Different View on Tumor Size Dilemma in Tumor-Node-Metastasis Staging System for Thymoma.

BACKGROUND: Although tumor size is included in the definition of T descriptor in the tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) classification of many solid tumors, it is not considered for thymomas. This study aimed to assess the relationship of tumor diameters (the largest tumor diameter [LTD] and the mean tumor diameter [MTD]) with survival in thymoma patients undergoing surgical resection in a single center. METHODS: The study included 127 thymoma patients (age, 49.2 ± 15.2 years; 65 males), who were evaluated based on pathological tumor sizes according to the LTD and MTD ([largest diameter + shortest diameter] / 2) and divided into three subgroups for each parameter as: patients with an LTD of ≤5 cm, 5.1 to 10 cm, and >10 cm and patients with an MTD of ≤5, 5.1 to 10, and >10 cm. RESULTS: In thymoma patients, survival significantly differed according to the presence of myasthenia gravis (p = 0.018), resection status (R0 or R1; p = 0.001), T status (p = 0.015), and the Masaoka-Koga stage (p = 0.003). In the LTD subgroups, the overall survival of those with R0 resection was lower in those with an LTD of 5.1 to 10 cm than in those with an LTD of ≤5 cm (p = 0.051) and significantly lower in those with an MTD of 5.1 to 10 cm than in those with an MTD of ≤5 cm (p = 0.027). In the MTD subgroups, survival decreased as the tumor size increased. CONCLUSION: Both smaller tumor size and complete resection are associated with better survival in thymoma patients. Therefore, the largest or the mean tumor size might be considered as a criterion in the TNM staging for thymoma.

Hemopneumothorax After Trigger Point Injection for Fibromyalgia.

CONTEXT: Trigger point injections (TPIs) and acupuncture are common procedures in management of chronic back pain and usually are considered safe. Needling into cervical and thoracic regions can be associated with life-threatening complications. OBJECTIVE: The team intended to make practitioners aware of the potential for hemopneumothorax after TPI. DESIGN: The research team describes a case of hemopneumothorax after TPI. SETTING: The case study took place in the Department of Emergency Medicine at the Ankara University School of Medicine (Ankara, Turkey). PARTICIPANT: The participant was a 45-y-old woman, who had been admitted to the emergency department at the School of Medicine with dyspnea and dizziness after TPI for fibromyalgia. RESULTS: Computerized tomography of the thorax showed a significant hemopneumothorax at the right hemithorax and a collapsed right lung, markedly in the right, lower lobe. The hemopneumothorax was successfully treated with chest-tube and video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Health care professionals need to be aware of hemopneumothorax when performing TPI on the chest wall.

Complete resections of giant thorax masses and experienced difficulties.

INTRODUCTION: Thoracic giant masses do not have a clear definition. In some publications, giant thoracic mass definition is used in tumors whose long axis is> 10 cm and in other publications covering more than 50% of the hemithorax. In this study, demographic data of patients with a massive resectable giant thoracic mass and the difficulties and experiences experienced in the peroperative process were reviewed with a general perspective. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 14 giant intrathoracic masses operated at the department of Thoracic Surgery, School of Medicine, Ankara University were included in the study. The masses occupying more than half of the hemithorax and mediastinal lesions with a long axis of 15 cm or larger radiologically were included and evaluated. RESULT: 9 (64.3%) of our patients were male and 9 (35.7%) were female. The average age was 49.2 ± 17.1(between18-68). The tumor localizations of our patients were determined as 9 (64.2%) hemithorax and 5 (35.8%) mediastinal. When the radiological and intraoperative dimensions were examined separately, it was observed that the mean of long axis of CT image is average 18 ± 3.8 cm (between 12 cm and 26 cm), and the mean of long axis of specimen is average 18.14 ± 3.6 cm (between 15 cm and 23 cm). The heaviest mass was average 844 ± 473 g (350 g-2204 g). CONCLUSIONS: The surgical maneuvers and hence the excision of giant masses become difficult to operate due to the narrow localization of the masses and the frequent invasions of adjacent vascular structures and nerve tissues. However, complete resection of these slowly growing and generally encapsulated masses can provide the cure.

