Soichiro Maekawa

Abdominal surgery for patients on maintenance hemodialysis

Despite the growing number of major surgical procedures being performed for patients on maintenance hemodialysis, few reports focus on the management and outcome of such patients, especially those undergoing major abdominal surgery. We conducted a retrospective review of 30 patients on maintenance hemodialysis who underwent abdominal surgery, 20 of whom underwent an elective operation and 10, an emergency operation. The indications of elective surgery included gastrointestinal cancer, biliary tract disease, and abdominal aortic aneurysm, while those for emergency surgery mainly involved gastrointestinal perforation or bleeding. There were no statistically significant differences between the elective group and the emergency group regarding either the mean time on hemodialysis or the preoperative clinical data. The morbidity and mortality rates were 15% and 10%, respectively, for the patients who underwent elective surgery and 50% and 70%, respectively, for those who underwent emergency surgery (P<0.01 andP<0.05, respectively). Those patients with more than a 2-year history of hemodialysis had a significantly higher mortality rate following abdominal surgery than those with less than a 2-year history (P<0.01). Thus, the morbidity and mortality rates of patients on maintenance hemodialysis who require major abdominal surgery are significantly high, which reinforces the need to further improve the intensive perioperative management of such patients.

Laparoscopy-assisted surgery: A new technique for transhiatal esophageal dissection

Esophageal dissection under laparoscopic monitoring is performed during total esophagectomy to treat patients with cervical esophageal carcinoma. Using this technique, a safe esophageal dissection can be made from the surrounding mediastinal tissues. Some of the disadvantageous consequences of a blunt dissection, including the blind maneuver, may thus be prevented and various intraoperative and postoperative complications may be avoided.

The Effectiveness of Chemotherapy with Cisplatin and 5-Fluorouracil for Recurrent Small Cell Neuroendocrine Carcinoma of the Rectum: Report of a Case

We report herein the case of a 46-year-old-man with small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC) concomitant with large villous adenoma of the rectum, who underwent abdominaoperineal resection with regional lymphnode dissection. The resected specimen was histologically found to contain a small lesion of NEC confined to the submucosa in the large adenoma. A computed tomography scan done 4 months postoperatively revealed recurrences in the liver, lymph nodes, and bone. Therefore, two cycles of sequential intravenous combined chemotherapy with standard doses of cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) were administered, after which the size of each tumor decreased remarkably. Nevertheless, the patient died 8 months after the operation. As there was a fair response of this tumor to the combined chemotherapy of cisplatin and 5-FU, this regimen against NEC of the colon and rectum should be given consideration.

Local immune response to tumor invasion in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: The expression of human leukocyte antigen-DR and lymphocyte infiltration

Background. The purpose of this study was to investigate the local immune response to tumor invasion in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma by using an immunohistochemical examination of the expression of human leukocyte antigen‐ (HLA) DR and lymphocyte infiltration.

A COMPARISON OF OPEN AND LAPAROSCOPIC CHOLECYSTECTOMY FOR PATIENTS WITH CIRRHOSIS

To evaluate the benefits of performing laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) in patients with cirrhosis, data on 13 patients with liver cirrhosis who underwent cholecystectomy for gallstones between 1989 and 1995 were retrospectively collected from charts filed at Fukuoka City Hospital. These 13 patients were classified into two groups; one, comprised of 7 who underwent LC, and anothe, comprised of 6 who underwent open cholecystectomy (OC). No statistical differences were observed in the duration of surgery or the intraoperative blood loss between the two groups; however, the C-reactive protein (CRP) level in the serum was significantly higher in the OC group than in the LC group. LC was followed by a significantly earlier resumption of a normal diet (P<0.05) and a shorter hospital stay (P<0.05) in comparison to OC. All of the patients who underwent OC had an uneventful clinical course; however, one of the patients who underwent LC suffered from intractable ascites postoperatively. The difference in the cost of hospitalization between the two groups was not statistically significant. These findings suggest that the therapeutic significance of performing LC in patients with cirrhosis should be assessdd after carefully evaluating all factors including mortality, morbidity, and cost-effectiveness. Thus, further controlled trials are necessary.

