The presence of hydronephrosıs ın stagıng bladder cancer: an omınous sıgn

Objective: We investigated whether the presence of unilateral or bilateral upper tract obstruction could accurately predict advanced cancer stage. Methods: Six hundred and ten patients with bladder cancer entered into the tumor registries of our institutions between January 1990 and December 1994. The median patient age was 64 years (range 35 to 80). A total 75 (12%) patients had unilateral or bilateral hydronephrosis on an IVP at the time of initial diagnosis of the bladder cancer. Preoperative screening included physical examination, chest radiograph, complete blood count, blood urea nitrogen, creatinin, electrolyte analysis and IVP. Furthermore, patients were usually evaluated by bone scan and computerized tomography (CT). The diagnosis of transitional cell carcinoma was made by cystoscopy and transurethral resection of the tumor. Staging transurethral resection was done in all cases. Results: During a 5-year period 75 of 610 patients with carcinoma of the bladder had ureteral obstruction on excretory urography at the time of the initial diagnosis. Preoperative IVP revealed unilateral and bilateral hydronephrosis in 55 (73%) and 20 (27%) patients, respectively. Pathological staging revealed predominantly pT1 lesions for patients with unilateral obstruction. There were 30 (55%) patients with pT1, 10 (18%) with pT2, and 15 (27%) with pT3. Pathological staging revealed predominantly pT2 lesions for patients with bilateral obstruction. Pathological stage was pT2 in 10 (50%) cases, pT3 in 5 (25%), and pT4 in 5 (25%). Conclusion: IVP can be used in staging because hydronephrosis may Indicate the presence of a muscle-invasive bladder cancer, especially, bilateral hydronephrosis was strongly associated with advanced stage disease

The History of Urinary Stones: In Parallel with Civilization

The roots of modern science and history of urinary stone disease go back to the Ancient Egyptians and Mesopotamia. Hippocrates defined the symptoms of bladder stones. The first recorded details of “perineal lithotomy” were those of Cornelius Celsus. Ancient Arabic medicine was based mainly on classical Greco-Roman works. Interestingly, the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215 forbade physicians from performing surgical procedures, as contact with blood or body fluids was viewed as contaminating to men. With Renaissance new procedures could be tried on criminals. The first recorded suprapubic lithotomy was carried out by Pierre Franco in 1561. In 1874, Bigelow developed a lithotrite, which was introduced into the bladder under anaesthesia (called as “litholopaxy”). Young was the first to report ureteroscopy (1929). With advances in intracorporeal lithotripsy techniques, ureteroscopy became the treatment of choice for ureteric stones. In 1976, Fernstrom and Johannson established percutaneous access to remove a renal stone. However, with the introduction of the first extracorporeal shock wave machine in 1980, a dramatic change in stone management was observed. Civilization in parallel with scientific developments has brought us to a point where we try not to “cut” our patients for stone disease, as Hippocrates admonishes, but rather manage them with minimal invasive alternatives

Staged, Open, No-Ischemia Nephron-Sparing Surgery for Bilateral-Multiple Kidney Tumors in a Patient with Birt-Hogg-Dubé Syndrome

Hereditary kidney cancer patients with bilateral multiple kidney tumors represent challenges in the era of rapidly growing minimal invasive treatment techniques. Birt-Hogg-Dubé Syndrome (BHDS) is an autosomal dominant genodermatosis characterized by a triad of benign skin tumors (fibrofolliculomas, trichodiscomas, acrochordons) together with an increased risk of developing malignant renal tumors and pulmonary disease such as pneumothoraces and multiple lung cysts. The morbidity and mortality of the affected patients is determined by the presence of the kidney tumors, which tend to be multifocal and bilateral, as observed in other hereditary kidney cancer syndromes like von Hippel-Lindau disease, familial leiomyomatosis, and hereditary papillary renal cell carcinoma. Herein, a patient with BHDS, presenting with synchronous bilateral multiple kidney tumors, is reported. The report describes the management of kidney tumors with two-stage open nephron-sparing surgery in which the nonvascular clamping technique was utilized

Malignant Mesothelioma of the Tunica Vaginalis: Presenting with Intermittent Scrotal Pain and Hydrocele

Paratesticular mesotheliomas are very rare tumors. In this paper, we present the management of a 38-year-old male patient with paratesticular malignant mesothelioma who was initially misdiagnosed and treated as recurrent epididymitis. After the final pathology report defining paratesticular mesothelioma during scrotal exploration, he underwent radical orchiectomy and hemiscrotal excision as a complementary, secondary procedure. His metastatic workup did not show any dissemination. Therefore, he did not receive any adjuvant treatment and remained disease-free for more than 2 years