of our knowledge, only a few cases have been reported to date. The present patient was a 64-year-old man who underwent a wide resection of the stomach following a Billroth-I reconstruction for a gastric ulcer ~40 years prior to the current presentation.

Auxiliary diagnosis of lymph node metastasis in early gastric cancer using quantitative evaluation of sentinel node radioactivity.

Background: Sentinel node (SN) mapping using dye and radioisotope (RI) tracer has been reported to be feasible in cases of early gastric cancer. Because accurate diagnosis of micrometastasis is sometimes difficult in the limited time available during surgery, a faster and simpler method of improving the intraoperative diagnostic precision of lymph node metastasis is needed. The amount of tracer deposited in an SN can be determined from its radioactivity; however, the significance of the RI count has not been fully discussed.

Clinical significance of the anterosuperior lymph nodes along the common hepatic artery identified by sentinel node mapping in patients with gastric cancer.

Background: The sentinel node (SN) concept is safely applied and validated in early gastric cancer. Gastric lymph nodes are divided into five basins with the main gastric arteries, and the anterosuperior lymph nodes with the common hepatic artery (No. 8a) are classified in the right gastric artery (r-GA) basin.

Sentinel lymph node mapping for 385 gastric cancer patients.

Background: The objectives were to investigate the accuracy of sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy, detect the predictors for undetected or false-negative cases, evaluate the indications for SLN-navigated gastrectomy, and characterize the problems of SLN mapping in gastric cancer. The SLN concept may be applicable to early gastric cancer, particularly clinical T1N0M0 or T2N0M0 with tumor diameter ≤4 cm.

Methods: A total of 385 consecutive patients diagnosed with cT1N0M0 or cT2aN0M0 operable gastric cancer from April 1999 to December 2007 underwent radical gastrectomy with SLN mapping.

CXCR2 expression and postoperative complications affect long-term survival in patients with esophageal cancer.

Background: Esophagectomy is one of the most invasive surgical treatments for digestive tract cancer, and the blood levels of inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1, interleukin-6, and interleukin-8 are increased for several hours after surgery or in patients experiencing postoperative complications. CXCR2, an interleukin-8 receptor, is reportedly expressed in several carcinomas, and interleukin-8 signaling promotes cancer cell proliferation. The impact of postoperative complications following esophagectomy on long-term survival is controversial.

Comprehensive screening of genes resistant to an anticancer drug in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Drug resistance to chemotherapy is a major issue in esophageal cancer management. Drug resistance may be mediated by genetic changes in the tumor; therefore, the identification of gene mutations may lead to better therapeutic outcomes. We used a novel method involving transposons to screen and identify drug-resistant genes.

Effect of Daikenchuto, a Traditional Japanese Herbal Medicine, after Total Gastrectomy for Gastric Cancer: A Multicenter, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Phase II Trial.

Background: Daikenchuto (DKT) has widely been used to improve abdominal symptoms by being expected to accelerate bowel motility. The purpose of this study is to examine the efficacy and safety of DKT for prevention of ileus and associated gastrointestinal symptoms after total gastrectomy.

Study Design: Two hundred and forty-five gastric cancer patients who underwent total gastrectomy were enrolled.

Surgical Resection of Remnant Gastric Cancer Following Distal Gastrectomy: A Retrospective Clinicopathological Study.

Background: Remnant gastric cancer (RGC) is one of the less prevalent gastric cancers. The purpose of this study was to explore the clinicopathological characteristics and results of the operation of RGC following distal gastrectomy. In particular, we examined factors related to prognosis.

Correlation Between Intense Postoperative Inflammatory Response and Survival of Esophageal Cancer Patients Who Underwent Transthoracic Esophagectomy.

Background: The correlation between postoperative systemic inflammation and cancer survival needs to be elucidated. This study evaluated postoperative inflammation using the peak concentration of postoperative serum C-reactive protein (CRP) levels and duration of CRP elevation, then investigated its correlation with prognosis.

Methods: The study retrospectively reviewed 216 consecutive patients who underwent curative transthoracic esophagectomy at the authors' institution between 2004 and 2012.

Attenuation of lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury after (pro)renin receptor blockade.

Purpose/aim: We performed a randomized, prospective animal study to investigate whether inhibiting the renin-angiotensin system with a (pro)renin receptor blocker (PRRB) prevents acute lung injury (ALI) in a rodent model.

Materials: We used Thirty-six male Sprague-Dawley rats. We administered lipopolysaccharide (LPS; 2 mg/kg) intratracheally with or without PRRB pretreatment (1 mg/kg/d).

Postoperative hyperbilirubinemia suggests the occurrence of complications after esophagectomy for esophageal cancer.

