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Biomedical subjects

Jacques Donnez

Publications and source records attributed to Jacques Donnez.

53 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Conservative treatment may be beneficial for young women with atypical endometrial hyperplasia or endometrial adenocarcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether an alternative treatment to radical hysterectomy exists for young women with endometrial adenocarcinoma. DESIGN: A review of the literature (70 articles) plus personal results. SETTING: University hospital. PATIENT(S): Women with atypical endometrial hyperplasia or adenocarcinoma. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): The recurrence rate and the pregnancy rate after conservative therapy. CONCLUSION(S): Conservative treatment of well-differentiated stage I endometrial adenocarcinoma can be considered in young patients, with close surveillance to diagnose any possible recurrence.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with primarily unresectable, advanced-stage ovarian cancer.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this review is to report our experience and the feasibility of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with advanced-stage ovarian cancer. METHODS: Forty-five patients with primarily unresectable advanced-stage epithelial ovarian cancer were treated in our center between 1995 and 2002 by platinum-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy. Their files were reviewed retrospectively. RESULTS: At the end of neoadjuvant chemotherapy, according to RECIST criteria, 1 patient (2.2%) had achieved a clinical complete response (CR), 33 (73.4%) a partial response (PR), and 8 (17.8%) had stable disease (SD). Only 3 (6.6%) patients showed disease progression (PD). Surgery was performed in patients with objective response or SD after a median number of 4 courses (range: 2-6) of induction chemotherapy. A complete macroscopic debulking was achieved in 24 (53.3%) out of 39 patients in whom cytoreductive surgery was performed. For the entire group, median overall survival was 29 months. Survival was significantly improved in patients with optimal debulking compared to patients with persistent tumor after surgery: 41 months versus 23 months (P = 0.0062). Median survival for patients responding to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (CR and PR) was 44 months compared to 27 months for patients with SD or PD after initial chemotherapy (P = 0.01). Neither treatment-related deaths nor significant toxicities were observed. CONCLUSION: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by optimal debulking may be a safe and valuable treatment alternative in patients with primarily unresectable advanced-stage bulky ovarian cancer. Patients with an objective response to chemotherapy or absence of macroscopic residual tumor after surgery have a better outcome. This approach is currently being tested in large, prospective randomized clinical trials.

Adult↗

Typical and subtle atypical presentations of endometriosis.

The diagnosis of peritoneal endometriosis at the time of laparoscopy is often made by the observation of typically puckered black or bluish lesions. There are also numerous subtle appearances of peritoneal endometriosis. The lesions are frequently non-pigmented. Red flame-like lesions, glandular excrescences, and subovarian adhesions must be considered as the most active lesions. Sometimes, however, subtle endometriotic lesions can be the only lesions seen at laparoscopy.

Diagnosis, Differential↗

Pre- and post-surgical management of endometriosis.

The efficacy of medical and surgical treatment of endometriosis-associated infertility and pelvic pain is a source of questions and controversies. Complete resolution of endometriosis is not yet possible, but therapy has essentially three main objectives: (1) to reduce pain, (2) to increase the possibility of pregnancy, and (3) to delay recurrence for as long as possible. It could be concluded that a consensus will probably never be reached on minimal and mild endometriosis. In cases of moderate and severe endometriosis-associated infertility, the combined approach (operative laparoscopy with gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist) must be considered as first-line treatment. The mean pregnancy rate of 50% reported in the literature following surgery provides scientific proof that operative treatment should first be undertaken to give our patients the best chance of conceiving naturally. In cases of rectovaginal adenomyotic nodule, surgery must be considered as first-line therapy, medical therapy being relatively inefficacious.

Endometriosis↗

Laparoscopic management of peritoneal endometriosis, endometriotic cysts, and rectovaginal adenomyosis.

Peritoneal endometriosis is probably caused by the implantation of regurgitated menstrual cells. The ovarian endometrioma is the consequence of non-hormone-regulated bleeding from intraovarian epithelial inclusions after they have undergone metaplasia into endometrial-like tissue. Rectovaginal adenomyosis is, in fact, an adenomyotic lesion and can develop from Müllerian rests. In conclusion, peritoneal endometriosis, ovarian endometriosis, and rectovaginal adenomyotic nodules must be considered as three separate entities with different pathogeneses that require a different therapeutic approach.

Adult↗

Ureteral endometriosis: a complication of rectovaginal endometriotic (adenomyotic) nodules.

