A case of giant rectal villous tumor with severe fluid-electrolyte imbalance treated by laparoscopic low anterior resection / 대한외과학회지

McKittrick-Wheelock syndrome is a disorder caused by fluid and electrolyte hypersecretion from a colorectal tumor. To present the case of a patient with a giant rectal villous tumor with McKittrick-Wheelock syndrome who was successfully treated with laparoscopic surgery. The case of a 59-year-old man who came to the emergency department with syncope, prerenal azotemia, and electrolyte disturbances with a background of chronic diarrhea is reported. His condition was the result of fluid and electrolyte hypersecretion caused by rectal villotubular adenomas. Laparoscopic low anterior resection and subsequent volume and electrolyte replacement therapy resulted in complete recovery. A microscopic examination revealed multiple, well-differentiated adenocarcinomas arising in villotubular adenomas. Laparoscopic surgical resection is a feasible therapeutic modality for McKittrick-Wheelock syndrome.

The Clinical Characteristics, Prognostic of Medullary Thyroid Cancer / 대한내분비외과학회지

PURPOSE: Medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) is a rare disease and the clinical course of MTC many vary. In this study, we analyzed the factors influencing the prognosis of MTC. METHODS: The study group consisted of 37 patients with MTC seen at KNUH between July 1985 and July 2003. We analyzed the medical records of MTC surgical cases in a retrospective study to analyze treatment results and utilized the Kaplan-Meier and chi-squred tests to determine the correlation of prognosis and recurrence. RESULTS: The median age of patients was 39 years and 7 patients had a family history and accompanying disease. No metastases were detected at the time of diagnosis. The majority of the sizes of tumors were under 4 cm in 22 cases and 24 cases (64.9%) showed unilateral tumor locations. Twenty cases (48.6%) showed lymph node metastasis, and invasion of the surrounding organs was seen in 5 cases (13.5%) of these cases. A total thyroidectomy and central neck dissection was performed in all cases. In 17 cases, a modified radical neck dissection was performed initially. Recurrence was detected in 13 out of 37 cases. The most common site of recurrence was the neck, followed by the lung and liver. We analyzed the factors that affected recurrence and it was found that lymph node metastasis and the TNM stage had a statistically significant relationship. No factor showed relevance to prognosis by multivariate analysis. The survival rates were 89.2% for 5 years and 83.8% for 10 years. CONCLUSION: We could not find any statistical significance for a factor relevant to the prognosis of the patients by multivariate analysis. However, as the 10 year-survival rate was 83.8%, we can expect improvement in the treatment of MTC with surgical management (total thyroidectomy and central neck dissection) and constant follow-up.

Primary Malignant Peritoneal Mesothelioma

A 67-year-old-man, who had a medical history of hypertension and angina pectoris, was referred to our hospital due to dysuria and a palpable lower abdominal mass. He was a farmer until at the age of 50 and then had been working at a textile factory. The physical examination revealed a fixed, firm and round mass in the lower abdomen. The laboratory data were within the normal ranges, except for elevation of CA-125 (128 U/ml). Abdominal computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed a 6 x 5 cm round hypodense mass in the pelvic cavity. Preoperative ultrasound-guided needle biopsy resulted in a suspicious rhabdomyosarcoma. Exploratory laparotomy revealed a 10 x 8 cm size firm, round mass that was located between the superior aspect of the urinary bladder and lower anterior abdominal wall. En bloc excision of the mass with partial cystectomy was performed. The pathologic diagnosis was primary malignant peritoneal mesothelioma. The postoperative course was uneventful.