PD-1 inhibitors in esophageal cancer: a systematic review of the oncological outcomes associated with PD-1 blockade and the evolving therapeutic paradigm.

Patients with esophageal or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) cancer who fail to respond to chemoradiotherapy have a poor clinical prognosis. Recent clinical trials have investigated the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors in these patients. The use of programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) inhibitors has emerged as exciting therapeutic options in the curative and palliative setting of other solid tumors. We assessed the efficacy and safety of PD-1 inhibitors in esophageal and GEJ cancers. This systematic review was performed in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines. A comprehensive electronic literature search from the EMBASE, Pubmed, Scopus, MEDLINE, and Google Scholar databases was conducted up to 25 July 2021. This review identified 11 eligible studies reporting outcomes of 3451 patients treated with PD-1 blockade compared with 2286 patients treated with either a placebo or the standard regimen of chemotherapy. Clinically significant improvements in median overall survival have been demonstrated in advanced and metastatic esophageal and GEJ cancer while maintaining acceptable safety profiles. Promising survival data have also recently emerged from PD-1 blockade in the adjuvant setting. PD-1 blockade in esophageal and GEJ cancer has delivered impressive survival benefit while remaining well tolerated. Its use in the adjuvant setting will further advance treatment options, and more advancements in this area of therapy are highly anticipated. However, further characterization of the PD-1/programmed death ligand-1 pathway and elucidation of biomarkers to predict response are required to optimize patient selection.

Management options for chronic anal fissure: a systematic review of randomised controlled trials.

INTRODUCTION: Anal fissure is the most common cause of severe anorectal pain in adults, contributing significantly to coloproctology workloads. There are a wide variety of management options available, including topical nitrites, calcium channel blockers, botulinum toxin injection and sphincterotomy. The aim of this study was to review current options for the treatment of chronic anal fissure. METHODS: A comprehensive search identifying randomized controlled trials comparing treatment options for anal fissure published between January 2000 and February 2020 was performed. The primary outcome assessed was healing at 8 weeks post commencing treatment. Secondary outcomes included recurrence, intolerance of treatment and complications. RESULTS: A total of 2822 studies were identified. After removal of duplicates and non-relevant studies, we identified nine randomized controlled trials which met pre-defined criteria. There was a total of 775 patients. At 8 weeks, healing rates were 95.13% in those treated with sphincterotomy, 66.7% in the botulinum toxin group, 63.8% in the nitrate group, 52.3% for topical diltiazem and 50% for topical minoxidil. Recurrence was highest amongst those treated with botulinum toxin injection (41.7%) and lowest for sphincterotomy (6.9%). Although the absolute number is low, there was a risk of permanent incontinence with sphincterotomy. CONCLUSION: This review of the randomized control data demonstrates that healing was significantly higher amongst those treated with sphincterotomy versus more conservative modalities. Topical nitrites had similar outcomes to botulinum toxin injection but were poorly tolerated in comparison to other treatments. The benefit of sphincterotomy was at a cost of increased complications, notably permanent incontinence.

Use of esophageal stents to relieve dysphagia during neoadjuvant therapy prior to esophageal resection: a systematic review.

Esophageal cancer stenting offers symptomatic relief for patients suffering from dysphagia. There are limited data to support their use to relieve dysphagia and improve nutrition during neoadjuvant therapy with some concern that they may negatively impact oncological outcomes. The aim of this systematic review was to quantify the impact of esophageal stents on outcomes prior to resection with curative intent. A literature search was performed using Embase, Medline, PubMed, PubMed Central, the Cochrane library for articles pertaining to esophageal stent use prior to or during neoadjuvant chemotherapy or chemoradiotherapy in patients planned for curative esophagectomy. Data extracted included basic demographics, clinical, nutritional and oncologic outcomes. A total of 9 studies involving 465 patients were included. Esophageal stent use resulted in a significant improvement in mean dysphagia scores in the immediate post stent period but failed to demonstrate any positive changes in weight, body mass index (BMI) or albumin. Only 33% of stented patients ultimately progressed to potential curative surgical resection and stents were associated with reduced R0 resection rates and lower overall survival. This systematic review shows that, although esophageal stenting is associated with improvements in dysphagia during neoadjuvant therapy, their effect on improving patient nutritional status is less clear and they may be associated with poorer long-term oncological outcomes. Stents should be used with caution in patients who are being considered for potentially curative resection of esophageal malignancies and other strategies of nutritional supplementation should be considered.

Initial experience with a dual-console robotic-assisted platform for training in colorectal surgery.