The outcome of bifocal surgical resection in non-small cell lung cancer with synchronous brain metastases: results of a single center retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: The reported median survival in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) metastases to the brain varies from 3 to 12 months with combined treatment modalities. Bifocal surgical resection of synchronous brain metastasis and primary NSCLC has not been reported widely, and there have been only a small number of articles published in the literature. The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the prognostic factors among patients undergoing bifocal surgical resection. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 28 patients who had a solitary metastatic brain lesion at the time of diagnosis, and underwent synchronous surgical resection of the brain metastasis and primary lung tumor. Survival time was measured in all the patients from the date of craniotomy until death or the most recent date of follow-up for those still surviving. RESULTS: Mean age was 53 years. The mean length of follow-up was 23.6 (4-69) months. The overall survival rates were 79, 42, and 8% at the 1st, 2nd, and 5th years, respectively. The median length of survival was 24 ± 3.8 months. The median survival was found to be statistically significantly lower for the stage T3 tumors when compared with both stage T1 and T2 tumors (p = 0.037). CONCLUSION: NSCLC patients with resectable solitary cranial metastasis, low locoregional stage (stages IA, IB, IIA) in which T3 status is counted out, with no mediastinal lymph node involvement or any other extrathoracic spread will mostly benefit from consecutive complete resection of both tumors and are supposed to have a better survival.

Oncological results in primary and secondary malignant chest wall tumors.

Background: This study aims to evaluate the oncological results of primary and secondary chest wall tumors treated with curative resections and to investigate possible prognostic factors. Methods: Between January 2010 and December 2021, a total of 77 patients (53 males, 24 females; median age: 59 years; range, 3 to 87 years) who underwent curative resection for malignant chest wall tumors were retrospectively analyzed. Each tumor was staged according to its histological type. Age, sex, tumor diameter, tumor type (primary/secondary), histological tumor type, grade, stage, complete resection, rib resection, reconstruction, neoadjuvant and adjuvant therapy, recurrence, and survival data were recorded. Results: Of the chest wall tumors, 33 (42.9%) were primary and 44 (57.1%) were secondary (local invasion, metastasis). Nine (11.7%) patients had positive surgical margins. Chest wall resection was most commonly performed due to lung cancer invasion (46.8%), followed by Ewing sarcoma (13%). Recurrence was observed in 34 (44.2%) patients. The five-year recurrence-free survival rate was 42.7% and the five-year overall survival rate was 58.6%. There was no significant difference between the primary and secondary tumors in terms of recurrence-free and overall survival (p=0.663 and p=0.313, respectively). In the multivariate analysis, tumor grade and rib resection were found to be independent prognostic factors for both recurrence-free survival (p=0.005 and p<0.001, respectively) and overall survival (p=0.048 and p=0.007, respectively). Conclusion: Successful oncological results can be achieved in wellselected patients with primary and secondary chest wall tumors. The grade of the tumor should be taken into account while determining the neoadjuvant or adjuvant treatment approach and surgical margin width. Rib resection should not be avoided when necessary.

Comparison of deep learning-based recurrence-free survival with random survival forest and Cox proportional hazard models in Stage-I NSCLC patients.

BACKGROUND: The curative treatment for Stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is surgical resection. Even for Stage I patients, the probability of recurrence after curative treatment is around 20%. METHODS: In this retrospective study, we included 268 operated Stage I NSCLC patients between January 2008 and June 2018 to analyze the prognostic factors (pathological stage, histological type, number of sampled mediastinal lymph node stations, type of resection, SUVmax of the lesion) that may affect relapse with three different methods, Cox proportional hazard (CoxPH), random survival forest (RSF), DeepSurv, and to compare the performance of these methods with Harrell's C-index. The dataset was randomly split into two sets, training and test sets. RESULTS: In the training set, DeepSurv showed the best performance among the three models, the C-index of the training set was 0.832, followed by RSF (0.675) and CoxPH (0.672). In the test set, RSF showed the best performance among the three models, followed by DeepSurv with 0.677 and CoxPH methods with 0.625. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, machine-learning techniques can be useful in predicting recurrence for lung cancer and guide clinicians both in choosing the adjuvant treatment options and best follow-up programs.

Three in one: A case presented with multiloculated thymic cyst, thymic Hodgkin lymphoma and pericardial cyst.

Multiloculated thymic cyst is a cystic reaction of medullary epithelium to inflammatory process. In most cases, the exact cause of the inflammation is not known. Hodgkin lymphoma and multiloculated thymic cyst coexistence is a rare condition and may cause significant diagnostic difficulties. Herein, we present a rare case who underwent surgery for multiloculated thymic cyst and was subsequently diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma and had a concurrent pericardial cyst.

