Sarcoidosis-associated hepatocellular carcinoma

Sarcoidosis is a systemic granulomatous inflammation of unknown etiology, and seems to involve the liver parenchyma in most cases. However, sarcoidosis-associated hepatocellular carcinoma is rare. We report here a case in which a hepatocellular carcinoma occurred within the liver, which was probably involved as a result of systemic sarcoidosis. A 57-year-old Japanese man had been followed up for 2 years because of diabetic nephropathy and sarcoidosis. On admission for pneumonia, imaging studies revealed an unexpected hepatic tumor. Histology revealed a hepatocellular carcinoma accompanied by T-lymphocytic infiltration and marked granulomatous inflammation, which was surrounding some tumor nodules. The background liver parenchyma exhibited a moderate degree of fibrosis with granulomatous inflammation. The patient had no other apparent liver disease such as viral hepatitis, steatohepatitis, or primary biliary cirrhosis. Therefore, in the present case, sarcoidosis may be considered the probable background etiology for hepatocarcinogenesis

Malignant Amelanotic Melanoma of the Pleura without Primary Skin Lesion:An Autopsy Case Report

Melanoma metastasizing to the lungs is common, but primary pulmonary or pleural melanoma is extremely rare. We present an autopsy case of malignant melanoma of the pleura without primary skin lesion in a 49-year-old man. A mass found in the right chest was diagnosed as spindle cell sarcoma by antemortem fine-needle aspiration cytology. At autopsy, a yellow-white tumor located primarily in the right visceral pleura (diagnosed as an amelanotic melanoma) was found to have invaded into the right lung, right parietal pleura, and right diaphragm, and to have metastasized into the left lung and visceral pleura, thyroid, and left adrenal gland. No primary site was found. The tumor cells were positive for S100 and focally positive for HMB-45, but negative for other markers. Immuno-histochemical examination for S100 and HMB-45 would thus appear to be useful for the diagnosis of an amelanotic melanoma.</p

Poorly Differentiated Adenocarcinoma with Signet-ring Cell Carcinoma of the Extrahepatic Bile Duct in a 42-year-old Japanese Female: A Case Report

Poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma without papilla or tubule formation of the extrahepatic bile duct is rare. Here we present a case (a 42-year-old Japanese woman) without either pancreatobiliary maljunction or liver disease. The patient had obstructive jaundice. Imaging studies revealed a bile duct tumor obstructing the common bile duct and invading the surrounding tissues. Pathologic examination revealed a dense periductal growth of poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma containing signet-ring cells, but without papilla or tubule formation in the extrahepatic bile duct. The tumor cells directly invaded the pancreatic parenchyma and the portal vein. In the extrahepatic bile duct, poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma may be established as a distinct clinicopathologic entity if the tumors are characterized by:1) the absence of papilla or tubule formation, 2) Asian preponderance, 3) occurrence at a younger age than is usual for patients with biliary cancers, and 4) an aggressive mural invasiveness.</p

Risk factors for sternal wound infection

Background Although the utility of flaps for the treatment of sternal wound infections following median sternotomy has been reported for 30 years, there have been few reports on the risk factors for complications after reconstruction. The objective of this investigation was to identify factors related to complications after the reconstruction of sternal wound infections. Methods A retrospective analysis of 74 patients with reconstructive surgery after sternal wound infection over a 5-year period was performed. Clinical data including age, sex, body mass index (BMI), comorbidities, bacterial culture, previous cardiac surgery, wound depth, mortality rate, type of reconstructive procedure, and complication rate were collected. Results The patients' BMI ranged from 15.2 to 33.6 kg/m2 (mean, 23.1±3.74 kg/m2). Wound closure complications after reconstructive surgery were observed in 36.5% of the cases. The mortality rate was 2.7%. Diabetes mellitus significantly affected the rate of wound closure complications (P=0.041). A significant difference in the number of complications was seen between Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and coagulase-negative Staphylococci (P=0.011). There was a correlation between harvesting of the internal thoracic artery and postoperative complications (P=0.048). The complication rates of the pectoralis major flap, rectus abdominis flap, omentum flap, a combination of pectoralis major flap and rectus abdominis flap, and direct closure were 23.3%, 33.3%, 100%, 37.5%, and 35.7%, respectively. Conclusions Diabetes mellitus, S. aureus, harvesting of the internal thoracic artery, and omentum flap were significant factors for complications after reconstruction. The omentum flap volume may be related to the complications associated with the omentum flap transfer in the present study

Spontaneous Regression of Myxofibrosarcoma of the Thigh after Open Biopsy

Spontaneous regression of sarcoma is exceedingly rare. A 62-year-old male presented with myxofibrosarcoma of the thigh which regressed after open biopsy. Treatment strategy for this condition is not well-documented in the literature. In this report, we describe the case of a spontaneously regressed myxofibrosarcoma successfully treated by resection where the extent of the tumor was determined from the initial MRI. This case demonstrates that myxofibrosarcoma has the potential to regress spontaneously, and astute awareness of this phenomenon is necessary for appropriate management of this condition

Axonal-Transport-Mediated Gene Transduction in the Interior of Rat Bone

BACKGROUND: Gene transduction has been considered advantageous for the sustained delivery of proteins to specific target tissues. However, in the case of hard tissues, such as bone, local gene delivery remains problematic owing to anatomical accessibility limitations of the target sites. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here, we evaluated the feasibility of exogenous gene transduction in the interior of bone via axonal transport following intramuscular administration of a nonviral vector. A high expression level of the transduced gene was achieved in the tibia ipsilateral to the injected tibialis anterior muscle, as well as in the ipsilateral sciatic nerve and dorsal root ganglia. In sciatic transection rats, the gene expression level was significantly lowered in bone. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: These results suggest that axonal transport is critical for gene transduction. Our study may provide a basis for developing therapeutic methods for efficient gene delivery into hard tissues

Macroscopically uniform and flat lithium thin film formed by electrodeposition using multicomponent additives

It is well-known that the electrodeposition of lithium usually results in the formation of dendrites on the electrode surface. This limits the utilization of metallic lithium as a material for, for example, the negative electrodes of rechargeable batteries. In aqueous solutions, similar dendritic growth of metals is often observed during electrodeposition; however, utilization of multicomponent additives has overcome this shortcoming. Here, we report that the simultaneous utilization of four different additives greatly suppresses the formation of lithium dendrites during electrodeposition in a tetraglyme-based solution. The roles of the additives are discussed, based on the results of electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance measurements and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy