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A Spiliopoulos

Publications and source records attributed to A Spiliopoulos.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2000

[Stage-based management of bronchial carcinoma: the surgeon's point of view].

Surgery is the treatment of choice for non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) stage I and II. However, adjuvant or neoadjuvant chemotherapy may prove to be of benefit for stages IB and II. Treatment of non-small cell lung carcinoma stage IIIA remains controversial. Recently, neoadjuvant chemotherapy has shown excellent results in patients with metastases to mediastinal lymph nodes discovered at mediastinoscopy and, therefore, seems to be the treatment of choice for these patients. Patients with non-small cell lung carcinoma stage IIIB and IV may benefit from surgery in rare and extremely well selected cases.

Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung↗
PubMed2000

Lung transplantation: how to perform the venous anastomosis when clamping is too distal.

During lung transplantation, the venous anastomosis is performed between the atrial cuffs of the donor and the receiver. In certain rare circumstances, however, the surgeon may find two veins and no possibility to reposition the clamp more proximally. A simple technique can be used in this case: both veins are reunited and the venous anastomosis carried out as usual between two large lumens.

Anastomosis, Surgical↗
PubMed2000

Sex differences in presentation, management, and prognosis of patients with non-small cell lung carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE AND METHODS: To characterize gender differences in lung cancer, we conducted a retrospective analysis including all patients undergoing surgery for non-small cell lung carcinoma in a single institution over a 20-year period. RESULTS: Compared with men (n = 839), women (n = 198) were more likely to be asymptomatic (32% vs 20%, P =.006), nonsmokers (27% vs 2%, P <.001), or light smokers (31 pack-years vs 52 pack-years; P <.001). Squamous cell carcinoma predominated in men (65%), and adenocarcinoma predominated in women (54%). Preoperative bronchoscopy contributed more frequently to a histologic diagnosis in men (69% vs 49% in women, P <.001), and fewer pneumonectomies were performed in women (22% vs 32% in men, P =.01). After multivariate Cox regression analysis, women survived longer than men (hazard ratio, 0.72; 95% confidence interval, 0.56-0. 92; P =.009) independently of age, presence of symptoms, smoking habits, type of operation, histologic characteristics, and stage of disease. The protective effect linked to female sex was present in early-stage carcinoma (stage I and II) and absent in more advanced-stage carcinoma (stage III and IV). CONCLUSIONS: This study emphasizes strong sex differences in presentation, management, and prognosis of patients with non-small cell lung cancer.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Postoperative fatal intestinal necrosis after enalapril treatment in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis.

The inappropriate use of antihypertensive medications may cause hypotensive responses associated with organ failure. We describe a patient who developed nonocclusive splanchnic ischemia leading to death following the administration of enalapril to treat postoperative hypertension. The mechanisms and consequences of refractory hypotension induced by angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors are discussed.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

Bone mineral density in lung-transplant recipients before and after graft: prevention of lumbar spine post-transplantation-accelerated bone loss by pamidronate.

BACKGROUND: Lung-transplant recipients are at risk of osteoporosis. They may have low bone mass even before posttransplantation immunosuppressive therapy. We studied bone mineral density (BMD) before and after lung transplantation and compared the efficacy of antiresorptive therapies to calcium and vitamin D supplementation. METHODS: Areal BMD was assessed in 42 patients awaiting lung transplantation and measured again after surgery at 6 (n = 29), and at 12 months (n = 20). Nineteen patients received antiresorptive therapy (30 mg pamidronate IV every 3 months (n = 14), or hormonal replacement therapy (n = 5)), and 10 patients received only calcium and vitamin D supplements. RESULTS: Mean age- and gender-adjusted lumbar spine (LS) and femoral neck (FN) BMD was significantly decreased prior to transplantation (- 0.6 +/- 0.2, p< 0.01, and - 1.5 +/- 0.2 standard deviation, p < 0.001, respectively). At that time, 29% were osteoporotic (T-score < - 2.5 below the peak bone mass), while 55% were below - 1.0 T-score. Antiresorptive therapy decreased the rate of LS bone loss during the first 6 months and led to a significant increase of BMD at 1 year, with LS changes of + 0.2 +/- 0.1 vs - 0.4 +/- 0.1 Z-score in the calcium-vitamin D group (p< 0.002), and + 0.2 +/- 0.1 vs - 0.04 +/- 0.1 for FN (NS). One out of 20 patients experienced clinically evident fractures during antiresorptive therapy, and 3 out of 12 in the calcium-vitamin D group. CONCLUSION: A significant proportion of patients awaiting lung transplantation was osteoporotic or osteopenic. Antiresorptive therapy (pamidronate or hormone-replacement therapy (HRT)) prevented accelerated LS bone loss after graft.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Spontaneous hemopneumothorax--results of conservative treatment.

