Multi-Disciplinary Treatment of a Rare Pelvic Cavity Ependymoma

Ependymomas usually develop from neuroectodermal organs. Here, we present an ependymoma arising from the pelvic cavity. A 27-year-old Korean female was admitted to the hospital with a sensation of abdominal fullness. Imaging studies revealed a huge heterogeneous nodular mass in the pelvis and lower abdomen. Laparotomy showed that two large masses with multiple nodules were located between the uterus and rectum and uterus and bladder, respectively. Histologically, the tumor was characterized by compact columnar neoplastic cells divided by fibrovascular septae. The neoplastic cells formed true ependymal rosettes and perivascular pseudorosettes. Immunohistochemical staining showed a strong positive reaction for glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and vimentin and a partial positive reaction for S100 and EMA. The tumor was thus diagnosed as an ependymoma arising from the pelvic cavity. The patient was treated with a debulking operation and chemotherapy based upon the in vitro chemosensitivity test results. The patient was free of cancer for 4 years following surgery. This is a rare case of extraneural ependymoma for which an in vitro chemosensitivity test was critical in determining the multidisciplinary approach for treatment

Chemoradiotherapy with or without consolidation chemotherapy using cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil in anal squamous cell carcinoma: long-term results in 31 patients

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The objectives of this study were to evaluate long-term results of concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CRT) with 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin and the potential benefit of consolidation chemotherapy in patients with anal squamous cell carcinoma (ASCC).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Between January 1995 and February 2006, 31 patients with ASCC were treated with CRT. Radiotherapy was administered at 45 Gy over 5 weeks, followed by a boost of 9 Gy to complete or partial responders. Chemotherapy consisted of 5-fluorouracil (750 or 1,000 mg/m²) daily on days 1 to 5 and days 29 to 33; and, cisplatin (75 or 100 mg/m²) on day 2 and day 30. Twelve patients had T3–4 disease, whereas 18 patients presented with lymphadenopathy. Twenty-one (67.7%) received consolidation chemotherapy with the same doses of 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin, repeated every 4 weeks for maximum 4 cycles.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Nineteen patients (90.5%) completed all four courses of consolidation chemotherapy. After CRT, 28 patients showed complete responses, while 3 showed partial responses. After a median follow-up period of 72 months, the 5-year overall, disease-free, and colostomy-free survival rates were 84.7%, 82.9% and 96.6%, demonstrating that CRT with 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin yields a good outcome in terms of survival and sphincter preservation. No differences in 5-year OS and DFS rates between patients treated with CRT alone and CRT with consolidation chemotherapy was observed.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>our study shows that CRT with 5-FU and cisplatin, with or without consolidation chemotherapy, was well tolerated and proved highly encouraging in terms of long-term survival and the preservation of anal function in ASCC. Further trials with a larger patient population are warranted in order to evaluate the potential role of consolidation chemotherapy.</p

Molecular Targets and Promising Therapeutics of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is one of the most heterogeneous diseases in solid tumors and has limited therapeutic options. Due to the lack of appropriate targetable markers, the mainstay therapeutic strategy for patients with TNBC has been chemotherapy for the last several decades. Indeed, TNBC tumors have no expression of estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, or human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2); therefore, they do not respond to hormone therapy and HER2-targeted therapy. In this review paper, the molecular heterogeneities, possible therapeutic targets, and recently approved and upcoming drugs for TNBC will be summarized