Severe blood loss anaemia and recurrent intussusceptions as first presentation of bowel metastatic renal cell carcinoma: A case report and review of the literature.

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) may metastasize to almost any organ, but bowel metastases are highly unusual. A 75-year-old man presented with symptoms and signs of severe anaemia due to bowel bleeding and abdominal pain due to recurrent bowel intussusception. The patient underwent surgery and was identified to have intraluminal metastases from metastatic RCC. To the best of our knowledge, few cases of metastases from RCC manifesting as synchronous intraluminal polypoid tumours have been described in the literature. The present report focused on the importance of two aspects that must be considered: The role of accurate diagnosis and of surgery treating intestinal metastases that may lead to symptom control and prolonged survival.

Role of preeclampsia-related angiogenic factors in sunitinib cardiotoxicity: two cases and review of the literature.

Sunitinib is a multi-targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor widely used in clear cell renal carcinoma and in imatinib-resistant gastrointestinal stromal tumors. Sunitinib-associated cardiotoxicity has been recognized and includes hypertension, left ventricular dysfunction and congestive heart failure; nevertheless, few data exist in the literature regarding the role of preeclampsia-related angiogenic factors in sunitinib cardiotoxicity. We report a case of sunitinib-induced severe left ventricular dysfunction that occurred in a hypertensive woman with metastatic renal carcinoma and a history of preeclampsia, and a case of sunitinib-induced preeclampsia-like syndrome in a normotensive patient with an imatinib-resistant gastrointestinal stromal tumor. Our experience confirms that inhibition of angiogenic factors to treat cancer is a novel challenge for the oncologist and requires the cardiologist's support.

Anal metastasis from breast cancer: a case report and review of the literature.

Breast cancer usually metastasizes towards the lymph nodes, lung, bone, liver or brain; metastatic gastrointestinal involvement is rare and anal metastases are extremely rare. Necroscopic studies report a 6-18% incidence of extra-hepatic gastrointestinal metastases, and the most frequent sites of the GI tract involved are the stomach and the small intestine. We report a case with anal metastasis from breast cancer and a review of the associated literature.

Myocardial perfusion defects after radiation therapy and anthracycline chemotherapy for left breast cancer: a possible marker of microvascular damage. Three cases and review of the literature.

Radiation therapy to the thorax may induce early and late cardiac adverse effects if large parts of the heart have been included in the irradiation field and particularly if anthracycline-containing chemotherapy is concomitantly administered. We describe 3 cases of cardiotoxicity in patients with left breast cancer treated with anthracycline-containing chemotherapy and left thoracic radiotherapy. In 2 cases we observed asymptomatic electrocardiographic abnormalities of ventricular repolarization mimicking anterior myocardial ischemia and SPECT reversible myocardial perfusion defects. In 1 case we observed echocardiographic abnormalities of left ventricular wall motion and reversible myocardial perfusion abnormalities. We recommend close cardiac monitoring of patients treated with anthracycline chemotherapy and left thoracic radiotherapy to better understand the clinical impact of these abnormalities.

Dose-finding study of weekly docetaxel plus estramustine in patients with hormone-refractory metastatic prostate cancer.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this phase I study was to find the maximum tolerated dose of weekly docetaxel in association with estramustine in hormone-refractory prostate cancer. METHODS: Eleven patients with hormone-refractory prostate cancer were treated with escalating weekly doses of docetaxel (level I, 3 patients, 30 mg/m2; level II, 3 patients, 35 mg/m2, level III, 3 patients, 40 mg/mz; level IV, 2 patients, 45 mg/m2) associated with fixed dosage of estramustine (840 mg/day). RESULTS: In level I, there was only one episode of grade 3 neutropenia; grade 1 nausea and vomiting were registered in 1 patient; in 1 patient mild edema of the lower limbs was noted. In level II, grade 2 stomatitis and grade 1 sensory symptoms occurred in 1 patient, and grade 1 edema in 1 case. In level Ill, grade 2 edema was noted in 2 patients, damage to nails in 1 patient, asthenia in 1 patient, grade 1 neuropathy in 2 patients, and grade 1 nausea in 1 patient. In level IV, grade 2 edema was present in 1 patient, grade 3 edema in 1 patient, changes with fall of nails and grade 2 erythema of face in 2 patients, asthenia in 2 patients, grade 1 neuropathy in both patients. Nine patients had a more than a 50% decrease in PSA after 2 cycles of therapy. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the study suggest a good tolerability of weekly 35 Mg/m2 docetaxel in hormone-refractory prostate cancer in association with estramustine.

Cisplatin and weekly docetaxel as first-line therapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer a phase II study.

BACKGROUND: Based on the results of previous phase I studies, in the current phase II trial we evaluated the efficacy and toxicity of cisplatin plus weekly docetaxel in the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: The eligibility criteria for the study included newly diagnosed stage IIIB/IV NSCLC, age < or = 75 years, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0-2, adequate organ functions, and signed informed consent. The chemotherapy regimen consisted of cisplatin, 80 mg/m2 on day 1, and docetaxel, 25 mg/m2 on days 1, 8 and 15 every 4 weeks. RESULTS: Between January 2002 and December 2003, 31 patients with NSCLC were enrolled in the study. An objective response rate of 40% (95% CI, 21-60) was obtained in 27 assessable patients. The median time to progression was 6.4 months (range, 2.5-26.3) and median overall survival was 10.01 months (range, 5-28.3). The regimen was well tolerated with no grade 4 toxicity. CONCLUSIONS: Cisplatin plus weekly docetaxel is an effective and well-tolerated regimen in chemo-naive patients with advanced NSCLC. A phase III study of weekly versus the conventional regimen of every three weeks should be conducted to compare the survival benefits, toxicity profile and quality of life.

Linezolid-induced bradycardia: a case report.

We report an episode of severe bradycardia that occurred in a 49-year-old woman with fever and malignant jaundice during antibiotic therapy with linezolid, a new oxazolidinone with activity against Gram-positive cocci. In our case, the strict temporal dependence between bradycardia and linezolid therapy seems to provide strong evidence for a causal relationship. To our knowledge, this is the first report of linezolid-induced bradycardia. This adverse event confirms that the new antibiotic linezolid should be administered with caution in patient with jaundice and hepatic insufficiency.

Pulmonary blastoma after liver transplant: a case report.

There is an increased risk of cancer after organ transplantation mainly due to the immunosuppressive therapy required in these patients. We report a case of biphasic pulmonary blastoma in an adult male who underwent liver transplant for hepatocellular carcinoma in March 1999, followed by immunosuppressive treatment and adjuvant chemotherapy with epirubicin. Disease-free survival lasted 18 months, then a diagnosis of biphasic pulmonary blastoma was made and the patient underwent a lung lobectomy. Five months after surgical resection a recurrence of this rare tumor was recorded and two cycles of cisplatin + etoposide and ifosfamide + etoposide and one cycle of second-line chemotherapy with vinorelbine were administered. The tolerability and the efficacy of this treatment were poor. The patient died less than one year after diagnosis. To our knowledge this is the first reported case of pulmonary blastoma in a transplant patient. Our findings confirm that organ transplant recipients deserve long-term medical surveillance also in the absence of graft complications, and that pulmonary blastoma is an aggressive tumor with a poor prognosis.