Spontaneous hemopneumothorax is a serious condition complicating spontaneous pneumothorax. Early stage thoracotomy has been advocated to stop the bleeding and evacuate the coagulated blood from the pleural cavity. The present review was undertaken to emphasize the potential life-threatening condition of spontaneous hemopneumothorax and reassess the benefit of conservative treatment with chest tube drainage. Out of six patients, five patients were treated conservatively and one required an emergency thoracotomy because of cardiovascular collapse. Although three patients still had minimal residual hemopneumothorax on discharge, none of them developed empyema or trapped lung. In conclusion, conservative treatment is efficient and should be performed if bleeding persists for less than 24 hours after chest tube placement.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Four decades of surgery for bronchogenic carcinoma in one centre.

Since the authors' initial experience in the surgical management of bronchogenic carcinoma in 1956, more than 40 years have passed. The purpose of this report was to review the authors' data and compare the results by decade (1956-1966; 1967-1976; 1977-1986; and 1987-1996) in order to assess the changing patterns in bronchogenic carcinoma. A total of 1,597 thoracotomies have been performed. Between the first and last decades of the study, patients' mean age increased from 57 to 63 yrs, the ratio of males to females decreased from 19:1 to 3:1 and the proportion of adenocarcinoma cases increased from 10 to 34%. The operative mortality decreased from 10% in 1967- 1976 to 4% in 1987-1996 and the overall 5-yr survival improved from 27 to 36% during the same period. The rate of lobectomy progressively increased from 32% in 1956-1966 to 61% in 1987-1996, whereas that of pneumonectomy and exploratory thoracotomy decreased from 42 to 28% and from 20 to 4%, respectively. Changing patterns of patient characteristics, histology and type of surgery were associated with a constant improvement in the overall 5-yr survival. This improvement was particularly evident among patients with advanced-stage carcinoma.

Carcinoma, Bronchogenic↗
PubMed2000

Exercise capacity and extent of resection as predictors of surgical risk in lung cancer.

Lung resection remains the most effective treatment for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, there is no consensus about reliable operative risk assessment in these patients. The aim of this study was to identify predictors of postoperative complications and death after lung resection for NSCLC. In this prospective trial, 125 of 142 (88%) consecutive NSCLC patients from 1990 to August 1997 had complete data sets. All underwent functional assessment including spirometry and cardiopulmonary exercise tests and lung resection via thoracotomy. Complications occurred in 31 of 125 (25%) patients including 2 (1.6%) deaths. On logistic regression analysis, only maximal oxygen uptake (V'O2,max) x kg body weight(-1) expressed as a percentage of the predicted value (p<0.0001) and the estimated extent of lung tissue resection (p=0.02) were independent predictors of postoperative complications. Six of seven patients with a V'O2,max x kg body weight(-1) of <60% pred, but only eight of 65 with values >90% pred, exhibited postoperative complications. Maximal oxygen uptake and the estimated extent of lung tissue resection are independent predictors of postoperative complications. These simple parameters should be integrated into the preoperative decision analysis for operability in patients undergoing lung resection for lung cancer.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Primary malignant melanoma of the esophagus.

A case of primary malignant melanoma of the esophagus is reported, followed by a review of the literature. The clinical presentation of this uncommon tumor is similar to esophageal carcinoma and the preoperative diagnosis may be difficult. A total esophagectomy is the treatment of choice. The prognosis remains poor despite aggressive treatment.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

Thirty-year experience of surgery for breast carcinoma in men.

OBJECTIVE: To present the long-term outcome after surgery for breast carcinoma in men. DESIGN: Retrospective study. SETTING: University Hospital, Switzerland. SUBJECTS: 37 consecutive men who were operated on for breast carcinoma between 1968 and 1998. RESULTS: The mean age was 67 years (range 41-89). The delay between the first clinical presentation and operation ranged from 1 month to 3 years (median 3.5 months). Operations included modified radical mastectomy (n = 19), radical mastectomy (n = 12), simple mastectomy (n = 3), Halsted procedure (n = 1), and conservative resection (n = 1). One patient had only a biopsy and was excluded from survival analysis. There were 30 infiltrating ductal carcinomas, 4 in situ ductal carcinomas, 2 papillary carcinomas, and 1 adenoid cystic carcinoma. Most tumors (n = 25, 68%) were in the subareolar region. The overall survival at 10 years was 44%, but it was significantly influenced by the stage of disease, ranging from 57% in stage I (n = 12), to 26% in stage II (n = 15), and 0 in stage III (n = 8). CONCLUSION: Although the long term survival in stage I and II is similar in men and women, the rarity of breast carcinoma in men and its location in the subareolar region may delay diagnosis and treatment.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Determinants of long term survival after surgery for cancer of the lung: A population-based study.

