Background
Poor preoperative nutritional and immunological status are major risk factors for postoperative complications in patients with various malignancies. Lower preoperative prognostic nutrition ...index (PNI) is associated with higher rates of postoperative complications and poorer prognosis in those patients. The aim of this study was to analyze the predictive value of the PNI for post-hepatectomy complications in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and evaluate its utility in the surgical procedure.
Methods
This retrospective study included 510 patients who underwent open hepatectomies for HCC. The predictive value of the preoperative nutritional and immunological status for postoperative complications was assessed using the PNI. Postoperative complications were defined as grade II or higher per the Clavien-Dindo classification. Postoperative complication rates were compared according to surgical procedure (major hepatectomy vs minor hepatectomy).
Results
Patients with postoperative complications had significantly lower PNIs than those without (43.1 ± 5.5 vs 47.0 ± 5.7,
P
< 0.001). In the multivariate analysis, low preoperative PNI (< 45) was an independent risk factor for postoperative complications after hepatectomy (hazard ratio, 3.85). When patients were classified per their PNI (high vs low) and extent of surgical procedures (major vs minor), there were more complications among patients with low PNI than those with high PNI, regardless of the extent of surgical procedures. Specifically, the group of patients with low PNI who underwent major hepatectomy had significantly higher rates of postoperative complications than the other groups
.
Conclusions
Adding the resection range to the PNI is useful for predicting the postoperative morbidities of hepatectomy patients.
Background
Decompression sickness (DCS) induced by extravascular and intravascular gas bubbles during decompression can present with varying manifestations, such as joint pain, numbness, cutaneous ...symptoms, and cardiopulmonary dysfunction. However, mesenteric venous thrombosis (MVT) is a rare complication of DCS. To the best of our knowledge, only a few cases have been reported, and surgical cases of MVT secondary to DCS have not yet been reported.
Case presentation
A 59-year-old man who was a fisherman and recreational diver dived to a depth of 100 feet. After diving, he noted abdominal and postcervical pain and visited a community hospital. Computed tomography (CT) revealed a large amount of intravenous gas, so he was diagnosed with DCS. He was then transferred to a previous hospital, where hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) was performed. HBOT reduced the amount of venous gas, but his abdominal pain worsened, so he was transferred to our hospital. CT showed pneumatosis cystoides intestinalis. Because of the possibility of intestinal necrosis, a laparoscopic examination was performed, which revealed necrosis of the transverse colon. We therefore performed a transverse colon resection. He was discharged 36 days after the surgery and followed an uneventful postoperative course.
Conclusions
DCS is likely to cause MVT. If intestinal necrosis is suspected, a laparoscopic examination may be useful for determining the diagnosis and treatment. MVT should be included as a differential diagnosis of abdominal pain that persists after HBOT.
Purpose
This study was designed to assess the tolerability, efficacy, and safety of tri-weekly irinotecan plus S-1 (IRIS) and weekly cetuximab in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).
...Methods
The main eligibility criteria were
RAS
wild-type mCRC with no prior chemotherapy. S-1 was given orally at a dose of 40 mg/m
2
(40–60 mg) twice for 2 weeks, followed by a 1-week rest. Irinotecan was given on day 1 of each cycle at a dose of 150 mg/m
2
. Cetuximab was administered on days 1 (400 mg/m
2
), 8 (250 mg/m
2
), and 15 (250 mg/m
2
), and then once weekly (250 mg/m
2
) thereafter. A standard 3 + 3 phase I dose de-escalation design was used to determine the maximum tolerated dose and the recommended dose (RD) of irinotecan. The primary end point of the Phase II study was overall response rate (ORR).
Results
Between December 2014 and September 2017, 4 and 54 patients were enrolled in phase I and phase II studies, respectively. No dose-limiting toxicity was observed in the phase I study, and the RD of irinotecan was 150 mg/m
2
. In the phase II study, the ORR was 56.9% (90% confidence interval 44.4%–68.7%). The safety profile revealed that the most common grade 3/4 adverse events were neutropenia (31.4%), appetite loss (27.5%), hypokalemia (11.8%), and diarrhea (11.8%). Grade 3/4 hand–foot skin syndrome occurred in nine patients (9.8%).
