Comparisons between the Dosimetric and Clinical Outcomes of Tomotherapy and 3D Conformal Radiotherapy in Gastric Cancer Treatment

Introduction: Previous studies comparing tomotherapy (TOMO) and three dimensional (3D) conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) in gastric radiotherapy are limited and tend to be based on dosimetry. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes of these two treatment modalities. Methods: A total of 51 patients diagnosed with gastric cancer who were treated with postoperative adjuvant chemoradiotherapy and had subtotal/total gastrectomy and D2 lymphatic dissection were recruited to the present study: 30 patients were treated with TOMO and 21 patients were treated with 3DCRT. Results: The 3DCRT and TOMO treatment regimens were compared. There was no difference in planning target volume (PTV) 95%, but TOMO was statistically significant in regard to PTV 105% (P<0.05). TOMO was also significantly different when compared with 3DCRT when evaluating liver mean dose, liver V40, right/left kidneys mean dose, right/left kidneys V20 and spinal cord mean dose values (P<0.05). Grade 2 acute side effects were more frequent (85.7%) following 3DCRT. In addition, the median overall survival time for TOMO treated patients was 62 months while in 3DCRT treated patients it was 22.05 months. The difference in disease free survival was also significantly increased in patients treated with TOMO (66.7% vs. 19.0%; P<0.05). Conclusion: TOMO treatment resulted in lower acute side effects with better patient survival following gastric cancer radiotherapy.

Evaluation of CR-POSSUM, original ACPGBI and new ACPGBI scoring systems for colorectal cancer surgery.

PURPOSE: To compare the Colorectal Physiological and Operative Score for enUmeration of Mortality and Morbidity (Cr-POSSUM) with the original Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland (ACPGBI) and new ACPGBI scoring systems for their ability to predict mortality after colorectal cancer surgery. METHODS: We retrospectively calculated the Cr-POSSUM,original ACPBGI and new ACPGBI scores of 105 patients who underwent colorectal cancer surgery. Data were obtained from patients'€™ medical records and operative notes.Mortality was defined as death within 30 days of surgery.Scores were validated by assessing their calibration and discrimination. Calibration was assessed using the Hosmer-Leme show test and corresponding calibration curves. The discriminative capability of the models was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. RESULTS: The observed mortality rate was 4.8 %. The over all estimated risks of death of the Cr-POSSUM, original ACPGBI, and new ACPGBI scores were 9.92%, 7.35% and 4.20%, respectively. The results of areas under the curve(AUC) for Cr-POSSUM, original ACPGBI and new ACPGBI scores were 0.792, 0.844 and 0.801 respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The Cr-POSSUM, original ACPGBI and new ACPGBI scoring syStems are accurate in determining mortality rates and for predicting the risks of death in individual patients. The new and original ACPGBI scoring systems performed slightly better than the Cr-POSSUM scoring system.

Modification of the Bascom cleft lift procedure for chronic pilonidal sinus: results in 141 patients.

AIM: There is no definitive consensus on the best treatment for pilonidal sinus. The Bascom cleft lift technique has been reported to produce successful results. This study presents the results of a modified cleft lift procedure in which the sinus tissue was excised and the lower end of the incision was kept outside the intergluteal sulcus by extending the lower end of the incision laterally. METHOD: Between August 2010 and January 2012, 141 consecutive patients who presented with primary or recurrent pilonidal sinus disease were included in the study, which was conducted at a single tertiary academic medical centre. Prospectively collected data were recorded, including complications, pain score, satisfaction level, primary healing rate, length of hospital stay and early recurrence. RESULTS: The mean operating time was 30 min and the mean length of hospital stay was 1.2 days. The most common surgical-site complication was a collection followed by partial wound dehiscence and superficial infection. The primary healing rate was 88%, the mean time for functional recovery was 13 days and the mean follow-up time was 14 months. No recurrence was observed within this follow-up period. CONCLUSION: The modified Bascom cleft lift technique is effective and reliable. It is applicable to all pilonidal sinus cases and has low complication rates, high satisfaction scores, rapid early recovery and low recurrence rates.

Parathyroid cyst: the forgotten diagnosis of a neck mass.