Benign localized fibrous tumor of the pleura: report of 25 new cases.

OBJECTIVE: Benign localized fibrous tumors (BLFT) of the pleura are very rare slow-growing neoplasms that generally have a favorable prognosis. The aim of this manuscript is to evaluate the predictors of outcome with the review of the literature in a series of 25 patients with BLFT. METHODS: Between January 1985 and November 2009, 25 patients underwent an operation due to BLFT. Of these patients, 14 (56%) were male; mean age was 41.1 (25 to 64) years. All patients underwent thoracotomy. Left thoracotomy approach was used in 16 patients. The mass lesions were totally excised. The histopathological examinations were performed with hematoxylin-eosin and immunohistochemical staining methods. RESULTS: Of the patients, 18 (72%) were symptomatic. Symptoms were cough in 36%, shortness of breath in 32%, and chest pain in 20% of the patients. One patient (4%) appeared to have some symptoms (pain and swelling of the joints) associated with pulmonary osteoarthropathy. Seven patients (28%) underwent an operation due to mass lesion detected at routine control visits. None of the patients had a history of exposure to asbestos. Radiological investigations revealed 16 (64%) mass lesions in the left. Of the lesions found on exploration, 5 (20%) were intrapulmonary localized lesion without pedicle and 20 were pedicled. Of the pedicled masses, 5 were connected to parietal pleura and 15 to visceral pleura and all were intrathoracic extrapulmonary localized lesions. Eight (32%) lesions connected to left lower lobe. Additionally, three pedicled lesions were located in the lung fissure. Pedicled lesions were totally excised together with their pedicles. Intraparenchymal mass lesions were resected using wedge resection. The diameter of the resected masses was ranging between 3 and 22 cm (mean: 8.7). Macroscopically, all were encapsulated with a homogeneous cut surface. Intraoperative mortality and morbidity was not observed. The average hospitalization duration for all patients was 8.6 days (5 to 12). The mean follow-up was 33.6 (9 to 142) months with no recurrence. CONCLUSIONS: Benign localized fibrous tumors are uncommon and treated by surgical means. According to our data obtained from literature review, clinicians should be aware of recurrence possibility even after complete resection of benign localized fibrous tumor and the risk of malign transformation.

Comparison of outcomes between neoadjuvant treatment followed by surgery and surgical treatment alone in patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer: Our single-center experience.

Background: This study aims to investigate the effect of neoadjuvant therapy on overall survival and recurrence-free survival in locally advanced esophageal cancer patients. Methods: Between January 2010 and December 2019, a total of 143 patients (84 males, 59 females; mean age: 58.8±11.5 years; range, 26 to 87 years) operated for esophageal cancer were retrospectively analyzed. A comparison was made between the groups of 42 patients who underwent direct surgery and 42 patients who underwent surgery after neoadjuvant therapy. The patients were selected by matching one to one with propensity score with a sensitivty of 0.054. Results: Pathological complete response was observed in 21 (50%) of 42 patients who received neoadjuvant therapy. No progression was detected in any of the patients. While the five-year overall survival rate was 58.3% in patients with a pathologic complete response, this rate was 52.8% in patients without a complete response (p=0.709). The five-year overall survival rate was 8% (median 22.3 months) in patients who did not receive neoadjuvant therapy and it was 52.9% (median 62.5 months) in those who received neoadjuvant therapy (p<0.001). The five-year recurrence-free survival rate for patients who did not receive neoadjuvant therapy was 26.2% (median 14.5 months), whereas this rate was 41.3% (median 35 months) for patients who received neoadjuvant therapy (p=0.025). Conclusion: In patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer, the overall survival and disease-free survival rates are significantly better with surgical treatment after neoadjuvant chemotherapy/ neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy compared to surgery alone.

[Pulmonary arteriovenous malformation: two sibling cases]. / Pulmoner arteriyovenöz malformasyon: Iki kardes olgu.