Background: Serum bilirubin levels frequently increase after esophagectomy for esophageal cancer. Several studies have reported hyperbilirubinemia in patients with postoperative complications. We aimed to perform a detailed large-scale analysis to clarify this association.

Factors affecting cytokine change after esophagectomy for esophageal cancer.

Background: Esophagectomy for esophageal cancer is one of the most invasive operative procedures. Surgical stress induces the release of proinflammatory cytokines, and overproduction induces a systemic inflammatory response syndrome, which may lead to acute lung injury and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. In addition, surgical stress may cause immunosuppression, which may affect not only perioperative mortality but also long-term survival.

Phase I study of S-1 plus fractional cisplatin as adjuvant chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer in an outpatient setting (KOGC-03).

Aim: The aim of this phase I study was to adjust the dose of cisplatin as adjuvant combination chemotherapy with S-1 in an outpatient setting for gastric cancer.

Patients And Methods: The first course was initiated with S-1 monotherapy on days 1-28. From the second to the sixth course, S-1 was administered on days 1-28 and cisplatin was added on days 1, 15, and 29.

A case of late lymph node metastasis after three endoscopic mucosal resections of intramucosal gastric cancers.

We describe a patient with solitary lymph node (LN) metastasis after three endoscopic mucosal resections (EMRs) in which a gastrointestinal stromal tumor was difficult to differentiate from the carcinoid and lymphoma tumors. A 77-year-old man underwent three EMRs at 62, 72, and 75 years of age, and all resections were determined to be curative. However, 2 years after the last EMR, screening abdominal ultrasonography detected a 20-mm solitary tumor at the lesser curvature of the upper stomach.

Antitumor effect of the tyrosine kinase inhibitor nilotinib on gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) and imatinib-resistant GIST cells.

Despite the benefits of imatinib for treating gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST), the prognosis for high risk GIST and imatinib-resistant (IR) GIST remains poor. The mechanisms of imatinib resistance have not yet been fully clarified. The aim of the study was to establish imatinib-resistant cell lines and investigate nilotinib, a second generation tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), in preclinical models of GIST and imatinib-resistant GIST.

Cumulative prognostic scores based on plasma fibrinogen and serum albumin levels in esophageal cancer patients treated with transthoracic esophagectomy: comparison with the Glasgow prognostic score.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to establish a prognostic indicator based on preoperative plasma fibrinogen and serum albumin levels (FA score) in esophageal cancer patients and to compare the correlation with survival to that of the Glasgow prognostic score.

Methods: Patient characteristics, clinicopathological factors, and preoperative biochemical markers (fibrinogen, albumin, and C-reactive protein) were investigated in esophageal cancer patients who underwent transthoracic esophagectomy. Pretreatment fibrinogen and albumin levels were reviewed in patients who received neoadjuvant treatment.

Intra-abdominal desmoid tumor mimicking gastric cancer recurrence: a case report.

Intra-abdominal desmoid tumors are rare and most often occur in patients with a history of familial adenomatous polyposis, surgery, or pregnancy. We report a case of an intra-abdominal desmoid tumor mimicking the recurrence of gastric cancer. A 57-year-old male had undergone distal gastrectomy for advanced gastric cancer.

CC-Chemokine receptor CCR7: a key molecule for lymph node metastasis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: CC-chemokine receptor 7 (CCR7), a known lymph node homing receptor for immune cells, has been reported as a key molecule in lymph node metastasis. We hypothesized a clinicopathological correlation and functional causality between CCR7 expression and lymph node metastasis in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).

Methods: We performed immunohistochemical analysis of 105 consecutive and 61 exclusive pathological T1 ESCC patients, followed by adhesion assay and in vivo experiment using a newly developed lymph node metastasis mouse model.

Suitability of sentinel node mapping as an index of metastasis in early gastric cancer following endoscopic resection.

Background: When pathological diagnosis following endoscopic resection (ER) for early gastric cancer (EGC) suggests probable lymph node metastasis, additional surgery with lymphadenectomy should be performed. The sentinel node (SN) concept has yet to be applied to tumors following ER. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of SN navigation surgery for such tumors.

Successful management of anastomotic leakage and lung fistula after esophagectomy.

We report the successful management of a case of anastomotic leakage with a lung fistula as a complication of esophagectomy by use of a double elementary diet tube.

Optimal surgical management for esophagogastric junction carcinoma.

Objectives: Esophagogastric junction carcinoma incidence is increasing worldwide. However, surgical strategies for this cancer remain controversial. This study aimed to clarify the optimal surgical strategy for esophagogastric junction carcinoma.