Management of colorectal cancer presenting with synchronous liver metastases

Up to a fifth of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) present with synchronous hepatic metastases. In patients with CRC who present without intestinal obstruction or perforation and in whom comprehensive whole-body imaging confirms the absence of extrahepatic disease, evidence indicates a state of equipoise between several different management pathways, none of which has demonstrated superiority. Neoadjuvant systemic chemotherapy is advocated by current guidelines, but must be integrated with surgical management in order to remove the primary tumour and liver metastatic burden. Surgery for CRC with synchronous liver metastases can take a number of forms: the 'classic' approach, involving initial colorectal resection, interval chemotherapy and liver resection as the final step; simultaneous removal of the liver and bowel tumours with neoadjuvant or adjuvant chemotherapy; or a 'liver-first' approach (before or after systemic chemotherapy) with removal of the colorectal tumour as the final procedure. In patients with rectal primary tumours, the liver-first approach can potentially avoid rectal surgery in patients with a complete response to chemoradiotherapy. We overview the importance of precise nomenclature, the influence of clinical presentation on treatment options, and the need for accurate, up-to-date surgical terminology, staging tests and contemporary management options in CRC and synchronous hepatic metastatic disease, with an emphasis on multidisciplinary care

Business groups and corporate responsibility for the public good

This paper analyses the relationship between Business Groups as a distinct way of organizing economic activities and their relation to the public good. We first analyze the phenomenon of Business Groups and discuss some of their core features. Subsequently, the paper moves to analyzing the existing literature on Business Groups and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as the most common label for the topic of this Special Issue. Subsequently, specific peculiarities of Business Groups in the context of CSR and their contribution to the public good are fleshed out. Based on this analysis, the paper delineates some implications for the field of CSR and the wider debate on the nature of the firm. We close with some perspectives for future research

Detection of micrornas in frozen tissue sections by fluorescence in situ hybridization using locked nucleic acid probes and tyramide signal amplification

The ability to determine spatial and temporal microRNA (miRNA) accumulation at the tissue, cell and subcellular levels is essential for understanding the biological roles of miRNAs and miRNA-associated gene regulatory networks. This protocol describes a method for fast and effective detection of miRNAs in frozen tissue sections using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). The method combines the unique miRNA recognition properties of locked nucleic acid (LNA)-modified oligonucleotide probes with FISH using the tyramide signal amplification (TSA) technology. Although both approaches have previously been shown to increase detection sensitivity in FISH, combining these techniques into one protocol significantly decreases the time needed for miRNA detection in cryosections, while simultaneously retaining high detection sensitivity. Starting with fixation of the tissue sections, this miRNA FISH protocol can be completed within approximately 6 h and allows miRNA detection in a wide variety of animal tissue cryosections as well as in human tumor biopsies at high cellular resolution