OBJECTIVE: To present data from 18 cases of ureteral endometriosis. DESIGN: Prospective clinical study. SETTING: Department of gynecology at a university hospital. PATIENT(S): Four hundred and five patients with severe dysmenorrhea or deep dyspareunia due to a rectovaginal endometriotic (adenomyotic) nodule. INTERVENTION(S): Patients were prospectively evaluated using intravenous pyelography. All patients underwent laparoscopic surgery to remove rectovaginal adenomyosis and ureterolysis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Presurgical and postsurgical evaluation and histologic analysis. RESULT(S): Preoperative intravenous pyelography revealed ureteral stenosis with ureterohydronephrosis in 18 patients (4.4%). A significantly higher prevalence (11.2%) was observed in nodules > or = 3 cm in diameter. Five women (20%) had complete ureteral stenosis. Kidney scintigraphy revealed damaged kidney parenchymal function, which ranged from 18% to 42%. Laparoscopic ureterolysis was done in 16 women; 2 women underwent ureteral resection and uretero-ureterostomy. A significant postoperative decrease in ureterohydronephrosis was noted in all patients; however, renal function improved only slightly. CONCLUSION(S): Ureteral endometriosis was found in 4.4% of patients with rectovaginal endometriotic (adenomyotic) nodules. Ureterolysis and removal of associated adenomyotic lesions was sufficient therapy in most patients; two required resection of the ureteral stenotic segment. Intravenous pyelography should be performed in all women with rectovaginal nodules > or = 3 cm to prevent nonreversible loss of renal function.

Adult↗

Potential involvement of hemoglobin and heme in the pathogenesis of peritoneal endometriosis.

OBJECTIVE: To test whether hemoglobin may accumulate in the peritoneal cavity in case of endometriosis and to assess whether heme oxygenases (HO), detoxifying heme, are expressed in ectopic endometrium and peritoneal cells. DESIGN: Prospective study involving patients with and without endometriosis. SETTING: Department of gynecology in a university hospital. PATIENT(S): Seventy-six patients undergoing laparoscopy for tubal sterilization or infertility and/or pelvic pain. INTERVENTION(S): Collection of peritoneal fluid (PF), blood samples, and biopsies from endometrium and peritoneum. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Measurement of free hemoglobin and its byproduct, total and direct bilirubin, in serum and PF and analysis of HO-1 and HO-2 expression in biopsies by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and semiquantitative immunohistochemistry. RESULT(S): Higher levels of hemoglobin were found in the PF of patients with endometriosis. There was no concomitant increase in bilirubin concentrations in the PF, and HO-1 was poorly expressed in peritoneal mesothelium and macrophages. Heme oxygenase-1 and HO-2 were strongly expressed in ectopic endometrium, especially in red lesions. CONCLUSION(S): Our results suggest that heme may be involved in the pathogenesis and/or development of endometriosis and that the HO system, although expressed, might be insufficient to detoxify heme in women with endometriosis.

Adult↗

Dienogest is as effective as triptorelin in the treatment of endometriosis after laparoscopic surgery: results of a prospective, multicenter, randomized study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the efficacy of Dienogest versus Decapeptyl at 3.75 mg as consolidation therapy for surgery in the treatment of endometriosis. DESIGN: Multicenter, open, randomized, parallel-group clinical trial. SETTING: Volunteer patients in an academic research environment. PATIENT(S): Women with grade 2, 3, and 4 (</=70) endometriosis at initial laparoscopy. INTERVENTION(S): We provided 16 weeks of treatment with Dienogest, 1 mg tablet daily; or with Decapeptyl, 3.75 mg IM injection every 4 weeks. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): A change in the patient's Revised American Fertility Society score at the post-treatment laparoscopy. RESULT(S): From June 1994 to July 1998, 142 patients were enrolled in the trial. After exclusion for major protocol deviations, 59 patients were included in the Dienogest group and 61 in the Decapeptyl group. This study group was comparable to the first inclusion group. The patient demographic and clinical characteristics, median duration of endometriosis, Revised American Fertility Society scores, and Visual Analogic Squale (VAS) scores were comparable in both groups. Statistical analysis of efficacy was not significantly different between the two groups. Adverse events were reported by 87.7% of patients in the Dienogest group and 85.1% in the Decapeptyl group. Neither treatment affected patient body weight or vital signs. CONCLUSION(S): Dienogest is as effective as Decapeptyl for consolidation therapy after surgery for the treatment of endometriosis. The safety profile of dienogest differed from Decapeptyl (3.75 mg). Dienogest constitutes a new therapeutic alternative to the GnRH analogues.

Adolescent↗

Oxidative stress and peritoneal endometriosis.

OBJECTIVE: To review the literature associating pelvic endometriosis with oxidative stress and to discuss the potential causes and consequences of a pro-oxidant environment in the peritoneal cavity. DESIGN: Literature survey. RESULT(S): Several studies suggest that oxidative stress is a component of the inflammatory reaction associated with endometriosis. Evidence includes the prevention of endometriosis induction in rabbits by the addition of antioxidants, an increase in reactive oxygen species release by macrophages, increased peritoneal levels of oxidized low-density lipoproteins and their by-products, altered expression of endometrial pro-oxidant and antioxidant enzymes, and consumption of peritoneal fluid vitamin E. Retrograde menstruation is likely to carry highly pro-oxidant factors, such as heme and iron, into the peritoneal cavity, as well as apoptotic endometrial cells, which are well-known inducers of oxidative stress. Reactive oxygen species may be involved in endometriosis-associated infertility and may play a role in the regulation of the expression of genes encoding immunoregulators, cytokines and cell adhesion molecules implicated in the pathogenesis of endometriosis. CONCLUSION(S): Better understanding of the mechanisms of reactive oxygen species production and detoxification and further investigation of their effect on the peritoneal environment are essential to obtain new insight into this disease and eventually develop new diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.