Pulmonary arteriovenous malformations, are abnormal connections between pulmonary arteries and veins. However it can be presented as an isolated single anomaly, also may be multiple when accompanying with autosomal dominant hereditary hemorrhagic telengiectasia (Rendu-Osler-Weber Syndrome; ROWS). In this case report, two patients operated with the diagnosis of multiple pulmonary arteriovenous malformation familial screening done with the possibility of ROWS and pulmonary arteriovenous malformation found in her sister, are presented.

Pulmonary sclerosing pneumocytoma with mediastinal lymph node metastasis: a case report.

Pulmonary sclerosing pneumocytoma (PSP) is a rare tumor and the imaging appearance is usually a well-circumscribed nodule. Herein we present the clinicopathological features of a 25-year-old female patient with a 4 cm mass in the left upper lobe. She had undergone lobectomy with lymph node dissection with an incorrect intraoperative frozen section diagnosis of adenocarcinoma and diagnosed as a PSP with lymph node metastasis on permanent sections. The 3-year follow-up of the patient is uneventful.

Effectiveness of intraoperative bimanual palpation in metastatic tumors of lung.

BACKGROUND: In this study, we aimed to compare effectiveness of thoracic computed tomography versus intraoperative bimanual palpation in the detection of number of nodules in patients undergoing thoracotomy. METHODS: Between January 2011 and January 2019, a total of 157 patients (63 males, 94 females; mean age: 46.6±11.2 years; range, 13 to 77 years) who underwent pulmonary metastasectomy in our institution were retrospectively analyzed. Metastatic nodules evaluated using thoracic computed tomography were compared with nodules detected by intraoperative palpation. RESULTS: A total of 226 muscle-sparing thoracotomy was performed in 157 patients. The time between the preoperative thoracic computed tomography and operation ranged from 3 to 24 days. Metastasectomy with muscle-sparing thoracotomy was performed in 41 (26%) patients two times, in eight (5%) patients three times, and in four (2.5%) patients four times due to bilateral lung metastasis or re-metastasectomy. The thoracic computed tomography could detect 476 metastatic nodules, while 1,218 nodules were palpated and resected intraoperatively. Of these nodules, 920 were pathologically evaluated as metastatic. CONCLUSION: Our study results showed that the number of nodules reported as pathologically malignant after resection was 1.9 times higher than those reported by thoracic computed tomography. This finding indicates that intraoperative bimanual examination significantly increases the possibility of complete resection. This situation raises the need for more caution for the thoracoscopic metastasectomy procedure in which there is no possibility of intraoperative bimanual palpation.

Primary pulmonary paraganglioma: Two cases.

Paraganglioma is a rare tumor originating from extra-adrenal chromaffin cells. Primary pulmonary paraganglioma can also be seen in pediatric patients. Due to its endobronchial localization, morphological features, and neuroendocrine immunohistochemical profile, primary pulmonary paraganglioma can be confused with carcinoid tumor. Primary pulmonary paraganglioma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of endobronchial tumors and necessary precautions should be taken, considering that it may be functioning. In appropriate cases, bronchial sleeve resection provides curative treatment. In this article, we present two cases: First was a functioning primary pulmonary paraganglioma that underwent lobectomy and second was an entirely endobronchial tumor without any extra-bronchial spread that underwent bronchial sleeve resection.

Sublobar resections in early-stage non-small cell lung cancer.

BACKGROUND: This study aims to evaluate the outcomes of sublobar resections in patients with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer and to investigate the factors affecting survival. METHODS: Medical files of a total of 63 patients (52 males, 11 females; mean age 64 years; range, 39 to 81 years) who underwent sublobar resection for suspected or known early-stage non-small cell lung cancer between January 2001 and August 2013 were retrospectively reviewed. Data including demographic characteristics of the patients, comorbid conditions, smoking status, surgical margin, visceral pleura invasion, distance from surgical margin to tumor, tumor size, pathological N status, cell type, tumor localization, and recurrences were recorded. RESULTS: Survival was significantly longer in the patients with negative surgical margin for tumor (R0) than in those with positive margin (R1) (94.1 months vs. 32.2 months, p<0.01). Survival was also significantly longer in the patients without lymphatic invasion (p<0.01). CONCLUSION: In early-stage lung tumors, sublobar resection can be performed, if complete resection is performed. Lymphatic invasion is a negative prognostic factor for survival following sublobar resection.

Prognostic factors for stage I lung adenocarcinoma and surgical management of subsolid nodules.

