[A case of sarcomatoid combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma].

Combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma (HCC-CC) with sarcomatoid features is an extremely rare primary liver cancer, of which only four cases have been reported. We report a case of sarcomatoid combined HCC-CC in a 60-year-old woman who complained of right upper quadrant pain and presented with a 7 cm mass in the S4 region of the liver in abdominal CT. Ultrasonography-guided needle biopsy diagnosed it as HCC, and left lobectomy of the liver followed. Microscopically, the tumor consisted of two portions: HCC portion showing trabecular pattern, which had partially sarcomatous area with spindle-shaped tumor cells, and CC portion with glandular pattern. Immunohistochemically, HCC portion reacted positively with alpha-fetoprotein while CC portion demonstrated positive reactivity with carcinoembryonic antigen and mucicarmine. Sarcomatoid cells reacted positively for cytokeratin. She died of tumor recurrence and hepatic failure 12 months after the operation. Combined HCC-CC has poor prognosis, and sarcomatoid HCC has high metastatic potential and poor prognosis compared with ordinary HCC.

[A case of common bile duct stone formed around a surgical clip after laparoscopic cholecystectomy].

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy has now rapidly replaced open cholecystectomy. Rarely a calculus may arise from a metallic surgical clip migrated into the common bile duct (CBD) after this surgical procedure was performed. We report a 50-year-old man with CBD stone formed around a surgical clip, who had undergone a laparoscopic cholecystectomy because of acute calculous cholecystitis 14 months before. Abdominal CT revealed a single stone in mildly dilated CBD. A high density core within the CBD stone, was suspected to be a surgical clip. The stone was removed using a retrieval balloon catheter and basket after endoscopic sphincterotomy.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome induced by adenovirus in an otherwise healthy woman.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) caused by adenovirus is a rare event in healthy adults, especially in non- military settings. Although treatment with intravenous ribavirin has been reported, supportive care, including mechanical ventilation, is known to be the main stay in the treatment of ARDS caused by adenovirus, with high-dose steroid treatment having rarely been reported. We report our experience with a 41-year-old, otherwise healthy, woman with ARDS, treated with high-dose steroid and mechanical ventilatory support.