Zollinger-Ellison syndrome associated with neurofibromatosis type 1: a case report

BACKGROUND: Neurofibromatosis type 1 is an autosomal dominant neurocutaneous disorder with characteristic features of skin and central nervous system involvement. Gastrointestinal involvement is rare, but the risk of malignancy development is considerable. Zollinger-Ellison syndrome is caused by gastrin-secreting tumors called gastrinomas. Correct diagnosis is often difficult, and curative treatment can only be achieved surgically. CASE PRESENTATION: A 41-year-old female affected by neurofibromatosis type 1 presented with a history of recurrent epigastric soreness, diarrhea, and relapsing chronic duodenal ulcer. Her serum fasting gastrin level was over 1000 pg/mL. An abdominal CT scan revealed a 3 × 2-cm, well-enhanced mass adjacent to the duodenal loop. She was not associated with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1. Operative resection was performed and gastrinoma was diagnosed by immunohistochemical staining. The serum gastrin level decreased to 99.1 pg/mL after surgery, and symptoms and endoscopic findings completely resolved without recurrences. CONCLUSION: Gastrinoma is difficult to detect even in the general population, and hence symptoms such as recurrent idiopathic peptic ulcer and diarrhea in neurofibromatosis type 1 patients should be accounted for as possibly contributing to Zollinger-Ellison syndrome

Treatment of paediatric pontine glioma with oral trophosphamide and etoposide

To evaluate the overall survival of paediatric patients with pontine gliomas treated with oral trophosphamide and etoposide. Patients between 3 and 17 years of age with either typical diffuse pontine glioma on MRI or histologically proven anaplastic astrocytoma/glioblastoma multiforme located in the pons, were eligible. Treatment consisted of oral trophosphamide 100 mg m−2 day−1 combined with oral etoposide at 25 mg m−2 day−1 starting simultaneously with conventional radiation. Twenty patients were enrolled (median age 6 years, male : female=9 : 11). Surgical procedures included: no surgery: five, open biopsy: three, stereotactic biopsy: six, partial resection: three, and sub-total resection: three. Histological diagnoses included pilocytic astrocytoma: one, astrocytoma with no other specification: three, anaplastic astrocytoma: three, glioblastoma multiforme: eight, no histology: five. The most frequent side effects were haematologic and gastrointestinal. There was no toxic death. The response to combined treatment in 12 evaluable patients was: complete response: 0, partial response: three, stable disease: four, and progressive disease: five. All tumours progressed locally and all patients died. The overall median survival was 8 months. The overall survival rates at 1 and 4 years were: 0.4 and 0.05 respectively. This was not different from a control group of patients documented in the same population. Oral trophosphamide in combination with etoposide did not improve survival of pontine glioma patients. The treatment was well tolerated and should be evaluated for more chemoresponsive paediatric malignancies