Eiji Osaka

Survivin as a prognostic factor for osteosarcoma patients.

Purpose: Survivin is one of the apoptosis inhibitor genes and is rarely expressed in adult tissues. However, survivin expression has been detected in various human cancers and correlations have been recognized between the level of expression of this gene in tumors and prognosis. In this study, we investigated the correlations between survivin mRNA expression in osteosarcoma tissues and clinicopathological parameters. Methods: There were 22 osteosarcoma patients in our hospital with paraffin-embedded tissues which could be extracted from biopsy specimens. We used the RT-PCR method after extracting total RNA and conducted a densitometric analysis to determine the ratio of survivin relative to h-GAPDH as an internal marker. Results: Expression of survivin mRNA was detected in all osteosarcoma samples. Patients with metastasis had high survivin mRNA levels in initial biopsy specimens (p<0.01). Moreover, there was a statistically significant difference in survivin mRNA expression between patients with and without metastasis (p<0.01). Conclusion: We concluded that high levels of survivin mRNA expression suggest poor prognosis for osteosarcoma patients.

Long-term outcome following surgical treatment of sacral chordoma.

Sixteen sacral chordoma surgeries performed at a single institution during the 1983–2008 period were retrospectively studied. Our aim is to assess surgical treatment and long‐term outcomes.

Surgical management of malignant soft tissue tumours in patients aged 65 years or older

Objective. With the aim to determine the most effective treatment for primary malignant musculoskeletal tumours in patients aged 65 years or older, we reviewed cases of low- and high-grade neoplasms, surgical margins, surgical methods, and the prognoses of elderly and aged patients at our institution. Methods. Records of 25 patients aged 65 years or older who had malignant soft tissue tumours from December 1986 to February 1997 were reviewed. Low- and high-grade neoplasms accounted for 8 and 17 patients, respectively. 11 patients were aged 65 to 69 years, while 14 were 70 years or older. Surgical margins were wide in 19 cases, marginal in 4, and intralesional in 2. Reconstruction was done using 6 musculocutaneous flaps and/or 4 vessel grafts. As adjuvant therapy, radiotherapy was used in 5 cases and chemotherapy in 3. There was no recurrence in patients with wide surgical margins (determined on the basis of gross inspection of the excised tumour and the cut surface); but there was recurrence in 4 patients with marginal margins, and one patient with intralesional margin. Two patients with intralesional, 4 with marginal, and 2 with wide margins, died from recurrence at the primary site and metastasis, or from metastasis without recurrence at the primary site. Results. Follow-up periods ranged from 4 months to 180 months (mean, 91.6 months). The overall 5-year survival rate was 79.6%; for low- and high-grade neoplasms, the figures were 100% and 69.7%, respectively; for those aged 65 to 69 years and in their 70s or older, the figures were 90.9% and 70.1%, respectively. Conclusion. For geriatric patients, wide surgical margins are required to manage both low- and high-grade neoplasms, in order to avoid multiple surgeries.

Lung squamous cell carcinoma with brachial soft tissue metastasis responsive to gefitinib: Report of a rare case

Metastasis of lung cancer to soft tissue is rare and patient outcomes are generally poor. There are no reports describing soft tissue metastasis in lung squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), in which gefitinib treatment was effective not only for the primary tumor but also the metastatic lesion. A 61‐year‐old Asian woman presented to our facility with pain and a mass in the brachium. An additional tumor was identified in the lung. As we suspected soft tissue metastasis of lung cancer, an incisional biopsy was performed, yielding a diagnosis of SCC. The brachial tumor continued to grow and became exposed at the biopsy site when the incisional wound dehisced. Because the biopsied specimen was positive for an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene mutation, we commenced gefitinib administration. This treatment resulted in the rapid shrinkage of both the brachial metastasis and the primary tumor, followed by healing of the wound. Therefore, tyrosine kinase inhibitors should be used for cases that present EGFR activating mutations independently from the presence of skin and soft tissue metastases.

Secondary malignant giant cell tumor of bone due to malignant transformation 40 years after surgery without radiation therapy, presenting as fever of unknown origin: a case report

BackgroundMalignant transformation of giant cell tumors of bones, that is, secondary malignant giant cell tumor of bone, is rare. The most common symptoms are local pain and swelling. There are no prior reports of giant cell tumor of bone with fever of unknown origin at the onset. Here we present a case of a secondary malignant giant cell tumor of bone due to malignant transformation 40 years after surgery without radiation therapy, presenting as fever of unknown origin.Case presentationA 75-year-old Asian man presented with a 3-week history of continuous pyrexia and left knee pain and swelling. He had been diagnosed at age 35 years with a giant cell tumor of bone of his left distal femur and underwent bone curettage and avascular fibula grafting at that time. Postoperative radiation therapy was not performed. He remained recurrence-free for 40 years after surgery. At age 75, histopathological findings suggested a secondary malignant giant cell tumor of bone. The tumor specimen expressed tumor necrosis factor-α. Neoplastic fever was suspected, and a naproxen test was conducted. His pyrexia showed immediate resolution. Surgery was performed under a diagnosis of a secondary malignant giant cell tumor of bone with neoplastic fever. His pyrexia and inflammatory activities diminished postoperatively.ConclusionsThis is the first reported case, to the best of our knowledge, of the detection of a secondary malignant giant cell tumor of bone based on fever of unknown origin after long-term (40 years) follow-up. After curettage and bone grafting, giant cell tumor of bone may transform to malignancies within a few years or even decades after surgery. Therefore, meticulous follow-up is essential. The fever might be attributable to the tumor releasing inflammatory cytokines. Not only pain and swelling but also continuous pyrexia may suggest the diagnosis of a secondary malignant giant cell tumor of bone.