Animals↗

Iron overload in the peritoneal cavity of women with pelvic endometriosis.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the possible involvement of iron in the physiopathology of endometriosis. DESIGN: Prospective study. SETTING: Department of gynecology in a university hospital. PATIENT(S): Seventy patients undergoing laparoscopy. INTERVENTION(S): Collection of peritoneal fluid (n = 57), blood samples, and biopsy samples from endometrium (n = 62) and from endometriotic (n = 33) and normal-appearing peritoneum (n = 53). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Measurement of iron and ferritin in serum and peritoneal fluid and staining of iron deposits with Prussian blue in tissues. RESULT(S): Iron and ferritin concentrations were significantly higher in the peritoneal fluid of patients with endometriosis compared with controls during the secretory phase. Higher rates of ferritin and hemosiderin deposits were observed in the peritoneum adjacent to red (100%), black (57%), and white (62%) lesions compared with normal-appearing peritoneum (25%). Deposits were more frequent during the secretory phase than the proliferative phase in healthy peritoneum from controls, whereas they were found throughout the cycle in the vicinity of lesions in patients with endometriosis. Similar rates of iron deposition were observed in the stroma of black and white lesions and in eutopic endometrium from patients with endometriosis. CONCLUSION(S): Iron overload was observed in the cellular and peritoneal fluid compartments of the peritoneal cavity of women with endometriosis. Iron deposits seem to be related to the presence of lesions, suggesting that iron may be involved in the pathogenesis of endometriosis.

Adult↗

Diagnosis and imaging of adenomyotic disease of the retroperitoneal space.

This manuscript discusses the diagnosis and imaging of adenomyotic disease of the retroperitoneal space, a pathology that we have defined as retroperitoneal adenomyotic disease (RAD). By prospective analysis, comparing barium enema, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and transrectal ultrasonography, we distinguished three types of retroperitoneal adenomyotic lesions. The most frequently encountered types were posterior vaginal fornix lesions, followed by hourglass-shaped or diabolo-like lesions, and then by rectovaginal septum lesions. This anatomical classification based on clinical examination and imaging will allow us in the future to define the most appropriate treatment for each entity.

Barium Sulfate↗

Current thinking on the pathogenesis of endometriosis.

This manuscript is a review of new ideas regarding the pathogenesis of peritoneal endometriosis, ovarian endometriosis, and retroperitoneal adenomyosis. Peritoneal endometriosis, the different aspects of which (black, red and white) represent distinctive steps in the evolutionary process, can be explained by the transplantation theory. Red lesions are the most active and most highly vascularized lesions and are considered to be the first stage of peritoneal endometriosis. The retroperitoneal nodule is an adenomyotic nodule whose histopathogenesis is not related to the implantation of regurgitated endometrial cells but to metaplasia of Müllerian remnants located in the rectovaginal septum. Metaplastic changes of Müllerian rests into adenomyotic glands involving the rectovaginal septum and the retroperitoneal space are responsible for the striking proliferation of the smooth muscle, creating an adenomyomatous appearance similar to that of adenomyosis in the endometrium.

Endometriosis↗

The efficacy of medical and surgical treatment of endometriosis-associated infertility: arguments in favour of a medico-surgical aproach.

This review discusses the efficacy of a combined, medical (GnRH agonist) and surgical, therapy in endometriosis-associated infertility. Because of the limited information currently available on the activity of lesions in minimal and mild endometriosis, any absolute statement is inappropriate at this time, although some arguments exist in favour of treating endometriosis at laparoscopy. In moderate and severe endometriosis, this review provides arguments in favour of a medico-surgical approach and discusses the possibility of combining medical and surgical therapy.

Endometriosis↗

A new, liquid-based cytology technique.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate a new liquid-based cytology technique, Papspin (Thermo Shandon, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.). STUDY DESIGN: Three thousand cervical samples were examined. Each cervix was sampled with a Cervex Brush (Roche, Oss, the Netherlands), used first for a Pap smear and afterwards for a Papspin. One cytospin was prepared from each vial. RESULTS: An identical rate of epithelial cell abnormalities (3.8%) was detected with the two methods. Diagnostic concordance was observed in 86% of the 114 cases. Differences in diagnoses occurred in 168 of 3,000 cases (5.6%) concerning fungal infection (22 cases), epithelial cell abnormalities (24 cases) and minimal differences within the nonneoplastic Bethesda category (122 cases). Endocervical cells were absent from 158 Papspins (5.3%) and 66 Pap smears (2.2%), while they were present in the respective Pap smear or Papspin. Seven Papspins were considered "satisfactory, but limited by ..." (SBLB) as compared to 33 Pap smears given the absence of endocervical cells. CONCLUSION: Discordances concerning epithelial cell abnormalities were observed in 24 of 3,000 cases (0.8%). Fungal infections were more easily diagnosed on Papspin. The absence of endocervical cells in 5.3% of Papspins is due to a bias of methodology. Quality improvement was evident on Papspin for SBLB specimens. HPV testing could be performed with good results.

Adolescent↗