• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.64-68
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• 2011

A 54 year old man was referred to our hospital with gastric cancer. The patient had a history of splenectomy and a left nephrectomy as a result of a traffic accident 15 years earlier. The endoscopic findings were advanced gastric cancer at the lower body of the stomach. Abdominal ultrasonography (USG) and magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a metastatic nodule in the S2 segment of the liver. Eventually, the clinical stage was determined to be cT2cN1cM1 and a radical distal gastrectomy, lateral segmentectomy of the liver were performed. The histopathology findings confirmed the diagnosis of intrahepatic splenosis, omental splenosis. Hepatic splenosis is not rare in patients with a history of splenic trauma or splenectomy. Nevertheless, this is the first report describing a patient with gastric cancer and intrahepatic splenosis that was misinterpreted as a liver metastatic nodule. Intra-operative USG guided fine needle aspiration should be considered to avoid unnecessary liver resections in patients with a suspicious hepatic metastasis.

• Clinical Endoscopy
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• v.57 no.5
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• pp.675-682
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• 2024

Background/Aims: Pancreatic cancer poses significant challenges due to its tendency for late-stage diagnosis and high mortality rates. Cryoablation, a technique used to treat various types of cancer, has shown potential in enhancing the prognosis of pancreatic cancer when combined with other therapies. However, its implementation is often limited by the need for lengthy procedures and specialized equipment. This study aims to develop a cryoablation needle optimized for endoscopic ultrasonography to simplify its application in treating pancreatic cancer. Methods: The study involved conducting cryoablation experiments on swine liver tissue. It utilized cryo-needles to evaluate the extent of cell death across various temperatures and durations of cryoablation. Results: The cryoablation system, which employed liquid carbon dioxide, achieved rapid cooling, reaching temperatures below -60 ℃ within 30 seconds and maintained the cryoablation process for 200 seconds. These conditions resulted in necrosis of the liver tissue. Notable cellular changes were observed up to 15 mm away from the cryoablation needle. Conclusions: This experimental study successfully demonstrated the efficacy of using a cryo-needle for cryoablation in swine liver tissue. Further trials involving pancreatic tissue are expected to verify its effectiveness, underscoring the importance of continued research to establish its role as a complementary therapy in pancreatic cancer treatment.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.203-212
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• 2021

Purpose: The impact of the interval between previous endoscopy and diagnosis on the treatment modality or mortality of undifferentiated (UD)-type gastric cancer is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effect of endoscopic screening interval on the stage, cancer-related mortality, and treatment methods of UD-type gastric cancer. Materials and Methods: We reviewed the medical records of newly diagnosed patients with UD gastric cancer in 2013, in whom the interval between previous endoscopy and diagnosis could be determined. The patients were classified into different groups according to the period from the previous endoscopy to diagnosis (<12 months, 12-23 months, 24-35 months, ≥36 months, and no history of endoscopy), and the outcomes were compared between the groups. In addition, patients who underwent endoscopic and surgical treatment were reclassified based on the final treatment results. Results: The number of enrolled patients was 440, with males representing 64.1% of the study population; 11.8% of the participants reported that they had undergone endoscopy for the first time in their cancer diagnosis. The percentage of stage I cancer at diagnosis significantly decreased as the interval from the previous endoscopy to diagnosis increased (65.4%, 63.2%, 64.2%, 45.9%, and 35.2% for intervals of <12 months, 12-23 months, 24-35 months, ≥36 months, and no previous endoscopy, respectively, P<0.01). Cancer-related mortality was significantly lower for a 3-year interval of endoscopy (P<0.001). Conclusions: A 3-year interval of endoscopic screening reduces gastric-cancer-related mortality, particularly in cases of UD histology.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.51 no.6
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• pp.419-422
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• 2018

Hemangioendothelioma is a rare vascular tumor with involvement of the liver, brain, long bones, and lung. Among the 6 histological subtypes, epithelioid hemangioendothelioma (EHE) is the most aggressive. Its occurrence in the mediastinum is quite rare, and very few cases have been documented. The reported cases in the literature have described difficulties in the preoperative diagnosis due to the unusual histological appearance of the tumor. Immunohistochemistry remains the mainstay for a definitive diagnosis. Due to its low incidence, there is no standard treatment for mediastinal EHE, but curative resection is the preferred treatment option where possible, with chemotherapy used as an adjuvant treatment or in cases of widespread inoperable disease. The present case study describes an aggressive EHE occurring in an 18-year-old woman in the anterior mediastinum.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.8
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• pp.4727-4731
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• 2013

Background: There have been no large-scale population-based studies to estimate the subsequent risk of primary liver cancer (PLC) among patients with pyogenic liver abscess (PLA). This study aimed to provide relevant data. Materials and Methods: The Taiwan Longitudinal Health Insurance Database for the years 2000 and 2005 was used. The PLA group were adult inpatients who were newly diagnosed with PLA from 2000 to 2008. The control group was randomly selected and matched with the PLA group in terms of age, sex, and date in which medical treatment was sought other than for PLA. Results: There were 1,987 patients each in the PLA and control groups. In total, 56 had PLC, 48 (2.4%, 601.5 per 100,000 person-years) from the PLA group, and 8 from the control group. After adjusting for potential covariates, the hazard ratio of PLC for the PLA group was 3.4 times that of the control group (95% confidence interval = 1.6-7.3, p <0.001). The PLC risk for the PLA group was significantly higher within the first year after PLA diagnosis (hazard ratio: 35.4) as compared with the control group and became insignificant (hazard ratio: 2.0, 95% confidence interval = 0.8-4.9) more than one year after PLA diagnosis. Conclusions: Patients with PLA have a higher rate of PLC than matched controls, especially within the first year after the diagnosis of PLA, suggesting PLA is a warning sign for PLC.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.912-921
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• 2021

