M & L Jaargang 21/5

Ann Verdonck, Piet Swimberghe en Veerle De Houwer Een edel en verfijnd genot. Polychromie in de woonkamer van woning Billiet te Brugge. [Noble and refined delight. A polychrome design for the living room of the Billiet house in Bruges.]Roger Deneef, Lydie Mondelaers en Susanne Van Aerschot-Van Haeverbeeck Het Sint-Kamillusgesticht te Bierbeek, monument voor een levensbeschouwing. [Saint-Camilllus Psychiatric Asylum at Bierbeek, monument to an ideology.]Lode De Clercq Vondsten van muurschilderingen in de Sint-Jacobskerk in Antwerpen. [Wall paintings discovered in Saint-Jacobs Church in Antwerp.]Linda Van Dyck en Marie-Hélène Ghisdal Een vroeg-15de-eeuwse muurschildering met de voorstelling van de man van smarten in de kathedraal van Antwerpen. Prachtige fragmenten van een minutieus uitgevoerde schildering.Dirk Van Eenhooge Middeleeuwse Brugse huizen: bouwhistorisch onderzoek in de huizen in Sint-Jacobs en Den Ancker. [Medieval Houses in Bruges (2): In Sint-Jacobs and Den Ancker.]Summar

Late cardiotoxicity after low dose of anthracycline therapy for acute lymphoblastic leukemia in childhood

Introduction Late cardiotoxicity is a known complication of anthracycline therapy but the long-term effects of low cumulative doses are not well documented. We studied late cardiotoxicity in survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) treated with low anthracycline doses 10 to 20 years earlier. Methods Seventy-seven ALL survivors who received a cumulative anthracycline dose <250 mg/m(2) and were at least 10 years after treatment were evaluated for signs of clinical heart failure. Cardiac function was assessed by echocardiography including tissue Doppler measurements of the septal mitral annulus in 37 ALL survivors 10.6-18.3 years (median 13.3 years) after anthracycline treatment with cumulative doses of 180 (n=19) or 240 mg/m(2) (n=18). The control group consisted of 30 healthy volunteers matched for age, sex, BSA, and BMI. Results No clinical relevant cardiotoxicity was found. Left ventricular shortening fraction (SF) was significantly reduced in male ALL survivors. Three of the 19 male ALL survivors had an SF below 30%. Male ALL survivors showed a significantly lower early filling velocity to atrial contraction velocity ratio but myocardial velocity during early filling was comparable between patients and controls. ALL survivors had a significantly longer isovolumetric relaxation time (IVRT). Thirty percent of the ALL survivors have an abnormal IVRT compared to the normal range of the controls. Conclusion and implications for cancer survivors At a median of 13.3 years after exposure to cumulative doses of anthracyclines of 180 or 240 mg/m(2), no clinical relevant cardiotoxicity was found but subclinical cardiac abnormalities were present in 30% of the patients

An atypical case of Burkitt lymphoma with diffuse peritoneal, omental and periportal invasion

Diffuse peritoneal and especially periportal invasion of Burkitt lymphoma is very rarely seen. We present a case of a 16-year-old boy presenting with abdominal pain and constipation, without improvement after enemas. Abdominal ultrasound revealed a diffuse infiltrating peritoneal mass, omental caking, ascites, and a periportal mass, confirmed by computed tomography (CT). No lymphadenopathies were seen. Biopsy was performed and the diagnosis of Burkitt lymphoma was made. Although very rare, it is important to include lymphoma in the differential diagnosis of diffuse peritoneal and periportal invasion in children, as it can mimic peritoneal carcinomatosis

Gastric ulcer in a child treated with deferasirox

We present a patient with thalassemia major who developed a gastric ulcer, probably related to the use of deferasirox. Although gastric ulcer is mentioned as infrequent adverse event in the scientific product information of deferasirox, in our current knowledge, this is the first case-report on this adverse drug reaction. The severity of this event justifies the reporting of this case