Conclusion
This study showed that the efficacy and safety of IRIS combined with cetuximab were comparable to those for other first-line treatments. This regimen is a good candidate for first-line treatment of
RAS
wild-type mCRC.
A 75-year-old man who underwent nivolumab as the third-line chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer had chylous ascites (CA) after the primary tumor shrank remarkably. Total parenteral nutrition and ...subcutaneous octreotide were initiated, and CA disappeared. Nivolumab was continued for a total of 23 courses. Computed tomography showed lymph node swelling; however, staging laparoscopy showed that peritoneal metastasis had disappeared. Therefore, conversion surgery and distal gastrectomy with D1+ dissection were performed.
The pathological diagnosis was type IV, poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma (por2) with signet ring cells, ypT2 (muscularis propria), without lymphatic or venous invasion, and no involvement of the proximal and distal margins. After the operation, no recurrence was observed over 7 months with no adjuvant chemotherapy.
Nivolumab has the potential to lead to R0 resection for patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis gastric cancer. To our knowledge, this is the first report of successful conversion surgery after nivolumab-related chylous ascites.
Background
Laparoscopic surgical approaches, including total extraperitoneal repair (TEP), have been widely accepted for inguinal hernia repair in Japan. However, there are limited data regarding ...recurrence after TEP in Japan, given the limited versatility of this procedure. This study retrospectively evaluated the rates of hernia recurrence after TEP and open mesh repair at multiple Japanese centers.
Methods
This retrospective study evaluated 1917 patients who underwent inguinal hernia repair at 32 institutions in the Oita prefecture between January 2014 and December 2015. Eligible patients were grouped according to whether they underwent TEP (1011 patients) or open mesh repair (636 patients). Propensity score matching was performed 1:1 (total: 1076 patients, 538 patients from each group). The outcomes of interest were recurrence, morbidity, and postoperative recovery.
Results
The TEP and open mesh repair groups had similar baseline characteristics. After propensity score matching, there was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of recurrence rate (TEP: 0.5% vs open mesh repair: 1.0%, P = .375). However, the TEP group had significantly longer operating times (median: 70.2 min vs 65.0 min, P < .001), significantly less blood loss (0‐5.1 mL vs 0–20.4 mL, P < .001), and significantly shorter postoperative hospital stays (median: 5.0 days vs 6.4 days, P < .001). The overall incidences of morbidity were 6.2% in the TEP group and 7.2% in the open mesh repair group (P = .535).
Conclusion
This multicenter retrospective study with propensity score matching revealed that the recurrence rates were similarly low for TEP and open mesh repair of inguinal hernia. Thus, a well‐trained surgical team could use TEP as a standard procedure.
The present study was performed to evaluate the recurrence rates and the overall incidences of morbidity after TEP and open mesh repair of inguinal hernia, using retrospective data from multiple institutions with propensity score matching in our region (Oita prefecture, Japan). TEP provides a low recurrence rate and a low incidence of overall morbidity.
Laparoscopic hepatectomy was initially reported in 1992. However, the reported experiences are scarce, and this operation has not been a standard procedure until now. The aims of this study were to ...assess our results of laparoscopy-assisted left lateral hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to compare them with those of open conventional procedures.
From 1984 to 2002, left lateral hepatectomy for HCC less than 5 cm in diameter was carried out in 21 patients. Ten patients received a laparoscopy-assisted procedure, and remaining 11 patients received an open procedure.
There were no significant differences in the operation time, blood loss, resected liver weight, and resection margin between the 2 groups. The total time that analgesics were given, body temperature on postoperative day 1, weight loss on postoperative day 7, and postoperative hospital stay in the laparoscopic group were significantly better than in the conventional group. With regard to the long-term prognosis, there were no differences in patient survival or disease-free survival rates between the 2 groups.
Laparoscopy-assisted left lateral hepatectomy for HCC is superior to the conventional open surgery in terms of its short-term results and does not cause the long-term survival to deteriorate. Therefore, laparoscopic hepatectomy may be an alternative choice for treatment of HCC.
