Hiroyuki Shibusawa

Clinicopathological study of lymph‐node metastasis in 1389 patients with early gastric cancer: Assessment of indications for endoscopic resection

BACKGROUND:  The endoscopic resection of early gastric cancers (EGC) is a standard technique in Japan and is increasingly used throughout the world. Further experience in the treatment of EGC and a clearer delineation of the factors related to lymph‐node metastasis would permit a more accurate assessment of endoscopic resection.

The beneficial effects of recombinant human insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) on wound healing in severely wounded senescent mice

The effects of recombinant insulin-like growth factor I (rIGF-I) on wound healing were tested using senescent and young BDF-1 mice, aged 108 weeks and 10 weeks, respectively. After inflicting a full thickness dermal burn encompassing 15% of the body surface, a skin incision, 2 cm in length, was made in the back. A silicone tube containing a piece of polyvinyl sponge was then implanted into a subcutaneous pocket in the flank to collect body fluid. An osmotic pump was buried in the abdominal subcutaneous tissue for the continuous infusion of rIGF-I, the control being treated with the solvent of IGF-I, physiological saline, only. The administration of IGF-I produced favorable effects on wound healing in the senescent mice, shown by enhanced tensile strength and an elevated concentration in the hydroxyproline of the polyvinyl sponge content. The IGF-I-treated severely wounded senescent mice healed, better than their counterparts and their skeletal muscles contained more glutamine. Furthermore, they showed more enhanced cutaneous hypersensitivity towards dinitrofluorobenzene than the controls, suggesting an enhanced grade of cellular immunity. There were no conspicuous differences between the two groups of young mice. These data may suggest the beneficial effects of rIGF-I on wound healing, especially in geriatric surgery.

Development of duodenal cancer in a patient with familial adenomatous polyposis

Abstract: A Japanese woman with familial adenomatous polyposis in whom a duodenal ampullary adenoma underwent malignant change during a 10-year follow-up period is reported. After restorative proctocolectomy in 1989, and extensive small bowel resection for desmoid disease in 1991, regular surveillance duodenoscopies, including three to nine biopsies (mean, 4.8) were performed annually or biannually. Until 1995, the endoscopic findings of duodenal polyposis (including an ampullary polyp) did not progress and the histopathology did not worsen. In 1996, there was an increase in the number and size of the duodenal polyps, and the ampulla of Vater looked enlarged. Open surgery was discussed but not proceeded with because of the risk for short bowel syndrome. In January 1998, she was admitted with a diagnosis of acute pancreatitis. Duodenoscopy and radiological examination revealed that an advanced ampullary cancer had developed, and histopathology revealed a well-differentiated adenocarcinoma. Multiple hepatic metastases and ascites led to her death, in June, 1998. This in-vivo demonstration of the adenoma-carcinoma sequence highlights current limitations in the surveillance and treatment of duodenal lesions.

Esophageal submucosal hematoma: a case report and review of the literature

The patient was a 75-year-old man. Under a diagnosis of angina pectoris, he was being treated with aspirin and ticlopidine hydrochloride at a local clinic. Severe postprandial pharyngeal/thoracic pain and hematemesis occurred. Upper digestive tract endoscopy revealed an extensive submucosal hematoma involving the esophageal orifice and cardia. Computed tomography (CT) scan did not show aortic dissociation or mediastinal emphysema. Antiplatelet therapy was discontinued, and follow-up was continued by fasting and conservative treatment with an H2-blocker. Ten days after onset, endoscopy showed the disappearance of the hematoma, and ingestion was started. Twenty-two days after onset, endoscopy revealed regeneration and cicatrization of the esophageal mucosa. In a detailed examination of heart diseases, angina pectoris was ruled out; therefore, antiplatelet therapy was discontinued. There has been no recurrent esophageal submucosal hematoma for 4 years of follow-up.

Preoperative chemoradiotherapy and surgery for locally advanced esophageal basaloid squamous carcinoma: report of successful

A 58-year-old Japanese man complained of dysphagia, and esophagography and endoscopy showed a 7.5-cm-long protruding tumor in his middle esophagus. Biopsy diagnosed the lesion as basaloid squamous carcinoma. We assessed the tumor as T3N0M0 stage II. Preoperative chemoradiotherapy was started, consisting of 3 weeks of intravenous chemotherapy with 10 mg/day cisplatin and 750 mg/day 5-fluorouracil and concurrent total 45-Gy external irradiation applied to the tumor. We evaluated the effectiveness as a partial response and performed curative resection with radical esophagectomy 23 days after the completion of chemoradiotherapy. The pathological findings showed necrosis and degeneration over two-thirds of the tumor. Postoperatively, he returned to physical labor and has had no evidence of recurrence for 5 years. Although basaloid squamous carcinoma of the esophagus is associated with poor prognosis because of its highly malignant potential, preoperative chemoradiotherapy followed by radical esophagectomy may allow for the possibility of improving the prognosis of a fatal process.

Cervical esophageal web in a 13-year-old boy with growth failure

disease that occurs most frequently in the middle or lower esophagus. Stenosis in the upper one-third of the esophagus is extremely rare.1–3 The present report describes a boy with a long history of dysphagia caused by a cervical esophageal web. The cause of esophageal webs, some of which are associated with an iron deficiency anemia in patients with Plummer–Vinson syndrome4 or with skin disease, such as epidermolysis bullosa,5 is unknown. Cervical esophageal webs have been reported to show an increased incidence in the middleto old-age group6 and only a few pediatric cases have been described.2,3

Preoperative chemotherapy for advanced esophageal cancer and relation with histological effect

The results of surgical treatment for advanced esophageal cancer remain extremely poor. Irradiation and chemotherapy are not superior to surgery. Perioperative morbidity and the influence on long-term survival of a combination of surgery and preoperative chemotherapy were investigated in patients with advanced esophageal cancer. Forty-nine patients with advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma were subjected to preoperative chemotherapy of cisplatin-5-fluorouracil. Fifty-seven patients were chosen as a historical control group who had not undergone chemotherapy before surgery but had the same histological stages as the chemotherapy group. The response to chemotherapy was assessed by histological studies of surgical specimens. The survival rates noted no significant difference between preoperative chemotherapy plus surgery and a resection alone. However, subclassification according to the grading of chemotherapeutic effectiveness showed that, compared with control, preoperative chemotherapy was beneficial to high responders (P=0.01), ineffective in low responders (P=0.61), and detrimental to nonresponders (P=0.03). Postoperative morbidity was significantly higher in the chemotherapy group than in the control group (P=0.02). These findings suggest that preoperative chemotherapy is necessary only for high responders and we therefore need to reliably identify non-, low, and high responders before chemotherapy to improve the survival and quality of life of patients with advanced esophageal cancer.

Pretreatment of gastric outlet obstruction with pancrelipase: Report of a case

Highlights • Gastric outlet obstruction is characterized by the retention of gastric contents.• A nasogastric tube alone may not adequately drain the obstructed stomach.• Pancrelipase allows gastric contents to be removed in a short period of time.