Assessment of water enema computed tomography: an effective imaging technique for the diagnosis of colon cancer: Colon cancer: computed tomography using a water enema.

AIM: The aim of this study was to assess the accuracy of water enema computed tomography (WECT) for the diagnosis of colon cancer. METHODS: A total of 191 patients referred for clinically suspected colon cancer were prospectively evaluated by WECT in a multicenter trial. Examination was contrast enhanced helical CT after colon filling through a rectal tube. For all the cases, final diagnosis was obtained by colonoscopy and/or surgery. CT data were interpreted both locally and at a centralized site by a specialized and general radiologist. RESULTS: Seventy-one patients were diagnosed with colon cancer. Overall, WECT sensitivity and specificity were 98.6 and 95.0%, respectively. Positive and negative predictive values were 92.1 and 99.1%, respectively. In a subgroup of 33 patients with unclean bowel, the sensitivity and specificity of WECT were 95.0 and 92.3%, respectively. The correlation between local radiologists and the specialized radiologist was excellent (Kappa = 0.87) as was the correlation between the general radiologist and the specialist (Kappa = 0.92). CONCLUSION: This prospective analysis demonstrates that WECT is an effective, safe, and simple imaging technique for the diagnosis of colon cancer and can be proposed when a strong clinical suspicion of colon cancer is present, especially in frail patients.

Feasibility and efficacy of high-dose three-dimensional-conformal radiotherapy in cirrhotic patients with small-size hepatocellular carcinoma non-eligible for curative therapies--mature results of the French Phase II RTF-1 trial.

PURPOSE: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a poor prognosis tumor, and only 20% of patients will benefit from curative therapies (surgery, liver transplantation, percutaneous ablation). Although conventional radiotherapy has been traditionally regarded as inefficient and toxic for cirrhotic patients, three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) has provided promising preliminary data for the treatment of HCC. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Prospective phase II trial including Child-Pugh A/B cirrhotic patients with small-size HCC (1 nodule < or =5 cm, or 2 nodules < or =3 cm) nonsuitable for curative treatments, to assess tolerance and efficacy of high-dose (66 Gy, 2 Gy/fraction) 3DCRT. RESULTS: Twenty-seven patients were enrolled. Among the 25 assessable patients, tumor response was observed for 23 patients (92%), with complete response for 20 patients (80%), and partial response for 3 patients (12%). Stable disease was observed in 2 patients (8%). Grade 4 toxicities occurred in 2 of 11 (22%) Child-Pugh B patients only. Child-Pugh A patients tolerated treatment well, and 3/16 (19%) developed asymptomatic Grade 3 toxicities. CONCLUSION: High-dose 3DCRT is a noninvasive, well-tolerated modality that is highly suitable for the treatment of small HCCs in cirrhotic patients, with promising results. However, additional trials are needed to optimize this technique and formally compare it with the usual curative approaches.

Acute thrombosis of renal transplant artery: graft salvage by means of intra-arterial fibrinolysis.

BACKGROUND: Arterial thrombosis in a transplanted kidney is a serious complication that usually leads to graft loss. The purpose of our study was to evaluate intra-arterial fibrinolysis as a treatment of acute renal transplant artery thrombosis and to determine the maximum period of occlusion allowing a reasonable chance of graft salvage. METHODS AND RESULTS: Four patients underwent intra-arterial fibrinolysis for acute transplant artery thrombosis. Transplantations had been performed 29 days to 10 years before the fibrinolysis. Fibrinolysis was carried out by using recombitant tissue plasminogen activator (n=1) or urokinase (n=3). In one patient, anuric for 13 hr at admittance, fibrinolysis could not revascularize the graft artery. In a second patient, anuric for 48 hr at admittance, fibrinolysis did revascularize the graft artery, but dialysis could not be discontinued. In the two remaining patients, anuric for 19 and 20 hr at admittance, the graft artery was successfully revascularized and dialysis could be discontinued 1 week later. One of these two patients returned to dialysis 71 months later because of chronic rejection. Thirty-four months after the acute episode, the remaining patient had a patent artery and did not require dialysis. CONCLUSIONS: Fibrinolysis seems an efficient treatment that may save transplants after up to 24 hr of the arterial occlusion.