BACKGROUND: Even if some determinants of lung cancer (LC) prognosis have been established, their independent effect on long term survival remains to be seen. The objective of the current study was to identify the prognostic indicators of long term survival among LC patients treated by surgery. METHODS: All patients with LC recorded at the Geneva Cancer Registry between 1977 and 1987 were analyzed by logistic regression, considering as cases (n = 98) those patients alive 10 years after their initial diagnosis and as controls (n = 330) all other patients, excluding those who did not undergo putative curative surgery. The effect of each prognostic factor was evaluated after accounting for age and gender ("crude" effect) and also for other a priori confounding factors (adjusted effect). Additional models considered two staging variables simultaneously to identify the strongest staging determinant. Results were presented as relative risk estimates of long term (>/=10 years) survival. RESULTS: Age, histology, and stage of disease significantly influenced prognosis regardless of the confounding factors considered. Gender also emerged as a discriminated factor in LC outcome, with a 2.1-fold increased chance (95% confidence interval, 1.6-3.5) of long term survival for women compared with men. Method of discovery, presence of symptoms, period of diagnosis, socioeconomic status, and tumor differentiation did not appear to be associated with long term survival. Extent and size of the tumor were found to be the most reliable prognostic staging factors, whereas adenopathy had no effect after accounting for extension. CONCLUSIONS: The current population-based study quantifies the independent effect of the factors modifying the chances of curability in patients with LC. In particular, it provides additional evidence that gender strongly influences long term survival.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Improvement of drug-induced chronic renal failure in lung transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Nephrotoxicity is a frequently encountered adverse effect of calcineurin inhibitors (cyclosporine and tacrolimus)-combined immunosuppressive regimens. METHODS: We have compared the glomerular filtration rate in 14 patients who underwent lung transplantation, before and after replacement of azathioprine by mycophenolate mofetil and reduction of associated calcineurin inhibitors doses. RESULTS: After a mean follow-up of 16+/-4 months with the modified immunosuppressive regimen, the mean glomerular filtration rate increased by 20% with no change in lung function. CONCLUSION: By its strong immunosuppressive effect, mycophenolate mofetil allows the decrease of associated calcineurin inhibitor doses, with subsequent improvement of renal function without jeopardizing the transplanted lung.

Calcineurin Inhibitors↗
PubMed1999

[Experience of surgical treatment for primary lung cancer in Geneva 1977-1996].

INTRODUCTION: In Switzerland, primary lung carcinoma is the leading cause of cancer death among males and the third cause of cancer death after carcinomas of the breast and colon in females. Surgical resection is the only potentially curative treatment but only in 20-25% of the patients. METHODS: Between January 1, 1977 and December 31, 1996, 1079 consecutive patients (877 males, 202 females) underwent surgery for primary lung carcinoma at the University Hospital of Geneva. RESULTS: Lobectomy was performed in the majority of patients (n = 558, 51.7%), followed by pneumonectomy (n = 319, 29.6%), exploratory thoracotomy (n = 73, 6.8%), segmentectomy (n = 68, 6.3%), and bilobectomy (n = 61, 5.6%). Most tumours were squamous cell carcinomas (n = 613, 57%) and adenocarcinomas (n = 327, 30.3%). Small cell lung carcinomas were diagnosed in 33 patients (3%). The overall operative mortality rate was 6.6%. However, over the period studied, the operative mortality decreased from 9% in 1977-1980 to 4% in 1993-1996. Survival according to the new staging system was 61% at 5 years in stage IA, 43% in stage IB, 37% in stage IIA, 19% in stage IIB, 14% in stage IIIA, 0% in stage IIIB, and 4% in stage IV. CONCLUSIONS: In future, improvement in long-term survival will require earlier detection of lung carcinomas and better adjuvant and neoadjuvant therapies for advanced tumours.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1999

Clinical behavior of solitary fibrous tumors of the pleura.

BACKGROUND: Solitary fibrous tumors of the pleura are rare and present unpredictable clinical behavior. METHODS: Between 1981 and 1998, 11 solitary fibrous tumors of the pleura were resected in 10 patients at the University Hospital of Geneva. Their clinical behavior and outcome were reviewed. RESULTS: Seven tumors arose from the visceral pleura, and three arose from the parietal pleura. Tumors arising from the parietal pleura were revealed to be more difficult to resect than those from the visceral pleura because of their size and adhesion to the chest wall requiring extrapleural resection. Eight tumors showed benign features, whereas two showed distinct features of malignity. One additional patient presented marked pleomorphism that could represent an intermediate form before frank malignity. Four tumors had been followed expectantly for 2 to 10 years before surgery. Although three enlarged rapidly, no signs of malignity were observed on histological examination. All patients are alive, from 2 months to 14 years after surgery (mean 55 months). In one case, however, a malignant tumor recurred 6 years after resection of a benign variant. CONCLUSIONS: Although histologically benign, solitary fibrous tumors of the pleura may enlarge rapidly and occasionally transform into malignant variants after several years. Therefore, complete surgical resection and long-term follow-up is recommended for all patients.

Adult↗