Efficacy of US, MRI, and F-18 FDG-PET/CT for Detecting Axillary Lymph Node Metastasis after Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer Patients.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of post-neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) ultrasound (US), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and F-18fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (F-18 FDG-PET/CT) for detecting post-NAC axillary lymph node(ALN) metastasis in patients who had ALN metastasis at the time of diagnosis. METHODS: This study included all breast cancer patients who received NAC for ALN metastasis; underwent axillary assessment with US, MRI, or F18FDG-PET/CT; and then were operated on in the General Surgery Clinic, Adana City Research and Training Hospital, Turkey. Patients' data were recorded, including demographic data, clinicopathological parameters, NAC regimens, and operation types. The axillary response to chemotherapy on post-NAC US, MRI, and F-18 FDG-PET/CT was compared with the postoperative histopathological result of the ALN. RESULTS: The study included a total of 171 female patients. The mean age of the patients was 53.28 ± 10.62 years. The post-NAC assessment revealed that the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) of US for detecting ALN metastasis were 59.42%, 82.35%, 82.00%, and 60.00%, respectively, while the same measures regarding MRI for detecting ALN metastasis were 36.67%, 77.78%, 73.33%, and 42.42%, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV of F-18FDG-PET/CT were 47.50%, 76.67%, 73.08%, and 52.27%, respectively. The evaluation of dual combinations of these three imaging techniques showed that the specificity and PPV of the combined use of US and F-18FDG-PET/CT was 100%. CONCLUSIONS: The results showed that US has the highest sensitivity and specificity for detecting ALN metastasis after NAC. Furthermore, ALND may be preferred for these patients instead of SLNB if both examinations simultaneously indicate lymph node metastasis in the post-NAC assessment with US and F-18 FDG-PET/CT. SLNB may be preferred if these two examinations simultaneously show a complete response.

An extraaxially localized intrasellar giant hydatid cyst with hypophyseal insufficiency.

PURPOSE: A hydatid cyst is a parasitic illness that is caused by the larvae of Echinococcus granulosus. Hydatid cysts occur in the liver in 75% and in the lungs in 15% of cases. Central nervous system involvement is rare (perhaps as low as 1%), and the majority of such cases are observed in children. Headache and vomiting are the most frequently observed symptoms. In patients diagnosed with a hydatid cyst, imaging methods and serologic tests are very important for identifying cranial involvement. The most curative method is to remove the unruptured cyst using Dowling's method and to then wash the resulting gap with sodium chloride. METHODS: The patient was a 16-year-old female with previous occasional headaches, progressive loss of vision, and general affective disorder. RESULTS: The patient presented at the emergency department with the above-mentioned complaints. She was hospitalized for a large cystic lesion in an extraaxially intrasellar location based on computerized tomography (CT) of the brain. The cyst was excised, and medical treatment was applied. CONCLUSIONS: Hydatid cysts are rarely located in the central nervous system. Treatment involves surgical and medical interventions. In this article, we present the first published case of a giant hydatid cyst with an extraaxial intrasellar location. This is the first such case to be reported in the literature. The cyst caused somnolence, general affective disorder, panhypopituitarism, and progressive loss of vision.

Liver hydatid cyst leading to bilateral pulmonary artery embolism and bilateral multiple pulmonar echinococcosis via inferior vena cava: report of a case.

Hydatid disease (HD) is a worldwide parasitic disease. Echinococcosis may involve many organs but affect most commonly liver and lungs. The location of echinococcal cysts inside pulmonary artery is extremely rare. Radiologic findings range from purely cystic lesions to a completely solid appearance. Hydatid cysts (HC) can be solitary or multiple and varies size. Pulmonary artery embolism of HC can be symptomatic or asymptomatic. When symptomatic, we see the chest pain, dyspnea, cough, hemoptysis and sometimes acute cor pulmonale or sudden death secondary to massive giant pulmonary artery embolism of HC.