[Evaluation of the risk of malignant transformation in Barrett esophagus. Management before detection of a dysplastic lesion on Barrett's mucosa].
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Publications and source records attributed to A Volant.
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BACKGROUND: Cystic adenomatoid malformation of the lung can be seen by ultrasonography during pregnancy. Surgical excision of the affected lobe is indicated during the first days of life. CASES REPORT: Four neonates were admitted to an intensive care unit from March 1988 to February 1992, due to cystic adenomatoid malformation of the lung, that had been diagnosed by ultrasonography at 19, 22, 34 and 37 weeks of gestational age, respectively. These malformations were not associated with other abnormalities and were type I (three cases) and II (one case) according to Stocker's classification. Only one patient became symptomatic, requiring intubation by 72 hours of age. Surgical excision of the affected lobe was performed in three patients at 4 hours, 2 and 7 days of life, respectively, with a normal long-term survival. A segmental resection was performed at 5 days of life in the remaining symptomatic patient but persistence of cystic lesions required lobectomy at 10 months. CONCLUSIONS: Early perinatal management of cystic adenomatoid malformations of the lung is necessary as surgical excision is indicated as soon as possible, even in asymptomatic patients.
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A case of a cavernous haemangioma associated with an hepatic haemangioma is reported. It presented in the form of a hyperechogenic mass on ultrasound imaging. On the Computed Tomography scan with contrast, the splenic tumour became progressively hyperdense: this last characteristic is observed in 6 out of 9 cases reported in the literature. MR imaging seems to allow an accurate preoperative diagnosis; nevertheless, splenectomy is often indicated because of the risk of rupture, in which case histological examination removes any doubt concerning an exceptional malignant form.
Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma is a form of cancer occurring most commonly in males, particularly those living in some areas of Asia, Africa, and western Europe. In some of these tumors, a sequence alteration has been identified in the coding region of the TP53 gene which is known to inactivate the tumor suppressor function of its product. Using a GC clamp (i.e., a GC rich domain) denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis assay we have been able to identify sequence modifications in 27 of the 32 tumor samples analyzed (84%). Most of the mutations occur in exon 6, a region of the gene which has not previously been reported as being a hot spot for the mutations of other cancers. Twelve of the mutations reported here have not been described in other types of tumors and these consist mostly of frameshift or splice mutations. The distribution of mutations [transitions (45%), transversions (34%), and frameshift (21%)] suggests that the etiological contribution of genotoxic factors might be complex and might associate different exogenous and endogenous mutagen exposures.
Hepatic microsomal cytochromes P-450 CYP1A2, and CYP2E1 contents and catalytic activities have been simultaneously investigated in 42 patients undergoing diagnostic liver biopsy. CYP1A2 contents, measured by Western blotting, were correlated with methoxyresorufin-O-demethylation and ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylation (r = 0.65 and r = 0.66, p < 0.001, respectively). CYP2E1 contents were correlated with 1-butanol oxidation and 6-hydroxylation of chlorzoxazone (r = 0.75 for both, p < 0.001). CYP1A2 catalytic activities varied by 30- to 40-fold, whereas CYP2E1 activities varied by 6- to 20-fold. In our study, these variations were not related to liver diseases or cancer of the digestive tract nor to alcohol drinking or smoking habits, because patients were alcohol- and tobacco-free for 1 month before the study. Other environmental factors, diet habits, and/or genetic factors could explain the large interindividual variations observed.
To investigate the potential role of gliadin in the pathophysiology of some cases of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the authors assayed antigliadin antibodies (AGAb) in RA patients. They used an ELISA to determine AGAb levels in 100 RA patients, a group of RA-free controls with a variety of inflammatory diseases (ID), and a group of controls with noninflammatory diseases (NID). The authors found no significant increase in AGAb titers in the RA patient group as compared with either control group. Only nine patients with RA had detectable levels of AGAbs, which were of the IgG type in seven cases and of the IgA type in two cases. RA patients with and without AGAbs were compared. Patients with AGAbs more often had signs of autoimmune disease including sicca syndrome, positive tests for rheumatoid factor, and positive tests for antinuclear antibodies.
