Oncologic outcomes following surgical management of clinical stage II sex cord stromal tumors

Objective To investigate the clinical history of patients with clinical stage II sex cord stromal tumors who underwent RPLND at our institution. Methods Our prospectively maintained testicular cancer database was queried to identify patients who presented with or developed clinical stage II sex cord stromal tumors and underwent RPLND at our institution between 1980 and 2018. Demographic, clinical and pathological characteristics were reviewed. Kaplan-Meier curves were graphed to assess recurrence-free and overall survival. Results Fourteen patients were included in the study with a median age of 44.2 years. Four patients presented with clinical stage II disease and 10 patients developed metastatic disease during follow-up of initial clinical stage I disease with a median time to metastasis of 2.7 years (range: 0.4-19.5 years). Of the 10 patients with orchiectomy pathology data available, all patients had at least 1 risk factor on testis pathology (mean: 2.9 risk factors). Nine patients received treatment prior to referral to our institution. All patients recurred post-RPLND at Indiana University. Median recurrence-free survival was 9.8 months. Twelve patients died of disease with a median overall survival of 14.4 months. Conclusions Metastatic sex cord stromal tumors are rare and are more resistant to standard treatment modalities than metastatic germ cell tumors. Patients presenting with sex cord stromal tumors should consider prophylactic primary RPLND in the setting of one or more pathological predictor of malignancy

Formation of a Five-Seven Pair Couple Defect in Double-Walled Carbon Nanotubes under Bending Deformation

金沢大学理工研究域　数物科学系Simulations of double-walled carbon nanotubes under bending deformation using the tight-binding molecular dynamics method were carried out. Five- and seven-membered ring pair defects were formed after emission of several atoms from the tube structure. These defect pair couples have different structures corresponding to the number of emitted atoms and stabilize the resulting nanotubes. Our results imply that the defect pair couples represent one of the potential origins of the experimentally observed plastic deformations that have been shown to occur in double-walled carbon nanotubes. The various defects obtained by the simulations are discussed in relation to other defect types. © 2007 American Institute of Physics

Delaying Cancer Cases in Urology during COVID-19: Review of the Literature

Purpose: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a global pandemic affecting hospital systems and the availability of resources for surgical procedures. Our aim is to provide guidance for urologists to help prioritize urologic cancer surgeries. Material and Methods: We reviewed published literature on bladder cancer, upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC), penile cancer, testis cancer, prostate cancer, renal cancer, and adrenal cancer. Results: For muscle invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), delays should be less than roughly 10 weeks and neoadjuvant chemotherapy should be considered. For non-MIBC, patients should be counseled appropriately based on risk and intravesical therapies can continue. UTUC should also be treated with minimal delays for high risk patients, especially with ureteral tumors. Surgery for T1 renal cancers when indicated can be delayed until adequate resources are available. Patients with T2 renal cancer should be considered for early surgery if there are unfavorable pre-operative characteristics. Higher stage renal tumors should be considered for early surgery. Early multi-disciplinary approach is recommended for metastatic renal cancers. High risk prostate cancer may need preferential treatment and consideration of neoadjuvant hormonal therapy. Penile cancer can have worse sexual or oncologic outcome with prolonged surgical delay. Likewise, adrenal cancer is aggressive and needs early surgical treatment. Testicular cancer should be treated in a timely manner with surgery or chemotherapy, as indicated. Conclusions: This review should further assist urologists in recognizing patients with potentially aggressive tumor biology that warrant early treatment