BACKGROUND: This study aims to identify the prognostic factors for stage I lung adenocarcinoma and to evaluate the surgical management of subsolid nodules. METHODS: The study included 133 patients (90 males, 43 females; mean age 64.9 years; range, 29 to 82 years) who had undergone operation in our clinic for stage I lung adenocarcinoma between January 2007 and December 2015. Clinical, radiological and pathological data were retrospectively evaluated and their effects on recurrence and survival were examined by Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analyses. RESULTS: Comparing the histopathological tumor types according to the pathological tumors size, we determined that the prevalence of invasive adenocarcinoma significantly increased with increasing tumor size (p<0.001). For all nodules, a tumor disappearance rate lower than 25% negatively influenced disease-free survival and a maximum standardized uptake value higher than 5.6 negatively influenced overall survival (p=0.027 for both). The grouping, which was performed considering the maximum standardized uptake value 5.6 as the cut-off value, was an independent prognostic factor for overall survival (hazard ratio: 5.973, 95% confidence interval: 1.186-30.073, p=0.03). Five-year overall survival rate was statistically significantly higher in patients who underwent wedge resection or segmentectomy for subsolid nodules compared to those who underwent lobectomy (100% vs. 79.3%, p=0.044). CONCLUSION: Sublobar resections can be safely performed in subsolid nodules smaller than 2 cm in diameter with tumor disappearance rate ≥25% and maximum standardized uptake value ≤5.6.

Swallowing of a dynamic tracheal stent: an unusual complication.

Cicatricial tracheal stenoses are mainly related to iatrogenic injury as postintubation, posttracheotomy or postoperative. Advances in airway prosthetics have provided a variety of silicone stents and expandable metal stents as a therapeutic option for tracheal stenoses. Nowadays, dynamic tracheal stents are performed prevalently for the treatment of tracheal stenosis. Four major problems are currently associated with airway stents: Mucostasis, formation of granulation tissue, infection and migration. In this report, we present a case of swallowing a tracheal dynamic stent as an unusual complication of tracheal stents.

A new non-invasive diagnostic method for lung lobe torsion: pulmonary CT angiography.

Torsion of the remaining lung lobe after lobectomy is an uncommon event which is difficult to diagnose and may result in hemorrhagic infarction and fatal gangrene. We report a case of right upper lobe torsion after middle lobe resection for bronchiectasis, diagnosed with noninvasive pulmonary computerized tomography (CT) angiography. Rethoracotomy with an upper lobectomy was performed. She was asymptomatic at the two-year follow-up. Although the bronchoscopy has a great value in the diagnosis, CT angiography is an effective noninvasive method for confirming the correct diagnosis. A high index of clinical suspicion, early diagnosis and aggressive management may improve survival.

Parenchyma-preserving surgery in the management of pulmonary hydatid cysts.

Pulmonary hydatid cysts remain a significant health problem in endemic regions like Turkey. Here, we present our surgical experience in patients with pulmonary hydatid cysts. Between January 1985 and January 2001, 1118 operations were performed in 1032 patients (528 males, 504 females; mean age 32.7 years; range 1-87 years) with pulmonary hydatid cysts in our department. Posterolateral thoracotomy was performed in 1015 (98.3%), two-stage thoracotomy in 34 (3.3%), and median sternotomy in 17 (1.7%) patients. We preferred conservative surgical procedures. As a surgical procedure, cystotomy and capitonnage was performed in 626 (56%), cystotomy alone in 368 (33%), wedge resection in 81 (7%), enucleation in 29 (3%), and decortication in 11 (1%) patients. None of our patients were treated with anatomic resection. During surgery, 949 patients (92%) had unruptured and 83 patients (8%) had ruptured hydatid cyst. The morbidity ratio was 6.7%. Major complications were wound infection (2.3%), prolonged air leak (1.9%), atelectasis (1.2%), pleural effusion (0.8%), postoperative hemothorax (0.6%), and empyema (0.3%). Two patients (0.2%) died within the first month postoperatively. Mean follow-up was 31.2 months. Recurrence was detected in only 35 patients (3.3%). Treatment of pulmonary hydatid cyst is primarily surgical. Medical treatment is indicated for recurrent and multiple hydatid cysts postoperatively. Cystotomy alone, or cystotomy and capitonnage, as parenchyma-preserving surgery, is preferred. Radical surgery including pneumonectomy, lobectomy, and segmentectomy should be avoided.