Sex hormone-receptor-negative tumors have a higher proliferative activity than sex hormone-receptor-positive tumors in human adenocarcinomas of the gastrointestinal tract

To determine whether a correlation exists between hormone receptors and their proliferative activities, the levels of estrogen receptors (ER) and progesterone receptors (PgR) in surgical specimens from 23 patients with gastric cancer and from 32 patients with colorectal cancer were investigated using an enzyme immunoassay. These values were examined in relation to the parameters of cell kinetics determined by DNA flow cytometry. When the cutoff value was determined as 2.0 fmol/mg of cytosolic protein, ER and PgR were found in 13 (56%) and 6 (26%) of the 23 patients with gastric cancer, respectively, and in 10 (31%) and 10 (31%) of the 32 patients with colorectal cancer, respectively. There was a significant correlation in the expressions of ER between the cancer tissues and normal mucosa (P=0.040). Although the expressions of ER or PgR were apparently not related to pathological status, better correlations of hormone receptor-negative tumors with increased hyperaneuploid levels were evident. According to a multiple regression analysis, ER levels significantly correlated with changes in the DNA index (P=0.041) and in the heterogeneity index score (HIS) (P=0.034). Thus, sex hormone receptors proved to be relevant factors associated with the proliferative activity of adenocarcinoma of the gastrointestinal tract. These findings indicate that the expression of hormone receptors provides pertinent biological information required to determine adequate therapeutic regimens in patients with gastrointestinal cancer.

Adenosquamous carcinoma of the remnant stomach: report of a case.

We report herein the case of a 59-year-old man found to have adenosquamous carcinoma of the remnant stomach which demonstrated rapid progression. The patient was admitted to our hospital to undergo surgery for a papillary tumor of the remnant stomach. Total resection of the remnant stomach with lymph node dissection was performed, and pathological examination confirmed a diagnosis of adenosquamous carcinoma with invasion into the muscularis propria and lymph node metastasis around the perigastric areas. Multiple liver metastases were found 6 months after the operation, for which a right hepatectomy was performed with curative intent; however, he died 2 months later due to lymphangitis carcinomatosa of the lung.

Quality of life following surgery for vertebral metastases from breast cancer

The quality of life of patients with vertebral metastases from breast cancer treated with surgery was evaluated.

Peritoneal Collagen Type IV Concentration in Adenocarcinoma of the Gastrointestinal Tract and Its Relationship to Histological Differentiation, Metastasis, and Survival

To determine if peritoneal collagen type IV levels could serve as a parameter for predicting metastasis and the subsequent course of disease, the concentration of collagen IV in the peritoneal fluid of 85 patients with adenocarcinoma of the gastrointestinal tract, including 50 with gastric cancer and 35 with colorectal cancer, was measured radioimmunologically. The peritoneal collagen type IV levels were elevated in 13 (26%) of the patients with gastric cancer, in 8 (23%) of those with colorectal cancer, and in none of the control subjects. The mean concentration of collagen type IV in tumors characterized by peritoneal dissemination was significantly higher than that in those without metastasis; however, there were no significant differences in the collagen type IV levels between tumors with and those without liver metastasis, or between those with and those without lymph node metastasis. There was a significant correlation between the peritoneal collagen type IV level and survival time in patients with clinically evident peritoneal dissemination. A positive correlation was also found between collagen type IV and carcinoembryonic antigen levels. In conclusion, the levels of peritoneal collagen type IV provide evidence of peritoneal dissemination, and can aid in the prediction of life expectancy in patients with adenocarcinomas of the gastrointestinal tract.

Successful one-stage operation for completely obstructive colorectal carcinoma.

We describe herein a new and successful method of performing a safe and steady one-stage operation for completely obstructive colorectal carcinoma. First, a long ileus tube is utilized to decompress the dilated proximal bowel preoperatively and irrigate the feces-loaded colon intraoperatively. Following this procedure, a standard resection with radical lymph node dissection is carried out without a diverting colostomy. We performed this procedure successfully in seven patients, none of whom developed any anastomotic leakage.