Robotic Sacral Colpopexy Using Autologous Fascia Lata Compared with Mesh

Objective: The objective is to compare robotic sacral colpopexy (RSC) utilizing autologous fascia lata with RSC with synthetic mesh in the treatment of pelvic organ prolapse (POP). Methods: We performed a prospective nonrandomized case comparison trial at a single institution. We compared RSC utilizing either synthetic mesh or autologous fascia lata in women with symptomatic POP, stages II through IV. The primary outcome was anatomic prolapse recurrence determined by the Pelvic Organ Prolapse Quantification (POP-Q) examination. Secondary outcomes included patient-reported outcomes such as the Urogenital Distress Inventory-6 (UDI-6) and Incontinence Impact Questionnaire-7 (IIQ-7). Complications were also recorded and categorized using the Clavien–Dindo (CD) system. The hypothesis is that autologous fascia lata would provide equivalent anatomic and patient-reported outcomes compared with mesh while eliminating mesh-related complications. Results: Sixty-four women underwent RSC with 19 (29.7%) receiving fascia lata graft. The overall operative time was greater in the fascia lata group with mean fascia lata harvest time of 24.8 ± 7.4 minutes. Intragroup comparisons of the fascia and mesh groups demonstrated significant improvement in pelvic measurements as well as patient-reported outcomes. Intergroup comparison demonstrated equivalent success rates at 12.1 ± 8.7 months follow-up. There was one apical failure in the fascia lata RSC group; however, the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.30). Significant complications in the fascia lata harvest group included two CD-II and one CD-IIIb. In the mesh group there was one mesh erosion requiring surgical excision (CD-IIIb). Conclusion: This is the first comparison between RSC with autologous fascia lata and mesh. Short-term anatomic outcomes were similar with autologous fascia lata use without the risk of mesh erosion. Morbidity from graft harvest site was not trivial. These results emphasize the need for a randomized controlled trial

Long-Term Oncologic Outcomes after Primary Retroperitoneal Lymph Node Dissection: Minimizing the Need for Adjuvant Chemotherapy

Objective: To analyze the oncological outcomes of men undergoing primary RPLND and characterize the use of adjuvant chemotherapy and template dissections. Methods: Retrospective review of Indiana University testis cancer database identified patients who underwent a primary RPLND between 01/2007 and 12/2017. Patients and providers were contacted to obtain information regarding adjuvant therapy, recurrence, and survival. Primary outcome was recurrence-free survival (RFS). Kaplan-Meier curves assessed survival differences stratified by pathologic stage, template of dissection, and use of adjuvant chemotherapy. Results: Overall, 274 patients were included. Most men presented with CS-I disease (214, 78%). A modified unilateral template was performed in 257 (94%) and bilateral template in 17 (6%). Overall, 148 (54%) and 126 (46%) of men had Pathologic Stage I (PS-I) and PS-II disease, respectively. Thirteen patients (10%) with PS-II disease were treated with adjuvant chemotherapy. With a median follow-up was 55 months, only 33 (12%) patients recurred. Of the 113 patients with PS-II disease who did not receive chemotherapy, 21 (19%) relapsed and 81% were cured were surgery alone and never recurred. No difference in RFS was noted between modified and bilateral template dissections. Conclusions: The use of adjuvant chemotherapy has been minimal over the past decade. The majority (81%) of men with PS-II disease were cured with RPLND alone and were able to avoid chemotherapy. Modified unilateral template dissection provided excellent oncologic control while minimizing morbidity

Endothelial Cells Promote the Colorectal Cancer Stem Cell Phenotype through a Soluble Form of Jagged-1

SummaryWe report a paracrine effect whereby endothelial cells (ECs) promote the cancer stem cell (CSC) phenotype of human colorectal cancer (CRC) cells. We showed that, without direct cell-cell contact, ECs secrete factors that promoted the CSC phenotype in CRC cells via Notch activation. In human CRC specimens, CD133 and Notch intracellular domain-positive CRC cells colocalized in perivascular regions. An EC-derived, soluble form of Jagged-1, via ADAM17 proteolytic activity, led to Notch activation in CRC cells in a paracrine manner; these effects were blocked by immunodepletion of Jagged-1 in EC-conditioned medium or blockade of ADAM17 activity. Collectively, ECs play an active role in promoting Notch signaling and the CSC phenotype by secreting soluble Jagged-1