Early uptake and continuous accumulation of thallium-201 chloride in a benign mixed tumor of soft tissue: Case Report

A case of benign mixed tumor of the soft tissue in a 64-year-old Japanese male is presented. He noticed a painless, elastic hard mass sized 3 cm in the right knee, which gradually grew larger and harder in the last 5 years. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a mass lesion embedded in the subcutaneous tissue with low and high signal intensity at T1- and T2-weighted images, respectively. Tl-201 scintigraphy showed an early uptake of Tl-201 within the lesion at 10 minutes after injection, which was slightly decreased but still continued at 2 hours later. The patient underwent a resection of tumor, and the pathological diagnosis was a benign mixed tumor of soft tissue without high vascularity, characterized by histological features similar to pleomorphic adenomas in the salivary glands. Immunohistochemical study proved expression of Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase of tumor cells. Overexpression of Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase of the tumor might be responsible for the early uptake of Tl-201, and poor vascular structure in this tumor might lead to continuous accumulation. The Tl-201 scintigraphic features of mixed tumor of soft tissue are assessed to resemble those of malignant soft tissue tumors

Clinical Outcome of Patients with Pelvic and Retroperitoneal Bone and Soft Tissue Sarcoma : A Retrospective Multicenter Study in Japan

This study aimed to retrospectively analyze the clinical outcomes of patients with pelvic and retroperitoneal bone and soft tissue sarcoma (BSTS). Overall, 187 patients with BSTS in the pelvis and retroperitoneal region treated at 19 specialized sarcoma centers in Japan were included. The prognostic factors related to overall survival (OS), local control (LC), and progression-free survival (PFS) were evaluated. The 3-year OS and LC rates in the 187 patients were 71.7% and 79.1%, respectively. The 3-year PFS in 166 patients without any distant metastases at the time of primary tumor diagnosis was 48.6%. Osteosarcoma showed significantly worse OS and PFS than other sarcomas of the pelvis and retroperitoneum. In the univariate analyses, larger primary tumor size, soft tissue tumor, distant metastasis at the time of primary tumor diagnosis, P2 location, chemotherapy, and osteosarcoma were poor prognostic factors correlated with OS. Larger primary tumor size, higher age, soft tissue tumor, chemotherapy, and osteosarcoma were poor prognostic factors correlated with PFS in patients without any metastasis at the initial presentation. Larger primary tumor size was the only poor prognostic factor correlation with LC. This study has clarified the epidemiology and prognosis of patients with pelvic and retroperitoneal BSTS in Japan

Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia in Iceland, 1995-2008: changing incidence and mortality

To access publisher full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links fieldLittle is known about temporal changes in the epidemiology of Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia. The objective of the present study was to analyse changes in the incidence and mortality of adult S. aureus bacteraemia in Iceland. Individuals 18 years or older with a positive blood culture for S. aureus between 1 January 1995 and 31 December 2008 were identified, with the participation of all clinical microbiological laboratories performing blood cultures in Iceland. Infections were categorized as nosocomial, healthcare-associated or community-acquired. National population statistics and dates of death were retrieved from the National Registry. During the study period, 692 individuals from 19 institutions had 721 distinct episodes of S. aureus bacteraemia. The incidence rose from 22.7 to 28.9 per 100,000 per year during the period (p 0.012). Nosocomial infections comprised 46.3% of cases, 14.6% were healthcare-associated, and 39.1% were community-acquired. The proportion of nosocomial infections decreased during the period (p <0.001), whereas an increase was seen in the proportion of community-acquired infections (p <0.001). All-cause 30-day mortality decreased from 25.0% to 8.1% (p 0.001) and 1-year mortality decreased from 37.0% to 27.9% (p 0.061) between the periods 1995-1996 and 2007-2008. Four cases of bacteraemia caused by methicillin-resistant S. aureus were seen (0.6%), none of which was fatal. In conclusion, there was a significant increase in the incidence of S. aureus bacteraemia in Iceland between 1995 and 2008. Concomitantly, there was a significant reduction in mortality, towards one of the lowest reported. Further studies are needed to understand the basis for these changes

Complication rate, functional outcomes, and risk factors associated with carbon ion radiotherapy for patients with unresectable pelvic bone sarcoma

BackgroundTo the authors\u27 knowledge, carbon ion radiotherapy (CIRT) is one of the few curative treatments for unresectable pelvic bone sarcoma. The current study investigated the complications, functional outcomes, and risk factors of CIRT.MethodsOf 112 patients who were treated with CIRT for unresectable pelvic bone sarcoma, the authors enrolled 29 patients who were without local disease recurrence or distant metastasis. The mean follow‐up was 93 months. Complications, functional outcomes, and quality of life scores were assessed. Risk factors were analyzed, including the dose‐volume histogram of the femoral head.ResultsFemoral head necrosis occurred in approximately 37% of patients, pelvic fractures were reported in 48% of patients, and neurological deficits were noted in 52% of patients. Femoral head necrosis was found to be significantly more prevalent among patients with periacetabular tumors (P = .018). The dose‐volume histogram of the femoral head indicated tolerable volume percentages of the femoral head to be 50 years and those with periacetabular tumors were found to have significantly lower Toronto Extremity Salvage Scores.ConclusionsFemoral head necrosis, pelvic fracture, and nerve damage are common complications with the use of CIRT for pelvic bone sarcoma. To prevent femoral head necrosis, the radiation dose to the femoral head should be kept below the estimated tolerance curve presented in the current study. The functional outcome is nearly equivalent to that of surgery. CIRT may be a promising alternative to surgery for patients with unresectable pelvic bone sarcoma