Five eyes had a delayed refractive regression following myopic epikeratoplasty; the undercorrection ranged between -8.00 and -10.00 diopters. Four of the 5 eyes had a loss of best spectacle visual acuity of two Snellen lines or more. Excimer laser photorefractive keratectomy was performed to achieve a full refractive correction. A dense subepithelial haze was observed in the 5 eyes. The 3 months postoperative refraction ranged between -1.00 D and +2.50 D but the spectacle corrected visual acuity reached only 0.1 to 0.2. Because of the poor visual acuity results, the five epikeratoplasty lenticles were removed, resulting in restoration of best preoperative spectacle visual acuity in 4 of the 5 eyes. Excimer laser photorefractive keratectomy was not a helpful means of correcting residual high myopia after myopic epikeratoplasty. The poor results may be explained by the preexisting stromal abnormalities.
168 Ivor Lewis operations for squamous carcinoma of the lower esophagus are reviewed. 155 men and 13 women with a mean age of 59 years were operated on. 46 tumors were stage I and II, and 122 were stage III. Operations were considered to be curative for 120 patients and only palliative for 48. An esophagectomy associated with lymphadenectomy was performed through laparotomy and right thoracotomy. Feeding jejunostomy and pyloroplasty were routine. EEA or ILS 25 staplers were used to perform esophagogastric anastomosis and the gastroplasty tube was fashioned by TA 90 stapler. In every case an extended esophagectomy was performed with anastomosis between 3 ans 7 cm below the pharyngo-esophageal junction. Postoperative mortality was 4.7%. There were 10 leaks (6%) and 28 pulmonary complications. Median actuarial survival is 17 months. Actuarial survival at 2 years is significantly greater for stages I and II (68.4%) than for stage III (23.2%) (p < 0.01). Ivor Lewis esophagectomy is a reliable procedure to treat squamous carcinoma of the lower two thirds of the esophagus ensuring a good quality of life.
Flow cytometry was used to examine the spatial distribution of nuclear DNA content in Barrett's mucosa, in one patient with high grade dysplasia and in 6 patients with Barrett's adenocarcinoma. All tumors were aneuploid. Each adenocarcinoma but the most advanced seemed to arise from a single clone of aneuploid or near-tetraploid cells which was found in all biopsy specimens taken from the tumor. Multiple aneuploid populations of cells were seen in the larger tumors. Eight clones were individualized in the most advanced case of cancer. In all patients with carcinoma, the mucosa surrounding the tumor was aneuploid. Some areas were characterized by the same DNA index as in the tumor, others contained distinct aneuploid cell populations. The spatial distributions of aneuploid clones and dysplastic areas were not perfectly superimposed. These data suggest that neoplastic progression in Barrett's esophagus is associated with genomic instability preceding the development of malignancy. Clonal heterogeneity in Barrett's adenocarcinoma is more marked when compared to other tumors and suggests a majoration of genomic instability during tumor progression.
To better understand the mechanisms of esophageal carcinogenesis, abnormalities in DNA content of esophageal squamous cell carcinomas were studied. Cellular DNA content was determined by flow cytometric study of 70 endoscopic biopsy specimens obtained from 26 patients with esophageal squamous carcinoma. High-quality histograms were obtained for 23 patients. Twenty-one patients had at least one aneuploid population in their tumor. In 7 patients, multiple aneuploid peaks were detected. Specimens from 2 patients were diploid. The interpretation of the DNA histograms was difficult in 3 patients; an aneuploid population of cells was probable in 2 of them. A statistically significant relationship was found between the degree of differentiation and DNA content abnormalities in the regions of the tumors that could be evaluated by endoscopic biopsies: well-differentiated carcinomas had diploid or small aneuploid populations containing less than 15% of the cells, whereas DNA histograms of moderately or poorly differentiated carcinomas were characterized by large aneuploid peaks representing 25%-90% of the cells and a higher proliferative fraction. No relationship was found between the size or the stage of the tumor and the DNA content detected in endoscopic biopsy samples. The frequency and the multiplicity of abnormal clones in esophageal squamous carcinomas indicates that this cancer, like esophageal adenocarcinoma, develops an association with an acquired genomic instability that produces abnormal clones of cells, according to the multistep model of neoplastic progression.