BACKGROUND: Minimally invasive surgery is associated with several patient-related benefits, including reduced length of hospital stay and reduced blood loss. Robotic-assisted surgery offers many advantages when compared with standard laparoscopic procedures, including a stable three-dimensional binocular camera platform, motion smoothing and motion scaling, improved dexterity and ergonomics. There are limited data on the effectiveness of the dual-console DaVinci Xi platform for teaching resident surgeons. The goal of this study was to examine preliminary outcomes following the introduction of a dual-console robotic platform in our institution. METHODS: A retrospective review of our prospectively maintained patient database was performed. The first ten dual-console resident-performed procedures in colorectal surgery were compared with matched cases performed on a single console by the trainer. Patient demographics, operative times and patient outcomes were compared. RESULTS: Twenty patients were included in this study. There was no significant difference in console time (p = 0.46) or total operative time (p = 0.52) when residents and trainers were compared. Patient outcomes were equivalent, with no difference in length of stay, morbidity or mortality. CONCLUSIONS: The DaVinci Xi dual-console platform is a safe and effective platform for training junior surgeons. The dual-console system has the potential to alter surgical training pathways.

An analysis of medical students' attitude to surgical careers and pursuing intercalated research degrees.

INTRODUCTION: Major changes are occurring in surgical training in the UK and Ireland. Training time is reduced due to the introduction of run-through training and the EWTD. Streamlined training also may affect the number of trainees engaging in full-time higher degrees by research, in spite of the fact that those who do engage are more academically productive. This study assesses the attitudes of medical students towards a career in surgery and their attitudes to research, especially in the context of an intercalated degree programme. METHODS: 615 students comprising both undergraduates and postgraduates from RCSI were surveyed. The influence of a number of factors was ranked using five-point Likert scales. Students were asked to rate the importance of research to their future careers. RESULTS: 595 (97 %) of those surveyed completed the questionnaire satisfactorily. Those interested in surgery were more likely to be male, undergraduate students and younger. Factors encouraging students to pursue a surgical career were prestige, identification of a surgical mentor, financial reward and research opportunities on offer (p < 0.001 in all cases). Almost 27 % of students had already engaged with some form of research project. A significant proportion of those interested and not interested in surgery (26 and 29 % respectively) would consider taking time out to do an intercalated research degree as part of their primary medical studies. CONCLUSION: Surgical training faces significant challenges. One way to encourage the next generation of academic surgeons may be to offer some candidates intercalated research degrees while pursuing their medical qualification.

Patterns of retroperitoneal trauma following gunshot violence: A case series.

INTRODUCTION: Abdominal trauma is defined as any injury to the abdomen and its containing viscera. Common penetrating injuries including gunshot or stab injuries are increasing worldwide. However, retroperitoneal gunshot injuries have a lower incidence than trans-abdominal trauma and can have substantially different outcomes. CASE REPORT: We report a series of three family members involved in gunshot violence over an18-month period. Each sustained retroperitoneal gunshot injuries with varying injuries patterns and treatment courses. Interestingly, one patient had a delayed small bowel perforation on day 6 post injury. DISCUSSION: Retroperitoneal trauma following gun violence has a lower incidence than trans-abdominal trauma. There is a paucity of literature describing injury patterns following this type of injury and their subsequent management. In the context of penetrating retroperitoneal trauma, the retroperitoneal organs are at risk and therefore serial clinical and/or radiological assessment is necessary. Delayed small bowel injury as a consequence of retroperitoneal gunshot is an unusual finding, with no reports to our knowledge in the literature. CONCLUSION: this case series highlight that penetrating retroperitoneal trauma can produce a variety of injury patterns. Therefore a wide clinical acumen is needed to ensure a successful outcome. The trajectory of the bullet may help ascertain potential injuries, but serial assessment and observation are also important. Ultimately, individual cases must be treated accordingly, based on clinical stability, severity of injury and radiological findings. Despite initial stability, patients should always be observed for delayed complications.

Alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma originating between the fourth and fifth metatarsal--case report and literature review.

We report a case of alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma arising between the fourth and fifth metatarsal. A 13-year-old boy presented to outpatients with a history of pain and swelling in the lateral aspect of his left forefoot. Plain radiographs and MRI showed a soft tissue mass displacing the fourth metatarsal. Percutaneous biopsy revealed an alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma. Staging scans showed advanced metastatic disease. The patient was treated with chemotherapy. This highly malignant lesion remains challenging to diagnose, and difficult to treat successfully.