The differential diagnosis of cystic cervical masses includes cystic thyroid disease or some embryological diseases. Parathyroid cyst is one of the less common causes of the cervical masses. The Swedish anatomist Sandstrom reported the first description of parathyroid cyst in 1880. Up to date, only about 300 cases have been reported in the world literature. They may be functional or nonfunctional, depending on the presence or absence of the hyperparathyroidism and treatment options vary for both presentations. Particularly, nonfunctional cysts are often considered as thyroid cysts. Diagnosis is best made by monitoring serum calcium levels and sending cyst fluid for parathormone analysis. We herein report a patient diagnosed with a parathyroid cyst who had received the diagnosis of goitre at other institute; including a review of the literature.

Patient with hepatocellular carcinoma on the waiting list for liver transplantation: abdominal seeding due to prior surgery: a case report.

Hepatocellular cancer (HCC) is the most common primary malignant hepatic tumor that accounts for over 80% of primary liver tumors. Hepatic resection is a well-accepted therapy for HCC, but 70% to 100% of patients, depending on patient selection, baseline tumor characteristics, and follow-up duration, develop cancer recurrence after resective surgery. Orthotropic liver transplantation is considered more appropriate in cases with HCC related to cirrhosis. Both procedures may result in recurrence. In some cases, diagnosis of recurrent HCC is difficult because of unexpected localization of the tumor. For these patients, aggressive diagnostic tests might be useful for appropriate therapy. We report a case of a 48-year-old man undergoing resection for HCC, who experienced early recurrence of HCC in the pelvic region.

A prospective randomized study of prophylactic antibiotics in elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

BACKGROUND: Elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) has a low risk for infective complications, but many surgeons still use prophylactic antibiotics. The use of prophylactic antibiotics for LC is inconsistent and varies widely among surgeons. METHODS: We performed a prospective double-blind randomized study of prophylactic antibiotics in elective LC. Antibiotics were was given first before the operation and then again 24 h afterward. Group A ( n = 49) received 2 g of cefotaxime; group B ( n = 43) received 10 ml of isotonic sodium chloride solution. A sample of bile was withdrawn by direct gallbladder puncture for anaerobic and aerobic cultures. Age, sex, weight, duration of surgery (DOS), presence of diabetes mellitus, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) classification, gallbladder rupture, bile and/or stone spillage, gallbladder histological findings, findings from bile cultures positive for bacteria, episodes of colic within 30 days before surgery, length of stay (LOS), and number of septic complications were recorded for both groups. RESULTS: There was no differences between the two groups in terms of sex, weight, DOS, ASA score, gallbladder rupture, bile and/or stone spillage, gallbladder histological findings, findings from bile cultures positive for bacteria, or LOS. One infection occurred in the antibiotic prophylaxis group (2.04%); in the patients not receiving antibiotics, there was one other infection (2.32%). There was no statistical difference between the two groups in infective complications. CONCLUSION: In patients undergoing elective LC, antibiotic prophylaxis is justified only in high-risk patients. In all other patients, antibiotic prophylaxis does not seem to affect the incidence of postoperative infective complications. In low-risk patients, eliminating the unnecessary use of prophylactic antibiotics would result in a cost reduction; moreover, it would lower the risk of adverse reaction and reduce microbial resistance.

Factors influencing mortality in spontaneous gastric tumour perforations.

Spontaneous perforation of gastric cancer is a serious complication with a very high incidence of mortality. In order to evaluate the prognostic factors influencing mortality in patients with gastric tumour perforations and to clarify the optimal surgical treatment, the records of patients at one centre during a 5-year period were evaluated retrospectively. Between 1995 and 2000, 14 patients with perforated gastric cancer were operated on in the Emergency Surgical Unit of a Turkish Hospital. This figure represents 3% of all the patients with gastric cancer who were treated during the same period. The hospital mortality was 36% in patients with perforations. The duration of symptoms suggesting perforation and the presence of pre-operative shock were predictive factors of mortality. It was concluded that those patients with pre-operative shock and delayed diagnosis should be treated with extra caution to decrease mortality. Perforation and peritonitis must be treated initially and elective radical surgery delayed.