Objective: To compare the performance of the deep learning-based lesion detection algorithm (DLLD) in detecting liver metastasis with that of radiologists. Materials and Methods: This clinical retrospective study used 4386-slice computed tomography (CT) images and labels from a training cohort (502 patients with colorectal cancer [CRC] from November 2005 to December 2010) to train the DLLD for detecting liver metastasis, and used CT images of a validation cohort (40 patients with 99 liver metastatic lesions and 45 patients without liver metastasis from January 2011 to December 2011) for comparing the performance of the DLLD with that of readers (three abdominal radiologists and three radiology residents). For per-lesion binary classification, the sensitivity and false positives per patient were measured. Results: A total of 85 patients with CRC were included in the validation cohort. In the comparison based on per-lesion binary classification, the sensitivity of DLLD (81.82%, [81/99]) was comparable to that of abdominal radiologists (80.81%, p = 0.80) and radiology residents (79.46%, p = 0.57). However, the false positives per patient with DLLD (1.330) was higher than that of abdominal radiologists (0.357, p < 0.001) and radiology residents (0.667, p < 0.001). Conclusion: DLLD showed a sensitivity comparable to that of radiologists when detecting liver metastasis in patients initially diagnosed with CRC. However, the false positives of DLLD were higher than those of radiologists. Therefore, DLLD could serve as an assistant tool for detecting liver metastasis instead of a standalone diagnostic tool.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.83-86
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• 2023

Angiomyolipomas are usually found in the kidneys of patients with tuberous sclerosis. They occur less frequently in organs such as the liver, the oral cavity, the nasal cavity, the heart, the large intestines, and the lungs. Angiomyolipomas of the skin are extremely rare, and cutaneous angiomyolipomas generally occur on the elbow, the ends of digits, the ear, and the glabella. Herein we present a rare case of angiomyolipoma occurring on the face-specifically, the right upper eyelid. We propose that upper eyelid angiomyolipoma is a hamartomatous, rather than neoplastic, lesion. Although angiomyolipoma in the periocular area is rare, it should be considered in the differential diagnosis of clinically benign masses. and regular follow-up is warranted.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.79-82
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• 2010

Purpose: Carcinosarcomas are rare neoplasms in which both malignant epithelial and mesenchymal elements are identified. We have found only twenty one cases of primary cutaneous carcinosarcoma in the English language literature. Therefore it has been difficult to diagnosis because its unclear etiology and low frequency. Methods: A 31-year-old young man with a protruding mass on his ankle dorsum was examined. The tumor was $7{\times}6{\times}3\;cm$ sized and arose from a burn scar. The mass was wide excised and applied split thickness skin graft. Characteristic pathologic finding was a mixture of squamous cell carcinoma and malignant fibrous histiocytoma. Results: Three months after the operation, the patient died of multiple metastasis to the liver, lung and finally of sepsis despite adjuvant chemotherapy and adjuvant radiotherapy. Conclusion: If a metastatic cutaneous carcinosarcoma is diagnosed, wide excision is required. There should be more aggressive management to minimize the risk of recurrence. Further research into the etiology and pathophysiology of the disease and a more careful differential diagnosis may allow improvement in treatment.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.1297-1303
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• 2012

Aims: Primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common malignancy often related to hepatitis viral infection. Smad4 is known to mediate the TGF-${\beta}$ pathway to suppress tumorigenesis. However, the function of Smad4 in HCC is still controversial. In this study we compared levels of Smad4 in HCC tissues with or without hepatitis virus infection and adjacent normal-appearing liver. Methods: Samples from HCC patients were analyzed for Smad4 protein and mRNA expression by immunohistochemistry (IHC), RT-PCR and Western blotting. Results: We found that tumor tissues expressed less Smad4 mRNA and protein than the adjacent tissues. Most HCC tumor tissues were negative for Smad4 in IHC staining, while the majority of adjacent tissues were positively stained. Interestingly, protein levels were higher in HCC tissues with viral hepatitis than those without virus infection. Suppression of expression appeared closely related to HCC, so that Smad4 appears to function as a tumor suppressor gene (TSG). Conclusion: Patients with hepatitis viral infection, at higher risk for HCC, exhibited increased Smad4 protein expression suggesting hepatitis virus may modulate Smad4 expression, which is functionally distinct from its putative role as a TSG. Smad4 expression may thus be an applicable marker for diagnosis and/or a target to develop therapeutic agents for HCC.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.207-210
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• 2014

The peritoneum is the most frequent site of recurrence for gastric cancer after gastrectomy, followed by the liver and lymph nodes. In contrast, metastasis to the thymus is rare. Annual surveillance with computed tomography was performed on a 67-year-old man who previously underwent a distal gastrectomy and D2 lymph node dissection for gastric cancer at Tottori University. Five years after the initial operation, an anterior mediastinal tumor was detected by computed tomography. The patient underwent video-assisted thoracic surgery to remove the tumor. Histopathology revealed adenocarcinoma cells similar to those of the gastric cancer resected 5 years previously. Thymic metastasis was considered likely based on the location of the tumor. The recognition that gastric cancer can metastasize to unusual anatomic locations, such as the thymus, can facilitate an accurate, prompt diagnosis and appropriate treatment.