The authors report two cases of esophageal polypoid pseudosarcoma with favorable outcome after endoscopic and medical treatment. Neither of the two patients could undergo general anesthesia. Endoscopic resection or monopolar electrocoagulation of the tumor was associated with chemotherapy and radiation therapy. A complete response of the tumor was observed in both cases. The two patients were alive and well with no evidence of recurrence or metastasis 3 and 5 years after diagnosis. Immunohistochemical study of those two tumors with monoclonal antibodies to intermediate filaments (keratin and vimentin) suggests duality in the spindle cell component. It may explain the biological behaviour of these particular cancers that have a better prognosis than other types of squamous cell carcinomas of the esophagus.
Dysplasia is the only marker for malignant potential in Barrett's esophagus. The histologic interpretation of dysplasia is sometimes difficult, particularly when attempting to distinguish dysplastic changes from those of a regenerating and inflammatory mucosa. In order to find an objective marker to identify patients with high risk of malignant transformation, the authors evaluated 497 biopsies from 66 patients with Barrett's esophagus with flow cytometry. The aim of the study was to correlate DNA content and proliferative abnormalities with histology. All biopsies classified histologically as negative for dysplasia had a diploid DNA content. The percentage of biopsies with an aneuploid DNA content increased with the histologic grade of dysplasia: 2 percent of indefinite dysplasia, 11 percent of low grade dysplasia, 44 percent of high grade dysplasia and 78 percent of biopsy specimens with cancer biopsies were aneuploid. Mean S and G2M fractions of diploid biopsy specimens increased with the severity of histologic changes. The S and G2M fraction threshold values that could differentiate patients that were negative for dysplasia from those with high grade dysplasia or cancer were 9 percent and 6 percent, respectively. Aneuploidy or G2M fraction greater than 6 percent was the best discriminating criteria between those two distinct groups of patients. All 6 patients with high grade dysplasia or cancer had aneuploid cell populations or increased G2M fraction, whereas none of the 35 patients whose biopsies were histologically negative for dysplasia had evidence of genomic instability or increased G2M fraction. Flow cytometric abnormalities were found in 10 out of 25 patients whose biopsies were classified as indefinite for dysplasia or low grade dysplasia.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
A case of del(15)(q11q13) was detected in amniotic fluid cell cultures and confirmed by cordocentesis in a 27-year-old woman with a low maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein level. The fetus was shown to have a short femoral length on ultrasonography. This structural chromosome abnormality associated with the prenatal ultrasonographic findings and the morphological characteristics visualized after termination of pregnancy strongly suggest Prader-Willi syndrome.
Propamidine isethionate eye drops is one of the treatments which are used against amebic keratitis with Acanthamoeba. Several strains of Acanthamoeba, having been tested with this drug during several weeks, did show off a resistance. The authors come to the conclusion that in vitro sensitivity must be examined and therapy must be perfect since the beginning.
The authors report the case of a 30 year-old man with previous history of sarcoidosis, who presented with a painful infiltration of the pancreas. A review of the literature showed that symptomatic pancreatic sarcoidosis was uncommon, since only 8 other cases have been reported. Pancreatic involvement is frequently associated with hepatic infiltration (5/6 cases). Exocrine or endocrine dysfunction are possible. Diagnosis is made only at exploratory laparotomy. Prognosis is good. Steroid therapy is indicated in this peculiar type of pancreatitis, because of its long-range effectiveness on the outcome of the disease.
The authors report about a case of a primitive melanoma of the bladder that a man aged 77 years suffered of. The diagnosis was carried-out with certain difficulty on fragments of endoscopic resection and was discussed from the clinical facts as well as from the anatomo-pathological results and, more particularly, from the immuno-histochemical results. This study makes it possible that a comparison be made with those rare cases observed on a world-scale basis which are described in the literature. As far as the bladder is concerned, it constitutes also an attempt of histogenetic explanation of this kind of tumor.
In a young patient, stenosis due to annular pancreas was revealed by an attack of pancreatitis. The patient already had segmental chronic pancreatitis. Etiological considerations are proposed, based on an embryological approach with special attention to duct anomalies.