Background
This study was designed to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of XELIRI plus bevacizumab for the treatment of Japanese patients with unresectable or recurrent colorectal cancer (CRC).
...Methods
This was a multicenter, single-arm, open-label prospective study. The major inclusion criteria were previously untreated unresectable or recurrent CRC, presence of measurable lesions, ≥20 years of age, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status 0 or 1, and adequate organ function. Patients received bevacizumab (7.5 mg/kg on day 1) and XELIRI (irinotecan 200 mg/m
2
on day 1 plus capecitabine 800 mg/m
2
b.i.d. on days 1–14) every 3 weeks. The primary endpoint was the objective tumor response rate.
Results
A total of 36 patients were enrolled in this study from July 2011 to September 2012. One patient did not fulfill the eligibility criteria and one patient withdrew their consent before the start of the treatment protocol. The confirmed objective response rate was 58.8% (95% CI 35.1–70.2%). The median progression-free survival was 9.6 months (95% CI 5.1–11.1 months) and the median overall survival was 23.1 months (95% CI 11.3–36.7 months). The grade ≥3 adverse events that were frequently encountered in this study were neutropenia (31.4%), leukopenia (22.9%), diarrhea (22.9%), anemia (20.0%), anorexia (20.0%) and febrile neutropenia (17.2%). The frequency of grade 3/4 adverse events, such as neutropenia and leukopenia, was much higher in patients with a UGT1A1 polymorphism.
Conclusions
A first-line therapy comprising XELIRI plus bevacizumab yielded a promising response rate. However, careful attention should be given to adverse clinical events in Japanese patients receiving treatment with unresectable or recurrent CRC.
Prognostic values of leukocyte subset counts in peripheral blood of cancer patients have not yet been fully investigated. We retrospectively examined the relation between preoperative absolute counts ...of peripheral blood leukocyte subsets and clinicopathologic factors and long-term prognosis in 97 patients with liver metastasis from colorectal cancer who underwent hepatic resection. Median preoperative peripheral blood leukocyte subset counts were as follows: neutrophils 3148/mm3; lymphocytes 1574/mm3; monocytes 380/mm3. Univariate analysis indicated significantly worse 5-year cancer-related survival for patients with a peripheral blood monocyte count >300/mm3 (67.5%) than for patients with a count <or=300/mm3 (36.8%). Multivariate analysis showed a preoperative peripheral blood monocyte count >300/mm3 and preoperative CEA level (>10 ng/ml) to be independent predictive factors for cancer-related survival after hepatic resection. The preoperative peripheral monocyte count correlated positively with white blood cell and neutrophil counts, but not with the tumor number, interval between colorectal and hepatic surgery, or preoperative serum CEA level. Our findings indicate that a preoperative absolute peripheral blood monocyte count >300/mm3 is an independent predictive factor for cancer-related survival of patients with colorectal liver metastasis who have undergone hepatic resection.
In patients with acute cholecystitis who cannot undergo early laparoscopic cholecystectomy (within 72 hours), 6 weeks to 12 weeks after onset is widely considered the optimal timing for delayed ...laparoscopic cholecystectomy. However, there has been no clear consensus about it. We aimed to determine optimal timing for delayed laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis.
Medical records of 100 patients who underwent standard laparoscopic cholecystectomy were reviewed retrospectively. Patients were divided into group 1, patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy within 72 hours of onset; group 2, between 4 days to 14 days; group 3, between 3 weeks to 6 weeks; group 4, >6 weeks.
No significant differences existed between groups in conversion rate to open surgery, operation time, blood loss, or postoperative morbidity, and hospital stay. However, total hospital stay in groups 1 and 2 was significantly shorter than that in groups 3 and 4 (P<.01). In addition, the total hospital stay in group 3 was also significantly shorter than that in group 4 (P<.01).
Best timing of laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis may be within 72 hours, and the delayed timing of laparoscopic cholecystectomy in patients who cannot undergo early laparoscopic cholecystectomy is probably as soon as possible after they can tolerate laparoscopic cholecystectomy.