Impact of Surgery and Chemotherapy on Metastatic Extrauterine Leiomyosarcoma

Background: Few studies have described the characteristics and prognostic factors of patients with metastatic extrauterine leiomyosarcoma (euLMS). Therefore, we retrospectively investigated the clinicopathological features, clinical outcomes, and prognostic factors of patients with euLMS. Methods: We recruited 61 patients with metastatic euLMS treated from 2006 to 2020 and collected and statistically analyzed information on patient-, tumor-, and treatment-related factors. The median follow-up period was 21.1 months. Results: Sixty-one patients with euLMS and a median age of 59 years were included. Furthermore, their five-year overall survival (OS) rate was 38.3%. Univariate analysis revealed that primary tumor size &gt;10 cm, synchronous metastasis, initial metastatic sites &gt;1, and no metastasectomy with curative intent were significantly associated with poor OS rate. Multivariate analysis identified primary tumor size &gt;10 cm as an independent prognostic factor for poor OS. Among 24 patients who received metastasectomy with curative intent, the interval from the initial diagnosis to development of metastasis &le;6 months was significantly correlated with unfavorable OS. Among 37 patients who did not receive metastasectomy, chemotherapy after metastasis development was significantly related to better OS. Conclusions: Complete metastasectomy should be considered for metastatic euLMS treatment. Moreover, chemotherapy could prolong survival in patients with metastasis who are ineligible for metastasectomy

Rectotumoral fistula formation occurring more than 5 years after carbon ion radiotherapy for sacral chordoma: A case report

Chordoma is a rare tumor that originates from the notochord. Half of chordomas involve the sacral region. Surgery is considered to be the standard treatment for sacral chordoma. However, carbon ion radiotherapy (CIRT) has recently emerged as a promising treatment for unresectable sacral chordoma. Little is known about the long-term complications of CIRT. We present two cases of rectotumoral fistula formation that occurred >5 years after CIRT for sacral chordoma. We considered two possible explanations for fistula formation: radiation enterocolitis after CIRT might cause formation of the fistula long-term, and tumor regrowth might compress the rectum and cause fistula formation. A biopsy in Case 1 showed that regrowth tumor was post-CIRT. It is important to be aware of the possibility of rectal complications after CIRT, and if found, resection of the rectum should be considered. This is a first report of rectotumoral fistula formation that occurred >5 years after CIRT for sacral chordoma

The generation and selection of induced chondrogenic (iChon) cells from human dermal fibroblast (HDF) culture.

<p>(<b>A</b>) Top, a schematic diagram of the gene transduction. Middle left, HDFs. Middle right, polygonal-shaped cells generated by transduction of c-MYC, KLF4, and SOX9. Bottom left, nodules formed by polygonal-shaped cells. Bottom right, nodules were intensely stained with alcian blue, suggesting the production of glycosaminoglycan. Bars in top panels, 100 µm; Bars in bottom panels, 500 µm. (<b>B</b>) Top, a schematic diagram of the gene transduction. Left middle and bottom panels, phase and GFP images of cell nodules formed in HDF culture at 18 days after transduction with c-MYC, KLF4 and SOX9. Right middle and bottom panels, magnification of the boxed region in the left panels. Cells were cultured in the absence of puromycin Bars in left panels, 500 µm; Bars in right panels, 100 µm. (<b>C</b>) HDF cultures which had been transduced with lentiviral <i>COL11A2-</i> reporter vectors and nucleofected with <i>Slc7a1</i> were transduced with retroviral c-MYC, KLF4 and SOX9, or DsRed fluorescent protein, or SOX5, SOX6 and SOX9. Cells were cultured in the absence of puromycin. Dishes (10 cm in diameter) were stained with alcian blue 21 days after retroviral transduction. The numbers of nodules with positive alcian blue staining were counted. (<b>D</b>) HDF cultures which had been transduced with lentiviral <i>COL11A2-</i> reporter vectors and nucleofected with <i>Slc7a1</i> were transduced with retroviral c-MYC, KLF4 and SOX9, or DsRed fluorescent protein, or SOX5, SOX6 and SOX9. Puromycin was added to the medium 7 days after retroviral transduction. Dishes (10 cm in diameter) were stained with crystal violet and alcian blue 21 days after retroviral transduction. The numbers of all colonies stained with crystal violet (white bars) and the numbers of colonies with positive alcian staining (black bars) were counted. In (C and D), after nucleofection of <i>Slc7a1</i>, HDFs were replated at a density 5×10⁵ cells per 10 cm dish for retroviral transduction. Cells were split 1∶5 onto 10 cm dishes immediately after completion of the retroviral transductions. The numbers of nodules in five 10 cm dishes which were derived from one identical dish were added together. Error bars indicate ± SD (<i>n</i> = 3 dishes).</p